A Dutch author on her primitive existence in the New Zealand wilderness
- Miriam Lancewood honed her survival skills on the road in Asia and bush-bashing on New Zealand’s South Island
- The author of Woman in the Wilderness: My Story of Love, Survival and Self-discovery is writing a second book about travelling rough through Europe
Miriam in the middle I was born in 1983 in a small village in the east of Holland. My parents had three children in three years, I’m in the middle. My mother is a drama therapist and my father worked with disabled people. It was a loving home and we grew up with music and art and theatre.
We were surrounded by nature, but it was fields and agriculture rather than mountains and wilderness. I was always strong and outdoorsy. When I was 13, I joined the school athletics club and was put in a class to learn how to pole vault. I trained every day and learned that if you set your mind to something and work hard, you can achieve it.
I was the Dutch champion in pole vaulting, in my age group, for six consecutive years and went to the Youth Olympic Games. My success gave me confidence not only in doing physical things but also to try different things. It seemed a natural choice for me to study physical education and I went to Groningen University.
Subcontinental drift After my studies, I went to Zimbabwe to teach, something that had been a dream since childhood. After my year in Africa, I was no longer sure about pursuing a career in teaching and decided to travel in India. I landed in Bombay and headed south. I had a fantastic time.
