April 2020 TL;DR

Recap

Another month in isolation, another month spent working non-stop on content for foreverbreak.com. From the safety of our living room, we crafted 2 new travel guides, one for Australia and another for Penang, Malaysia.

Our team has also been working on a little something called the Forever Break podcast. Our charismatic hosts, Lianne and Corey have been interviewing award-winning authors, acclaimed psychologists, and a sprinkle of everyday guests to create our 1st season all about mindfulness. The podcast will be available for your auditory pleasure from 26 May. Keep an eye out for it on your favorite podcast platform.

Although the world is still facing a lot of uncertainty, many countries in Asia-Pacific are flattening the curve and able to gradually relax social distancing regulations. While the ability to leave our homes is something we will never take for granted again, we must still take caution and we send prayers and thoughts to those countries still seeing daily increases in new COVID-19 cases.

What's Hot

The most popular page in April was our newly published Australia Travel Guide.

The most popular pins on Forever Break's Pinterest account were the new Penang Travel Guide and our quote by Shimon Peres.

Nitty Gritty

Here's a selection of content we published over the last month.

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MalaysiaPenang Travel Guide

Small in size, big in flavor. Penang's culinary scene is world-renowned, but the tiny island's essence merely begins on the plate, spilling over to larger-than-life wall murals, colonial heritage sites, sandy beaches, and lofty mountains. UNESCO Heritage-listed George Town draws history buffs and trendsetters alike while nature lovers escape to the jungle with treks from Penang Botanic Gardens to the peak of Penang Hill.

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TravelAustralia Travel Guide

Spirited cities and laid-back locals mismatch with arid deserts embodying solitude. Endless beauty from sunburnt-red rocky landscapes to sparkling sapphire-blue seascapes, every inch of the Land Down Under yearns to be explored. Australia’s urban centers cluster along it’s coast leaving the harsh central desert scarcely populated. Along the east coast lies the world’s largest coral reef, the Great Barrier Reef, stretching over 2,300 kilometers (1,400 miles). Australia’s favorite theme parks can be enjoyed on the Gold Coast, while Sydney is home to the iconic Sydney Opera House and Bondi Beach. Melbourne is the place to uncover artisan coffee, Mediterranean-inspired food, designer shopping, and performing arts. Australia’s west coast centers around Perth, home to beloved surf beaches and nostalgic port town, Fremantle. The spiritual center of Australia is Uluru, a gigantic rock formation sacred to Aboriginals.

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WaterfrontFreeWeld Quay Clan Jetties

A series of wooden jetties like fingers reaching into the sea. Lined with modest houses, shops, and cafes, the stilted villages provide a glimpse into Penang's Chinese community of yesteryear. Each 100-year-old jetty belongs to a Chinese family or "clan" who originally moved to Penang to construct Weld Quay, a large port required tor the island’s booming economy.

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Garden$$$$$Tropical Spice Garden

A tribute to Penang's history on the colonial spice trade route between Europe and India, the Tropical Spice Garden showcases a living collection of fruit trees, vegetables, herbs, and spices that naturally grow in Malaysia and made the island of Penang highly coveted during the 18th and 19th centuries.

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ReligiousFreeKek Lok Si Temple

One of the largest Buddhist temples in Southeast Asia and the center of Chinese New Year celebrations in Penang, Kek Lok Si temple is an important pilgrimage for Buddhists. The complex contains several buildings and courtyards worth exploring, the most significant being a 36.5-metre (120 feet) high statue of the Goddess of Mercy, Kuan Yin, and 7-story pagoda housing 10,000 Buddha statues. Open hours extend during Chinese New Year, when visitors can view the temple adorned with over 200,000 fairy lights and 20,000 Chinese lanterns.

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GardenFreeAvatar Secret Garden

A serene, rocky beach by day that turns into a scene from James Cameron's 2009 movie Avatar by night. A section of Penang's natural rainforest has been decked out in colorful LED and optic fiber lights, creating a mystical setting centered around a large banyan tree bearing an uncanny resemblance to the movie's sacred spirit tree, Eywa.

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PenangTree Monkey

Relax in the lush, rainforest setting of the Tropical Spice Garden while enjoying authentic Thai food at Tree Monkey. The restaurant uses fresh herbs and spices locally grown at the Tropical Spice Garden, sending blissful aromas through the restaurant that will have your tummy rumbling in anticipation. Choose a Thai tapas plate to sample the flavors of Thailand, or for a more substantial meal, don’t go past a spicy Thai curry.

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PhotographyBest Northern Lights Photography Tips for Beginners

Find out what gear you need, and camera settings to use, in order to capture the beautiful Northern Lights. This is jam-packed with beginner photography tips so you can create an image that will impress your friends.

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Shoutouts

A huge thank you to Dan Steeden, who wrote his first article for Forever Break this month. It's packed full of photography tips for beginners wanting to capture the Northern Lights, so be sure to check it out.

Quote of the Month

When you have two alternatives, the first thing you have to do is to look for the third that you didn't think about, that doesn't exist.Shimon Peres

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This is quote is especially appropriate during this time of uncertainty. We may feel boxed in, but you'll be surprised at what options are available to you when you look past the alternatives you know exist.

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Looking Forward

In May, we will be shifting gears from travel to lifestyle in response to the COVID-19 situation. Why rub your nose in all these beautiful destinations you physically can't get to? Instead, our website and podcast will be focusing on mindfulness covering topics like meditation techniques to reduce stress, relationship tips, and exercises you can do from home.

You may be wondering "what's mindfulness got to do with a travel website?" To us, mindfulness and travel are intimately connected. Travel is a gateway to experience new cultures and perspectives, to open your mind, adopt new viewpoints, and question the status quo. Without mindfulness, travel is just a simple transactional short-term thrill. With mindfulness, travel can help restore your energy, increase your knowledge and capabilities, and teach life-long lessons.

Let's focus on practicing mindfulness together.