6 lessons learnt from our travels (with children)

Back in the UK, over one week after returning from our trip, we have finally recovered from horrendous jet lag.  Time to reflect.

In a nut shell: It was magic. And sparkles on top.  New Zealand rules! 

But what is truly important is what we took with us (apart from a few bottles of  New Zealand’s finest sparkly rose ;o)… As you know, we met so many wonderful people and saw so many jaw-dropping places…. So, what have we learnt on this magic trip, which we will cherish for life???     

1. Appreciate the moment, every breath and freedom that surrounds you. Love freedom . Freedom of choice. Freedom of open road.  Breath. Be here and now. Always. That is the only way to live.

2. Strangers really are only friends you have never met  (damn cheesy, I know – but so true and too often forgotten). Always see the beautiful in people. Everybody has got something beautiful to offer.

3. Go with the flow. Trust life. Things will fall into place.

3. Family time is super important. Take time to guide children, not “just” parent them. We have learnt so much about each other during the past month.

4. Children are easy to travel with.  They will always “copy paste” your attitude.

5. Simplicity is the answer. Wild camping rules. We are all entertained on the playground, but goodness me….. nature and in fact everything around us is a GIANT playground. Make the most of it.

6. Not to see the beautiful side of Life is always by CHOICE.

                                                                                         Sasha xxx

Now, it’s time to think about the next big adventure ;o)

Love. Love. Love.

Sasha

x

Looking for adventure…

The one thing I’ve learnt on this epic trip, is that the adventure is everywhere… You just need to know where to find it…

Where is the adventure?

Christmas Day was one of our most memorable adventures…

Opening a bottle of bubbly on the beach with friends

going for a family Christmas swim in a freezing cold lake

preparing Christmas dinner (Christmas salmon and beer, as per tradition ;o)

and enjoying the untypical Christmas barbeque by the lake with georgeous views of the mountains…

This highly cheesy saying I saw on the wall of the coffee shop is so very true:

Life is a journey.

It is not about

waiting for the storm to pass.

It is about

learning to dance in the rain. 

Granted. It does help if the surroundings are stunning, but it’s up to us what we make of them…

So we went on a pleasant walk to the fascinating Fox glacier:

and discovered some hidden horse riding tracks

Just a simple activity, like riding a bike is highly entertaining…

Life is about finding a great adventure…. in hidden rivers:

or even simple things like growing experimental beards (looking hot Philth ;o)

Now, if you will excuse me… I need to go look for adventures…

Much love from rainy Nelson (I think I am going to dance first ;o)

S

xxx

The beauty and weirdness of hot Christmas

We’ve finally arrived to our Christmas destination. My favourite place on earth. This is where I am at peace. This is where I will be born in my next life. ;o)

Wanaka.

Phil and I were here 10 years ago – it was brilliant then. And it’s even better now.  Tears were in my eyes when we drove to the campsite where we used to camp.

I have never been to a place so laid back, sweet, beautiful and friendly. Yet, with so much going on. 

Just enjoying a perfect cup of coffee (with real chocolate shavings ;o) with friends is a great way to soak up the atmosphere.

You might of guessed by now I am in love with this country.

The drive to here is so much more spectacular then anywhere else… every corner you turn, there is something new that makes you go: WHHAAAAAAAAAWWWWW!

The lakes are “bluer” and the clouds are “cloudier” than anywhere else:

All perfect. But to be really honest, warm Christmas just doesn’t have the same buzz… I mean, we are stuffing our faces with Christmas cherries???…

and enjoying Christmas sushi on the beach (with some beer, of course ;o), while the girls are playing….

Just to make it all more “real” we got a little portable Christmas tree with us … It’s a humble little tree… but it means a lot!! (lots of lovely surprises under it in the morning ;o)   

And we even managed to find Wanaka’s Santa! (not the same when you are in your shorts ;o)

We miss our wonderful family and friends in Slovenia and UK big time.  But for now, we got each other and the spectacular surroundings will just have to do ;o)

All the best and much love to everyone from heavenly Wanaka

S

xxx

This is getting ridiculous!

Seriously… What is going on?... Can this get any better?..... I’m thinking 21^st of December has really happened and we’ve gone to heaven…….. All this jaw-dropping beauty, people’s endless kindness and unforgettable wildlife…. Ridiculously great!

We are based in a beautiful bay of Kaikoura.  Sun is hot on your back all day. Albatrosses, seals, dolphins and whales everywhere you look.  White sandy beaches and jade blue sea. Magnificent snow caped mountains for the background – just to make it kitschier ;o)  Picture perfect.

So, just as any another normal day we went up in an airplane ;o) ...

to see a whale (here Lana observing the whale from above)

It felt ridiculously wonderful to be able to observe this magnificently large mammal… (Phil loves this photo, as there is a boat to scale the whale against ;o)  

Just to top it up the next day…. We went swimming with wild dolphins…. Heaven. Easily rated as the best thing ever.

So, we got ready…

 

The girls were loving it!

 

We saw over 300 WILD dusky dolphins.... so very playful... Ridiculously great to watch! 

Kiara and I realy enjoyed the swim with the dolphins….no words can describe this gloriousness….

Seeing a dolphin doing a back flip is priceless! (and to catch it on camera, is even better ;o) 

Much love from heaven

S xxx

We went on a Honeymoon!

What a way to travel – squeeze in a Honeymoon as well!!!  Well, ......... actually we crashed Mr. and Mrs. Manora’s Honeymoon, but it felt like our own ;o)  

So, we finally sailed down to South island, which is even more spectacular than the North. 

We set a camp in a lovely remote bay (and I do mean remote) and enjoyed fishing in the drizzly evening (and swimming in the sunny morning).

And of course, there is no Honeymoon in NZ without some high-quaity winetasting – so we went on our bikes.

Mouthwatering wines….. (much better than the French ;o)

We even managed to squeeze in some Cherry munching…

After the fifth winery visit we were all very lovey dovey ;o)

When we finally left “the real newly weds” in peace and started driving down south, we’ve discovered a colony of seals. What a treat; there were about 100 seals sunbathing on the beach. Sooooooooo much better then the zoo ;o)

Best two day Honeymoon ever! ;o)

Much love from Kaikura

S

xxx

Where does the inspiration come from?

New Zealand is a truly inspiring land. But where does the inspiration for personal growth and work come from? 

It comes simply from meeting amazing people, their beautiful land and doing wonderful things with people you love.

This is without a doubt the best discovery trip we have ever made. 

Ohhhh, and it always helps when your office is out on the open:

The true inspiration comes from the beautiful views:

from observing children having a wonderful time:

from meeting wonderful people:

 

from making lovely things (on the photo: Kiara and Lana makin pizza dough)

from pitching tents at the scenic lake side

from discovering new cultures (here with Maori tribe)

and seeing new places 

(such as volcanos and geysers; here Mt. Tongariro which is still active and Pohutu Geyser at Rotorua)

but most importantly, spending huggy time together ;o)

Much love from Ohakune

Sasha

xxx

xxx