There is nothing quite like the artistic energy that emanates from the heart of Williamsburg in Brooklyn, my favorite borough of New York City.
I spend one night at the Wythe Hotel, a boutique hotel with loft-converted rooms that feature original historic industrial detailing, pine ceilings, and exposed brick walls. My room overlooks the hauntingly peaceful snow-covered Manhattan.
When Martin Nolan of The Travel Ramble suggested that I go skiing in Norway, my first thought was "I didn't realize that Norway was even considered a skiing destination!" I know there's a lot of snow there, but I don't think about slopes when I think of Norway. I actually hardly think about slopes at all since I'm quite terrible at skiing. I grew up in Thailand for god's sake! I can barely ice-skate. Watching me navigate through ice and snow is like watching a pile of baby rabbits getting shot. Seriously. Martin mentioned that Norway is probably the best place for a novice skier to learn. Enticed, I invited him to write a guest post about skiing in Norway so that I can definitely consider it when I'm thinking about taking a ski trip there.
Hey guys, Sorry that I've been a bit MIA from my WordPress blog. I've been traveling and hard at work on my revamping my blog and launching my newsletter! I've been spending that last few weeks scouring templates, logos, fonts just to make it ABSOLUTELY PERFECT. And after all my hard work, it's finally done! I would like to present to you, my newsletter and please sign up for monthly updates!
If you missed it - Click here to read the Costa Rica issue!
No phone, no air-condition, a beach with no people. This was exactly what I needed to get away from the usual busy, busy, busy of my life in New York and rushing around from airport to airport catching plane after plane… I needed to slow down and remember who I was again. The beach brought back memories of my childhood home. Raised by the beach at what was the sleepy resort town of Pattaya Beach in Thailand, I remember a lot of my early childhood spent on the beach, in the water and ordering room service at a place that was a lot like Blue Osa.
Now that I was almost 30, and spending almost 10 years in the United States, 6 years of that in university getting my Bachelors and my Masters, I needed to reconnect with who I really was inside. So I spent time writing some poetry:
With head in the sky and my feet on the ground. I know that I'm safe and sound.
Who I am has nothing to do with how I look, my degrees, resume, or the amount in my bank account.
I know my value is measured by my character and drive.
I'm a girl in love with the world and I'm alive.
It's taken a while, but I've allowed myself to be just myself without judgement and I wanted to build a business around who I authentically am. I am doing it.
Out of the rainforest, I emerged anew and rejuvenated. More grounded and ready to rock it. The biggest change from this much needed time to myself was that I changed my position at FreshTraveler from "Host, Writer and Producer" to "CEO and Founder". I have bigger dreams and ambitions for my business. I realized I was thinking too small and playing it too safe. I didn't just want a web series or a blog. I didn't just want to exist online. I want my brand to also exist in reality. I want to build a lifestyle brand and as I embark on that exciting journey, I am more grounded stronger than ever to face any challenge.
Instead of taking what life gives and throws at me, I realized I can CREATE my life as anything that I want and ANYTHING is possible. So here I am, creating my ideal life - online and in real life - as a FreshTraveler.
And with that, I release my first photo essay of my stay at Blue Osa Yoga Resort and Spa. The photos were taken either by me or Lynan Saperstein. Hope you enjoy them! xo
At Playa Tamales near Puntarenas, Costa Rica, the waves glow at night. Not by any lights or any help from modern technology. Natural algae that produce dinoflagellate luciferin live in the water and light up when provoked. And my crazy yoga instructor friend Leslie Bishop Hunter was happily provoking them.
"Take off your clothes!" she screamed into the darkness. I couldn't make out where she was, only that her voice was coming from my left, near the sound of the waves.
There was hardly any moonlight to guide my path towards the waves and Leslie’s happy screams. Only the glow of the bioluminescence in the crashing waves, a spectacular light show of glowing plankton that lit up the waves in middle of this otherwise dark night.
The bluish green glow of the waves was the only thing that I could see. That and the phosphorescent glow of the water surrounding Leslie's aura.
I wanted to go in, but I left my swimsuit in my room at the nearby Blue Osa Yoga Sanctuary and Spa and I didn't want the saltwater to damage the dyes on my polka-dotted beach dress.
The glowing waves still beckoned.
I tread carefully over the pebbled beach towards Leslie's splashes. I didn't want my feet crushing any nocturnal beach creatures and any of the varieties of crab that scuttled along the shore.
From where I was, I could see Leslie making angel wings with her arms in the water. Her waving arms and kicking legs surrounded with a confetti of lit algae. I too wanted to bask in the splendor of the provoked phytoplankton. After a short internal debate over whether I should join her happiness, I decided.
Off came my dress and I ran happily over the pebbled beach into the waters of the Osa Peninsula and let myself be surrounded by the midnight glow of the bioluminescence algae.
Video: The Flight of the Ultralight I get drunk on Mexican coffee [hint: it has tequila] and take to the sky in an airplane that looks like a kite glued to a lawnmower. Video produced by Brandon Li and Patricia Serrano. Field Producer: Arthur Kanegis.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kS3Zz9f32yU?hd=1]
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Video : On the Road to El Salto Canyon I risk my life driving over precarious Mexican roads to a hidden canyon and spill juicy tidbits about my shameful driving history. Video produced by Brandon Li and Patricia Serrano. Field Producer: Arthur Kanegis.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vH2F_lkRHbg?hd=1]
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My mother told me Mexico (Baja in particular) was dangerous. I didn't believe her so I took the trolley from San Diego down to the border to see what it was really like. First stop, La Fonda Hotel, a secluded getaway where secrets come to die. Video produced by Brandon Li and Patricia Serrano. [youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mShrL5yb15g?hd=1]
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Video: Puerto Nuevo Part II Not letting treacherous waves get in the way of my craving for fresh fish, I seduce a Baja fisherman into taking me on his boat for a taste of what he does everyday. Video produced by Brandon Li and Patricia Serrano. Field Producer: Arthur Kanegis.
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G7Awj_kaHJs?hd=1]
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