What the Horses Leave With Us

Pegasus Horse Holiday, Lake Saimaa · August 2026

What stays with us after a journey?

Sometimes it is not the place we expected. Not even the experience we travelled for.

Sometimes it is a feeling.

This August, I hosted two women at Blueberry Villa on Lake Saimaa for a slow travel horse holiday with Pegasus Reiterreisen. They arrived from different countries, different generations and with very different histories with horses.

Esther, 85, came from Switzerland. She has ridden all over the world. Long trail rides in South America, South Africa, Canada and beyond. Days spent in the saddle, travelling through landscapes on horseback. She still has two horses of her own and continues to ride, travel and go out into the world on her own.

Cathi, 28, a psychology student from Germany, arrived on her first solo trip. Her first horse holiday. She had not ridden for two years.

One has a lifetime of horse journeys behind her.

The other may have just begun.

For a few days, their paths met here in Finnish Lakeland.

The horses are part of the journey

This is a horse holiday, but it is not only about riding.

That distinction matters to me.

The horses become our companions in experiencing the landscape. We walk to them together. We spend time around them. We begin in the arena when needed and gradually move onto the trails.

Then we ride.

Through Finnish forest and wilderness. Along quiet paths and through a pear orchard, where we could reach from horseback to pick ripe pears from the trees and eat them together with the horses.

There is time.

Time to notice the swans.

Time to hear the birds.

Time to see what is growing beside the trail.

Time to talk, and time not to.

At Blueberry Villa, the same rhythm continues.

Fire and water

One of the things that struck both women was the immersion in nature.

At the lakeside sauna, fire and water became very real.

We lit the wood-burning sauna stove with firewood from our own forest. We watched the flames through the small window of the stove and listened to the wood crackling.

Outside was Lake Saimaa.

Fire inside. Water outside.

Heat on the skin. The smell of burning wood. Steam rising from the sauna stones. And the birch whisks. The cool lake waiting only a few steps away. Bare feet. Wind. Silence.

This is sensory awareness in its simplest form. We do not have to intellectualise it. The body notices before the mind needs to understand.

The fire became part of our food as well. I smoked salmon for us, and there was joy not only in eating it but in watching and waiting as it slowly cooked. Like so much of what we ate during these days, the pleasure began before the food reached the table.

During Pilates on the terrace, we watched birds flying above us and clouds slowly moving across the sky.

Sitting on the pier, the reeds swayed along the lakeshore.

We took the boat across the waters of Lake Saimaa to visit Stone Age rock paintings, marks left by people who lived beside these waters thousands of years before us.

And we ate from the landscape around us.

Nettle and herbs. Chanterelles. Tomatoes from the garden. Blueberries, raspberries, lingonberries and blackcurrants. Barley, rye bread, vegetables, fresh, simple food.

Esther told me she eats everything. Fresh food, movement, curiosity, some sun and no need for vitamins.

At 85, you listen.

How do you stay young?

I found myself observing Esther.

Her excitement about everything was infectious.

At 85, after travelling and riding around the world, she was still curious.

Still interested.

Still willing to go somewhere new on her own.

Still taking care of two horses.

Still choosing movement, either you go to the gym or have a horse.

Still very much in the present.

When we talked about how she stays young, there was no complicated formula. There was curiosity, movement, fresh food and continuing to participate in life rather than watching it pass.

Perhaps most importantly, there was an openness to what came next.

I watched her experience Lake Saimaa with the enthusiasm of someone seeing the world for the first time.

And yet she has seen so much of it.

Having something of your own

Our conversations naturally travelled beyond horses.

We talked about relationships and the importance of having something that is your own, even when you share your life with someone.

A partner does not necessarily need to love the same things you do. Perhaps what matters more is understanding what makes the other person feel alive, and giving each other the space to follow it.

For one person, that might be horses. For another, something completely different.

You can agree on the terms of your life together so that both have time for what they love. Time to travel, ride, create, explore or simply be somewhere on their own.

There is something important in this.

We don't have to get all our happiness from each other. We can have our own passions, experiences and sources of joy and then bring that happiness back into the life we share.

Perhaps having something of your own doesn't take you away from each other.

Perhaps it is also one of the ways we remain happy together.

And perhaps that is another form of empowerment: knowing what brings you alive and allowing yourself to follow it.

The first journey

With Cathi, I witnessed something different.

This was her first solo trip and her first horse holiday. Simply deciding to come required trust.

She had not ridden for two years. We started in the arena, allowing her to reconnect with the horse and with herself before heading onto longer trails.

Then something began to change.

One image has stayed with me.

Cathi with the horses on the pasture.

The happiness on her face was completely open. Nothing needed to be added to that moment.

She had done it.

She had travelled alone. She had returned to horses. She had moved from the arena into the forest and onto the trails. She had trusted herself enough to begin.

What stayed with her was empowerment.

She also spoke about two things she wanted to take home with her: the importance of pausing and the importance of remaining grateful for what she already has.

The German word Achtsamkeit came into our conversations.

Mindfulness. Awareness. Paying attention.

Noticing your life while you are actually living it.

What stayed with them

At the end of a transformative journey, after reflecting along the way, I often return to a simple question:

What struck you? And what will stay with you?

The answers are rarely a list of sights.

What stayed from these days was hospitality.

A special energy.

A feeling of being newborn.

Empowerment.

Gratitude.

Achtsamkeit.

The horses were there throughout, but so were the forest, lake, sauna, food, walking, conversations, silence and companionship.

They all became part of the same experience.

Esther told me I was the best host she had ever had. Coming from a woman who has travelled so extensively around the world, her words touched me deeply.

But what mattered even more was seeing what happened while we were here together.

What stayed with me

As a host and coach, I don't stand outside these journeys.

They affect me too.

What stayed with me was Cathi's open happiness when she was with the horses on the pasture.

And Esther's excitement for everything.

Her love of life.

Two women, 57 years apart in age.

One taking her first solo journey.

One still taking solo journeys at 85.

Perhaps they were not so different after all.

Both were willing to go.

Both were curious about what might happen.

Both allowed themselves to be present. And are now my friends.

And both reminded me that there is no particular age at which we are supposed to stop discovering ourselves or to stop making room for what makes us feel alive.

How this slow travel horse holiday works

The idea behind my slow travel horse retreats is not to fill every hour.

It is the opposite.

We use horses, nature and the Finnish way of living close to the elements to create space.

We ride, but we also walk.

We eat, but we notice where the food comes from.

We sauna, swim and sit beside the lake.

We watch the fire, cook with it and feel the cold water against our skin.

We explore the Finnish forest and the ancient landscape of Lake Saimaa, including travelling by boat to the Stone Age rock paintings.

We pause.

We use sensory awareness and reflective conversations to notice what is happening within us as we travel.

There is no single outcome we are trying to reach. What emerges is different for everyone.

For one person, it may be rediscovering a passion that has always been there.

For another, it may be discovering the confidence to travel alone.

It may be gratitude for the life waiting at home.

It may be understanding that you need more space for something you love.

Or it may simply be remembering what it feels like to be fully present.

And slowly, the journey becomes about more than where we have been.

It becomes about what we will carry home.

Esther plans to return.

Cathi plans to continue exploring the world through other horse holidays.

The horses will stay with her.

And these days at Lake Saimaa will stay with all three of us.

That, to me, is what transformative travel can do.

You leave the place. But something of the journey continues travelling with you.

Follow your nature.

You can book your Slow Travel Horse Holiday for the 2026 autumn and 2027 summer now via Pegasus. More here.

— Mirka Kristiina Bruun
The Finnish Happiness Coach
Founder, The Journey Studio

Off for the Holidays

Holiday is a loaded word, especially when it comes to travel. Our holiday trips often carry expectations far beyond the journey itself. During the dark months, we dream, plan, compare destinations, make reservations, and wait for that special moment when we can finally close our laptops, lock the front door, and head off toward something we have been longing for.

The Travel Anxiety We Rarely Talk About

Yet when the time finally arrives, beneath the excitement there can also be apprehension.

Will everything work out? What if there is an airline issue? Will we make the connection? Will the weather cooperate? Will the accommodation be what we expected?

Whatever may happen along the way, travel anxiety is often less about the disruption itself and more about the pressure we place on ourselves to keep everything under control. Delays, cancellations, and unexpected changes can trigger stress that was already present before the journey even began.

I have learned that much of our discomfort comes from the belief that a successful holiday depends on everything unfolding exactly as planned.

Taking a Sensory Pause

One practice I use myself is what I call a sensory pause.

Instead of immediately trying to fix the problem or search for solutions, I step outside, take a slow walk, and consciously notice what I can see, hear, smell, and feel. The warmth of the sun on my skin. The sound of distant birds. The scent of rain or pine trees. The feeling of my feet meeting the ground.

More often than not, clarity arrives when I stop fighting the situation.

I also try to focus on what remains within my control rather than what has been lost. This is one of the reasons I love slow travel so deeply. Leaving space between destinations and allowing time for the unexpected creates room not only for practical solutions, but also for experiences that could never have been planned.

What Is Perfect, Anyway?

Many travelers today feel pressure to make every trip perfect. Yet some of the most meaningful experiences emerge from unexpected detours.

Perhaps there is a hidden place you would never have discovered otherwise. Perhaps there is a conversation, a landscape, or a moment of stillness that was quietly waiting for you all along.

Travel is not only a journey across places. It is also an opportunity to notice how we ourselves, and those traveling beside us, respond to uncertainty.

Sometimes the most important question is not:

"Why is this happening?"

But rather:

"What is this moment inviting me to notice?"

These are the real treasures we bring home from our travels. Not the perfect itinerary, but the moments that changed how we saw the world, and ourselves.

If you wish to explore personal travel coaching, read on here.

You Deserve Luxury

This month, I have been in the luxurious position of hosting visitors in my garden, forest, and lakeside world here in Finnish Lakeland.

Together, we have followed the movement of rainbow catchers dancing in the breeze and sparrows building their nests.

We have listened to young owls calling from the evening forest, picked and preserved spruce tips, gathered nettles, prepared the herb garden, collected horses from their pastures for forest rides, rowed to 5,000-year-old rock paintings, heated the wood-burning sauna, and swum from the shore beneath the midnight sun.

Most importantly, we have paused for meaningful conversations along the way.

Why are we here?

Why does the lake call us more strongly than the forest path today?

What is it about a particular flower, tradition, scent, or place that awakens a memory or stirs something within us?

The Caretaker's View

Looking from another perspective, I am also the caretaker and keeper of this place.

I mow the grass, trim the forest, carry firewood, water seedlings, rake leaves, plant flowers, clean rooms, prepare meals, and varnish terraces.

Yet there is beauty in all of it.

It is the kind of quiet happiness many of us in Finland seek.

There is something deeply satisfying in slowly heating the lakeside sauna, making a birch whisk for a gentle blessing in the steam, arranging wildflowers on the terrace table, or watching the garden flourish through the season.

When I work with my hands, I feel connected, to nature, to myself, and to something much older than either.

I am reminded of both my smallness and my responsibility.

In caring for my surroundings, I restore a little of myself as well.

Giving Attention

When visitors arrive, they receive my undivided attention.

Whether we are walking to collect the horses, preparing dinner together on the terrace, making birch whisks, exploring island landscapes, or sitting quietly by the lake, there is space to simply be.

It is remarkable to think that people travelled these same waters over 5,000 years ago.

Lake Saimaa was the highway of the first settlers.

Along its shores, they left us messages in stone; rock paintings depicting people beneath the waves and hunters pursuing moose for their livelihood.

The waterway was important then, and it remains important now.

It is where the midsummer sun sets in a blaze of red before rising again just a few hours later.

It is where stories have always travelled.

What Luxury Really Means

To me, luxury is not found in excess.

Luxury is breathing in the fresh wind.

Walking barefoot through the morning dew.

Taking a swim when the feeling arises.

Picking chanterelles or berries along the trail.

Napping on a warm terrace.

Listening to waves beneath a pier.

Watching salmon slowly cook in a traditional smoking pot.

We do not need very much.

The greatest luxury may simply be presence.

Being fully present with yourself and with those around you.

No roles.

No expectations.

No performance.

Just being.

Meeting Yourself Again

This is midsummer in Finland.

This is what happens during the reflective moments of the Luontopolku – Back to Your Senses® method.

This is what my Finnish Happiness Camps are about, whether you join for an afternoon nature walk, a day retreat, an overnight stay, or a longer slow travel experience.

Because it is not only me that you meet here.

After a long time, you may also meet yourself.

Creating Space for What Matters

I believe in creating high-value, sustainable experiences that respond to the growing desire for wellbeing through authentic places, meaningful encounters, and a genuine connection with nature.

Rather than trying to do more, I focus on helping people do less, with intention.

To slow down.

To restore themselves.

To reconnect with what truly matters.

You can find my services through The Journey Studio or through the Travel Coach Network.

Alongside my Finnish Happiness Camps and Slow Travel Horse Holidays, there are still a few dates available this summer for reflective nature experiences and private retreats.

I am also beginning to share more stories from this corner of Finland through my YouTube channel, documenting the landscapes, traditions, wildlife, and everyday moments that inspire this work.

Until then, I wish you a beautiful Finnish midsummer.

Take a moment to pause.

Listen to the wind.

And believe in a little magic again.

Mirka Kristiina Bruun
Founder, The Journey Studio

Back in Time

A Saturday at Xaló Market

I return to the Xaló Saturday market every so often.

Sometimes I go searching for something particular. Most often, I go simply to wander along the riverside; to enjoy the music, the hum of mixed European languages, and the possibility of unexpected treasures.

In sunny February, when spring quietly breaks winter’s spell and almond trees begin to bloom, the village feels especially alive. Cyclists move through the narrow streets. Conversations flow in Spanish, Dutch, German, French, English. The market becomes a meeting place of seasons and stories.

A Gift of Time

This week my son is visiting with his friends. I asked him to find a birthday gift during our Xaló day; something I would buy for him, a small reminder of time spent together here.

I wasn’t looking for anything myself. I was simply following the young ones, enjoying their reflections, their laughter, their rhythm.

And yet.

It didn’t take long before I found myself standing before a stack of vinyl records. Ever since restoring the old record player at Blueberry Villa, these records have been quietly calling me.

Recently back in the western saddle with a new quarter gelding as a coachee, I instinctively picked up My Country – Songs, die dir Freiheit geben, with voices like Johnny Cash and Kenny Rogers.

Two euros later, “Country roads, take me home” accompanied me along the riverbank.

Treasures That Carry Stories

There is something about touching and even smelling objects from the past.

They carry lives lived.
Dreams pursued.
Time that has passed and yet lingers.

I have never felt lighter than I do now. Owning less. Needing less.

I admire the handbags I once collected. I smile at the Tiffany lamps I once searched for. Letting go has brought me closer to what truly matters.

I bought one more thing: Jules Verne’s Viaje al Centro de la Tierra in Spanish. It feels like a promise. This will be the first full book I read in my chosen language.

And then, a simple green glass jar for the stones I collect during my walks. It has been empty for a long time. Now it waits again.

The Village That Holds Stories

Our final stop was the Xaló vintage store, always worth visiting. Its owner, a photographer, once captured Finnish band Hanoi Rocks in the 1980s. The shop feels like a museum disguised as a boutique.

Whenever I bring people here, we rarely leave empty-handed. This time, my son found a shirt that felt right. Not because it was needed but because it resonated.

What Is Calling You?

During my retreats, I bring guests to this market at the end of their stay.

Before we begin wandering, I ask them to pause.

To listen.

What is calling you here?
What do you want to carry forward, not just in your bag, but into your life?

It is always meaningful to hear why they choose what they choose.

Often, the object is small. The shift behind it is not.

Choosing How We Spend Our Days

We all choose, every day, how we spend our time.

Slow markets.
Shared afternoons.
A record.
A book.
A jar waiting to be filled.

I have become ever more mindful of how I spend mine.

And if you ever feel called to wander these riverbanks, listen to what is asking to be noticed, or experience the rhythm of this valley more deeply, you are welcome to join me.

Sometimes a market is just a market.

Sometimes it is the beginning of something quieter, and more meaningful.

You can explore further here.

Happy Valentine’s Day to You

A different kind of love story

It’s a day we may love or hate, celebrate with friends the Finnish way or with someone dear to us.

Over the past year, I’ve often spoken about a love story when sharing my path of leaving and returning with purpose. Not the kind of story we usually expect, but the one that changed everything.

For years, like many of us, I gave and gave. I handled, managed, waited.

Until one day I realised: it was me who had to let something go.

Choosing time

When I took my sabbatical travels, I gave up a lot. Income, yes. Certainty, maybe.

But time? That was priceless.

There was no other way I could have bought the learning, clarity, and courage that came from travelling solo. I needed that time out.

And the love story I found was the most profound one of all: finally choosing myself.

Doing what I had long wished to do.
Investing in my own wellbeing.
Getting a little lost, only to find my way back home, within.

That journey was the best wellness retreat I could ever have given myself.

From travel to transformation

It’s been a year since my sabbatical ended, and so much has changed. Clarity has formed.

Travel gave me new insight, not only about the world, but about ourselves. That curiosity led me deeper into my Travel Coach Network studies.

Once a travel director, I now design experiences that don’t just take you somewhere, they take you deeper into yourself, into place, into culture.

Once a manager and supervisor, I now guide people to pause. To listen inward. Whether travelling far or simply walking a familiar forest trail.

Sometimes we look at ourselves in the same mirror for too long. We swim in the same fishbowl.

But when we step into a new environment or meet someone who truly sees us, our vision clears.

Reshaping life gently

Last year, I gently reshaped my life. Not overnight, not dramatically, but consciously. I built a structure that supports a lifestyle “on a journey every day.”

I started telling my story. Asking for help. Preparing ahead.

And interestingly, when we speak from the heart, the right people appear.

Not everyone needs to change their life completely, move countries, or leave their job.

But everyone deserves more peace. More balance. More small moments of happiness.

Courage looks different for each of us

Sometimes it’s a sabbatical.
Sometimes it’s a mindful morning.
A new hobby.
A quiet weekend trip.
Or simply a gentle pause.

Small acts of self-love, repeated throughout the year.

If you ever feel the call to create space for yourself to reflect, reset, or redesign your path, I’m here to walk alongside you and share what I’ve learned.

We don’t need to carry heavy bags.

Awareness leads to courage.
And courage grows step by step.

With love

Sending love to you this Valentine’s Day.

Photo by Claudia Boos.

The Circle Closes

This January 2026, I am returning to Helsinki Matka Nordic Travel Fair an altogether different role: as a fellow traveler.

Once a travel executive and promoter of the Lake Saimaa region, I now stand here to tell how travel can take us to places, but more importantly, how it can bring us back home, within. When we travel intentionally, paying attention to ourselves and our surroundings, connecting with people and places, we also journey deeper into ourselves. Travel shows us how else life could be. It takes us off autopilot, sometimes even out of our comfort zones. In doing so, it resets us, supports our wellbeing, and invites reflection: are these new experiences something we want more of in our lives?

Travel as a Counterbalance

While the world speeds ahead and constantly pushes our boundaries with its demands, travel becomes a counterbalance, a resetting force that allows us to slow down and return to something that calls us. A feeling. A place. A moment where we see ourselves glowing again. As travelers, we are free, at our purest. When nobody knows us, we can shed our masks. We no longer need to play roles. We can simply be.

And we do not need to travel far. Or for long. We only need to turn our ear inward and allow ourselves the moments we truly need.

Nature as the Way Back

For me, nature has always been that place of return. It has echoed my answers back to me, allowed me to be alone in safety, and reminded me of who I am. Solo moments in nature; walking trails, slow rituals, quiet reflection, inner conversations bring us back to our own path. The more often we return to nature with a question in our hearts, seeking clarity, the clearer the picture becomes. Our breath softens. Our direction sharpens.

I believe it can be that simple.
Our nature is calling us all.

Listening Instead of Performing

We do not need yoga or breathing techniques, although I know they are wonderful and do much good. We can simply begin by giving ourselves time. By walking. By listening. By allowing what moves us to guide our choices and, in time, our travels.

A Year of Transformation

Last year marked a profound turning point for me as I founded my own business as a transformative travel coach. It has been a year of change, of reconnecting with wonderful people, both familiar and new, and of building wellbeing-focused travel experiences in Finland and abroad.

Returning to Helsinki Matka Nordic Travel Fair

At Helsinki Travel Mart this year, I am speaking as the founder of The Journey Studio, sharing my story and my Luontopolku Back to Your Senses® method. I am also honored to represent my dear partner Aktiv-Resor, speaking about how travel can bring wellbeing into our lives through experiences such as our “Appelsiinipuut kukkivat jo Valenciassa” retreat.

I will be available to meet from Friday 16 January to Sunday 18 January, and on Saturday 17 January from 13:00 to 14:30 you are warmly invited to join us at the Aktiv-Resor stand 7p128 for a connecting hour with my inspiring friend Saimi Hoyer.

Back Where I Belong

Travel and taking time for myself brought me back to where I belong: happy, present, and on a journey I now build consciously, day by day.

I look forward to meeting you at the fair, later this year, or wherever your path may take you. I would be honored to walk alongside your journey.

Happy travels,
Mirka

Read more about:

Appelsiinipuut kukkivat jo Valenciassa retreat.

Plan your own journey.

Pohdi omaa matkaasi kanssani.

Photo by Claudia Boos.