Everyday Adventures, Everyday Mindfulness
Annapurna. The Goddess of the Harvest. This majestic mountain mastiff is circumnavigated by a 230 km trek that climbs a total height of 4656m from the starting point in Besisahar to the pass at Thorung La, teetering on the brink of the Tibetan Plateau. Often voted the best long-distance hike in the world, in Nepal... Continue Reading →
Recently, I spent 10 days studying Buddhist meditation with nuns from the Tibetan tradition in a monastery just outside Kathmandu. Yes, I was also confused about the fact there are nuns in a monastery but it is the 21st Century after all. These wonderful women taught me many things, not just through their words but... Continue Reading →
Sweat trickles down the back of my neck in the midday sun. My leg starts to tremble. I can't have been here for more than 2 minutes but it feels like an eternity. The sensation in the front of my right thigh has grown from small ember to throbbing blaze and my mind is screaming... Continue Reading →
What image springs to mind when you think of yoga? Probably a young, skinny woman contorting into strange shapes suspended in Lycra, right? It's moved on from the wacky new age hippy stereotype and now it's totally cool for ‘regular’ and ‘respectable’ people to sport power suit by day and LuluLemon by night. Personally I... Continue Reading →
“Though we travel the world over to find the beautiful, we must carry it with us or we find it not” - Ralph Waldo Emerso Cycling touring is like an incessant itch that is only saited when doing the following: cycling touring; reminiscing about cycle touring; or planning the next cycle tour. After my 2016... Continue Reading →
Wake before dawn. The sun has not yet risen on another year, but last night’s music still hangs in the air. Don a jumper for the first time in weeks and straddle the bicycle you can rent for just 40p. Say hello to the cook walking her cow. Say hello to three children riding one... Continue Reading →
“We begin to let go only when we see the pain that's caused by holding on” - Mark Coleman I came to India for the following reasons: to to meditate, to spend time alone in nature, and to practice yoga. Feeling like I had adequately addressed the first objective for now, I decided to move... Continue Reading →
"One way to get the most out of life is to look upon it as an adventure" - William Feather In 2017, I made the only New Years resolution I have ever kept, with a couple of caveats. To go on a microadventure at least once a month for the whole year. Originally the definition... Continue Reading →
“Emancipate yourself from mental slavery, none but ourselves can free our minds” - Bob Marley I spend my first month in India in a beautiful Zen monastery in the Western Ghats, gazing at the misty horizon and contemplating the beauty of wild flowers. I feel very far from the India most people imagine. For the... Continue Reading →
