Breakaway Bravehearts

07/09/2024

We were privileged to have Andy take us on a tour of Manchester as he sees it through a unique perspective. Having experienced homelessness, he has now retrained as a tour guide with Invisible Cities. His raw, gritty perspective matched the soul of the city perfectly. We loved our day with Andy, and we know you'll enjoy it too!

03/09/2024

We took a bit of a risk with this video - incorporating an academic article about "disneyfying" culture and using dodgy history as a cash-cow. We also have shown the reality of the day, which was beautiful - meaning the crowds came out to enjoy the sun. I was a little worried, tbh, about how people would respond. We try to honour all sides of a story while still expressing our own opinion.
So I was happy to receive this email from the academic we cited. Nice to know we are on the right track.

31/08/2024

We had mixed feelings about this site. Undeniably beautiful - and yet hyped up by a dodgy legend and funded by dodgy money. What do you think?

If you've searched 'What to do in Cornwall', the first thing that will pop up is Tintagel Castle. Justine and Darryl, from Breakaway Bravehearts, explore one...

22/08/2024

We got to see Manchester through different eyes, thanks to the amazing Andy our guide from Invisible Cities Walking Tours. As someone who has experienced homelessness, Andy gave us a perspective of the city that was unique and eye-opening. Invisible Cities uses tourism to give the homeless a chance to showcase their knowledge and new skills, while tourists like us benefit too. We loved our day with Andy, and can't wait to share it with you. Coming soon to a Breakaway Bravehearts channel near you 😜!

17/08/2024

What do these images, taken in Bristol city, have to do with sugar???

15/08/2024

This photo of the beautiful Gallos statue is as dodgy as the legend that sparked it. Tintagel is known as the place where the legendary King Arthur was conceived. He is the result of what can be called "deception" at best, but at worst has a far worse name. Basically his father, Uther Pendragon, used Merlin's magic to disguise himself as Igraine's husband. Poor Igraine conceived Arthur based on a lie. This is not okay. And the deception in this photo? - I have used AI to erase the crowds that mulled around constantly.

12/08/2024

Cornwall on a good day - the spectacular view from Tintagel Castle.
We've got some beautiful footage for our next video, but admittedly are tired and feet-weary now (is that a word?). Grateful for our walking boots, even more grateful to take them off again.

11/08/2024

We had the absolute privilege to interview the fabulous Rob Sim What A Palaver after his performance at the Knights' Tournament at Pendennis Castle ( Cornwall). We talked to him about his life on the road and the lessons he has learned from 40 Years of Fire. Make sure you hit the notifications bell when you subscribe to our YouTube channel, so you know when this video goes live. A ton of fun!

03/08/2024

Peeking through the ... Actually what are these called??? Carved holes in the interior walls of Henry VIII fortress/castle in St Mawes, Cornwall. I'm not sure if they were pure decoration or doubled as arrow slits if the fortress was ever infiltrated. It never came to that - the castle, beautifully placed and shaped like a clover, did it's job as a deterrent with Pendennis on the opposite coast.

29/07/2024

I expected some rubble and a maybe a few pictures of monks - what I got was a detailed account of the introduction of Christianity in England, including religious and royal graves and gossip. Our volunteer guide at St Augustine's Abbey was incredibly well informed, and we were grateful to film his tour and the beautiful grounds. I hope you enjoy it as much as we did.
Check out my blog post https://wix.to/8VbXsYa

We love history, so we can't find anything not to like about St Augustine’s Abbey in Canterbury, England. We knew we'd come to the right spot when we found out just how important this site was to the development of Britain, but what we didn't expect was the added bonus of royal & religious graves ...

25/07/2024

Had a lovely birthday & anniversary enjoying the ultimate historical site, a wet-english-summer-picnic, a literary legend & a good ole fashioned pub.

15/07/2024

Told you I bought those fingerless gloves! Our Social Tourism review of the Maidstone Museum is out now. And our first video with my new camera: DJI OsmoPocket 3. I am trialing 4K, what are your thoughts??

Join us as we review the Maidstone Museum and relive the vibrant decade of neon and icons with the "I Grew Up 80s" exhibit! If you’re looking for things to d...

13/07/2024

Nothing says you're getting old.like seeing your childhood as a museum exhibit 🤣🦖🦕🤣.
We had a lot of fun at the I Grew Up 80s exhibit at Maidstone museum. We were singing along to the jingles of toy ads and TV theme songs. Went straight out and bought myself some fluro pink fingerless gloves (true story).

08/07/2024

There’s a proverb in Maori I learned at a young age: “Kāore te kūmara e kōrero mō tōna ake reka.” Translation: The kūmara does not speak of his sweetness.

It’s a reminder to practise humility and to be humble in your leadership. Well, today I’m going to speak up on behalf of a quiet “kumara” that deserves recognition. I’ve found something so sweet it simply must be shared.

Since beginning our focus on Social Tourism, Darryl and I have come across a few providers that hit full marks in one area or another of our five star criteria (that being 1. social good, 2. economic benefit to local communities, 3. hashtag , 4. relationship building and 5. sustainability). But we haven’t yet discovered a tourist site that is perfect. Today I want to share the closest to perfection that we’ve found so far - The Waitangi Treaty Grounds in the Bay of Islands, New Zealand.

It’s a site that brings me enormous pride to share because, not only is it an exemplary illustration of Social Tourism in action, it's also what I consider to be the most significant site in my country’s history: the place where hashtag New Zealand began.

I’m also very proud of the video itself, and that’s entirely due to the help of the fabulous CC, a tour guide at the Grounds, who graciously agreed to a filmed interview after her tour. Her passion and knowledge gave me such wonderful footage - the hardest part was choosing from all her engaging stories. There was just so much to share!

The full video (linked below) begins with her stories and information about the origins of New Zealand society, while the second half is our BB STARS review of the Waitangi Treaty Grounds from the perspective of hashtag . You’ll see exactly how well they do in building connections with visitors, contributing to the local community, meeting environmental hashtag goals and ensuring everybody has equal hashtag and value. They really are an exemplar we can all learn from.

I hope you’ll take a look, and share it far and wide. This is one kumara whose sweetness we should shout out loud.

Planning a trip to New Zealand? There's one site you simply can't miss: The Treaty of Waitangi Grounds in the beautiful Bay of Islands. Join me at the most s...

02/07/2024

Yep, it's a new chapter. We've taken our travel bug to a whole new level! Now we can discover the world (well, we'll start with Europe at least) rolling along at our own pace. Our plans are rough and flexible... first a couple of months in the UK, then off through France, down to Spain and back up through Portugal, back to the UK for the New Year maybe. We'll keep sharing videos with you on our YouTube channel, so please subscribe and spread the word. And please comment too - keeping connections with you all is important to us ❤️. We hope you'll let us know when we're close by so we can catch up.

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23/06/2024

Check out our latest blog post: a social tourist's guide to The Kauri Museum in New Zealand's north island. https://wix.to/zUZXg3X

Kiwi & Kauri: A Social Tourism review of two New Zealand iconsEmbarking on a journey through New Zealand's Northland region offers more than breathtaking landscapes and vibrant culture; it provides a unique lens into the heart of social tourism. Our recent trip to the Kauri Museum highlighted how su...

11/05/2024

While Darryl was in Germany earlier this year, I jumped on a train and took a day-trip to Bologna. Turns out, there's more to it than spaghetti!! In this blog post I explore the city's rich history, cuisine, architecture & left-leaning culture. Known as The Learned, The Fat and The Red, Bologna is famous for the oldest university, it's rich Tagliatelle al ragù, it's political street art, and its colourful buildings. Hope you enjoy the read! https://wix.to/EkJiaP4

09/05/2024

It's been 10 months since we left our 9-5 routines in Germany to start online businesses and renovate a home in Montenegro. How do we measure our success?

Well, if we judge by our original goals, we score a mere 3/10.

True, we’ve done a fabulous job on the house, which is now ready for sale. Our savings, which we thought would last 6 months, stretched to 8 months (many thanks to our supportive families who have helped us along the way). But (and it's a big BUT), we we've waited long enough for residency, and the businesses we planned haven't turned a profit nor brought us joy.

However, if we measure our success against our values, we can celebrate with an 8/10.

We're thrilled to have the freedom to use our time as we want. We’ve let go of the physical and mental clutter that was crowding our lives. We no longer have to compromise to fit into corporate or educational systems we disagree with. We now seldom feel limited by societal expectations. Most importantly, we understand ourselves much better, and have gained strength, confidence, and belief in ourselves by overcoming challenges together.

So, with such a mixed score - do we quit and go back to the day-jobs, or do we keep risking it all in pursuit of our dreams?

Well, we’re called Bravehearts for a reason!

We move forward with renewed strength, using what we’ve learned so far while seeking more knowledge as we go. This is where we appeal to you, because one of our lessons is the importance of strengthening our connections so that we can move, learn and grow alongside others.

We are specifically looking for people who identify as ‘Gen-X travellers who want to explore the world in a healthy, curious, community-minded way.’

If that sounds like you, or you know someone who fits that description, we’d like to offer you our time in exchange for yours. We have a very short survey to share, and in return we would like to provide you with an avenue to promote any community/social service or issue you care about to our growing online audience.

Please message us to take part.
Many many thanks.
Justine and Darryl, the Breakaway Bravehearts.

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08/05/2024

A walking tour guided by the homeless?
What do you think?
I am on a mission to learn more about Social Tourism - defined as building positive relationships between visitors and host communities and developing programs, events, and activities that allow all population groups to enjoy tourism.
This example in Dublin has me curious. Who would join me?

We are a nonprofit social enterprise that offers Walking Tours to discover the streets of Dublin through the eyes and experience of someone who has been affected by homelessness.

05/05/2024

Florence is place that simply can't be missed! But to make the most of your time in this busy, bustling city, you are going to need a lot of planning & prebooking. In this blog we give you advice, recommendations (and warnings) to help you make your day in Firenze a success. https://wix.to/IV7VlLJ

Flrence We love Florence. It isn’t just a destination, it’s a lively buzzing city with a wealth of history, art, and culture. Originally called Florentia in Latin, then Fiorenza in Old Italian, Florence’s real name is Firenze. We believe this fabulous city is a must-do trip for anyone travelli...

11/04/2024

I absolutely loved making this video! Darryl and I had a couple of months in Tuscany, and I was lucky enough to work with the fabulous Rachele Marchetti who designed this personal tour of the city. I was fascinated by the odd fact that Pistoia is mentioned twice in Dante's Commedia - and not in a particularly flattering way! I needed to know why. Rachele shared the history, mysteries, legends and personalities of the city with me, from a local point of view. I hope you enjoy it with us - as you watch you can make up your own mind - is Pistoia tourist heaven or Dante's hell? Would love your comments!

Join us on an enchanting journey through the hidden gems and storied past of Pistoia, a captivating city nestled in the heart of Tuscany, Italy. In this excl...

30/03/2024

Marvelling at the art of Florence, (along with several hundred/thousand others). It was amazing to see "the real David", and all the other masterpieces of Italy's best in the city of their patrons and their inspiration. Are there queues? Yes! You have to book in advance, and even then, with 15min entry slots, expect to stand in line. Is it worth it? Absolutely!

09/08/2023

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