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Although I had always wanted to try this activity I never wanted to speant the extra money as I thought it was a tourist trap. However when I started at Nature MindED I was able to join these incredible activities in even cooler locations. We would have local guides take us to secluded swimming holes and I even got to this trip multiple times but it never got old. You are right in the mangrove forest surrounded by old growth forest and many animals. I also loved this activity as I could use my previous knowledge on the importance of mangrove ecosystems to help teach the students.

Until this point in my journey I had been feeling very confident and successful. However around this time I was in a slump. I didn't feel like I was learning that much about tourism and I was feeling a lack of purpose. I was close to Puerto Vallarta surrounded my crowds and crowds of tourists and it felt disconnected from the local experience. After a week feeling this way I was completely changed by this magical moment. One evening I had a very difficult decision to make between comfort and many hours of discomfort. Earlier in the day I had commuted 3 hours away from where I was staying to meet some friends at a beach outside of the town. In the evening I was walking to the station to catch the last bus of the day and there was upbeat Mexican music playing in the background. I decided to follow my heart and instinct and walk towards the music and give up on the bus. I knew this would mean at least 6 hours of walking and waiting for many other busses before I made it back but I was so inspired to see what was beneath the surface of Puerto Vallarta. All of a sudden I stumbled in on the villages anual fair where the entire village was celebrating. There was a rodeo, chicken fighting, rides, games and of course the most delicious food. I was the only foreigner in sight and I got a sense of what life was like in this community. I played with the kids and watched events that were similar to a western fair in my hometown. Not only was it fun however it also gave me the chance to talk with locals and learn about the current situation of La Parota. I learned more about the Vidanta Nuevo Vallarta one of the biggest resorts newly created in Mexico. This resort towers over the small village and receives extreme pushback from the local community. While it employs many people in order to create this massive resort they also had to push back the local population of crocodiles and divert the river. Apart from the environmental damage I also learned how sadly this resort doesn't help the village that much as the guests rarely leave which was proven by me being the odd one out in this festival. It was very special to learn about this and see the issues from their point of view. This celebration lifted me out of my slump and showed me how culture and prevail despite the impacts of tourism.

After many months of work from other volunteers and a few weeks of many hours of work put in by myself I was very thrilled to see the results of the rewild festival. This was Thailands biggest eco festival and the first year of it hosted in Krabi. There was four main sections including Cave stage, Natures classroom, Sharing stage and Mind body garden. This two day festival really had it all and it was one of the most transforming experiences of my life. I tried new types of yoga and meditation from professionals in their domain. I learned so much about caring and permaculture practices for the land from Thai locals and indigenous communities across southeast Asia. I also experienced performances from the most famous Thai bands and locals who were masters of their traditional instruments. There was also an eco market where the eco businesses from the provinces shared their sustainable businesses and shared their unique goods. I was even able to share my own knowledge on permaculture and vermicomposting with individuals who were interested in starting their own practices. I was able to walk freely between all the activities and even do a few fun climbs in between. Where I spent most of my time was at the sharing stage where there was different panels on sustainability with individuals at the top of their field from Thailand. Over two months and even months before departing to Thailand I had been trying to chase down these people and organizations to get a moment of their time. However now they all came to my doorstep where I had translators to help me receive the authentic information. Every moment of these two days were exactly what I was interested in and exactly what animated me. It felt like a dream and was filled with gratitude for everything and everyone around me. This picture encapsulates it all as it was on the last day on the last moments. We had a guided meditation and sound healing. We embraced our neighbours and were all filled with peace. I remember taking a step back after this picture and wiping tears from my face as I had never experienced such love and peace radiating from one place. With the location, sound and weekend of learning this festival was one of the most powerful experiences of my life which I will remember forever.

This was the first day exploring with a new friend. I had not yet met with any of the flight school fellows and our many conversations were through a screen. However on this magical day I had the pleasure of meeting Addis another flight school fellow from Ethiopia. It was so incredible to meet someone who was going through similar things as me and facing similar challenges. We were able to explore every part of the city together and turn every corner with pure curiosity. Having another person with me to explore was a fresh feeling and one day I will never forget.

So a few mere days before this picture was taken I was lost. Lost in the city, lost in the language, lost in the culture, I guess you could say I was a little lost in life. I was putting lots of my energy into curiosity conversations with people from my hostel in search of some new learning opportunities. These conversations had brought me so much in the past but with every day I felt as though values in travelling were drastically different. Many seemed to visit bangkok for a few days, go to a temple or two and most importantly for them go to a party. I felt so disconnected from this type of travelling and certainly felt hopeless in the way people travel and the lack of respect for the incredible Thai culture that is bursting at the seams on every corner in Bangkok. I was putting the rest of my energy into finding the absolute best organisation that could change the world in the two month time frame I was constrained too. Then I stopped. You will see in the last few pictures I met with Addis and we explored the city. It was so energising to walk everywhere and share the sense of exploring with someone else. Every new street off the main roads had a new smile waiting for me. Every new street had a new food to try and a new temple to see. This new energy led me to the monk Pm Charan. After a huge rainstorm which sent motorbikes floating down the road and tourists crying under shelter I wandered into Wat Maha That Yuwarat Rangsarit Ratchaworamaha a temple in the centre of Bangkok. With water that had flooded the green space it truly was a sight to see. That is when the 75 year old monk stood beside me and said “Beautiful”. By saying one word this monk had inspired me. Without knowing who I was or anything about me he invited me into the temple to pray with him. I knew nothing yet his patience showed and he taught me about the traditions. Without trying to convince me on the religion of buddhism and simply sharing with me the mindful practice that this chat was, I was hooked. After 45 minutes of what to me was very difficult he invited me to his home inside the temple grounds. It truly was an oasis of nature inside a bustling city with animals and plants everywhere. The hours flowed by as he taught me everything from his favourite Thai jokes to the most impactful buddhist teachings. He offered to stay the night and knowing that a monk's offer is special I slept on the floor in his very simplistic room. I noticed how he woke up at 3:00 am to meditate, something I certainly can't do yet. At 5:30 in the morning we woke up and he invited me to be his disciple for his morning ritual. We walked across the city for two hours where every Thai person would offer food and money to him and he would pray for them. My job was to carry the many bags of food we collected but this morning had an impact I will never forget. I finally saw what Thai life was like. I saw the lives of everyday people who were rich and poor and no matter what, still giving food for others. I saw the restaurants preparing the soup for the day and the kids getting ready for school. I saw the importance that travelling has. Pm Charan’s impact on my life is immense and I finally understand the way I want to experience other places. Not with a need of making a difference but with a need of exploring.

I had the amazing opportunity to visit my old roommates family in Bolivia. I was with his dad, his stepmom and his three step sisters. They lived in Oruro which is the fourth biggest city in Bolivia and certainly off the beaten path for travellers. Tourists when visiting Bolivia tend to stick to La Paz, Lake Titicaca and the salt flats. However I have learned the importance and impact of visiting cities that had never been visited. When visiting the city most people had never seen a foreigner in their lives and it was very special for them to share stories. The father also worked at a school which I got to visit and share opportunities with students such as UWC and the Flight School. The students were so passionate about learning and getting to know me. I made many friends and saw what life was like in school there. The older step sister also fully adopted me into her life. She introduced me to all of her friends and invited me to many different events. The mom also drove me around the entire city to find a suit for an upcoming wedding. The two younger sisters shared jokes and invited me to their school play and sports games. Although I was there for a very short time there were countless magical moments with this family. They opened their houses and hearts towards me and for the first time in a long time I felt part of the family. I wasn't a tourist and a bikepacker but I was just someone doing the daily activities. The most mundane activities like going to the market or going to a friend's birthday was incredibly impactful. I will always remember my new family and my new home.

This was midway through my journey at Lake O Hara. After about three weeks in this little sliver of paradise It was at this moment after getting lost with two new friends that I remember thinking this is my home. Before this point I always felt a little disconnected to the Rocky mountains. Whether I was hiking, skiing to mountain biking these mountains that were right at my backyard never quite felt like home. I never had a connection to this land and was always seeking beauty in other parts of the world. However with the help of these two friends and many long conversations alone and with others I finally began to feel a community. This newfound connection was magical and certainly a bond that will never be broken. I not only gained skills but also learned so much about my animating question and the direction I wanted to go in.

The start of my adventure was one of the hardest weeks of my life. Immediately I was hit with extremely cold weather and a wind storm. I had to cross the peninsula of Tierra del Fuego before a ferry that took me to the mainland in a week. This entailed biking over 100 km each day on fully gravel roads. What I did not expect was headwinds that reached over 150 km an hour. What started as a hard adventure became impossible and dangerous. I would bike from 4 am to 8 pm every day and barely meet my quota for the day. This took all that fresh energy out of me and left me unmotivated and depleted. However, every time the howling wind would knock me over I would get back up and slowly make my way. All of a sudden I made it to the coast and to the only king penguin sanctuary in latin america. People travelled across the world to come to this singular destination. Others also paid extremely high tour fees to reach this location yet I could see it just by biking. This was an extremely big wake up call and a very important magical moment. I was able to witness these king penguins first hand and for the first time since I started to see the beauty of bike packing.

Both of my parents met climbing and I have been surrounded by people talking about how incredible climbing is. Although I have tried it I never fully understood why it was so incredible. That was until I ended up in the world class climbing location of Krabi. It was hard to go anywhere without finding a limestone cliff and appreciate the beauty of the holds available. I was taught by my coworkers about the meditative nature of climbing. I learned how rushing through each move and going faster actually makes it a lot harder which is different from many other sports. I was thrown into the beautiful world of learning the different skills and even started to lead climb and clean the anchor. One day after volunteering I was invited to climb at Railay beach which is famous in the climbing community. Normally it costs around 100$ for guide to climb these routes because they have some of the most beautiful views and secluded at locations only accessible by boat. However one of my co workers partners is Thailands top and most famous climber. Because we were with him I was able to attempt some of the most famous routes. WIth his advice and pushing my limits I was able to complete routes I never thought were possible. This was one of my best days in Thailand and I learned how slowing down and thinking about your next move makes any challenge easy. Truly a great metaphor for life that I will carry with me throughout the year.

After already meeting two other fellows I was super excited to meet Zane and Anna in Argentina. Anna was currently living in the city as well which was very special as she was able to show us her favorite spots and what life was like living there. She was working with a lot of different organisations that helped Russian immigrants adapt and live in Argentina. That meant we got private invites to different events across the city with the Russian immigrant communities. Although I was in Argentina I was able to try tons of different Russian cuisine and hear some Russian Music. This was a great way to get to know two new friends and I found it to be a very impactful part of my year. While I learned a lot about Anna’s life in Buenos Aires I also found a lot in common with both of them. I learned about Zanes' interests in public transport and karate. I also learned about Anna’s interests in writing and fencing. This whole experience in Buenos Aires was very majical and a great change of pace to traveling. I was able to do different activities then I would normally choose and explore the city in a completely new way. This friendship also lasted beyond the city and into the Patagonian mountains.