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Journeys  ·  The winter issue

The long way home

Three days, two trains and one bus across the north, taken slowly on purpose.

Words and photographs by Maren Holt  ·  9 min read

Part two

The valley

The bus stops wherever someone waves. Between villages the road climbs into light so clear the hills look close enough to touch.

“Nobody here is in a hurry, so after a while, neither are you.”

Part three

The last mile

Tea on the balcony, the red roofs of the old town below, and the slow surprise of being back where you started.

Read the journey
A woman in a red scarf reading by the window of a train

I.The 21:40 north, somewhere after the river

A woman in a yellow coat standing on a hilltop above a green valley

II.Above the valley, the morning of day two

A woman with a cup of tea looking out over red roofs from a balcony

III.Home, over the roofs of the old town