Coming home, taking a breath, moving on.

After my last post, it has been quite quiet here. Yes, that's because Manchester didn't become a stopover but rather a final destination.

For the first time in my life, I missed a flight. The flight to Copenhagen.

Hopefully, this will never happen to me again, it cost me countless nerves and tears.

The airline that I booked the flight with was not very helpful. With the statement that there would be no flights to Scandinavia or Germany today or tomorrow, they left me standing there.

I wandered aimlessly through the airport, searching for an alternative flight. I was sent from one airline to the next. Every time, I started crying again before I could explain my situation.

Yes, one could say, why didn't she just go back to the hostel in Manchester and plan again calmly the next day?

Yes, that would have probably been the most sensible and cheapest decision.

But my nerves were completely shot, I was excited and confused. I couldn't make any logical or sensible decisions anymore, I was overwhelmed by emotions. I felt abandoned, helpless, and desperate.

After wandering around the Manchester airport for what felt like an eternity, I saw a flight to Düsseldorf on the display board that was supposed to depart the next morning.

In my eyes, that was my salvation, off to Düsseldorf and then home to take a breath.

I spent the night at the airport with a group of English boys. They also missed their flights and could only fly the next morning.

The later it got, the more I longed for my flight. I had already been awake for 24 hours and was completely exhausted. This was already taking its toll because after landing in Düsseldorf, I got on the wrong train. Instead of going to Karlsruhe, I went to Würzburg and then back from there.

I finally arrived in Karlsruhe in the late afternoon.

The joy of seeing my family was immense.

However, the first two days were not easy for me. I constantly felt plagued by the thought that I shouldn't be here. I had planned 5 months of traveling and now it felt like I had given up.

But no, I haven't. During my trip, I have already reached my limits, surpassed them, and grown beyond myself.

On the journey to get to know oneself better and find oneself, recognizing boundaries and accepting them is also part of it.

Once I understood that, I could also enjoy the time at home and reorganize myself.

Most of the time, I spent with my family and our new puppy. But I also met friends and visited my colleagues.

During my time at home, I was able to regain new strength and courage.

And so, tonight I'm heading to Berlin. The plan is to spend 4 days there with my travel buddy, preparing for a 3-week round trip through Eastern Europe starting on July 20th.

We will meet in Berlin and plan our journey.