Between the end of semester rush, life confusion and general stress, it’s been a while. And for a time there, I couldn’t figure out why. I think I have it now though, and it’s a little shameful to admit. See, writing here stopped being fun. It became a chore. It wasn’t what I wanted to be doing and in the last month or so I think it showed.

So I stopped.

In a way, it’s been coming on for a very long while. I wrote a post back over Easter that never made it to the site – I knew then that I wasn’t being true to what I wanted.

I actually articulated this in that never-published post: I haven’t written a lot lately about the travels I began earlier this year. It’s been difficult to put pen to paper so to speak, to articulate those experiences. In a way, I’m glad that grand trip was cut short, because being home has brought a beautiful clarity.

I realised long ago, that I wasn’t happy with what I was doing. First it was the way I was travelling, but it’s spilled over to this writing here as well.

I’m a writer. I’ve structured my entire adult life around it. But the writing that’s on Chasing the Wild is so far removed from my voice that I couldn’t do it any more. This is the voice I’m presenting to the world, and it’s not mine.

In my home life I write fiction. I write fiction that’s beautiful, that’s lovingly crafted, that is designed to make people feel.

The writing that I’ve been doing on Chasing the Wild has felt cheap in comparison. I know I can write so much better. I want to write this better. But I’m just not at the moment. Part of it’s lack of practice writing creative non fiction, but a lot of it is simply effort.

And that’s the thing about stress – of meeting deadlines, of having too many things on at once, of needing to worry about other people, of feeling the need to keep going when your heart isn’t in it. It makes everything hard work.

It would be incredibly easy to quit at this point. Too easy, in fact. So I’m not going to, and, when it really comes down to it, I don’t want to. There will be changes and a period of adjustment, but Chasing the Wild isn’t ready to die quite yet.

A Manifesto

Firstly, and this is the most important thing for me right now, I’m not going to be writing any more about the time I spent in Asia at the beginning of the year. Amongst other things it’s still just a bit too raw. It was an amazing experience, and I’m glad it happened, but there are lessons learned and for the moment it just needs to sit. That isn’t to say I won’t revisit the experiences later, but it won’t exactly be scheduled programming. We’re going to focus on the here and now for a bit.

There will be a refining of focus. I write and travel for beauty, for things that make me feel full of emotion, to uncover things that are special. This is something I forgot, and something I’m working to reclaim.

I will be spending more time crafting each and every thing I want to share, to work to make it as beautiful as it is in my head. I have a rough weekly schedule, but I won’t be fretting if I’m a day or two late. There will be no more weeks without at least one post of – if I really can’t put pen to paper – something that inspires me and I hope will do the same for you.

Chasing the Wild is going to be incorporated into a new home. I’ve been working on a portfolio website for both writing and photography, and Chasing the Wild is going to become a part of that larger banner. Not much will be changing on the actual website here except for a few extra links in the menu, but it does mean that my photographs will finally have a home, and everything will gradually become more streamlined.

Thank You

Finally, I want to say thank you. This isn’t the first time that I’ve hit a rough patch, but with a much stronger focus and much-needed rejuvenation of soul, Chasing the Wild is in the best place it’s been since I bought the domain. You’ve stuck with me and it means a lot to know that people are still checking in even after two weeks of silence. I won’t let you down. I won’t let me down. We’ve got the world at our feet, and it’s going to be a beautiful ride.

The post Refocusing: A Heart to Heart appeared first on Chasing the Wild.

Fast forward a few hours and I had devoured it. Taking posts from her first year of backpacking, Steph tells tales of her not-so-round-the-world trip. Reworking old blog posts, she’s created a book with a streamlined tale of her trip, how it changed, and lessons she learnt along the way.

Having only jumped on the Twenty Something Travel bandwagon after the year in question, most of the specific content of A Year Without Makeup was new to me. What wasn’t – and what really resonated – was the story of Michael and how their relationship altered her travels.

Starting a relationship only months before you’re supposed to leave for a year and then having said relationship drastically alter your plans is something I can relate to.

Steph’s writing is lighthearted and self-reflective. Her chapters revolve around specific events or people that illustrate the wonder of travel. Many of her stories are structured around the lessons she learnt, sharing her moments of growth and the realisations travel brings with her world-wide following of travelers both aspiring and in motion. ‘The Oldest Backpacker’ is one such story, chronicling the 74 year old backpacker she bunked with in Beijing. She finds inspiration and life-learning as he relates his situation.

Rather than a complete A-Z of her first year of international travel, A Year Without Makeup is comprised of a series of thoughtful essays that gently prod and poke at the shiny expectations of backpacking to draw out the real guts of long term travel. The book reads as an intermittent diary as Steph invites you to share in her unique world view through the all-encompassing lessons a traveller learns.

So if (in Steph’s own words)…

- You enjoy my writing style and would like to see me write more
- You owe me a favor and/or are related to me.
- You’re a more recent fan of the blog and want to see where it all started.
- You’re an old fan of the blog and want to reminisce about how young and stupid we all once were.
- You’re not a fan of this blog at all and want some hate-reading material.
- You like stories that involve self-discovery, romance and exotic places.
- You’ve got $3 to spare… did I mention it’s only $2.99?

Then you’ll probably like A Year Without Makeup. Off you pop.

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Like many such things, not much in the aquarium has actually changed. It’s its same old, dependable self. Everything seemed a little smaller, it was a whole lot less crowded because we weren’t there on a weekend or during the school holidays, and things weren’t quite as I remembered. There were new exhibits, a new theme, but essentially it’s like a comfortable old jumper you rediscover in the middle of winter just when it’s needed.

We skipped the (not so) obligatory photo as you enter the aquarium in favour of getting straight into the action. The current theme is a Seahorse Safari. A family of larger than life seahorses clad in pith helmets hold bubbles filled with facts about various exhibits. There were certainly a lot of seahorses on display. I spent a large amount of time trying desperately to get decent photos of them (because they are absolutely gorgeous!) but most of the aquariums seahorses are in are dimly lit and my lens just wasn’t fast enough to cope.

My photographic endeavors were consoled with other exhibits. Giant, tropical aquariums; penguins; open air pools and the underwater walkways provided much better conditions for my poor lens. Quite frankly, I love all of the exhibits at the aquarium. To me, it’s a giant, very pretty playground. I did feel a little sorry for Conor whose enthusiasm didn’t quite last as long as mine did at each new window. The underwater world is an amazing place and though I resisted my inner child at the touch pool, I couldn’t help but get overexcited at pretty much everything else. Including the sea-themed mini cupcakes at the kiosk halfway through. I bet you wouldn’t be able to exist the sugar sea creatures on top either.

As much as I get overexcited at every. Single. Aquarium. There’s something to be said for saving the best ’til last. For as long as I can remember, my all time favourite part of the aquarium complex has been the absolutely ginormous tropical aquarium at the very, very end.  After seeing individual fish and sea creatures showcased throughout the aquarium, and then the tantalising taste of something more in the underwater walkway, the culminating exhibit that blows all the rest out of the water is the 2 million litre Great Barrier Reef oceanarium.

This oceanarium, without exaggeration, is stunning. Sharks, rays, fish, coral, even the rocks are brilliant to look at. It’s almost, almost enough to make you feel like you’re underwater too. After all, only a skinny little pane of glass separates you from an aquarium large enough that you can pretend you can’t see the other side. Though it’s my favourite part, it’s the bit I took the least photos of. Sometimes you just have to stand back and appreciate the view.

 Your friendly neighbourhood seahorse explorer

This little seahorse danced for me

The best parts of the aquarium are the unexpected. Like finding a patch of glass-bottomed floor.

Tropical Aquarium

The Oceanarium:

On a slightly unrelated note: after the aquarium, since we had some time to kill, we headed over to the Australian National Maritime Museum. Also a common fixture of city outings during our childhoods, we opted to skip touring the ships and submarine. There were two exhibitions in particular that Conor wanted to check out. Unfortunately we ended up not seeing the one he really wanted to see. The other though was one he was interested in, and that he had a hunch I would like. He was right. ‘Elysium’ is a photographic exhibition of an expedition to Antarctica. It. Was. Stunning. Absolutely breathtaking. If you’re anywhere near Sydney: go, go go! Being a photography exhibition I of course don’t have any photos to show. Have this one of Darling Harbour instead.

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If you’re driving or riding yourself around Bohol and you intend the Tarsier Sanctuary to be your first stop then please, do what we didn’t – check the opening time. We had the bright idea to leave our accommodation nice and early… and arrived at the sanctuary with an hour to spare. Oops. Thankfully just riding with no specific place to go in the Philippines is an attraction in itself, and we happily continued along the deserted road to Loboc.

Loboc is a small town that is just about the only direction you’ll receive when self-touring on Bohol. The way to the Chocolate Hills is to follow one road with the only fork (and possible place to go wrong) at this riverside town. A tiny market was being set up as we pulled into town, and the church was full. For guided tours, this is the place of a river cruise. We passed up the option and instead we just walked around. If you find yourself walking around Loboc be sure to climb the half-bridge beside the clock tower and look back onto the church. You’ll find the same entertaining view that we did.

After an appropriate waiting time (and coffee for Conor) we headed back to Corella and the Tarsier Sanctuary. The sanctuary itself is huge. The property is over 160 hectares, and is home to over 200 tarsiers. After riding up the long, narrow driveway we arrived at the visitor centre and were put into a group. We were lucky that there was only one other couple when we arrived so there were only four of us being shown around. Group sizes are usually no larger than 10. The groups are guided around a small section of the larger sanctuary with only a few tarsiers in it.  Guides make sure the tarsiers aren’t overly bothered by visitors, and of course, that the visitors can find them.

The Tarsier Sanctuary is a conservation effort, not a tourist attraction. Tarsiers here are wild and have been re-homed from areas where there natural habitat has been taken away through residential expansion or farming. Whilst the sanctuary organisers are aware of the expectations of tourists, the emphasis is on the well-being of the tarsiers. Those in the accessible part of the sanctuary are rotated regularly and there are only a few tarsiers in the area at any one time to ensure they don’t feel crowded. If you’re lucky enough to see a baby, it’s actually at a stage in it’s life where it’s almost ready to leave it’s mother. Conor and I were impressed with the way the sanctuary is run. We especially loved being able to see the tarsiers up close in as close to their natural habitat as possible knowing they weren’t suffering from our experience.

Far too soon we jumped back on the bike and resumed our journey towards the Chocolate Hills, with one stop on the way. We’d read the previous day that food at the Carmen viewing point left a lot to be desired. Since we hadn’t packed any lunch we followed a recommendation to stop at Simply Butterflies Conservation Centre in Bilar. A pretty little place that does have amazing food, we were even more glad to have stopped as it started raining. Riding a bike in the rain isn’t the most fun experience, especially when you have no raincoat, and especially when the girl on the back of your bike keeps leaning the wrong way. Oops. I had fun looking at the butterflies whilst Conor avoided looking at the moth displays (as it was very likely that they’d come alive and attack him with prejudice. As they do) and made friends with a scruffy looking kitten.

Eventually the rain stopped and we left the looming threat of killer moths behind. The landscape of Bohol was spectacular and it was the highlight of my time in the Philippines. Even over the famed El Nido. The Chocolate Hills at Carmen were amazing. There’s no doubt about it – it is why thousands of people visit every year. Out of a desire to see more of the landscape I loved so much though, we decided to keep riding to the lesser-known viewpoint of Sagbayan Peak.

To get to Sagbayan Peak, we got to ride through  the Chocolate Hills. Trust me when I say that viewing the hills from the viewing platform that everyone else does has nothing on experiencing this weird phenomenon from the ground. It’s just. So. Pretty.

Sagbayan Peak is right at the top of Bohol. You can see the ocean from the main lookout, but the big attraction is the Kid’s Park. A collection of Disney and Superhero statues, plus a castle to climb all over, it was a helluva lot of fun. Whilst there were a few other people hanging around the Kid’s Park, we were the only ones on the lookout taking in the Chocolate Hills. Cue stupid self-timer pictures. It was an interesting view of the Chocolate Hills in any case. I’m not sure I thought it was better than the viewpoint at Carmen, but I did think that the drive between the two was the best experience. As you can see from the photos, the hills were only just starting to go ‘chocolate’ when we were there.

Our plan after Sagabyan Peak was to head back to Tagbilaran along the north coast on a nice, leisurely ride. Which is was for the most part. We wound down out of the hills just as the sun was setting to spectacular views that I couldn’t tear my eyes away from long enough to get out my camera. A fitting end to the day, after I’d fallen so in love with the scenery, we arrived back in Tagbilaran just in time for dinner… after just one more stop along the way.

Completely unplanned, we noticed a sign as we were on the home stretch and pulled over immediately to have a private meeting with the mangrove Macaques in Loon who were more than happy to come and play. Unfortunately I have no photos of these gorgeous monkeys, but they’re definitely worth a visit.

The post A Day on Bohol appeared first on Chasing the Wild.

Is that not the cutest face you’ve ever seen? This was the highlight, the major drawcard for coming to the Philippines in the first place – Bohol’s Tarsier Sanctuary. Despite still being unwell and in desperate need of rest, four days before we left the Philippines Conor and I woke up at the crack of dawn and began our trip to this tiny island.

We arrived in Bohol’s port city Tagbilaran in the late afternoon and made a beeline for the information centre. With only two full days on Bohol I wanted to get us on a tour of the Tarsier Sanctuary the very next day!

Sadly, once we realised just how much a driver was going to cost us… well, we changed our minds. Conor has his motorcycle license back here in Australia, so it only made sense that we decided to hire a bike and take a self-guided tour. We were astounded we hadn’t thought of it earlier.

Our inital bike troubles are worth a post all of their own. For anyone looking to do something similar, there are only two bike rental places in Tagbilaran. Bikes are rented for a 24 hour period, and there isn’t really a ‘best’ time to go – it’s luck of the draw.

As our luck would have it we didn’t end up touring Bohol on that first day after our arrival. Instead I spent the day catching up on TV from home and generally sleeping. Our first day on Bohol was a bit of a washout but our second (and last!) was absolutely brilliant.

If you find yourself on Bohol, and you have the skills, hire a bike and tour yourself. The freedom

we had made the day all the more special, and there’s nothing quite like the sense of adventure that comes from being the only bike on the road in such beautiful scenery. We visited the Tarsier Sanctuary, the tiny town of Lobok, Simply Butterflies Conservation Centre, viewed the Chocolate Hills at both Carmen (where the tours go) and Sagbayan Peak (where they don’t), and had an impromptu stop for mangrove monkeys at Loon.

Lobok

Tarsier Sanctuary

Simply Butterflies Conservation Centre

The Chocolate Hills

This last little guy was in a tiny cage at Sagbayan Peak. We felt terrible for the tarsiers cramped into the small space, and only took photos so that we could leave it as soon as possible. Sadly, these tarsiers, unlike the ones at the sanctuary, were simply for tourism and suffering for it. If you find yourself at Sagbayan Peak, please make it clear that you don’t wish to see the tarsiers in the tiny cage. We can’t break the cycle on our own, but every little bit helps.

If you visited Bohol, would you take a guided tour or hire a bike and drive yourself? Where would you most like to visit? I’m intrigued

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For my dad, having the day off meant the perfect opportunity to run a casual 36km through the bush. Almost a marathon, for him and his running partners (he coerced convinced my brother and a family running friend to go with him) it’s no biggie – they’re training for the 100km North Face ultra marathon in a few weeks. It’s okay, they’re crazy, I know.

In favour of appearing slightly more sane (though let’s be honest, we were jealous of their energy), mum and I met them instead at the end of their run at Patonga Beach to take advantage of the gorgeous views and the world’s best chips.

Do they not make your mouth water? In all seriousness, if you’re around Sydney or the Central Coast make the trip to Patonga and snag yourself a large!

It’s the first time I’ve gotten my camera out in a while, and I took full advantage of the swarming seagulls who flocked to us as soon as we unwrapped our packages of potatoey goodness.

The seagulls were all too happy to pose.

Before diving into our leftover chips.

Waiting eagerly for more…

And strutting their stuff along the beach.

I loved the look on this little guy’s face so much I just had to share.

The jetty

Patonga Beach is a beautiful place to feel like you’ve escaped the day-to-day for a while. With very few crowds (comparatively… try to avoid it on public holidays!) it one of my family’s favourite spots for a day that feels a world away from home.

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Yay.

I had a sore throat, a dry cough and a pounding headache that made it difficult to stand up. I spent the next few days moving from where I was lying on the bed to lying on the other side of the bed. I felt like death with no idea why.

Luckily, we had some time to spare. We canned our plans for Donsol and spent a lot of time watching TV on my laptop. Poor Conor spent the first few days of his holiday – including his birthday – taking care of me. The headache stuck about for about four days before it started to subside, the cough a lot longer. And the general feeling of being unwell stuck around until well after I got home.

But far too soon, we had to move on.

When you go travelling, people warn you about the sickness you can pick up from food and mosquitoes. They don’t tell you about the dangers of fast travel.

Since leaving El Nido, I’d spent four days travelling fast. Four different beds, two buses, three flights and very little downtime in between. Add in the dehydration that long travel (especially flights – hydrate, people!) brings and a diet with nowhere near as many vegetables as home and you too could find yourself bedridden in a foreign country that you’d rather be out exploring.

So we attributed the reason I felt like I’d very much like for someone to cut my head off to amount of moving around I’d done the week earlier. Those flights messed with my head, and it didn’t end there.

After four days in Donsol, we moved on. Our time in the Philippines was limited by the 21 day no visa limit that had started when I entered the country, and I really wanted to see Bohol. We spent three days on Bohol that included riding halfway around the island before legging it up to Clark before leaving for Thailand.

In Thailand, we didn’t slow down. An overnight ferry to Koh Tao, a very intensive week of diving courses, and a speedy last minute trip to Chiang Mai meant that I didn’t start feeling well again until long after we returned home.

I wrote a similar post around this time last year speaking about how getting sick on the road can ruin an otherwise amazing trip. The culprit then was the culprit now. Last time, I was a part of a tour and couldn’t have taken any time out if I wanted to. This time, Conor’s flight home dictated our schedule. We took as much downtime as we could, but we had to keep moving.

I have nothing against fast travel. It’s a great way to see a lot of a place in a limited time frame. Being sick whilst moving fast didn’t ruin my trip, just made it a little tricky for a while. I still had an amazing time.

Just, next time, I’ll make sure I have a little more flexibility to take a few extra days out and be wholly ready for the next adventure.

The post Why Being Sick and Travelling Fast Sucks appeared first on Chasing the Wild.

We arrived in Legazpi with no set knowledge on how to make it from the airport to Donsol – our final destination. Whilst we had looked up the local transport options, we were lucky enough to find a group of other travellers heading in the same direction. Taxi drivers at Legazpi airport are a happy bunch. Lacking the competitiveness we found elsewhere, they were happy to point us in the direction of the one man with a van large enough for our group.

Only, it wasn’t quite. We all piled into the van, filling all the available flat surfaces, and when that wasn’t quite enough, I spent the hour and a half journey sitting on Conor. Who was a remarkably good sport about it given how tired he was, and how much I kept wriggling around to see out the window.

The volcano in distant Legazpi

The van into Donsol dropped us at the Visitor Centre, where we promptly booked our whale watching tour for the next morning. Because it was Conor’s birthday, we decided to stay somewhere a little more upmarket than we had initially budgeted. After walking up and down the beach looking at some seriously nice places, we fell in love with the gorgeous Amor Farm Beach Resort.

The next morning dawned cloudy and a little chilly. Nevertheless we were at the Visitors Centre bright and early. Whale shark tours are best booked through the Visitor’s Centre, and snorkelling gear can be hired at the centre, the dive shop across the road, or from your guesthouse. The Visitor’s Centre will put people who turn up at the same time the day of the tour on the same boat, so you don’t have to worry about making up a group, or waiting around to fill your boat.

The boat trip itself lasted a couple of hours, and despite our best hopes, there were no whale sharks. From what I learned talking to people in Donsol, and through research since, I’ve learned that this is common for the area. Whilst whale sharks used to be commonly sighted in Donsol throughout the season, these days you have a higher chance of sighting the largest fish in the sea off Cebu.

Our whale shark spotter

Despite the lack of whale sharks and still being jet lagged, Conor enjoyed the boat trip anyway. The bay was smooth and clear, and there was a view of the distant volcano in Legazpi. We spent the rest of the day catching up with sleep, but not before organising to go on a firefly watching trip that evening. We hoped it would be more successful.

It was.

A small boat with just two other tourists, our guide took us along the Dancalan River, floating us right up to the bushes that were literally swarming with fireflies. I did take my camera but ended up simply siting and watching. It was a magical experience. If you find yourself in Donsol bereft of whale sharks, do yourself a favour and make sure you go firefly watching. It’s an incredibly peaceful, fascinating thing to do.

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The walk itself leaves from behind the station, crossing over railway tracks before walking along them for a time. The trail begins deceptively – leading us briefly through the trees before forcing us onto a freeway overpass with traffic racing below. On the far side of the bridge however, the sound of the traffic fades and we are plunged into the bush proper.

The trail meanders gently down the hill to the river – though it doesn’t feel quite so gentle on the way back up. At the very beginning of the track is a rather steep decline that has my friend briefly considering the return journey. I tempt her onwards with the promise of pretty things. Her interest is once again piqued and we continue down the trail, chatting between the many photo stops.

We are constantly rewarded.

Delicate ferns, final bursts of flowers, the sound of water rushing alongside most of the track – it’s a beautiful walk. The bottom is even more stunning. It’s one of the few times I’ve arrived at the base of the trail during high tide. In the absence of sand flats to walk on – we simply sit and enjoy the view. Two sailing boats are moored in the bay, picturesque on the clear water. An eagle wheels and dives continuously in front of our eager lenses. Two cyclists draw our attention to a lace monitor as we eat lunch, and together we snap away at the gorgeous creature. The Australian bush is truly a special place.

 Tiny flannel flowers pepper the sides of the trail. 

Moss on a tree trunk.

I loved the contrast between the crisp brown edges and the lush green on the leaves of these ferns.

The trail.

First glimpses of the river.

The sailboats moored in the bay emphasise the natural beauty that surrounds them.

This eagle put on a glorious, freewheeling show for most of the time we were at river level.

The goanna – or lace monitor – is Australia’s second largest monitor. This one was more than happy to pose.

The post Beauty Close to Home – Hawkesbury River Bushwalking appeared first on Chasing the Wild.

After a rather tightly squeezed trip to the airport on which five people and several backpacks threatened to spill out of two tricycles, I arrived in Cebu at midday on the final day of the festival. As coming to Cebu was a very last minute decision, we’d found that most accommodation was booked out – after we’d paid for the flights. It was a small miracle that one of my companions had managed to find us an available room. It’s a testament to her absolute determination that the room she found was right in the middle of the action.

Which, despite being amazing, meant we had to walk to our guesthouse due to road closures for the festival. In the middle of the day. In summer. Through roads teeming with festival crowds. With our backpacks. Oh, and we had to cross the parade route too. In short, it was an incredible introduction to the Sinulog festival, and the first thing I’d seen in the Philippines that was untouched by tourism.

What happened between finding our guesthouse and returning to the festival is a story for another day. We returned to the festival and spent over an hour walking up a street on the parade route that took us five minutes to return on later that night. The rest of the night we spent at the Fuente Osmeña Circle after meeting up with friends. The pictures below are from those two locations and were taken from my phone – so I apologise in advance for the quality!

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