OutrageousArts

Outrageous Arts

Welcome to the arts and travels by TommyOnTrip

Hello, I’m Tommy, the founder of Outrageous Arts. I warmly welcome you to my world of generative art and creativity. Here, I will share my passions, ideas, and travel adventures with you, hoping to inspire and create a common platform for creative expression.

About me:
I am a passionate artist and technology enthusiast, specializing in generative art. My love for art and technology has led me to explore and experiment with various techniques, tools, and expressions. Through Outrageous Arts, I aim to inspire others to embrace their own creativity and push their own boundaries.

A Unique Approach to Collaboration:
At Outrageous Arts, I believe in the power of collaboration and bringing together individuals with diverse backgrounds and skillsets. This approach fosters an environment where we can learn from one another and push the boundaries of generative art even further. By collaborating with artists, technologists, and other creative minds, we can spark new ideas and develop innovative projects that have a lasting impact on the world of art and technology.

My ideas:
Outrageous Arts is not only about creating beautiful artworks but also inspiring a cultural and technological exchange of ideas. I believe that art and technology combined can create unique and surprising expressions, and I strive to explore this through my projects. By blending generative art with other disciplines and platforms, I aim to create a creative community where we can learn from each other and explore new ideas together.

My Travel Adventures:
I adore traveling the globe and discovering new places, cultures, and artistic expressions. Traveling provides me with a unique opportunity to understand the world and its people on a deeper level. These experiences influence my creative work and offer me a wealth of inspiration and insight. On this website, I will share my travel adventures and insights, hoping to inspire you to explore the world and its beauty.

Workshops and Events:
Outrageous Arts is also dedicated to fostering a community of learning and growth. I organize workshops and events that allow artists, technologists, and enthusiasts to come together, share their knowledge, and develop their skills in generative art. These events are designed to inspire creativity and provide hands-on experience with the tools and techniques used in this unique art form.

Thank you for visiting Outrageous Arts! Stay tuned for my creative projects and travel adventures, and join the conversation to share your own experiences and ideas. Let’s create an inspiring and creative universe together.

Here’s the latest posts

  • Fairy+house in the woods with an elf walking in thru the door_graphic,fantasy,narrow_dof,dramatic_light 😜
  • Create an image of an old computer
    I have been playing with Stable Diffusion and ChatGPT, and lately GPT4 too. It is quite fun and I can recommend looking into playing with new stuff, as the companies are slowly releasing this onto the public. There are loads of training to be found online, but look out for scammers who are trying to earn easy money while the craze is ongoing. I like the open source stuff you can find on GitHub, and recommend downloading local versions to your computer will be better than paying for expensive subscriptions. This is taking off
  • A chat with ChatGPT.
    Could you elucidate or hallucinate a version of GPT that was even more advanced in artificial intelligence? And then tell me what it would be like? As an AI language model, I can imagine a hypothetical version of GPT that is even more advanced in artificial intelligence than the current state-of-the-art. In this hypothetical scenario, we can envision several improvements and enhancements that could be made to the architecture and capabilities of GPT. Firstly, a more advanced version of GPT could have an even larger training corpus and more sophisticated training algorithms, allowing it to better understand complex natural language […]
  • 2022 and the Russian conflict
    Hello friends, I hope you are fine and hunkering down safely at home during these interesting times. A lot has happened since last time I wrote in this newsgroup. It is really sad to see war and devastation again in Europe. Anyway, days are good here in Fredrikstad. Sun is shining and the beer is cold.
  • 2021 and the pandemic
    Hello friends, I hope you are fine and hunkering down safely at home during these interesting times. A lot has happened since last I wrote on this newsgroup, I moved back to Norway at the end of 2019 after more than a year away for working at a call center in Athens. It was a lovely time with lovely people but alas my health went quite bad and I had to go home. These last eighteen months or so I have been living in Fredrikstad which is a small coastal town approximately one hours train or bus ride south of […]
  • A quick PsCamera test 😜💥
  • 2019
    Hello friends. The new year is almost upon us yet again and I thought it would be a great time to catch up with you guys. I hope you had a great time with your family over the last week, or if not that you still had a great time. The most important thing is to have a great time all the time. The solstice is a good occasion for reflection and for celebrations as usual for this time of year, and to think of the turn of times. Time flies and goes by when you get distracted or stuck […]
  • Here’s to a great week
    I’ve just come home from work. The forecast for tonight says nineteen degrees and cloudy. And I’m feeling quite cold, out here on my veranda this early evening in Kallithea. It’s also been quite a while, nearly twenty years ago since last time I’ve felt this way, at that time while traveling around India, Brazil and South Africa. The feeling is quite strange. It’s strange how fast the body gets used to 30-35 degrees and then suddenly it plunges down fifteen degrees during the fall, the same temperature as normal summers back home. The contrasting heat and cooler weather is […]
  • September is ending soon
    New times, new tides and less practical arrangements are all a reason to move on, or to return to the origins. The last three years I have stayed with a nice commune of free spirited friends in a great apartment in west end Oslo. But now it is time for me to move on again, Tommy as always on a trip relentlessly sometimes footlessly. So I will be moving out of the city next month. To a small town called Trøgstad, where my mom lives. Equinox is tomorrow night and Oktoberfest is therefore in full swing in Munich, and this […]
  • A dark rainy afternoon
    Summer sadly seems to be over here in Oslo and now we’ll have to prepare ourselves for four-five months of rain and snow. I count myself lucky for working indoors and for example not in the construction business, poor guys. This fall I sold my apartment and moved into another commune again, I just couldn’t bare the living cost of this very expensive town. Compared to areas just out of town the prices for small apartments in the city center are on level with the prices for houses, which in my case ended up costing around two thousand USD a […]
  • Tommy i viking
  • Summer 2014
    Summer is finally here again with longer days and wonderful radiation heat from the Sun. The last year since my last posting I ended up with hanging with my old friends again of course, but I try to not overdo the alcohol intake on weekdays. I have failed miserably a couple of times, and that made me having some bad days because of it. But my current position at the print shop is not as demanding as the operator work I did before, so having bad days are not a huge problem for me to be able to do my […]
  • Easter 2013
    Hope you all are having a nice holy week and that your Easter is being spent with the people you love. I am now nearly two thirds into a ninety day rehab program to try to change my life to the better, and to get back on track, and so hopefully back on the road again soon. All that beer got to me in the end. I felt I was really loosing control of my life. I am reading a lot about psychology nowadays and I am in a very educational period regarding myself and life in general. The program […]
  • Azores 2011
    Summertime in the northern hemisphere is here once again and I hope you have a great one. Here in Oslo life goes on after the downtown bomb attack and the following massacre of youth at Utøya nearly two weeks ago. This made a huge impact on the Norwegian people; and most people know someone – or know of someone of the kids who got liquidated. Peace be upon them. On a more personal note, I am now preparing for my summer vacation and today is my final day at work until September 2nd. I’m going to the Azores again because […]
  • Back in Oslo
    Came back last Thursday, after four wonderful weeks on the Azores. I spent the last few days in Horta on Faial island before returning to Ponta Delgada to catch my flight home. This was a nice little town too, and my favourite hang out there was the Peter Sport Cafe. Also the most lively and busy establishment on the marina. Flags from sailingboats stopping by from all over the World was hanging on the walls and in the ceiling. And even mail waiting to be picked up sometime. In the end I ended up visiting just three of the nine […]
  • Hello from Angra
    Angra (the Cove), Terceira. Angra used to be the main port and the capital of the Açores, from around 1450. It’s a hidden inlay behind the defunct volcanic islet (called Monte Brasil) being an obvious anchorage for ships in transit back in the day. The current name dating from the 19th century is; Angra do Heroísmo (“Cove of Heroism”) due to the heroism, bravery and sacrifice displayed here by the people of Angra in the struggle that ended with the formation of a liberal constitutional monarchy. A very important spot for Portugal, in other words. Nowadays it is mostly a […]
  • Hello from Victory Beach!
    Spent two magnificent weeks on São Miguel and have now changed islands to Terceira. Went by catamaran from Ponta Delgada to Praia da Vitória yesterday, and it’s quite nice here too. They say that of all the Azorean beaches this one is the best one, and that might be right. Not as stony as the volcanic coves I went to on São Miguel, it’s just sand here. Been raining here today though, but that doesn’t really matter much. There are several cozy beach restaurants, and the beer and food is a lot cheaper compared to Ponta Delgada. The atmosphere is […]
  • Ponta Delgada
    Hello from Ponta Delgada, São Miguel -Açores. Been here since last Thursday and I just love it here. The first three nights I stayed at the Hotel Talisman in the center of the old town, a really nice little place and I can recommend staying there. I then moved on to a typical package tourism hotel. I was planning to change islands but stayed on São Miguel due to a bad cough which now feels more like a throat infection. Will drop by a doctor if it doesn’t improve soon. Uploaded some pictures from my trip so far on [deleted] […]
  • Summer 2010
    I wish you another good summer! This year’s trip goes to the Azores, which is the autonomous volcanic outpost of my all time favorite country; Portugal. Located 1500 kilometers due west of Lisbon. The pictures on the web from there look just amazing, and I hear only good words about these nine islands – of which the summit of “Pico” is right on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. I kinda hope the Earth will stay stable enough. Follow sporadic uploads at [deleted], from next Thursday on. Love! Tommy Hermansen
  • Happy Easter!
    Hope you and your family are all well in this Christian/Catholic holiday week. I am doing just fine and really looking forward to warmer spring days and park life. And also – my summer 2010 trip to Portugal and the Azores! Have fun you guys!! 🙂 Tommy Hermansen
  • 2010
    Oslo is freezing cold these days, but warmhearted friends sure helps a lot. Colleagues at the printshop are really friendly too, which makes helping them out more enjoyable. The pay is not too bad there either, so I am finally clearing out my old Disastercard debt, and will hopefully be able to get away for four weeks in June/July. The last couple of years have been terrible for backpacking escapes, and I only got away a few weekends which has been quite frustrating. I hope all is well with you and your family, and I wish you a great 2010! […]
  • Summer 2009
    Hope all is well with you. Summer is coming up again here in the Northern hemisphere, and I have a month off from work with no plan what so ever. This is a welcome break since I didn’t get a vacation last year. There are several festivals that I’m considering dropping by at. Vuuv, Ozora and such and off course my favorite happening in Amsterdam, the “organic” gathering called Landjuweel. So if you too are out and about this summer, it would be great to meet up! My month off is from July 18th until August 17th. Have a fantastic […]
  • Birthday
    If you are in Oslo two weeks from now, please join me at M3 for my thirty-fifth birthday. Sat 28 feb at three pm until the next day. Tommy Hermansen
  • Pictures
    Hey again…Sorry but forgot to give you the link for those pictures. 🙂 It’s public so you don’t need an account:
  • Amsterdam and London
    Long time since the last email now. The reason for this being that I’ve been at home working the whole year. Still won’t be able to get away on any long trips anytime soon, but will do a couple of weekend trips coming up in September and October. I’ll be in Amsterdam Sept 19th until 21st, and in London during the Halloween weekend (Oct 30th until Nov 2nd). Hope to see some of you Londoners and Amsterdammers again then. E-mail me if you’d like to meet up? These days I’m just hanging out with friends, and still working for the […]
  • Auspicious times
    It’s that time of year again to wish you all happy Christmas and so on. This year was a tough one for me personally. All work and no play, as indeed I predicted about a year ago. Well at least I got away for a week in London during Easter, and a few weeks off during the summer. My brother Robin, my pal Eivind and I drove down to Denmark for a Kim Larsen concert, but ended up going to Amsterdam and Bergen an Zee after that. Seriously fun stuff but very expensive for me as the other two didn’t […]
  • Confirmation of your KLM booking
    Hello again friends! Hope all is well in your corner of the World? I’m fine, work is good and the travel budget is looking far better now. The plan for the summer is Amsterdam and the Landjuweel Festival again. Me and my good pal Eivind are coming down to make the city unsafe for all unsuspecting square people, and an ongoing party will seamlessly merge with the always hip Amsterdam ambiance. So better cool down those Grolsch beers well ahead of time for us, you guys. Just over a week until I’m moving back to sweet old Oslo town. Really […]
  • Back again
    Hi all! Got back home again last night. London was quite fantastic. The weather was really warm for the season, and the ale was just perfect. Never got around to attending that easter party thing though, was stuck in another fantastic place called SOS and was chatting away with the Brazilian waitress in Portuguese the whole night. This huge place has four restaurants where one doubles as a bar in the evenings. Really nice! Recommended. Planning to move back to Oslo again in a few weeks time, I think to a commune on Nordstrand again – will know whether the […]
  • London calling
    Hello friends, Easter is coming up and I’m off work again for a week. I’ll be in London this time round, from 2nd until the 9th of April. Going over to meet friends (you perhaps?) and probably also checking out the Acid Monkey Easter party with at least one favorite psy-trance artist on the line-up, guy called Orion from Denmark. Cheers! “Did you hear about the dyslexic, agnostic insomniac who stays up all night wondering if there really is a Dog?” Tommy Hermansen
  • Auspicious times again
    Hello from freezing cold Skedsmokorset, Norway. Hope you all are having a good time as always. This upcoming year will be another year with almost no traveling for me. Still struggling penny wise and none of the announced festivals are tempting to go to either, maybe the Biosphere festival in Portugal could be something, no lineup or whereabouts are posted as of yet, but I just love that country anyway. I am very disappointed in the way the psychedelic trance music has evolved since a couple of years back, so I might skip the festival altogether and just do a […]
  • Moving out of town
    Hello dear friends. Just writing you a little message to let you know that I’m moving out of town next Friday (September 15th). Have found a fantastic flat right next to where I work. Fiftyfive meters square with a marvellous view of the valley below. So no more 90 minutes comute every day, just a short walk through the forest, and some privacy for a change. Have been living in various shared houses the last six years or so, and feel it’s time to move on after staying almost three years in my current one. This will be quite expensive […]
  • Last Lisbon nite!
    So, now this little vacation is sadly over. Spending the last days here just hanging out and rewindinding after the fantastic festival. Actually the music was not quite up to my taste this time round, but I found a really cool chaishop the first day I came there, and ended up spending most evenings at that cafe with the friendly group from Bristol and Wales. The place was called Grub’n’Dub. My thing for sure; Food with smooth Reggae music 🙂 After the last e-mail from Porto I ventured further north to Braga and Guimares. Some really nize towns up towards […]
  • Boom soon! 🙂
    Hello from Porto Calem! (the calm port). My fifth day in the country and I’ve spent them all in Lisboa and Porto. Heading for the hills soon I guess. Wanna see the Douro valley and maybe try some more of local sweet fruit juices from this area. Bit too sweet for my taste really, I’m a beer guy as most of you already know. Port wine is like candy, best with ice cream. Been walking around a lot, and met some really nice local people. Have been practising on my Portuguese, so I haven’t talked much to fellow tourists. Will […]
  • Amsterdam weekend 🙂
    Just a quick hello to all friends in or around Amsterdam. Going with a dear friend to A’dam the weekend of 2nd-5th June. Will be staying near the Museumsplein. Hooray! See you? Tommy Hermansen
  • Boom Festival 2006
    Summer mid-night hello from the polar rim! Been a lot of work related issues the last couple of months, was actually hired, fired and then hired again around the last three new moons. Back in IT again of course, this time just north of town at Skedsmokorset. Used to live up there too – about ten years ago; I walk past our old house on the way to/from the bus stop. Funny coincidence! So yes, the plan for this years summer vacation is the Boom Festival again. Will be working until the end of July and then head to Lisbon, […]
  • Found a job!
    Yup! Finally!!! After more than a year of looking for work and almost giving up on the future, I recieved an e-mail from a previous co-worker who were looking for freelance graphic designers, who could help with creating their direct marketing junk mailings. So I ended up doing that for the last couple of weeks. Seems like they have more work in their bookings, so I hope this will be a permanent gig for me. Can still be reached on this email address, but will probably start to use an official work address soon. The company is called Leo Burnett […]
  • Auspicious times
    Hey friend! Howzit? Wishing you lot a very merry yule festival and winter solstice from freezing cold Oslo, and a wicked brand new year! Thanx for the X-Mass greetings! Hope to make it to Turkey for the total eclipse in March! Anyway all is fine here, good friends and times. Party on! Love, Tommy Hermansen
  • Boo hoo noo festival
    Hello friends out there. I hope you all are having a great time! I am still hanging around Oslo and have no funds for changing that situation. It’s actually not easy living up here either, especially while being unemployed. Anyway, I just try to make the best of it – and this wonderful summer really helps. It feels weird not going to a festival this year. First time this millennium actually. Still living on previous psy-trance experiences* and hope to make it to Portugal again next year. The previous one was fantastic. Good vibes for the summer to you all! […]
  • Hospitality Club
    Hello friends from out there! So now the mailing list has been successfully moved to Google Groups. Hope you all are having a great time wherever you might be. I have already received some super nice replies to the invitation e-mail that was sent out some days ago. Good to hear from you too! Well as already mentioned I am now actively looking for a way to refill the travel budget. Hope to be able to get back on the road this summer, and to drop by one of the trance festivals where it’s seriously happening. Fullmoon, Voov, Ozora and […]
  • Even more del Sol!
    Hello friends! I’m still at the Costa del Sol actually. Just couldn’t move away from this lovely summer-like feeling. It’s quite warm during the days here now, I guess around 20 centigrade. But the water is impossible even for a Viking to stand for much more than a couple of seconds, and roaming around evenings it’s best to wear a warm jacket or sweater. Just this morning I arrived at this really nice place by the sea called Nerja, it’s on the Costa only about an hour east of Malaga by bus. Not so developed here yet as the previous […]
  • Costa del Sol
    Hey friends! I´ve now moved on a little bit since the last newsletter. I´m in Malaga at the Costa del Sol in the south of Spain. I really love this town, and have spent several days here to chill out, and to try the local cuisine and wine. Very nize indeed!! I also spent a couple of nights in Ronda, which is a magnificent cliffside setlement just about two hours trip (by bus) from Malaga. Recommended to see! Next on the itinerary is Valencia (tomorrow) and then back to Barcelona during the week-end. Flying home on monday. Blah! So, cheers! […]
  • Hippie New Year!
    Hello and Happy Space Christmas from a quite cold Barcelona! Here for a few days to visit good friends and to celebrate the new year with them. I finished my job last week and had a really nice x-mas in Oslo. We ended up on a way cool “lock-in” party at my favorite club, but I had to pay for the good times by feeling sick on Christmas Day though. We got senseless drunk that night… all night Good to chill out these days in Barca. I´ll be backpacking in Spain until January 24th, then heading home to look for […]
  • Update
    Hello friends! Unfortunatly, I have decided to postpone the South America trip until I have the nececary funds for such a pricey air fare. High season over there and too much spending on fun here at home, has resulted in a shorter upcoming trip. Too bad. I’m going to Barcelona to see my good friend Alex over New Years, and then go travelling around in Spain for about four weeks. Thinking of going over to Ibiza for a few days too, to check out the infamous partyscene. Hope to find some nize psy-trance gathering there too, of course. Leaving home […]
  • What’s up?
    Hello my friends! Long time since the last TommyOnTrip posting now. Had enough of Yahoo this time around, so that’s why I’ve been bothering you with these Topica Subscription Invitation and Reminder e-mails the last couple of days. Not all of the 270 or so previous subscribers have accepted yet, so this message only goes out to about 55 travel-happy people. Since last time I’ve been working most of the time, but made it to Portugal and the Boom festival over the summer – which was just fantastic! Went to Lisbon, Coimbra, Castelo Branco, Serra Estrelas and the festival, Faro, […]
  • Testing
    A nice day in Oslo and the weekend is coming up shortly…
  • Merry X-mas and a Hippie New 2004
    Hello friends, hope everything is all right, and that you have a nice time with your loved ones! This year I’m spending the Christmas holidays at home with my family for once. The last two I spent in Brazil and South Africa so it’s been a while in fact. New trips are vaguely visible on the horizon, but things are going good here pennywise these days, so it’s definitely looking clearer. My main psychedelic festival target for 2004 (so far) is the Boom in Portugal on August 26-29, so if you too are planning to go too this is where […]
  • Harmonic Concordance of 2003
    Hello gang, just wanted to tell you a quick hello, and pass on the word about the Total Lunar Eclipse and star alignment which is coming up shortly. The Harmonic Concordance of 2003 is the name of this unique occurrence on and around the 8th of November, hope you can explore and experience it! Still in Oslo livin’ it up in the cold weather. Recently moved house though, our commune broke up. A new beginning with new people is what I’m experiencing too! Which is fitting this auspicious time. 🙂 PLUR!Tommy
  • Going back to work
    Yes friends, that time has unmercifully crept over me again; when I have to head back to home and work. Feels good though. Had another great time travelling around in Greece: A fantastic festival on Samothraki, a few days recovering on Limnos, spent a couple of nights on Chios, then the last week relaxing on Kokkari beach on Samos where I also shared some days with a friend from England. The definitive highlight was the day we rented a scooter and got to see most of the island, Samos is also a place I’d love to return to! Like countless […]
  • Panorama of dancefloor!
    My good friend Arvid grabbed this out of the Samothraki atmosphere. https://gallery.snille.com/picture?/774/category/samothraki2003 More pictures to come on his web site, so check back there soon! Sorry to you guys on the trance.net list who already got this. Today I’m on Samos and expecting dear Alecz to arrive tonight. Have all the fun you can whenever you can!!Tommy
  • On Limnos, and going to Chios
    Hello dear group! I’ve just been through one of my best festival experiences ever! I thought Samothraki was magic this time round! More than a week of hammock work and dancing with friendly fraggles from all over the planet. Even the weather supported our party! Thanks goes out to all the nice people in our Norwegian/Welsh/South African camp too! I wish to see you again as soon as possible. Came to Limnos two nights ago, and I have just been hanging around relaxing (and catching up with reality) in the port city of Myrina. A quiet little town, at least […]
  • Another Greek Trip
    Hey guys! Hope summer has been good so far! Mine was OK, even though I was working. I’m preparing my summer holiday these days, I’m flying down to Athens, Greece next Sunday. I used up some old bonus points which I gathered a few years back while I was working as a traveling VIP software engineer, so these tickets were super-cheap! Just paying for the airport taxes. Good thing because I’d rather spend good cash on really important Greek holiday necessities such as Retsina and Ouzo! The plan is to go straight from Athens to a psychedelic trance festival on […]
  • Mosquito hell!
    Hello world! Just got back after a week-end of camping in the deep forests outside Arvika, Sweden. It was mosquito hell! Well they were maybe not as terrible as what they would be like in actual Hell, but camping outside in Scandinavia during the summer, those flying pests can get damn annoying! We were a group of trance-loving friends who drove over there for a two-nights outdoor mini festival called MossMys2. The artist line-up was quite good and the weather stayed pretty dry too, rain was no big problem really because I’d brought my big “Praxis” tarp – which I’d […]
  • Important Travel Warning!
    The World Health Organisation today issued a new warning against non-essential travel to the entire Western hemisphere following renewed concerns about the spread of Severe Loss of Perspective Syndrome (SLOPS). Officials are warning travellers not to visit the UK, the US, almost all of Western Europe, and Canada, following further outbreaks of the disease, which has led to mass panic among the media, thousands of ecstatic children being kept out of school by their credulous and moronic parents, and increased profits for DIY stores as the idiot public rush to bulk-buy face masks and boiler suits. A WHO spokesman said, […]
  • Spring is in the air!
    Hello, dear friends from all over the planet! How are you doing? Trust you are fine! Working/Traveling? Hey, also let me know your plans for this summer (the summer of the northern hemisphere I mean). Looks like I’ll have to stay here in Oslo this summer, working and paying off old travel expenses on an impressively emptied Mastercard account. Well I hope at least I will be able to spend a few weeks in Greece around the Samothraki Dance Festival in August/September. I’ve already bought the festival ticket! It will be my second visit to that sweet island. Speaking of […]
  • A fantastic week in the Alps!
    Hello gang! I spent last week with good friends in Avoriaz in the Alps on the French/Swiss border. I’d never heard of the place before, but it turned out to be great. Went with my dear old pal Darek, who brought his digital camera with him. He’s going to upload some pictures on his web page. They will be added under a French flag on the “Travel” page within a few days (at least he’ll probably hurry up now since I’m sending this mail out to over 300 travelhappy people.) More pictures from my own trips are slowly being scanned […]
  • Back at work!
    Hello friends! South Africa turned out to be another one of those countries you just have to fall in love with, and I certainly did! Cape Town in particular stole my heart big time, it’s another place I have to return to at some point. That sweet city is residing well up there on the upper part of my current list of favorite places. I was staying at the Long Street Backpackers in the center of town (obviously in Long St.), they have cheap dorms at just 65 ZAR a day, and easy going staff and fellow travelers. They’ve also […]
  • Merry X-mas!!
    Hello ev-ryone!! From sunny Cape Town I wish you a Merry Christmas and a Wicked 2003! And I hope you’ve been good this year… Tommy Hermansen
  • The mystery of the thirteen ultimate festivals!
    Location: South Africa’s Northern Province. Near to the Kruger National Park, and along the line of total eclipse of the Sun. Wednesday morning it was completely overcast and it was a bit depressing not to be able to actually see the heavenly glory. But as it turned out this was just magic. DJ Tristan was doing a legendary set the hour or so before, and was supposed to stop for the eclipse – but the organizers decided to keep the party going… and that was good! As the light grew weaker the dancefloor started to cook, and when the fluro […]
  • In Jo’burg
    Hello friends! This short msg just to inform you I have landed safely among friends. Staying at the Backpacker Ritz until 9.00 tomorrow morning when the bus is leaving for the site. Will be massive for sure. I’m travelling light so I hope I have brought all the essentials with me. After the Eclipseparty I’ll most likely head down south to Cape Town, then spend some weeks along the Garden Route before catching a flight back to Barcelona on the 27th… then home on the 30th. More info later… Tommy Hermansen
  • Off to see the Wizards!
    Yep! Got my ticket to Johannesburg!! Hey hey! 🙂 Tommy Hermansen
  • Pondering, pondering
    Hello all! Just another short one: Barcelona is just fantastic. Staying with good friends and having a fab time at the local bars. Went on a tourist bus last week to see more of it (was a bit steep at 14 euros though), and fell in love with this sweet old city completly. Got the same feeling as when visiting Amsterdam and Edinburgh, relaxed people and the posibility to just wind down. Went to Madrid over the weekend to meet up with Alecz from the Greek trip this summer, she’s working down there on a film project. I hope to […]
  • Escaping winter for a short while
    Hello friends! Life in Oslo is good! I’ll soon have a new job in the graphics arts business (IT support work), and we hopefully have some nice parties coming up. Winter has come down on us with a vengeance up here, but there are at least very good posibilities for skiing and similar fun, if you’re into that sort of thing. On Monday I’ll go visit friends in Spain, and I hear it’s about 15-20 degrees down there so that will really be a welcome break from this snow and ice. Going to Barcelona and perhaps Madrid as well. So […]
  • Greek trip coming to its end
    The last few weeks I’ve been doing quite a bit of island hopping. After visiting Patmos for a few days, doing near to nothing at all, and staying at the local campsite in my Brazilian hammock. I ventured on with a Norwegian guy called Jan up to Ikaria, where we got seriously drunk on Ouzo – and then moved on the next day over to Naxos on the high-speed boat. Naxos was really nice, but we ended up spending a lot of money in the bars and then just recovering on the fantastic beaches in the days. We stayed at […]
  • Patmos coming up
    A long one again this time, hope you have some spare time for it! I have a few hours to kill before getting on the boat to Patmos tonight, and discovered a nice price Internet café. Here’s a proper update on this Greece odyssey so far. I landed on Rhodes on Sunday a week ago, after having been soaked in the Amsterdam rain for nearly a week. The Landjuweel festival and fantastic friends there, made up for all of it though. But weather wise; enough was definitely enough – so I ventured out to Schiphol with my good friend Alex […]
  • Kalispera from Kos
    Yes I’ve now moved on a little bit since the Ruigoord festival in Amsterdam last week. Got a 99 euro one-way ticket from Schiphol to Rhodes, where I stayed for two nights. Yesterday I got on a ferry to Kos… It’s nice here. Attention all Samothraki ravers: Is there an afterparty somewhere around here these days?? Please let me know, OK? Have fun!Tommy
  • Buien en lokaal veel neerslag!
    This is the forcast for Amsterdam today; Showers and a lot of local precipitation. And yes, this is where I am at the moment. Got back to this sweet old town yesterday night, after a short flight down to Frankfurt and a hellish trainride, where I got stuck just outside of Dusseldorf for three hours, because of lightning strike. Why stick it out in this weather you say? Easy: Because of the Landjuweel festival in Ruigoord! Just a short message this time… I need to go get a raincoat, and a tarp for night shelter. Bom shankar!Tommy Hermansen
  • Back home for a moment
    Back in nice and warm Oslo for a few days just to slap some people around, who owed me money. Got it today- and I will head out again as soon as my friend Alex from Barcelona shows up here. We’re probably going up to North Cape together, or maybe if I can persuade him; go for another shorter and less expensive trip to the west coast of Norway. They’ve got some truly amazing scenery over there. Stavanger and Bergen people better look out! Finland was great! First I went to the Nordic Ting Meeting in a national park just […]
  • Mission: Re-Possible
    Whe-hey landlubbers! Oslo has been a great place for me to catch my breath the last couple of months, with some short visits to nearby happenings of course. Have even been able to scrape up some funds as well. Then, the inescapable fact is; summertime in Europe means festival time. Which again translates to: meeting new and old friends, hanging out in a hammock for a few weeks, winging it at sporadic jam sessions, dancing like mad in the moonlight, and trying to dodge attacks by new and improved mutations of bloodsucking insects. So now it’s definitely on high time […]
  • Invitation to experience sweet little Oslo
    From: Tommy Hermansen Date: Sun May 19, 2002 9:16pm Subject: Invitation to experience sweet little Oslo Hello again all you friends in this great world! Summer in the Northern Hemisphere is now imminent, and backpacking is yet again becoming a more pleasant possibility. Therefore I would like to invite any of you fantastic people who I’ve met and spent time with along the way, to come and stay in my home during your trip this summer. Our house is located in a tranquil farmland area called Skedsmokorset – this is just outside Oslo, Norway – There’s a golf course here […]
  • Stop sending us boring emails!
    From: Tommy Hermansen Date: Sat Apr 27, 2002 3:31pm Subject: Stop sending us boring emails! I know I have been bitching a lot about money problems lately, and I’m really sorry to have bored you guys with that. Of course this forum is supposed to be about travelling, and not about my personal problems, but my writing inspiration have left me somewhere along the line and I regret sending this last unnecessary message out last night. But please, don’t send me hate messages as this guy from London (who I actually thought was a friend) did this morning, just send […]
  • No luck in the employment field as of yet
    From: Tommy Hermansen Date: Sat Apr 27, 2002 3:06pm Subject: No luck in the employment field as of yet Brothers and sisters! Past: Edinburgh was magic! But unfortunately I had no luck in finding a job there though. I was at least able to spend three weeks among some incredibly amazing people. When I came I was told it was a good time to be there, because of all the good musicians and acts who where going to be playing there just then, and it certainly was! Every concert or party was better than the previous one. Unbelievable!!! We experienced […]
  • Back to reality (again)
    From: Tommy Hermansen Date: Tue Mar 5, 2002 11:48pm Subject: Back to reality (again) Yes my dear friends, the trip closer to the sun is over yet again, and I will now have to start looking around for another job, to pay the bills that have been waiting so patiently to be attended to. But not only that, also to save up for the next big trip: Australia/New Zeeland, which should be starting from about October 2002. So, keep subscribing to the newsletter! I will of course also be reporting from the festivals here in Europe this summer, if I […]
  • Acabou o Carnaval!
    From: Tommy Hermansen Date: Thu Feb 14, 2002 6:12pm Subject: Acabou o Carnaval! Yes, the lunacy is over for this time around. Until 2003… I spent those days among new friends in Itaoca, ES. Sad thing about the music here though, was that they played the same 20-30 tracks over and over again! Eu fica loco!! (Makes a poor guy go mad!). But at least the scenery (girls) was fine. I was hoping to find a job on one of the beach shacks here, but they were already covered for the Carnaval. Too bad. But I was able to stay […]
  • Rio De Janeiro
    From: Tommy Hermansen Date: Wed Jan 23, 2002 5:04pm Subject: Rio De Janeiro Hello friends. Today I arrived in Rio. Copacabana beach and all that crap, madness. Not staying here though, I’m already moving on to Ubatuba further south in the state of Sao Paulo tonight. Tired of buses now, but the final destination is worth it: The YPYPOTY Gathering!! 5 days of Psychedelic trance on the beach! Have fun wherever you are! Love
  • Merry X-Mas!
    From: Tommy Hermansen Date: Wed Dec 19, 2001 9:00pm Subject: Merry X-Mas! Just a quick email from Salvador wishing you a Merry X-mas and a happy brand new 2002! Spent the last week in Arembepe and the Aldeia village, just chilling out. On friday I’ll probably go back there for the hollidays. It’s 32 degrees celsius here today 🙂
  • Amigos(as) para sempre!
    From: Tommy Hermansen Date: Sun Dec 2, 2001 4:10pm Subject: Amigos(as) para sempre! Hey! Okay, here we go again compadres, but before I begin; the rumors (as they say) of my death are highly exaggerated. Overpriced Internet is a problem in this part of the world, so I’m not going to do this too often – I am doing just fine, and in the same process getting very tanned, in a paradise like place of which name and directions I will reveal further down in this newsletter, so hang on for it. First another short story: “Oba! Look at that […]
  • Brazil!
    From: Tommy Hermansen Date: Tue Nov 6, 2001 3:00pm Subject: Brazil! Yes finally, after 35 hours travelling on three different flights, and another 35 hours on a bus I have finally hit some nice weather. But I had to have a breather between the two jumps though, so I spent the weekend in Sao Paulo, but I wasn’t planning on freezing on this trip (it was cold and rainy down there) – so I got on a two nights bus up to Bahia… To the city of Salvador!!! Just got into town (they only have two million inhabitants here) a […]
  • Reality Bites
    From: Tommy Hermansen Date: Tue Oct 23, 2001 11:49pm Subject: Reality Bites Written in third person for fun: “You have 7,27 kroner on your personal account” the friendly synthesized female voice said on the Bank’s automatic line. “Shit” he’d thought, “it’s only a week till I’m supposed to leave for South America – and all I’ve got is less than a dollar of spending budget.” Luckily he’d landed a temp job a week earlier, and his Mother had told him she was going to borrow him 100 dollars a month, so he would get some money to live on while […]
  • Gearing up for Brazil!
    From: Tommy Hermansen Date: Wed Oct 3, 2001 4:16pm Subject: Gearing up for Brazil! Hi guys! First of all I must apologize for the Topica mail earlier today, I’ve moved the list back to Yahoo again because of Topica’s recent change in their policy in adding new subscribers. They don’t allow direct subscriptions anymore, new users have to accept an invitation, but that just doesn’t work – people are never replying to the invitations. So don’t worry, you’re still going to receive TommyOnTrip newsletters until you decide to unsubscribe yourself. Right now, 263 people are getting these in their inbox […]
  • New E-mail address
    From: Tommy Hermansen Date: Thu Aug 2, 2001 11:52am Subject: New E-mail address Hello friends… The Asia trip is now over, and I’m as of yesterday working at Network Associates’ callcenter in Amsterdam, Netherlands. The last couple of weeks I’ve been travelling in Europe, to a couple of music festivals – and to visit good friends whom I met in India. My new e-mail address is:[deleted] Hope to hear from you again. I Don’t know when I’ll get back on the road. Tommy
  • THIS is the final TommyOnTrip newsletter
    From: Tommy Hermansen Date: Mon Jul 16, 2001 6:16pm Subject: THIS is the final TommyOnTrip newsletter Hello friends, I’m now stopping to do these TommyOnTrip newsletters. Since coming back to Europe this is no longer an Asia trip, so it makes no sense to publish them anymore. But I will take it up as soon as I get back on the dirt roads again, did someone mention Brazil or Chile? I just want to send you this quick email to tell you what I’m up to the next few weeks, so maybe if our paths should be crossing we could […]
  • My Asiatrip is over
    From: Tommy Hermansen Date: Wed Jul 4, 2001 3:00pm Subject: My Asiatrip is over Hello to friends from all over the planet! My travelling in Asia is over (for this time) The budget is getting low, and summertime in Europe is just too fantastic to miss. Therefore I’ve now ventured back to Amsterdam – where this trip started exactly six months ago. (January 5th.) Came back this morning. By the way: Happy Independence Day to my American buddies! My plan for the summer is: Stay in A’dam for about a month (at least for a few weeks), and apply for […]
  • Koh Pha Ngan
    From: Tommy Hermansen Date: Thu Jun 21, 2001 11:50am Subject: Koh Pha Ngan Hello from sunny Thailand Bay, actually from an Island just north of Koh Samui (if you should know it). Bangkok was a nice and clean experience after the previous travelling in India. Big shiny shopping centres and busy streets. Don’t bother to go on those costly Tuk Tuk Rickshaws, it’s much better to go by meteres taxis or buses. You get air-con on those! Right now I’m staying at Had Yao beach on the north western coast of Koh Pha Ngan island. Spent the last couple of […]
  • Bangkok
    From: Tommy Hermansen Date: Thu Jun 14, 2001 8:33pm Subject: Bangkok Hey gang, Tonight I arrived in Bangkok. I had a very pleasant flight from Calcutta with Druk Air (Bhutan). A highly recomended operator if you’re ever flying in the India/Nepal/Bhutan/Thailand area, very good service onboard and cheap too. I paid only around 120 dollars one-way – that’s with every tax included. Don’t know too much about Bangkok yet, so I’ll tell you more later. India was great! Nepal was even better!! I hoped to stay a lot longer in Nepal; but my budget is getting low these days, and […]
  • Enough is enough
    From: Tommy Hermansen Date: Thu Jun 7, 2001 4:01pm Subject: Enough is enough Hello friends! I’ve decided to cut my Asia trip shorter than I expected, and will head home to Europe and the summer festivals in about one month’s time. The political unrest in Kathmandu (and bad trekking weather) convinced me to leave Nepal for the scorching hot India again yesterday. I’m now in Patna – on my way to Calcutta to buy a plane ticket to Hong Kong or Shanghai. See you around…
  • Utter chaos in Kathmandu
    From: Tommy Hermansen Date: Sat Jun 2, 2001 4:23pm Subject: Utter chaos in Kathmandu We arrived in Kathmandu yesterday afternoon, then something happened last night, just a few blocks from our guesthouse… The Nepali royal family was completely wiped out during a shooting incident in the Royal Palace here in central Thamel area. Allegedly Crown Prince Dipendra, unhappy about his mother’s choice of his future bride to be, stormed out during a dinner party. He then came back with a machine gun and started shooting at everyone in the room. Finally he shot himself in the head, and he’s now […]
  • Nepal frozen up
    From: Tommy Hermansen Date: Mon May 28, 2001 12:33pm Subject: Nepal frozen up Hey gang, just a short message this time because of the insanely expensive internet rates here in Phokara. The whole country is frozen up in a three day general strike against corruption in the Nepali government. On street corners around here there are military guards to make sure everything stays calm and quiet. Most shops are closed, and the ones who are open keep their doors and windows shut to appear as they are closed. Me and my travel companion Trude are going our seperate ways as […]
  • Stealth rickshaws and breathtaking mountains
    From: Tommy Hermansen Date: Sun May 20, 2001 3:27pm Subject: Stealth rickshaws and breathtaking mountains We’ve now moved on to Manali on our way towards Kathmandu. The next four days will be a continuous push towards getting us there. Our three weeks in Dharamsala were just fantastic, both relaxing and spending some very refreshing time at the Himalayan mountain range. The first two weeks we stayed at the Rishi Bhawan guesthouse (next to the Tibetan Institute of erforming Arts, or TIPA for short), this is a very calm and quiet place in the woods above McLeod Ganj village. The pine […]
  • Today I saw the Dalai Lama!
    From: Tommy Hermansen Date: Mon Apr 30, 2001 7:42am Subject: Today I saw the Dalai Lama! We’ve now finally hit upon some clean fresh air again, in McLeod Ganj – Dharamsala. But quite thin though, even at only 1800 meters. New Delhi depressed the hell out of me, first I had to wait for my friend Trude to arrive, then we waited for our Chinese visas to come through. It was 44 centigrades and extremely dusty. I was happy to see the Indian Himalayas yesterday, while sitting/laying on the roof of a speeding bus dodging powerlines and low branches. I […]
  • Sitting under a tree by India Gate
    From: Tommy Hermansen Date: Sat Apr 21, 2001 10:23am Subject: Sitting under a tree by India Gate Next to me on the bench is a local guy who doesn’t speak much English. I guess that in a big metropolis like this people have other sources of income, which don’t require them to communicate with us tourists. I noticed the Norwegian flags all over the park and asked him if he knew why they were there. He had no idea what I was talking about, so I pointed out the red pieces of cloth with white and blue cross, hanging from […]
  • Excuse me, but Mecca is THAT way!
    From: Tommy Hermansen Date: Tue Apr 17, 2001 1:09pm Subject: Excuse me, but Mecca is THAT way! Visiting Mumbai this time around was a much better experience than last time. Getting over the initial culture shock; Mumbai which is India’s main seaport, turned out to be a very nice city with beautiful British imperial buildings and Indian monuments. Colaba is the travellers centre, and this part of town was the one I liked best. Of course everyone wants their fair share of your money – so hawking and overpriced services are prominous in the area. The Prince of Wales historical […]
  • Second impressions of Bombay
    From: Tommy Hermansen Date: Sat Apr 14, 2001 10:57am Subject: Second impressions of Bombay Coming here for the second time was not as scary as the first time I landed here three months ago. The city is still smelly and noisy, but I’m getting used to this sort of thing now. On the sleeper bus from Goa I met Mark, an Australian working on a documentary on techno music and rave parties. We’re now sharing a room at the Volga II guesthouse in the Colaba area – nice rooms and very comfy beds. The bus ride itself was quite nice, […]
  • This is not India
    “For how long have you been travelling now?” the woman behind the counter asked as a Pepperoni pizza materialised in front of me. I chewed away into my first slice, burning the roof of my mouth, as I said “A little more than three months now.” She continued her smalltalk by questioning: “And how do you like India?” I needed to cool down my terrible burns with some cheap glycerine beer. “I just love this place” I said and swung my pointed finger in the air around me. The music was pounding from the Nine Bar across the street. “Goa […]
  • So you’re here to save the world, are you?
    From: Tommy Hermansen Date: Sun Apr 1, 2001 10:53am Subject: So you’re here to save the world, are you? This trip has lately been turning out being a much deeper journey into my mind than first anticipated. I’m meeting different kinds of people from all over the world, and we’re all at similar stages of our lives. Some have been continuously doing this since the late sixties, and some newcomers like myself have only been at it for a few months. After sunset at these paradise-like places we’re gathering around a table or a bonfire after long days doing nothing […]
  • A paradise called Patnem Beach
    From: Tommy Hermansen Date: Tue Mar 20, 2001 1:34pm Subject: A paradise called Patnem Beach I’ve been on this beach for more than three weeks now. Met with some really good friends and basically been relaxing at a beach resort aptly named “Home”. Owners Richard and Sandy give you a break from Indian life, and pamper you with tasty European food and mellow chill-out music; by artists such as Kruder & Dorfmeiser, Moby and the great compilations released on the Hedkandi label. Even though I’m based in Patnem I’ve made a few shorter trips around the area. To Anjuna, Agonda […]
  • This is a gem!
    From: Tommy Hermansen Date: Mon Mar 5, 2001 6:30am Subject: This is a gem! Hello again friends, Since last time I wrote; I’ve moved further north (into southern Goa), to a gem of a serene place called Patnem Beach. To get here you need to catch the coastal train or the bus to Canacona, or Chaudi as it’s also called. Most people go on from there to Palolem Beach, but that place is a bit too touristy for my taste, it’s much better to head to the next beach further down south called Patnem. I’m staying here with a family […]
  • Gokarna’s stench
    From: Tommy Hermansen Date: Fri Feb 23, 2001 7:08pm Subject: Gokarna’s stench Greetings earthlings! I was finally able to leave Varkala after five wonderful weeks lounging in the sun down there, I guess I only had a mild case of the well known Varkala Syndrome, the one that makes you never want to leave the place. Other people I met had been there for over two months, and where suffering from it quite badly. The last weekend was especially fun, when I and my Malteese friend Neville organized a techno party on the Papanasam cliffside on Saturday night. I also got […]
  • Lazy days in the sun
    From: Tommy Hermansen Date: Mon Feb 5, 2001 6:58pm Subject: Lazy days in the sun Today’s been another totally relaxed day on the beach. I have to cover up my bare head while sitting in the burning sun, so I won’t get a sun stroke. Yes – bare, my head is completely bald now. Just wanted to try how it was like, and I like it! Maybe I’m just getting bored – and needed something to do, I don’t know. I met a couple of wonderful Dutch people the other day, Pantho and Jasmijn – brother and sister from Amsterdam. […]
  • More pictures uploaded
    From: Tommy Hermansen Date: Wed Jan 31, 2001 2:30pm Subject: More pictures uploaded Hello gang! I just uploaded 16 new images from Varkala and other surroundings… Sorry but the pictures of the elephants didn’t turn out well, so I didn`t bother to scan them. Tommy
  • I’m still alive
    From: Tommy Hermansen Date: Mon Jan 29, 2001 7:52pm Subject: I’m still alive Hello my friends, I have recieved a couple of emails lately from people worrying about me being caught in that horrible earthquake. You don`t need to worry, I`m about 70 hours (by slow train) away from the disaster area. Life here in Varkala is soo laidback that there’s not much to write home about for the moment. Other than taking a daytrip to see the Elephant festival in Kottayam a few days ago, I’ve just been lounging at the beach, working on my tan. The festival was […]