Words To Go – Tips And Inspiration

A gaggle of bloggers was invited to Adelaide for an event within Tasting Australia, to chat about food and travel and social media and photography. A lot of networking, loads of great tips and words of wisdom, and a host of amazing photos were shared across the forum, and the following day of touristing, as part of Words To Go 2014.

The forum was held in the kitchen of the Adelaide Central Market, and after being greeted at the airport and catching a much needed night of sleep, I joined the group early on the Monday morning, ready to be inspired. There were some impressive speakers on the agenda, and within the gathering.

Follow Your Heart

Lauren Bath, Australia’s top Instagrammer, who now does it for a living, talked about focussing on what interests you, shooting for yourself. She has learnt photography through her IG, and now does it for various tourism boards around the world, among other clients.

Robyn Eckhardt of Eating Asia fame also talked about blogging for herself. She spoke about how the discovery of a place when travelling can be very personal, and discussed that discovering a new place is really about finding how that place along your travels speaks to you.

YTravelBlog’s Caz spoke about setting outlandish goals, and to never let anyone tell you that cannot do something. To find the thing that you love – travel for her and her family – and do that. It feeds her soul.

The amazing Katie Quinn Davies from What Katie Ate told us she was an ‘all or nothing’ kind of person, and that she too advised to put everything into what you do – which is what she does. Focus too on the incidentals, the details.

Get Amongst the Locals

Robyn and her partner David Hagerman, photographer for Eating Asia, spoke about visiting a market in a new place as a starting point. They both spoke about standing back and observing, to watch a place, and to wait for things to happen. Robyn spoke about lingering over a meal or a coffee to watch – watch what the locals are eating, how they are eating, who pays, who makes the decisions, are they sharing or having individual dishes. Sit and watch what goes on, to really learn about a place.

David spoke about how food is a window into different cultures. The people behind the food, and how they interact with their environment, how they tell the story of a new place.

Robyn also told us all to say yes to unexpected encounters when travelling, and that a traveller and photographer needs to leave themselves open to things. Like being invited to a local’s home for a meal, for example, which we would never do at home.

Robyn introduced the idea of following a particular thing around a destination – focus on an ingredient, for example, from the market, and then follow how it is used, sold, eaten, grown. This gives a new places an added life, and an added very real story. She also talked about giving into your obsessions, about taking photos of a particular thing. Go with it!

Tips

I hope Lauren gets a cut of the download volume on SnapSeed, because she shared this phone app with us as her number one way of editing and improving her raw photos, and I am pretty sure the majority of the forum downloaded it there and then. It’s really great!

David spoke of getting an overview photo of where you are at, and then to capture specific moment shots, before getting down to elegant detail shots. He talked about using people in the photos, to bring the scene to life. Start with people, he quipped, and the rest becomes more interesting. Being mindful of the background of your target, composing back to front. David also talked about how he interacts with people to be part of the shot, with such amazing results.


We were treated to an array of photo examples throughout these talks, which inspired us all even more. Our later walk through the market displayed many of the tips that were shared!

Along with the tips and invaluable blogging, travelling and photography advise, I met some awesome fellow bloggers, such as Maureen from Orgasmic Chef, and Tania from My Kitchen Stories. I got to catch up with Nicole from Bitten By The Travel Bug, and share recent travel stories with Jenny from A Taste Of Travel. I also met Sam from Travelling King, Heike from But It Tasted Good and Aga of A Matter Of Taste. Plus I have a new list of other blogs to read and discover!

Great View Of Melbourne City

I was out tonight, at the Cullen Hotel for a Nuffnang blogger event, so I don't have a proper post....but this was the view I had! I think it could be one of the most perfect views of the Melbourne skyline I have seen!

Wow! Just when I think I couldn't love my city any more.....!

Mojito Masterclass

Being invited along as a blogger to learn how to make mojitos to a Masterclass was something too good to pass up. Finding that it was being held at Fitzroy's new piece of Cuba, Los Barbudos was

We learned from the enthusiastic bar staff the history of rum, including tastings from some of their favourite bottles. They have 91 bottles of different rum in their bar to date, and their passion for the white and brown liquor from different select parts of the world was clear.

They then got down to talking about the mojito, and explained that as research prior to opening their bar, they did a trip to Cuba to experience the real thing. Their telling of stories took me right back to the world of free pour rum, dancing, and Mikey's bar in Havana.

Explaining that the Cubans keep their stable drink pretty simple, rather than the elaborate concoctions some bars in Melbourne have made them, they took us through the steps.

The finest Sugar available is first, and then fresh lime juice. Some ice and mint at this point, before using a muddler - a tiny baseball bat here, keeping in theme with the bar - to break out the mint flavour.

A significant swig of Havana Club Rum, before topping up with Soda Water. Mint on the top again, for garnish. Just like they they do in Cuba.

I paired up with Marlee from String Of Events to make ours, working through the steps. Following the recipe, or there-abouts, we produced a pretty authentic mojito, from my memory.

Mingling with bloggers from Melbourne, and playing with the baseball props of the bar, we also sampled another version of the rum cocktail, with honey, which was the Canchanchara and delicious!

This rum bar is fast becoming a favourite of mine, and the obvious passion for rum by the boys behind the bar make it even more so!

Failed Fifth NaBloPoMo

Blogging everyday for a month is hard! Harder when you have final essays to do at the same time. And an interstate cricket match to attend.

So I missed a day this year, after four years running with success. Bummer.

The fact is, I didn't have any pre-prepared posts, and I went out drinking after the cricket, and it was game over for that day! Oops!

So I cannot claim my fifth year.

Nevertheless, 29 out of 30 days of blogging in a month is not so bad.  This has been an epic year for the blog, and I am pretty happy with it.  Now I can thankfully get back to a normal life come tomorrow, without the worry of NaBloPoMo, or study! 

Capture The Colour

As the new travel blogging meme started to circulate I have been loving the posts around the interwebs, and the collections of amazing photos being posted. I was delighted to be nominated by Karin and Kieran over at K and K Adventures.

Travel Supermarket are running a competition called Capture The Colour, where they are encouraging bloggers to share photos from their travels featuring 5 colours, being blue, yellow, green, red and white. A grab of the story behind the photo is encouraged!

Looking through my photos from around the world to pick out some possible inclusions for this post, it turns out that colour is not a major feature to my eye. Perhaps something I will have to add more of in the angles of my photography.

Blue - in the streets of Havana, Cuba


Once the rest of my travelling group had moved onto the next place, I had an extra day in Havana on my own which I took to wander around the streets and grab some images of the enchanting streetscapes. The vintage cars were such a beautiful and irresistible feature!

Yellow - sunset in Sydney


This sinking sun behind the city of Sydney is captured from Watson's Bay, at the end of an amazing lap around Australia to see the Ashes in 2006. I feel like the warmth and brilliance of this shot welcomed me home to Australia after being away in the UK for a couple of years, and cast a final lasting spotlight on an awesome summer of cricket!

Green - tuk tuk in Galle, Sri Lanka


One of the many shots of these colourful modes of transport, zipping around Galle, and all of Sri Lanka. We took a tuk tuk to the ground most days when we there for the cricket just last August, which made our experience all the more authentic and adventuresome!

Red - the Moulin Rouge in Paris


The vividness of the seedy Moulin Rouge is so strange in a blazing sunny afternoon, given the goings on in there at night! This was taken at the end of my walking tour of Montmarte.

White - in Old Quebec City


The white of the roof of this building in a square within Old Quebec, along with the silvery-white church spire and the cloud coverage above, all captured on my recent long weekend trip to this part of Canada. I think my best entry for this competition!

I love that the 5 photos are all from such different parts of the world, and different trips and times in my life.

Nominations to bloggers I would like to do see do a post...

Carly from Tune Into Radio Carly
Natalie from Journey To London
Kristi from A Quick Succession Of Busy Nothings
Jess from Fushmush
Amy and Kieron from Don't Ever Look Back

How to enter

1. Publish a Capture the Colour post on your blog with images for all 5 colours if possible. Bloggers who don’t have photos for all 5 colours will still be in with a chance of winning the iPad category prize but to be eligible to win the £2000 overall prize your blog post should feature photo’s for all 5 categories.

Within your post, be sure to mention the Travel Supermarket competition page http://www.travelsupermarket.com/c/holidays/capture-the-colour/ so that your readers know what Capture the Colour is.

2. Nominate 5 fellow bloggers to take part in Capture the Colour at the end of your post and notify them via Twitter or Facebook.

3. By 29th August 2012, let the lads at Travel Supermarket know you’ve entered by either:

- Linking to your blog post on your Facebook wall mentioning Capture the Colour and tagging the TravelSupermarket.com Facebook page or…
- Linking to your post via Twitter including @travelsupermkt and #capturethecolour in your tweet or…
- Email your entry to capturethecolour@travelsupermarket.com, including your name, email address and phone number.

4. The best Capture the Colour entries will be shared throughout the competition by the expert judges and Travel Supermarket social accounts…

5. Each judge will select their own colour category winners. The judges will then combine to select the overall winner of the £2,000 travel prize. For further information about the judging and the prizes see the Terms & Conditions here.

Want to know more?
If you want to know more about the competition or if you have any questions please get in touch with Travel Supermarket via either Twitter (@travelsupermkt) or email (capturethecolour@travelsupermarket.com).

Travel Inspiration

What ignites and inspires people to travel is such an interesting topic to me. Reading this post from the Travel With A Mate blog, I was keen to jump in and write a post for the Inspiration Initiative. Even though I am not eligible for the awesome trip on offer.

I was talking to Mum a couple of weeks ago about her influence on my football, and tennis interest, and also linked her to my travel bug. She wouldn't have a bar of that idea, whilst she was happy to take credit for the others. But the thing is, when we were little she used to take us to the airport just to watch planes take off. I remember that we had learnt all the tail symbols of the different airlines during these times. She even took us on our first flight, a charity flight down to Sale for the day, and then our first overseas trip all together, to LA and Disneyland.

I remember plotting out an elaborate plan to travel all over Europe, as the end of my Bachelor degree was approaching, with a friend at the time. We made a massively long list of all the places we had ever heard of and wanted to see, and began plotting it out. But I also remember being dissuaded from this plan when someone talked about how hard it would be to drive around somewhere where we didn't speak the language. What a silly reason not to go now, looking back!

That friend then followed our idea of nannying in NYC once we finished uni, whilst I went back to more study. But her time away led me to visit a couple of times, and this opened me up to flying solo to the other side of the world, and to wandering around New York City on my own and discovering all the wonderful things there were to see and explore. Still one of my favourite cities in the world!

My biggest travel inspiration, and life changing experience, was my time in Cambodia, and that happened through hearing someone else's experience as a volunteer with the AYAD Program, and then landing my role with the Program, being one of 2 I applied for. This time in Phnom Penh really got my travel lust started, with side trips to other parts of the country and SE Asia. And it also opened my eyes to a whole working and expat life within a country working on rebuilding and struggling to develop in every way.

Of course, my Working Holiday in London allowed me to jump to many of the European destinations of that first travel plan. My love of cricket has led me to travel to South Africa, to the islands of the Caribbean that make up the West Indies (and will again next month!), Sri Lanka, and there are still a few more crickting countries to get to!

Since figuring out my first name was Russian when I was little, I had always wanted to visit Russia. But then back when Liz and Cathal were planning it, and then talked about their experience on the Trans-Mongolian railway, it was something I had always wanted to do. And then when Cass and Flash said it was one of the best things they'd done, our amazing 2010 trip was born.

My current yearning to travel was reignited on my week long visit last year to Galle, Sri Lanka and the experience of figuring out the local bus on my own. It lit that desire to just roam, and wing it and figure things out, and interact with people in their real, everyday life again. To get back on the road, and experience sunsets from a bus window, just like that day.

People's stories of places, and their experiences, always have me adding to my travel lust list.

So coming to nominate other travel bloggers to join, write and enter this competition for a luxury trip away, I have checked who in the Travel Blogger world follows me on Twitter, and is eligible to win (being a UK resident). Here goes, I nominate:

Iain Mallory of Mallory Travel, via @MalloryOnTravel

Any (or all!) of the 5 bloggers from RTW Backpackers via @RTWBackpackers

Laurence at Finding The Universe

Nate on Yomadic via @Yomadic - although, to be fair, I can't tell where this world traveller is from! Ha! Such a compliment!

Our Wee Trip via @OurWeeTrip

Thanks for following, guys, and I look forward to reading your travel inspirations, and perhaps hearing about your amazing trip via this prize! Ha!

My A to Z of Travel

My itching feet and aching wanderlust has me reading a lot of travel blogs at the moment, and so I have been reading many, many versions of the ABC of Travel meme. I first read it here, and thought I too would delve into my travel back catalogue, for a post.

A: Age you made your first international trip
When I was in high school, Mum took the whole family on our first overseas trip, being a visit to the USA, to go to Disneyland! So I was just 14! We went to the touristy things in LA, like the Rodeo Drive city tour, Universal Studios, and a couple of days at Disneyland, but we also made a day trip down to Tijuana, Mexico, which was a real eye-opener for us all.

B: Best (foreign) beer you’ve had and where
You cannot really beat Guinness from the tap, poured within range of the brewery, and I was taken to Mulligan’s in Dublin by some (amazing) locals. They says it’s the pub with the best tap Guinness anywhere, and who am I to argue with their extensive research!

C: Cuisine (Favourite)
My favourite food from all around the world, and the one I have out-of-the-blue cravings for, is the Fish Amok in Cambodia. Made in such different ways around the country, this curry fish dish baked and served in a banana leaf is the goodness of the ‘bodge!

I have recently found a recipe posted online, which sounds pretty spot on. Although I would rather just go to Phnom Penh again, and have it there again!

D: Destinations. Favourite. Least Favourite. Why.
My favourite (Top 5) city destinations have included New York City, Tokyo, Rome, London and Phnom Penh. NYC, Tokyo and London for all the amazing things a big, big city has to offer - so much going on, all the time, so many different neighbourhoods to explore. Rome for the history, and the big city elements. Hard not to love a place with the Colosseum! And then Phnom Penh will always have my heart, after living and working there for 6 months.
These 5 will most likely always have repeat visits for me, whenever I can include them in a trip.

My favourite little town destination is Luang Prabang, in Laos. This is where I would be if I ever wanted to run away and disappear from the world! Such a lovely little tucked away place!

I guess Ho Chi Minh would rank as my least favourite place, if I had to choose one, only because it was just a larger, busier, dirtier version of Phnom Pehn when I lived there, and crossed the border for a weekend visit.

E: Event you experienced that made you say ‘Wow’
The ANZAC Dawn Service at Gallipoli comes to mind immediately here. Such a reverent experience to be part of, and mark the spirit and loss of those fallen soldiers at Gallipoli, but to also mark the contribution of Aussie Defence personnel in all battles, past and present.

F: Favourite mode of transportation
It’s hard to beat train travel in all forms, including the tube in London and the various Metros across Europe. Of course, the ultimate trip was the train across Russia, Mongolia and into China on the Vodka Train. The changing scenes out the windows, the people met and fun had onboard, the stops along the way. This is really one of those life experiences to be savored! But then even the simplest pleasure of a sunrise in the mountains on a train also makes this mode magical. Train, hands down!

G: Greatest feeling while travelling
I love the feeling of freedom, and the knowledge that I can work out how to get around within any culture on my own, that travel gives you. This was highlighted to me in my recent trip to Sri Lanka, and figuring out how to get back to Colombo from Galle all on my own - after a long time off the travel trails! Reminded me of all the things I love about travel, and experiencing real life out there in a different country.

H: Hottest place I’ve travelled to
Sri Lanka wins for this question as well. The hottest I have ever been is sitting in the stands in the sun at the Sinhalese Sports Club Ground in Colombo in 2004 for the test match between Sri Lanka and Australia. So, so hot! The only saving grace was the service of beers in our seats, by the Lion Man with a keg on his back.

I: Incredible service you’ve experienced and where
Having pina coladas delivered to us while we were swimming in the ocean at Playa Ancon, in Trinidad de Cuba will always be the most amazing hospitality service I have ever experienced. Loved it!

J: Journey that took you the longest
The train from Russia to China took us 3 weeks, albeit with many stops along the way. The longest single journey would be my flight over the top of the world, from Bangkok to New York City, being 17 and a half hours.

K: Keepsake from your travels
I started buying an ugly, sticky-out magnet from the places I visited in my early days of travel, as a bit of a piss-take gift for Mum. Now this trend has really taken off with my sisters and I, and Mum now has a fridge full of amazing, hideous magnets from all corners of the globe. The bigger, most sticky-outy, and uglier, the better! I think Mum has not cottoned on to the aim of this little gift purchase now, and takes it all with a grain of salt. But now I think it's actually a bit of a work of art!

I also buy the occasional art or artifact or replica piece from different places, if it catches my eye, with the vision that when I grow up I will have a house filled with amazing things from my travels. My plate from Turkey is one such thing.

L: Let down sight. Why and where?
I think there is certainly something I have seen and thought "is that it?", but totally can't think of anything specific...

M: Moment where you fell in love with travel
I think despite all my trips beforehand, to the USA mainly, my 6 months in Cambodia definitely ignited my wanderlust. The experience of emerging yourself in a city, a culture, a language (although, not very well!), and spending time with locals from such different life experiences was a real turning point for me in terms of a wish to see and do so much more.

N: Nicest hotel you’ve stayed in
I splashed out on a hotel in Bangkok after a month of travel. I don't recall offhand what it was called, but was a 5 star with all the trimming. This was a treat for the last night, before heading home. But with all the poshness of it, I arrived into the lobby a filthy, bedraggled backpacker after a day of hard travel.

I had left the beach of Sihanoukville in Cambodia that morning on the back of a moto to the Thai border. During this ride the sky opened up, delivering a torrential downpour that soaked me to the skin. Which included my passport in my back pocket. Once the rain stopped, the sun returned to bake me for the last little bit before the border crossing, and then I took a local bus for the rest of the journey to Bangkok.

I remember being horrified that a porter was going to carry my dusty, soggy backpack for me after check in, that I insisted on carrying it myself up to my room. I am far from a 5-star traveller! I did enjoy the rooftop pool, though, and the full breakfast buffet!

O: Obsession. What are you obsessed with taking pictures of while travelling?
Looking through all my photos from my years of travelling, it seems light fixtures, lamps and lanterns feature heavily. I will usually use them as a frame to capture the place I am exploring, and go out of my way to have them in the photo. I had done this fairly unconsciously, although it has amassed a pretty amazing collection!

This one is taken along the canals of Venice, on our weekend trip from London, back in 2006. So pretty!

P: Passport stamps. How many and from where?
Being an Aussie means you get a chance to work on filling your passport pages with a new stamp almost everytime you leave the country; I guess a reward for the distance you usually have to travel to get anywhere!


So, those are the stamps from my second passport ever. In my current one I have 10 stamps.

Q: Quirkiest attraction you’ve visited and where
Weird, political or topical, art, is something I seek out when I travel. The Aussie Big Things on roadtrips here in Australia has been become a bit of a quest, and then our trek to see all the art installations in Prague.

This is the Big Oyster, from our Nullarbor roadtrip, which is located in Ceduna, South Australia.

R: Recommended sight, event, or experience
A White Xmas! So, so magical, for someone from the Southern Hemisphere. Our visit to Sweden, and that falling snow on Xmas Day will always be one of the most amazing travel moments for me!

S: Splurge. Something you have no problem forking over for while travelling
I will always try and cram in all the things I want to see in a trip, and will pay accordingly to not skip somewhere just cos of the cost. I remember making a splash in my budget to include the Plain of Jars on my 10 day trip to Laos. We also laid out a bit of cash to see the Terracotta Warriors in China...a point of ridicule now, given that we missed the train that would get us there, by 3 minutes!

T: Touristy thing you’ve done
I do them all, as many as I can manage. I don't really understand going somewhere and not seeing or experiencing that place's claim to fame. Would the ball drop on NYE in NYC count as the MOST touristy?

U: Unforgettable travel memory
Seeing in the Millennium in New Orleans was one of the greatest NYEs ever!

V: Visas. How many of them and for where
Well, in the photo collage above of my old, expired and full passport I have my J1 Working Holiday vise from the USA, several entry and exit visas before the actual Multiple Entry Visa that let me work in Cambodia for 6 months, a couple of full page entry visas into Vietnam, and then my UK 2 year Working Holiday.

In my crisp, new little blue book, I have full page visas for Russia, Mongolia and China, after the Vodka Train. So 12 all up!

W: Wine, best glass while travelling and where
I like wine, and I like to drink it, but I am no expert. I would have to say the South African wines in the Stellenbosch region here, but to be fair our winery tour was a very big day, and I certainly could name any wines or rank any for your recommendations! Great day though, with some spectacular views!

X: eXcellent view and from where
I don't think you can beat the view of the Melbourne skyline coming into view through an airline window, after a long trip away. Will always be home to me....no matter how far, nor for how long I roam!

Y: Years spent travelling
I would say 12 years here, since I set off on my working holiday to Nashville during our Summer of 1999-2000.

Z: Zealous sports fans and where
Despite being a massive sports fan myself, and spending a lot of time with a bunch of like-minded sports fans all around the world, I think the Barmy Army has to get the vote for the most zealous and most impressive sports fans. Their humour, their tenacity regardless of how the English team are going on the field, is to be admired.

Wow, those are some great memories!

Seventh Blogiversary

I have been blogging for seven years now. 7! Wow. This post is my 770th, which is a long way from my first posts as I set off to the UK for my "Working Holiday".

Having this blog has allowed me to record and share many of my travel experiences, stories and photos, and has enabled me to have a living breathing record of these times. Plus it has allowed me to track all the great things I do at home, and also lets me write in a non-clinical fashion, after being bogged in injury-talk and reports at work.

I have actually just written, and had published, 2 articles over on the travel blog called Travel With A Mate. The first timed in for the beginning of the Australian Open, talking about Seeking Grand Slam Tennis Internationally, and then my tale of diagnosis and warning about my DVT, called Deep Vein Thrombosis: Scary and (mostly) Preventable.

I have now also created a Facebook page for the blog, so you can be aware of new posts when they are published from that feed.

My last couple of NaBloPoMo months has pulled in some traffic, which has been delightful, to know this little page is being read. Watching some posts of late become some of my most read has been really rewarding. Hopefully I can keep this type of readership up, with some travel plans in the next 12 months shaping up.

Thanks for reading for the last seven years!

Fourth NaBloPoMo

Today is my 30th daily post in a row, completing NaBloPoMo for the fourth year in a row.

Of course I had 11 gigs to write about, so that helped a lot! And my now regular Top 5 pieces on albums of the year, play counts, and gigs of the year, have also been helpful prompts. But this year I did utilise the schedule function, which may be cheating a bit, but given my busy schedule, was necessary! I also managed to post on days where I had no real inspiration by finding my storage strategy of my travel pictures of the time based in London. This process, of blogging a few of these photos, also allowed me to revisit some of my travels and weekend trips of that time, and really appreciate how great having this blog is - I can look back on so many trips, events and places of mention, and random times, and recollect the where, what and my thoughts at the time. Love it! All those memories recorded!

jouljet has been going steadily since last year's NaBloPoMo kick start back into regular posting, and this is my 753rd post since starting blogging back in January of 2005, about to set off on that overseas adventure.

The most exciting part of blogging this month has been the traffic numbers. Blogger has an internal stats page now, which means it's more accessible than checking another site (which I still do for more detailed stats about searches leading to jouljet and traffic paths). Posts about the They Will Have Their Way gig, and the Straight To You show have reached over 70 hits since being published. And then the Harvest and my Top 5 Favourite Albums for this year have now reached more than 140 hits. The latter in just 3 days, thanks to it being picked up and mentioned by Largehearted Boy's Online Music List.

NaBloPoMo is also a time where I read more random blogs, through the challenge site usually, and this year through Twitter shares of those I am following. The sense of community in reading others doing the same challenge, but also of jumping through other blogger's posts and thoughts and lives, and leaving comments, is something I have really enjoyed over the last couple of years of this challenge. It also means my Google Reader list is ever growing!

Neglected Blog

My last post had me plotting a new and exciting trip - and then nothing! For months...cos I guess I have been caught up in my travels initially, with very limited internet time, and thus blog time, and then getting back from my travels it has been work, work and work, and uni.

But after doing NaBloPoMo for the last 2 years, I have actually been looking forward to this one for about a month, as a solid excuse, and challenge, to get joulet back up and posting.

So busy, busy with work, with a pretty demanding workload, which also means loads of travel between our regional sites. And I am also just starting Week 7 of my 8 week semester of my MSW. Which I am loving, cos I feel like I am actually learning and putting things into my practice when I get back to the office, but it also drains my time, with travel, and guilt of not working on my essays. Or making up my hours at work.

So, let's just say my trip was one of the best things I have ever done. And also since I have been back I have squeezed in as many MIFF sessions as I could, given that I now live 90 minutes travel from Melbourne to get to them, and also been to a handful of awesome gigs.

Heaps to blog about, which should make posting everyday for the month of November easy as! Ha! Plenty of material....let's go!

Passports with Purpose

Reading about Caitlin's contribution of 2 awesome prizes to the Passports With Purpose fundraiser, I have discovered a cause that must have the word spread! Passports With Purpose are raising funds to build a school in rural Cambodia, something I am very much passionate about.

Passports With Purpose are a group of travel bloggers around the world, putting their blogs and readership's attention to worthy use!




Looking at the details of the American Assistance for Cambodia (AAfC)/ Japan Relief for Cambodia (JRfC), they have managed to assist many villiages in rural Cambodia so far, with the map littered with the individual school, and personal accounts of the positive impact this has had to teachers, students, and the community.

They have almost met their fundraising target, however there are many additions that can be contributed to a small community, that will bring education, and empowerment to the children in villages. $10US will get you an entry into the raffle, of some very impressive prizes. So jump over, pledge a donation, maybe win a great prize, but more importantly, make a different in a Khmer communities lives and future.

Blogging Just For The Challenge

I have absolutely no topic in my head to blog about today! This is the challenge with NaBloPoMo! Needs an idea everyday! And I am fresh out!

This morning I walked around the lake, first time for about a week. And then felt totally wired all day - have to remember that when the alarms goes off each morning and the temptation of snooze and sleep for another hour tries to win!

When I finally get to work, I call a real estate agent who had advertised a new apartment for lease, which I am convinced could be The One! I had been thinking about it all evening. A perfect, almost novelty living place, for my year of rent. I make an appointment to see said apartment, at 12 noon.

In the process, I distract everyone else in the office, who had probably been working solidly for about 3 hours before I drag my arse in. Oops! I always do...am such a distraction!

Then I get an invite via email to an event next week, which is super exciting.

I try to make a few phone calls to make sure one of my Injured Worker's return to work is all set to go smoothly this afternoon. Leave a bunch of messages, confirmed nothing, start to worry. I start someone else's assessment report.

Run next door to get my dose of coffee from Cafe Lekker, where the girls know my order. This is also an attempt to help me settle into work, and stop distracting myself, and everyone around me. Ha!

At 12 I pop out, after telling everyone who would listen about my potential dream apartment. Meet the agent, and she tries to get us in, but no luck. Her key is presumably the wrong one. Conspiracy theories enter my head...maybe she's promised MY place to someone else! Maybe I'll miss out! No! We agree on another time, next week. My potential dream apartment (or shit rental property number 5 on this search) awaits.

I have my aforementioned Injured Worker pop in for the paperwork that says he can go back to work, and what he can do, and how long he can do it for. We chat about how he's feeling about it all, and he's all set. I am a little nervous cos noone has assured me at the other end, but still, this is a big positive step!

I write a bit more of the assessment report. We chat more in the office, telling stories, or laugh about someone's silly phone conversation.

I get some calls, I make some calls. I enter my cases notes, I keep working on the assessment report. I send a report to someone again, which I sent them last week, but they claim they didn't get. I just forward it again, so they can bloody well see that I sent it last week.

I get an email from my Injured Worker's Employer, saying all has gone well today, he's back at work, and things have been all good. Awesome. I remember, in quiet celebration, that I haven't had lunch, and decide to go searching on foot for sushi in Ballarat.

I walk to Central Square, buy weird sushi from the food court, and run into Katie as I am walking back. We plan what's for dinner, and what time I'll make it home home tonight.

I pump out the remainder of the big chunk of the assessment report, now just for the research-y bit...home stretch. I get an email asking about another report I have to do, and set on belting out both before I leave the office tonight.

We all settle in, and get loads of work done. The other two go home from work at respectable times, and I polish off the first report, and then beeline to get the second one done. I email them out, invoice, close a file, make a funding request for my recommendations. Shut down my computer.

I drive down Sturt Street, pick up dinner for Katie and me on the way home, and we eat in front of the tv. Mum comes home, and we bond in front of Aussie drama. We all figure out an over-complicated plan for tomorrow, and Katie proves she is a top sister!

Now, here I am back at Jo's, for the last night, blogging, and listening to a song that tells me 'my boy builds coffins, he makes them all day....' A new, enchanting and lovely musical discovery, sent with love by Jessie in London. Thanks gorgeous!

Good day!

NaBloPoMo II

I have signed up for NaBloPoMo again this year, after making it through the month successfully last year. The challenge is to post every day for the month of November. The challenge is kind of laughable to me this year, given that I have about 2 months worth of posts over September and October still in note and draft format...but I am going to give it a crack anyway!

Last year I really do think it sparked a renewed blogging enthusiasm, and encouraged a much more frenetic posting activity here for most of this year.

I have hit a wall in my bloggy commitment just recently, as my work/life balance has tipped to the wrong side....which is perhaps just another reason to encourage this challenge, and see if I can tip it back a bit!

Last year also meant that I played around and read loads of other blogs too, through the NaBloPoMo site blogroll. Numerous adds to the Google Reader, so all good.

A tip from Jess last year was to work with some themes, to get through the days lacking in inspiration. And random thoughts are not really the flavour of Jouljet. I have quite a few gigs booked and planned for the month, so there is some posting right there. The Project 2009 is a post per week, as the bar discovery continues for the remainder of the year.

But there are actually big life changes in the midst at the moment for me, so that will be fodder for the blogger! Loads to chat about there, the ossilating thoughts about it, the justifications, the angst, the preparations.

Plus, I had thought since last NaBloPoMo that I could do a High Fidelity style Top 5s, as a way of working through any dire last minute postings. Cos the panic of some days last year will need a pre-pondered theme to save me this year, given the madness of the aforemention inbalance!

So here's to a bloggy November, and a renewed Jouljet into 2010! Hopefully I'll even catch up and finished my older posts for this year, too. Good luck to other challenge participants! I know Nicole has signed up....anyone else?

Burma Blogger

While this month we are all free and happy to blog away for NaBloPoMo, one blogger out there has been imprisoned for doing just that.

I stumbled upon Nay Phone Latt's story, through a breaking news story on The Age. A Burmese blogger, Nay Phone Latt, has been 'jailed for 20 years' according to the story, for posting a message about the regime in Burma.

Reportedly, a member of Aung San Suu Kyi's party until his arrest, Nay Phone Latt had been missing for most of this year.

So hard to know what is the truth, coming out of such restricted places like Burma. But the mere thought of being jailed for years, let along 20, for blogging a story, a poem, or even - god forbid - opinion, is a very, very frightening one.

NaBloPoMo and WTBAY

This month I have joined up for NaBloPoMo - that's National Blog Posting Month. The challange is to post every day for a month, being November. Tough, but I am keen to see if I can!

Inspired by Jess and Nat in the past couple of years, I am going to make an attempt this year.

I have also joined the Where The Blog Are You? Aussie blogging community.

Will be interesting to see what both these sites do for traffic to my site. I have a tracker, which tells me when, and how, people find Jouljet. It also tells me the searches, like on Google, that has random people landing on a post. Pretty funny sometimes!

Some not so random people Googling themselves - busted! But, for example, todays top listed key search words that have led readers here are:

Anika Moa birthday
pitch invaders at the irish rules at the mcg (!!)
wally the basics (googling himself?? Hi Wally!!)
footy shorts (quite a bit of this going on! what's that about!! Hee hee)

It also tells me where people are from, which is cool to know people from all over happen to stumble over here. The most recent locations are:

Tokyo
Canberra
Melbourne
Auckland
Brisbane
Netherlands
Ballarat (Hi Andrea!)
New York (Hi Talia!)
Boston
Switzerland
Sofia, Bulgaria

Happy reading!

Blogging For Peace

I have signed Jouljet up to the One Million Blogs For Peace site, in the growing push to end to the war in Iraq.

As part of this membership, as one of the million (so far there are 217), there will be challenges set, and also a regular Tuesday Topic set for discussion. The aim is to get the blog world, and indeed the world talking about, thinking about, and hopeful doing something about ending the war in Iraq.

Today's topic, being the launch of the Tuesday Topic, is centered around the marking of the date, the 20th of March, being the start of the fifth year of the Alliance lead war in Iraq. Four years ago on St Patrick's Day, George W declared war on Iraq, and the 20th was when the first shots were fired.

Since then roughly 65000 Iraqi civilians and 3477 Coalition military have been killed in this war, more US deaths than occured on 9/11/2001, (numbers depends on what source you read), with claims that this toll is higher than that of Saddam's brutality, and yet today in The Age, our Prime Minister John Howard is quoted as stating that Australia will continue to 'stand firm' and that he is 'reaffirming our committment to the Iraq war'. Meanwhile the Opposition leads the opinion polls, with a major drive to pull out troops out of Iraq, and with the plea for a solution to the ongoing conflict, and occupation.

Four years ago, when this war began, I had just returned from Cambodia. Dazed and in reverse culture shock at being back home, I watched the news reporting the commencement of this new blight on peace.

As I was preparing to leave, and farewelling my Khmer friends, news of the imminent start of this new world battle was being discussed. So many of my Khmer friends, who so vividly remember the horrors of war torn Kampuchea, and the atrocities of the Khmer Rouge, were asking me how was it that my country's government was so keen to embark on a new war? When the world knows over and over, how war effects people?

How could anyone answer that?

Hello jouljet!

tempus fugit- time flies in Latin!!
Certainly the theme for me and the last couple of months!!

Big thanks to Jess for setting up jouljet for me, in preparation for my upcoming travels. I have been admiring her blog since meeting her, and love that you can catch up with what she's up to through her site.

Why "jouljet"? Jouljet is the rough phonetic word for "like" in Khmer. Although it's really more stronger than like, it's to like with all your heart. I hope that by calling my blog this, I will always be doing things that fit this description from now on!!

I have my flights for my big "I'm running away to find out what I want to do with my life" trip booked for the 31st of January...which means time is ticking!! So much to do! And so very, very disorganised!!

I am hoping to keep this page up to date with my whereabouts on my travels. I like the idea of having this here for my family and friends to pop into, and as a way of keeping a record of everything for myself, too!