Van Venture // Moon Shadows

We drove through a cloud to reach our spot for the night. When we arrived the fog was so thick we could barely see. As we sat down to eat our dinner of rice and soup, the cloud began to wisp away, exposing a bright and full moon. The moon lit up the whole valley like a skylight, we could see everything in front of us. The tall snow-caped Pyrenees were right above us, looking so mysterious in the moon light. I danced around and made moon shadows while Dustin experiment with the camera. He was trying to capture the amazing night, but we both agreed that no picture could do it justice.

The next morning we woke up to a little rain but we still managed to have a delicious breakfast of muesli, bananas and tea. Our breakfast under the Pyrenees was a great start to another day on the Van Venture.

Van Venture // It begins...

Gray skies and golden fields.
A turquoise vdub with a mattress in the back.
Pedal to the medal with our RopeSouls on.
Counting the kilometers as we fly down the highway.

Two words come to mind; wild and free.

We're on a VanVenture and we'l be gone til December.

vanventure 1 from Rope Souls on Vimeo.

Camino de Santiago

For a thousand years, pilgrims from all over the world have followed the footsteps of Saint James along an 800 km trail from San Jean Pied de Port France to Santiago de Compostela Spain, where his remains are believed to be buried. I have been wanting to do this trail through Northern Spain for a long time. This incredible journey of  the last 110 km was made even better when my parents decided to join us. They flew all the way from Utah with only their backpacks and their walking shoes, ready to join the pilgrimage.

We started in Sarria where we were greeted with yellow arrows and seashells, the signs of the Camino. The trail kept us in wonder as we passed miles and miles of magnificent scenery of farm country, wild forests, quaint villages and green rolling hills. On the trail we met pilgrims from all over the world and had experiences we will never forget. Even though the days grew long and our feet grew tired, we kept marching toward our end destination...

Scenes from // The Sahara

 My mind is on traveling today. As I prepare for a big change and upcoming travels, I can't help but think back on one of my favorite past travel moments, watching the Sahara Desert Sunrise in Morocco. Last December we rode camels deep into the desert wild until we reached a Bedouin style camp. Tents made out of canvas surrounded a big fire pit in the middle. There we enjoyed an authentic tagine that had been cooked over the fire for hours and spent the rest of the evening dancing and singing to the beat of Berber drums. Our eyes grew heavy while gazing at the stars, so we headed off to our tent and climbed into bed. After a long day on a camel, sleep came easily.

Our Berber guides didn't have watches on their wrists or clocks in their tents because they don't need them. Every morning they naturally rise with the sun and at night they go to bed with the moon. In the Sahara, the sun is your watch and the moon is your clock. On this morning they were kind enough to wake us up just in time to climb to the top of a dune to watch the sun rise. As the sun peaked over the Saharan desert it exposed the warm and exotic colors of Africa. A moment I will cherish forever. Watching the sun rise in new places is one of my favorite things in life.

 Have you ever watched the Sunrise? When and where?

Earth Day

In honor of Earth Day, Dustin and I headed to the nearby mountains that follow along the Atlantic coast. I can't quite put it in words what it is about being outdoors that I can't get enough of. Whether its the smell of mountain pines or salty sea air rolling in off the coast, when I take a deep breath of the fresh stuff, I can feel it recharging my soul.

There is a peace and serenity that comes with being in nature; it is the only time when my mind is completely calm and free of thoughts. I don't consider myself the most religious person, but when I am among God's beautiful earthly creations is also when I feel his existence the strongest; I just know such beauty and marvels could not have come about by accident...

Did you celebrate Earth Day in any way?

a Hike, the Ocean, and a New Word.

After weeks upon weeks of rain, San Sebastian has finally been blessed with some good weather. When the sun hit our window in the morning, we immediately strapped on our RopeSouls and headed outdoors. We grabbed some friends and headed up into the mountains for a great hike along the coast with some incredible views. When Dustin started to feel a bit "pecking" (a new word our Australian friend taught us. See below for definition) we stopped for lunch on a grassy knoll with a view of the sea. We enjoyed great conversation and a typical European lunch complete with baguettes, chorizo, mediterranean olives, fresh veggies and of course copious amounts of cheese. We only have two months left before we head out into the unknown of living in a van and travelling Europe. I am grateful for moments like this where we have the chance to take in all the beauty that San Sebastian has to offer.

Do you know any other austrialian english words?

Little Life Lessons

Today marks the six month anniversary of when we packed our bags, boarded a one way flight and landed in this beautiful country. Living here has been an incredible adventure, but it has also been a big life changer for me. I feel like I have learned more about myself living in Spain for the past six months, than I had the previous 20 years before that. I would like to share with you three of the life lessons that really stand out to me on this anniversary.

In other words, life is what you make it and you can be happy no matter where you are in the world. It all comes down to attitude.  During the first few months we lived here I sometimes would feel down, thinking about everything I was missing back at home with family and friends. I would then "water my grass" by reminding myself of the grand adventure I was on, and really focus on living in the moment. I am living in Spain, learning a new language, experiencing a new culture and getting to know new people. I live an exciting life!




Growing up in good-ole Utah, my view of the world was limited to the small town I was from.  It wasn't until my parents took me to Germany when I was 14 that I knew life would be incomplete if I didn't get to know more of this wonderful world. After we arrived in Spain, it was a huge culture shock how different everything was, from the obvious big things like housing, language and food, to the smaller nuances in culture. Even the grocery stores were completely different.  But it wasn't until I truly opened my mind to Spain and its people that I felt like I belonged. With an open mind I have eaten pig leg that hung from a ceiling for over 2 years, swam in the ocean in the middle of winter, befriended a Hungarian hobo, and drank cider until the sun came up.




We all have dreams; mine was to travel Europe. The day I met Dustin I told him of my dream to travel Europe and we agreed that one day we would do it together. Four years after we married, we still hadn't gone and a part of me began to think we were never going to go and maybe I should just accept life the way it was, settle down, have children and forget my dream.  Luckily we realized that it is never too late, that if we had a dream we should go after it no matter what. That is when we quit our jobs and just made it happen. While traveling we have met numerous people who are also living their dreams, whether they are 18 or 78. whatever your dream is, go after it; it's never too late.  

Even if you are not planning on living abroad, I think these three little life lessons can help no matter where you are, be it good-ole Utah, Marrakesh Morocco or San Sebastian Spain. 

Have you ever moved, traveled or experienced something that was a life-changer? What life lesson would you add to my list?I would love to hear in the comments.