HOME — FreshTraveler - Adventures Off The Beaten Path - with Patricia Serrano

Curated experiences designed to rejuvenate and engage your mind, body and spirit.

CURATED EXPERIENCES

FOR A FRESH MIND

Get cultured. Learn something.

FOR A FRESH BODY

For A Fresh Mind

Stretch your body. Rejuvenate.

FOR A FRESH SPIRIT

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Open up your soul. Be reborn.

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Happy Sunday! 💕 I bought this beautiful handmade singing bowl at a wholesale market in Pokhara during my trip to Nepal. I’m very happy to have a piece of Nepal with me and in my soul always. 💕🇳🇵 I love playing with these bowls as part of my meditation. As a constant traveler, I felt especially drawn towards this root chakra bowl. Perhaps it’s meant to keep me grounded from all the traveling! ✈️ 🚞 🚙 🚣‍♀️ Singing bowls hold a very special place in my heart and in my meditation practice. I bought my first one in college for the throat chakra. And then another one for the heart chakra and then another one for the third eye. The peaceful energy of these bowls have helped me get through the unstable and tough times as a freelancer and small business owner. They have also gotten me through several bouts of depression. I know I always look happy on Instagram but we all know that’s not real life. Real life has ups and downs. Life isn’t up all the time. Nor is it down all the time either. You have to maintain your sanity through these crashing waves 🌊 One way I do this is through meditation and tapping into my Divine Feminine.

If you look closely inside the bowl, the carvings look like hearts as well as uteruses and ovaries. It’s a celebration of the Sacred and Divine Feminine energy that lives inside all of us regardless if you are male or female. We need more feminine energy in this world and we need it more than ever!
We need to build respect for Mother Nature as well as cultivate tolerance and compassion for others. We need wholeness, harmony, inner and outer peace, oneness, and connection. These are the gifts of awakening your Divine Feminine energy.
These worldwide #lgbtq #Pride celebrations are a necessary celebration of that energy.
How do you cultivate this in yourself? It’s simple!
PLAY
FEEL
LOVE
KISS
TOUCH
DANCE
SING
CRY

Enjoy fully all realms of the beauty of this existence ❤️ #divinefeminine #play #singingbowl #handmade #loveislove #lovewins #equality #worldpride #worldpeace #meditation #yoga #qualityoverquantity #nepal #pokhara #HTM2019 #visitNepal #GatewaytotheHimalayas #LifeTimeExperiences #VNY2020

Oh will thee paint my soul with all thy colors
Tickle my heart strings with all your might
Stop me in my tracks so I can soak in all your songs
Rip my bedrock shake me to the core, dear
Coat me in you, dear
Savor our flavors while I knit your fingers into my hair
Let me lick the nuances of your wounds
Pierce your heart and surrender to my fall .
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Photo by @indira_fuyal #inspired #poetry #grassbeneathmyfeet #nepal #HTM2019 #visitNepal #GatewaytotheHimalayas #LifeTimeExperiences #VNY2020 #thisissustainable #dwarikasresort

My Lola!!! ❤️ I don’t get to see her very often but when I do, I want to squeeze her and never let her go! She’s been following my adventures in Nepal and now she and my aunt want to go! #VNY2020 🇳🇵Also I’m totally digging these old photos of my grandmother, grandfather and all her 6 kids (including my mom) from back in the day. #catholicfamily #grandamashouse .
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#familytime #grandma #lola #manila #philippines #itsmorefuninphilippines

N A T U R E I S E S S E N T I A L F O R 🌿 T H E 🍃 S O U L 🍀Missing all this green already! .
I spend a lot of time in big busy cities (BKK, LA, NY) but I always need a break from the frenzied chaotic pace of urban living so my soul can breathe easier. Nothing makes me happier than walking barefoot in the grass and being surrounded by so much green. What’s your happy place?
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Thank you @kghhotels for the stay! I wish I could have stayed longer!
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Thanks for the photo @louth_adventure 😎 #naturebath #chitwan #marunisanctuarylodge #nepal #kghhotels #HTM2019 #visitNepal #GatewaytotheHimalayas #LifeTimeExperiences #VNY2020
#MyTravelSim #Ncell

Never go in search for love.
Go in search for life.
And life will find you the love you seek. 💕 .
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Back in Bangkok for a hot minute. Anyone want mango 🥭 and sticky rice? .
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Photos by @tun.nyc #bangkok #brightlights #citylife #cityliving #hometown #rooftop #rooftopping #mangostickyrice #thailand

Back in Bangkok. Happy Father’s Day Papa! ❤️❤️❤️❤️
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#bangkok #bigpapa #happyfathersday #familytime #lovetoallpapas

Last day in Kathmandu consists of a massage, swimming a few laps and lunching by the pool before my flight. Sad to leave as I feel like I’ve only touched the surface of this country! Thank you again @sunita_gurung for having me! I can’t wait for my next visit to Nepal.🇳🇵Namaste 💕
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#dwarikashotel #dwarikaskathmandu #nepal #kathmandu #HTM2019 #visitNepal #GatewaytotheHimalayas #LifeTimeExperiences #VNY2020
#MyTravelSim #Ncell

I spent this beautiful morning with new friends exploring Bhaktapur, a Newari cultural city with the best-preserved palace courtyards and old city center in Nepal. Listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the city is famous for its rich culture, temples, and artisans. Here, I bought a beautiful Kalachakra “Circle of Time” Mandala Thanka that took over 2 months to paint because of the very fine painting technique. At the 20-year-old Traditional Thanka Painting School, a student takes six to ten years to become a Thanka Painter and a minimum of thirty years is required to be an accomplished master in the tradition. It’s a highly endangered art form. 15% of every sale goes to support their community and sponsor young students and talented artists coming from villages affected by the devastating earthquakes of 2015. Walking around the grounds of the city we also witnessed a goat sacrifice!! Although I was originally shocked to see it, this was a beautiful religious ceremony where after the prayers, the entire animal is cooked and served as a meal. .
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Thanks for the photo @twowanderingsoles 😘
#bhaktapur #artisans #supportartists #traditionalart #newari #thanka #nepal #htm2019 #visitNepal #GatewaytotheHimalayas #LifeTimeExperiences #VNY2020
#MyTravelSim #Ncell

जय नेपाल Wow, this chyang (Nepalese rice wine) is really strong! Thank you @sunita_gurung for the beautiful personalized 6 course Krishnarpan dinner! I love that the menu had my name on it. @the_dwarikas really knows how to make a girl feel special! I was so stuffed I wish I could have eaten more. Next time I’ll make sure I don’t eat for a couple days so I can take on the full 22 course menu. Thank you hostess Tikka for explaining to me everything I was eating. This was a very special Nepali meal indeed! Look at all the people that were also made to wear a bib before me - @selenagomez @moore2d @officialhilaryclinton Prince Felipe of Spain 🇪🇸 Prince Charles & the Prime Minister of Nepal🇳🇵
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#thedwarikashotel #nepal #kathmandu #HTM2019 #visitNepal #GatewaytotheHimalayas #LifeTimeExperiences #VNY2020
#MyTravelSim #Ncell

“Your body, mind and soul are not aligned,” my masseuse Shashi says to me. In that case, I’m going to take off my shoes here and stay a while. Approximately 45 minutes outside Kathmandu lies perched on a mountain top a peaceful retreat by @the_dwarikas - large suites with daybeds AND nightbeds as well as a sweeping vista view. The restaurant serves a daily changing menu with organic produce from their local farms. Also on site is a crystal room, a meditation room complete with singing bowls and yoga mats as well as a himalayan salt rock room. With everything geared to rejuvenating your body, mind and soul, you can also take painting and pottery classes. I think I’m moving in @sunita_gurung 😘
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Photo by @indira_fuyal #mindbodyspirit #nepal #rebeccarecommends #dwarikas #dwarikasresort #virtuosotravel #htm2019 #visitNepal #GatewaytotheHimalayas #LifeTimeExperiences #VNY2020
#MyTravelSim #Ncell

There were tears in my eyes as I did my 13 rounds walking clockwise around the stupa. As dark clouds loomed above threatening rain, thoughts of past hurts, disappointments and humiliations surfaced and thankfully, like the clouds, they cleared a path to a stronger sense of self. A self that was closer to the truth: that we are all more connected that we could ever even imagine and that our feelings of shame, fear and love is collective. When you accept this, then you lose fear as what is true for you is also true for all others. This is the connection we have as humans and I am saddened that in this day and age many are blind to this bond that ties us all together. I am still affected by a strong sense of guilt and the black and white morality from my strict Catholic upbringing yet the teachings of Buddhism teach me to be kinder and accept myself and the world the way it is - beautifully complicated and imperfect. On this pilgrimage to Bouddhanath, one of Nepal’s largest stupas and a UNESCO World Heritage Site, I made a wish to have the strength to fulfill what I was put on this earth to do - working towards world peace through travel by inspiring people to care and have empathy for others, regardless of race, religion and creed - no matter how scary or hopeless it seems along the way. #onelove #lovehard #fearless .
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Thank you #htm2019 and @impacttravelalliance for this pilgrimage opportunity 🙏 Photo & Video by another beautiful soul on a quest @tribeonaquest #bouddhanath #unescoworldheritage #unesco #spiritualtourism #spiritualtravel #worldpeace #nepal #kathmandu #HTM2019 #visitNepal #pilgrimage #GatewaytotheHimalayas #LifeTimeExperiences #VNY2020
#MyTravelSim #Ncell #thisissustainable #impacttravel

This is the part of the hike where I get lost. Really not a smart move on my part and I really do not recommend anyone doing this. After a very long 11 hour bus ride the day before, I was itching to get active. Activity after activity started to get cancelled due to the weather so the minute we had the opportunity to hike, I took off. Away from my group, I mean. I hiked up lightning fast like I walking in the NYC subway and I ended up so far ahead from my group that I took a wrong turn and got lost. This being a short hike, I wasn’t too worried. Had this been a 4/5 day hike, I would have been in trouble. I’ve been lost before during a hike in the mountains of California surrounded by coyotes and cacti 🌵and had to walk around for hours until I found my way out. Thankfully today, I bumped into a lovely local farmer collecting bricks and asked him where the stupa was. I also had enough signal to call our guide on my #ncell number who told me where they were. I then used @googlemaps to find their location on my phone and found them way ahead of me. I had to catch up. Lesson learned here: Going faster is often not the answer and can get you lost and maybe even in trouble! Once I got all caught up with the group, I was itching again to run up to the pagoda. Our lovely guide Nabin Moktan told me this time which turns to take. And off I went, determined to be the first to get up to the pagoda. But more wanting to get an adrenaline rush and get my inner thighs burning from the climb. @mickytechieig was up for coming up fast with me so off we went. I got there first and he a close second. Although this wasn’t a race at all. I was just happy to bounding up the side of a mountain 🏔 Of course, the beautiful peace pagoda was waiting for us and a stunning view of Fewa Lake and the town of Pokara.
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Thanks for the photos @mickytechieig
#quickhike #pokara #worldpeacepagoda #nepal #HTM2019 #visitNepal #GatewaytotheHimalayas #LifeTimeExperiences #VNY2020
#MyTravelSim #Ncell

Coffee break ☕️ at @traditionalcomfort with my favorite barista in Kathmandu!! Suman Shresthra never failed to light my face up with a smile each time he put a latte in front of me. Yes, I had 3 lattes during one coffee break. Yes, I am a recovering coffee addict. Yes, I would have had more! Glad these yummy coffees didn’t each cost me the 4.5USD each in NYC I used to pay at the height of my coffee addiction. Still... a good cup or 3 every now and then definitely soothes my soul . Thank you @shivadhakal_ @jessieonajourney @kelleytravels @nikahedrick & @honeybirdtravel for convincing me to drop by. It was definitely worth the very short yet sweet pit stop.
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#coffeebreak #coffeeloverclub #kathmandu #nepal #HTM2019 #visitNepal #GatewaytotheHimalayas #LifeTimeExperiences #VNY2020
#MyTravelSim #Ncell #explorenepalofficial

The stunning faces of Nepal are as varied as their landscapes. At this cultural crossroads between China and India, I wanted photographs of everyone’s warm faces and soulful eyes. So many gorgeous faces reflecting the spirit of the country. As Mahatma Gandhi was quoted saying, ‘A nation’s culture resides in the hearts and in the soul of its people.’ .
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#culturalcrossroads #nepal #HTM2019 #visitNepal #GatewaytotheHimalayas #LifeTimeExperiences #VNY2020
#MyTravelSim #Ncell

Thank you to the wonderful team at @pata_nepal & @patanepalchapter for my very first trip to Nepal and for hosting us at #htm2019 I had a wonderful time meeting such inspiring people and changemakers who are determined to change the travel industry. Can’t wait to see what the future brings to Nepal and I can’t wait for my next visit. Namaste 🙏 .
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Dress by @pavnibkk
#htm2019 #visitNepal #GatewaytotheHimalayas #LifeTimeExperiences #VNY2020
#MyTravelSim #Ncell #patanepal #patanepalchapter

This might be my favorite domestic airline name ever! And look ma, I can see the snow capped peaks of the Himalayas from my window seat! 🏔 .
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#buddhaair #nepal #pokharanepal #himalayasfromtheplane #HTM2019 #visitNepal #GatewaytotheHimalayas #LifeTimeExperiences #VNY2020
#MyTravelSim #Ncell

L U M B I N I 🇳🇵❤️I wouldn’t call myself a particularly religious person, but after visiting Lumbini and the birthplace of Buddha, my heart was deeply moved as the teachings of Buddha have inspired me in my darkest moments. I can only be grateful for this adventure. .
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Thanks for the photo @louth_adventure .
#lumbini #nepal #buddha #pilgrimage #HTM2019 #visitNepal #GatewaytotheHimalayas #LifeTimeExperiences #VNY2020
#MyTravelSim #Ncell

One day, I would like to turn on the news and hear that there is peace on earth 🕊 .
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Jacket by @pavnibkk
#worldpeacepagoda #lumbini #nepal #HTM2019 #visitNepal #GatewaytotheHimalayas #LifeTimeExperiences #VNY2020
#MyTravelSim #Ncell

If you live in awareness, it is easy to see miracles✨
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Jacket by @pavnibkk Photo by @sudesh9066
#lumbini #nepal #mayagardens #htm2019 #visitNepal #GatewaytotheHimalayas #LifeTimeExperiences #VNY2020
#MyTravelSim #Ncell