The closest way between two languages is a smile :)

I am currently living in Bandung and studying at UNPAR Universitas. I love it here, love the people, the nature and hiking!

ABOUT ME

Over 50 countries I have traveled to and counting!

I spent last year at Uppsala University, Sweden, on exchange studying Sustainable Development and am living in this beautiful city, exploring the forests and picking berries, visiting the old viking graves and enjoying the swedish culture.

I have definitely caught the travel bug, jumping at every opportunity to explore new and wonderful places. Recently I was living in pakistan helping out at an NGO which was an incredible and warm experience meeting so many incredible locals. At the beginning of this year I was also studying at Atma Jaya University in Jakarta, Indonesia studying Bahasa Indonesia and working for another international aid and development organisation.

Before then I spent 3 travelling around the world hitch hiking, sailing, cycling, horse riding, trains, cars, flights, you name it!

That adventure started with a ticket to India and then escalated from there into a 3 year adventure around the world full of beautiful people and plenty of adventures! I began the journey with just my backpack and no real idea of where I was going and by the time I had travelled through India, Nepal and was then living in Cambodia I got rid of my return flight, packed my bag again and hit the road to Myanmar. From there I jumped to the other end of the scale and went to Japan where I immersed myself in an amazing world of delicious food and futuristic toilets. Next was South Korea where I once again found a home away from home and helped out in a hostel there until my feet got itchy again and i then made it to Hong Kong where I stayed to organise my different visas, getting ready for my long overland journey ahead!

From Hong Kong I entered the crazy world of China with chicken feet and crammed trains, then up to Mongolia I spent an amazing two weeks horse trekking in the mountains then managed to somehow hitch hike all the way west across mongolia, even though there aren't even roads! Back into China I passed through abandoned cities in the middle of the desert and was always closely watched by the officials with their invasive security cameras and frequent visits.

From there I then made my way into Kyrgyzstan after a long two day journey hitch hiking across the border and camping in no man's land and was then greeted by an amazing group of travellers and incredible hikes amongst the beautiful landscape. Then up to Kazakhstan, where is didn't meet Borat, but met an incredible group of people through couch surfing and who treated me just like family.

Next Russia, where I spent an incredible time in Astrakhan (once again thanks to my amazing host) and visited far too many weddings and parties! I then crossed into Georgia where instead of being greeted by a nice bottle of wine at the border (as you do when you fly in) I was greeted by tanks!

Next to Next to Turkey where I experienced some of the best hitch hiking rides in my life and then it was just a hop skip and jump through the beautiful eastern Europian countries out into Europe, a world full of castles, delicious food and plenty of friends.

After spending a lot of time with beautiful people and life long friends I finally made it to England, meaning I had just crossed from the very East of Asia to England overland! But where to next, there wasn't much more land to cover so I thought, why not try sailing out? I got in contact with a captain and before I could change my mind I was on the next flight to South Africa where I then tried out hitch hiking by sailing. And so my first open ocean sailing experience was a 2 week voyage across the South Atlantic Ocean.

We crossed from Cape Town to Saint Helena (one of the most remote islands in the world) and then to Brazil, where I left the boat hungry for more adventure on land. Unfortunately I was then mugged in Brazil as soon as I stepped off the boat. But with no money and everything stolen I then had an offer from another captain to join his boat, and, of course, I took it!

I met the boat in Saint Maarten and then sailed through the incredible Panama Canal and into the big Pacific Ocean where thunderstorms and harsh sailing conditions awaited. 7 days into the journey our toilets onboard broke, and so I spent the next 6 months enjoying panoramic views whilst adopting the "bucket-and-chuck-it method", and the boat rocked from side to side (you can ask me all about it if you like).

I then spent the next 7 months sailing across the Pacific Ocean, island hopping along the way visiting all sorts of magical exotic places full of amazing snorkelling, vanilla plantations, volcanic islands, atolls, and incredible people. I traveled through the French Polynesian islands, through fierce thunderstorms and perfect sailing days.

And then upon arriving in New Zealand I sailed around the beautiful bay of islands in the north and then traded in my sea legs for some time on the land, renting a van and traveling around the north Island exploring the hot springs, the hiking trails, beaches and more.

The 3 year journey sparked more desire to travel, but with more purpose. It was been one big crazy adventure that started as a 5 month trip has escalated into a 3 year journey where my main limits were my imagination. If any of you had of told me even 2 years ago that one day you would visit Kazakhstan and Mongolia, I would have laughed and happily placed a bet against it thinking I would be rich!

Every day on the road I learn something new, and learn more about myself as well.

My route was rather spontaneous pretty much the whole time. I hate to plan and organise things and rather just let things move with the flow so to speak.

Every morning waking up in a different environment, sometimes squashed in the back of a minivan with 20 other large Mongolians, in my tent pitched right next to beautiful Lake Karakol in Kyrgyzstan, in a hammock on the beach in Cambodia, in a makeshift tent in a carpark in Mongolia, in a train station in Japan, on a houseboat in Paris, on a cockroach infested bed on an island off the coast of Jakarta, in a monastery in Myanmar, next to a camel in the desert in India, in the heart of the Himalayas in Nepal, on a crowded train in China with 20 faces staring at you, vomit and chicken feet on the seat next to you, in a hot and stuffy train carriage with no English speakers in the middle of the desert in Kazakhstan, to a clown in Russia, next to amazing hot springs in Georgia, on an olive farm in Turkey, in the passenger seat of friendly Turkish truck driver's truck in Bulgaria, with a bad hangover after a few too many rakia shots in Serbia, on a boat party on the river in the beautiful city of Budapest in Hungary, to an amazing sunny day in Vienna, to a home cooked breakfast from a good friend in Czech Republic, with my amazing family around me for Christmas in England, with a broken tooth in Berlin, and many many more!

I have had some amazing experiences where I have never felt happier and also experienced some things that I would never wish upon anyone, but through the good and the bad I am always growing, experiencing and more importantly always learning.

I have traveled Malaysia- Laos- Indonesia- India- Nepal-Thailand- Cambodia- Myanmar- Japan- South Korea- (here's where the land journey starts) Hong Kong- China- Mongolia- Krygyzstan- Kazakhstan- Russia- Georgia- Turkey- Bulgaria- Serbia- Hungary- Austria- Czech Republic- Germany- Netherlands- England- Wales- France- Switzerland- Italy- Poland- Scotland- South Africa- Saint Helena- Brazil- Panama- Saint Helena- French Polynesia- Tonga- New Zealand, pakistan, sri lanka, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Signapore, and of course Australia, my home country.

For a more detailed explanation of my travel check out my blog wornoutsoles.blogspot.com

Interests

I love new things, new people and new experiences. I am open to anything and anyone and always aim to learn something new everyday. After travelling across the South Atlantic and the Pacific Oceans I have now developed an absolute love for sailing and everything to do with it. Its such a beautiful way to travel slowly, absorb everything around you and to meet incredible like minded people as well!

• environment
• dining
• breakfast
• wine
• partying
• flying
• boating
• traveling
• cars
• blogging
• dumpster diving
• karaoke
• cycling
• hiking
• backpacking
• camping
• surfing
• scuba diving
• sailing
• paragliding
• languages
• beaches
• mountains

One Amazing Thing I’ve Done

I will never forget...
-hitch hiking in pakistan into the incredible mountains in the north
-sailing across the South Atlantic Ocean
-Sailing across the Pacific Ocean visiting the beautiful remote islands scattered throughout those waters and not seeing land for 27 days!
-Making my way all the way from Hong Kong to England without flying overland through China, Mongolia, the Middle East and more!
-dumpster diving and having abandoned factory parties in Berlin
-awesome hitch hiking rides in Turkey
-sitting in the Himalayas whilst trekking the Annapurna circuit in Nepal, watching avalanches in the distance- scary!
-feeding an eygptian vulture mid-flight whilst paragliding in Nepal (called parahawking)
-watching the children from an orphanage in Indonesia where I was teaching English prepare Christmas dinner made out of their pet dog (and no I was not brave enough to eat poor Frank)
-Celebrating Aung San Suu Kyi's recent victory in the Myanmar by-elections with locals at a karaoke bar
-hitch hiking across Mongolia in the crowded mini vans

Countries I’ve Visited

Austria, Brazil, Bulgaria, Cambodia, China, Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, French Polynesia, Georgia, Germany, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Malaysia, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nepal, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Pakistan, Panama, Poland, Russian Federation, Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha, Saint Lucia, Serbia, Singapore, South Africa, South Korea, Sri Lanka, Sweden, Thailand, Tonga, Turkey, United Kingdom, Vatican City State

Countries I’ve Lived In

Australia, Cambodia, Indonesia, Pakistan, South Korea, Sweden

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