I haven’t been posting on here so much lately, & it feels as if I’ll be posting less now as the months roll on. Originally I set up this account, and the OUTSIDER Instagram to document our shift from a settled life stuffed full of overwork & fast-paced living, to a more minimalist, slow, migratory way of living. That was thirty months ago. I cannot believe how quickly the time has flowed around us & we have felt like a…
People have such varied ideas about vanlife. Some give the impression that we’re all driving around searching for the perfect nature photo opportunity, that we do 100,000km a year, and that we’re all social butterflies flowing effortlessly into new situations with grace and ease. I think there are definitely people out there who do that. It’s just not us. One of the things I promised myself I’d do with this account and the OUTSIDER blog was to honestly reflect the…
There are an infinite number of contradictory reasons why people decide to move into vans, and the vanlife community is as diverse as any you’ll meet. Digging down deep into our reasons, we find they’ve changed in these two-and-a-half years on the road. At first we wanted to simply travel, to see all the world and have new experiences. I suppose this is still true to a certain extent, but as we’ve slowed down, let go of expectation, and allowed…
The birdsong here starts at about 5.30am and continues until dusk, only pausing when the kite makes his twice-daily surveillance swing by. I’ve heard a bird singing at 11pm and have no idea what beautiful creation is spinning such liquid gold out into the night sky. The days flow past with the rainfall and I’m happy to just immerse in this riverbank’s none-silence as I patch blankets, or make vegan food. Occasionally, the ego screams about a lack of productivity…
If you’re fed up with the four walls this weekend, I’ve removed the paywall on two beautiful photodiaries by Andy Garside of some of our travels in autumn last year. I know we can’t get out much or travel just now but I’m finding the nature photos and blogs online a great source of inspiration and a reminder of just how wild and beautiful this planet is. I love Andy’s take on the world, the way he focusses on the…
While we’re staying in one place for the next few (or more) weeks, I’ve been revisiting some of the OUTSIDER pieces previously behind a paywall. For the past five years-or-so I’ve been working with the mint plant, and this is a connection that continues to deepen even when I can’t find any to forage in the wild (like just now). But of course this is the beauty of plants, when one recedes into the background, another steps forward, and nettle…
As we’re all self-isolating right now I’ve started publishing for free some content that was previously behind a paywall. The internet is a beautiful creation in that it allows us to travel around the world from the comfort of our lounge/home-office/bed. Here’s the link to words and photos by Andy Garside from our travels through Croatia back in 2018. Below is a brief excerpt but I’d highly recommend you check out the full photo gallery for some stunning pics. “As…
I’m not sure I can think of a time in my 44 years on this earth that is parallel to this current turmoil. Or is that myopic & selfish of me? People across the globe have been dealing with the fallout of war, famine, drought, & political unrest for decades. Perhaps it’s just that these events have been something we’ve watched from afar, in 24hr news reels, on the Internet, or through the stories of photojournalist. Speaking with a German…