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UD Review: Hatha Yoga with Yoga Ashram

So, I’ve been practicing Yoga and Pilates at this new studio in my neighborhood. It’s called Yoga Ashram and I must say that the classes they offer are as authentic as the name of the studio 🙂

The instructors are highly experienced and certified in yoga practice. And their passion and dedication for this meditative exercise is greatly reflected in their teachings. You will notice that from the first class that you attend at this spacious and relaxing JLT studio.

This time, I was glad to attend another class with Munishwer, who I took a “Power Yoga” class with earlier. You can read all about it here.

Class Name: Hatha Yoga

Trainer: Yogic science and study certified; Munishwer

What is it like?

The class involved a variation of basic yoga moves and postures, that are mainly aimed to enhance your flexibility and muscle strength by using stretching moves and postures.

The different moves also aid in health-related issues, such as digestion, internal organs health, and mental illness. What’s unique about Munishwer’s classes is that he really motivates you to perform at your best and put in the extra amount of effort to do the move properly – regardless of whether you are an advanced yogi or just a novice to the practice.

During the class, Munishwer also continuously shares with us his knowledge about the various poses and the benefits that each move has on both the physical and psychological aspects of the body.

Result:

You might feel a bit sore the next day, but rest assured that it’s a positive sign that you have done the moves correctly and got the most out of the class.
The practice will help tone your body muscles and make you look and feel more fit.
Yoga is a major stress-reliever. So the practice – which includes some meditation techniques – will leave you feeling more at peace with yourself and with everyone around you.
The rest of your day will flow so smoothly and you’ll be able to get more things done, since you experience more “presence” from this spiritual practice.
Yoga also aids in cases of insomnia, anxiety, depression, stress and incessant thinking…which are all too common in today’s busy modern society.

Here are a few images of the trainer (Munishwer) in his two favorite Yoga postures 🙂

Contact:

Check out Yoga Ashram’s web site, Facebook Page, or give them a visit if you live in or around JLT – they are a friendly bunch of people 🙂

Yoga Ashram JLT
1504, Jumeirah Bay X3,
JLT, Dubai,
PO BOX 261301, UAE
Tel: +9714 – 3609028
Email: info@yogaashram.com

It’s time for me to go and check out my Nikon D5100…so stay tuned to this blog for more professional images and exciting posts 🙂

See ya,

The Rebellious Saudi Diva xxx

UD Recipe Story: Couscous-Stuffed Peppers

I just finished having dinner about an hour ago, and I couldn’t feel more satisfied and content! I made these stuffed peppers for lunch yesterday. But because I made four pieces – and had two for lunch yesterday, I still had two more in my fridge. So, it felt great coming home at around 9 in the evening after a blogging-related meetup and not having to worry about what to eat – or to resort to a sandwich or a takeaway…I heated these babies in the oven for a few minutes and they tasted even better than when I first made them!

This is why I recommend this extremely simple recipe for a tasty and healthy dinner. I got this recipe from Good magazine, but I made some minor changes to suit my preferences.

Let’s start with the ingredients that were listed in the magazine:

And the instructions:

Here are my ingredients for the recipe (I skipped the feta cheese and toasted pine nuts):

Now if you’re like me – you don’t have all the time in the world to cook your own food and you hate having to wash so many post and pans after cooking – then you can buy ready-made couscous from the store’s ready food counter 😀

Of course, for those of you who prefer to make their own couscous, then by all means, go ahead. I admire you for your culinary skills and passion and I hope to reach your level one of those days 🙂

As you can see in the above photo, I added capers – which I’m a huge fan of…Here’s a close-up of the ready-made couscous:

Here are my chopped veggies…I added some spring onions, parsley, and green chilies for my personal taste:

I added some sea salt, freshly ground black pepper, and drizzled some olive oil to my halved red peppers before putting them in the oven:

For the filling, I mixed all the ingredients in two small bowls (because I didn’t have clean large bowls) – I told you I hated washing dishes :p

Next, simply stuff the roasted peppers (which I cooked in the oven for around 25 minutes) with the couscous and vegetables mixture. I added the capers, chopped olives, some salt and pepper and some lemon juice too.

Finally, put the stuffed peppers back in the heated oven to bake for another 10 to 15 minutes. And voila! you’ve got your juicy, tasty and nutritious meal, which you can have for lunch teamed with a salad, or on its own for a light dinner 🙂

Stay tuned to the blog for more healthy, quick and scrumptious recipe posts….You might want to follow my fan page too!

Love,

The Rebellious Saudi Diva

UD Recipe Story: Vegetable Frittata

Do you want to know the precise meaning of the word: comfort food? If you’re a foodie like me, then you won’t be surprised when I tell you that I started making this healthy frittata late one evening – it was around 11:00 or later…I had to finalize my University’s research project the following day, so I decided to make this simple and tasty dish the night before – to save time during the day so I can work on my project.

To tell you the truth, I couldn’t have made a better decision in my life! This frittata turned out to be the first culinary creation that I make from scratch on my own and ACTUALLY like the taste of! I’ve been experimenting in the kitchen for some time, but most of the dishes I make are just OK…nothing really special. This dish however, made me feel ecstatic, satisfied and full 😀

I got this recipe from the fabulous Gourmet magazine, which I have been featured in a few months ago. You can find a photo of my appearance in Gourmet on my blog’s Facebook Page – while there, don’t forget to hit the “like” button!

The great thing about this frittata as mentioned in the feature is that it can be eaten at room temperature, or warmed up. And can easily be packed in a container to take to work or school. Also, I personally can have frittata for breakfast, lunch or dinner.

Let’s have a look at the ingredients (as taken from Gourmet magazine):

And the method:

To make my frittata more filling, I added some potatoes that I boiled for some time. As well as a yellow pepper that I had in my fridge 🙂

Here are my vegetables, after they have been chopped:

My potatoes as they are boiling:

The veggies are being sauteed…

Whisking away those eggs, with some coconut milk, parsley, sea salt (which adds amazing flavor to the food) and black pepper:

Then, once the vegetables are soft, you can add the potatoes followed by the egg and parsley mixture….

After baking the frittata in the oven for 20 – 25 minutes, you are rewarded with a comforting meal that you can have over the next couple of days (if you live alone and are still not confident enough with your cooking skills to share the results with friends or neighbors) 😀

I can’t describe how good it felt to have this perfect frittata at around midnight – a foodie’s dream 🙂

I hope that you will try to make this simple dish and enjoy eating it as much as I did…I’m so excited to try another recipe from Gourmet magazine. I will share it with you once I’m done from my final exam for my “Media Audiences and the Public” class. That will be on the 10th of August. Looking forward to taking a break from University assignments and exams…

Wishing you a wonderful week and see you soon X

You can still keep track of my random posts by following my blog’s Facebook Page 😀

Personal Post: My 34th B-Day!

I have to admit something: originally, this post was going to be yet another rant about being single! This time, with my 34th Birthday celebration party in the background. But something happened that made me change my mind about how to write this post…

Well, I have received countless e-mails, Facebook messages, what’s app chat messages, blog comments and face-to-face conversations opposing and disagreeing my constant whining about being single!

The most recent one being a comment on my Where is He?! post – where I talk about how I feel about the subject – that I saw as soon as I logged in to my account to write this post! Obviously this is a clear sign that I shouldn’t be talking about this topic anymore! What all the comments, e-mails, messages and in-person conversations have in common is this: They all support being single, that it’s better than being with the wrong person, that you can still be in a relationship and feel like the loneliest person on earth, and that happiness is not guaranteed with a partner or a lover…

OK, I think that with that said, the content of this post cannot be centered (or even mention) the topic of being single…I’ll leave that for another future post though…when all these comments have cooled down a bit 😛

Moving on to the main topic of this post: My 34th Birthday…I’m a Cancerian….I turned 34 on July 15. Yes, proud to be a ’90s chick….I still believe that those were the best years of my life…I grew up in the simple days of “Full House”, “90210” and “Saved by the Bell”…before technology and social media took over our lives….I used to play video games with Atari. Boulder Dash (the game), Super Mario and Sonic the HedgeHog were my idols 🙂

I could go on and on about my ’80s and ’90s childhood and teen years…but this is not what this post is about…This post is a way to say Thank you to all of the friends who joined in the celebration of my Birthday, to everyone who took some time off of their busy schedule to sit at our Iftar table – it was Ramadan after all…A month of rejoice, and reconnecting with old friends who you don’t get the chance to see as much as you would like throughout the year.

This post is a celebration of life, of genuine and meaningful connections, of the great people who are in our lives for a reason, of all the wonderful times that we shared together and will continue to share….

In the end, whether we are single or in a meaningful relationship, the most important element is to be at peace and content with ourselves. Because no external source or even the most loving partner can bring you eternal happiness or inner peace…

How many of you agree to this?

I am signing off before I get too spiritual (actually, that’s just me copying what everyone else keeps telling me) :p

Next year, I would love to celebrate my Birthday in another country….Let’s see what the future holds….

Love,

The Rebellious Saudi Diva XXX

Undefined Declarations’ List: Top 10 Tips for Making it in the Creative Industry

When I first decided to change careers from IT to journalism back in 2008, I had no idea about the way to get there. I didn’t realize that it would be a completely different route to what I was used to, or to how I eventually got my IT job. Doing things the hard way – without anyone to guide me, assist or support me – I must say that I learned the lessons in the best way possible: by trial and error.

Comparing my previous career and work experience to what I do now is a very hard task. They’re two completely different fields and work environments. But, I will give you a brief idea to help you understand and maybe get inspired to make a similar change or adjustment to what you currently do.

I had a degree in Business Information Systems from the University of Bahrain. And after working in IT support for around four years, I decided to quit my job and pursue my passion: writing. I was 28, a year later, I moved to London to take a foundation course with London College of Fashion. After completing one term of A-Level equivalent and intensive study, I decided to move to Dubai to start interning for publishing companies in the hopes of landing an editorial role along the way…It’s the year 2014 and I’m still working towards that same goal that I had aimed for when I moved here in 2010. Except that these days, I have learned so many lessons along the way and I would like to share them with anyone who is working towards a similar goal or is looking into becoming a creative professional and earning a living out of it.

1. Start doing the creative work

While it might work otherwise in other industries – get a degree then apply for a job. In the creative industry, it’s the other way around. You must start by doing the work that you aspire to get paid for. Since employers will only hire you after they have seen your actual work and how you can add value to their organization and goals. Plus, doing the actual work will greatly help in improving your skills and expertise.

2. Do unpaid work

Freelancing and offering your services for free is nothing to be ashamed of. It’s a great way to build your portfolio – because you will need one in order to get paid for your work. So keep doing unpaid work for as long as it takes to get paid for your work and to be accredited for it.

3. Work 24/7

Working in a fun and creative environment is a good thing, but you must be prepared to work without taking breaks. Fixed working hours aren’t part of the game. There’s always something new to learn, some project to work on, a new and exciting idea to consider…The cool thing is that you get to be your own boss and you can manage your time according to your personal preferences.

4. Take notes of your ideas and put them into action

Whether it’s your next blog post, photo shoot, short video, web site design, you need to keep coming with fresh and new ideas. Most importantly, put those ideas into action by implementing them into that blog post, photo shoot, video or web page.

5. Love what you do

Any entrepreneur will give you this advise really. You must do what you do with passion if you want to get to anywhere. The monetary return will not appear in the first stages, so you must do what you love in order to have the passion to keep doing it even when the going gets tough and when you are not making any profit out of it.

6. Network, network, network

One of the essential elements of the creative industry is networking. Find out about relevant events and make an effort to attend them. Not only will you learn more about the market, you will also meet new people who share your interests and passions. Building positive and meaningful connections with others in your industry is vitally important.

7. Have casual meetings with like-minded people

Whether it’s over coffee, lunch, dinner or even breakfast, meeting with others from similar industries is a great way to share ideas, discuss various topics and maybe learn new tips and market information. Supporting others in their own career goals is always a great way to build positive and healthy relationships with others in your industry. The road is always more entertaining when traveled with others.

8. Work in creative hubs and open spaces

Whether you choose to work from your local neighborhood cafe, head to the nearest spot of big chain coffee shops, or collaborate with others at one of the work spaces in town, it’s always better than working from home. Being a creative professional – especially when writing – can be a lonely experience. So surrounding yourself with others in an open and busy environment is the best way to go. You will also feel more motivated to work in an environment where everyone around you is working in front of their laptops or doing some sort of productive work.

9. Read, learn, study

Taking a short course or working towards a degree in your chosen creative field will only add to your knowledge and build up your confidence. If you can’t afford a course, simply read online articles about your topic or any topic for that matter! Staying updated with what’s happening in your industry will help keep you ahead of others and boost your knowledge levels.

10. Never give up!

Reaching your goals in the creative industry and getting paid for your work could be an extremely lengthy process. It could take years before you could get published or be taken seriously by potential employers. But the trick here is to never give up and to continue working hard towards your goals. Even if no one reads your blog posts, supports you or what you’re doing, or thinks that you have great ideas, you must stay fixed to your target and aim to achieve it no matter how challenging things get. Keep reminding yourself of why you chose to do this in the first place and how long it took you to get to where you are. You must fuel yourself from your own energy, ambition and inner power.

UD Recipe Story: Aubergine & Chilli Pasta

I’ve started to go more vegetarian with my food choices recently, in an attempt to become more healthy and clean. And since I love aubergines especially when teamed with rich tomato sauce and baked in the oven – yes I’m talking about that delicious Italian starter – parmigiana.

Today’s recipe isn’t exactly Italian, but it’s a very tasty and authentic one that I got from BBC Good Food ME magazine and decided to try out.

Here’s the recipe from the magazine:

I decided to get spaghetti instead of the type of pasta recommended in the recipe, because I wanted to go for the whole grain choice…

The main ingredients:

You start by cutting your aubergine into bite-sized cubes:

Then chop the tomatoes and onions…

Start cooking the onions, aubergine and oregano…

Then add the tomatoes, balsamic vinegar and 200ml water…

While this colorful mixture cooks on low heat for 20 minutes, you can start cooking your choice of pasta…

Once your sauce is thickened in the other pan, and the tomatoes reduced and softened, you can add the vegetables to the drained pasta…

And voila! there you have it!

Note: I skipped the red chilli in this recipe – not because I’m not a fan of spicy food – but because I could only get a pack with tons of it and I didn’t want to buy a whole army of chillis…However, I must admit that the chilli is a main ingredient in this dish and skipping it will greatly influence the taste of the pasta. It still was OK, but I could tell that there was something missing. So I highly recommend that you add the chilli to give this dish the zest and rich flavor it deserves 🙂

UD Ramadan Iftar Review: Moroccan Restaurant at Four Points Dubai

I don’t know if some of you had to face the situation of looking for a place in Dubai for a short-term stay, because you were still job hunting or unsure about your future plans for living in the city….but I was there when I first moved to Dubai and so are many people that I have met. I even had someone ask me for advise about where to stay for a short-term period recently. Obviously, not everyone likes to share their private space with others. So for all of you individual souls out there, I have a new property that you can consider moving into if you were in town and were looking for a short-term rental place. Four Points By Sheraton on Sheikh Zayed Road actually has apartments fully equipped with a washer, fridge and other essential facilities. And most importantly, the hotel is located on a prime location only a few minutes walking distance from Financial Center Metro Station.

What’s more is that the hotel has a number of cool restaurants, in addition to a roof top lounge – with the best views of Sheikh Zayed Road….I can’t believe I’m letting this secret out! Honestly, I found out about the roof top location when I was looking for a spot to take a photo for my University photography course. And this is what I was able to get:

Slow Shutter Speed Photography Technique on SZR

A few months later, I get to try out the Iftar menu at the Moroccan Restaurant and Lounge at the Four Points By Sheraton SZR. What makes this venue worth a try is its authentic Moroccan fare presented by a purely Moroccan chef 🙂 Check out their Iftar set menu for AED 175:

Iftar Menu at Four Points By Sheraton SZR

Starters

The traditional Moroccan harira soup was absolutely divine…the taste was just right and it wasn’t too heavy like what you get at some Moroccan concepts. It definitely didn’t fill you up to the point that you can’t have your main course or any more food.

We had two types of salad: one was made with eggplants and the other with capsicum in a rich tomato sauce. Again, the salads were light, healthy and full of flavor.

Main Course

The infamous Couscous was made to perfection, complimented by the vegetables traditionally added to the healthy dish. To add richness to the Couscous, there was a wonderfully cooked lamb Tagine. The tagine had some nicely toasted almonds and glazed prunes for a more healthy and rich taste.

Couscous and Lamb Tagine at Moroccan Restaurant and Lounge

Dessert

Continuing with the healthy and nutritious take on Moroccan food, we had a mildly sweet rice pudding and some fresh fruits with ice-cream on the side.

Dessert at the Moroccan Restaurant and Lounge

What’s so special about the Moroccan Restaurant and Lounge?

It offers a healthy, light and nutritious Iftar set-course menu, created by a real Moroccan chef!
It doesn’t allow over-eating like what usually happens with the typical buffet-style Iftars all around town.
It’s a well-balanced meal at a comfortable setting. Not too formal or glamorous like most hotels in the city.
It’s easily accessible by car or by metro as it’s within walking distance from the Financial Center Metro Station.

Final Notes

The Four Points By Sheraton is a Four-star property under the Starwood hotel group.
It’s suitable for both the business traveler and families with kids on vacation or a short trip.
It offers short-term or long-term stays with fully equipped hotel apartments.

So there you have it, three hidden gems in one place!

You can opt to stay at the hotel rooms or apartment rooms, visit the roof top to take amazing photos of the city streets and lights (after getting permission from the PR team), or dine in at one of their cool and top-quality restaurants and lounges!

Contact:

Check out their Facebook Page, web site or follow them on Twitter 🙂

@fourpointsdubai

The View from the Roof Top at Four Points By Sheraton SZR

Personal Post: When Business Always Comes First

Upon observing my long-term single status and extremely selective approach to men, a friend directed this question to me: “What do you look for in a man?”.

I answered with some simple traits like someone who is mature, wise and understanding. I also like people who are very deep and intellectual. But I forgot to mention a highly important quality that is probably at the top of my list – except that it’s not something that is constantly on my mind. My response to my caring friend’s question would’ve been something like this: “I’m looking for someone who doesn’t view me as a business opportunity or investment.”

I don’t know about you, but I grew up with controlling, highly opinionated and self-centered parents. They would always put their careers and business matters as a top priority, and wouldn’t let anything else get in the way. Even if that other thing that required their attention was their own children! Now I won’t get into too much detail as this article won’t be sufficient enough to talk about this subject, but I will give you some examples to make my point clear. Throughout my school years, my dad would often ask me about the names of the fathers of my friends and what they did for a living – not out of simple curiosity – but purely to see if there was an underlying business connection that could be of interest to him.

While on a leisure trip to a nearby Arab country, the private cab driver – who we hired for the short trip – noticed how my mom’s commutes revolved around her business and relevant exhibitions or meetings. After a few days of the same routine, the witty and observant driver asked my mother why she wasn’t giving any attention to my needs or my interests to visit places for the main cause of any leisure trip: fun!

But now that I live relatively far away from my mostly selfish and business-obsessed parents (the UAE was the furthest I could go for now), I was recently faced by another similar situation. A specific incident is what inspired me to write this post. Having visited a highly reputable dermatologist in town a couple of times, I was incredibly shocked at the way she ended my last visit to her. She has decided that since I am no longer continuing with the skin treatment that she has prescribed to me (due to undesirable side effects), that she no longer needs to see me again. Now, what was surprising is that I still had a few months on the medication and I was asking her if I could come back for a follow-up once I am done…but she made it clear that she doesn’t want me to come back for a follow-up. The thing is that the follow-up session is not free of charge, and most dermatologists usually see their patients at the end of any skin treatment to review the results (I’ve been going to dermatologists since I was 10), but what I concluded from my visits to her and from her business mindset, she didn’t want to see me again because she had more important (and most likely more valuable) patients on the waiting list!

When did medical care that was created for the sole purpose of “caring”, accommodating and supporting people’s needs turn into this greed-centered and purely commercial game? Why was this popular and experienced dermatologist treating her patients as business entities and cash flow machines? Does she think she is in such high demand that no one would ever complain or spread negative stories about her personal ethics and immoral ways of dealing with patients?

My parents and the extremely greedy dermatologist are not the only ones who have contributed to my hurtful memories and scarred soul, but I will leave the rest of my stories for another post.

So to answer my loving and caring friend’s question about what do I look for in a partner, it’s as simple as this:

I look for someone who doesn’t see me as a business opportunity or investment. But someone who is genuinely interested in me and in who I am as a person and a human being. Someone who is truly loving and caring, who will constantly support me and be there for me through thick and thin.

If what I’m looking for sounds too idealistic and unrealistic for today’s world, then I’d rather live in eternal solitude than repeat the painful story of my past and sadly recurring present.

UD Review: Sri Sri Fit Yoga at Yoga Ashram

I think when you live in a highly fast-paced city like Dubai, you find it challenging to take time off of your busy schedule to relax and simply do nothing. We’re always running to get to work or school, to our next meeting, to run errands…Our minds are forever occupied with thoughts of the next task or activity on our to-do lists. What I find ironic, is that even when I’m going out for a fun night or to catch up with friends, I find myself rushing while getting ready because there is never enough time for anything!

Luckily, I have Yoga Ashram located in the building right next to where I live 🙂 and if you live in the JLT or Marina area, then you can give them a visit too. What I like about this studio is its originality and authentic way of teaching classes. You’ll be able to tell that they genuinely care about their students and want them to benefit from the classes. These days, it’s very rare to find a fitness center who’s not only after profit and getting as many clients as they can to subscribe to their packages (I tend to run the other way from these kind of places).

I’ve been reviewing a couple of classes at Yoga Ashram before deciding which one I want to stick to. Here’s a link to the latest review.

Last Saturday, I went for a free meditation session followed by a Sri Sri Fit yoga class. The meditation session lasted for 35 minutes and it is offered free of charge for everyone. It was a guided form of meditation where we did some stress-releasing breathing techniques and listened to calming instructions from the instructor and a recorder.

Sri Sri Fit is a gentle form of yoga that’s based on breathing techniques and on holding postures for a short period of time.

It helps in relieving stress, anxiety and depression. And I can honestly say that the session was incredibly relaxing and regenerating. I even went into sleep mode for a few seconds in the middle of the session! What I mostly liked about this type of yoga was that its moves were gentle yet highly effective. All the stretching, lifting and even laughing out loudly to relieve stress made wonders to how we all felt after the class. Add to that, the fact that the instructor who teaches this class is one of the owners of Yoga Ashram. So you are guaranteed to a fun and enjoyable class from the experts at the studio.

If you want to take a break from the busy and hectic modern city life, then I recommend that you give Yoga Ashram’s classes a try. These people truly know what they are doing, and are not in it for the profit only. Honestly, if I didn’t have tons of responsibilities and commitments, I would definitely make it a ritual to visit that studio regularly. Who knows, maybe once I’m done with my undergraduate journalism course, I will be a devoted yogi 🙂

Follow them on Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/yogashramJLT

Or contact them through the method that suits you best:

Address
Yoga Ashram JLT
1504, Jumeirah Bay X3,
JLT, Dubai,
PO BOX 261301, UAE
Tel: +9714 – 3609028
Email: info@yogaashram.com

Cultural Post: The “Bubble” Life

As most days in the city of Dubai, it was hot and sunny and I was walking at the Marina promenade after a nice breakfast at a cafe in the area. And as I was lost in my own trail of silly thoughts – mostly about planning what to do next – a certain sight caught my attention and brought back intense and sad memories.

The image that made me look was that of a teenage girl wearing a loose fitting grey T-shirt and short denim shorts speeding away on a skateboard. While this could be a very ordinary sight for most people from Western countries, for me; this was nothing but a purely broken dream!

As a Saudi teenager living in Saudi, and at the same time being exposed to the Western world and lifestyle through TV, books, travel or the city’s expat residential compounds, I very badly wanted to own a skateboard and ride it somewhere (even if it’s in our house’s garden). I must admit that I was more of a tomboy back in those days. So being able to skateboard was my ultimate dream at the time. But because I was living in a country where you had to adhere to certain rules and regulations, and because I was the daughter of highly over-protective and controlling parents, my dream was buried and never saw life.

When I reflect on this incident today, as a 30-something year old Saudi living in the UAE, I can say that my restrictions have diminished, but surely haven’t been completely eliminated. I believe that even after our physical restrictions have been removed; in my case it was my parents’ controlling and over-protective behaviour, the effects and imprints of those conditioned beliefs continue to haunt us.

The ironic part of it is that I’ve seen this kind of unconscious attachment to restricting thoughts or actions in some of the people I have met who don’t necessarily come from strict countries or cultures. We all share one thing in common though, we were raised in a restricting environment, and have been trained to always act, behave or speak in a specific manner. We were always under the scrutiny of someone, whether it was our parents, spouses, family members or even the communities we lived in.

It’s astonishing how we continue to limit ourselves and our life experiences long after those boundaries and restrictions have been removed. Sometimes, our thoughts follow the same confining patterns that we have developed over the years. And it becomes almost impossible to break free from limiting behaviours and thoughts that we don’t agree with or want to possess.

After many years of being confined, oppressed, and judged for the simplest of things, an imaginary bubble is created. Sadly for some of us who have lived in that bubble for the most part of our childhood, adolescent and adult life, breaking away and bursting that bubble for good proves to be a highly challenging and time-consuming task.

Luckily, the Universe has helped me meet some good people – who later became friends – who share my “bubble” life story, can understand my struggles, and can strongly relate to my dreams and aspirations. Despite the fact that we are all still relatively living in that bubble, I believe that with the support of a strong social circle, we can all grow and evolve to become the free spirits that we were born to be.

Having said that, I’m not so sure how I would look wearing a casual T-shirt and hot denim shorts while skateboarding in my fifties! As it might take me a while to eventually get to that kind of personal freedom. I guess we’ll have to wait and see