I travel, write, give Shiatsu, drift, make art, and walk.

my foot is on the earth and I wish to walk over it until my wings be grown

Maria Michell 1818-1889 with thanks to Maria Popova

I have taken long-distance walks and made secular pilgrimage on the St Magnus Way, Orkney; the Via Sacra, Austria; along the Scottish and Portuguese coastal paths and the Spanish caminos. Author of Working with Death and Loss in Shiatsu Practice (Singing Dragon, Hachette), I also have essays published in Hinterland, Caught by the River, So Hormonal (Monstrous Regiment), by the Wild Woman Press, Wild Greens Magazine, and the Wanderlust Journal. My blog was featured in Mslexia. My Shiatsu blog is here.

I live in Edinburgh, Scotland, and have two grown-up daughters. When I travel, I offer Shiatsu in return for hospitality, a way to exchange kindness, to give and receive in an act of reciprocity.

Cramond Island, Edinburgh

How it all began

In the Autumn of 2016 I took my first ever sabbatical. travelling to Spain and exchanging Shiatsu for bed and board. I walked the Camino Frances (Pamplona to Finisterre), part of the Via de la Plata (Santiago de Compostella towards Seville), and up and over the Sierra Calderona near Valencia.

You picture yourself stepping out onto a path like The Fool in tarot, a bundle on a stick, tripping lightly. …not an idle wander: this has meaning. It is the recovering of sanity and sanctity.

Sonia Overall, Heavy Time p13
Camino credential, shell and other tiles

21 thoughts on “About me”

  1. Hello,

    I stumble onto your blog when doing some research for a possible pilgrimage to do St. margarets way. would love to reach out to you more about it. Is that an option?

    thanks

    Matt

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  2. Stumbled across your blog on walking through my home town of Leith and gratefully learned some interesting facts. Your journeys are inspiring and remind myself of the importance of not just living life but walking it also. So much to see and strangers to meet. Fantastic.

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  3. Hi there,
    I just seen the gravestone of my mum on your blog, was lovely to see. Although you said her name was ‘Sardar Mohammad’ when it’s actually ‘Amina Bibi’
    Thank you for the pic. What’s the chances I’d find it on here.

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      1. Not a problem at all. Thank you for the pic though. Was a lovely surprise. I need to make another visit soon. I live in Stirling Now.

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  4. Pingback: Lost Species Day 2021 – Passenger Pigeon – Walking without a donkey

  6. I admire your ability to run a business and with a family too. Making time for walking in life is very enhancing though in so many ways.
    I’m looking forward to reading more now that I have found you.
    Amelia Marriette

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  7. I don’t know anything about Shiatsu, but you seem to be the one to follow to learn more about it! I’m interested in how you combine your Shiatsu with your walks. What a creative way to live! And how interesting that you walked the Camino Frances backward from Santiago to Seville. 🙂

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    1. Thankyou! I exchange Shiatsu for a bed or food etc. And I freely give it when necessary – in a bar kneeling on the floor or on the hostal in the dormitory, in the queue as we waited to get a bed or kitchen before sleeping.

      I tried walking backwards from Santiago to Seville but only managed 10 days. After that I started in Seville and walked to where I had got to, more or less. It was a good lesson.

      Thanks for following and commenting. I could not work out how to contribute to yours.

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      1. Sounds like an interesting way to travel, Tamsin. So why did you only manage 10 days from Santiago to Seville? And then where did you go from Seville? I’ll have to keep reading to find out more!
        I’m not sure why you can’t contribute to my blog in comments. If you have a WordPress blog, it should be okay. Is your blog through WordPress?

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      3. Wow! That list of the places you’ve been is very extensive! It seems you have bounced around a lot in Spain (and I’m sure many other places as well!). Good for you. I’m sure it was all very exciting. 🙂

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  8. Looking forward to making the time to read your blog thoroughly as I love walking too. I found your blog yesterday with the search tag ‘shiatsu’. I have often wondered about training in it having had a positive experience of the healing power of Shiatsu some years ago. Walk on!

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    1. Hi, studying Shiatsu was one of the best things I have ever done – I highly recommend it. Thank you for your message and I hope you are having some great walks. With best wishes, Tamsin

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