Julie, Author at Julie Stephenson

Dec 17

by Julie in Europe 2013, To Morocco 2013 0 comments

My experiences which sculpt my view ….

We are back! back to blue skies...weeds engulfing my orchard....and memories. :-) I don't have a clue where 'memory' is stored, but

Dec 02

by Julie in To Morocco 2013 0 comments

Snake charmers and Penny’s bad hair day…

A wrinkled man gestured like putting slippers on with his empty hands….as two front feet and shins of a cow lay in front of him on the grey stone walkway into his store where whole skins and pieces were layered and climbed the pale pink walls. “Just for looking…. Yes madame… just for looking..You come and

Dec 02

by Julie in To Morocco 2013 0 comments

Where my feet step in rhythm in the dust….

A black skinned hand with enlarged knuckles and thin misshapen fingers held my left hand as it pulsed up and down to the beat of hand drums which are warmed and their edges blackened in the golden rising flame of the fire; as the cold air descends on the expanse of the light coloured silted river valley. After the soulful melody of a solo male

Dec 02

by Julie in To Morocco 2013 0 comments

Fragrant rose and cinnamon…

Fragrant rose and cinnamon;….perhaps sandalwood and neroli as well - drifted on the warm steam as I was led gently by my right hand into a small room wearing a pale soft loose fitting robe, which was carefully slipped from my shoulders from behind as I entered this small rectangular room. “Madame, s’il vous plait”..and I was gestured to sit on a warm sheet of stone, softly moulded like skin. A large silver ladle ceremonially poured hot water over my body

Nov 17

by Julie in To Morocco 2013 0 comments

Dried skulls…bits of rabbit skin and fur..ground minerals from crystals and rocks…

Dried skulls…bits of rabbit skin and fur.. ground minerals from clear crystals and rocks ….dried herbs… ..broken bits of bark…mummified lizard legs…and shards of bone; were carefully broken and pinched and placed in a piece of hand written paper torn

Nov 17

by Julie in To Morocco 2013 0 comments

from the dust….

The morning prayer wailer’s call to Allah filled the early morning darkness; echoing across the valleys were prayers broadcast from grey metal loudspeakers perched on the top of the rectangular columns of the mosques. I lay listening to the

Nov 16

by Julie in To Morocco 2013 0 comments

Shadows….

Old newspaper wrapped small chunks in crates – fossils and minerals …and grey and yellow torn bags bulging with dirt were all now laying far removed from the source from where they came using escavators, hammers, grinders and dusty sweat;

Nov 14

by Julie in To Morocco 2013 0 comments

Space….

The rose petalled fountain at Palace Didi at Meknes was left behind as we funnelled through a tunnel and were ushered through the morning traffic by a swarm of attendants wearing safety vests; with the traffic mayhem once again being directed by one of those men behind a strong black moustache. Very quickly buses were replaced with long lines of mounds of drying onions hanging on

Nov 13

by Julie in To Morocco 2013 0 comments

From poverty to palaces….

Rose water, rice in sweet honeyed milk, soft white custard with almonds, plump dried apricots and prunes in subtle spices echoing the melodies of far away places where date palms surround green and where white fabric blows in the desert wind.....thoughts of coming days as I ate my beautiful breakfast, I am sitting now at a winery at Had Badchoua waiting for lunch after being escorted by the local police for 20km from Casablanca and 130 km east toward Meknes. Cheers lined the streets and men in

Nov 10

by Julie in To Morocco 2013, Uncategorized 0 comments

This is insane…!!!!!!

“Bonjour madame…. Passporte s'il vous plait”…. Oh my goodness… we are on a boat in Spain going to Morocco and the officer was speaking French. I am so confused!!! “Marhabah” I said with confidence to the Customs officer at the Moroccoan Port of Tanger Med only to be greeted with “Bonjour madame.” I couldn’t work out what was going on here. French??? I knew in Morocco, French was spoken...but

Nov 09

by Julie in To Morocco 2013, Uncategorized 0 comments

From narrow streets to open highways… Stone castles and cranes..

We had to cover some k's yesterday from Evora to Algeciras where the square, grey, rough granite cobblestones led to castles; and ashfelt and white lines led to cranes spearing out from near the ocean on the very south-east corner of Spain. The plump green rolling hills were filled with ripening olives and gnarled

Nov 06

by Julie in To Morocco 2013, Uncategorized 0 comments

Wishing I could step across on to the white fluffy doona…. Above the clouds!!!

This morning was amazing!! After spending a night in a very ordinary motel which was undergoing renovations during the ‘quiet time’, Penny steadfastly carried us up through this spectacular landscape – climbing to 2000mts alongside the Zêzere Glaciar Valley where the slow moving block of ice gouged and rumbled a tract across the land; and now instead of a frozen mass, sheep graze and small plots of

Nov 05

by Julie in To Morocco 2013 0 comments

Whose idea was this…???

Yes again..the biggest computers in the world still cannot accurately predict the forces of nature – and that rain which went to the plains....in Spain.... returned - when the forecast was for today was to be clear !!! …AND we thought we would drive through the Serra da Estrela, the only ski resort in Portugal. We left Peso da Regua after a rather sumptuous brekky of queijo; (that is - queso, fromage, cheese - in Portuguese);

Nov 04

by Julie in To Morocco 2013 0 comments

In Portugal, Sunday is…..

Well… so much for some of the biggest computers in the world predicting the weather!!! The rain which was supposed to stay around for a few days, blew across to Spain…. mainly across the plains ..hahaha… on it’s way to the rest of Europe – leaving autumn leaves and tracks of soil and earth down the mountainsides dribbling like chocolate and caramel topping - now set on roads and footpaths. Patches of blue and white puffed in the gentle wind and

Nov 03

by Julie in To Morocco 2013 0 comments

This wasn’t in my Rocket Spanish Online course…..

I haven't got up to the lesson yet where the bar staff at a Hostal says that she can't show me or give me a room because she is the only one serving at the bar and cannot leave it to take me to a room. ...so onward to another Hostal where the reception staff could speak absolutely NO ENglish whatsoever - which I was VERY excited about because I really wanted to

Nov 03

by Julie in To Morocco 2013 0 comments

Where did the blue go…??

No wonder everyone in Spain sleeps in until mid morning… behind the shutters in the morning it is pitch black!! ..and 8 o’clock snuck up on me very quickly! Opening the shutters brought with it a bit of a surprise. Where did the blue go?

Nov 02

by Julie in To Morocco 2013 0 comments

In search of Queso …. and the stillness of the mountains…

Our journey has begun in search of Queso…cheese…glorious cheese. Once again. We left the port of Santander and headed west passing through coastal areas of small fishing villages and rather empty tourist towns. Our kettle boiled alongside the comforting sound of bells which hung around the necks of grazing cows on the lush green pasture, separated by high rocky cliffs above the calm Bay of Biscay. In the distance we could see snow on the mountains to the South west… and Penny was on her way !!! Fabrica de Quesos!! A cheese factory… Stop!! I quickly

Oct 31

by Julie in To Morocco 2013, Uncategorized 0 comments

Reunited with Penny; cardiac ward; y Español

After a two month journey across the ocean in a container, we finally were reunited with Penny as she sat forlornly in a wet storage yard at Pier 23 at Tilbury in the UK; unbeknownst to us having been unloaded the day prior and sat overnight in pouring rain awaiting for us to collect her. At last she was with us again and off we went, excited to be on our journey toward Morocco. That excitement was shortlived as within a few hours, Max landed himself in a cardiac ward in Royal Berkshire hospital

Oct 11

by Julie in Tonga, Uncategorized 0 comments

Dreams from uncertain depths…..

After a wonderful and profound experience in Tonga on a Whaleswim Adventure... above is a small selection from a series of images inspired by experiences I will cherish always.

Oct 03

by Julie in About Me 0 comments

I am an explorer of experience…

I am an explorer of experience. I am an adventurer into the unknown of possibilities. I embrace my precious life with courage, inquisitiveness, humility, reverence and love. I explore the mystery of the Unseen and

Aug 31

by Julie in Uncategorized 0 comments

…more adventures just around the corner…..

Thank you to those who have dropped a quick note to say hi and check in because you haven't heard from me in a while. It has been a pretty full on 6 weeks since we arrived home from Europe; preparing Penny for our next adventure - and

Jul 25

by Julie in Europe 2013 0 comments

Chunnel vision… from Folkstone to Calais… in the dark!!!!

Have you ever stood in a famous Art Gallery looking at a video and just said to yourself... "I just don't 'get' it !"? Well imagine

Jul 17

by Julie in Europe 2013, Travels Europe 2013 0 comments

It’s actually so much more than the food…

What a privilege to have such an abundance of the most beautiful food whilst on our travels.... but you know what ...it wasn't just really about the food though. It was so much MORE than the food. The food provided the palette for sharing, interaction and

Jul 17

by Julie in Europe 2013, Inspirations, Travels Europe 2013, Wisdom and Inspiration 0 comments

It’s not time we waste…. its….

“We say we waste time, but that is impossible. We waste ourselves.” Alice Bloch

Jul 17

by Julie in Europe 2013, Travels Europe 2013 0 comments

Travel documentary photos….well sort of !!!!

I was going to post a collection of amazing culinary delights from Europe today... but whilst grazing through my images I came across these really interesting ones from a Qantas Club lounge which I found just sooo

Jul 16

by Julie in Europe 2013, Travels Europe 2013, Uncategorized 0 comments

If you can’t go through it … around it… just go –

Apart from the truly magnificent and humbling landscape we drove through on our journey through Europe, I witnessed incredible feats of engineering; creative vision; craftsmanship; ingenuity; blood, sweat and tears; and quite highly likely - cruelty. In my recent post on Tunnels,

Jul 05

by Julie in Europe 2013 0 comments

Bold, bold Madrid … BUT…

Something under the surface... something not immediately evident... an undercurrent exists in the city of Madrid that I felt by going on one of those iconic "Red bus tours", and catching the underground trains and walking through

Jul 03

by Julie in Europe 2013, poetry, Words 0 comments

Mystery and Uncertainty….

Whilst driving alongside the Loch Ness in Scotland I had a sense pervade me that

Jul 02

by Julie in Earth and Sea, Europe 2013, Uncategorized 0 comments

Meandering the mists of Scotland…

Scotland was quite a surprise to me. I feel like I have just touched the lid of an amazing jewell box. I had seen

Jun 20

by Julie in Europe 2013 0 comments

If you can’t go around it…..

Testimony to human ingenuity and not being thwarted !

Jun 14

by Julie in Europe 2013, Uncategorized 0 comments

A few hours in Köln (Cologne in Germany)…..

On our meanderings through Europe we found ourselves in Köln, Germany whilst we were visiting beautiful friends who invited us to stay with them. England, Scotland, France, Spain, Portugal..... then

Jun 09

by Julie in Europe 2013, Uncategorized 0 comments

Playing on the edge….

Sunday was a day where it seemed that boys (mainly) - played on the edge. We drove along the Route des Crêtes ...a road in the Vosges Mountains in Eastern France Adrenaline filled the air.

Jun 09

by Julie in Europe 2013, Uncategorized 0 comments

Renewed respect for trees…

Traversing the veins of the white, yellow and red roads on the map brought with it for me insights on

Jun 07

by Julie in Europe 2013 0 comments

Europe in bloom… so magical !!!

Although summer was as warm here in Europe...by that I mean COLD as our winters back on the Sunshine Coast of Queensland; the flowers and crops in bloom have been absolutely stunning! The yellow canola fields brush the landscape with

Jun 07

by Julie in Europe 2013, Uncategorized 0 comments

Queso… Queijo…. Fromage… whatever it is called – in English it is CHEESE… glorious CHEESE !!!

It all began on a single day's pilgramage in search of some Wensleydale in the Yorkshire Dales in England about a month ago now…. and it has become a daily

Jun 06

by Julie in Europe 2013, Uncategorized 0 comments

Adeus… Spain… Bonjour France… C’est bon… tres bon !!!!

You will have to wait a couple of days for my post on cheeses ... :-) because I want to share about our fabulous day today. Adeus to Spain as

Jun 03

by Julie in Europe 2013 0 comments

Paris to Madrid…. brakes broke :-(

OMG !!! My view from our room at the Tranion Palace Versailles !!!

May 22

by Julie in Europe 2013 0 comments

brmmmm .. Inverness to Thurso

From a very damp and cold car park the cranking of engines put some life and excitement into the grey morning. Bang... splutter... backfires..

May 22

by Julie in Europe 2013 0 comments

Off we go….brmmmmmm – From London to Inverness for the Celtic Tour 2013 Vintage car rally.

On the road.... fuelled up and brmmmm.. then NO brmmmm

May 18

by Julie in Europe 2013, Travels Europe 2013 2 comments

Yorkshire Dales… over hills and over dales…. to find some Wensleydale!

What an amazing day we had driving through the Yorkshire Dales. The sense of history and village life was palpable. Stone walls were like rigid veins with the pulsing of sweat and rough strong hands;

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