Do the best you can until you know better.

Then when you know better, you do better. 

Maya Angelou

Hola, bonjour, hello everyone! I hope 2016 is going great for you so far. Can you believe we’re actually half-way through the month already? Wow, time sure does fly!

If I only began to share with you what has happened since my last update, I would not finish. It has been quite a ride with lots of ups and downs but here we are standing tall and stronger than ever!

I am actually taking this opportunity to stop and bow in gratitude and thank all of those who have been with me through this period. I now look back and realize that it may have been a trial but I am grateful for the lessons learned but most importantly for opening my eyes and realize that sometimes it is better to let things and people go that no longer serves and there are far better things coming up ahead!

Moving onwards and upwards, the show goes on right?

That being said, I would like to share with you what else is currently happening on my side of the planet.

Let’s get started shall we?

Watching

I’ll be completely honest with you. It’s been a few months that I have been learning Turkish through soap operas! Surprised or shocked? 🙂

As a language teacher, I know how important it is to immerse yourself in the culture of the country you want to learn more about.

In this case, I have been watching an über popular TV series (Thanks to Youtube) from Turkey called Kara Para Aşk which stars one of the best actors from that country, Engin Akyürek and frankly, he’s so easy on the eyes!

Photo credit: imdb.com

Ok, the man is HOT and is clearly an award-winning fab actor for great reasons. I mean, how can you not be fascinated by following his every move on the screen? 🙂

Now I will admit that I have seen some episodes with English subtitles to help me understand but you know after a little while you kind of get into the groove and follow the story without them. So far it has been so much fun and I am HOOKED!

I have been daydreaming of visiting Istanbul and other cities in Turkey (Bursa, Izmir, Ankara, Antalya, Cappadocia among some) and this is a great preparation! Have you ever done something like that?

Reading

As you know very well by now, I am a voracious book reader and since I am a writer, I need to search for inspiration. That is why I am always looking for information online but I am also a supporter of printed books.

So much that I reserve some time every day to feed my mind and be transported (and absorbed) into a story. So far this year I’ve already read 7 books!

I’ve been participating to this very cool reading challenge called The 50 Book Pledge 

where you can create virtual bookshelves of books read or to be read. It’s a way to keep track of your favorite titles and authors with the reading community and followers on social media.

What am I currently reading?

Well, to my surprise, I was given the book that I’ve been wanting which is Big Magic by the one and only Liz Gilbert.

Many more are on the menu and I am also going to be reading a friend’s upcoming book, so I am very happy to be a best-seller proofreader.

Planning

As unbelievable as it seems, my 5th blogiversary is coming up in March! It’s amazing to see how far I’ve come and how much has been accomplished. If someone had told me 5 years ago that it would allow me to go around the world because of it, I would have never believed it.

In all honesty, I am extremely grateful for all the opportunities received and persons it has allowed me to meet.

My sincere thanks go to all those who believed in me and my work and trusted me to do the job, which is to write and take photos and share it with my ever-growing community. It’s been a real pleasure to do what I love to do and this is just the tip of the iceberg.

I am planning on redesigning, expanding  and also work in more than one language, so stay tuned.

2016 Bucket List

Daydreaming doesn’t hurt a bit right?

The following destinations are on my Bucket List this year.

Argentina, Chile

Iceland

Photo credit: Unsplash

Indonesia

Photo credit: air unique

Italy, Greece

Turkey

Photo credit: Falco

The Philippines

Photo credit: 800boost

Thailand, New Zealand, Vietnam, South Africa, Maldives

Portugal

Photo credit: Profotos-de

Which ones I actually get to see? Only time will tell 🙂

Favorite photo

As an enthusiast photographer, I never miss an opportunity to capture wonderful and unique moments in time. Proof of that is my Instagram feed which keeps growing everyday!

To be honest, I don’t plan the photos that will be uploaded every day, hence that is why it is the most fun and exciting social media account (besides Twitter of course).  If I see something special, I will immediately take out my Samsung phone or camera which I always carry with me and upload on the spot and share it!

My favorite photo I’ve taken recently is the following:

This gorgeous black infinity pool is found at Le Centre du Commerce International in Old Montreal. I happened to be in the area and remembered it, thus I stopped by and it is always amazing as you can see. Moreover the Christmas decorations added a special touch and loved the reflections!

So there you have my February 2016 update.

If you have any question, ask me anything or send me an email.

I’m here to help you in any way I possibly can!

Now it’s your turn.

Tell me,

What is happening on your side of the world?

Any plans in particular in 2016 that you’d like to share?

Don’t be shy and tell us all about it!

Until next time. Ciao.

Tashi Delek, all the best.

K 🙂