"I felt like I was in a dream that I never wanted to wake up from" - Cori_explore in interview

In this interview, Cori tells us what travel means to her, why sustainability is particularly important to her, and how she came to become a travel blogger. In April, she accompanies us to exciting Kyrgyzstan.

In Kyrgyzstan, she will give us up-close impressions on Instagram. What does the country look like, what do the local people like to eat? And what exciting things happen on the trip with TripLegend? All these and many more impressions we may then on her Instagram channel Cori_explore follow along. We are already looking forward to it!

You can already read about the most exciting, embarrassing, beautiful and difficult moments of her past trips in the interview. In addition, we learn what she expects from the trip to Kyrgyzstan and how she does not fall into stress on the last day before the trip.

15 Questions for Cori

1. You've been traveling for quite a while now and have your own blog. How did it come about? What made you decide to leave your established life in Germany behind for the time being and move out into the wide world?

The whole thing came about by chance. I was traveling through Argentina with a friend in early 2019. My friend thought I needed to get an Instagram profile and gave me a little Instagram crash course on the trip. That's how my profile Cori_explore came into being. I have loved writing since I was a kid and after the trip I founded my blog travelmehappy.com. My blog was my hobby and then came so well that I could make my hobby a profession, although this is only part of my self-employment. In addition, I still work as a solution-focused consultant and coach, photographer and have my own company, a mini caravan rental.

I come from a very simple background and my parents never had much money to finance big trips for me and my brother. We often went camping. Then I met my current husband in 2008. In 2010, we flew to Cuba together. It was the first time I had ever left Europe and that was when it happened for me. The trip changed everything in my life. I felt like I was in a dream that I never wanted to wake up from. During my studies, I worked a lot on the side to finance my travels. I didn't really leave Germany behind. I didn't go on a world tour or anything like that, but I invested all my free time to travel the world.

2. what did you do before, and do you sometimes miss your old life? 

I have a bachelor's degree in social work and social pedagogy. For many years I worked in a counseling center for women who were victims of human trafficking. Not an easy job, but I enjoyed it very much. I quit my last job in pregnancy conflict counseling about 1 1/2 years ago. What I definitely miss sometimes is the security of having a steady income every month or getting off work and then really being free. In self-employment, that with the financial security is not always given, but the many benefits I no longer want to miss.

"Looking a wild lion in the eye triggered a lot of things in me that I didn't think would happen"

- Cori_explore

3. now you have been able to discover over 40 countries in the world - what was the most special destination for you, which you perhaps would not have expected? 

My Trip to South Africa I found very special, especially for my emotional world. On safari in the Klaserie Private Game Reserve, I felt mortal fear for the first time in my life when I squatted at a waterhole in total darkness and a lioness walked past me only 2 meters in front of me. In general, looking a wild lion in the eye triggered a lot in me that I would not have thought. It was a moment when I realized that I don't want to do my job like that anymore. Primal instincts were awakened. A short time later, I threw myself into the adventure of self-employment.

In South Africa, I also faced my biggest fear and went shark cage diving. When I think back on it, I can only shake my head. I would never have thought before that I would do something like that. I also didn't expect Cape Town to stress me out so much. I hadn't imagined it to be so oppressive, constantly having to watch out for my own safety. Nevertheless, I visited a township and took away an incredible number of impressions that I still often think back to today. And last but not least, I adopted a young penguin named Alf, who will hopefully swim the seas again.

4. your blog is a lot about sustainable travel - just like ours. Do you have any important tips for our explorers on how they can make their experience abroad more environmentally friendly? What is most important to you?

Sustainability is very close to my heart when traveling and in everyday life. Here are some of my tips:

• There are various platforms through which you can find sustainable accommodations that use solar energy and offer regional food, for example. 
• Consume regional instead of imported food
• Tours at local guides book
• Instead of the big all inclusive hotel choose a smaller hotel with half board
• Pick up a reusable bottle and transfer water from large canisters instead of buying individual plastic bottles
• The less your luggage weighs, the better. Low weight = Lower Co2 emissions
• Fill shampoo from home into small containers and take a bar of soap with you instead of shower gel
• Stay on the trails when hiking and in nature in general
• Do not touch animals, shells and corals in the sea, use a natural sunscreen
• Depending on which country you are traveling in, take your trash back home with you, since not all countries have good trash management
• Offset CO2 after the trip

What is most important for me, I can not say so at all. I try to implement things of it in every vacation and to get out the best for me in the moment. In general, you should take the pressure out of having to implement everything. Everyone should do it as he can for himself. In general, it is better to implement one thing than none.

5. your first adventure with TripLegend will take you to Kyrgyzstan. An unknown and yet so exciting country. Why did you choose this destination? What particularly fascinates you about the country?

I chose Kyrgyzstan precisely because it is still such an unknown country. Admittedly, I would never have thought of telling my husband: Hey, let's go to Kyrgyzstan. I'm attracted to pretty much everything there because so little is known and I think it's quite a great country. Kyrgyzstan was never really on my radar as a travel destination.

6. and what do you hope to experience on this trip? What are your expectations for the experience in Kyrgyzstan?

My expectation is to get to know the country and its people so that I can report back home: This is Kyrgyzstan. I hope to meet many new people with whom I will have a good time and of course not to forget the breathtakingly beautiful local nature. I am also looking forward to the experience of sleeping in a yurt.

Deciding to travel the world professionally is certainly a dream for many. It worked for you. What fascinates you most about traveling, what gives you the motivation to keep exploring new places on our planet? 

Traveling and discovering the world is pure freedom for me. I have an unquenchable thirst for adventure and an unstoppable portion of curiosity. Every trip educates me. Not only do I learn something about each individual country, but I also learn something new for life and, above all, I get to know myself anew. Whenever I return home from a trip, the experience has triggered something in me. I am in love with the world in the truest sense.

8. what was your biggest failure so far, where did something go really wrong on your travels and how did you get out of this situation? What did you personally take away from it as an experience? 

I can actually think of two different situations. In Morocco, I had booked a room in a small riad in the middle of Marrakech. It was already midnight when we reached the accommodation. Just as we were about to lie down, we realized that the bed was teeming with bed bugs. So we packed our bags, trudged through Marrakech in the middle of the night, got in the next cab and headed for the nearest Ibis Hotel. Since then, I always look at the beds first.

 "Inside me lies an unquenchable thirst for adventure".

- Cori_explore

But the worst was in Nepal. We were traveling with a group whose average age we lowered significantly. A few days before our flight home we landed in the mountains at 2500 meters altitude in a "mountain resort". It was already dawn. Out of the room ran pretty much the whole troop backwards again. It was - 3 degrees cold, the heating did not work and everything was moldy. Yes, even the toilet paper. How did I get out of the situation? I didn't. We were stuck. The bus could not go down the serpentines in the darkness and there was no other accommodation.

So we ordered a bottle of rum and hot water, got drunk until the lobby closed down, put on pretty much all the clothes we had and lay down on the bed. Three hours of sleep was enough. To compensate, we not only got a thick cold including a two-week vacation extension in the form of a sick bill, but also the most beautiful sunrise on the Himalayan mountains. Sometimes you can not change certain situations and must make the best of it.

9. and have you ever had a really embarrassing moment because you didn't understand someone? How do you deal with the language barrier when people don't speak English?

There was certainly not only once. In Argentina, we did a tour. I was the only one on the bus who didn't speak Spanish. The guide translated everything into English especially for me. Embarrassingly, I fell asleep and the whole bus stared at me. My English is by no means perfect, so I am quite relaxed about it. Especially in Argentina I met many people who did not speak English. We communicated via Google Translate. Otherwise, I am very skilled at hand-foot gesticulation. Somehow you can always communicate.

10. what is the biggest hurdle for you when traveling, what bothers you, but unfortunately is always part of it? 

Definitely flying, driving a car, taking a train or traveling by boat.

I suffered from fear of flying for a very long time and every flight was pure exertion for me. During my coaching training, the fear has fortunately disappeared completely. However, I suffer from travel sickness and unfortunately nothing works without my medication. 

11: You usually travel with your husband on your tours, what makes traveling without familiar faces so special for you? 

This will actually be the very first solo trip for me. I have never flown alone before. So the entire trip will be something very special for me. Being on my own without a familiar face will certainly be an experience from which I will learn a lot. It's also a much faster way to make connections. You leave your comfort zone. I have always had good experiences with that. I'm looking forward to meeting new people and growing beyond myself.

You attach great importance to environmental awareness, sustainable nutrition, and ecologically sound transportation. What motivates you every day anew to protect our planet? 

I have seen so many corners of this world, which is a true privilege. The beauty of the world and its inhabitants are my drive to try to preserve our planet every day.

13: Your left wrist is decorated with a small tattoo of a camera - is there a special story or experience you associate with it? 

My passion for photography started 10 years ago on my Iceland round trip. Meanwhile, I also work as a photographer. The tattoo was created on a humid happy evening in my apartment, stung by my brother. So I carry not only always my camera with me, but also a person who means a lot to me.

What do you like to photograph the most? And do you have a subject that you are particularly looking forward to in Kyrgyzstan? 

I prefer to photograph animals and landscapes. I am fond of details and have a passion for macro photography. I find it incredibly exciting to show small things in a big way and to offer the viewer a perspective that he would not have expected.

I am looking forward to the Ghost town, the eagles and the fairy tale gorge as photo motifs very special. Let's see how many memory cards I fill in the end.

15 Last but not least: What do you do the day before a long trip? Do you pack everything at the last minute or can you look forward to the destination in a relaxed manner?

I always start packing a few days before, so that I am completely relaxed the night before. Last but not least, I write myself a little list of things that I absolutely have to pack in the morning. And, of course, I always have a good cuddle with my cats.