Mind the gap...year [England]

August 2016

So it's been a minute since my last update and a whole month, in London, has passed on by. I would have to say that, so far, London took the longest to get accustomed to due to the fact that the accommodations we were provided were quite different than I expected. And, I wouldn't describe it as "bad" considering the co-living space, called The Collective, provided things such as: cinema room, sauna room, a ground floor restaurant/bar and tons and tons of interesting seminars. The "issue" came down to the fact The Collective was about 60-90 minutes away from the heart of the city, so anytime you wanted to really see London, you would would basically have to allot half of your day which was exhausting. Also, you had the sense that many other Remote Year people were also going through a rough time with the transition from Serbia to London. But honestly, other than that, everything about London was an amazing experience.

But, I have to say that one of the best experiences of London was the fact that my mother, who had previously never left America before, was able to come visit me during this trip. One of the most memorable experiences we had was when we went and had tea time at the Orangery in Kensington Palace. The finger food, which turned out to be very filling, was absolutely amazing. The decadence of the affair was not lost on us as we took in every moment and appreciated that we even had the opportunity to do something that many may never do.

London definitely had more American influence than I imagined. The month felt like I had visited New York with the British accent tossed into the mix. This made things often times feel very familiar even though I had was seeing them for the first time. One of the best experiences I had was visiting a semi swanky cafe called Brilliant Corners. They are known for the very impressive sound system and, on this particular night, they were doing a album listening session with Daft Punk's Discovery album which just so happens to be one of my favorite albums of all time. Having a chance to listen to such a classic album, in this setting, all while having audience reaction will definitely stick with me for a long time.

Things I did

• Went to Brilliant Corners to do a listening session of Daft Punk's Discovery in it's entirety. This plas also served amazing Japanese influenced food

• Checked out the amazing and culturally diverse open market known as Brixton Village. Had an amazing burger at Honest Burgers.

• Did a tour of BBC 6 radio station

• Checked out the overly lavish mega department store, Harrods

• Listened to local cultural gossip at the D & L's Barber Shop

• Roamed around the Shoreditch neighborhood many nights

• Saw a performance by Mndsgn at Jazz Cafe

• Saw a performance by Clams Casino at Village Underground

• Saw a performance by Ekali at The Pickle Factory

• Had an amazing dinner at Jackson & Rye

• Saw most of the normal touristy stuff (Buckingham Palace etc)

• Had tea time with my Mom at the Orangery at Kensington Palace

• Played a DJ set on a pirate themed boat down the River Thames

• Had Fish & Chips...multiple times

Vacation Mode Disabled [Serbia]

July 2016

So it's been quite a while since my last blog post and I believe ultimately what has really changed, since then, is the feeling that the "vacation" aspect of my trip, has ended. Although the Remote Year staff tried to drill the idea that we are "living" on this trip and not "vacationing", it still started off feeling very much so like a vacation. But after roughly 2 months, that feeling has changed and, i have to say, that's a very good thing! I have been in Serbia almost a month now and have felt at "home" roughly the same amount of time. 

I've started to take moments to myself and really try to reflect on what i may be "searching for" when i agreed to take on this Remote Year challenge. And even with the unlimited stimulation i'm getting from meeting new people, seeing new places, and experiencing new adventures; I think ultimately the answer is i'm searching for myself. I'm learning more and more about my true self at a much faster pace than in years past. Every new international experience allows me to self examine how I react to being pushed beyond my normal comfort zone while also giving me the opportunities to grow in ways I wouldn't of predicted for myself.

As i continue this journey, i'll delve further into my psyche and what that means for me but for now, I'd like to log down a few things i've done since my last entry. 

The last major mini trip we made before leaving Prague was visiting the small Czech Republic city of Kutná Hora to see the Sedlec Ossuary a.k.a the "bone church" which is a Roman Catholic chapel that has been decorated with the bones of 40,000 to 70,000 people. And, I have to admit that after this somewhat morbid experience; I had the strange urge to listen to music like Massive Attack on the way home. Sometimes you just have to tap into that darker side.

The last thing I did in Prague was get my tattoo of the street that I lived on. The plan is to get a tattoo of every street i live on during my journey. Hopefully none of the future street names translate into something embarrassing but if they do...whatever.

The street I lived on in Prague, Czech Republic

So, we had to say goodbye to our Czech Republic home and hopped on a bus headed to our next home, Serbia. But, before we got to our next destination, we got a chance to spend half a day in Hungary which i had previously not known much about but must say it's one of the most beautiful countries I've had the opportunity to see, so far.

Budapest, Hungary

One of the first things we all saw on our bus ride into our next home, Serbia, was the refugee camps that we saw at the border. These refugees were desperately trying to find ways to get into Hungary and this really put into perspective how lucky me and my fellow travelers truly were. None of us have ever really experienced any type of plight quite like these people were going through.

Refugees on the border of Serbia & Hungary

Upon finally arriving at our homes, things started moving at a whirlwinds pace. I'm writing this towards the end of our stay here but it's felt as though we've only really just arrived. But since every day, there are new things to explore, smell, eat, feel, hear, etc; the time seems to be stuck in fast forward and you must take it on yourself to find the time for yourself to pause and really process what you've just done and what you plan to do. And, I would say that finding time to myself has been my personal theme for the month. I've increased my meditation frequency and my alone time because I've started to really assimilate the fact that this Remote Year journey is a marathon and I have to make sure to be pre-emptive in finding ways not to "burn out".  And with that being said, here's some dope things i've seen during my month here.

Prague is growing on me [Czech Republic]

“Tourists went on holidays while travellers did something else. They travelled.”

— Alex Garland

So i've been in the Czech Republic for about 15 days now and I've slowly gotten adjusted to my new surroundings. Not only is this the first time i've left the US but I also must get acquainted with my 74 other Remote Year companions. In the past week we've done so many activities that you would think I would be mentally and physically exhausted but, in actuality, the non-stop activities have just increased my ability to take on more stimulation than I previously would of been comfortable with. It's all part of the process.

I've been making an effort to connect with the local musicians here in Prague and i've been pleasantly surprised. So far, i've already attended a Atlanta themed trap night at a underground/pop-up show by getting a personal introduction by local musician Piqi Miqi, who himself makes music that couldn't be any further from trap. Also i've been turned on to local artist Paulie Garand.

Last week we had our first real orientation of sorts whereby all 75 Remote Year participants were invited to this really cool place called "Forbidden Spot". The space seemed abandoned until you entered and realized that it had been turned into this really cool, off the beaten path, clubhouse of sorts.

And, over the weekend, I went on a tour of the city to see all the various artworks and sculptures of famous Czech artist David Cerny. Many of his pieces, upon first inspection, tend to have you giggle a bit followed by deep thought as he seems to always want the viewer the question even the concept of art itself. We got to see pieces such as: "Two Peeing Guys", "Car With Legs"(not pictured)", "Svaty Vaclav" (The hanging horse)", & "Zizkov TV Tower with Crawling Babies". The most interesting of these has to be the Zizkov tower which is located right beside the apartment i'm staying for the month. The tower features faceless babies crawling up and down it which, while intriguing, are pretty terrifying when you first see it. The babies remind me of the low-fi 3D rendered baby featured on Ally McBeal back in the 90s. 

We also ended one of our tours by visiting the Meet Factory which also features some pieces from David Cerny, but I found myself more interested in the space itself. Meet Factory is a meeting place for all types of artists to come and collaborate on projects of all types. They provide the artists a cool place to live, work and collaborate. The space also features an open air theater where one movie is voted on and shown every week. This is probably one of the coolest places i've seen so far where a group of people came together and found ways to elevate artists despite low funds. 

Overall, i've had a very eventful past few weeks which is crazy considering this is only the beginning of my trek.

Loving every moment [Czech Republic]

Life is made up of tons and tons of moments and, even now, we are currently in one. So i've made a conscious effort to really take in each moment, even more so while i'm on this excursion around the world. Prague has been, so far, absolutely amazing. The people, the smells, the food -- i know, how cliché -- and It's only reinforced my thought process on deciding to make this crazy trip come to fruition. Also, i've really started to get close with certain members of the Remote Year trip and expect only to get closer to the rest as it's only been about 5 days, although it feels like 2 weeks based on how many new experiences i've crammed into such a short time. 

In the image above, a friend and I decided to grab a lunch at Terasa U Zlaté studně which has an amazing view, as you can see. The food was amazing and what would of cost probably $200 a person in the states, was only $80 a person here. It doesn't have a Michelin star but it has been recognized by the group with a "fork and spoon" designation. It definitely deserves it. The terrace gives you the the opportunity to really take in the unique beauty that is Prague. 

And so it begins......

So, i'm starting this blog mainly to follow my travels as i embark on my year long international excursion by way of Remote Year. I'm really excited to see other parts of the world through my own eyes and not through the biased lens of media. I've never personally left North America so i'm excited to see what new experiences i will have as well as the new people i'll meet.

So the first stop is Prague, Czech Republic. I'm deathly afraid of planes but i figure its a necessary pain to kick start my dreams of world travel. So...Prague...here i come....