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Franz Josef Glacier – My actions are significant

Sep 212013

We are significant

Franz Josef Glacier, South Island, New Zealand – 22nd November 2009

It is easy to assume my actions and choices are insignificant when I view myself as one individual amongst seven billion others. What is the point in changing my behaviour if no one else does. It will be insignificant. Nothing will change.

Significance That is not strictly true.

Nothing will change if I do nothing, it can’t. The only change I can see, is to the world that I look at. I am the biggest part of that world so if I change then it is significant, it is also relevant.

People change when something is made relevant to their life, their world, when they can no longer shelter in their ignorance. To understand that doing nothing is a choice and like all choices it has consequences. signigicant

I am guilty of sheltering, of doing nothing, of being a prisoner to my procrastination, I know this. Yet it seems easier to get by this way. The consequences of my inaction are stored up to be delivered back to me one day in the future.

I know, therefore, that I must learn, I must educate myself, so I can make decisions that I can stand by and answer to that future.

Kuala Lumpur – Bringing meaning

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Sep 212013

Kuala Lumpur - Bringing meaning

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia – 8th June 2009

I’ve never been very good at doing what I’m told. I have this automatic response built into me that wants to do something different, to not conform. It’s not a conscious choice, I react before I get the chance to over ride it. This, I now know is my chimp talking.

Kuala Lumpur - Bringing meaning Thankfully, it has got better with age! It also manifests itself in more positive ways.

I have a curious nature, one that likes to explore, to find out how something works. When faced with a repetitive task I’ll try and find variation, to sate my curiosity and provide novelty.

Show me the road that I haven’t travelled.

I love wandering, whether that is in my mind or with my body. To just explore and see where it takes me, then the discovery is all mine, even if it is to arrive at a famous landmark. I can feel enthralled by it’s wonder rather than ticking it off a list. It means something to me.

Chinatown, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

That is why I travel, to bring meaning to myself. It is obvious. It is also obvious then, why I get tired of traveling as without careful thought, It is easy to slip into a list ticking exercise. To merely have a destination to arrive at without realising the destination is irrelevant. Without introducing meaning into how you got there and why you were going in the first place.

Then you arrive with no point and you either hide from yourself or you go home.

Mount Sinai – Hidden danger

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Sep 212013

Hidden danger

Mount Sinai, Egypt – 21st March 2010

I try and avoid physical confrontation, not for moral reasons or that I favour diplomacy but because I’m weak. I doubt I could fight my way out of a paper bag. I’ve never been in a fight, although I’ve been beaten up a couple of times. I’m pretty sure I never got a punch off.

Hidden Danger Physical danger is normally pretty obvious, If you have your eyes open. Your body will dump adrenaline into your system and make a choice to fight or run away. I can run pretty fast, at least I used to.

Of course it is far more preferable to have your eyes open and avoid the obvious danger in the first place. The problem being I get a thrill about approaching where I think the line is. Sometimes, like the edge of a cliff, it is obvious, sometimes it’s not until it’s too late.

It’s the hidden danger, mental danger, the thoughts in my head, the perception of something being dangerous is far more of a worry.

It can paralyse you with procrastination.

The dreaded, what if….?

Hidden Danger I know that it will work out in the end, it is never ever as bad as I think it might be. It’s just my mind’s survival instinct over riding rational thoughts. It’s job is to keep all of you in one piece and therefore is a natural pessimist.

The only way to grow as a an individual, to learn, to expand knowledge is to embrace new experiences and take them for what they are. It’s obvious really as that’s what children do, they haven’t had their mind filled with irrational thoughts.

Naturally I need to go into any new experience with my eyes wide open, otherwise I’ll get run over, I’m not a child anymore.

I’ll continue to do battle with myself, to fight the hidden danger, to strive to learn more, see more, embrace more and share more. I know it gives a vastly more fulfilling life than hiding away protected by my procrastination.

Kauai Coast – Follow the path

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Sep 182013

Follow the path

Kauai, Hawaii – 29th January 2013

I feel vulnerable every time I step into the unknown, to make a decision to go in a direction I hadn’t planned for. The suffocating grasp of not being in control, not knowing what is around the corner let alone where in fact this path may take me.

Follow the path I envy people who can just wander without a map for direction or knowledge of what may be in store. Who shun planning or researching in advance and put their faith and trust in their ability to deal with whatever it is that comes their way.

That is the simple life.

Once you shed the burden of trying to forecast the future and let serendipity be your guide then each experience is magnified. The unexpected becomes a wonder instead of the expected being a disappointment.

Letting yourself be consumed by planning forms a safety net around you, there is a reference point, it protects you in the first instance. Enough so that you can gather your thoughts, then make an informed decision and proceed.

Follow the path I know this is no way to grow, it is the path of stagnation. I must step outside of my comfort zone to grow, I must experience the unexpected to truly get perspective. Getting true perspective is the only way to move forward.

It is easy to sit still and stagnate but it is ultimately unfulfilling. I know I’m striving to fill my days with fulfilment and that means I need to follow the hard path.

I don’t know where this path may lead but I know it is one worth following.

Monks of Luang Prabang – Morning Commute

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Sep 182013

Morning Commute

Luang Prabang, Laos – 20th July 2009

The ubiquitous morning commute, carried out in all weathers, often against one’s wishes, but necessary.

A chore to endure.

Morning Commute It doesn’t have to be. The time can be used to exercise, to read, to listen, to educate, to think, to watch. You can either embrace your surroundings and take something from them or disconnect yourself into your own world. Either can be useful.

The monotony of the same commute often leads to that feeling of dread, the reminder of what is to come.

Even if your travel is always from the same A to the same B the bit in between doesn’t have to be the same. Get off the train a stop early and walk the rest, cycle, run, take a different route to the station, leave at a different time. It will then feel like part of your day rather than a chore to endure, after all you chose to do it. Morning Commute

You can chose to endure it or you can chose to try something different and see where that leads. You have a choice.

Temple of Isis – Contemplation

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Sep 172013

Contemplation

Temple of Isis, Agilkia Island, Egypt – 14th March 2010

Despite not being a religious person there is something comforting about the sanctuary afforded by places of worship. A quiet place, often in grand surroundings, where you can collect your thoughts. They have been protected and maintained through hundreds if not thousands of years, the thought of all that history that you add to with your visit requires that quiet contemplation.

Contemplation You can if you wish research the reason for it’s being, often built or dedicated in honour of someone, real or mythical. Rather than learn the detail of the story, I’m always interested in when it was built. I find it endlessly fascinating to try and put into context the age of my surroundings with the tools that were available at the time. Then sit in wonder with no idea how it was possible.

It’s always a good perspective for what is possible now when you can look into the past and see what has been achieved. It should help to understand that most things aren’t actually impossible, we just haven’t worked out how to do it yet.

Contemplation This 2000 year old temple wasn’t built on Agilkia Island though, it was built on adjacent Philae Island. It was moved in the 1970s due to the construction of the Aswan dam. Philae Island was being consumed by the rising river level which if nothing was done would result in the destruction of the Temple of Isis. So it was moved, stone by stone and rebuilt on the higher land of Agilkia Island.

Is it a 2000 year old temple or a 40 year old temple? Does it matter? It survives today to educate us about our past and allows space for contemplation about how you take an ancient temple down stone by stone and rebuild it elsewhere.

We add to our history every day and sometimes we change the past, for better or worse. If it maintains places of contemplation that are real and you can touch, then I’m all for it.

Salar de Uyuni – Enjoyment of the solo cyclist

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Sep 172013

Salar de Uyuni

Salar de Uyuni, Bolivia – 19th December 2009

Most of the time I’m content being on my own, I like the space it allows. I like to think and to do that I need to remove the distractions. To remove the questioning of my thoughts before I have had time to analyse them thoroughly myself.

Salar de Uyuni The satisfaction of working out something new without instruction is vastly greater. It is a barrier to faster learning but the reward at the end is increased. Quality is preferable to quantity, retention of the knowledge is improved.

Humans are social animals though and to deny that begins the downward spiral. Including a check in my system that it’s time for some company after an extended period of solitude is essential. It is after all surely impossible to gain true perspective without another’s view on a topic. The trick is as ever, ensuring that ‘other’ understands the basis for your opinion and can therefore add to it instead of destroying it.

Seeking groups or individuals with similar attitudes shouldn’t be confused with similar interests. Of course it is not necessarily possible to do the former until you have done the latter. Salar de Uyuni

There are few places on the planet as vast, desolate and flat as Salar de Uyuni in Bolvia. The lone cyclist making his way to the sole island in the salt flat was an apt metaphor at the time.

I was there with a group after a long period alone. It was needed, however much I thought not at the time. They wouldn’t have been there if they didn’t share similar interests. However it took time to discover who had similar attitudes and who I could start to relate to and them to me. Over time some I would come to consider as good friends whose company I would look forward to.

That is the juxtaposition of being alone and being with company. I need both to co-exist, for each to respect their boundaries and to understand when the other is required.

Coromandel Peninsula – Bench with a view

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Sep 172013

Coromandel Peninsula

Coromandel Peninsula, North Island, New Zealand – 11th November 2009

I had planned out with military precision my arrival into New Zealand. I knew exactly what I wanted and how I was going to do it.

The three months prior I had been in Australia, two months of which I had lived alone in a campervan. Travelling from Darwin in the north to Albany in the south west corner. I had loved it.

Coromandel Peninsula It was a winning formula, me + portable home + living day to day = simple life. Throw in a mixture of time, remoteness, wilderness, natural beauty, wildlife and great weather. Perfect.

It was a very easy decision to replicate that formula in New Zealand, a country renowned for most of the above, apart from the great weather! My other variation was time, I ‘only’ had a month due to prior plans to be in South America. Not a problem, I just need to be more organised and have a plan….not such a simple life now.

I had booked a campervan that I would pick up at Auckland airport and head south so avoiding the traffic. I was heading for the Coromandel Peninsula on the east coast.

It was late in the day when I arrived and it took a while to complete the paperwork for the van, so I rushed off as soon as I could. It was about half an hour down the road when I realised I hadn’t picked up the contract for the van and would have to go back to get it.

Cue hissy fit and beating myself up about what an idiot, my best laid plans and all.

It wasn’t until the next day when I arrived at the bench above that the stress finally washed off me. I had fallen straight into the trap of getting organised and having a plan, which when it went wrong I immediately got wound up about it.

Stressing over time which didn’t matter, a reminder to kick back and let it all wash over, feeling the relief as it goes.

Mountain Gorilla of East Africa

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Sep 162013

Mountain Gorilla of East Africa

Volcanoes National Park, Rwanda – 1st March 2009

What a privilege to see, up close and personal, such a majestic animal as the Mountain Gorilla, can, in hindsight, also produce feelings of doubt and concern by the effect of my presence.

Mountain Gorilla of East Africa

The Mountain Gorilla is listed as critically endangered by the World Wildlife Fund. That is one step away from extinction in the wild. There are around 800 left of them in the wild, anywhere on the planet. That is why I was there, it was also why I had paid $500 for the privilege, therein lies the thinly veiled check for my conscience.

I was there because I hoped I would derive pleasure from the experience. The notion of my presence having an adverse impact on the animals was countered by the thought that my money was going toward the protection and continued existence of the animal.

This area of Africa has seen far more of the world’s bloodshed than the western world ever seems comfortable to acknowledge, let alone intervene as we Mountain Gorilla of East Africa seem overly keen on elsewhere. Along with farming, charcoal production and now it seems oil is why there is an on going threat to the Mountain Gorilla.

It is simple to see why they are protected when foreign tourists will pay many hundreds of dollars for the opportunity of seeing them. How much of those dollars goes to protecting them and how much goes elsewhere is anyone’s guess but TIA (This Is Africa…) so I don’t have any illusions about it.

I guess it is not surprising that an animal that supposedly shares around 98% of their DNA with humans expressed emotion that was instantly recognisable to me. Most animals angry or threatening postures and expressions are easily identifiable, they bare their teeth. You don’t recognise other emotions so easily, but I did this day.

Saigon Traffic – Go with the Flow

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Sep 122013

Serenity amidst speed

Saigon, Vietnam – 30th June 2009

I know it’s official name is now Ho Chi Minh City but Saigon is so much more evocative and anyway, the locals call it Saigon and that’ll do for me.

I don’t like to be in a rush, it stresses me out. It’s why I look to plan things and go through potential scenarios in advance so as not to spend time worrying what might happen. Problem with that is you don’t end up getting much done in the end and you spend a lot of time worrying about things that might not even happen, which kind of defeats the point in the end…..

Moving slowly when all around are in a rush is a useful skill, you need to zone out the background noise that isn’t relevant but still be able to pick up the useful parts and act on them. It not only reduces the stress levels but it also might just keep you safe.

It’s a bit like trying to cross the road in Saigon, you’ll never get across without getting splatted by a moped if you tried planning it out in advance. Only way to do it is not to stop and think, just keep moving, it prevents indecision, allows others to see your path clearly and they then take the appropriate action. It’s when you stop and think that they then don’t know what you are doing or what you are going to do next, it creates indecision in their mind and then it’s too late because there is a bus and bang you are on the deck.

Just keep moving forward or at the very least go left or right but don’t turn around and go back or the bus will get you.

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