Wishing you courage, freedom and happiness for the year ahead!
ADVENTURE + ALIVENESS Page 8 of 13
Why taking a sabbatical can be good for business
‘Working’ in the grounds of Honpoji Temple, Kyoto [image: Takeshi Kohari]
I have recently got back from a six month ‘sabbatical’ in Japan. When I headed out there I was determined to get a change of pace in my work and home life. There were many business-related reasons to go, but in order to make it happen I had to put the brakes on some projects, let go of others, take on freelance support and really take a step back from the craziness that had gone before. But the results have been surprising.
Choosing how you use your fear
Over dinner a friend told us of an extraordinary place, deep in the mountains of Tottori Prefecture. When a long-time Kyoto resident says their favourite temple is one NOT in Kyoto, you know must be worth a visit. Without giving us any details, they piqued our interest enough to make us get in the car and drive for several hours to see it.
The one thing you absolutely have to do if you are planning a big adventure
Tottori, Japan
A lot of people ask me for tips on planning adventures, and going on big trips. I have been fortunate enough to live, work and travel in more than 50 countries across the world, on every continent (including Antarctica!) so I know a thing or two about packing and preparing.
People ask whether the most important thing is to have a very clear budget, or to sort all your visas out in advance, or to learn some of the language before you go. They ask whether they should read a book about the culture, or buy a new rucksack, or make sure they get their house rented out. They ask whether the most important thing is to find a good travelling partner, or find somewhere to stay ahead of time, or pack for all weathers.
Actually it is none of the above.
The floating village
I love boats. I love water. And I love the countryside. So when I heard about Ine ‘the Floating Village’ I knew I had to visit.
Packing up and moving on
Six months.
180 days.
Half a year.
It seemed like such a long time back then.
Now it is hard to believe our Japan adventure is nearly over.
As we pack up our things, empty our flat, fold up our memories and tuck away our plans, we head out, hand in hand, for a new adventure.
Schedule, what schedule?
Nijo Castle – an inspiring way to start the day
Here in Japan I don’t really have a schedule. The days are wide open, and each morning I sit down and work out how to spend the precious hours of the day ahead. Now we are more than half way through our adventure this time is feeling even more precious, and more than ever I am conscious about the choices I am making about how I spend my time.
The other day I had a Skype call scheduled for 11am and back at home I would normally have spent the hours before it catching up on emails etc. But instead we spent an impromptu hour after breakfast exploring a 500-year old castle – and guess what? I came back in time for the Skype call, very awake and already inspired before our conversation had even begun.
As a meticulous planner in the past, I am slowly trying to let go of the reins a little… not completely but enough to let my instinct guide my day, and reveal new ways of travelling through it…
How do you spend your time these days?
The long cycle
Cycling is a brilliant way to travel – you see so much more than when you are in a car. It’s like you are IN the scenery. We had a brilliant time cycling 70km across seven huge bridges over the Seto Inland Sea, breathing in fresh salty air as we pedalled high above the sparkling seas.
Daisen National Park
More glimpses from the road around Japan…
I travelled to many parts of Japan but this was my first time in Daisen National Park. They call the main mountain ‘Daisen’ the ‘mini Mount Fuji’ and you can see why from its conical shape. We wanted to get away from the hot hot city for a couple of days and this was the perfect place. In the winter it is a popular ski resort but in the summer, away from the roads, it is a hiker’s paradise.
Why we did this
As we come to the end of our time here in Japan (only three weeks left!) I have been thinking about our reasons for coming here.
Spending six months in Japan is expensive. It’s an upheaval. And if you are studying Japanese like my man, you even get grammar tests. So why did we do this?
Because we had slipped into too much routine and needed to shake things up.
Because my man wanted to know this place that was so special to me.
Because we wanted to share a big adventure.
Because we could.
But mainly because it sounded like a good idea at the time.
And it absolutely was.
What kind of adventure sounds like a good idea to you right now?