📜 Awakened Architect Part 1: The Death of the Bucket List

Why I’m Done With the "Tourist Dream"

From the high-tech safety of Busan to the graffitti capital of the world- Athens. I’m sharing my observations on why the world’s most famous "bucket list" cities are shifting—and how to see the reality behind the filters.

Remember that I am sharing the good, the bad and the ugly of this lifestyle and the lessons I learn along the way while observing the human condition all over the world. The good is all the beautiful experiences now embedded in my memories, the beautiful and interesting people I’ve met and the beautiful places I’ve been to. But this is a universe built on polarity and with every positive comes a negative. It’s just part of the game we call LIFE. I don’t like pretense and I look for every opportunity to learn a lesson so sharing all sides is important to me to feel like I’m being authentic and so people who don’t travel or who have not traveled the way or the places I have, contemplate these topics. It benefits our collective.

Let’s be real for a second.

I’ve been moving through islands and states for three and a half decades, exploring the globe for 14 years, and living as a full-time digital nomad since 2022. I’ve checked the names off the vision boards: Costa Rica, Cancun and Merida, Mexico, Bali, Indonesia, Chiang Mai & Phuket inThailand, Rome & Naples in Italy, Rio de Janeiro in Brazil, Santorini and Mykonos in Greece, among many others.

And you know what? After a while, if you aren't moving with intent, it’s just the same "Matrix" programming in a different zip code.

I’m leaving Athens on March 5th. As I prepare my exit, I’ve been reflecting on why these "world-class" destinations are starting to feel so empty to me. If you’re an Awakened Architect—a woman who has worked her a$$ off to build a life of purpose, business, and freedom—you eventually realize that the "Tourist Dream" is often just a high-priced bubble. Today, I want to share the reality that the brochures won't show you.

The Frequency Shift: Busan vs. Athens

I arrived in Greece this past December fresh from three months in Busan, South Korea. In Busan, I experienced the frequency of a society that actually functions—safe, high-tech, and efficient. My youngest son has been a digital nomad with me twice before in Busan. It was such a vibrant, peaceful energy that I even sent for my daughter for a week during her birthday during this third visit of mine to Busan so she could see what a 21st-century coastal city looks like.

Coming back to Greece (first visit was in Summer of 2024) felt like stepping back into an archaic system after being in South Korea. I landed in Crete on December 5th searching for warmth and a sanctuary, but I found something very different instead. Crete sounds romantic until you see the abandoned buildings, broken sidewalks and the heavily graffiti-scarred streets.

Now, in February, I’m in Athens. I’m staying in an Airbnb basement apartment that is beautiful inside with beautiful plants outside, but it is sheltered from the sun by bland hotel windows in what feels like a 1980s setting. I say that I am solar; I literally wither if I get no sun. Most travel bloggers would call this city "rough" or "edgy." I’m here to tell you it’s a system in decay. What I paid for this apartment in the neighborhood is in— is criminal. Not in the dangerous sense but in the sense of the building’s and neighborhood’s condition.

A Look at the Greek Soul

I want to be clear: I feel for the Greek people who are caught in this trap. My heart goes out to the elderly who still smile and offer a warm "Yassas"—they represent a soul that hasn't been completely crushed yet.

But the youth? There is a palpable dissatisfaction there. They are often unfriendly because they are struggling. If you go to the "modernized" or gentrified areas, you’ll find they are overpriced, and that’s where you’re met with the coldest service. They are working for wages that don't match the world they see online, and it creates a "Resentment Loop."

The Reality the Locals Won’t Admit

The resentment toward digital nomads here is thick enough to cut with a knife, but it’s misplaced. Let’s look at the numbers: One in five people in Athens cannot afford to heat their homes this winter. It is a tragedy. But while the masses are venting their anger at "foreigners" and "Airbnbs," we have to ask: Who is actually profiting?

It is the local property owners taking our money to pay their own bills. It is the government allowing foreign investors to buy up everything for "Golden Visas" while the public sidewalks stay crumbled and the streets flood every time it rains.

The system loves our capital but resents our presence. They want Western money, but they don't want "outsiders"—or rather, they only want certain foreigners. It’s a Matrix glitch where the truth of the system’s greed peeks through the facade of hospitality, and mobility is treated as a provocation rather than a contribution.

Why "Free" People Bother the Masses

I didn't stumble into this life. As an entrepreneur, I sacrificed for this autonomy. But in a society designed to keep us as 9-to-5 workers, being "too free" triggers people. Those who have stopped going after their own dreams often harbor a quiet resentment toward those who haven’t given up.

I’ve seen the "ugly" side of the solo woman traveler experience here, too. In Crete, my own host told me, "We don't like foreigners," and called a woman traveling without her children a "scandal." Then, while his family was away, he made advances on me. This is the hypocrisy I deal with: being judged by a "traditional" standards they don’t even follow themselves— while being exploited for my capital.

Trading the Past for the Future

I am done with the "popular" list. On March 5th, I’m closing the chapter on Greece- the place I once contemplated getting a Digital Nomad visa in- and looking toward the Middle Corridor—places like Kazakhstan, Turkey, and Georgia. These places aren't resting on the laurels of their "glory days." They are hungry. They are "problem solvers" who don't treat your existence like an interruption.

What’s Next?

The world is huge, but the places worth being are fewer than you think. In my next post, I’m going to share a story from a villa in Bali in December 2024—and a conversation with a man who was the only one with the guts to ask, "How did you do it?" We’re going to talk about the ego, the "cord-cutting" you have to do with family, and why most people would rather stay stuck than ask for help.

Are you staying in the bubble, or are you ready for the real path?

• For the Mindset: Join the tribe of aspiring architects or schedule an intro/coaching call.

• For the Money: Gather the strategies I used to fund my freedom.

This information is from a simple and quick google search. For the first time in this era, we have tons of information at our fingertips. Start the unlearning.

Since I experienced the same thing in Italy back in May 2024 and these are the only two European countries I have visited. I looked it up as well. Not only did I experience this myself but I received major judgement when I shared I was coming from South Korea. Racism to me is such a brain dead attitude and the most ignorant and low IQ form of thinking ever subscribed to, along with patriarchy.

The conflicts we’re seeing in real time, my readers, is the death of colonization and there is only a % of people who are very unhappy about it and suffering its consequences. Karma, anyone?

I am sharing the good, the bad and the ugly of this lifestyle and the lessons I learn along the way while observing the human condition all over the world. The good is all the beautiful experiences now embedded in my memories, the beautiful and interesting people I’ve met and the beautiful places I’ve been to. But this is a universe built on polarity and with every positive comes a negative. It’s just part of the game we call LIFE. I don’t like pretense and I look for every opportunity to learn a lesson so sharing all sides is important to me to feel like I’m being authentic and so people who don’t travel or who have not traveled the way or the places I have, contemplate these topics. It benefits our collective.

• For the Mindset & Finances: Schedule an intro coaching call or Gather knowledge with our digital products in the store.

• For the Money: Start or rebuild a business that can operate on the Frontier with our Sophisticated Business Strategies.

📩 Stay Notified

The "algorithm" is part of the old Piscean control system. To make sure you don't miss a "download," sign up below to get these posts delivered directly to your inbox.