Coni

I wasn’t a runner. Like, never. I was the definition of a ‘couch potato’ most of my life. My heart didn’t grow with me, so physical activities were something that seemed impossible to me growing up, and I just kind of accepted my fate as an adult. But I always loved the outdoors. So I hiked. As much as my limitations allowed me to. Until one day mid-last year I realized that it was my mindset what was stopping me, not my tiny heart. So I started running. With only one minute intervals I’d be out of breath. But I continued putting my running shoes on and going out. No excuses. By the end of the year I was still very slow, but I finished several races, including my first half marathon. Not in my wildest dreams I thought I could run 21K. But there I was, getting a medal at the finish line! Just a month later I got diagnosed with cancer. And chemotherapy made it impossible for me to run. Hell, I could barely walk! After surgery, when my body was strong enough, I had to start all over. One minute intervals. Breathless. But with a stronger mind, knowing I’m capable of anything I set myself to do. I did a few very slow 5K races in September/October, and then I had another surgery. I’m still recovering from that. I still can’t start training. But I know I will. So I signed up for a half marathon in February. And another one in the mountains in April. And to my first Spartan in July. And to a trail (full!) marathon in September. It seems unfathomable to me now. But I love a good challenge and I’m sure that at least I’ll give it my all 💪 📍 Vodice Trail Run - Split Glow Run - Race for the Cure - Runesco Šibenik Half Marathon - Lucky Train Nin - Lošinj 6K // Who knew that running would get me to travel around the country? Hopefully soon it’ll be around the world! ✨ #limitationsareperceptions #runninglife #trailrunning #runninginspiration #happyrunner #strongmindset #halfmarathoner #trailrunninglife #suckitcancer #cancerjourney #couchto5k #couchpotatonomore #marathontraining #adventurealways

The joy of choosing to be child-free 🐣 Don’t get me wrong, I love kids. I have nieces and nephews from my siblings and close friends that I adore. But motherhood is not for me. I grew up believing that in order to have a happy life there were boxes to tick: go to university, get married, get a postgrad degree, have kids… So I planned my life around those ‘goals’. I graduated from Law School, I got married, I moved abroad to get a fancy postgrad degree. Kids were always in the back of my mind, sort of in a ‘to do list’, but I never felt like I was ready. I was successful but unhappy. So at some point something in my mind made me stop and consider why I was following this check-list that was never really my own. I got divorced, I changed careers, and I made the conscious decision that I actually didn’t want to be a mother. I got some judgement for the first two, but the child-free thing is something that society has a lot of issues understanding. Luckily, my partner and I are on the same page about this, and his is the only opinion that really mattered on the subject. I feel like every decision I’ve made that’s ‘outside the box’ is received as if I was passing judgment on those who are having a more conventional take on life, especially when it comes to parenthood. And it’s quite the opposite. I believe that everyone has to follow their own path in life, looking for what makes you happy, not for what the rest expects you to do. If having children is something that will fulfill you, then go ahead. Being an aunt is more than enough for me. I love having the freedom to see the world, to fight cancer without worrying about a life that depends on me, to be unapologetic about who I am 💪

✨ Things we need to normalize ✨ Aging is a beautiful thing -don’t fight it, embrace it Not all women want to become mothers -some will fill fulfilled when they bring life to the world, some will find happiness in a child-free path Asking for help -there’s no need to go through anything on your own, you will come out stronger if you rely on your community Don’t follow someone else’s path -it’s harder to find your own, but it’ll lead you to be your true self Climbing the corporate ladder is not for everyone -some of us want to climb mountains, some don’t want to climb a thing University is not the only acceptable option to have a successful life -each of us have a different way to define success, and a college degree doesn’t guarantee you’ll get there Rest doesn’t need to be earned -we should be able to have leisure time just because, without any guilt You don’t have to be the best at what you do, especially when it comes to hobbies -you just need to enjoy yourself! What else do you think we should start normalizing? #sheisthewild #beyourtrueself #findyourownpath #happinessissimple #happycamper #natureisourplayground #optoutdoors #ittakesavillage #totravelistolive #theworldisbeautiful #offthebeatenpath #takethedirtroad #dirtroadtherapy

What do you know about Bosnia and Herzegovina? BiH has been ruled by many different peoples. From the Illyrians, to the Romans, to the South Slavs, to the Ottomans, to the Austro-Hungarians, to the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes, to the Independent State of Croatia, to Yugoslavia, to a bloody war that gave it its independence, BiH is today a place where cultures, ethnicities and religions coexists. I wish I could say peacefully… It’s impossible to understand what’s going on today without knowing a bit more about the country’s ethnicities. Since the arrival of the South Slavs in the 7th century, they started to grow apart, under the influence of different religions: Islam, Catholicism and Orthodox Christianity, developing into today’s Bosniaks, Croats and Serbs. Well, Yugoslavia put them all under the same roof, an experiment that was a ticking bomb. Until it exploded. Everyone wanted independence. But BiH was trapped between Croatia and Serbia. To put an end to the war, a peace agreement was sign. BiH would be an independent country, composed of two entities: the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, inhabited mostly by Bosniaks and Croats, and the Republika Srpska, populated mostly by Serbs. However, the nationality of all three ethnicities is Bosnians. I know, it’s horribly confusing. And it gets worse! The presidency of the country is tripartite, which means a three-member body that collectively serves as head of state: a Serb elected by Republika Srpska, and a Bosniak and a Croat elected by the Federation. A three-headed monster, like in mythology, the one that ends up eating its own body. Literally, a nightmare to reach any important decision. Never looking to the well-being of the country as a whole. The saddest thing is that all three ethnicities are South Slavic people, and have a very similar cultural, linguistic, and historical heritage. However, emphasizing the differences is deeply ingrained, every nation having a strong sense of its own national identity. It’s quite a lot to grasp, but trust me, it’s one of the most fascinating places you can visit. And yes, those are goats on an abandoned house in the middle of nowhere in rural BiH.

I’ve seen countless posts here saying that ‘when you move to a different country you’ll never be home again’. Your new place will always be a little bit foreign, and your home country will became more and more foreign over time. There’s a layer of truth to it. But I think it’s the wrong perspective to approach it. Being the granddaughter of immigrants, and an immigrant myself, I can tell you that I don’t feel alien in any of the two places. I feel at home in both. I have family and friends I grew up with in one, and a family that I chose in the other. Everyone of those people make me feel like I’m home, no matter where we meet in the world, because they are my home 🩷 I just when through another surgery, and instead of feeling alone or far, I felt loved. By those here, and by those on the other side of the world. I had good vibes sent my way from every time zone. I’m lucky to feel like I belong everywhere 🥰 What’s home to you? #sheisthewild #ibelonghere #ibelongeverywhere #immigrantlife #ibelonginthemountains #cancerjourney #suckitcancer #strongerthancancer #wanderlusters #borntotraveltheworld #happycamper #youngandwildandfree #freetoroam #worldcitizen

We have all the information we might possibly want at our fingertips, yet most of us don’t know how important being outside is -both for our bodies and minds. The Japanese call it ‘shinrin yoku’ -‘forest bathing’ in plain English. It’s the simple method of being calm and quiet amongst the trees, opening your senses to the surroundings, observing nature around you whilst breathing deeply. The healing powers of nature are vast, so go outside! #forestbathing #forestbathingtherapy #sheisthewild #optoutdoors #idhikethat #takemetothemountains #mindfulnessmoment #breathofthewild #gooutandexplore #welcometonature #hikevibes #mindfultravel #travelwithpurpose #freshairandfreedom #getoutsidemore #wildernessculture #keepitwild

So many of our problems could be solved if we take the time to disconnect from the hectic world we live in, and connect with nature instead 🌱 #sheisthewild #forestbathing #foresttherapy #connectwithnature #findyourselfoutside #freetoroam

Happy camper 🏕️ I grew up camping every summer. Some of my earliest memories are from trips to a National Park in the south of Chile. But, as with so much, adulting gets on the way and we forget about some things that brings us joy. When packing for the trip to Sutjeska NP I got the tent in the trunk, hoping to find some meadow at the foot of a mountain. And what a meadow we found! Overlooking beautiful Maglić (the highest summit in Bosnia and Herzegovina) the tent was pitched. And it brought all the joy ✨ #sheisthewild #happycamper #campingvibes #mountainadventures #maglic #bosniatravel #sutjeska #connectwithnature #freesoul #treehugger #hippiegirl #sheisnotlost #wanderingsoul #wanderlusters

Time for celebrations! 🥳 I managed to finish one more journey around the sun! Yesterday was my birthday, and after the year I’ve had, I can only feel grateful for another year alive and kicking 🎉 So let me catch you up. I spent so many months in chemotherapy that they felt like years. Then I had a partial mastectomy, and a while recovering from surgery. And the good news started to come. ✨ I’m officially cancer free!!! ✨ I still have another surgery, a month of radiotherapy, and several months of immunotherapy to go, to make sure the tumor never returns, but the worst is definitely behind me. Now I’m slowly recovering my strength -running, hiking, little by little feeling like myself again 💪 My favorite nurse in the chemo ward told me that a healthy person wishes a hundred wishes, while a sick person only wishes for one. As a *formerly* sick person, I just wish for a healthy new year! For all the women reading this, remember to check your boobs, mine tried to kill me, and even though I’m coming out on the other side strong, not everyone is so lucky! 📍 Trnovačko Lake, Montenegro #sheisthewild #breastcancerjourney #suckitcancer #hikemoreworryless #sustainabletourism #adventurealways #wanderlusters #mountainsoul #takemetothemountains #youngandwild #strongerthanyouthink #alwayspositive

Zelengora, the perfectly named green mountain. My ‘welcome back to hiking’ party was supposed to be easy, but Sutjeska National Park had other plans. 17+ km and almost 1000 meters of elevation through forests, ridges and valleys. A beautiful walk in the woods that confirmed my stubbornness. I was completely underprepared, but my mind is stronger than my legs. I started the day hoping to get to a lake, and to the lake I got 💪 #sheisthewild #adventurealways #hikingtheglobe #hikingaddict #hikelikeagirl #awalkinthewoods #sutjeska #bosnianature #bosniatravel #youngandwild #roadlesstraveled #roamwild #wildernessearth #sustainabletourism #mountainscenery #balkantrip #hikemoreworryless

First trip after my diagnosis 👣 I’ve been counting down the months and days until I would finish chemo and recover from surgery to get the clearance to start feeling like a human again. The cancer patient role is definitely one I don’t like to play… About a month ago my oncologist told me I could slowly start training. So I started running again. At an excruciating slow pace. One-minute run, gasp for air, one-minute walk. Considering that through chemo it was hard for me to walk *down* one flight of stairs, just moving felt amazing! Fast forward a few weeks and I’m still running slow, but I’m running, so I decided to see if I could handle hiking. I could also leave the country for a short while without interfering with my treatment, let’s go to the mountains! There was so much anticipation towards where the first trip would be after so many months grounded, that I had to make it special. So I chose a place that’s wild, raw, off the beaten path, almost untouched… And it’s been perfect for my soul. Welcome to Sutjeska National Park in Bosnia and Herzegovina! 🇧🇦 I tell you more about this gem on the next posts, so keep an eye over here! #sheisthewild #cancerpatientlife #fuckcancer #backtonature #optoutdoors #hikingadventures #lifeoutdoors #sutjeska #visitbosnia #borntobewild

That what ignites you 💫 #croatiafullofmagic #croatiafullofnature #croatiafullofcolours #biokovo #mountainsmeetsea #croatiatrip #croatiancoast #croatiatravel #croatialove #croatian #optoutdoors #alwaysadventure #wanderlusters #sayyestoeverything