Summer 2010 is almost over. As summer soon turns to autumn, my mind is swirling with thoughts of this summer; memories which I want to share with my readers.

To begin, my summer was quite hectic. Hospital and university kept me busy in May, June and the first two weeks of July. It’s normal to be in a mad rush just before the long summer break. During those months, I started to plan my July and August schedule. My fingers and toes were itching to embark on another journey, so I networked with different people, who said they might like to sit down for a while and enjoy my company.

July was going to be spent in Czechia since that is where I know most foreign people. Diary in one hand, pen in the other, I wrote down names of people plus names of towns I was going to visit. I was going to need 14 days to see everyone. In mid-July, I set off on my adventure and began my Czech holiday in the capital of Moravia – Brno.

When I travel, I try to make the experience interesting for myself and the people I meet. In 2008, I met people individually, but had bad luck with people cancelling when I actually got to Cz. In 2009, I had better luck with people and it was the first time I organised little meetings between myself, my friend and usually another friend from DV. Now, in 2010, things are much better because the meetings are larger each time. I connected five people in one Brno meeting this July and earlier on in April we were a group of four.

Meadow, Lachesis and Laire met with me in Prague. We talked a little, made some photos then set off to Govinda to look at saris. One of the small groups on DV is the sari-women group. They wear Indian saris with their long hair, which is quite cute from my point of view. It was a boiling hot afternoon. As we slowly walked towards the shop, sweating and with red faces, I watched as the three ladies talked to each other. Meadow is one of my favourite people on DV, so it was a huge pleasure for me to introduce her to Laire and Lachesis. Finally, we got to the shop and the women looked at all the amazing saris and Asian jewellery. I smiled as I watched them and I must say that Lachesis looked exceptionally attractive when she tried on a sari. Time was short, unfortunately, and we had to say our goodbyes. It was the last time I saw Meadow ; next time we can meet is summer 2011, when I visit Czechia, again.

The next meeting was with Malonek,Laire and Eressiel, who gathered for a mini-sraz while I was in Brno. We had fun in a cajovna, café and during the photoshoot and video-shoot with Malonek and Laire. New experiences are enjoyed more when they are shared. It was a big pleasure to introduce Malonek to Laire and Eressiel. Leaving the three of them meant they had the possibility to stay in touch and continue to build upon the friendship they started on the day they met me. That is the legacy of networking with people ; what happens after you leave a group of people.

A day later, I journeyed to meet Sixteen and Anathariell. These two sweet women met me in a ‘lesopark,’ but we enjoyed a great meal together, introducing and talking about why we like the DV website as well as our conversation about long hair. Again, we did some filming, photography and I can safely say that the three of us had a splendid afternoon together, even with the bad weather. I loved seeing both of them smile and watching how they talked together. Success – another two DV women connected together.

The next few days were spent in one of the best towns I visited in Czechia – Liberec. I had heard of it, but never realised how beautiful it was. I didn’t enjoy the 36-38 degrees Celsius, though. English summers are not as extreme as in Czechia. It was like being roasted in an oven, which I didn’t need since I was already quite dark. Haha! Luckily, I found a cool cajovna, where I could enjoy the taste of refreshing ice-tea as I enjoyed Odette and Jezecek_11’s company. Neither one used DV much, so now they have the opportunity to support each other with their enjoyment of long hair.

Continuing to Hradec Kralove, I had a small reunion with four guys I lived with 6 yrs ago. They were from Spain, Lebanon and Palestine and though we live in different cities and countries, it felt just like the old times when we laughed, ate, smoked shisha and stayed awake the whole night. We are all night-creatures. Ha! I met with some more DV people – a friend and her boyfriend plus another two friends and their boyfriends. My connections were drawing to a close. I just had my final day in Prague, in which I was supposed to meet another friend, but because of work she could not meet me.

One door closes, another door opens. That is how I view life. I had to return to England without seeing that friend, but I travelled to Romania in August to see another friend. It was my first visit to that country and the first time I worked with “vlasy po zem”. Eniko had the longest hair I had personally seen in real life. Before her, I was like everyone else who only saw photos of A.d.e.l’s hair. She’s new to this internet world of long hair. I showed her our DV website and suggested that she make a profile. Your country, Czechia, is the best place to see long hair in my opinion. I want Eniko to enjoy beautiful experiences in your country as I have these past 10 yrs, and I don’t mean only hair experiences.

Good experiences chase away depression, sadness and loneliness. I want to thank the following people for making my 2010 incredible :

Anathariell,Hankabar,Meadow,Jezecek_11,Odette,Lachesis,Laire,Eressiel,Malonek ,Kataska,Sixteen,Jasna, Eniko and SimkVer

Hold onto every single happy moment. Every second of life is precious.