I was born on a beautiful day in May in Sistiana, in the province of Trieste, and like everyone from my hometown, I have the sea running through my veins. When I was six, I took my first sailing course, and it was love at first sight.
I made a promise to myself: “I’ll never get on a boat again.” (It was just the first of countless times I’ve made that promise to myself…)
Ten years later, however, I returned to the sailing club (YC Čupa) for a windsurfing course, and I actually liked that one (or maybe I just liked the instructors?!). The fact is, I never left. I started out as an assistant for windsurfing courses, then decided to take the FIV instructor training course, so for about ten years I spent my summers teaching sailing—with kids on Optimists and teens on windsurfing boards. In the summer I was at the beach, while in the winter I studied in Ljubljana, Slovenia, where I graduated in 2005 with a thesis on the “Gioco Sport” method applied to sailing.
At age 29, I decided to quit my job as a teacher and take a sabbatical year. So I bought a one-way ticket and left for Asia.
A couple of months later, I set sail from Australia and spent nine years sailing the Pacific Ocean, exploring Australia, Mexico, French Polynesia, Tonga, and Fiji.
Since 2018, you can find me mainly in the Adriatic on my boat Tahuata. In summer I sail and run my own sailing school, in winter I write books and present them at different events. But as soon as I can, I board a plane and take a trip to the South Pacific, a sailing ground I deeply love.
My qualifications:
- RYA Yachtmaster Offshore
- FIV sailing instructor for dinghies and keelboats, registered in the italian professional registry
- UISP Keelboat Instructor
- Italian sailing license no limits
- Bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education from the University of Ljubljana (Slovenia)
- 30,000 nautical miles, mainly in the Pacific Ocean
- Valid BLSD Course
- Amateur Radio License, call sign KD0RSM
- SRC GMDSS Certificate
My favorite game has always been the treasure hunt. As a child, I loved it when my mom had me run up and down the yard looking for little notes hidden in the trees and under the bushes. Years later, I discovered that organizing a scavenger hunt for others is, in some ways, even more fun: coming up with riddles, writing clues, composing coded messages, finding hiding spots that aren’t too obvious, and so on. There was a time when I spent entire afternoons drawing maps with lemon juice or creating huge puzzles, but I have to admit that this never seemed like a waste of time to me. While I was doing it, I felt creative, happy, and full of life. I really couldn’t say who was having more fun—me, as I was setting up the scavenger hunt, or the people who were playing it.
Around the age of 30, I realized I didn’t want to stop playing, so I kept hunting for treasures scattered all over the world. I love searching for them, finding them, and sharing them. Sometimes the treasure takes the form of a new friendship, sometimes a spectacular place or an unforgettable experience. But what I like about this game is that finding the treasure isn’t really that important; the best part is to have fun along the way.