Triple Step
Bouncing, bubbling, boiling with laughter, unabashedly unapologetic when a beat is missed, a foot stepped on. Look around and everyone is doing the exact same thing. This is what learning Lindy Hop and living in a new language felt like. My first week of French summer in the streets of Toulouse – the romantic greetings,
Old Woman Hut
Late summer, Central Otago. Weather Gods are frowning. Project team has retreated to Dunedin. Just the car and I. Feeling adventurous. Maps are unfolded. Mum wouldn’t like the thought of me tramping alone. Quick stop in Roxburgh for a pie and a chance to decide not to. Will it be lonely? I’m rarely lonely on
A flight best forgotten
My first trip, with a child, was to England in 1975. My husband, Dennis, had been selected to be on a naval course in Portsmouth and these courses can take anything up to 11 months and 3 weeks. Their policy was that wives and families were not paid to travel and live together on an
Me and my monkey mind
I had this idea of travelling by myself for a few years. But one of my biggest fears before going was actually to travel with me and my monkey mind! What if I feel sad? What if I’m not motivated to do anything? What if I start diving in my dark places? Usually, when this would happen
Traveling with Kinetosis
Professor Tillman was animatedly explaining the worst offenses elderly drivers obliviously commit when they are unfortunately too old to drive but believe they still can. Stories such as, dragging a body they have hit all the way home only to notice as they slowly step out of the driver’s seat. Given my already ingrained fear
A Friend In High Places
I was growing tired of all these complete strangers coming to me in tears. It was January 2010, I was in Berchtesgaden, Germany, at a German Alpine Club conference. I was standing at a desk, in front of a placard with beautiful pictures of New Zealand emblazoned all over it. Stones and driftwood from our
Accepting the past so I can move into the future
It was a beautiful day in hectic Yogyakarta. I’d been travelling for nearly one month and enjoying disconnecting from reality, which was not so bright and shiny back then… Looking back, that was the year my father died and, in a nutshell, it was not the greatest year of my life. Yet, it was probably
Solo-Travelling to find self-love
Things weren’t working between us anymore. I needed a break and took a plane to London. It was my first time traveling and staying by myself in a place that I knew a lot about but never thought of going there alone. The government had announced Brexit and I could feel the tension in the air.
Venturing into the unknown… together.
Three years ago, my sister Kelly and I were both in places in our careers where we decided we needed a change. Kelly had been contracting in the media and video production space for years, and I was a diligent public servant working policy and strategy roles. While my role had lots of good things
Solo Trip to Peru & Trekking Machu Picchu
For many years, the idea of going on a solo trip to Peru and Machu Picchu was in my heart and on my mind. I would occasionally test my endurance by hiking local trails, check flight prices, refresh my Spanish, and seek advice from friends who had gone on similar journeys. However, anytime I would