Susan Jagannath's Blog, page 18
April 25, 2018
Betanzos to Bruma on the Camino Ingles
Day Four on the Camino Ingles was the hardest day, with a steep climb out of Betanzos, and then later in the day, the longest and steepest climb from Cafe Julia to Visono and then a long stretch into Bruma. But you are rewarded with great vistas and an eye-blindingly bright decor at the restaurant at Presedo. Day Four is also the midpoint of your hike, sometime in the middle of the day, you are suddenly closer to Santiago than to Ferrol and that makes a huge difference to your psyche....
April 22, 2018
The First Day on the Camino Ingles from Ferrol
The Camino Ingles is an authentic pilgrimage route for English and Northern European pilgrims in the middle ages, who came by sea from their homelands to La Coruña or Ferrol, and then walked to Santiago. Santiago de Compostela is roughly 60 km from La Coruña, and 120 km from Ferrol. To gain the compostela, you must walk at least 100 km, hence the modern-day preference for Ferrol as the starting point, though there is a campaign asking Cathedral authorities to allow pilgrims starting fr...
April 16, 2018
What they’re saying about Chasing Himalayan Dreams
A selection of what early readers are saying –
” I cannot put this down – much more than a travelogue..grit and determination that portrays that all dreams can come true.” M. Fernandez – Never put off your dreams!
“I have never felt such vicarious pleasure of a journey as when I read this book” Rajkumar. – so glad to share this with you!
“Loved re...
April 13, 2018
The Zen of Himalayan Adventure Books
If you want to be a writer, you better be a reader.
And as an adventure writer as I come close to writing my own book, I start reading fiercely and wildly! I must have read over 50 books on the Himalayas over the last 6 months, here are the ones that stood out, make me think, and gave me ideas that transformed me.
Worth Every Gasp by Anamika Mukherjee, I like to read Indian authors, and if they are women, and in this case, this lady is from Bangalore and a technical...
March 24, 2018
The Ups and Downs of a Self-Publishing Journey
It’s the end of a week in self-publishing which has had a lot of ups and downs. Last week I was positive because I had got a lot of work but life has a way of messing with you.
When editing the book, I found it appalling, complete rubbish! What possessed me to think I’m a writer. I was feeling miserable and then out of nowhere I got a boost.
At church on Sunday evening I met a friend who I don’t see too often who deliberately stopped me to chat and said “Oh Susan your book is so won...
March 20, 2018
The Adventure Gene
Where do I get my cravings for adventure from?
Do you think there is an adventure gene? and where does yours come from? My Mum was probably the one who engendered this love for adventure because we were always going on picnics, she and Dad were always going out on shikar, (very politically incorrect nowadays but not in their time) Shikar is ‘hunting’ in India. And then there were the frequent fishing trips. Our camping trips were in full military fashion, proper campsites with field kit...
The Seeds of Adventure – A Personal Post
Where do I get my cravings for adventure from?
I think adventure may be a genetic thing. My Mum was probably the one who engendered this love for adventure because we were always going on picnics, she and Dad were always going out on shikar, (very politically incorrect nowadays but not in their time) Shikar is ‘hunting’ in India. And then there were the frequent fishing trips. Our camping trips were in full military fashion, proper campsites with field kitchens and field trench latrines,...
March 8, 2018
What does International Women’s Day have to do with Trekking
Transcript Summary below, or you can listen to the audio only at the bottom of the page.
Happy International Women’s Day! The first thing I saw on my Facebook feed today was last year’s video where I was actually in the forest but today I’m here at home. One of the reasons why I am at home is that it’s a bit cloudy outside and also I just didn’t wake up in time, as you know I’ve been really absorbed in writing my book of late.
What has International Women’s Day got to do with my H...March 6, 2018
How Absence can get you your Heart’s Desire
How absence can get you your heart’s desire
I’m already talking about my next Himalayan walk. Am I mad? When you read my book you’ll know the main thing I struggled with was the absence of air. This is Toohey forest and in here we have Mount Gravatt. I climbed Mount Gravatt often during the training just for the slopes, but Mount Gravatt is not the Himalayas and the altitude of Mount Gravatt is 184 metres above sea level. We started our walk at about 2000 meters above sea level...
