There’s a small island on the Atlantic Ocean where you can road trip through Martian landscapes, watching volcanoes and dried lava meet the sea. Here, the soil is hot and dry, but grapevines still manage to creep out of the volcanic ash, creating extraordinary wine. Lanzarote is much more than the famed strip in Puerto Del Carmen, where fish and chips and plastic souvenirs bear easily-recognisable signs of package holidays. The true spirit of Lanzarote hides in the heat of the volcanic roads, amongst sandy beaches; it’s in the way palm trees sway in the wind, casting shadows on white-washed ta ..read more

Less than an hour from the sticky summer evenings of Gothenburg lies Bohuslän Archipelago, splintering into 8,000 islands and skerries, their golden rock glowing pink in the rising and setting sun. The coast runs north of Gothenburg, cutting through the North Sea all the way to Norway. The landscape here is wild and untamed; the craggy islands are dotted with red houses and fishermen boats. Coastal meadows carry the scent of pine trees, and the sound of the waves coaxes you into slowing down, your eyes open with wonder, your smile a little wider. The archipelago is moody in winter, bringin ..read more

Guest post by Siena AKA The Thrifty Freelancer Breakups. They suck. And let’s face it: all the well-meaning advice in the world (‘you’re such a catch’, ‘he wasn’t good for you’, ‘you’ll find something better in no time’) means nothing because it feels like it’s the end of the world when you lose someone you love. So, it’s spring, and for some reason (maybe the universe hates me, IDK) I always end up breaking up with guys I’ve met pre-cuffing season around April; also unfortunate timing of right before my birthday, so a double whammy of crapness. I’ve ‘got through’ many an unwanted br ..read more

Somewhere between the dream and the morning alarm, just as the reality begins to sink in and our mind starts galloping at 100 miles per hour, we are made believe that happiness requires hard work. That you can’t simply wake up and be happy with what you have, because whatever obstacles you’re dealing with overshadow your chances at happiness. We consciously choose to postpone our happiness until we have X,Y and Z, allowing ourselves to be miserable in the process.  Similarly, when going through a heartbreak – or any kind of emotional pain or difficulty really – we get caught up in the id ..read more

Boy, where do I begin. I started writing a similar post that’s been sitting in my drafts since 2015, on why I left Bali to move to London. I never finished writing it and it’s probably because deep down I knew it was based on a lie. I tried convincing myself – and everyone around me, that I wanted to put digital nomading on hold because I needed more stability. Because the unknown became my comfort zone and I got bored of it. Because I couldn’t wait to swap a suitcase for four walls where I could finally hang a couple of pictures. Because London was a place of opportunities that would stim ..read more

When it comes to Christmas celebrations, Gothenburg may not necessarily be the first place that comes to mind. Sat on Sweden’s West Coats alongside a rocky, atmospheric archipelago stretching across 20 islands, the city has a calm softness to it that often gets overlooked. But don’t be fooled! As I’ve discovered during my recent trip with West Sweden Tourism Board, Gothenburg has a lot to offer – and happens to be the perfect place to indulge in julsmys, the Swedish art of Christmas coziness. Swedish winters are long and dark, but it’s precisely the darkness that makes Christmas celebrations s ..read more

I landed at Haneda Airport in Tokyo, the sound of hurried footsteps and excited conversations buzzing around my head like an insistent bee. Armed with two suitcases – one filled with gifts for my friend and the other carrying the usual travel stuff, I was meant to be on the train now, heading towards Shibuya. Instead, I was panic-calling my bank (a pleasure which, as I later found out, set me back nearly £40). My card got blocked just minutes earlier and with no cash on me, I was stranded in one of the world’s most expensive cities with no means of leaving the airport! My innate optimism clear ..read more