The Road Junky Oasis in Bulgaria
When I founded www.roadjunky.com in 2004, it was to find an outlet for all the travel experience I had packed into my head and heart, and also to create a virtual space where travelers could share their stories and ideas, the kind of material that would never make it into mainstream media.
It was a great success with all kinds of interesting souls coming forwards with their submissions and I learned that I wasn´t alone out there, that there were plenty of other road junkies finding themselves on the road. But somehow doing it all online just didn´t cut it any more so I made the Road Junky Film Festival in Berlinto see what kind of people were interpreting the world through film and an array of adventurers came along to talk about their journeys to an audience of 500 travelers over the weekend.
And yet working for 5 months to stage a 2 day festival just didn´t make sense, however ecstatic the event was.
My next initiative was to make the Road Junky Sahara Retreatwhere those attending really had the time to get to know each other in the dunes, singing around the fire and sharing stories around the dinner table. I saw what a need there was for people to find themselves in a safe but inspiring context. The friendships made in the Sahara retreats have lasted still as the attendees continue to meet up for different adventures.
So now I´m taking the next step in founding the Road Junky Oasis in Bulgaria.
It´s an old house in the hills, deep in the forest with no one else around, a perfect place to make our own little world. With some bell tents in the garden, it´s large enough to host up to around 30 people at a time comfortably and there are spaces in the forest for camp fires at night, there´s a pizza oven at the back and the lake is an hour´s walk away.
We´re opening August 19 and will be open this year through to the end of October as different teachers arrive to make workshops on theatre, aikido, singing, dance, eating from the forest and more. The idea is that you need to staz for at least a week so that deep connections can be made and it costs 125 euros (or 99 if you´re a student or otherwise broke) for all the stay, food and workshops.
On a personal level the Oasis is a chance to ground myself and start making magic from a home base instead of from a rucksack and someone´s couch. On a larger level the Oasis is there to provide a space for travelers, creatives and interesting people to come and recharge, get inspired and go back out there to change the world.
The main site: www.roadjunkyoasis.com
And on Facebook http://www.facebook.com/groups/roadjunkyoasis/
Leave a Comment