Barbora Franková

A bioanalyst who loves to explore the world around her. Constantly curious and ready for the next adventure.

I was born in Brno in the early nineties into a family with an aesthetic sensibility, who worked with historical monuments and loved the mountains. My grandmother’s high school graduation slogan was: “If I had a seven-year vacation, I would travel the whole world.” But she graduated in the sixties, and for a long 21 years, her exploration was limited to our country and a few allowed trips abroad. Her great-uncle, Alois Musil, was luckier. As a Czech orientalist, traveler, and writer, he explored and documented many places in Arab countries. I was always fascinated when my grandmother or great-grandmother, whose godfather he was, talked about him. They showed me his books, postcards, and photos and read his stories. It inspired me so much, and I always knew I wanted to travel and explore the world, too.

I spent a lot of time in the mountains with my parents, especially the Czech ones, and I still love returning to them. My dad and I often visited significant castles, chateaus, and villas, as he was the construction foreman for their reconstructions. We got to see the original places without visitors, learned about history, and a lot about construction work and styles. Since then, wherever I go, I like to know something about the place. I find out its history and context. I’m interested in the stories that happened there, and then I imagine them. For me, traveling to a place has never been just a checkbox on a list that I saw it. I always want to get to know the place through its stories and then experience its atmosphere.

If I had to choose just one foreign country to travel to, it would be Italy. Even though I’ve been there countless times, I always come back. My ancestors are said to come from the Tyrol region, and there’s probably something to it, as I feel at home there. I love the Dolomites and would go there in every season.

I take inspiration from every place I visit. I like the lifestyle in Copenhagen, the work-life balance, the great outfits of the local men and women, the architecture, and the interior design. Also, the slow life by the ocean, in harmony with nature in the Seychelles, but also the intense and multicultural one in New York or Los Angeles. I’m fascinated by the constantly positive attitude of Canadians despite the incredibly freezing weather, the elegant dressing of French women, the scent of the best aromatic essences in the Arab Emirates, and English humor. I’m a hedonist, and in all places, I love to taste the local cuisine, buy spices, and collect recipes.