Honestly, Easter week snuck up on me. As the old saying goes, time flies when you’re having fun. After arriving back from Düsseldorf a few weeks ago, Johana and I have been busy with our shifts at TSH, making plans for our upcoming road trip through Europe, and getting into new mini adventures!
Hamburg-Gardens
The other week, Johana and I took a trip over to Hamburg to visit my uncle and complete some “Mystery Shops” (basically a paid shopping trip where you have to complete a survey on the performance of the staff, with photos and such). One of the new Workawayers at TSH is really into this, so we’ve been doing a few here and there for some extra money.
On the way to the west side of Hamburg for the first mystery shop, we decided to spend a few hours in the botanical gardens. Now that spring is in full swing, it sounded like the perfect mini date—and the gardens did not disappoint. They were magnificent! So much variety, and I couldn’t get over how fresh the air was, filled with the scent of flowers and greenery from all around the world. It was really lovely.
The mystery shop itself was a piece of cake. Johana just had to try on some jeans in a Levi’s store and gauge how attentive the staff were. All marks were perfect, and we were out of there in like 20 minutes.
At that point, my uncle had gotten off work, so we made our way over to his place. Johana went off to explore more of Hamburg, while I stayed back and shared a few beers with my uncle as we caught up on everything that’s happened since we last spoke—before my trip to Levi, Finland, back in November.
My grandmother on my father’s side had recently passed (God rest her soul), so my uncle and I talked about her final days, everything that had happened in Finland, my plans for the future, and of course, all that had gone on over the winter.
Later, Johana and my aunt joined us for dinner at a fantastic Vietnamese place just around the corner. I got curry chicken with rice and vegetables. Delicious!
After dinner, we caught the train and rode back home.
Easter
We really didn’t have any plans for Easter, but by complete chance, one of our friends from last summer decided he wanted to visit, perfectly timed for Easter.
It was fantastic having him here again—it really felt like old times. We had no idea anything particularly special was going on for Easter, but another one of our colleagues at TSH suggested we go to the beach to see the big fire that was going to be lit. It sounded perfect! So, after dinner, we grabbed some bikes and rode over to the beach!
The vibes were very similar to the beach week that we all loved so much last summer. There was a lot of music, food, and activities for the kids. It really started to feel like life was coming back to this area after such a long winter, where everything had been cold, dark, and otherwise depressing. We arrived a bit early for the fire, but in order to secure a spot as close as possible, we made our way over to the beach and just hung out right on the safety perimeter of the fire. Right at 20:00, the fire was lit!
We spent hours on the beach just goofing around and enjoying the mini festival. We got home late and shared a few beers before finally crashing.
The next morning, Johana and I had to work the morning shift in the restaurant. As always, once the guests left, we all came together and shared breakfast. It really felt like old times again. After the shift, we spent the whole day just catching up. We went for a long walk and decided that once the sun went down, we’d head back to the beach and light some unused fireworks that we had bought for New Year’s.
It was magical…
Two weeks left.
It breaks my heart, honestly, that we only have 2 weeks and a bit left here. We’ve already been offered the chance to continue our stay, and it’s very clear that we will be missed. But Johana and I both want to keep moving so we can see more of the world.
“Adventure is out there” – Up 🎈
My God, I’m going to miss this place.