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Finding well-being through travel and books. |
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Hello and welcome! I have two great passions in life. The first one is travel. After a series of life-changing events, my husband and I decided to spend the kids’ inheritance and see as much of the world as possible (I’m still bitter about Damascus). Our bible? A Thousand Places to See Before You Die. Please join us on our adventures seeing new places, meeting fascinating people and trying new, exciting, and sometimes just plain weird, food. My second great passion is books. Reading expands my interior world in the same way travel expands my external one. And, books are a great way to armchair travel - not only through distance but through time as well. My tastes are eclectic, so we’ll be looking at a wide range of writing in a possibly haphazard fashion. Come along for the ride! My best, Kirsten ** Images For Use By Upgraded+ Only ** |
| Her name is Jorani* and she is seven years old. When she was five, she decided there was nothing more in the world that she wanted to be than an Apsara dancer (celestial dancer). For this she would need to be trained in Classical Dance (or Royal Ballet), one of Cambodia’s most sacred art forms (dating back to c.1 - 6 centuries CE). Fat chance in the small village where she lived. Her parents were rice farmers of modest means and there was nary a dance school in sight. Jorani was determined to study dance and her parents longed for a better life for their daughter. After lengthy inquiry, they found a dance school in Siem Reap where she could board, continue in school, and pursue her dream of becoming a dancer. At age six, Jorani went for an audition at the School of Arts. Her parents knew her heart would be broken – out of the 1,500 or so children who audition each year, 50 are accepted into the program – but they also knew she wouldn't rest until she tried. However, it wasn’t that that kept her out. She was deemed to be hugely talented, but alas, the earliest children were accepted was age 10. This seemed a truly formidable obstacle. Jorani wept and wept and wept. In desperation, her parents contacted the school again. Couldn’t they, just this once, make an exception? Read the rest and see the photos and videos here  |
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