MY STORY…

Hi,

welcome to my colorful blog, Chilli & Chocolate. I’m so glad you’re here. My name is Sylva and I’m a big fan of travelling, exploring new cultures and I’m also a big gourmet. I’ve always had the desire to tell about my travels. And the best way to let as many people as possible know was to start this travel blog. I think you can see from my articles that travel is my passion. If I had to choose between buying a handbag or a plane ticket, you probably know what I’d choose. 🙂

WHY CHILLI&CHOCOLATE ?

In Australia, I completely fell in love with coffee. I learned that for Australians, it’s their religion. They drink coffee a lot, several times a day. They can tell there is something wrong with your coffee and won’t hesitate to give it back to you. And when you’re in Sydney, you just want to have the best job in the world, don’t you! 🙂 That’s why I became a barista. I learned a lot about coffee. At a coffee festival, I tasted coffee with chocolate and chilli sprinkled on top at a Mexican stall. I was amazed by the combination. It was simply love at first sight! ♥ When I came back to Prague, I was convinced that I would have my own coffee shop and it would be called Chilli&Chocolate. But you know the saying, „You think, life change!“ In the end, I was left with a name (what if one day:-)), but it fits exactly my way of travelling. In short, my travels are sweet and sometimes spiced up!♥

WEALTH LIES MAINLY IN EXPERIENCES

I am the author of all the photos you can find on my blog, Facebook or my Instagram. In short, I like to write, take pictures and share what I like. I’ve been travelling since I was a little girl. We lived in Slovakia for six years when I was little. We took various trips, visited castles and chateaus, and I always thought that after the Velvet Revolution, we would inherit a castle and I would be rich. Unfortunately, it didn’t happen. It wasn’t until I was older that I realized that far more valuable than owning a castle or a field, it was better to own experiences. With them, you can be sure that no one will take them away from you! 🙂

I’VE BEEN TRAVELLING SINCE I WAS A KID

I always dreamed of being a great traveler and maybe even a writer one day. Travelling in foreign lands has always been such a big magnet for me. As a kid, I used to watch movies that took place in exotic countries. I’m sure you’re familiar with The Man from Acapulco and The Man from Hong Kong. They’re some of my favorites. And I’m also a big collector of travel books or guidebooks from faraway lands, which I have collected from antique shops at home.

And what do I enjoy about traveling? My favorite part is the planning part. I love the process of finding flights, accommodation, browsing antique shops, bookstores or scouring the internet to find as much information as I can. In short, everything that goes with it. I don’t like to go somewhere unprepared. And as my dad says, there are three ways to experience a trip – when you prepare for it, the trip itself, and when you tell others about it afterwards. I totally agree with him.♥

I THINK OF TRAVEL AS A KIND OF EXPLORATION

I don’t know about you, but I think of travel as a kind of exploration. During my time there, I gained a lot of inspiration, time for myself and most importantly, new intense experiences. I believe that traveling and exploring new landscapes changes your world view and broadens your horizons. And I can easily tell you specifically: you will gain self-confidence, you will get energized by people from different cultural backgrounds, you will taste incredibly good food because every country has its famous ones and most importantly you will have a lot of fun that you will remember for a lifetime. I’m convinced that if it works for me and thousands of other travel lovers, it will have a similar effect on you.

LIVING ABROAD

On my blog, I would like to inspire those who are afraid to go abroad and start their life somewhere else. I’ve done it twice and I think anyone can do it! You just have to want to. It was a great decision for me. I love England! I call it my second home. I had amazing days here as an Au-Pair and made friends, dare I say, for life. I was really nervous and freaked out at the time. I remember it like I do now, arriving in London with a huge suitcase on a Student Agency bus after 16 hours, waiting at the station for my family. That’s when a whole different world opened up to me. It was the best thing I could have done for myself. Not only did I learn to clean quite adequately, but it gave me great courage to speak English and not be ashamed if I said something wrong. The world was at my feet! Really! A priceless experience!

It wasn’t until I was much older that I went on a work and travel visa to Sydney, Australia. Here I realised that nothing is free, that there are jobs where you really work hard, and that making coffee every day is not just about making a pretty heart or a flower out of milk foam. 🙂 And also that it’s not fun to learn every day and then work the rest of the time. But still, this country gave me a huge freedom and I was able to take a break from the everyday stereotypical worries.

None of these experiences were easy. But it was the best school of life I could have had, and thanks to that I am not easily distracted. I have gained a tremendous amount of perspective and humility, which are so badly needed in life. Remember, every day!

WHAT DO I DO FOR A LIVING?

Unfortunately, in addition to traveling, I have to go to work. 🙂 I currently work as a project manager and for a long time I worked as a business analyst. I’m responsible for planning, organizing, managing and controlling the implementation of the project, so that everything is done on time and within budget. Do you find it boring? Not at all, on the contrary. I would say it’s a lot like travelling. You also plan, organize trips, try not to spend all the money and arrive everywhere on time. You can find out more about my work at Linkedin.

Let me inspire you to travel further, explore the romantic corners of old Prague or the magical places of the Czech lands, discover street art hidden in the dark alleys of cities, visit beautiful antique shops or magical bookstores around the world, remind yourself of traditions that have almost been forgotten, meet magical creative people and go on gastronomic experiences with me.

Thank you for following me!

Sylva