When living in a city like New York, it’s easy to get overwhelmed by the hordes of pushy people, the constant invasion of privacy, and the complete lack of the great outdoors. To be fair, I have grown quite accustomed to being smashed into a sticky, crowded subway car, or left screaming and freezing on the corner while Mr. Wall Street steals my cab.

But as every true New Yorker will tell you, there is one crucial secret to striving and surviving… And that’s to get out of the city and back into nature.

On a recent trip through Sweden, I got to go back to the basics. I found myself skipping through rows of raspberry fields, mooing back to the extremely loud, but beautiful cows, and hand picking wildflowers from the garden in rain boots to compliment the scones made from scratch.

There is something so revitalizing about being out in nature. Where time moves slowly and everything is fresh and alive. This trip to quaint and tranquil surroundings was absolutely essential for me to feel balanced and happy. Every morning we prepared breakfast which consisted of: fresh raspberries (that tasted like candy, bought from Hallongården Trelleborg- a local farm) warm homemade scones, Swedish apples, fresh juice, and tea.

Crisp morning walks followed by evening writing sessions by an old stand-alone wood burning fireplace was exactly what the doctor ordered. Miles away from all the hustle and bustle of modern civilization... sometimes it's just necessary to escape to the countryside.