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The Final Chapter of my Eastern Adventure

May 14, 2014 By Kat

After going a bit left field last week & mixing up my posting schedule I feel it’s time to finish my story. The aim for this trilogy was to record a travel diary so in years to come I can look back & relive the happy time I had on this trip.

My final night on the Indian Pacific was lovely. I’m very happy to report the dinner service was spot on. The vegetarian option had changed for the main to a very nice, fresh, hot & tasty tagliatelle. Gluten for punishment I ordered the mushrooms again. I think I got a bad batch the first night second night was vastly improved. Dessert was a very delicious almond chocolate cake. How I over looked that the first night I do not know.

At dinner I experienced hospitality at it’s best. A French couple were shown to the table next to us. They had enough English to get by but they didn’t need to worry as one of the staff conversed fluently in French with them. Such a nice touch. I’ve found in Australia that this is very rare. We are an English speaking population. Everyone is expected to fit in with this & speak English. It did make me smile that the train did have at least one-second language speaking staff member. I’m sure this skill goes to long way to get great gigs.

Arriving in Adelaide at 7:20am Tuesday morning meant an early start. A morning tea style breakfast was being served between 6 & 6:30am. With no phone signal my alarm didn’t go off. My mum tapping on my door woke me. Leaping out of bed thinking of my stomach first of course I was ready in a matter of five minutes. I was super impressed with the food. Muffins, pastries, breads & scrolls a plenty. Towards the end of the service there were still loads left.

The train drew in ten minutes early, the luggage arrive ten minutes afterwards, three minutes later we were in a taxi heading into Adelaide city. We’d booked a city sight seeing tour to fill the morning, as our hotel wouldn’t be ready till 2pm.

It’s been about nine years since as was actually in the city centre & I couldn’t remember any of it. It’s bigger than it seems. Our three-hour tour was going very quickly & it felt like we’d not really seen too much. It was great to just be driven around & take it all in. I was getting very used to being chauffeured.

Adelaide has a lot of churches. I mean a lot, one on nearly every corner. Our first stop was well a cathedral that boasted some very impressive stain glass windows. One window was fairly new & depicted the story of Mary Magdalene. I’m always drawn to visit temples when in Asian countries but I never seem to take advantage of what I have on my doorstep in regards to churches & cathedrals. It made a peaceful change to just sit in the huge, quiet space for a while.

The Magdalene Window, St Peter’s Cathedral Adelaide

The Haighs chocolate factory was of course fantastic. You can only get Haighs in South Australia in their own stores as they do not ship. Haighs are famous for their chocolate frogs as well as their Rocky Road. They make their own marshmallows. Being just after Easter there wasn’t much action in the factory as the staff had been given ten days off after making a quarter of a million Easter eggs this year. The chocolate is rather nice & we bought quite a lot of it. Hello chocolate macadamias!

After the tour is was time to pick up the hire car & head to Glenelg our home for two nights. I’ve stayed in Glenelg before, it’s a cosmopolitan beach side town that is known for it’s jetty & laid back atmosphere. Being a bush rather than beach kid I decided the ocean was calling us to be close by. Perfect choice the sunsets were spectacular.

Glenelg Jetty, SA.

The car we hired was a Toyota Yaris. Hilarious! I’m used to driving a big old sedan so to get in this tiny buzz box was so much fun. It had a real kick to it for a small car. It was a dream to park even so my Dad was super paranoid about me scratching. We couldn’t get the GPS to work properly so we ended up taking a different way around than I expected to after reading the map. It felt strange to be in the driving seat after being transported around.

The next few days were delightful. I really like Adelaide. People bag it out for being boring but it has a great energy about it. I feel this is because it’s not as over populated or such a tourist hot spot like Sydney & Melbourne. Sure there is plenty to do that is touristy! How can anyone be bored here. I’d happily have stayed a while longer if time allowed. Thinking about it I live in Perth & many people ask ‘what’s in Perth, isn’t just really remote with nothing to do?’ Maybe I’m just attracted to the non mainstream.

Here are my Adelaide highlights:

Staying by the beach in Glenelg. Long afternoon walks on the seafront & great sunsets.

Sensational South Australian sunsets!

Having an in person mentoring session with my Soul Mentor Elizabeth Peru. It’s always great to connect in person. Just being around people of higher & pure vibration can be very healing in itself. It makes me feel very supported & not alone in this lifestyle I’ve chosen to live. Elizabeth’s energy is contagious I always leave our sessions with such clarity, confidence & love. Brimming with new ideas & inspiration to bring home to action.

Driving round the hills in the buzz box. Due to a road closure we ended up taking a very long way round to Mount Lofty. GPS was not happy.

Mount Lofty on a clear afternoon. Spectacular views over Adelaide right down to the coast. Also got to catch a bit of the Royals visit on the news when we stopped for lunch. They were just up the road in the SA town of Elizabeth.

The view from Mount Lofty

The German town of Hahndorf. A very quaint & picturesque town in the hills. Loads of unique shops to explore. I found some great hand made organic beeswax products. The architecture was stunning up the main tree lined street.

The charming & quaint German town of Hahndorf.

Meeting new friends. Connecting over yoga & organic food. I was blessed to meet a fellow Bikram teacher & Bright Eyed & Blog Hearted course mate. We took a yoga class together at the Glenelg studio followed by a lovely chat over breakfast afterwards at the Organik Store. It’s awesome when you just ‘click’ with someone. No awkwardness or long silences. Meeting your ‘tribe’ of like minded people is so important. Again no one is ever alone, there will always be others on the same wavelength & they will appear when needed.

Amazing apres Bikram organic breakfast

Crystal shopping! With a few hours to spare before our flight I’d Googled a metaphysical shop near by. Crystal Wave is amazing. Mum & I spend nearly an hour working our way through the shelves. I picked up some great pieces to bring back. Including my first Merlinite. Mum found the most beautiful Baltic Amber pendant. A great pick. The staff were very helpful & friendly. One complimented me on my massive selection & gave me some advice on making grids.

Stunning Baltic Amber pendant.

Saving Mr Banks movie. To round off the trip I got to see a movie I had wanted to watch for ages on the flight back. I’m a huge Mary Poppins fan & thoroughly enjoyed watching Saving Mr Banks. It was so tempting not to sing out aloud with the soundtrack!

I thoroughly enjoyed my time away. I could quite happily have stayed in Adelaide a few more days but my parents had to get back for their flight home. There was a lot I learned from this trip looking back now. A change of space can really freshen you up & bring in new lighter energy. A whole new blog post in the pipeline I feel…

I’d love to hear your experiences of how a travel trips have freshened up your Soul & replenished your mind. Please feel free to share in the comments below.

Till then, love K xxx

Love Notes

July 18, 2013 By Kat

Getting into work at the yoga studio at 5am is a pretty unsociable hour. Especially in winter when it’s freezing cold, raining and foggy. I love my job but sometimes it’s so hard to drag yourself out in such conditions.

Twice this week I’ve arrived at reception to love notes like these from my dear friends and fellow teachers. Instant joy! Blessings to be surrounded by such good people. We are like ships in the night as I work the late or early shifts but doesn’t mean we are any less friendly. These are being pasted into my journal for anytime I need a happy pick me up!

Small tokens of love really can brighten someone’s day. Is there someone in your life you like to leave notes for? Never left a note before? Give it a go today!

Love Seren xx

Sharing

May 13, 2013 By Kat

We’ve all heard the saying ‘caring is sharing.’ Isn’t it the greatest feeling when you have something so wonderful you just want everyone to be a part of it too?

I set up this blog with the intent of sharing my knowledge with anyone who wished to receive it. I am sharing what I’ve learned in order to be of service to others. Deep down though it did not faze me that maybe no one will read. That did not bother me in the slightest. My writing is for me primarily, my outlet and my joy. If other’s wished to come along for the ride, hop on board.

The knowledge I have gained through hours of meditation, mentoring, study and healing is now embedded deeply enough into my daily life it is ready to be shared. I am still learning, a lot, there is so much knowledge to discover (or re-discover from past lives) & access I need to impart some of this wisdom to make room for some more. Empty my glass to refill it it’s a continuous cycle.

The act of giving or sharing works hand in hand with the law of nature. The two-way exchange, there is an equal and opposite to everything. Like breathing, we breathe in so we must breathe out. The more your give the more you will be re-given too. Don’t get me wrong this can easily be misinterpreted as selfish. I do not give solely because I want something material back in return this is not the point. The receiving or re-giving might not be obvious at first and may not be a ‘material’ return but you do get an instant result the moment you give out.

Let me explain further. In writing these blog posts I am sharing with you all and the instant return I receive back is pleasure. I love writing. My words go out as I type, my return is the joy of creating that I receive straight back. It makes me feel good, even though the post isn’t live yet the process is fulfilling. Even if I never publish this piece I am still giving out a part of me into the physical world. Following along?

Only the past week I have really noticed how far I have come in following my life path. I am comfortable enough and living authentically that life is not a struggle. I am flowing perfectly the way I am meant to be. It’s a constant rollercoaster ride for sure but I ‘trust’ its part of my plan.

Other’s are noticing the change in me too and are being drawn to me. Just like on a hot sunny day we flock outside to be in the sunlight. When a person’s ‘light’ is radiating strongly people are drawn to them. Okay it’s not all sunshine and rainbows. I attract some undesired attention that I need to dig deep to see if these people truly are seeking my help or just wanting to feed off me. (Think Energy Vampires) By emitting my love and happiness to the world, it allows others to discover their own love and happiness. You can’t help but feel happy around positive, cheery people hey? That’s not selfish is it?

The greatest pleasure I get from working on purpose is to see my friends and clients flourish off their own back. I plant a seed for them, sometimes indirectly and they run with it. Usually the answers they are seeking are right under their noses or deep inside them. They just need to slow down, be still and ‘ta da’ they find their solution. It’s truly beautiful to watch. I love getting the feedback and the excited stories how one tiny hint from me accelerates them way beyond where they were. Actually it is all ‘them’ they are doing the work for themselves, it’s the only way any of us can progress forward. I’m just a tiny, tiny element of the process. Most people I work with are so busy rushing around inside their own heads and over thinking they miss the obvious. I’m there to gently steer them back inside where their answers lie. How do I know all this? Because I’ve done it myself in my own life & it works. Yes we are all different but we can all start at the same simple point of stillness and forge our own direction from there.

Go forth today and share your light with those around you. See how you feel, as this energy is re-given back to you instantly. Be careful also, if you radiate bad feelings of negativity they’ll come right back at you too. Keep it happy!

Love Seren xx

Love yourself by saying NO!

April 22, 2013 By Kat

Have you ever found yourself saying yes to something you don’t really want to do? Then spending the whole time hating it and wishing you’d said no because you have so many other enjoyable things you could be doing instead? I bet we all have.

Why do we say yes to things we really want to say no? It comes down to that being a ‘good person’ thing that is quite the ideal to live by now. We don’t like letting people down, we want to do the right thing by our friends or family. Be available 24/7 to help out when needed. This must make you a good person right? What defines being a good person though? Who is actually setting this standard? I’ll tell you. You are.

You are in control you’re your life. No one else is, you are the one in the driving seat. No one else can suddenly jump into you’re body, kick out your soul and start making all the decisions for you. Why do we have such a hard time saying no then? We clearly not in control are we?

Let me share my story, I am a reformed yes person. I like to please people, I am here to serve and assist others. It makes me tick. I am happy to help. I am still all the above but now I have boundaries. I always used to say yes to everything just to make other people happy and be ‘a good person.’ However I was saying yes to things I didn’t want to do or didn’t have the time for. Over giving and over stretching myself. I ended up resenting the people because I felt they were being so demanding. They didn’t know they were putting on me because I just kept saying yes. Isn’t that an indication I was happy to help or else I’d say no right? It caused me stress and anxiety. Then I hated myself for bringing it all on.

Funnily enough my observations revealed more to me. The friends who were constantly calling on me were also the one’s always telling me how busy I am, “I can’t believe how you fit everything in, how do you do it? You’re super women.” If they noticed how busy I am why were they demanding I take on even more from them? That’s simple, I didn’t say no or stand up for myself.

Then why didn’t I stop? I didn’t realise I was doing it. It was a repetitive cycle of saying yes. I was so far in I couldn’t see the wood for the trees. I was constantly dropping everything I was doing, all the things I wanted to do, to meet the demands of others. Some were unpaid jobs for things that I should have been charging for. Somewhere deep inside it did feel good that people would call on me if they were in a fix. I love helping, it made me feel wanted and in demand. I felt that I must be really good at what I do if people are calling on me like this at a drop of a hat. I’d fallen in the trap of wanting approval from others. The only approval I need is from myself. Self love people!

Once my wake up call came it really opened my eyes. I was hurting myself so much by being that ‘yes person.’ I needed to love myself enough to say no and spend my precious time doing what I love the most. When love is not the centre point of everything you do then you’re not being authentic to yourself. You will feel unbalanced and life won’t flow. Who wants to live like that?

My biggest realisation was indeed people do value my talent, they like me enough to want to spend time with me and that’s why they ask me to help them out or go places with them. What I didn’t figure at first was if I said no to being ‘on demand’ then these people valued me enough to wait till I had time or respected my choice that I didn’t want to accept their kind invite. Those who didn’t want to wait or got grumpy I wouldn’t go out with them I should wave goodbye too. They’ll always find someone else to help them out who has the time so you don’t have to feel bad. No one should have the right to make demands of you and make you feel guilty.

Setting boundaries and realistic time scales really helped me. Once I learned to do this then I was happy again to help out as it was on my terms. Now I dose myself up with self-love and honour my needs it makes me a stronger person for those around me. It’s not my job to make others happy they have to do that for themselves, just like I’m doing for myself. It’s okay to say no, you might struggle at first but give it a go you’ll feel so much lighter and brighter for it.

Love Seren xx

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