It was our third day in South Africa and we were on our way from Pilanesberg National Park to Parys, a small town southwest of Johannesberg. Parys is Afrikaans for Paris. “I bet it even has its own Eiffel Tower”, I joked. To my surprise, Kate, our South Africa Tourism host, turned around and said, “yes, [...]
My TEDxTalk – Passion. Empowerment. Social Media
It was undoubtedly one of the highlights of 2012 for me: my TEDxTalk for TEDxSaxion. I felt very honored to be invited and I chose to tell a simple personal story about passion, empowerment and social media. Standing there on that red spot was an incredibly exciting and nerve-wracking experience that I’ll never forget. I [...]
One thing to do on Valentine’s Day
It’s a scene that always comes to my mind when I think of Valentine’s Day: the opening minutes of the movie ‘Love Actually‘ that were shot at the Arrivals Hall of Heathrow Airport. The scene of people, faces filled with joy, greeting each other with a warm embrace never fails to move me. It’s one [...]
Velvet Escape challenge 2012
2012 promises to be an eventful year. In sporting terms, London will host the Summer Olympics for the third time (I’m hoping that Roger Federer will win the gold medal at his beloved Wimbledon) whilst the European Football (Soccer) Championships will be held in Poland and Ukraine (I’m betting on the Netherlands of course!). As [...]
A personal source of inspiration
This time three years ago, I was roaming around South America, having the time of my life on my first solo round-the-world trip. After ten years of focusing on my career, this trip certainly opened my eyes to the world outside my comfy ‘bubble’. I learned to value the relationships I have with my family [...]
Velvet moments: travel photo of the week – the moment
This photo brings back many fond memories. It was taken during the first leg (Amsterdam to Hong Kong) of my five-month round-the-world trip in 2008 as the plane flew past the coast of Estonia. I’ve called this photo “The Moment” because it symbolises the start of a life-changing journey that began in 2008 and which [...]
The story every child needs to know
It was a book that begged to be read. I stared at its cover for a few more moments before asking my friend, Rob, what it was about. He turned to look at it and his eyes lit up instantly. He carefully picked up the book from the coffee table, like it was a fragile [...]
Inspiring designs in the Amsterdam Metro
I’m not a big fan of the Amsterdam Metro. In fact, I never thought I’d find myself writing a post inspired by Amsterdam’s public transportation system, and certainly not the Metro! However, travelling in the Metro has become a much more enjoyable experience in the past few months after a complete makeover of the interior. [...]
The last day of summer
Saturday, 9th October 2010. Technically, it wasn’t the last day of summer but it sure felt like it. The sun shone brightly and there wasn’t a single cloud in the sky. At 24 degrees Celsius, it was perfect t-shirt weather… if it weren’t for the reddish-orangy leaves in the trees, you wouldn’t have guessed that [...]
A world of inspiration – people we meet
A great thing about travelling is the many, often unexpected, sources of inspiration we encounter. One of the best sources of inspiration lies in the people we meet. I’m certain that we all have travel stories to tell in which we met someone inspiring who may even have had an influence on us in some way [...]
About Keith Jenkins
I'm Keith Jenkins. In July 2008, I left my ten-year banking career to travel around the world. I've not looked back since.
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