Up and away: off to Bali!

Laura and Finn have been traveling the world as digital nomads for over 3 years. In 2020, they took the ultimate step of leaving everything behind, packing their backpacks and venturing around the world with just a one-way ticket. They explored Southeast Asia during the pandemic. Since then, they have fallen in love with the beautiful island city of Bali. On social media, they take us along on their exciting adventure and share breathtaking insights through pictures and videos, as well as valuable tips and advice. In this interview, they tell us about the most beautiful beaches and why Japan and safaris in South Africa are very special memories for them.

• Laura and Finn Instagram
• Laura and Finn YouTube

Local cuisine – the courage to taste!

FIV: Hello Laura and Finn, you’ve already been on some fantastic trips and have a lot of experience. Where do you think we should save money on vacation, if possible?

Laura and Finn: Overpriced western food. We love trying out the local cuisine in new countries and can only recommend it to anyone. Sometimes it seems a bit scary and unfamiliar, but for us it’s part of traveling. You should at least give the local cuisine a chance. If you fancy a pizza or pasta from time to time, that’s perfectly fine!

Vacation or adventure trip? That’s a matter of type!

FIV: You dared to emigrate to the big wide world, so do you generally prefer going on an adventure trip to a classic vacation?

Laura and Finn: It totally depends on what the goal is! Both have their pros and cons. If you want to relax and simply enjoy yourself, you should go on vacation. Unfortunately, we often miss out on that because when we’re somewhere beautiful (even if it’s actually meant for relaxing), we somehow have the feeling that we want to share it with our community – so we end up working again.

Going on vacation simply means switching off from everyday life and not having to plan anything else during your vacation. Traveling, on the other hand, means challenges for us personally.

Traveling is about learning and seeing new things.

Discovering new cultures, stepping out of your comfort zone, being open to new things. Traveling is exhausting and has little to do with relaxation. Traveling often involves changing locations, moving around a lot, packing suitcases, lots of sightseeing, etc. You also need to stay spontaneous and “let yourself drift” during the trip. If you like a place, stay longer and if not, spontaneously move on. Traveling is about learning and seeing new things.

I think in the end it’s all about the mix. Sometimes an exciting new trip (preferably into the unknown) and sometimes just going on vacation without the pressure of having to see something and just having a good time.

These islands have fantastic beaches to offer

FIV: You’ve traveled a lot around the world and have certainly been able to see some islands with great beaches, is there a favorite that you could recommend to us?

Laura and Finn: I don’t know if this counts as an island, but we saw some insanely beautiful beaches in Western Australia. After our relatively spontaneous wedding for two in Perth, we took a road trip up to Exmouth. The nature we saw there was unique! Such beautiful white beaches with turquoise water and a really impressive underwater world

Otherwise, the beaches of Koh Lipe in Thailand and the beaches in Boracay, Philippines, also surprised us extremely positively. Both corners of the world were a dream for swimming, but compared to Western Australia, Thailand and the Philippines are of course much more touristy. So there was also a lot more going on there.

In Europe, we liked the beaches on Milos the best!

Insider tips away from mass tourism

FIV: The most annoying thing on vacation is usually when you have to queue up everywhere because of the loud tourist hustle and bustle and lose a lot of time as a result. Do you have an insider tip for us that hasn’t yet been overrun by the mainstream?

Laura and Finn: Siargao Island in the Philippines.

I know it’s a long way from Europe, but it’s worth it. The island is not completely undiscovered, but for us it has the perfect amount of tourist attractions (restaurants, infrastructure and hotels) and is still extremely local, with lots of untouched nature. We have fallen in love with this small island in the Philippines.

Japanlove and memories of South Africa

FIV: Thanks for the recommendations, everyone can choose what they prefer on vacation. Is there a place that you particularly liked and that left a lasting impression?

The people are very reserved but incredibly respectful and polite, the food is a dream (at least for us) and there is something new to see and discover around every corner. A trip to Japan is a must for every travel lover!

FIV: Japan is supposed to be really great. Have you ever ventured to a more unusual destination?

Laura and Finn: Of course, it also depends on how you define extraordinary. As mentioned before, we were extremely impressed and liked Japan – there was so much that was crazy and unusual here. But as we travel a lot in South East Asia and Asia in general, another corner of the world was probably still extremely extraordinary for us – South Africa!

We can only recommend everyone to treat themselves to a safari in Africa once in their life.

We were there for 3 months last year and think the country is so beautiful. First and foremost, of course, the wildlife. We were able to spend 3 days in Kruger National Park and what can I say – WOW WOW WOW! For us personally, it was the best thing to be able to see all these animals in the wild. It does something to you. As a European, you only know all these animals from television or the zoo, but there’s no comparison. We can only recommend everyone to treat themselves to a safari in Africa once in their life. It is beautiful, extraordinary and more than impressive to be able to observe all these wonderful animals.

Whether by train, car or plane – Laura and Finn use everything

Laura and Finn: A good and exciting trip always consists of a mixture of EVERYTHING!

Often you can’t avoid the plane (especially if you live on an island, like we did). When we were backpacking in Thailand for 4 months in a row, we really took every means of transportation. Whether it was day or even night ferries, trains, private drivers (cars), minivans, (night) buses and so on.

In Japan, we only traveled by bus and train, which worked very well. In countries like South Africa or Australia, cars or vans are more suitable for traveling. Here in Indonesia, we do almost everything on a scooter. So it really depends on the destination. Each means of transportation has its own charm.

New York, Italy and the Cook Islands

FIV: Which absolute dream destination is still on your bucket list?

Laura and Finn: The whole world, actually. There are really few countries that we don’t want to visit. Our individual ranking always changes according to our mood. There’s just so much we haven’t seen yet and the world is so beautiful and diverse.

If we had to make a decision right now, the following goals would be at the top of the list:

Cook Islands: This group of islands looks simply beautiful and still truly untouched. South Korea. We’ve heard so many great things about this country. Tanzania. The nature and especially the wildlife here must be incredibly impressive.

New York City: Finn has been there several times, but for me (Laura), the city has been sooo high up on my bucket list for sooo long.

Italy: Sounds relatively unspectacular at first, but we’ve both hardly ever been to Italy, if at all, but we both love Italian food. We would love to do a van road trip through the country.

FIV: Then you still have a lot of exciting things planned, it rarely gets boring with you, we think that’s good. Thank you for sharing your experiences with us, we wish you many more wonderful impressions and a safe journey.

Would you like to discover more about traveling?

We are often drawn to faraway places and forget that we don’t always have to get on a plane to enjoy the beach:

• Baltic Sea or North Sea? Camping, vacation home, vacation! Travel check

Maisie: Believe In Yourself

With a great agency at her side, MOT Models, Maisie has developed into the model she is today. You need a lot of self-confidence for this job, and she tells us how she got it. She also has some other tips for newcomers to the life of a model. But she is not only interested in modelling. There are several jobs in this field that are mostly hidden behind the scenes. Because of her enthusiasm for the whole industry, she could also imagine working in another field. Read more in the interview with Maisie Stock.

• Maisie’s Instagram

It’s Just About You

FIV: Thank you so much that you took some time for our interview. You are still young, so do you still go to school or study besides modeling?

MAISIE: I don’t study, I left collage when I was 17 and pursued modelling as I have always been into fashion.

FIV: When you were always into fashion it must be the perfect job for you, but where did the self-confidence come from for modeling with only 17?

MAISIE: I think I gained more confidence when I stopped caring so much about what everyone thought about me. If you doubt everything you do, it’s going to hold you back in life and you won’t grow. I realised the only persons opinion that matters are your own. The longer I modelled and did shoots the more confidence I got with posing and other little things. I had less confidence when I was trying to fit into other peoples and societies beauty standards, this made me extremely self-conscious and unhappy. But I noticed that I shouldn’t be trying to be the same as everyone as we are all beautiful and was born a certain way for a reason. Beauty standards change so much in this era, its hard to keep up! There is a ridiculous amount of pressure on the younger community. So, I hope everyone can look in the mirror and be happy the way they are. The world is a more beautiful with you in it. My agency, MOT Models, boosted my confidence from when I joined and I’m lucky to be working in such an amazing team with wonderful people which feels like a little family.

photo: Tomila Katsman

Life Next To Modeling

FIV: That’s great that you have such a nice agency especially because modelling is very demanding and also time-consuming. How can you combine your job as model with school, studies or private life?

MAISIE: There can be gaps in between work so being flexible is key which is why I work my part time job around my modelling schedule every week. School has to come first but once you have gained what you need and feel like you’re ready to leave education, it’s good to continue learning on your own and having active interests that you are keen to learn about. Doing activities and working gives me a healthy balance and keeps it interesting.

FIV: So can you do other hobbies on the side or do you already see your job also as a hobby?

MAISIE: No I see my job as work but work I enjoy. With my free time I love being around nature as I grew up in the countryside, I like to go on walks to nice viewpoints with my hammock, I really appreciate time to myself or with my friends. I love the quiet compared to the city.

The Best About It

FIV: So since you are enjoying your model life. What do you like the most about modeling?

MAISIE: The thing I like the most about modelling is I get to the opportunity to meet lots of different amazing people from all over the world. You learn about lots of different things from people with another perspective that opens your mind. Every job is unique with different people and a different location so it never gets boring and you get to see and go places that you might of not have otherwise had the chance to see.

photo: Tomila Katsman

Beauty And Fashion

FIV: At the beginning you already mentioned that you were always interested in fashion. Do still know, how you became interested in beauty and fashion?

MAISIE: My first interest for beauty and fashion started when I was young. My grandad is an artist and I always wanted to be a fashion designer. He would teach me how to draw and I always loved the idea and freedom to be creative and create beauty in different forms. But now I am interested in styling instead of designing but who knows what might happen. I like to keep an open mind. My love and passion for drawing and art is still alive.

FIV:  So are there other professions that are interesting for you? I can imagine due to your love and passion for art, something in this direction.

MAISIE: There are a lot of different professions in the modelling industry as most are creative so I’m interested in a lot of different areas. I find photography very interesting and also styling. I would love to do this eventually in future as it seems fun and creative.

Starting Your Career

FIV: There are a lot of young people dreaming of a model life. What do you think is the best age to start modelling?

MAISIE: I’m not too sure if there is a right age to start. As I started when I was 17 and loved it, I have worked with models who started modelling from a young age or an older age so I don’t think there is a right age, its whenever you feel like you want to get in front of the camera. Everyone is different, modelling is fun and safeguarded with a proper agency it’s great for any age.

FIV: And what advice would you give to other younger models to start their career?

MAISIE: I get quite a few direst messages from young girls, women and men asking how they can pursue a modelling career or how to get into the modelling industry. I would always say make sure the agency is legitimate as there are agencies who take a fee while joining which should never be the case. Also, different agencies will sometimes have a different look they are after so don’t lose confidence of one turns you down. Apply to a lot of agencies, and I am sure you will find one that suits you best. You don’t need any professional pictures or a portfolio, all you need is a clear picture of yourself with very little or no make-up. Don’t lose hope if you don’t get signed to an agency and it takes you a while to get a paid shoot as this is normal and will sometimes take a while to get clients and so. While you are on set watch the other models you’re working with and ask questions this will help you pick up ideas and get in the flow for posing. It is really important to feel safe, so finding a good agency to have your back is essential.

photo: Tomila Katsman

Future Dreams

FIV: To finish, of course we want to get to know your dream. What dream do you want to fulfil with this profession?

MAISIE: At the moment I like modelling but eventually I would love to get into styling. Modelling is perfect as I get to work with the stylist on set alongside me and get an understanding of what the profession holds. Being in the fashion industry already has helped a lot with networking and meeting the right people to fulfil my dream. I have met some lovely people whilst working, who said they will allow me to shadow them to gain experience but as I will be learning from them, I just need to make sure I can take the time off work whilst being financially secure.