About me….

This is the area of the blog where I’m asked to reveal a little of myself. So here goes…..

I’m a Buckinghamshire girl –  Buckinghamshire being one of England’s Home Counties just north of London. I was born in Reading but my family moved to the small Buckinghamshire village of ‘Whiteleaf’ when I was 5 years old. An idyllic part of the world that was leafy, sleepy, and very much untouched. As an outdoor child, who would spend all day in the woods with the dog, it was a fabulous place to grow up.

I was schooled in the tiny village school which encouraged my creativity to flourish and to some extent my brain too. I loved my time there, and along with the other village children, have wonderful memories. Onwards and upwards! Sir Henry Floyd in Aylesbury was to be my secondary school of choice. I had many happy hours there too, although applying myself and homework were never my strong points. Making friends was though, and this is where I met my lifelong friend.

Aylesbury became the geographical hub of my life and I soon found work there, disastrously bought a house or two, and settled into that routine that inevitably sucks us all in.

I’m skipping through the years here, as there are a lot of them. I loved and lost, bought and sold, slobbed out and got fit, and also gradually made it up the management chain at work. I’m not sure how all this happened but before I knew it I was teetering on the edge of such a large corporate hole that I thought I may fall in, never to return. An opportunity came my way in 2004 and so I left my career of 20 years and went traveling.

I had just under a year of adventure. It spanned from Antananarivo to Uluru (I couldn’t think of anything beginning with v, w,x,y, or z). Some travel was with a partner, some with a tour group, and some traveling as a solo female, seeing the world on my own. It was a life-changing experience and eventually led to my life-changing.

With a heavy heart and clipped wings, I returned to work. I achieved seven years of further experience and ladder climbing until once again I found myself looking deeply into that same corporate hole. After much internal wrangling and fear-facing, I took the plunge into the unknown. I left the world of Financial Services and steady income to find out what my life was really supposed to be about. That was in September 2012.

For now, and after clocking up many miles, countries, and cultures, I find myself living in Chiang Mai. I’m no longer the adventurous backpacker who craves constant change and the thrill of all things new. I am settled and content. I now crave peace, stillness, simplicity of living, and creative moments. I’m happy in the knowledge that my day belongs to me and I can fill it however I choose. This is more luxury than I have ever experienced.

Chiang Mai is a wonderfully diverse city. You can do as much or as little as you wish. For me, it has been a place where I feel I fit in. It’s given me the chance to think about the person I am and the life I should live. There are amazing tiny details just waiting to be discovered here, and my latest photoblog is helping open my eyes to them, and share them with you.

I hope you enjoy the trip!

Thank you for reading.

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