Undiscovered talents

It was on an incredibly hot summer night in Alanya, Turkey. I was in my early twenties and it was my first real holiday without my parents. That’s when I did it for the first time; I will never forget. Because of the heat I was already extremely sweaty, but even the thought of actually doing it got me boiling past a hundred and two. Oh my God, I’m really gonna do it. Come on, it’s easy, just go for it. But I already felt ashamed before even trying. I felt my blood rushing to my head and started blushing without even dropping the question. Okay, here I go. “Nooo, that’s too much. Give me a special price!” Oh my, did I just say that? “…uhm… please?!??” And that’s how I lost my virginity to bargaining. But it worked; I paid less than the bid price for a pair of flip flops. I think it was barely an euro less. And probably still way too much. But I did it!

Over the past years I found out I was actually surprisingly talented… Those lovely summer festivals in Holland or just a night out in a bar. Don’t ask me how I do it, or why it works, but somehow I always manage to get a lot of drinks for free. I don’t beg for it, I don’t get rude. Not at all. But somehow these bartenders – be it boys or girls – seem to be quite susceptive for my charms. Six wine for the price of two, four cocktails for the price of one – with an extra shoot of alcohol - and it always works by just being kind, a cute little smile or some funny small talk. On the flip side of the coin, I’m always the one having to get the drinks. 

During my backpack trips I´ve put these skills into practice as well – with varying success, though. Most of the times it’s possible to get a discount, if only a minor one. But then mainly for accommodation, or clothes and souvenirs on a local market. Bartenders seem to be more stubborn, though. Or my charms just don’t work in Asia. But then again, it’s not really necessary to bargain on a two dollar vodka bucket, is it? 

But now I found a new hobby. No bargaining to save some bucks, but rather selling stuff and actually receiving money for it. You see, I want to get rid of everything (beside my exceptionally nice, king sized bed) and if people are actually willing to pay for my left overs…be my guest. Most importantly, I sold my car. For just a micro second, a little devil on my shoulder was considering possibilities to even “sell” my company car. But hey, the angel in me (she’s obviously paramount) knows that would be bad karma. And we don’t want that, right. But my own car is sold: cha-ching!! 

The best things in life... aren't things

 

I sold my 10 year old Ikea Billy bookcases, I sold some old magazines, I sold a 15 year old couch for a three digit amount, I sold my curling iron – which by the way I never needed or used because – ghello – I’ve got natural curls anyways. I even sold my Nintendo Game Boy – dating from the stone Age for crying out loud. But apparently people are still willing to pay for it. Go your gang! 

Oh and I sold my furniture as well… at least, that’s what I thought. The circumstances were quite unfortunate – it does feel a bit weird to benefit from somebody else’s divorce. But quid pro quo: one hand washes the other. I help you furnish your apartment; you help me travel the world. Great deal in my honest opinion. But today, the guy notified me that he was getting back together with the misses. “But that’s terrible!!!”, I almost responded awfully inappropriately. But of course, I was kind enough to say “that’s very good news, I’m so happy for the two of you”. 

So basically, I’m getting rid of everything. But hey, last Thursday I finally quit my job, so I can definitely use the money. And it’s all stuff I won’t be needing when travelling the world, so if I can make somebody else happy with it, I’m happy. And for me…for me it’s just a big relieve. You guys probably have no idea how liberating this can feel. I´m closing a door behind me, and I´m sure many doors will open ahead. In one of the most inspirational manifestos  ever it says “start doing the things you love”. And indeed, when you do, good karma is all around you… Furniture sold after all, and I’m confident that I will find more undiscovered talents in the near future!

Entertainment from Bali

I think it’s time to shut my philosophical mode off for now and start entertaining my readers, don’t you agree? Let’s talk business…travel business that is, with a tiny little dash of humor. I already have a pretty extensive travel blog in Dutch, which I still read once in a while. It’s so nice to read those stories again; it always puts a smile on my pretty face and gets me through the day. Day dreaming about far away and sunny destinations. And I must say, I think I can be sort of funny at times. So I decided to share some of those hilarious “did-you-know-thats” from my trip to Bali with you.

Did you know that…: 
 

• I realized today this trip starts looking like my own Eat, Pray and Love experience;
• my “eat”-stage started in Sanur;
• the proof of this is the button of my pants bursting open;
• Bali is significantly more expensive than Thailand;
• therefore, I want to thank the CBI, The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and thus all of you tax paying guys for making this trip possible for me;
• the medicine man from Eat, Pray and Love is the fourth child in his family;
• I know this because his name is Ketut and not Wayan (first born), Made (second born) or Nyoman (third born);
• this is probably totally useless information for you guys;
• statues on Bali all wear a skirt;
• these skirts are black and white checkered;
• this is not necessarily fashionable in Bali, but it seems to represents good and evil;
• I’m being stared at by this little concrete guy in a skirt all night long;
• this does not impress me at all, though (hello!? Men in skirts make NO impression);
• in the streets of Bali it smells like who smoke (incense) everywhere (note from author: uhm...I guess this is actually only funny for the Dutch speaking readers. Wie-rook: who smoke);
• this is because Balinese people put little baskets with flowers and incense sticks in the streets;
• out of respect, I do my utter best not to step on those baskets;
• nevertheless they’re all pretty crushed, because most tourists step on them without any shame;
• Balinese people actually do the same;
• the usefulness of my frantic attempts is therefore totally lacking;
• three waiters have told me tonight “you look soooo happy”;
• I find it a bit odd they all added an extremely surprised “why???”;
• I tried some chakra meditation at the yoga barn in Ubud. From now on I call the thing yoga darn, because it was darn difficult to find;
• afterwards somebody approached me in the streets asking “you do yoga?” I said “yes, but how do you know?”;
• he drily responded with “you have yoga face”; 

0900-call-a-horse...also for beer delivery!

• I haven’t been wearing my watch for three weeks;
• as a result a day actually only has four times: time for breakfast, time for lunch, time for dinner, and time for a beer (not necessarily in that order);
• there are no cars on the Gili’s;
• the only means of transport is 0900-call-a-horse;
• I asked the driver if accidents ever occur with this primitive type of transport;
• he simply responded with “yes, for sure” and I actually had to explain to him that it was not a reassuring answer;
• “java update available” on my portable computer thing’s got a very different meaning since my trip to Indonesia;
• that’s all for now folks;
• I’ll end this update with the overly poetic “no hurry, no chicken curry”.

100 days

Preps? Writing? Preps? Writing? Aaarrgh, the pressure of choices. I’ve had a tiny little writer’s block over the past few weeks – hence the lack of a new post. Like I told you guys before, corporate life does not breed creativity, at least not for me. And on top of that, I’ve been preoccupied with preparations.

100 days. For some cabinets it took 100 days to reach an agreement; several turned out to be a lot quicker to tear the whole political circus down. 100 days is also supposed to be the ideal time span to master meditation techniques; although I’m highly interested in this relax-and-come-to-peace-with-yourself-in-this-crazy-must-do-everything-but-don’t-have-time-to-truly-enjoy-it-society, I can barely shut off my thoughts for 100 seconds. And within 100 days the Olympic Games start again; that’s a minimum of 200 times brushing teeth. And about twice the time an average chicken lives nowadays, before it ends up in a plastic tray in the super market.

Smart guy, this Mark Twain...

But cut the crap. For me, those 100 days represent the number of days left to tear down everything I’ve been building up over the past years. An “Oh My Buddha” is in place here, right? (I’ll take another sip of wine). In 100 days I’m liberated from this corporate mambo jambo, I don’t have a job anymore, no house full of materialistic stuff that has been unable to proof its usefulness anyways, no overly expensive iPhone contract, no furniture, no car, no television, no wardrobe full of clothes of which I’ve been only wearing about 25% on a regular basis, etc. and so on. Yes, I’m burning all bridges behind me. An early midlife crisis? Or did I totally lose my sense of consciousness? I don’t think so… To prove, I’ll quote from one of my favourite TV-shows (from the time I still watched television). Grey’s Anatomy; always entertaining, but I especially love it how it always ends with a little wisdom.

A couple of hundred years ago, Benjamin Franklin shared with the world 

the secret of his success. Never leave that till tomorrow, he said, which 

you can do today. This is the man who discovered electricity. 

You think more people would listen to what he had to say. 

I don’t know why we  put things off, but if I had to guess, I’d have to say 

it has a lot to do with fear. Fear of failure, fear of rejection, sometimes the fear 

is just of making a decision, because what if you’re wrong? 

What if you’re making a mistake you can’t undo? 

The early bird catches the worm. A stitch in time saves nine. He who hesitates is 

lost. We can’t pretend we hadn’t been told. 

We’ve all heard the proverbs, heard the philosophers, heard our grandparents 

warning us about wasted time, heard the damn poets urging us 

to seize the day. Still sometimes we have to see for ourselves. We have to make 

our own mistakes. We have to learn our own lessons. We have to sweep today’s 

possibility under tomorrow’s rug until we can’t anymore. Until we finally 

understand for ourselves what Benjamin Franklin really meant.

 That knowing is better than wondering, that waking is better than sleeping, and 

even the biggest failure, even the worst, beat the hell out of never trying.

- Grey’s Anatomy

You see, that is exactly it. I don’t want to put things on hold, because one day time will be running out. I don’t want to wake up 30 years from now saying I could of, should of, would of about anything. So yes, I’m taking a risk. 100 days. Destination: highly uncertain. End date: undefined. And I’m not saying it’s gonna be easy…but I’m damn sure it’s gonna be worth it.

Backpacker on high heels

You guys probably all know about the concept of a bucket list. A list of all the things you want to accomplish before you expire, things you swear you’re going to do before you die. Well I have made such a list… several times. And I can tell you “sitting in an office wasting my time staring at a computer screen until I retire” is NOT on a single one of them. Rather, the thread in all these lists is travelling (what a surprise). Visiting as many places as possible, experiencing different cultures, enjoying the beauty of mother nature, shattering my own limits and meeting new people. Talking with them, learning from them (and vice versa), if only to get inspired and broaden my horizons.

During my first backpack trip I swore not to put myself in too uncomfortable situations (but after a while I have even started liking it… occasionally). And I refused to walk around like the “stereotypical backpacker”: collectively adopting the great unwashed look, wearing torn up, filthy, oversized clothes and greasy hear.Now I am not that vain that I want to walk around looking like I just walked out of a haute couture fashion show (I am not even into fashion or brands anyways), but I did want to have some nice clothes for different occasions. And, most important, I just had to bring my hair straightener. My mum called me crazy, but hey, it weighs less than a kilo and I just didn’t feel complete without it.

When I was preparing my first trip (with a backpack instead of a highly impractical suitcase that is), I decided to call myself a backpacker on high heels. If only to justify carrying around 12 kilos of stuff I mostly didn´t need or wear. It also justified that I occasionally treated myself on a quite luxurious hotel to ´celebrate´ the start or end of my holiday. And in an attempt to always look representative and smell good - which turned out to be a huge challenge in tropical countries with temperatures above 40 degrees - I believed I also distinguished myself from the shabby type of backpacker. The rare kind of species I just couldn´t identify myself with.

On the other hand, I am a firm believer of challenging yourself, getting out of your comfort zone and trying new things. Hey, I don’t travel 10.000K to lay around on my butt in a 5 star all inclusive resort. I want to do awkward awesome now and then and shatter my own limits: fall from the sky with 200K per hour, jump off a 111mbridge with only an elastic cord around my ankles, take a few rapids in a plastic boat. But also eating local food at a street market (I’ve learned that it’s often the best food around and darn cheap) or taking a cooking course to be able to replicate those meals at home. 

Travelling super duper light...beat that!

And now ladies and gentlemen, this backpacker on high heels has done something freakin’ awesome… I’ve put everything I have learned during my trips into practice. On my last trip to Cambodia I’ve travelled pretty low budget. I have NOT brought my hair straightener. I’ve really, truly packed light this time (see the evidence above). Slept in a tent several times (and looooved it), surrounded by snakes… possibly poisonous ones. Took a bath in the river, unaware of the fact some crocodiles might have the same idea. Learned how to ride a motorbike in an hour and put these newly acquired skills into practice on a dirt bike the next day. And to top all of that I’ve managed to pee in a toilet packed with huge cockroaches. 

Well, maybe it’s time to change this concept of backpacking on high heels and revise my bucket list once again...  :-)

I have to go see about a boy...

Like I said, when you get the hang of it, you’re unstoppable. And I am. Leaving for Bangkok on the 24^th of March, destination to be decided on the spot. Only for two weeks and it’s totally against my current budgetary principles. So let’s just call a spade a spade: I am going do some field research. Because I have to practice travelling on a budget… like really travelling on a budget… at least that’s my excuse for packing my backpack again (barely two months after I came back from my last trip to Thailand & Laos).

Travelling on a budget... Yes I can!

During my previous backpack trips I wasn’t really travelling on a budget. Of course I told the guesthouse owners I was, to get a discount…if only a minor one. Because generally it’s still very cheap-to-sleep in Asia, but it’s just because the thrill of it. With a friendly smile, a good attitude and a little blinking with my gorgeous blue eyes (oh no… that doesn’t really work in Asia), it has always been possible to get a discount. But I didn’t really need it. Because for the past years I have done some freelance work, next to my fulltime job as a consultant. The earnings of these freelance activities were quite high (and it actually gave me more pleasure than my full time job did), so this allowed me to make all these trips to distant destinations.. But because it was also the time of the year for me to get away from corporate life (and the winter blues) and enjoy the things I really wanted, I’ve always told myself: don’t pare too much. Just enjoy, enjoy to the max! I am here anyway, so why not enjoy it to the fullest…

Today I managed to buy a ticket to Bangkok for a mere € 450 (for all the jealous ones out there: yes you can, too!!! http://www.thailandtravel.nl. They’ve got some really interesting deals now and then). In this case, I’m flying with Jetair Fly, departure from Bruxelles and only a quick stop in Phuket on the way there (direct flight back). Almost too good to be true…almost. I realize it does look like a totally irrational decision…or in fact it is a totally irrational decision. But a girl’s gotta do what a girl’s gotta do. I'm following my heart yet again... The truth is: I have to go see about a boy :-)

All good things take some time

Some things in life take a little more time than expected. It may take some time to take your first steps, some might struggle learning their first words or calculating their first equations. For some it may take ages to finally leave their parents’ house and start taking care of themselves…some of us will never learn. Some get married in their twenties, some of us try several times or never dare to ever take that step. We all need a certain amount of time to do something. Standing in line for a summer festival – I just loooove summer festivals – may also take longer than expected. Luckily I’m a smart girl, usually well prepared, so I bring a bottle of something something to get “in the mood” waiting. And what about that flight to Bali (2010) that was supposed to take about 15 hours. Mine lasted some 29 hours – door to door that is. But I refuse to complain…just a little bit extra for good luck, I tell myself. I had a blast anyway!

It can also take you about two years to post your second blog on the internet. About the same time some need to deliver two babies. But hey, relatively speaking is not that big of a deal. All good things take some time, but when you finally get the hang of it, you’re unstoppable… 

And that’s where I am now…I got the hang of it and now I’m unstoppable. It took me some time to realize what it is I really want in life. Or actually it didn’t, but it did take me some time to be brave enough to commit to it. Truly, madly, deeply commit to it. Step out of what I believed people, society, the world expects from me, and just choose life. MY life, MY dreams, MY passion. We all know the saying “any great journey starts with a small step”. And often taking the first initial action is a massive achievement, yet many people seem to come up with excuses to never even take that first step. Or they do, but then the action in itself or the unknown that is now ahead of them scares them off and immediately makes them turn back to their familiar and safe, yet mediocre life. However, I believe the only way to achieve real progress is to continue, step after step after step after step. It takes commitment, motivation, focus and persistence. But the absolute key ingredient is passion.



That's right!


I think I took that first step some time ago and yes I have hesitated as well. But awaiting for life-as-I-want-it to happen, has not made me truly happy so far. So I decided to take another step, maybe just a small one for the time being, but boy, it does feel good!!! It may all sound a bit vague to you guys, and yes, I don’t know exactly where this is all going. Well, I know where I am going… I’ll pack my backpack and go out there. That’s one thing that’s for sure. But (and now I’ll finally make it a bit more explicit) at this time I don’t know yet where I will start (blogging about following my dreams and travelling the world from my 75 square meter apartment is not what my dream is really about). But I have committed to it and now I can start making plans. And I’m loving it. It gives me even more energy to now go do it, like really do it! But it will also take some serious decision making: where to start, where to go, which places to visit? And for now even more important: which things to withhold myself from to be able to save enough money a.s.a.p. to get on that plane… a one way ticket to the prime of my life por favor. I’m not a real materialist, have already found out I actually don’t need a lot to be happy. So I already started doing some serious financial planning, which consequently means living on a budget (damn, I am gonna miss those summer festivals). 

And then… what to write about??? OMG, I started writing a blog. Technically, I announced it to the whole world. But do they actually want to know about it? Can I actually entertain them with my stories and, if so, with what? So I decided (see, the decision making is going easier bit by bit as well) to just take you along on my journey. Not only my actual backpack adventure (that’s the easy part to write about!), because it will probably take some months for me to get to the point of actually travelling around. But I’ll also write about the practical stuff I have to deal with planning my journey. I’ll write about the anticipation and fun of – finally – having the guts to put my dreams into action. I’ll also write about the challenges I have to face, the fears I might encounter, the doubts I may have along the way (although that does not cross my mind right now…ignorance is bliss). And I’ll also just write about things I feel like writing about (there’s an audience for everything, right?). Sometimes I just want to write about things that interest or amaze me (oh and I'm warning you, I'm a sucker for catchy quotes so I'll probably spam you with them, too!). And I truly believe that taking it one step at a time, I will eventually find a subject to commit to (however, maybe I won’t even make a choice… I don’t wanna choose (yet), wanna do it all!). I hope I can inspire you…!

Start doing the things you love

Welcome to my world. I’ve always had a predilection for writing. I just love the power of words and especially in writing. Once put in black and white, they cannot be forgotten. They can get lost in a pile of paper or unfindable on the world wide web. But generally, they are there to stay. Not like the spoken word, which can only be remembered for some time. It slowly but steadily becomes a vague something in your neural network, until it finally is forever forgotten. But the written word is there to stay.

I have one even bigger love: travelling the world and exploring new places. Immerse myself in different cultures, meeting new people and learning from them. The world is just so much more than your own backyard, your safe haven. As I once read in a guestbook in a hostel in Thailand during one of my first backpack trips:

...my favorite book that is....!

And boy, do I want to read. Do I have an urge of devouring each and every single letter, sentence and chapter of this book called earth – and even beyond, if it were affordable.

So I have been spending the last few years practicing to travel and practicing to write. It all started with my graduation research in the vibrant city of Vanderbijlpark in South Africa. I’ve lived there for five months in '06/'07. That’s when I also started to write a travel blog, to keep my loved ones overseas updated on all my adventures (and hard work ofcourse). After that I’ve packed my backpack several times and visited Thailand, Indonesia and Laos. Although my first big love was Africa and Asia did not really appeal to me, I fell in love with the far east, too...big time! And I also discovered that the writer's block I often experienced being sucked up in my ordinary corporate life in Holland – my mother country, the frog country – disappeared like clouds before the sun when I was travelling.

So here I am. Combining my two biggest loves: travelling and writing. Please join me on my journey!!