After planning to launch co-created experiences in far-off places close to my heart around the world this past February, I wasn’t able to sign up enough people this first time around to be able to run the trip. It was to be held in a stunning, quiet island in the South of Thailand – one of my favourite spots in the world. Regardless, I met a ton of people in the process, and learned so much that will help carry me through as I continue to create unique experiences where people can connect and be inspired to reach their potential. Many who knew what I was hoping for seemed to feel sad and anxious for me when they heard that it didn’t happen, but I can truly say I wasn’t attached to the trip itself, and was very grateful for everything that happened in the process leading up to it and how it all continues to evolve.

What this also meant, since I would be in Vancouver most of this spring and summer, is that I would have to put running any of these experiences on hold until likely next fall or winter, when I’ll be able to plan to be in Asia or elsewhere again with my dear friend Rivka (my experience partner), and give myself more time to ensure that we can garner enough interest and put together something really special.

So that’s where the dinner series concept for Vancouver came up – what could I do in the meantime, that would help me start to build a community of like-minded people and find a way to still hold these curated experiences regardless of being at “home”? This has become an exciting way for me to continue to move towards my overall vision for Umami Journeys, and also try to bring out those in the city who may be interested in similar things. And thus, the #achieveitforward Vancouver dinner series was born, the first of which took place on April 30th, covering the topic of “Breaking Free From Feeling Stuck”.

The essence of these careful curated Vancouver dinner series events is very similar to solo travel – people come in more or less as strangers with zero expectations or pre-based knowledge or opinions of one another or the event itself. Everyone has the option to fully be themselves, which is one of my favourite things about travel to begin with – specifically when on your own. These dinners provide an opportunity to co-create a temporary world for an evening, placing together individuals who are all attending on their own, knowing that once the dinner is over, they will be going back to their day to day lives.

One of the most beautiful aspects of being about to travel on my own is the possibility to be however I want, and do what I want, whenever I want, which is completely freeing. And since you’re temporarily in a new world, be it traveling or during one of these dinners, you may feel less prone to judgement and criticism, allowing you the courage to be yourself and however you want in any given moment. This allows an extra amount of freedom that we don’t get in our everyday lives, having a set home base, surrounded by the same community, who we understand have preconceived notions and expectations of us and society.

I love exploring with other people and getting to know others more deeply fairly quickly, the same way I like to explore with the people and culture of new places around the world. However, this setting also provides an intimate and more time-constrained way of doing so, that is more easy and accessible for everyone over a few hours on a single evening at a dinner table, without having to travel to some far off location.

Since I’m also very much a foodie, having a meal around a table is very important to me and has been all my life, since my early days with my own family every evening, growing up on a farm in an isolated town in Northern BC. I feel that connecting around the dinner table is a very key part of my life, and this has been a common thread through many other cultures as well, as I’ve experienced through my travels.

I’m excited to see how this monthly dinner series evolves, and look forward to dining with more of you!