Karmalicante
During four months last winter, (November to March) “Karmavan” turned into “Karmalicante.” For my 2024/2025 winter migration I decided to settle with my van in the beautiful Spanish and mediterranean city of Alicante. The place has many advantages for Vanlifers. Let me share them with you: Mild winters: Alicante in winter offers temperatures with daytime…
Franco-Spanish
In 1967 my father, a Spanish immigrant, became a French citizen. At the time there was no such thing as “dual nationality”. He, and his four brothers and sisters, had no choice but to “renounce” their Spanish citizenship. Surprisingly, it is only very recently, in April 2022, that France and Spain signed an agreement that…
Winter migration
It was a round trip of 4,875 km over four months, from Breuillet to Almería and back. With Several stops along the way, this “winter migration” had one main goal : to get away from the cold, gray winter of northern France and find the warm and sunny weather of southern Spain. Indeed, Karmavan and…
Swimming pools around the world
Lovers of swimming can talk hours about the pros and cons of swimming in pools versus in the ocean. I am not going to enter into this debate. The fact is that there is more probability that a swimmer lives close by a heated indoor pool than to a coast with warm ocean temperatures. As…
Winter season in the Alps
Karmavan and I are alike: we both like warm and sunny weather. But when I found a 4-month winter season job in the French Alps, we took gloves, coats and blankets and headed to the very chic, but cold and snowy, ski resort of Megève. For the entire winter season (beginning of December to end…
20 days in the deepness of my inner self
What’s 20 days in a lifetime ? Yet when I tell people that I made a 20-day meditation retreat, in complete silence, they are chocked : “What ? 20-days with no speaking, without your phone, waking up at 4AM, meditating 10 hours a day and no eating after noon ? How can you do that…
H2r Équipements Ambassador
H2r Ambassadors get products for free in exchange of testing them and sharing experiences through videos to be posted on H2r Équipements website.
Vanlife to infinity
Every night is different when dwelling in a van. From rivers to lakes, from castles to abandoned railroads, these are just a few examples of the best spots I have settled with Karmavan so far. Just a little over one month ago I moved into my still under construction van (AKA Karmavan). It’s a simple…
One year with Karmavan
July 7th, 2020. Villiers St Benoît. One year ago, I was trading my legendary red Renault Kangoo for a big blue-gray Mercedes Sprinter van. The plan : building my own nest. 365 days after, lots of DIY weekends, screwed screws, hammered nails and help from my friends, it is still under construction but the essentials…
And there was light
It is an exceptionally sunny afternoon of March and I am indulging in the confort of solar energy in my van (AKA Karmavan). My phone and my computer are charging and I am typing this article. A quick check at the App VictronConnect tells me that my solar panels are producing 38 Watt of electricity…
Building my “own nest”
I cannot agree more with Henry David Thoreau when he writes in Walden “Our houses are such unwieldy property that we are often imprisoned rather than housed in them.” That’s why instead of becoming the unfortunate owner of a house or an apartment I decided to become the owner of Karmavan: a beautiful, 2014 Mercedes…
Coronavirus Quarantine: a blessing in disguise?
I don’t know about you, but I enjoy every single moment of this situation. I am lucky enough to have joined my parents in their modest home in the quiet suburban town of Breuillet, 30 km south of Paris, at the beginning of the quarantine. Life here is so peaceful and simple that secretly I…
2020: The Year of Dhamma
I’ve been re-reading the articles in my blog since its beginning, and that is a very good way to reflect on my life from 2014 up to now. I’ve lived in and traveled to many places. I was involved in many adventures, thoughts and projects. I do not regret anything. I had a wonderful time…
16th Datacloud Awards and Congress in Monaco
“And the winner is… KaoData!” Among 2 other nominees, Iron Mountain Data Centers and GlobeNet, this leading data center UK company won the Excellence in Corporate Social Responsability Award at the 16th Datacloud Awards Ceremony happening in Monaco last June 4th. Invited by the organizer of the event, Broadgroup, Télécoms Sans Frontières (TSF) had the…
Intense but tremendous life experience: Cyclone Idai, Mozambique, with TSF
It was with mix feelings of anxiety and excitement that I left Pau to Mozambique on March 22nd. I knew it was going to be an intense mission but I also knew it was going to be a tremendous life experience. One week after the deployment of the first members of Télécoms Sans Frontières (TSF)…
Humanitarian Network & Partnership Week (HNPW)
Networking is not only for entrepreneurs. It can also be for humanitarians! The proof is the Humanitarian Network & Partnership Week (HNPW), a one-week event, where humanitarian networks and partnerships hold their annual consultations. As member of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), Télécoms Sans Frontières (TSF) was invited to…
Télécoms Sans Frontières Annual General Meeting
It’s like the time would have stop for a week at Télécoms Sans Frontières (TSF). The time to do our Annual General Meeting (AGM). Six days of presentations, discussions and working groups where we came back on 2018 works and achievements but where we also set our goals for 2019. Everybody was involved in some…
Speaking on behalf of TSF at Capacity Europe’s Global Carrier Awards
This year’s Global Carrier Awards was my first opportunity to talk on behalf of Télécoms Sans Frontières in front of a major audience: more than 400 members of the telecommunication community. This ceremony takes place during Capacity Europe; the largest carrier event in the continent that brings together more than 650 companies of the voice…
First mission with Télécoms Sans Frontières: Typhoon Mankghut, Philippines
At TSF all staff members, from ICT specialists to accountants, have to experience the field at least once. It is one of the requirements when one gets hired: “You must be ready to integrate TSF’s emergency teams abroad and carry out missions in the context of humanitarian crises.” As Head of Communication and International Relations, I…
thecore.io, the first WooCommerce Management Platform
During his talk at WordCamp Europe 2018, Noel Tock, from Human Mades, well highlighted that “one click install or access to cPanel dashboard are not enough anymore.” In 2019, if they want to survive, hosting providers have to reinvent themselves and offer “fully integrated solutions” or what we also call “DXP, Digital Experience Platforms”. This…
My first weeks as Head of Communication & International Relations at Télécoms Sans Frontières
I first heard about Télécoms Sans Frontières (TSF) during hurricane Irma back in September of 2017. On the news, members of its team, ready to go, were carrying huge boxes of telecommunication equipment. At this point, I had no idea that these people were going to become my colleagues one day, but I started dreaming…
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isabelle garcia 