Reasons We All Need to Travel More
If you are currently on a mission to find an excuse to travel more, you don’t have to look too far. There are many benefits of seeing the world, meeting new friends, and getting a new experience every day. Whether you are the cultural traveler or love the jungle and would like to spend more time with animals than with people, you can create the perfect experience that will help you grow as a person. Below you will find just a selection of excuses you can use next time you book a vacation.
Connecting With Nature During Your Travels
When most people head away on vacation, they will tend to book a package holiday through a specialist lettings agency. This, of course, can be great. You can land great offers and spend a relaxing week or two lounging around a pool and making use of your chosen hotel’s facilities. However, it can also feel like a waste at times. Part of the joy of visiting a new place is to immerse yourself in its nature. You should aim to see new landscapes and experience things you wouldn’t be able to at home. Here are just a few different ways that you can actively connect with nature during your trips.
Travel Diary Days 66 - 69: Gili Air, Indonesia
Gili Air Island in Indonesia is what this post is all about! We are just about finished with the Southeast Asia Travel Diary series. Indonesia was the final stop! Read about the island, what we did for fun, and where we stayed. This island is super small and kind of eerie!
The Vegan Option: Gili Air
Wow, it's been quite some time since I've published on the blog. In fact, it's now been over a year since we were in Indonesia. Being the Aquarian that I am, I couldn't just NOT finish the Southeast Asia Travel Diary series. Indonesia was the final stop! And so, with this post, I finally complete the travel series, and will get back to blogging about other cool things soon, I promise! Plus a podcast in the works!
The Vegan Option: Canggu
Wow, it's been quite some time since I've published on the blog. In fact, it's now been over a year since we were in Indonesia. Being the Aquarian that I am, I couldn't just NOT finish the Southeast Asia Travel Diary series. Indonesia was the final stop! And so, with this post, I finally complete the travel series, and will get back to blogging about other cool things soon, I promise! Plus a podcast in the works!
Travel Diary Days 59 - 65: Canggu, Bali, Indonesia
Wow, it's been quite some time since I've published on the blog. In fact, it's now been over a year since we were in Indonesia. Being the Aquarian that I am, I couldn't just NOT finish the Southeast Asia Travel Diary series. Indonesia was the final stop! And so, with this post, I finally complete the travel series, and will get back to blogging about other cool things soon, I promise! Plus a podcast in the works!
Travel Diary Days 52 - 58: Hội An & Hanoi, Vietnam
Hội An is a charming town on the central coast of Vietnam. Inside is the well-known "Ancient Town", a beautifully preserved trading port from the 15th to 19th century. The architecture and culture represent the various influences that have created the site, which is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The town area is blocked off to motorists and can only be accessed via foot or bicycle. We rented bikes and rode around in the evening. There are beautiful canals that cut through the streets, and you can see distinct differences in certain areas between Japanese, French, Vietnamse & Chinese influences. There are bridges, soap houses, temples, colonial buildings, and color all around.
Serene Yoga Retreat in Bali, Indonesia
Serenity Eco Guesthouse is a family-run eco center that focuses on providing quality yoga programs that are accessible to all and to operating in a way that is synergistic with it's surroundings. We were impressed by the level of thought and attention that goes into the details of being environmentally friendly throughout this space. I'll talk more about the facilities and practices at Serenity Eco Guesthouse in a future article, but for now, I want to focus on highlighting their Serene Yoga Retreats.
Travel Diary Days 44 - 51: Saigon (Ho Chi Minh City) & Vung Tau Beach, Vietnam
After our time in Cambodia, we headed to Saigon (Ho Chi Minh City), Vietnam for 3 days & Vung Tau Beach for 4 days. We were very excited to see what Vietnam would be like, as we heard various things from travelers along the way (everyone has an opinion to share). I don't want to spoil the story, but overall, Vietnam was our favorite place that we visited! On the next Travel Diary, I'll talk about Hoi An, a charming ancient town that we adored & Hanoi.
This Travel Diary focuses on Ho Chi Minh City, which is still often referred to as Saigon - especially by the locals that we talked to.
I cover about the southern beach town of Vung Tau, which is interesting in it's own way. It was definitely a rich cultural experience. I am confident we will visit Vietnam again and spend more time there exploring.
Travel Diary Days 41 - 43: Siem Reap & Angkor Wat, Cambodia (Temple Photo Gallery)
The Temple Complex of Angkor Wat was built from the 6th to the 12th century (I also read 9th - 15th) and is steeped in history. There's far too much history to cover in this post, but there's plenty of information on-line about the rich and tumultuous history of the Khmer people and of Cambodia. It's worth researching and visiting if you've never been (Cambodia, in general, and Angkor Wat, for sure). Angkor Wat is probably the most popular tourist destination in Cambodia, from what I gathered, but there's definitely plenty else to see and enjoy. We thoroughly enjoyed our time in Cambodia.
Travel Diary Days 36 - 40: Elephant Nature Park in Cambodia (Video)
Pete and I had the pleasure of experiencing 5 days at Elephant Nature Park in Cambodia. It was one of the most rewarding and enriching experiences of our lives. Elephant Nature Park is an elephant rescue and rehabilitation center (based in Northern Thailand, with projects in Cambodia & Myanmar as well). Volunteers come from all over to help and visit. They have executed dozens of rescues all over Southeast Asia, allowing for these sentient creatures to live out the rest of their lives in peace and comfort.
Travel Diary Days 26 - 35: Vagabond Temple in Sihanoukville, Cambodia
Pete & I had the pleasure of spending 9 amazing & enriching days at Vagabond Temple in Sihanoukville, Cambodia. We feel so blessed for the experiences we had there, and they have followed us on our journey through Southeast Asia. We feel more spiritually connected, we have a deeper understanding of yoga and Buddhism, we were spoiled with delicious homemade vegan food, and we felt (and still feel) part of the close & welcoming community that is Vagabond Temple.
Travel Diary Days 21 - 25: Koh Samui, Thailand & Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Hey there! We spent a fabulous 5 days on the beautiful island of Koh Samui in Thailand. After that, we flew from Koh Samui to Bangkok and then to Phnom Penh, Cambodia to get ready for our next adventure! Before I get too ahead of myself, let's check out some of the Koh Samui highlights!
Koh Phangan's Destructive & Debaucherous Full Moon Party
I figured the full moon would be towards the end of January, and researched exactly when the party would be. I don't like to do too much on-line research about the places I'm going to visit, as I don't like expectations. If I'm guided somewhere, I go there and let myself experience it in the moment - simple as that. I found that the party would be close to when we would be visiting the island of Koh Phangan. I put that down on the calendar and started planning our trip around the Full Moon Party that was to happen January 23rd, 2016. Naturally, I wanted to go to the party, envisioning in to be a spiritual and enlightening experience.
Not to spoil the story, but spiritual and enlightening it definitely was not...
Travel Diary Days 7 - 11: Phuket, Lanta, Phi Phi, Tao - Thailand Island Hopping
After close to a week of hard volunteer work at Eco-Logic Yoga Retreat Center, Pete and I were ready for some R&R! Due to the scheduling of our trip (the dates we were at the center and the Full Moon party in Koh Phangan on 1/23 that I wanted to go to), we only had a few days in between to explore the various islands. My parents are coming soon so we will be with them in Koh Phangan and Koh Samui for longer periods of time. Prior to the trip, we deliberated with either choosing 1 - 2 islands for the 5 day stretch or trying to see a few of them and hopping around. We chose the latter because we weren't able to decide what to nix out, and we really wanted to experience all of the popular islands. A few people told us that we were doing it too fast, and in hindsight, I have to agree.
Travel Diary Days 3 - 6: Volunteering at TCDF Eco-Logic Yoga Retreat
Eco-Logic Yoga Retreat and TCDF (Thai Child Development Foundation) are located in Pak Song, near Ranong in Thailand. Their tag line is "Yoga for Charity" because the retreat center is set up to support the projects of the Thai Child Development Foundation. Each stay supports the foundation and their efforts directly.
Travel Diary Days 1 & 2: Bangkok, Thailand
We arrived late to The Yard Hostel at 3 am (or really early, depending on how you look at it). Pete (the hubs) and I hit the sack, both extremely jet lagged yet anxious and wired! We woke around 8:30 and headed down for breakfast and lots of coffee.
Alexis Franklin: The Inspired Wanderlust Loving Yoga Teacher
I met the gorgeous and talented Alexis Franklin (aka Yoga Warrior Goddess) earlier in 2015 after we formed an Instagram relationship. She participated in our challenge called #WakeUpYogis and caught everyone's attention with her fantastic photos and graceful yoga practice. We started chatting and instantly formed a close bond. She came to LA to and we met there and had a lovely time getting to know one another! Since then, we've spent a lot of time together both in person, on the phone, on Skype, and through Instagram, collaborating on many projects together (like each designing a pair of yoga shorts for Daughters of Culture, photoshoots, challenges, a future retreat, our blog launches, and more)! It's been a challenge for me to meet really solid people both professionally and personally and if there's one thing I can say about Alexis is that she's a solid woman. She's reliable, hardworking, organized, motivated, and talented!
Photo Diary: Costa Rica Yoga Retreat 2015
... with LOTS OF PICTURES!!!!!
You've been warned. There's lots of pictures coming your way. As I sit here, the Saturday after my retreat ended, reflecting on all of the experiences & adventures we packed into 7 nights and 8 days, I am blown away. It's difficult for me to fathom what the retreat guests must be experiencing right now, as I know that it took me a couple of days to reacclimate back to life and to process what had happened - and I've done this many times before! On our time, we had two people that had never traveled outside of the United States before! They had quite the adventure. It's going to be difficult to write succinctly on this memorable week as so many amazing things happened, but I'll try to keep it brief! I hope you will consider joining us in 2016. I'm working on an event calendar now so please let me know what time of the year works best for you! Join my mailing list to stay up-to-date with the latest news!
Body Rock Gems: "Exquisite, handcrafted body adornments created with love."
Who is @BodyRockGems
Body Rock Gems is a super cute, small company founded by the lovely Yogi Renee-Marie Brewster of out Los Angeles, California. The line of jewelry uses precious stones, fine silver, gold and features body chains, rings, bracelets and more. Everything is hand-mand and custom orders are accepted.