IF YOU DREAM IT YOU CAN DO IT: LIFE IN WHITE

Photo: Approaching the Llaima Volcano in Chile, a magical place where you feel that the planet is alive.

Many want to leave everything to dedicate themselves to their true passion, but not everyone succeeds. Today we tell you the story of a couple of snowboarders who live a life in white, pursuing the dream of surfing virgin snow in the most remote places on the planet: Laura Martinez and Gabriel "Gabro" Mojón.

We have had the opportunity to interview Laura, and this is what came out ;)

What is Life In White and how did the project come about?

Life in White was born from the passion for Nature and snow of two people. There was never a project as such, everything just flowed and in the end we decided to give a name to our lifestyle and adventures.

What does snow and Nature as a whole mean to you?

For us it is everything, it is our oxygen, what directs our lives. Having contact with Nature is as necessary as eating or sleeping. It is the best therapy that exists, being connected with the environment in which we live and being more aware that we are a small ant on this incredible planet full of life, and that we are drowning little by little.

How far have you traveled in search of powder to surf?

We have traveled together around the world, from our beloved Pyrenees that saw us “grow up” to the Alps, Japan (Hokkaido and Honshu), Iceland, Argentina, Chile. For his part, Gabriel, before meeting me, was in Canada, the USA, New Zealand and Australia.

Photo: Driving among araucarias is truly spectacular, it seems like a Dinosaur is going to come out at any moment. Chile, Las Araucarias.

Any treasures you have discovered along your way?

The greatest treasure has been finding each other, although if you multiply the madness for powder snow by two it sometimes becomes unsustainable and it would be nice if from time to time one of us would put on the brakes.

Another great treasure has been the awakening a little of the lethargy to which frenetic modern life induces us. Spending so much time traveling in contact with nature is when you understand the most what life consists of, it makes you more aware and teaches you that we are not the epicenter of this planet, we are just another inhabitant and the planet will manage perfectly without us. when we are no longer here.

What is your next destination?

This winter, after spending practically the entire last year searching for perfect snow conditions across half the world, we really wanted to spend more time in our base camp, Austrian Tyrol, and explore a little bit of Eastern Europe or Iceland. The truth is that the conditions for now are being complicated, but we are planning new adventures while we enjoy our beloved Tyrolean house that we are in love with.

What does the camper lifestyle consist of and why have you opted for it?

It consists of having a simpler life, although at the same time, wanting fewer “ties”, it often makes it more complicated since one moves away from the comforts of modern life. For us, the feeling of freedom it gives us is without a doubt the best thing in the world, we don't know how to live without our camper, and that's why wherever we go, we go with our little house on our backs.

Photo: Our daily life in the motorhome after a good day of snowboarding in Bariloche, Argentina.

Do you consider that this lifestyle helps reduce the impact that people have on the environment?

Well, the truth is that it depends…. Really, if we wanted to reduce the impact, we would have to start by being in one place and not depending on fossil fuels... On the other hand, if you compare it to living in a "common" house without the use of renewable energy, etc. So, you do reduce the impact.

It is a very complicated issue when traveling, because as we have said it is quite ambiguous, it is really difficult to travel in a sustainable way, all travel implies an impact on the environment, although we try to compensate for it by being very conscious and careful with the planet. in other fields such as food, waste recycling, changing shopping habits, avoiding plastic packaging, etc.

How do you manage your waste? Does this lifestyle allow you to recycle?

We are very concerned about this issue and we try to recycle wherever we go, but there are countries where unfortunately you have to throw in the towel and cannot recycle. Living in a place is not the same as traveling in a van. Not being local makes it difficult to get rid of your waste in the most sustainable way possible, if it is not a place like Europe where you find recycling containers on every corner. In Japan, for example, the plastic issue is crazy, everything, absolutely everything you buy, is wrapped in plastic and there were actually days when we had to throw out the garbage twice as much as the amount of plastics that we ended up accumulating in the van. .

Luckily in Europe this issue is not so extreme, but it is still very serious. In Austria, where we live, they are very demanding about recycling and we love it. We try to avoid all products wrapped in plastic, but sometimes it is almost impossible... As consumers we have all the power, so we have to do our best to avoid products wrapped in plastic unnecessarily, such as fruits or vegetables.

Also, the type of diet you eat helps a lot, if you don't buy many pre-cooked or processed products, it is actually easier to look for products with alternative packaging, such as legumes, nuts, cereals...

In our humble opinion, instead of spending so many resources on recycling and managing waste, those resources should be spent on not generating that waste directly. Recycling is very good and very necessary, but it is a way of cleaning up what we get dirty, wouldn't it be better not to get dirty? We have many options at our disposal to stop polluting so much and from above we would have to regulate, a lot, the use of plastics and encourage those companies to stop using it and opt for much more sustainable forms of packaging.

Photo: Every day's routine after coming down from the mountain.

What type of diet do you have?

We try to eat the most balanced diet possible and with the least possible impact on the environment. It is something very important to us, and a fundamental pillar in our lifestyle. Our food base is vegetables, fruit, cereals, legumes, nuts, seeds and berries, although sporadically we eat eggs and cheese from the most organic source possible.

We do not eat meat or fish because we think it is not necessary to have a balanced diet and the price that both the planet and the poor farm animals are paying is too high for humans to have supermarkets full of products that should not be consumed. , or it should be done in a very sporadic way due to the suffering and havoc that they cause, as we have said before, to our blue planet and our animal brothers.

Furthermore, we try to ensure that the products come from the area, although sometimes they are more expensive. In the end, if we create demand for local products we will help change the supply-demand policy. Sometimes, it gets complicated because there is no option for some products and you have no choice but to go through it, but you have to try.

Another thing that we believe is vital is eating seasonal products, it is part of consumerism and human stupidity to want to eat strawberries in December and oranges in July and it is something we have to get rid of, let's learn from our mistakes and go back in certain ways. things, because what we often call evolution is involution.

Photo: In the end our camper van made from recycled material worked perfectly and allowed us to cook comfortably in the van.

I imagine that behind Life in White there is a lot of work, effort and dedication. How have you managed to pull it off?

It is a matter of priorities, with work, dedication and effort, in the end everything is achieved. Working hard for many months, and sometimes saying no to many job offers that many people would like, having less in order to have more. Our free time has a very high price ;) so if you want something you have to go for it, whatever the cost.

What would you say to all those people who are thinking about living a lifestyle like yours but don't dare?

If they really want to do it, let them do it. It's not easy, but it's also not easy not to do what you want most in this life and spend your life deceiving yourself and repeating to yourself that you are doing what you are supposed to do at every stage of your life... it is difficult to achieve that balance that we all seek, but our motto is that: if you dream it, you can do it.