Mie was part of a group of tour-leaders for a Belgian travel agency known for its adventurous tours and expeditions and its standpoint on responsible tourism. She also took part in giving training to new tour-leaders and regularly got together to discuss training techniques and philosophy on traveling. Some of them had come up with the idea to set up a traveler’s cafe in Belgium, which could be promoting a different way of looking at the world and through all kinds of activities.
It inspired her and some others to think more globally and they saw a similar concept in different places in the world. It could become a hub for travelers, for local communities and a place to learn about contemporary daily life. In other words, they aspired to be cross-cultural meeting spots and implement the ideas of sustainable tourism. She came to Jogjakarta in 1995 with the Goal of setting up ViaVia here.