The girl behind the guide ~

Alessandra Cave

“I’m curious by nat ure and I love to travel and experience new cultures. I’m drawn to vibrant colors, the ocean, the charm of simple life and the inspiration found in the most ordinary moments. Originally from Brazil, I’ve traveled extensively over the past 20 years, lingering in big cities and remote villages for as long as possible. Nowadays, I live in sunny California and work as a photographer, while also embarking on the exciting journey of motherhood. This blog is a place for me to share my bohemian dreams and connect with other like-minded gypsies. When I am not having an adventure around the globe, I’m either writing for this blog, shooting, contributing at Shutter Sisters, or else I can also be found sipping masala chai and walking the streets of San Francisco with my camera. You can reach me at gypsygirlsguide@gmail.com.”

The guide ~

A place to share inspiration among gypsy girls!

Gypsy Girls are free spirited. We are dreamers taken by wanderlust. We are holistic, easygoing and kind. We are peaceful warriors. We love nature and care about the planet. We are worldly, bohemian, mystical, strong. We are cultural nomads, brave explorers, writers, journalists, photographers, surfers, designers, artists, athletes, performers, business women, jet setters, expats, humanitarians. We are pioneers and entrepreneurs leading unconventional lives around the globe. We believe in global consciousness. We think, care and act globally. We rock locally. We believe in following our dreams. We cultivate courage via safe risk taking. We believe that challenges are our teachers. We believe in spiritual growth. We believe in tradition, in connection, in the power of community and in the gift of sharing. We believe in practicing authenticity, mindfulness and gratitude. We believe in nurturing creativity, the earth and all beings. Are you a Gypsy Girl? Check out our Gypsy Girl’s Guide Manifesto!

Our wandering contributors ~

Bobbi French’s story is one of an ordinary person seeking an extraordinary life. She has made a bold decision, some say she’s brave, some say she’s lost her mind. {{We think she is so brave!}} She says that after years of medical training followed by years of tireless and devoted service to public Psychiatry, it was time for a change. So in the tradition of ‘go big or go home’, she has sold her house, car, possessions (she kept the husband!) and with very little cash and very little French to speak with, she is moving to France to find a new career and a new life. She is leaving everything she knows to for once have an adventure. Walking away or walking towards? Join Bobbi on her journey and you decide.

Beth Nicholls is a wandering English girl who has lived, worked and travelled in over 50 countries on every continent, seeking out beauty everywhere she goes. She has a deep love of Japan and the Orient, and speaks fluent Japanese. Beth founded Do What You Love to give women tools and inspiration to do what they love for life. This includes life-enhancing retreats and e-courses to help women monetize their passion and follow their dreams.

Christine Mason Miller is a Santa Monica based writer and artist who has been creating, writing and exploring ever since she was a little girl. Her mission to inspire has provided the foundation for all of her creative work, and the desire to encourage others to pursue their passions and create a meaningful life is the common thread throughout her expansive body of work, that includes mixed media collage, commercial illustration, photography, writing, teaching and speaking. She writes the column Across the Globe for the Somerset Studio magazine highlighting creative pursuits all over the world, and she creates beautiful travel journals inspired by her adventures, which she shares with us at GGG regularly.

Denise Andrade is the writer of the widely read blog Boho Girl, where she has chronicled her journey of leaving the corporate world to start a creative career, her path of fertility, adoption, motherhood and the raw, honest layers of emotion that come with it all. She is a photographer of artists and the creator of Nectar Girl, an e-course that invites all girls to connect to the existing abundance and fertility in their lives and hearts. Denise is currently living in Southern California with her husband and son, but in the process of manifesting a juicy new life in the Pacific Northwest. Her regular column at GGG explores all things bohemian, free, feminine, nurturing, soulful, sexy, gentle and wild. She takes us on a journey within.

Jeanine Caron is a Canadian blogger who currently resides in Montreal, where she spends her weekends taking photographs and her weekdays saving up for her next travel destination. She is a world traveler as well as a gifted writer and photographer. Jeanine captivates us all with her wit, colorful images, and her charming tales about her long distance romance with a certain English boy.

Jen Gray is the founder and director of a creative dance group for children in the Chicago area. She usually has her hands involved in a variety of creative projects but mostly, she just enjoys driving the tractor and picking beans. Jen embodies kindness and magic, she takes beautiful photographs, makes fabulous videos and is an all around inspiring gypsy girl. A seasoned traveler and an avid road tripper, Jen is our resident DJ for the column “Road Trip tunes“.

Leonie Wise is poet, an adventurer and a life enthusiast. She is currently traveling the globe indefinitely with her husband, and not sure where in the world she lives right now, but she will always call New Zealand home. In her regular column at Gypsy Girls Guide, Leonie offers us a glimpse of her wandering life through her poetic eye and words.

Liz Kalloch is an artist, designer and writer who’s lived in many corners of the world and now resides in the San Francisco Bay area, where she runs her own Art business. She believes we all have our own very individual life purpose and that when we stop long enough to listen to that still and quiet inner voice, we can do anything we choose. In her regular column at Gypsy Girl’s Guide, Liz muses on travel, language, art and soul searching.

Marianne Elliot is a change-maker, a human rights advocate, a yoga teacher and a writer, traveling the world to do good. She is the creator of 30 days of yoga: an online course to establish a regular home practice of yoga and to build a kinder relationship with your own body. She is currently writing a memoir about her life as a UN peacekeeper in Afghanistan.

Rebecca Self is putting her high school and college language courses to good use. A former professor of Media Studies and published author turned entrepreneur, she keeps an apartment outside Zurich, Switzerland mostly for her 100-pound dog from the Boulder, Colorado Humane Society. She works globally as a communication & training consultant for multinational firms and blogs at XpatAdventures, which began as a way to stay in touch with girlfriends after a divorce & move in 2004.

Kate Swoboda is a Life Coach, speaker and writer who supports change-makers to clarify, build, and live their big visions. She’s the author of the Courageous Living Guides and creator of the Courageous Play and Create Stillness retreats. In the Fall of 2011, she’ll debut The Coaching Blueprint. She’s excited about learning languages, reading as many books as she can, getting bendy-stretchy on the yoga mat, the quest for the next amazing chai latte, and running.

Roxanne Krystalli designs and implements programs that benefit women affected by conflict worldwide. Her work and travels have brought her from Egypt to Colombia and Uganda to Guatemala. In addition to her conflict management work, Roxanne is a photojournalist and fervent believer in the power of storytelling. She chronicles her life at Stories of Conflict and Love.