Reflections

Having just read through my blog I still can't get over the direction my life has taken.
I started this blog in 2009- that's 6 years ago, I was 16 years old and still at boarding school.
Within this time I've seen my desire to travel increase and funnily enough it has happened during this interim blogging break.

Last summer was probably the start of it. I decided one day, probably about this time last year that I was just going to go to Bordeaux to see a friend. I booked a one-way flight and thought I'd find my way back to Edinburgh in time for my internship. This took me through France, with a stop-off in Paris for the weekend, to Brussels for a day (my first time staying in a city alone) and then flying to Bodrum to meet my parents for a week before flying back to Edinburgh.

Travel is so amazing, but it doesn't have to be distant. Since my travelling experience last summer I became braver (is that right?!)and started to travel within my country. I've explored so  much more of Scotland and it has been incredible. This is such a beautiful country and I didn't even realise until 2.5 years living here- how ridiculous!

I just got on my bicycle and rode to places, taking in the air, the beauty and sounds of nature.

And that's crazy too because without those experiences I doubt I would have got this job, or maybe even wanted to stay in Scotland.

If you go back far enough, you see how homesick for Surrey I used to be, but now Edinburgh is home.

To shift your heart to a new city is a big thing.

I've come to realise though, that it is not possible to flourish when planted in two places. You must decide where you put your roots, to allow them to get the depth they need for nutrition.

In the next 2 years I'm going to be moving around again and I anticipate it to be tough, but I've learned so much from resettling 400 miles North. 

-xo

~ T O K Y O ~

The Pin
Just from doing a simple Google Image search (how good is that function though!?) I found that these are the Reversible Destiny Houses in Mitaka, Tokyo.
Here's a bit of information from Wikipedia about them.
They were made in memory of Helen Keller and these lofts make up a nine-unit multiple dwelling. It was the first completed example of procedural architecture put to residential use. Through its construction, the Reversible Destiny Lofts – Mitaka invite optimistic and constructive action to help residents live long and ample lives.
How cool is that!? You can find more information on the website.

So, how to get to Mitaka?
It's a suburb of Tokyo, and you can get the train from either Tokyo Station, which takes just over 30 minuts, or from Shinjuku which is only a 15 minute journey.

How to get to Tokyo?
Flights are expensive, but going that far around the world was always going to be.
Cheapest flights I could find are in January and to go for a decent amount of time would  cost £564, with a crazy long stopover making the total transit time 30 hours!
That's flying from LHR to Tokyo Narita, stopping over in Munich.

Although I would love to fly with the Hello Kitty plane there! I could take that from Taipei to Tokyo!

I have a friend who lives in Osaka and she has said I can come to visit her, so I must make the most of that whilst she's there...I was kind of hoping to go to Japan after I graduate, but maybe I shouldn't wait that long- although it's less than 2 years now!

In second year I did an outside course on Japanese culture. My specialist topic assigned to me was Japanese leisure culture and there's so much to it!
Shopping is a massive deal and I really want to visit Shibuya 109 which is basically a giant shopping centre.

 You have to go whilst you're young I think though because otherwise you'd feel highly out of place. Although I guess in Japan I'll look out of place everywhere as a taller than average mixed race girl.

I'm excited!

But you didn't have to go so far

You may have noticed in my profile description that it says I just want to see the world. Well, I do. So recently I've been looking up ways to do this without spending a fortune, which as a student I do not have. So here's four websites that have caught my fancy recently. I'm not saying that I'll use these and I've not used them yet, however, they provide a more feasible way of travelling. So here goes, kind of a note to self.

Websites for travelling on a low (student) budget:

1. Workaway
This website lets you search by country for hosts to stay with who require you to do a bit of work in exchange for board (sometimes food too). The opportunities range from babysitting to farming to painting, for example. There's loads of choices and I like how there are reviews left on the hosts and by the hosts, so you get further insight into the experience by those who've actually experienced it.
It was also reviewed on The Guardian's website.

2. House Carers
This is house sitting, on a global scale. Most houses have pets to look after though, so if you're not the most animal loving person, this probably isn't ideal. However, the lengths of stay range from a few days, to six months plus so if you want to travel, work and truly get to know a place like the locals, I would think this would be great.

3. Airbnb

I LOVE this site, you can create wishlists and I currently have 10. These do cost money though, not time, HOWEVER you can find some really cheap places to stay which look amazing. There's also reviews on many of the rooms/flats/houses/villas so you can get a better idea of what its like (I realise photos can be deceiving). In addition, because you can rent a whole house or flat its ideal for travelling with friends. Be aware though, some places charge extra per additional person after a certain number, so just make sure you read through properly. There's also etiquette associated with this site, but maybe I'll do a post about that later.

4. Staydu

Very similar to Workaway, however has additional options of staying for free, staying by working or paying to stay, which is cool . On cold Edinburgh days when I was in the library last November writing essays this website got me through, just imagining the things I could do and the places I could see in the world.

So have a browse, be inspired, let me know if you know of any other sites similar or different, yet appropriate still for the poor student with a desire to see the world.