Ever since I was five years old
I’ve been interested in flags. Flags of Africa, flags of Asia and flags of
Europe, I knew them all, and this burning passion has never died down. I would
sit on the carpet – atlas in hand – testing my knowledge on capital cities,
populations and the national dish, not satisfied until I knew all that I wanted
to know. The desire to be knowledgeable about the countries around us (and
their lifestyles) has and always will fascinate me.
Intertwining my love for
journalism, geography and sport, I decided perhaps I would become a sports
journalist, travelling the globe reporting on the latest sports stories.
However was this fulfilling enough? Would I get the recognition I deserve?
Would I just be ‘another reporter?’ So I revised my opinion and decided what
would be much more fulfilling would be writing; the chance to put my feelings
and thoughts across with words rather than actions. The saying goes that
actions speak louder than words, but sometimes the world around is just too
simply unbelievable and truly beautiful that your heart pours out words onto
paper.
I’d never known a lot about
travel writing. Often I would see my parents reading a travel magazine and look
at the pictures, imagining the possibility to visit these spectacular sites
throughout the world. I never took note of the words though. But as I grew and
became more interested in writing, I started to realise that there is much more
beauty in the writing than there is in the pictures, even though the
photographs may be great to sit and stare at.
And that is how my ambition
grew, to be a Michael Palin or Bill Bryson, but bringing my own small twist to
the genre of travel writing.
