Writer, Photographer, Traveller, Designer, Artist and Dreamer
[WHAT IS IT ALL ABOUT?] [NICE TO MEET YOU] [MY FORK IN THE ROAD] [EXPERIENCE OF A LIFETIME] [WHAT AM I DOING WITH MY LIFE NOW] [LIVING FEARLESSLY]
WHAT IS IT ALL ABOUT?
This blog is a private-yet-public corner of the internet where I reflect on life, share my travels, and document the world through a stranger’s eyes (that would be mine). You’ll also find glimpses of my art and photography sprinkled throughout. It’s a mix of wonder, curiosity, and personal growth—perfectly imperfect, like life itself.
NICE TO MEET YOU
I am Nicky.
Let me tell you a bit about myself;
I was born with an incredible elongated head in 1981, but since the doctors modelled it back into shape, they prevented a beautiful grand career in the travelling freak show and thus I had to go and find something different to do with my life.
I’ve since worn many hats: European by birth 1Born in Germany, lived in the Netherlands, Great Britain, Spain, Portugal, and now Malta. I don’t feel German, Dutch, British, Spanish, or Maltese, but I try to take the best from each culture with me and evolve., Designer 2I am an enthusiastic and creative graphic designer and multimedia engineer with 6+ years of experience in print and web design., Writer 3I started writing for several music magazines, such as but not limited to powermetal.de and German Rock Magazine as well as having my own online magazine together with a colleague as I was living in Germany many moons ago. After I moved to the Netherlands I stopped writing for them and started to write for international webzines but couldn’t combine it with my life back then. In the past years, I found my passion back and started this blog. As a writer, I keep refining my skills and practise my passion infrequently now., Photographer 4I specialize in macro and portrait photography, capturing the beauty in every detail. I photograph events like weddings and gallery openings and collaborate with artists to showcase their unique character., Traveller 5I travel when I can and dream about the next destination when I stare into space. You can see my travel map on TripAdvisor, Diver 6Freshly certified PADI Scuba Instructor, with a love for the silence and wonder of the underwater world., Artist 7I am a silversmith but I also create ‘things’ from different materials and write blog posts, lyrics, or poetry., Dreamer 8Next to the obligatory daydreaming about places to go, things to photograph and projects to finish, I also have a Bucketlist and an Amazon wish list., and—like it or not—a human being. It’s a lot, I know, but life’s more fun when you’re multifaceted.
Oh, and I share my home with three cats—Ekky, Seth, and Satan—who graciously allow me to live with them.
MY FORK IN THE ROAD
Life, to me, is a river: sometimes calm, sometimes wild, with the occasional dramatic waterfall.
2002 I fell in love and moved from Germany to the Netherlands. I traded dreams of touring the world for suburban life with a house, a boyfriend, and some cats. I thought I’d found my soulmate—my Neo to take the red pill with, my Clyde to be Bonnie. Spoiler: fairytales don’t always last. That chapter ended in 2014 with my first major waterfall.
Since then there have been a few smaller forks in the road. My current partner and I have moved several times since then. Though we both hate moving, we are glad to have found someone that equally loves exploring different countries and cultures and is willing to put up with the painful process of boxing up everything over and over again.
Currently, we’re knee-deep in renovating a centuries-old house of character in Malta—a project that’s teaching me patience, perseverance, and how to coexist with a mountain of dust.
EXPERIENCE OF A LIFETIME
Travel has always been a passion, but for years I barely ventured beyond Europe. Pyramids, Aztec temples, and the great American road trip were dreams I kept close but could not make real.
In 2014 I finally had the courage to look at my life and take another big leap. I went on the trip of a lifetime with a stranger. 81 days in the USA from which I spend 52 days on the road. 12578 km of road beneath our mx’s wheels. We have visited 13 states and 2 countries and marvelled over nature, culture and ourselves.
Back then I still had to sort out a lot about my life, and I might have missed some amazing opportunities and experiences. However it showed me how much of my own potential I wasn’t using and how much I still have to learn about myself. Even traveling is a skill you learn over time. It’s not just about the destinations; it’s about how you grow along the way.
WHAT AM I DOING WITH MY LIFE NOW
Only the best I can… I try to gather as many experiences as possible, with the goal of having as few regrets as possible at the end of my life’s journey. That includes seeing as much of the world as I can and embracing new challenges, whether it’s creating art, diving into the depths of the sea, or working on personal projects that bring me joy.
I love traveling, though it’s not always easy to push myself out of my comfort zone to experience life and other cultures. When I’m not exploring, I’m usually behind my camera, capturing the tiny details that others might miss or diving into a new creative project—like renovating our centuries-old house in Malta, which is its own kind of adventure.
LIVING FEARLESSLY
I believe that we are often our own greatest enemies, held back by fear and doubt. My blog is my way of navigating through those doubts and learning to live more openly and fearlessly. By sharing my insecurities, my successes, and my failures, I hope to inspire you to do the same—or even better—and live the most excellent life you can.
Drop me a line someday and tell me how it’s going—I’d love to hear about your journey!