Dreaming of San Francisco

New York has been nothing short of fabulous and I'm very sad to leave. I can see why many of my friends have moved there as it is an incredibly vibrant place. I'll give you a proper update on my time there soon once I am back in Australia. At the moment I am flying over the country to go see San Francisco.



San Francisco was a late addition to my trip. In a way I have a feeling that this city is the one that I'm going to end up loosing my heart to. A few of my American friends have given me some great suggestions for what to do whilst I'm in town. One tip they shared is to never shorten San Francisco's name to San Fran (thank you Crispy!) Here are my must-do plans so far.

Riding a bike over the Golden Gate Bridge to Sausalito to find a famous ice-cream parlour.

Hanging out in Dolores Park.

Alcatraz. I am travelling with my Roller Derby friend Elle Catraz so it is appropriate.

Hanging with the hippies in Haight-Ashbury.

I wonder if San Francisco know that there is a cute Australian band who go by the name San Cisco? If they don't then they should get on board. Have you been to San Francisco bay? Is there a special place there that you think I should go see? Your suggestions are more than welcome.




Original San Francisco image from here

Dreaming of Rollercon

Two more sleeps until I madly rush to the airport for my flight to America. Normally my travel adventures are just that a rambling adventure exploring the world. This time however there is a purpose to my travel plans other than satisfying my wanderlust - I've packed my roller skates and am heading to Rollercon!




I have been involved in with Adelaide Roller Derby since 2008 and Rollercon has been one of those dream 'must-do' events high on my list. To help you imagine it: Roller Derby + 2000 excited skaters + 1 week in Las Vegas. It's one hell of a mix and the butterflies have officially set in.

I see myself doing a lot of sightseeing in between novelty challenge bouts, serious classes and afternoon cool downs by the pool. But honestly what I'm most excited about is getting the opportunity to meet, possibly play against and definitely party with some of the best Roller Derby athletes in the world.







My friends Velvet Thunderground and Dutch Oven went over to America a few years ago and their photos of their experience inspired me to one day go chase down my dreams of skating internationally. I've borrowed some of their photos from their time away. Thank you Dutch Oven for letting me share some of your beautiful photography.



Seeing all of these wonderful memories just has me itching to create some of my own. Have you ever incorporated your sport or your passion into your holiday?

Outbound with the In Crowd

I am completely head over heels in love with the work of Artist, Shag. His brightly coloured retro inspired world is pure hedonistic fantasy. 

My taste in art has developed overtime but there is something cheeky in Shag's work that keeps me coming back.  One day I can only dream that he gets inspiration in the form of a bedazzled pineapple. Until then I will send him Jedi mind control thoughts.

If you are in Sydney (or Melbourne) check out Shag's latest exhibition, Outbound with the In Crowd at Outré Gallery. 

Choose Your Own Adventure in Turkey

Earlier this year I jumped on a plane and flew to Turkey for my Honeymoon.

It completely blew me away. The people were generous & kind. The food was addictively good. The weather was warm and I barely saw a single cloud in the sky the 3 weeks we were there.

One of the highlights of our trip was taking a hot air balloon ride over Cappadocia. At one point when we were floating over the land we were up in the sky with another 50 balloons. I took as many photos of the balloons (250 photos in 2 hours) as I did the alien landscape.

My personal highlight was our boat cruise down the Turkish coastline from Fetiye to Olympos. Our days were spent swimming in the warm buoyant Mediterranian water or climbing over small remote islands scattered with ancient ruins. By the end of our cruise I had turned a gorgeous honey brown colour from all of sun. Absolute heaven.

I will always remember how Turkey made me feel. The sweet smell of the orange tree's lining the streets. The comforting & mood lifting apple tea. The quiet solace of a tap dripping in a Public bath. A refreshing chill creeping up through my feet from cool floor tiles.

It truly is an old ancient place where old superstitions die hard and the land offers up so many unique almost mystical natural wonders.

I tried to bottle up a small amount of Turkey and take it home with me but it was hard to recreate in the cold dark days of winter. Now that summer is finally here I can stand outside in the sun, shut my eyes and dream that I'm back climbing up the side of a mountain, walking through a field of wild growing thyme in search of another lost city.

by day but by night...

I might as well get it out of the way, yes I play Roller Derby and I love it. It is a huge part of my life so expect to hear a little about it from time to time. Lets be honest it was always going to appear on Pineapple Dazzle. 

For those who might have some preconceptions of the sport:

No I don't wear fishnets.
No I do not have any tattoos.
No I am not a lesbian. (Why does this matter anyway?)
Yes I am passionate about how physical & skillful the sport is.
Yes Roller Derby is widely stereotyped & overly sexualised in the media.
Yes the injuries & bruises are real.
Yes it's lots of fun to be involved & play!

I am one of the truly lucky ones to be apart of a fun-loving, supportive & nurturing league. I am inspired daily by the wonderful people that I have met since the beginning. It's these people who have grown to not only be my league mates but my closest friends. In saying that I have met even more truly incredible (men and) ladies around the world who have come to mean a lot to me too.

Shout-out to my lovely Derby wives around the world! *waves*

Roller Derby is a huge commitment of time (trainings, committee meetings, camps, public bouts, socials events, personal fitness) & does slowly take over your life. But the more you pour yourself into the sport, the more you engage & work hard for your league and team it has always in my opinion been worth it. 110%.

 

My league Adelaide Roller Derby, is currently going through its Fresh meat Program (aka recruits) and there are 60+ girls trying out who are honestly all really brave, tenacious, strong & really nice. Like beauty pageant nice. I wish we could bring them all into our league but that's just not possible.

So looking forward to the season beginning soon when I'm back on my skates full time. Until then I'll just have to make do with summer time outdoor adventure skates will my pals. 

Thank you Matt Walker for use of your photo. 

Dream a little dream

My beautiful friend Sarah is currently living a charmed almost fairy tale dream existence in New York City. Whilst we are sleeping in Australia she is sipping coffee in bodegas, dating ridiculously hunky men, taking ballet lessons & walking the High Line (pictured above). And yet it wasn't always like this. Rewind the clock to earlier this year.

Sarah and I caught up over a rare sunny lunch in the dying days of winter. So far she had quite a deflating & dejected year. Trying to make the best of a bad situation Sarah was updating me on her latest job prospects, a job interview set for 2 weeks time. It wasn't an inspirational dream job she was applying for but one of those keeping the toe in the water numbers. Sarah then told me about her wild & terrifyingly non-conservative dream of packing up a suitcase & moving to New York for 3 months to dance & absorb the wonderful city.

Sarah is a very rational person so she was caught up in a huge tug of war between head & heart. She had the means & the desire, all she needed was confirmation that her dream wasn't just the mad raving delusional ideas of a crazy woman. Sarah was in a lucky position the universe had given her the ultimate motivation to follow her dream.

In the end Sarah cancelled the job interview because she was already enjoying the leaves changing colour in New York. I'm so proud of her following her dreams of being a Ballerina. Even if it is only for a short period of time her life will forever be enriched. I keep my fingers and toes crossed that she finds a way to stay over there indefinitely.

She was made to be a New Yorker and follow her dreams.

Check out Sarah's blog 

LVS