Explore the world through people and stories — Locals Insider

Mette Lorenzen moved from Denmark to Malta for love in 2009 and spent years leading customer service teams in iGaming before opening Mettelina, her café on St Paul’s Street in Valletta. She serves cupcakes, coffee and champagne with Danish hygge, and her flavors change every week. Instagram: @mettelinacupcakes

Helle and Jacob Stokkebye run Stokkebye Vingård on the Danish island of Funen, where 22,000 vines produce organic sparkling wine poured at Michelin restaurants including Geranium, Jordnær and Le Taillevent. It began as a hobby in 2009 with a thousand vines in the garden. Jacob trained at Kong Hans and worked as a sommelier in Bordeaux; Helle came from the UN and the Danish Foreign Ministry

Britt Kanja is a Berlin style icon and the Grande Dame of the city's nightlife. Born in West Berlin, she danced professionally across Europe before co-initiated the legendary 90 Grad club in Schöneberg in 1989, where she ran a themed party every month for sixteen years. She dresses in what she calls Eclectic Vintage, owns more hats than she can count, and is still out most nights.

Vyacheslav Gnedchik is a ballet dancer at the Hungarian National Ballet in Budapest, known for leading roles such as the Prince in The Nutcracker. Born in Minsk and formerly a principal at the Mariinsky Theatre, he also founded Balletgigs, which connects ballet artists with producers.

Ashley Scott Müller is a sculptor from Chicago, based in Berlin, and holds the world's largest collection of Thierry Mugler — around 800 pieces. She was the designer's friend from 2017 until his death in 2022. Her work is represented by White Square gallery.

Peter Revsbech is CEO of Ordbogen, the company behind Denmark's largest online dictionary, where he is building Mimir, a Danish language model trained and kept entirely in Denmark. He advises Danish industry on AI, and lives in Svendborg.

Di Wu Munk is the founder of Dots & Lines, a Calgary-based social impact startup and marketplace connecting professional artists with individuals and organizations seeking hands-on creative workshops. Originally from Chongqing, she moved to Canada with her family and launched the company shortly after arriving.