culture Archives - Seren Holistic Lifestyles

Who likes to travel? Me! That’s who. I love it I thrive from mixing with different people, cultures and seeing things ‘outside of my box.’ My over seas travel journey started late. I didn’t leave my home country of England till I was nineteen. At twenty-four I took off on a one year around the world adventure. Most of my friends had already done ‘gap years’ between high school and university so to do gap year at twenty-four could be seen as late.

Travel sabbaticals later in life are very popular now especially if you have long service leave to cash in. I like having the financial stability behind me now to not have to be super budget when I’m on the road. Yes I’ve done the hostel thing and eaten cold beans out the can for dinner so I’m not 100% posh packer. I like variety so it’s great for me to go 5 star one trip then pull back to budget the next depending on where I’m going.

My favourite part of travel is the change space I receive. If you’ve read my posts about ‘Energy Cleansing’ and ‘Clean Your Space’ you’ll understand how the atmosphere around us can affect us energetically. It’s the space we are surrounded by, the invisible energy it contains that feeds us. This energy inspires us, gives us ideas, allows’ us to grow. If we stay in one place for too long doing the same thing every day, just like water in a pond, we go stagnant. How often have you said ‘I really need to get out of town for a while?’ because you are ready for a change of space.

Just like people vibrate on different energy frequencies, places do too. Have you noticed how different you feel when you’re in a new place or country? You can instantly relax & feel happy. That is why we feel so good on our holiday’s the new energy space of a different place revives us. You are breathing in new nutrients from the new space around you. When you come home you’re not only chilled out but you’re charged up with new ideas and inspiration. I know I am.

I travel to draw from this pool of new space so I can come back with fresh new ideas for my life and work. I took a big trip around South East Asia over the Christmas break. I visited Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand. Each country offered a new culture, new people, new tastes, smells, sights, sounds & that exciting new invisible space. I had a few ideas rolling before I left but it wasn’t until I’d had my change of atmosphere that they truly flourished. Here we are right now with the project inspired from this trip. This blog!

I had huge waves of inspiration for writing and painting in the temples of Angkor Wat. The colours and sounds of the Vietnamese markets set my mind racing with new thoughts. Eating Khmer curry out of a hallow coconut made me want to ditch my plates. All these fresh new experiences was just what I needed when I was so ready to ‘get out of town.’

When you return from a trip you are filled up with the new energy that you bring back too your home. You can fill your space with it breathe it into your usual atmosphere from within you. Bringing back souvenirs or artwork, hanging frames of your trip photographs all pull the new energy into your space & keep it there. You don’t need to travel overseas either. A trip within your own state can offer the same space change. Just like I did in the post ‘Travelling Alone in Fun!’ Go somewhere different, a part of town you seldom visit or try a new restaurant in a suburb you’ve never been too. Anything outside in nature is always a winner too. Trees and water instantly breathe new life into me. It’s all different space and it can revive you if you’re feeling that pull for a change.

Next time you’re feeling flat and looking for some inspiration or a need to get out of town go find yourself a change of space.

Love Seren xx

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Everything around us the earth, the planets & nature all move in cycles. We ourselves are constantly growing & evolving to meet developing needs. I often feel nothing is really new. Everything has been here before at some point in time, then it might disappear & return again when the time is right or it chooses to be. This is very true for fashion trends.

My morning commute requires me to sit on a train for thirty minutes. I am usually engrossed in a book for this time. Some mornings my mind and eyes wander. A few months ago my wandering eyes (in a non creepy way please!) started noticing people’s foot ware. It was the middle of summer & people were wearing boots. Not just any boots but the classic Dr. Marten boots. There in front of me was a high school girl donning a pair of DM’s with her school uniform. Wow I thought that was how I dressed twenty years ago. (20 years how did that happen?!)

I’ve started seeing Dr. Martens or DM’s, Dockers, Doc’s what ever you wish to call them everywhere. They are back in fashion 53 years since they were launched on April 1^st 1960. In the early 90’s nearly everyone at my school had a pair. My father hated them. When I bought my first pair aged 13 he was fuming. Who knows what he thought when I invested in a second pair a few years later.

When DM’s first came on the scene in 1960’s England they were associated with the British working class and a youth culture of punks, rebels & skinheads who donned their DM’s before heading off to fight for their rights. This is probably why my father didn’t like them as they were stereotyped with hooliganism. My era of first wear was definitely for the rock grunge gothic look, not for violence. It was the time of Brit Pop. Oasis and Blur were wearing Doc’s so I wanted some too.

My friends personalised their boots to make them ‘different’ from everyone else’s. Mine were never polished the more scuffed the better. Mud and dirt were my decoration of choice. You tied your boots your own way too. Laced up to the top and tied tightly, left open and untied for a slouchy, sloppy look. For me I left the top three eyes unthreaded, wrapped the laces around the back and finished with a knot at the front. Some people drew on their boots, painted flowers and shapes on them, had brightly coloured laces or beads threaded through the bottom lace. DM’s were a great way to self-express.

The major draw card of Dr. Martens is they are actually very sensible shoes. Flat, sturdy, waterproof and so comfortable are the ‘bouncing soles.’ Okay I admit it the first few weeks can be painful until you break them in. Band-Aids ahoy! They do make your legs look like golf clubs too when worn with skinny jeans or skirts.

It was this comfort factor that drew me to investing in a 2013 pair. I was tempted by the array of funky patterns and finish’s but decided a straight up black pair would be more suitable for my needs. I was the fourth person that day to buy a pair the sale assistant informed me. Twenty-one years after I bought my first pair, Dr. Martens are back on my feet again. Maybe I’m feeling nostalgic for my British roots or I just know a good solid authentic brand when I see one. Whatever the reason I’m rolling with the ebb and flow of universal cycles.

Do you have any favourite iconic brands that you’d love to be revived or those that should never grace our presence again? Leave a comment below!

Love Seren xx

Posts Tagged ‘culture’

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