You ache for something more when you travel.
You’ve known for some time that there’s something more. A more-ness to this life, to your soul, to the worlds both seen and unseen.
And it calls to you.
In the melody of a song, the lines of a poem, the forest of a fairy tale about the girl who wins fire from the wise old crone. We could call it inspiration or enchantment or magic. It matters not. It’s real and it’s palpable, and any interaction with it fills you with belonging.
Remember that book you had when you were little? The one that smelled like possibility and spilled secret longings from its pages every time you opened it? Well, we’re hoping you'll step into that book with us.
Because we’re not just taking you on a tour. We’re taking you on an adventure. Part vision quest, part magic carpet ride, Muse Juice Tours is designed to give you a mythic encounter with your own life by exposing you to delights both “out there” and “in here” that will leave your heart so juicy you’ll have to run home and drench your whole world in dazzle.
What is Muse Juice?
The phrase was coined by Queen of the Wonder Hunters and Chief Shenanigator Angi Sullins, and simply means I-N-S-P-I-R-A-T-I-O-N. Muse Juice is the elixir of all creativity. It's the inspiration you drink in - through a book, a show, an adventure, a life-changing experience or "aha moment" - that ignites your creative fire.
Think of our expeditions as pilgrimages to places of wonder to revive, encourage and kindle your creative spirit.
Muse Juice Tours are designed for the child's heart, the seat of wonder inside of you. For this reason we often seek out the fairy tale elements of a place. We indulge its stories and folklore, its myths and romances, and it's most surprising, quirky charms. If you're looking to go see the "big five" of any place these tours are likely not for you.
For example, while in Paris we do not take you to climb the Eiffel Tower, though we will picnic beneath it while listening to accordion music and drinking local wine. You will not race the horrendous crowds of the Louvre, though you will see art in extraordinary and unexpected places. You won't eat at five star restaurants, but you will have some of the most delicious meals and treats in charming out-of-the-way places.
When you return home, your camera will be filled with extraordinary sights and your heart will be filled with exceptional stories. Perhaps ones no one will believe. But you'll know. And we'll know. The wondrous is real.
Small Tours with Kindred Spirits & Tribal Gatherings
Our tours are kept intentionally small to foster the intimacy that comes with a tribe. We eat together, commune together, drink and dance together and often live under the same roof (depending on the type of tour) for a number of days, and this makes us a kind of family. A pack.
Heart-and-soul friendships have been formed on these tours. Soul sisters have been discovered on these tours. And romance, as well, has blossomed on a handful of our expeditions. We offer an atmosphere of trust and safety, where hearts and lives can be shared, as well as adventures.
To protect the unique tribal quality of our tours, our participants are asked to complete an application and a phone interview. Any fifty strangers can hop on a bus and go see the coast of Italy. But for 6-10 people to live together as wonder hunters, it takes a special kind of chemistry, and a certain kind of soul. We’re careful with the selection process to ensure that all travelers will have an extraordinary experience.
Your own Personal Muse
You get to travel with your own storyteller, who can bring alive the sights and sounds and stories of the land you explore. And often, during meals and over coffee breaks, we enter conversations that open the creative psyche. We talk soul. We talk passion. We talk creativity.
You won't get a lot of facts on our tours. But you will get a lot of stories and a lot of questions that can take you into the Mystery.
In Angi's one-on-one coaching practice, she brings to the surface the often deep and hidden creative gifts within a person, and can't seem to turn this skill off when leave the studio. It travels with her. Therefore, it travels with you. If you're working on a creative idea, a new business, a relationship or health issue, or a deep desire to transform a part of your life, it's very likely we’ll end up talking about it. More times than not this turns into a synergistic round table discussion, resulting in the fresh, raw energy needed to heal, to solve, to overcome inertia and transform. (All conversations and communion are on a voluntary basis. Everyone is encouraged to share as little or as much as they'd like. Nothing is required. Everything is invited.)
A Bohemian Pace
We don't like being rushed and dislike waking early to see things that can only be half-remembered. For this reason, we start our days mid-morning and encourage a long night's rest. We amble. We stroll. We linger over delicious meals and tasty libations. We talk. We laugh.
At every turn we indulge and encourage Joie de Vevre, the Joy of Living. All tours (even the more structured ones where we travel from place to place by plane, boat, train or van) have free time allotted so that you can spend more time doing what you love best, whether that’s shopping, eating, photographing or following any of the passions the location awakens in you. We encourage you to open these windows of opportunity to really absorb the atmosphere you're in.
Relax on a park bench with a gelato and people watch. Listen to a violin player as you sip an especially charming cappuccino. Window shop. Nap. This is the sweet life. Indulge it.
Lots of Laughs…and then some!
We love to laugh. We love to celebrate the ridiculous and the absurd. We hope you do too. And often Angi can see the humor in the dark, mysterious and often unfortunate side of things. This is life’s silver lining, and she loves embroidering life with it.
The blue lining? That's her foul language. Angi is a direct descendant of Mae West and Auntie Mame, so traveling with her is part cabaret, part musical theater, part burlesque show and thoroughly circus. She will likely break into song on the Underground Metro and have you singing with her on the street corners. We'll be silly. We'll be free. We won't take ourselves too seriously. And we will dance. Because we can. (It's ok if you just want to watch. You'll be farced but not forced.)
Enchanted Photo Souveniers
Angi has bohemian eyes - they're prone to wander. Some call them crooked. Some call them special. But one thing is for real: they've gifted her with the ability to see and appreciate the wondrous.She often see things others don't, and this makes for inspirational experiences and exceptional photography. She'll take you to these curious places and point out the exquisite and often over-looked or unseen. By the end of the trip your heart and your camera will be filled with marvels and splendors.
