travel & yoga • here's how and why

Hello dear humans. For today's blogpost I've teamed up with Lisanne - owner and founder of Superyoga.nl - an amazing webshop and online platform centred around all things yoga. We're going to be doing a little series of yoga related blogposts of which this is the first one. Lisanne wrote a little piece about yoga and travel and how to find balance on the road. I translated and edited the piece ever so slightly for my international readers to not feel left out. 

Yoga has saved my ass in so many ways - I hope we'll be able to inspire some of you to look into it as well!

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Voor sommigen van ons bestaat er niets beters dan op reis zijn. De spanning om nieuwe dingen te ontdekken, de rust en vooral helemaal niets moeten! Daar past yoga perfect bij waardoor je je nóg meer ontspannen voelt tijdens het reizen, want de (in)spanningen en drukke reisschema’s kunnen ook zorgen voor de nodige vermoeidheid en zelfs stiekem een beetje stress. Geef yoga daarom een plekje in jouw koffer en geniet van alle voordelen die je erdoor mag ervaren.

For some of us, there’s nothing better than exploring the world. The excitement of discovering new things and places, the tranquility and that feeling of being free, having no obligations or deadlines - it’s simply addictive. The practice of yoga fits that dreamy image perfectly- it’ll help you relax and wind down (because, let’s be honest, the crazy schedules and lugging around your backpack can be exhausting and even slightly stressful). My suggestion: bring your yoga practice (and possibly your mat) along with you on your journey and enjoy all the wonders and pleasures it’ll bring. You won’t regret it!

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10 ways to reduce your plastic waste

Just a few months ago I found myself signing up for a diving course on a pretty little island in Indonesia - a super impulsive decision and absolutely not something I had set out to do before I left for South East Asia. In hindsight, about 90 percent of my favourite memories and most exciting adventures started out exactly like that: they were impulsive decisions made in under 0.3 seconds. 

I love how those types of things work. You decide something in under a second and never forget that singular moment for the rest of your life. Kind of like the way you decide to say 'yes please I would love a plastic bag', then throw it out after without a single moment of hesitation and then that same plastic bag will pollute the earth and the oceans for much much longer than you will ever live. Yep - much much much longer.

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traveling around the world • preparations

There are very few things that stress me out as much as travel prep does. Don't get me wrong: I love the excitement and getting my shit together does make me feel empowered and independent. I'm also one of those people who love packing. It's so satisfying to me to just fit my life into a backpack. But god - if I'd never have to look into visa stuff again that'd be a HUGE relief.

I'm currently sat on the cool, marble floor of an airport in Sweden, my backpack by my side, A$AP Ferg blasting out of my headphones (probably ruining my hearing) and I feel so very carefree. Yes- okay, there's stuff racing through my mind (like cash withdrawals, currency exchange and bus routes from Bangkok Airport to the city centre) but it's all good. My life has been compressed to 50 liters. 11.8 kilograms. Wonderful.

The weeks, months prior to today, however, have been slightly less carefree and dreamy and floaty. I was running around, getting vaccinations, a new passport, reading everything I could find on international public transport, budgeting and malaria all while I was also working my ass of to make some extra cash to get me through these months of traveling. I didn't sleep. As soon as I closed my eyes I saw images of visas, travel documents, proof of onward travel and maps of places I could, at that point, only dream of. 

I decided to create a simple yet informative guide to traveling the world (mostly South East Asia). A structured overview of things to be done, to be considered and to be bought. Stuff to take care of to ensure a care free, worry free, comfortable and budget proof trip. To get you through the preparations WITHOUT the sleepless nights :) You're welcome. 

traveling the world, kind of? • a guide • pt. 1

Hey. Hi. Hello. How are you? I've been updating this blog off and on for the past year - it's been irregular and inconsistent and I'm pretty sure that it'll stay that way for some more time. How I managed to post one (sometimes even two) post(s) a day - I do not know. It will remain a mystery. Some long gone discipline and willpower, perhaps. Or maybe I finally found a life away from my laptop. I suppose it is a mix of all of the above. 

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dansen met m'n twijfels en zwierend naar de andere kant van de wereld

Toen ik vijf was nam mijn moeder mijn tweelingbroertje en mij mee naar Bolivia. Bijna een half jaar hebben we toen aan de andere kant van de wereld gewoond. Zo’n acht jaar daarna reisden we naar Brazilië en Angola. Daarna ben ik zelf op pad gegaan en heb ik Londen, Rome, Trapani, Parijs, Madrid, Manchester, Edinburgh, Brussel, Berlijn, Zwitserland en nog meer stukjes van Europa ontdekt. Ik ben geboren met bloed in mijn aderen dat smeekt om avontuur. Ik kan niet eindeloos op de zelfde plek doorbrengen – van stilzitten word ik slap en verdrietig. Reizen is voor me wat de zon is voor plantjes. Ik kan niet zonder.