a day well spent

Broomhill hotel and sculpture garden is about passion and determination.  It is a beautiful place tucked just outside of my Dad’s guesthouse in Braunton; a mere bike ride away and well, many know I have a weak spot for bike riding. This lovely place tickled my inner Alice in Wonderland no end as I admired the stunningly inspiring sculpture garden and 'done for love' hotel complete with hanging art and curious pieces on display. Its a place of passion for collecting paintings and sculpture. A great spot for tea and an organic ploughman's while wondering in its gardens in awe with my first love, Dad.

The line that accompanies Broomhill is ‘the art of a well-spent day’. That is precisely how I felt after a day trip day with my Dad as I commented ‘this one’s going in the memory bank Pops’ and it has so much that I am writing about it.

With an exhibition in the gallery, numerous sculptures in the garden, a band performing for weekly jazz nights, Broomhill is a wonderfully inspiring project from the two owners that decided to bring their dreams and passions to life. As a place to visit in British Summertime; it made me happy. Artistic explorations in the woods accompanied by yummy outdoor gastronomic smiles, a bike ride and one of my favourite men's company. Ticked all the boxes. If you ever grace North Devon in the UK with your presence allow Broomhill to grace you too.

This place illuminates some of the cheesey catch-phrases I have found myself saying as I play around The Brookfield Guesthouse (which my very British Dad loves to tease me about); 'teamworks dreamwork', 'live to give' and 'sharing's caring'; 

"What would you say if those words didn't rhyme Jessica?" the old man says with more of a preference to acronyms such as "JFDI" for "Just F*cking Do It".

He's speaking to a lady who worked in advertising.

"You can't kid a kidder" I quoted back to him. That one's his.

me julie’s garden

"The best place to find God is in a garden. You can dig for him there." George Bernard Shaw

This summer as I returned to the UK for time with family and friends; I spent a good duration at The Brookfield; my Dad and second-mum’s guesthouse in Braunton, North Devon.

Besides indulging a game of backgammon or bike ride with the old man and yummy sunny luncheon with Julie, I also practiced a bit of goodness and worked at the guesthouse as its also a very busy time for them both. There I would learn how to do hospital corners on bed sheets and use a press iron.  One of the other skills I acquired was a spot of gardening.  

Gardening for me was always been a ‘pop it in a pot and give it water’ job for me and really my plants have been limited to houseplants beside the one time 7 years ago when I got a bonsai tree, went on two week ski trip and came back to it dead. A big lesson for me. 

Julie (my second mum) on the other hand, is an incredibly talented gardener as was her mum. So consequently her garden is a wonderful retreat to sit out in, flush with blooming colours and relaxing vibrations. I asked Julie what the key is to creating a stunning garden and she explained the importance of having “an eye for contrasts and textures, time and dedication” and her appreciation for continued learning while “discovering new plants”.

 What do you love about gardening? “I like to potter in my creations. To see new life develop from cuttings I’ve taken and to be able to pick fresh from the garden in order to cook”

Julie and I took out two trees from the root while we were in the garden. While such a simple task of digging a big hole, shaking the branches and yanking the roots with fierce determination – it was very, very satisfying and now Jules has space to plant some beautiful colourful flowers that give life as opposed to the old trees that were taking away the goodness...I will be leaving Julie’s garden inspired to do more.

london, you've got the love

You've Got to Love London from Alex Silver on Vimeo.

I love London. After spending nearly 3 months in England, I jumped in to London in her prime while summer sunshine reflected off her stunning goldlit buildings and bringing that natural glow to the otherwise white faces on a nation often swimming in its tears. London she played me and I played London.

In 2009 I wrote a blogpost aptly titled: London vs Sydney. it continues to get more hits than anything else I have written and frankly, I don't even feel the writing's that impressive. Nevertheless the title suggests something and of course it talks to our natural wish to compare. Whether we compare ourselves, jobs, homes, cars or the city we live in. Personally I feel a little stumped now when asked to make a comparison. I left London pale, overweight and stressed fed up with a lousy graduate job that hardly paid me enough to sustain myself and I was in the world of the corporate costumes; the ocean of black woollen jackets. A tough gig for colourful me.

Now in hindsight; I didn't give London a chance. She's a bad-ass when she wants to be and has an incredible art and culture scene. When the sun does disperse the clouds, London is a giant theme park for those that work hard enough to earn their playtime. And sometime's it feels that way. Living in major cities is no picnic especially in places where the sky sits so low, however, in my case, I skipped the shoddy weather and caught her in her prime. English summertime with real sunshine. People high as kites on life because they're seeing something they haven't seen for so long.

I can't compare two places anymore. It seems foolish to do so. I just think home is where you are happy. And what everyone is looking for is different. So I am delighted that after reconnecting with an old home, I am in love with London again and I look forward to visiting again in the future. Distance really does make the heart grow fonder.

"We shall not cease from exploration, and the end of all our exploring will be to arrive where we started and know the place for the first time." - T. S. Eliot

I am dedicating this post to one of the great inspirations in my life Fern Trelfa who is the yogini behind Super Cape-Abilities. I am proud to call her my friend and loved playing with her in shining London. We've always been a magical pair...

surviving a 'grown up' gap year(s)

I love it when I explain to people that I am travelling around the world and they respond "Oh have you just finished Uni?" Urm... nope. I'm 28 now complete with wrinkles. I was however the 'over-achiever' who believed all the lies and chased her way from Law degree to London Stock Exchange to Sydney advertising world and worked insanely hard with lots of determination to succeed. Ambitious little number I was but one that lost sight of her dreams.

That said I needed to work; I had a ridiculous amount of student debt to tackle and a ruthless determination not to depend on my parents for financial support after University. So my gap year was belated and aptly timed with my quarter-life crisis that involved breaking up with an amazing boyfriend and best-friend, leaving my wonderful mates, the beach view apartment and quitting my career in time to miss the award ceremonies whilst obsessively taking up Bikram yoga and herbal tea wondering what the hell I truly wanted in this life (thanks to friends for showing up at this time). I remember sitting down with my boss and mentor Andrew Wynne, after being at the company for a mere 9 months, explaining 'I have to go' as being one of the scariest things I'd ever done in my career. Incredibly and much to my surprise he said 'we'll have you back when you're done Jess'.

My 'gap year' has been more of a giant poop-my-pants leap year. And actually not really a gap year at all as it nears plural status. However, I can say that at 26 years old, my decision to leave pretty much everything to go on a journey of self-discovery and adventure until I 'run out of money' has been the best possible gift to myself. Incredibly frightful nevertheless especially as I initially allowed my inner child to take the reins. A bad-ass tomboy who likes extreme sports, rolling in nature, doing crazy things like getting lost up mountains, hanging out with rebels and inevitably one that had to relive a sense of self-abandonment. Strength in adversity proved true.

Being the change I wanted to see in the mountains

Nevertheless, self-psychosis aside, one thing I have realised is the limited ideas we can have when it comes to money. This question comes up a lot with people; "how do you afford it?". Well simply put: I give but not with money in mind. More for fun actually. It feels good to give doesn't it? And giving is more than money, its life's most valuable asset; time and effort.

By living in the giving and being detached from what comes back; This is how I feel I've walked into abundance. Of course money is practical, and a means of survival in this material world, but it is not the only thing we can offer in exchange for a positive experience in life. In fact, just being awesomely true to oneself and others has its benefits; people actually enjoy your company for one thing! And working from the heart on projects gives a natural high (look how much I am buzzing in this pic!) and genuinely giving a damn about the world in a hands-on way can reward in ways that transcend the illusion of 'give to get'.

I remember locals asking me whether I got paid to collect garbage (read my little PR rant here) and were somewhat confused when I said no, I do it for love (and garbage on the path kinda pisses off this British earth mother). And for me, obviously, it really isn't about making money - that's what I did to afford the journey in the first place and I'm committed to keep traveling until it runs out so I may as well make myself useful. Miraculously, it seems to stretch the less I worry about it and the more humbly I live. Importantly I've also learned to accept the kindness of others; which is difficult when pride kicks-in. I'd say the biggest miracle had to be when my tax accountant emailed me to say that I didn't have to pay him his fees and for me to see it as a contribution to my travels. When your tax accountant says that - you get busy!

If you are blessed enough to live within the top 5% of the world's richest (if you're reading this, that is likely to include you) then I hope this message resonates on some level. Some of the most inspiring people I have met were happy to trade their services or just happy to give in anyway they could. In fact the lovely circulation of seasonal clothing in the backpacker community is really awesome as is couch-surfing and that doesn't go to mention my surrogate family in Parvati family who were so humble that my heart is still broken.

I have also realised that real friends are the ones that want to see you shine. And I hope in a way I can make that happen for 'my crew'. I've loved being a photographer on adventures, making videos, offering strategic communications advice or just showing up when my intrepid soul brothers and sisters could do with a chat, cuddle, bed or a cook up.

You see something I have learned is true appreciation for life before anything else. The mere opportunity to be alive is pretty awesome not to mention to be born in a developed nation. Then I could go in to the things I am super grateful for: my family, friends and also importantly; me. I have truly proven to myself that I can grab life by the balls on my own. Eeeeek! Well ‘alone’ is really figuratively speaking as ‘no man is an island’ however, I have to remind myself that all I am left with is a bit of courage when things don't go to plan, I get seriously sick or my heart gets broken.

My surrogate family in remote Himalayas

And living a remarkable life does take the courage to face a lot of fears while learning to endure discomfort whether its cockroaches, an armpit of an Indian man on a local train, getting my backside pinched on a tourist bus, falling childishly in love with someone who doesn’t love me the same way, singing to an audience, racing boats in regattas, crossing the Atlantic as a chef(!) or presenting an online TV show. Yup. I actually experienced those things. All instances where I have had a daemon on my shoulder telling me some stupid story to take my power away as I faced some darker emotions that people don't see in the highlights reel: loneliness, vulnerability and shame.

Like kryptonite to Superman's soul the toxic self-talk and uncomfortable situations did nothing less than drag me down and yet challenge me once again to keep going when all I wanted was to hide away somewhere or 'fly home to Mum'. And no word of a lie, while I love a challenge there comes a point where peaceful surrender becomes the best resort to the battle. To embrace Lennon and let it be. To rise to the challenge with faith that whatever will be will be and work really bloody hard at ensuring that each day is still fully lived and each lesson is learned. That I show up to life despite its 'moments' and keep being positive because there's always something to smile about.


Traveling alone can be hard as hell. I’ve missed my family, my friends, my home comforts, my mind at times and I’ve even missed having a man to share those romantic moments with. However I know I have given myself space and time to get to know Jess, I've made some wonderful friends and learned to take full responsibility for 'me and my story'.

There are times when I really just want to find a base and hide away in a cave of comforts, a nice wardrobe, some pretty jewellery, a network of stable friends on my doorstep, have my family on call, my own kitchen(!), the routine and security of a 9-5 job but then I remind myself I have lived that life and will have the rest of my life to live it again one day.  So I'm keeping the dream alive while the Universe invites me to and working very hard to share as much kindness on the way while preserving my sanity i.e. knowing when to walk away. That to me is a much more powerful currency than money and a powerful thing to trust in through personal experience. Sadly an intellectual understanding of karma, philosophy and wise idioms didn't cut it for me… I had to learn it myself through some raw experiences.

So that's how I've survived my relentlessly changing and challenging world. The non-stop scenery and costume change of these last 22 months. I hope my sentiments aren't too self-indulgent. Perhaps they are. I have to write my ramblings somewhere and crazily people read my drivel (thanks if you made it this far).

But perhaps these words might even inspire someone to take life by the balls too, to follow their heart, live and give a little if not A LOT without being afraid of scarcity. 

G'waaaaan, what's the worst thing that can happen? 

It's not like we're getting out alive.

“Indeed our hearts are golden treasures, but a true tragedy would be to conceal your inner gold because you are afraid of someone stealing it or it falling and breaking. There is no love in fear. The great wisdom of the ages always tells us the more we Love the more of it you receive. Love is not a giving or a taking, it is a state of being – a one way street of allowing, accepting and holding a space for all things to be exactly as they are. 

Fear not that your heart will be broken or stolen. Love becomes love. Give it away with no expectation of return and soon you will be having a love affair with the whole world!” - Jackson Kiddard, author & polymath.

love is love. gay. straight. love.

My gorgeous friend Steve Marshall from Sydney went on holiday recently with his lovely boyfriend Rob. This video he shared captured something that really moved me. True love between two guys. It's a pity we live in a world where the crazy idea that two men or two women who love one another cannot possibly be entitled to the same rights as a man and women in union do.

"This is a video of my partner and I and some of what we got up to on a recent holiday to the USA. It’s just a video Rob created to show our family and friends what a great time we had, but I guess in addition to that, showed them just how much in love we are. We’re just two guys, travelling through life, having fun together – and perhaps anyone who saw this video who originally felt that our relationship was somehow different, or less valid than that of our heterosexual friends, would hopefully see that love is just love – regardless of who that love is between, and should not be viewed any differently by anybody, or any law, anytime or anywhere." - Steve

When I watch this video (admittedly a few times now) I feel so much love and joy. I hope you feel it too and if there ever was doubt in your mind about gay-love may I remind you that GAY also means happy. I hope we can live in a world with more of it. However it chooses to look.

Update: I saw this beautiful article on Upworthy of a mother's response to her son coming out on Facebook.

- Says it all really.

the polar bear connection

People who know me well enough will know that I have a 'thing' for Polar Bears. It is a little cringing. I sometimes liken it to Britney Spears' obsession with fairies and then I feel even more silly. However, I cannot deny that whenever I see stories about polar bears the child in me gets all soppy and wants to save them.

Standon Calling Fairies @ Super Cape-Abilities

My good friend Candice Quartermain (formerly Landsman) has a similar connection with killer whales and horses. She's really grown up so when the Britney Spears association makes me feel like a muppet I remind myself of 'Landice' and allow myself to feel cool and compassionate through her inspiration. Nothing wrong with loving animals after all. In fact fairies aren't even real (I am really sorry if that statement just killed one) but I mean... they're like not animals that need protecting. Admittedly I did meet a couple of fairies recently at Standon Calling music festival who granted me a wish by virtue of a glittery fairy dusting, so I shouldn't write them off... but well... they're not Polar Bears and they looked pretty happy and safe making capes to complement their wings and pink hair.


Now one of the most wonderfully illuminating realisations I've had on my travels has been the understanding of why Polar Bears are my 'favourite'...

As a child I went to Venezuela a lot to visit my mother's side of the family. There I would witness and perhaps even empathise with my father and uncles joy as they would be tucking in to the local Venezuelan beer... POLAR BEER. As you can imagine, this year I smiled a lot to myself as I, an adult, had the opportunity to embrace two loves at the same time; beer and polar bears. And now despite realising this personal conditioning and very amusing synchronicity; I still love polar bears. Obviously. They're awesome creatures.

Recently I read that polar bears 'may need to be fed by humans to survive', and my love and kinship for this giant mammal went to another level. I was heart broken at Berlin Zoo seeing Knut looking desperately misplaced and lonely and now seeing that it might take for Polar Bears to become a nuisance to mankind for the issue to really come to the fore really makes me wonder. Without adequate sea ice for enough of the year, bears will not be able to use ice as a feeding platform to hunt their favoured prey, seals, hence will be forced to spend more time fasting on land and posing a risk to human populations on the Arctic. The future's looking pretty bleak for this beautiful animal.

Global warming is directly affecting this animal's survival and no matter where you stand on the issue, it is safe to say that mankind is mostly ignorant to the idea of loving and protecting nature if our collective behaviour is anything to go by. I mean we do have a very unfortunate and shocking tendency to kill one another in big wars that we often don't fully understand the political undertones of.

On a very basic level, littering is a classic example of ignorance. I have found myself giving 'a look' to people chucking their waste on the street biting my tongue sometimes. Some people who claim to be 'spiritual' or 'awake' or 'in love with the world'... and of course this behaviour is unconscious, forgivable and another conditioning or lack of education and we can't be expected to be perfect human beings HOWEVER I suppose this wee polar bear is getting really disappointed with it... The question I find myself pondering is; will it take mankind to absolutely destroy this planet before we come to the realisation that we cannot eat money? 

And when that time comes... will polar bears already be dead?

I sincerely hope not. 


Dear God please can we not destroy it by nuclear activity, cockroaches (one of the few animals likely to survive) and I have a very, very strained relationship.

on the road. spiritually speaking.

As an explorer I have seen some wonderful things on the road and experienced some incredibly eye-opening stories. And while seeking I found myself coming full-circle back to the simple words of Mr Tolle.

Like many tokens of spiritual teachings, I dismissed him with my practical cynicism as being overly spiritual besides often falling asleep to his audiobooks because he has such a relaxing zen-like voice, nevertheless now I see, his words make sense to me on a more experiential level and I am grateful to have his guidance at times of solitude and wonderings. Yes. I embrace the cheese and would like to give Tolle a hug one day.

As a wee token of gratitude and using a bit of my very amateur hand of imovie video editing, I have had some fun splicing shots from around the world with a rather cool track (name pending) and some insights from his audiobook A New Earth.

This is the blurb for his book:

With his bestselling spiritual guide The Power of Now, Eckhart Tolle inspired millions of readers to discover the freedom and joy of a life lived "in the now." In A New Earth, Tolle expands on these powerful ideas to show how transcending our ego-based state of consciousness is not only essential to personal happiness, but also the key to ending conflict and suffering throughout the world. Tolle describes how our attachment to the ego creates the dysfunction that leads to anger, jealousy, and unhappiness, and shows readers how to awaken to a new state of consciousness and follow the path to a truly fulfilling existence.

Inner superhero smiles. 

loving my inner superhero

One of the highlights to my Summer in the UK so far has been volunteering for Super Cape-Abilities with some very special friends who I have known since Uni days. Two years ago I posted about my dear friend Fern Trefla who was made redundant from one of the world's best advertising agencies; Wieden + Kennedy and instead of allowing herself to fall in to the trappings of confusion, abandonment and frustration, decided to be positive and see the opportunity the universe was presenting her with. I am pretty proud to now be posting about her latest initiative; creating superheroes, one cape at a time through the lens of yoga and activity of supercharged play.

Ready.

I certainly have some extraordinary friends and continue to meet extraordinary people which really gives me hope and optimism in a world that is going through some pretty dark times right now. And as the world faces its collective shadow(s), where people are realising the boxes they've put themselves in and breaking through some painful barriers; the superheroes start to appear dressed in their capes and ready to be a light for humanity.

Last weekend Super Cape-Abilities went to Standon Calling Festival with a suitcase of capes and boxes of crafts ready to play. The time had come to teach some children (young and old evidently) how to be a real superhero. I had the privilege to strut around with a Boom Box every morning playing reggae and recruiting families to the Super-Hero Academy Workshops taking place at the Super Cape-Abilities Tent.

There were breathing exercises. A dash of yoga "bums in the air Superheroes!" a bit of Superhero philosophy "with great power comes great responsibility" and a lot of flying. Kids could be their own superhero. Their own creation.

Super Reynard AKA musician Lyra Ray

My heart was filled with joy seeing all these children running around with their capes, jumping from dizzying heights ready to save the world from the forces of evil. Well done Superheroes. And props to Fern who has truly learned how to play her way through life.

Super Capettes.

I just read a wonderful note from the Universe via TUT:

"Every act of kindness, Jessica, gets the nod, opens the heart, dampens the fear, turns the page, ups the ante, tips the point, heightens the joy, changes the world, rows the boat, adds to the love, and if you've been rather extraordinary lately, turns Thursdays into Fridays. See?" 

As someone who can find herself asking what day it is - I couldn't agree with you more Universe.

More photos of the weekend on jectaphotoblog.

prayer flags and big dreams in the mountains

When Steph and I went to the Everest region of Nepal in 2011, we had anticipated to trek to Everest Basecamp in order to raise donations for WWF Tiger Conservation. Instead however, we found ourselves at 4000m being lead to the Golden Jubilee of Sir Edmund Hillary's first school in the region where children from schools all over Nepal performed cultural dances and songs, along with traditional Sherpa and Tibetan Buddhist ceremonies. We met incredibly inspiring people who had been dedicating their lives to creating change in poor areas of Nepal. It was incredibly heart warming and humbling.

After returning from the 3-week trip I found it very difficult to go back to my life in Sydney. Something had been stirred in me. Perhaps I missed the quiet of the mountains. Before I had chance to realise what was happening, my boyfriend and I had broken up, I'd moved out and was asking myself some big questions about what it was I truly wanted. I was positive. Full of enthusiasm and trying new things; recipes, experiences, cycling my bike around Sydney and getting on with my job. But I realised that the taste for travel had left its mark and my spirit wanted some more adventures. It took one late night conversation with my good friend and notorious optimist Fern to convince myself to leave my job, surrender my stuff, pack some bags and book flights to all the places I had wanted to visit for so long. It was pretty courageous and I get moments of "WTF Jess", however, I have the wonderful experiences that are a great reminder of how happy one can be with perceivably so little and adventure certainly ensures life is lived as fully as possible. From my perspective I do feel that society has created an illusion that 'money' can equate to happiness, abundance or even love. Not in my world. Gratitude, acceptance and giving have become a much more powerful currency of kindness and incredibly magical.

"But there's no doubt, either, that my most worthwhile things have been the building of schools and medical clinics. That has given me more satisfaction than a footprint on a mountain." 
- Sir Edmund Hillary

The Dream Flag project really inspired me to consider what good we can all do, even through the smallest of actions. Children from all around the world are asked what their dreams are and they illustrate these on to beautifully crafted flags and blown in the wind, as do the prayer flags on the mountains of Nepal. What do children want? Peace and love in the world. Steph and I were really fortunate to meet the founder Jeffery and learn of how the project has enriched and connected the lives of children from around the world with their dreams. I hope they all come true. This little video is a wee tribute to the project and my wonderful co-pilot Steph Reynard.

“The smallest act of kindness is worth more than the grandest good intention.” ~Oscar Wilde

technology assisted balance in the daily grind

My old desk.

So, as someone who’s mind can fly as high in to the realms of imagination as it can ground in the land of rationality; I recently found myself taking a break from the world of work to explore life’s mysteries and fulfil some dreams. A wonderful adventure, but equally personal and rather distant at times from the modernity of the masses I can relate to the most in the daily grind.

Of course traveling affords a sense of freedom in terms of space and time that when engaged in the land of three weeks holiday per year can seem incredibly alien and adventurous. That said; I would never discredit the work I did in the past. I loved the challenge of working in advertising, especially my last job for Razor & Joy with my clients SBS, Nike and the Sydney Opera House. But that doesn’t mean it wasn’t stressful at times.

Put multiple personalities in a building, with time restraints, budgets and demands and there is always going to be a backlash of pressure one has to face at some point, especially in the advertising industry that requires an average of 20% overtime in order to ensure agency growth. It is in our nature to share burdens and if someone can’t handle the pressure, it can be projected on to those that can and hence, ensuring one has boundaries and knows how to deal with the stress-heads is important. Personally I found headphones and tea breaks a Godsend!

Being away from that world has allowed me to reflect on life in the city and appreciate the technologies that also gave my spirit some reprieve in the intensity of adland.

Meditation Oasis

This is a cool free podcast that I would listen to in the evenings to help me return to the present and stop the mind from its ‘blah blah blah’ after a tough day in the office. Mary Maddox has a rather lovely voice that after a few Zen like moments has one feeling peaceful and present and out of the ‘to do list’.

Sleep Cycle Alarm Clock App

I must admit, waking up to an alarm feels incredibly unnatural now I haven’t had one for so long. It’s much more natural to be awoken by sunlight, however, the reality is that we often don’t have such luxury. Tracking sleep with the Sleep Cycle iPhone App however is incredibly beneficial for keeping track of rest.

Natural Light Clock

This light clock with a bulb that gets brighter and brighter as the time gets closer to wake up time makes the morning that much more natural.

Coffee Machine

The drug of action and productivity; addictive, buzzy and fashionable. Society was incredibly industrious introducing such a great drug for ensuring performance in the world of grind. Personally the morning ritual of making my own coffee was a little gift to myself and had my being prepared to work.

Nike Plus

Exercise was something that helped me keep in shape and have time for myself. Running along the beach in the evenings and having the proverbial ‘your kicking ass’ embedded in to my jogging soundtrack whilst keeping track of my routes and progress provided a great incentive to keep going. Nike+ is a great motivating app to keep you fit.

Jeremy the bicycle

Jeremy is a beautiful companion. Rather than investing in a Vespa or getting two buses to work, I found Jeremy from Tokyo Bikes a great companion to take me through the city, connecting me with nature as I cycled through the parks everyday on my commute to work.

40 Days Bikram (Hot) Yoga

My yogi friend would argue that ‘this is not yoga’ due to its modernity and progressive copy-written dialogue. Personally though doing back bends in a hot room was one of the most healing experiences. My ‘over a laptop’ posture loosened, my strength increased, I shed spontaneous tears and the buzzy feelings in the ‘deadman’s pose’ were incredible. In a fast paced world, where we want instant results and have been conditioned to be competitive, this yoga really appeals to that of the ambitious. Of course having a good teacher is important and makes a huge difference but I thoroughly recommend the 40-day challenge. My friend's called it "crack yoga" as I admittedly found it to be an incredibly important part of my balanced lifestyle.

Nutrition and detoxes

Working in advertising can have one susceptible to indulgences; tasty meals at fancy restaurants with clients and lots of alcohol in the office fridge for Friday shenanigans are common place; but in excess pretty terrible for the body. Having a break from addictive behaviours and watching these habits was a really important way for me to find balance in my life and ensure that my consumption was more conscious and detaching myself from the entanglements of addiction. I saw a nutritionist and had my diet fixed up.

Giving

Living the comfortable life in a world where many more don’t have such a privilege really encouraged me to be more giving. This is a personal philosophy that I have found really vital to feeling more whole and aware as an individual. Besides the natural endorphins that giving provides, I do subscribe to the power of selfless giving; whether donating clothes to a charity shop, sharing home grown herbs, making donations or activities that support the local community all help ensure that I am aware and humbly grateful for the luxuries life has afforded me.

Notes from The Universe

Daily emails from The Universe are a wonderful way of keeping one motivated, inspired and focused on one’s aims in life. Sometimes a few words of wisdom in the inbox can be the perfect reminder of what it is one’s seeking in life and striving towards those goals.

Dear Future Me

Send yourself an email in the future. It's a little schizophrenic but a really important way of reconnecting oneself with aspirations and inspirations in a time moving faster and faster. It amused me a year on to randomly receive an email from myself on the road and realise that I was on the trajectory I had been craving.

Vipassana

Apparently the ‘black belt of meditation’, Vipassana is a meditation practice that is solely experiential (i.e. practical, not fluffy visualization stuff but felt within the confines of the body) and it is amazing for focusing the mind and releasing the bullshit. It is a challenge and very intense. This is one of the hardest endurances for me; practicing sitting still for 11 hours a day, staying silent and with 4am starts for 10 consecutive days. There are Vipassana centres around the world and they operate on a donation basis. Despite struggling through them, I have found the benefits far outweigh the sacrifice of 10 days meditation.

Photography; Holga

Jeremy (my bike) and I enjoyed some wonderful tours down the leafy streets of Sydney. Photography is incredible for expanding perception, capturing beauty and seeing the stories the world shares whilst being creative. I loved the analogue journey from snap to print with Holga.

Plants at the desk

We are human beings, despite living in concrete jungles; we need nature in our lives because we are very much a part of it. I'd go as far saying we are it. Having plants at my desk had me embracing my inner Earth Mother and feeling more connected with nature.

Not taking life seriously(!!!)

We all have our own way of experiencing and learning from life. I’ve found that not taking anything too seriously just as vital as pursuing the joys in life. Sometimes the world of business can be ‘serious’. There can be business suits, conference calls and a sense that lives depend on results (especially with Account Directors hovering over your desk). But realising that life is essentially for living and remembering that you don’t know when your last day might be is a fine reminder to embrace and endure every moment of work you do. In India they would say "work is worship" and I find truth in that. Its a pleasure to work and be productive. The word "occupation" comes from the idea that one might "occupy their mind". Remember that and calm down...

the creative chaos of buenos aires

I love Buenos Aires. It is a city with so much character and charm. The architecture has that sense of renaissance by virtue of its Italian-Spanish heritage and its skies create the perfect backdrop of pinks and blues in the Argentinean capital.

I spent two months living in Buenos Aires and it taught me a little more about the world we live in; its relentless change and mankind’s resistance and participation within it.

The week I arrived there had been an intense and unusual heat wave, which coincided with the garbage collectors strike. The city literally stank as the streets were lined with humming garbage. One of the many strikes that the leftist country has been facing; creating a constant sense of uncertainty as impromptu strikes had buses and trains out of operation while roads would be blocked by activists.

I found the chaos a rather intense one to witness. There were floods, a ship container fire of toxic consequences and a sense of constant change as scaffoldings and street work lined the uneven and unkept pavements that had the unaware constantly tripping. That and the dog poop.

I explained to a cab driver one night how interesting and powerful I found the city and its chaos while he expressed his frustration at its madness. I suppose its easy to admire something when you're visit is fleeting.

Men kiss each other

Knowing how to greet another is a rather interesting one. It’s cultural. While I love a hug and a kiss with friends, I also recognize that a ‘hands together in prayer’ with multiple bows of respect in Japan is more appropriate and likewise a couple of pecks bonjour in France; the standard. This has been one of the strangest things I’ve had to adapt to from culture to culture. Seeing men kiss one another on each cheek as a way of greeting is awesomely unsexist and has a sense of equality about it I liked.

Passion in the streets

The latins are incredibly passionate and openly so when it comes to relationships. In the UK we’re rather prude when it comes to displaying and expressing affection whereas the Argentinian would give another a big smacker in the middle of the street. It’s romantic and open.

Ice cream and wine

Two of life’s vices that Buenos Aires has plenty of. Whether it’s a tasty red from Mendoza or a delicious dulce de leche icecream, Buenos Aires can tickle the taste buds of a bit of naughty but nice behaviour.

Graffiti

Something I didn’t get chance to participate in but am eager to another time is the graffiti movement that’s taking place in Buenos Aires. A loophole in the law means that artists have the freedom to express themselves beautifully and provocatively on the streets of BA.

All in all the city was incredibly inspiring. It challenged me as a traveler who’d spent a lot of time in nature namely trekking mountains and it was a world from anywhere I’d been before however, Buenos Aires has a charm about it that I love. Its real. Its in a flux. Its chaos. But perhaps that’s what makes it so special.

If ever one needs to escape it, I personally found the yoga retreat on the outskirts quite the zen hit.

I studied to be a qualified TEFL teacher while in Buenos Aires. The school I was at was brilliant, in a building design based on Dante's Divine Comedy and I fully recommend it (the teachers were fabulous!). For more info go here.

enjoyment of language

Steven Fry is a bit of a hero of mine. I love his take on language and I have recently found language to be one of the biggest challenges when it comes to communication especially across borders.

The English language is wonderfully coloured with idioms and phrases that to some would not make sense.  I heard an old lady in the charity shop yesterday say "this is wicked" as she admired some royal paraphernalia and I wondered whether deep down she genuinely thought the royal family as wicked as witches or as awesome as the word awesome.

Personally I have found myself saying "no offence" when really there's no such thing in the context to be taken. Likewise I'll unconsciously say something that makes perfect sense to the English speaker but is a complete oxymoron to one who has merely studied the subject as a second language. Evidently saying precisely what you mean can come across as somewhat unpoetic and dull at times.

Apparently the "Philosophy of language is concerned with four central problems: the nature of meaning, language use, language cognition, and the relationship between language and reality." via Wikipedia. Something worth considering when we start spieling our words. Words in which I believe have power and are worth minding.

a yogi escape in buenos aires

Friedrich Tolentino Sungà Cortez-Romero from Karma Yoga

Buenos Aires is an incredibly artistic, historic and classical city. The aliveness of a city that converges the renaissance of Italy, Spain with a dash of France with the hot latin spirit of South American culture has created a hot pot of chaos in Argentina's capital.

While chaos can be the perfect backdrop for fascinating experiences amongst the riots, gratified walls and charming architecture of the latin city, I certainly felt that my feet were losing their grip as I tripped on the broken pavements where one must play 'dodge the doo doo' while hopping over random garbage dumps and the cracked pavements. A novelty to a city that seems to be constantly under construction despite the marvellous buildings that sing to the charm of old-gothic-not-changing-anytime-soon.

And when I need to ground myself in my life, I seem to find myself drawn to the tranquility one can find on the yoga mat - thankfully the Eco Yoga Park on the outskirts of the city was the zen hit my soul was searching for.

The Eco retreat is one that offers visitors the opportunity to perform service through work on the farm. We would wake at dawn and get in to the garden planting and picking vegetables. There would be wonderful meditations in the white temple that echoed as we played percussion or passed wind in an awkward hatha yoga posture. All the food was sourced from the land; natural, organic, vegan and tasty while the company was delightful as the group would sit together or make a secret dash to the ice cream maker in the farm across the field nearby (you didn't hear that from me).

Mum and I spent 8 days of wonder-love zen enjoying great farming, food, company, movies and meditations amongst the stunning backdrop of Argentinian agriculture and skyline. If the opportunity comes along; I fully recommend it. "There's more pleasure in giving than receiving" an Indian cabbie once said to me, this retreat certainly gave us the opportunity to realise it.

little suns crossing the atlantic

My favourite product/brand at the moment has got to be Little Sun. Little Sun is a beautiful innovation that uses the natural energy of sunlight where electricity is not available or reliable. Little Sun is an innovative way to get clean, affordable light to the 1.6 billion people worldwide without access to the electrical grid. I have been traveling with Little Sun and had the opportunity to deliver a number of their lights to a very humble and kind family in the Himalayas of India.

My travels recently found me crossing the Atlantic and as part of that experience the Little Sun light was an incredible friend to have on board during the night watches. A sustainable light that could recharge in the day and be a glow for the darkness that ensued as the sunset on the ocean. Thank you Little Sun for being such an incredible work of art. I hope more of the sailing community embrace solar powered lighting.

going all in on plan A

Glastonbury Festival

I am back in the UK and it is amazing to be in a place where I grew up, with friends I played up with, in cities I've seen with a rekindled appreciation for her buildings (is that a sign of age?) and with weather that makes the countryside glow. England is such a lovely place in the summer sunshine especially when we do well at sports. No wonder Australia is so good at sport. So the whole country is high on Vitamin D like junkies in a medstore, with beers, pimms, picnics and cheers. There are music festivals and bike rides and there's the great realisation that some things stay the same despite an economic downturn, war and a country that's not had a proper dose of sun for years or at least professes not to have (source: my Facebook feed) the country knows how to be merry. If we can't whinge about the weather in England, what can we whinge about?

I didn't 'plan' on being back in the UK. In fact I had to cancel a flight from Antigua to Venezuela after Chavez decided to pop his clogs and the country became too unstable for this explorer. I was only a little bit tempted by guerrilla journalism tweeting the resistance, however, reading an email from my Venezuelan mother titled "Change your flight" and having the opportunity to work on an Atlantic crossing as a galley chef came along and I felt called to the challenge and prospect of seeing my family again while braving some stomach turns at sea.

Dad in Croyde; bike rides, tea, scones & chatter

Being back in the UK however, brought up some interesting ponderings. I thank my Dad and his rational, groundedness however they sparked thoughts of "So what are your plans NOW?" and "So will you stay and get a job?" etc. etc. All rather sensible questions to ask someone who has been on the road mostly perceivably unemployed for quite a duration now while tentatively veering close to the 'corporate dropout' category unintentionally.

However I realised I also made a promise to myself when I began this trip to continue until 'money runs out'.
Such a brazen and irresponsible statement in hindsight, however, thankfully my pension is in Australian Superannuation Funds which means its a minefield to retrieve.

And so despite a conditioned part of me wanting to settle, get back on my bike and go back in to a 'career', I have decided to go "ALL IN ON PLAN A" inspired by Mastin Kipp from the Daily Love.

I have however managed to inspire my family to realise that they deserve more space from the comfort zone or stresses of life. We all do. The novelty of a plastic beach-bed and swimming pool eventually wears out and we are lucky to live in a time when the world can be so small and visit places where people long for rain and the heat can be too much. Arguably perks to globalisation.

May the force be with you. (Bath Spa)

Even though the future-oriented, organisational time constraints of British society does trigger a few "oh shit should I just get a job?" moments and England is very much a home for me, I'm going to carry on these explorations, photography, writings and bouts of stomach shifts... There are still a few dreams in the pipeline, dollars in the savings account and passion for adventure in the soul.

So with a new found passion for architecture I will keep enjoying life on the road living out a bag and crapping myself every now and then to the Universe's sense of humour.