In June of 2018, I was offered the unique opportunity to participate in a training course for astronauts, which was to be capped off with a flight in zero gravity. My interest was originally sparked by a masterclass (masterclass.com) taught by Chris Hadfield, the first Canadian astronaut.
Many people feel overwhelmed with day-to-day life. It is not easy to manage work, family, household chores and everything else that crops up. It often feels like being caught on a treadmill with no escape, playing out a similar scenario every day, attending one appointment after the other, just to be confronted with the same question each night: “What did I do for myself?” If that is what you’re going through, I have a very valuable tip for you. Pick any task, hobby, or pursuit that will allow you to fully be in the here and now. It should be something that makes the worries of daily life shrink into insignificance and, just for a while, allows you to focus solely on the present moment.
For my part, I find this in diving. It’s my ideal way of giving myself an hour or two of break. This is also why I go on diving vacation several times a year.
Since I was a young boy, I dreamed about sitting in a Formula One (F1) car. I followed every broadcast, stared at the screen, and was transfixed by both the passing maneuvers and the breathtaking speed with which the cars went along the straights. When I was given the possibility of sitting in an F1 car in Le Luc in the South of France, I immediately knew that I had to take advantage of the opportunity as soon as possible.
If you are like me and are always looking for the next adrenaline kick, you might have tried out some extreme sports to fulfill that desired. Several years ago, I tried paragliding and climbing. However, I quickly found out that courage is not always rewarded. On the contrary, I suffered severe injuries. Despite that, I still do not want to give up extreme sports since they are an important part of my life. After two severe accidents though, it is difficult to push myself to the limits anymore.
While traveling around the world, I always am looking for a special adventure. I like to go to exotic locations, but I don’t necessarily have to experience a big adrenaline kick. I also like to enjoy nature, so I don’t go for the overrun tourist beaches, but rather the countryside and culture, which I can then experience in an undiluted, authentic manner.
It is only when you are way off the beaten track (in the more local, less touristy areas) that you can experience the customs of unfamiliar cultures and witness nature at its finest.
After several rather risky adventures, I decided that I wanted to have a more comfortable journey on my next vacation. Additionally, I wanted to have some nice weather and perfect conditions for relaxation and swimming. After a thorough search online, I decided to go to Abaco.
When you think of Las Vegas, what is the first thing that comes to mind?
Your most immediate thought might be the legendary casinos along the Strip. While these establishments are surely a trait of Las Vegas, I myself am not a gambler. Therefore, I want to offer you a different perspective of the city. There is so much more Las Vegas has to offer, including the surreal experience of the three-day Electric Daisy Carnival (EDC) music festival.
At the end of March every year, fans of electronic dance music (EDM) gather in Miami for the Ultra Music Festival. Being a huge fan of the genre, I have attended every year since my first time in 2014. When I first soaked in the atmosphere of this festival, I immediately loved it and the many sensational artists. Each year is a breath of fresh air after a long winter, especially since a comfortable 22 to 26 degrees Celsius is a nice contrast to Europe’s rather crisp temperatures.
As a child of the Alps, I have always had a strong connection to mountains. However, after fracturing my heel bone during a climb a few years prior, I can no longer climb well, due to the resulting deformation.
Nevertheless, one of my lifelong goals has been to climb some of the “Seven Summits” (the highest peaks of each of the seven continents). In Europe the highest peak is Elbrus (5,642 meters elevation); Africa’s highest peak is Kilimanjaro (5,895 meters elevation) in Tanzania and South America’s highest peak is Aconcagua (6,962 meters elevation) in Argentina. I selected these as my targets since I believed that I could summit them with my ability and training.
Due to the coronavirus, I had plenty of time at home to spend making plans. It was then, by chance, that I saw an ad from Aktivferien AG. They were holding an informational evening close by, centered around climbing Kilimanjaro.
During a cold winter night in 2009, I was sitting at home with my wife, watching “Pretty Woman” with Julia Roberts and Richard Gere. There is a scene in this film that would inspire the start of my own aviation adventure. In this scene, Edward invites Vivien to the opera. She wears a glamorous red dress and joins him on a private jet, which he organized for their journey. When I saw this scene, I looked at my wife and said just two words: “One day…”
All names of companies and private persons were changed or omitted in this entry, to prevent possible detrimental impact.
Namasté – the friendly Nepalese greeting that means “I bow to you” – is a phrase I found myself using often during my harrowing expedition to Island Peak in the Himalayas.
Island Peak, or Imja Tse, is nestled in Nepal’s Sagarmatha National Park high up in the Himalayas. Island Peak has earned its name as it appears to be an island in the middle of the Himalayan Range’s enormous glaciers.
It is considered to be one of the easier 6,000 meters climbs in Nepal, though “easy” is a misleading term to apply to a mountain of this height and with its type of terrain. The mountain should not be underestimated under any circumstances.
During this expedition, I was accompanied by my brother and my father – the latter joining the trek until we reached base camp. The trekking part of this expedition is something everyone can join in on if they are fit enough to hike in mountainous terrain for several hours each day.