dusting off the ol' passport

[hey friends, it's been a while! long post ahead]:

It's been nearly three years to the day that I left for my last adventure requiring a passport. 

That's not to say it's been a bad last couple of years, I've just had different kinds of adventures. I packed up everything I own into a few boxes, put my kitten in the backseat, and drove to Nova Scotia to start a job at a company that I'd been looking up to since college. I had absolutely zero friends here, and all I knew was that I wanted to buy a surfboard. 

Two years later, I have my surfboard, and a rad crew of friends brought together by a love of the ocean, all things outdoors, and an appreciation for this province that can only truly be achieved by a CFA. My coworkers are like my family, and I'm lucky to work with people I genuinely like, in an environment that allows and encourages me to be creative. I know so many people dread going to work everyday, and I'm thankful to have a job that doesn't make me feel that way. 

All in all, I'm living a pretty great life here by the sea. But after about a year, I started to get a little too used to the routine. 

After I went to Australia and discovered my love of lengthy, slow moving backpacker travel, my biggest fear was always that I would never get to travel the way I wanted to anymore, once I got a "grown up job." Two weeks of vacation per year just didn't seem like enough to go shark cage diving in South Africa, surfing in Sri Lanka, diving in the Philippines, and all of the other shenanigans I have planned for my life. I had just gotten a taste of the world, and I certainly wasn't ready to stop. So I came up with a plan, and pitched it to my boss.

I don't know what put this idea into my head, but I decided on Morocco. Surf, desert, mountains, and cute camels were all I knew about this country, but I was stoked. I found a co-working space that would allow me to do my work remotely via a quick internet connection and a Skype booth for conference calls, all while living 200m from one of Morocco's best surf beaches. With a 4 hour time difference, I would work from 1pm-9pm so that I would be on Halifax time, keeping my mornings for surfing and camel cuddles. It was foolproof. 

I made a powerpoint presentation with all the details, and nervously word vomited this crazy idea to my boss; why I thought they should let me send my ideas and words over the Atlantic ocean, while soaking up the sun and paying me to do it. 

Coworking is not a new idea by any means, but in a role that relies so heavily on collaboration (and I couldn't convince my art director partner Jill to come with—believe me, I tried haha) it just didn't seem like the most feasible option. 

Instead, I will be taking some time off to travel around Morocco seeing the sights, drinking mint tea, and ending with some serious surf lessons. In an unexpected and exciting turn of events, I'm happy to say that my amazing, fearless, and badass mum will be joining me. 2017 has been a trying year for our family, so she's decided to embrace every damn day, grab life by the balls, and ride a camel into the freakin' Sahara desert. I couldn't be prouder. 

buying mum her first packpack

In terms of writing this blog, I normally travel with a small laptop that I use, however, since this trip is shorter and I will have the company of my darling mum, I will be leaving it at home. Instead, I've decided to update friends and family by posting on Instagram (hopefully once a day). Writing here was such an amazing way to stay connected while I was away on my long trips, and it gives me so much joy to go back and reread my posts all these years later. Documenting life's journeys is a huge part of who I am and how I travel, so even if no one reads this, it is more of an outlet for me than anything, and an important part of all of my trips. 

On March 2nd, I board a plane headed for Marrakech with my trusty old backpack, and an open heart. I'm almost certain this is going to be one of the biggest shake ups of my life, and I'm so ready for it.