My first travel competition ...

Ok, so I love writing and I love traveling ... I have to admit that traveling is my first love ...

I started to travel at 18 and have never really looked back. I live for those moments on the road and only really feel free when I have nothing to do and nowhere to go.

In light of this, I am in the process of applying for a scholarship with World Nomads. World Nomads are a part of the Rough Guide group and for as long as I can remember, I have wanted to write for the Rough Guide. Not so long ago, at the height of my depressive moment, I looked up into the sky and begged the universe for a chance to get paid to travel ... a couple of weeks later and this opportunity landed in my Facebook feed ...

I'm trying my absolute best to win a place not only because it will change my life forever but because it will also give me the chance to change the lives of others which is my only reason for existing.

So here is the first draft of my entry, I would love to know what you think:

The heat seemed to swagger around, yelling at whoever had the misfortune of being in it that yes, it was that hot and if we didn't like it, we could just get back on the bus … like little wimps.

As a bead of sweat dripped indecently between my butt cheeks, I started to get the impression that I was wildly overdressed. I mean, who wears jeans and a sheepskin waistcoat to the desert?

The London to Tel Aviv flight had already been a grand adventure of delays, strip searches and hotel rooms. So, as a nineteen year old, naive solo traveler, now on her way south … I realized I still had a lot to learn.

No 1: when traveling through the Negev desert, try not to dress as though you are attending a shepherding convention in North Yorkshire.

Trying to walk like someone who wasn't being broiled alive inside their underwear, I casually squelched my way towards the blissfully air-conditioned gas station where ice cream quickly became my main focus. Unfortunately, due to my ineptitude at haggling, also the subject of a tragically comical few seconds. Stumbling my way through a bewildering combination of sign language and waggling eyebrows, I finally snagged a bargain and stepped out again into the rude desert heat.

Realising a long held desire to throw off the shackles of its solid form, my ice cream instantly turned to liquid and ran down my arm.Realising

No 2: always consider your frozen goods before going into the desert.

Getting intrigued stares from my fellow passengers as I attempted to lick ice cream off my elbow, I hoisted my sticky self back to my seat and snapped my headphones over my ears. The grinding, thumping sounds of Nirvana filled my brain as we pulled away and I gazed out of the window at an expanse of dusty red mountains and canyons. It was as alien to a girl from a green, rain riddled land as another planet and it was love at first contact.

At that exact second, on a scorching road in the middle of the Israeli desert, I was viscerally propelled towards my own kind of Nirvana. Of truly being in the NOW.

My heart suddenly became too big for my chest and infinitely full of joy and contentment. I was invincible, the world full of beauty and wonder. The destination no longer mattered and I was brimming with a wild, rebellious freedom. The present moment was everything and it was vibrant and exciting, filled with potential.

I was my journey and simply breathing in the arid, desert air was the greatest gift.

No 3: Nirvana can change your life ... if you let them.

Comments? Questions? Please let me know!