Mihaela Noroc's Blog, page 8

Nancy was serene and content when I noticed her in Dublin, Ireland, a few weeks ago.“What is your...

Nancy was serene and content when I noticed her in Dublin, Ireland, a few weeks ago.

“What is your secret?” I asked her.

“Good food!” she replied.

These days I’m in Valencia, Spain, for the Falles, one of the most intense festivals I have...

These days I’m in Valencia, Spain, for the Falles, one of the most intense festivals I have witnessed. During the celebration, hundreds of women, like Marta here, called Falleras, wear sumptuous dresses. More about this spectacular tradition in a future post. My next destination will be Morocco.

Anna was on the way to meet some friends when I noticed her in Santa Apolonia station in Lisbon,...

Anna was on the way to meet some friends when I noticed her in Santa Apolonia station in Lisbon, Portugal. I was immediately drawn by her elegant outfit and stance.

Anna lost her vision when she was only two years old, but she never lost her lust for life. She told me we only have one life so we should celebrate it every day. And that’s what she does.

Every day she dresses elegantly, because she loves styling. Her mother describes her the clothes and she always creates the outfits by herself. Another passion of her is traveling. She told me about how fascinated she is to feel the air, the sounds, the atmosphere of each new destination

On the professional side, Anna has a master in psychology and loves to work with children. It’s fantastic when inspirational people like her choose to work with the little ones. They can best shape their future.

It was a day of March, last year, when I visited Cox’s Bazaar beach, in Bangladesh, one of the...

It was a day of March, last year, when I visited Cox’s Bazaar beach, in Bangladesh, one of the longest in the world. This is a place where both men and women are bathing with their clothes on.

I noticed Sabina just before the sunset. She was relaxing after a day of work, and she was doing it at her work place. She told me she is a safeguard and she’s in love with the sea. She was pregnant, and back then I was too, so I felt a beautiful connection. Two women, from two different corners of the world, working with passion, while also expecting their first baby.

My daughter Natalia turns six months today. Traveling with her, while also working on The Atlas of...

My daughter Natalia turns six months today. Traveling with her, while also working on The Atlas of Beauty, is not easy at all. It’s exhausting, it’s unpredictable, it’s complicated. But this is, without doubt, the best time of my life. I’m so grateful for having the chance to experience the world and continue the project together with her. Although I photographed many mothers around the world, I’ve never imagined how beautiful is to be a mommy. Thank you, Natalia!

I photographed Simina last December, in the North railway station from Bucharest, Romania. It was a...

I photographed Simina last December, in the North railway station from Bucharest, Romania. It was a special day for her. 19 years before, on the very same day, her parents had to leave Romania and move abroad for work. That’s the story of hundreds of thousands of Romanians who left the country in search of better jobs, without having the possibility to take their children with them.

From age 7, Simina was raised by an aunt and her sister. After a while her parents had a better situation and wanted to reunite the family. But Simina chose to continue her life in Romania. At 16 years old, she was already living by herself. All this experience taught her to be independent and mature. In the university she was a successful student and after graduation she could have easily find a good job. But she wanted something else. She wanted to discover the world.

So she started to travel in Asia, only accompanied by her backpack. She taught English and French. She lived with a few dollars per day. She learned Indonesian and a bit of Hindi. She helped people in need as a volunteer. She had dengue and typhus fever. She explored the wilderness and reached places where locals have never seen a foreigner. She fell in love. She climbed challenging peaks in the Himalayas. She opened a restaurant in India. And she recently gathered her memories and published a book about her experiences as a solo female traveller. She called it Samsara.

Saṃsāra is a fundamental concept in Indian religions and refers to the belief that all living beings cyclically go through births and rebirths. Figuratively, Simina already went through births and rebirths, but she did it in one single life. And that’s only the beginning because she’s only 26.

I noticed Margarida a few days ago, in the picturesque seed shop where she works in Lisbon,...

I noticed Margarida a few days ago, in the picturesque seed shop where she works in Lisbon, Portugal. This place was opened in 1935 and Margarida told me many interesting things about its history and about plants, in general. She is a passionate gardener herself and, amazingly, her name is the name of a flower. Margarida means daisy in Portuguese.

When Amy-Mae started to show me a few Irish dancing moves, a fee days ago in Dublin, Ireland, it...

When Amy-Mae started to show me a few Irish dancing moves, a fee days ago in Dublin, Ireland, it felt like she was flying. She made it look so simple, but behind it there are years of efforts and sacrifices.

She started to practice Irish dancing when she was only two years old. She grew up in the countryside and attending a good dancing school required very long ways. Although she was in love with dancing, she never imagined that she will become a professional. In high school, actually, inspired by some meaningful experiences, she decided to become a doctor but life had different plans for her.

When she was preparing to start the university and study medicine she got a call. That was the moment when she was invited to join the Riverdance.

Riverdance is one of the most successful shows in the world, a legendary production of traditional Irish music and dance. Amy-Mae joined the show as a troupe dancer. She started to fly literally and figuratively on stages around the world. But that was only the beginning. After a while she was invited to perform the lead role of the show. Her life felt already amazing but it became phenomenal.

Looking back she believes that she may not had as much natural ability as others, but she worked really hard and she was super passionate about it. She says that when she hears the music of the show her heart starts to beat really fast and she can feel the adrenalin in her body.

Amy-Mae still plans to become a doctor in the future, but in the meantime her dancing is her therapy for us, the audience. A therapy for the soul.

Vera was running along Copacabana beach, in Rio de Janeiro, when I met her two years ago. At age...

Vera was running along Copacabana beach, in Rio de Janeiro, when I met her two years ago. At age seventy-six, she told me she runs between 10 and 16 kilometres every two days.

“I started only four years ago and it changed my life. Really sorry, but I have to go now.”

I met Katariina a few years ago in Helsinki, Finland. After her mother was diagnosed with cancer,...

I met Katariina a few years ago in Helsinki, Finland.

After her mother was diagnosed with cancer, this Finnish woman started to see life in a different way. For years she had worked in the perfume industry, but her mother’s illness made her think more about health issues related to beauty products, and to want to do something.

She gathered a team of specialists and created an amazing free phone app that scans the barcode of a cosmetic product and informs the user about the safety of the ingredients. She suggestively called it CosmEthics.