My adventures outside the 9 to 5

The adventure begins

“Where to begin! I’ve worked at FatFace for just over three years now and that means one thing… I qualify for a sabbatical! There was no way I was going to pass up the amazing opportunity to take three months out of work to go and explore the world and, after all, FatFace is all about life outside the 9 to 5, so I was determined to make the most of every second.

As I’m writing this, I’m sat in a bamboo bungalow in Sabang, overlooking the turquoise waters off the island of Palawan in the Philippines — a far cry from my desk back home. My commute here wasn’t a dual carriageway but three planes, two busses and a wooden boat. Instead of the coffee round this morning, I watched as a very kind local climbed a palm tree, machete in hand, to cut me down a fresh coconut (I’ll get the next round, I promise). Heaven.”

The journey so far

“I’m three weeks (well, 24 days to be precise) into my three months away and I’ve already had so many unforgettable experiences. Before leaving England, my only concrete plan was a flight to Denpasar, Bali and two nights’ accommodation in Canggu. Since then, I’ve danced on the beach in Bali to see in the New Year, climbed Mount Batur, an active volcano, by torch light to watch the sunrise, snorkelled with turtles in the Gili Islands, swum with manta rays in the Flores Sea (whilst getting stung by jellyfish), climbed waterfalls in an uninhabited island, taken a four-day boat trip to Komodo National Park to see Komodo dragons in the wild, watched wild orangutans wake up from their nests in the Bornean rainforest, jumped out of a boat on the Kinabatangan River to come face to face with a heard of wild Pygmy elephants strolling through the rainforest, and now I’m on a deserted beach in Palawan!

Looking back on how much you can achieve in such a short time is crazy. Tomorrow, after two nights of eating only fish, rice, noodle pots and coconuts with no electricity, I’m heading back to Sabang to make my way north to El Nido. My expectations have been set high so hopefully it won’t disappoint!”

The way ahead

“At the moment, I plan to stay in the Philippines for a month. After that, I’m not really sure about my next country and adventure. The fact I could end up anywhere in the world excites me and I’m going to make the most of not having to stick to any schedule, let alone the 9 to 5!”