Ikigai
A small book about finding a reason to get up in the morning. Easy to read, and it stayed with me longer than I expected.
Read journal →The Mediterranean Sea
Calm water, long coffees and a mask for snorkelling. The Mediterranean is where life moves in a different way.
Some people miss a city when they move away. I missed the sea. I have lived in Germany for many years now, and of everything I left behind in Indonesia, the ocean is what I think about most. Back there, it is never far away. Here, it is a long drive or a flight. So whenever I can, I head south to the Mediterranean. And every time, it feels like the right choice.
Why It Works for Me
It is not the same as the sea in Indonesia, and it does not try to be. The water is calmer, often perfectly flat in the morning, and so clear that I can see the bottom from the surface. It is not a place for big waves or grand adventures. It is a place for slowing down.
The places I like most are the quiet ones. A small bay, a few boats, no cars, just people getting around by bicycle, and a café by the water where people sit for hours and nobody seems to be in a hurry.
Peaceful Underwater
In a small bay like that, what I enjoy most, and spend many hours doing, is exploring the underwater world. It is so beautiful. The one that impressed me most was in Croatia, especially around Badija, a small island just off Korčula. The water there is so clear that it feels like floating in the air above the rocks. Below me there was so much marine life: schools of little fish moving together, sea urchins tucked into the cracks, small crabs hiding under the stones, and sunlight dancing on the seabed. It was honestly majestic.
Badija, near Korčula, Croatia
Under the surface, the world grows quiet. The only sound is my own slow breathing, and the fish go about their business as if I were not there at all. I can stay out there for an hour without noticing the time, and when I finally come back up, it just feels different.
Close Enough to the Sea
It does not replace the sea in Indonesia, and I do not expect it to. But living so far from it, the Mediterranean gives me what I have in Indonesia: calm water, a beach life and that feeling of being close to the sea again. For someone who loves the sea, it is pretty much perfect.
