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CONTRIBUTORS

Wishes she was taller, could get a tan and walk in heels. A girlcan dream!

Loves listening to live music, while BBQ'ing meat, drinkingbeer and following it with hugs...in that order.

Can be found wandering around a party with a beer in hand saying"Cheers sheila!" She also happens to be one of the mostfabulous people on the planet.

A few months ago while while writing my food and travel blog,Graze the Earth, I thought about the talented kaleidoscopeof people who make up Kooza. Where are they from? What foodsremind them of home? What makes them happy? I decided toundertake the task of finding the answers. I learnt that I amsurrounded by an incredible group of people and feel privileged tohave been shown a window into your world. I hope youenjoy learning something about your fellow Koozins as much as Ienjoyed hearing your stories.

THANK YOU!Amanda

GRAZETHEEARTH.COM.AU

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TALITAMy proudestachievement was tojoin Cirque du Soleil.My life changed! Forsomeone that didn’thave anything, noteven food, I was ableto buy a house for myparents and makethem happy.

Favourite food thatreminds you of home:Feijoada.

Favourite city:Montreal, it was myfirst city outsideBrazil.

JAIMEMy proudest achievement was getting my yacht captains license.It is five different levels and the last one is a four year course includingastronomy. Includes a lot of math, its very challenging and I managed to doit in six months while I was on tour. I was extremely proud of that.

Favourite food that reminds you of home:Cannelloni, my grandmother makes. She puts mixed liver in it anda lot of béchamel.

Favourite city:Barcelona, always something alive the city in itself has so much to offer.Also there are ramps in every bus and the city itself is very accessible.

LAURAOne of my happiestmoments was when Isaw the Eiffel tower.I'd been in Europe forsix months but seeingthat iconic buildingfor the first time itwas sort of everythingthat I had been doingcame crashing in andI was like, this is mylife, this is where I amand I had tearsrunning down my faceand I was so happy inthat moment.

Favourite food thatreminds you of home:Macaroni and cheeseis my favourite food inthe whole world,baked not creamy,like a good old fashioncasserole.

Favourite city:Well my favouriteplace is the southernisland of NewZealand, water,mountains, wineries,best cider, easy to getaround, relaxing.

ROBSKII’d held many jobs in the ski industry for the last 40 years and I wasalso a baseball umpire for 40 years. I was chosen to be the chiefbaseball umpire for the National South American teamchampionships. I’ve also umpired for the National Amateur Finalsin the US. A lot of people strive to get to that level and I’m so proudof that. When I got divorced and moved back to Chile I decided Iwanted to turn over a new leaf and do something grown up andprofessional with my life. So I ran away with the circus.

Favourite food that reminds you of home:BBQ Meat!

Favourite city:London and Paris, as there is so much to do, both cosmopolitancities.

HEATHERI think the happymoments come after ahard moment. When youachieve something, youthen realize the thingsthat are little and pettyaren’t as big a problemas you think they are.Happiness is acontentment, things aregood, things are inbalance, things are inline and it often happensafter something that’sreally hard.

Favourite food thatreminds you of home:It’s a Chinese dish myMum makes with tofuand black bean sauce.She was born in China sowe have a lot of Chineseinfluences in our world.

Favourite city:Bruges, when we werethere last year it feltlike I had been therebefore. It’s a super comfortable place to be.

JAREDI’m happiest when I’m building something, because you are creatingsomething that didn’t previously exist. I want to have my ownfurniture studio.

Favourite food that reminds you of home:Fresh home- baked bread that Mum makes.

Favourite city:San Francisco, Fukuoka and Madrid. The energies of the cities, theyfeel alive.

FREDWhen I first joinedCirque I had some dayswhen I was like “this issuper cool” and thenother days “what am Idoing here?” because itwas so different fromanything I had donebefore. Before I wouldgo on tour for one weekthen go home for a fewdays and then tour forone week. When you’reon tour with Cirque,you’re ON tour!

Favourite food thatreminds you of home:Blanquette, Frenchveal ragout.

Favourite city:San Francisco, it justfelt like home.

MELISSAEvery year I would take 40 ESL students on a 16hr bus ride to New YorkCity and we would spend 5 days there. I would prepare for it for months.The moment they stepped off the bus they would freak out. Then afterthey spoke a few times and bargained in China Town they were so proudof themselves. There’s a couple of those groups that I’m friends with onFacebook and a lot of them are travellers. I feel proud as I took them outfor their first visit and got them to travel. Being a part of that makes mereally proud.

Favourite food that reminds you of home:Anything Tomatoes, my father had a tomato garden growing up soanything tomatoes!

Favourite city:Santa Monica, because of the weather and beautiful beaches. Or Rome,because every time you turn a corner there is something todiscover…and the food is full of tomatoes.

MARINAA few years ago I was dancing on the street, dancing Flamenco, buskingfor money. I did all the south of Spain with a band and my exboyfriend, who’s an asshole, but I was happy doing what I was doing. Imiss dance a lot, I need it. Now I make poached eggs.

Favourite food that reminds you of home:Tortilla Patatas, a potato omelet with onion.

Favourite city:San Francisco, I didn’t feel like I was far from home, even though it wasAmerica. 4 different seasons in one day.

SCOTTYLast year when I wentto Norway I sawborealis. I stood in thesnow at minus 35 andgiggled at how beautifulit was. Shocked andamazed that I wasthere.

Favourite food thatreminds you of home:Cheese and vegemitetoasty.

Favourite city:Amsterdam, its easyand friendly, the foodreminded me ofAustralian cuisine.

KATThe challenges of languages and doing my job, like trying to find afork lift in Germany, Switzerland or Russia, and organising thatmakes me proud. When I arrive on a new site I take a breath for twominutes and give myself a pat on the back and say I made it! We didit. That’s definitely a proud moment.

Favourite food that reminds you of home:Pavlova or lamb roast with mashed potatoes.

Favourite city:Rome because its endless adventures of finding old S%&*! No matterwhere you go it’s a wow city, the food and people are amazing.

JESSI really enjoy forming a team from people who don’t know each other.When you get to a city all these people who don’t know each other arebrought together, different ages and backgrounds. Having 5-8 weeks totrain these people and make them into a team and have fun together is areally nice thing to see…little wallflowers who are 18 and have neverhad a job in their lives basically blossom and are completely differentpeople when they leave.

Favourite food that reminds you of home:Wagon wheels, which are more like crepes, with cheese and syrup.

Favourite city:I love Montreal, it reminds me of Amsterdam before I grew up andbecame touristy. I like the different neighbourhoods in the Italianquarter, Portuguese quarter and that people speak French and English.

SUNDERIYAI startedcontortionism when Iwas 7 years old andI've been doing thisfor almost 15 years. Iwas doing specialevents before comingto Cirque du Soleil.That is my biggestachievement.

Favourite food thatreminds you of home:Buuz, Mongolian BeefDumpling.

Favourite city:London, England. It’sa busy city, I love theshopping.

CHAPSI’m most proud of my family as we’re so close. Playing with mynephews and nieces, watching them smile and what our family namemeans to them and to me. That makes me happy.

Favourite food that reminds you of home:Roast chicken, Mum’s Sunday meal.

Favourite city:London, it feels like home with the food, language and friends. I lovethat London has much more history in one street corner than Canadadoes in the whole country.

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I’ve changed so manyjobs in my life, I was amodel, a dancer inclubs, a businesswomanin retail for 10 years, Iworked as a lighttechnician in clubs thenjoined the rock and rollbusiness and then Istarted with Cirque.That is really nice, allthis change.

Favourite food thatreminds you of home:Grünkohl with graupenand kassler. You need asoup bowl, put a cookedegg in the potato, thenyou cover all of thatwith spinach, so nowyou have to "search theegg"!

Favourite city:Barcelona for thepeople, beach, style, thecity and lighteverywhere. Zurich forthe nature, you can goto the mountains skiingand in summer you cango swimming and thefood is good there too.

TANYA

BILLYFor the first five years of my tour life I was pretty much partying, soI would say to my younger self stop partying and go visit placesinstead. My first tour of Australia I didn’t see anything except theinside of nightclubs. My second tour I actually saw stuff…and a fewnightclubs too.

Favourite food that reminds you of home:Maple syrup pancakes.

Favourite city:Singapore, it has a great feel to it. Ohh and I love the hawkercentres.

LAURAOne of my happiest moments was one the first times I learnt the splitjump in training, I did that out of lines, the experience of doing it, nosafety lines, being caught, that whole feeling of happiness of learningsomething new. It takes you back to when you are 4 or 5 when you arelearning to ride a bike, it’s that newness and that feeling of fun.

Favourite food that reminds you of home:Shepherd's pie with tomato sauce.

Favourite city:I had a pretty cool experience in Warsaw, I got to visit two other citiesin Poland too so I felt like I got a good feel for the country.

DAVIDFrom the time I was 14 I thought, cooking is what I want to do. Becauseprior to that I was playing a lot of music with friends and I was facingtwo roads and I had to decide what I wanted to do. So I started cookingwhile going to school so I could finance my music and then at one point Iwas cooking more and playing less. That was the fork in the road and Ifigured out this is what I want to do.

Favourite food that reminds you of home:Pho and spring rolls, in Montreal the Vietnamese community is prettybig.

Favourite city:Madrid because food is religion, Tokyo for how big, functional and cleanit is and Montreal because it’s a cool city to be around.

GINNYFlying to Hawaii I was in aplane on fire and didn’tthink I'd make it. We weresitting in a smoke filledcabin for 2.5 hours, on myway to my best friend'swedding. I thought, I haveno regrets but I'd reallylike to tell my Mum I lovedher one more time and Iwas bummed cause Ireally wanted learn tosurf in Hawaii.

I got the next plane toMaui and days later learned to surf. There wassomething incrediblypeaceful when the wavehits just right and it's timeto stand up. I hadmoments of thinking ofthe plane on fire when Iwas on a surfboard and atpeace. It encapsulatedstrength and fragility.

Favourite food thatreminds you of home:Grilled fish and rice.

Favourite city: Amsterdam, I’m charmedby the crooked buildingsand any city with water isgreat.

GORDONIn the show, everyday is fun and a bit of a challenge, becauseevery audience is different. We do the same clown routine, butevery show is slightly different because the response is sodifferent.

Favourite food that reminds you of home:Barbecue chicken, mac and cheese.

Favourite city:London, England.

BOOMERI’ve wanted to be a physio since I was 11. I’ve always had this problem whereI’m intelligent but not committed. I remember watching Leeds United playagainst Blackburn Rovers with my uncle Andrew and I watched this guy LesReed run out onto the field with a bucket and a sponge. A guy is rollingaround on the ground in pain and Les gets out his magic sponge and wipes hisleg and then sprayed it with some magic spray and five minutes the playerscored a goal, John Sheridan number 11, left winger. And here I am. This ismy dream job.

Favourite food that reminds you of home:Bernard Matthews mini kievs, processed turkey with garlic butter in themiddle and breadcrumbs on the outside with cous cous.

Favourite city:Cape Town, the ocean is stunning, the vortex trance festivals are amazing,great meats, it’s got a vibe to it. Close second is Mexico City for the food.

TIMBonnie and I were yourtypical young couplewithout kids and wewould go off climbingin the mountains. Nowwe say, how can weincorporate our soninto our activities? Ispent a lot of timecamping outdoors withmy family growing upand I still love it nowand incorporating thatinto his life, hopefullyhe will like it whenhe’s an adult.

Favourite food thatreminds you of home:Thai food. We loveeating and cookingThai food even whenwere travelling. Or agood burger and a beeroverlooking themountains.

Favourite city:Vancouver, I grew upthere. It’s such abeautiful city, withwater and mountains.It's a vibrant city withlots to see and do. Itfeels like home to me.

FRANKMy proudest achievement was building a pink gazebo on stage for adouble Russian wedding in Quidam in Melbourne. I had three hours topaint and build it. Jeni walked by and said "you’re never going to makeit". And I did! I made a five metre high pink gazebo and built it on stagefor the wedding.

Favourite food that reminds you of home:Mexican...tacos and burritos.

Favourite city:Japan is amazing, Madrid because the food was great, Poland wasawesome. There is something great about every city.

SAMIn 2010, I received ascholarship to work inMontevideo, Uruguayto be a volunteer inUnited Nations. I wasthere for 6 monthsworking on Ministry ofHuman Development.It was my greatestachievement!

Favourite food thatreminds you of home:Couscous, the one mygrandma cooks,traditional food fromNorth Africa. She wasborn and raised inArgelia.

Favourite city:Paris, France. It is abeautiful city, a lot ofculture and museums.

My proudest achievement would be winning awards at twointernational circus festivals. In 2003 in Korea we won gold. It'sprobably one of the main reasons I'm here.

Favourite food that reminds you of home:Anything lamb, beef or ragout. My favourite is traditional BBQ whichis cooked with layers of coals from the fire.

Favourite city:Rio De Janeiro, people are friendly, sunny, good cheap food and thebeach.

GANJI

My Dad was a carpenter, so growing up I got into communitytheatre and that turned into regional theatre and that somehowturned into welding for Cirque du Soleil. Here I am now.

Favourite food that reminds you of home:Southern breakfast, biscuits and gravy, although I can’t eat itanymore because I’m a vegetarian!

Favourite city:Buenos Aires because it's absolutely beautiful.

EMILY

SCOTTMy proudestachievement waswhen I was 26, I spenttwo years in '87'and '88' in Nicaraguabuilding houses forpeople who had nomoney. It was a warzone at the time soyou had to be a littlenuts to go there.Although we weren'tnear the battle area,we were on theoutskirts. I'd like tovisit back there againsome time.

Favourite food thatreminds you of home:Clam chowder.

Favourite city:Paris for the cultureand food, it'sincredible.

ODKAI started contortionism when I was eight years old, I wasn’t flexible atall. Two years later, I went to a big circus festival in China with two othergirls, and we won 2nd place. I never did a show before, and suddenly I wasperforming for this big festival. When I was 12, I performed acontortionist number at Monte Carlo Circus Festival with five more girlsand we won 3rd place, the Bronze Cup.

Favourite food that reminds you of home:Buuz, Mongolian Beef Dumpling. I make them myself with my friends andsteam them.

Favourite city:London, England. I like the metro, you can go anywhere. I like shopping,fashion, I enjoy walking Oxford Street, so many stores. I like to watchmusicals as well.

MARIONMy husband and Icreated our owncompany, our owncircus. We are rightnow buying a big topin Italy, to go on tourall over Europe andColombia. So we areable to create our ownthing. I'm very happy,it's a new life, our owncreation and we canbuild the life we wantto have, around thetour and the show.

Favourite food thatreminds you of home:Cow Tongue, mygrandma makes this.But also peaches andapricots because myfamily producesthese.

Favourite city:Lima in Peru! It wasmy first contract as aprofessional artist.

GERARDMy band plays death metal. I play electric guitar and I like to play alot of festivals. We haven't toured for a while but we started in 2007 to2010 and played in Sweden, Germany, Netherlands and Switzerland.

Favourite food that reminds you of home:I used to like snails a lot, but now I'm a vegetarian. I am againstbullfighting, I think it's terrible and I felt like I couldn't have it bothways, eat animals and be against it.

Favourite city:Paris is very pretty, London for the museums and culture.

COLINHappiest moment waswhen my firstdaughter was born. Itwas a moment of purebliss. She was sleepingand holding onto myfinger when she was abrand newborn and allthree of us weresleeping together. Iwas floating on cloudsI was so happy.Fatherhood changedeverything about me.Being a father hadmade me less selfcentred, it takes youout of yourself, makesyou connected to theworld more.

Favourite food thatreminds you of home:My wife's couscouswith Moroccansausages, harissasauce, parsnips andcarrots.

Favourite city:Paris, I feel good there.I speak French so I canunderstand everybody.I feel classy in Paris!

ANGELMy best achievement in life is the knowledge of the truth, thetruth of God, to know where I came from, who I am, and where Iwill go next. This is my best achievement!

Favourite food that reminds you of home:I like my wife's stew with meat, potatoes, vegetables, and mymom's beans with meat, chorizo and pork meat, its called Judias.

Favourite city:Osaka, Japan. I felt good, safe and peaceful. Japanese people arereally welcoming.

DUKEI'm proud that I wentinto the U.S. military, Idrove a submarine in theNavy. Serving mycountry makes meproud. I left there to jointhe entertaimentindustry and I am happywith my career choicesbecause I've been able totravel and see newcultures. I love to travel!

Favourite food thatreminds you of home:Fat back and fried okra.

Favourite city:Tokyo, the culture andfood, I love seafood andsushi.

AMELIEIt had been 7 yearssince I went backhome. So Christmaswith my family thisyear was great. Itwas mybirthday and mytwin sister was thereas well. We got tohave family timetogether with mygrandma too.

Favourite food thatreminds you of home:Lamb for breakfast.

Favourite city:Amsterdam, becauseof the vibe.

COLLETTEEvery year I make my Halloween costume out of recycled materials. Ijust make things up, In Moscow I wanted to do something special for thegay world so I went as a rainbow unicorn pinata. I used the recycledcanon confetti from the show. I swept it up from under the bleachersand glued it onto a jumpsuit that we weren't using.

Favourite food that reminds you of home:Pizza, cause my Dad would order it every Friday. My favourite ispepperoni and mushroom.

Favourite city:Tokyo. It was the first real big culture shock and people were so nice. Agreat city to go out and do things by yourself, meet the locals.

CEDRICI'm happy everytime Igo home. Seeing myfamily, we're verytight, so not seeingthem is hard. Buteverytime I get to seethem it's very special.I have one sister, aniece and a nephew.They were born when Iwas on tour so I'm notgetting to see themgrow up. So that'shard. Going home andplaying with them willbe amazing.

Favourite food thatreminds you of home:Riverside Pizza,Hawaiian.

Favourite city:London when theweather is good and Ilove New York City!

IRINAI was working hard in London for two months, so tired, no energy and Ithought I was sick. I noticed that something was wrong, I was sleepingtoo much and my body was different. I went to the doctor once,and told everything was fine. I went again one month later and hecould hear a heart beat in my belly. That’s how I found out that I waspregnant! Definitely my happiest moment.

Favourite food that reminds you of home:Indian food is my favorite. I just like to try everything.

Favourite city:Miami, USA. It’s a difficult question because I like every city we go to.

JASONI published a musicbook about aparticular style oftrumpet playing ingrad school in 2007.It included detailson how toplay, the historyand exercises to do.

Favourite food thatreminds you ofhome:My mum's lasagne.

Favourite city:Amsterdam. It's sogreen and cleanand everyone ishappy.

NIALLI'd tell my younger self to step back from work and relax more.To enjoy life!

Favourite food that reminds you of home:Its an oriental beef dish that my mum cooked when we wereyoung. It took about three hours to cook. Me and my two sistersall got involved chopping up the vegetables and making thesauce.

Favourite city:Budapest. In summer its roasting hot and winter it's minus 25,food is incredible, its got an edge to it and people play chess inthe warm baths all day!

IGORI'm proud I have a family andmet my wife. I met her in acar. We we're goingsomewhere and one of myuncle's friends said heneeded to stop and pick uphis niece. So she got in thecar and that was it. And thebirth of my child would haveto be my happiest momentbecause then we became afamily. I have one boy who'sfour and a half. Hopefully afew more after him!

Favourite food that remindsyou of home:Dumplings with meat.

Favourite city:I lived in the UK for 12 yearsbut never lived in London. Soeverytime I travel to LondonI love it.

KEVINI can't believe I have been able to take care of myself on the roadfor so many years and I'm still fine. Because for me being Chineseand to travel away from home is different. Sometimes I'm homesick but I take care of myself well.

Favourite food that reminds you of home:Fish balls, dim sum, dumplings and noodles.

Favourite city:San Francisco. It's a city where you don't need to drive, people arefriendly, it's close to the ocean and the countryside is so relaxed.

LYNDALThe birth of my firstnephew was prettyamazing. I wasn’t inthe room but I was atthe hospital. I wasworking for TennisAustralia and it wasthe Davis Cupcelebration dinnerand I was allowed tohave my phone on thetable becauseeveryone knew it wasabout to happen. I gotup in the middle ofdinner and went tohospital. And thenbaby Ben wasborn, who is now ten.

Favourite food thatreminds you of home:BBQ.

Favourite city:Paris because it wasmy Dad's favouritecity and I was withhim the first time Iwent there. I loveDublin cause I alwayshave a good time andBruges because it'slike a fairytale.

JASONI have so many happy moments in my life but the happiest of momentswould have to be time spent with my family. The birth of my nieces, allthree of them over different years would be it.

Favourite food that reminds you of home:Garbanzo bean soup.

Favourite city:Tokyo. The food, the people, the environment, the respectfulness ofthe culture.

MARY-PIERI realised my dreamwhen I was recruitedwith Cirque du Soleil.That, for me, was thebest achievement.Especially playing thewhite singer in Allegriauntil the end, the verylast show.

Favourite food thatreminds you of home:Poutine and meat pie.

Favourite city:The Greek Islands. Theinexplicable beauty of it.You feel like you are inparadise, in heaven. Iwas looking a thelandscape and I couldn'tbelieve what I wasseeing.

LISABecoming a dive instructor in the Philippines. I did 3 seasons there. Istarted as a horrible open water diver and went through the wholecourse. It was very challenging, physically and mentally...I had aninstructor who basically bullied me into doing it but I'm actually verygrateful for that. By the time you finish it's been so nerve wracking butjust the release when everyone passed was amazing.

Favourite food that reminds you of home:I really dislike English food with a passion, but if I had to make a choiceI'd say a roast dinner.

Favourite city:Portugal cause it's dirty and gritty, Spain because it's full of life afterhours, Mebourne because its a very European city in Australia andWarsaw for great food.

JULIENMy parents were bigtravellers but theynever took us kidswith them, it wasalways their thing.But they would sendpostcards. This wasin the days whereleaving threeteenagers at homewasn't seen as anoffence.

So I've always hadthis dream oftravelling butthought I could neverdo this for a living.Then Cirquehappened.

Favourite food thatreminds you of home:Meat pie andketchup. My mummakes the best I'vehad in my life.

Favourite city:Tokyo, because I feellike such a strangerthere but I feel safeat the same time.

MR ZHOUI grew up in a circus family so my proudest achievement would becoaching so many artists from around the world.

Favourite food that reminds you of home:Japanese, Spanish and Mexican food.

Favourite city:Bilbao, Spain. Surrounded by mountains and the river in the city. It'ssmall but clean and quiet.

ROBERTOMy biggestachievement iskeeping myselfhealthy after havingcancer. It happened aweek before coming toKooza. Four monthsin chemotherapy, sixmonths in awheelchair. Totalof eight months notworking. I'm happy tobe here, happy to bealive and stillperforming on HighWire.

Favourite food thatreminds you of home:Lentils with chorizo,and seafood paella.

Favourite city:Tokyo, Japan. It’s adifferent city, 24hours non-stop,lights, it's a busy city.

MARTINI'm happiest when I can cook and make my sandwich. Somethingpeople will discover in the morning. I'm happiest when people love mysandwich, my private moment.

Favourite food that reminds you of home:Lasagne because it has so much cheese on top and I love cheese!

Favourite city:Gruyere, Switzerland.

NICOIt was 5am and we wereway drunk, so wedecided to get naked andswim in Bondi Beach. Wewere caught by a ripcurrent and we wereamazingly far, even forme as a swimmer.

There were three of us,the security guy startedswimming back but thecook with us waspanicking and I said tomyself if I dont help himhe's going to drown.

An hour later we endedup on the beach and Ithink I slept for twohours right there I wasso exhausted.

Favourite food thatreminds you of home:Shepherd's pie.

Favourite city:Bruges, due to how old itis and I like old stuff.

SERGIOWhen I was 12 I moved with my parents to Belgium. They let us out inthis weird new world and I only knew Spanish and I thought I have tolearn quickly, so I'm proud that I learnt to speak Dutch.

Favourite food that reminds you of home:Cuban rice with fried banana, egg and tomato fritto, this was my mealevery Monday morning.

Favourite city:Paris. It's cheesy but everytime I went there it was amazing. Nicebuildings, culture and the revolution in Europe started in Paris.

ROBINSONI like the showbackstage. We havea great time makingfun of each other,playing football orvolleyball to warmup for the show,dancing, enjoyingour friends.

Favourite food thatreminds you of home:Lentils soup withchicken.

Favourite city:Venice, Italy. It’svery different fromeverything that I’veseen.

FABIHappiest moment was when my brother was born. I was always goingwith my Mum to doctor's appointments and following her everywhere,I was 17 at the time. When her water broke she was driving with meand my grandma in the car. We didn't know what to do and she refusedto let anyone else drive, so we went to the hospital and I was callingeverybody "Hospital now, baby is being born, come NOW"!

Favourite food that reminds you of home:Anything with rice and beans.

Favourite city:I really like Warsaw, the people are really proud of their nationality.They weren't a country for a really long time and they all got togetherto build the country again and then came the war and they gottogether again to re-build their cities.

DENISHappiest moment waswhen I was on the top ofEiffel Tower and I askedSveta to be mywife...and she said YES!

Favourite food thatreminds you of home:I like pasta verymuch that my mumcooks. But if we talkabout Russian dinner, itshould be: soup (borsh,solyanka or kotlety(meatballs) withmashed potato and acold shot of vodka witha pickle.

Favourite city:My favourite city isBarcelona. When I gotthere for the first time Ijust fell in love. It'sbeautiful!

My proudestachievement isthat I've travelledaround the worldtwice on ships.Canary Islands toJapan would take50 days, Brazil toChina would take60 days. The onlycontinent I haveyet to visit isAntarctica.

Favourite foodthat reminds youof home:Snow Crab.

Favourite city:Santa Monica. It'son the beach, theweather is goodeven in the winter.Skiing and divingare next door. Ithas multipleofferings.

ERIK

VEDRAI went to Harvard and thought I was going to be a business woman anddo art on the side. I saw a whole different life for myself, I had acorporate job and I really went after it but then I was reallydisappointed, it wasn't what I expected. It was really hard to pull thetrigger and make a complete change in career direction. Now that's itsdone and I'm here, I really glad that I did it and I'm really proud.

Favourite food that reminds you of home:Chicken and waffles...oh and bacon. Anything breafasty.

Favourite city:Vancouver. It was a refreshing surprise. Beautiful, green, multi-cultural, such a nice cross between urban and nature.

ALPHEI'm proud that I've beenable to develop fourlanguages. FrenchEnglish, German andSpanish to a certainlevel. Being able tocommunicate with somany people is anachievement.

Favourite food thatreminds you of home:Shepherd's pie.

Favourite city:Zurich for the lifestyleand the beauty ofnature. The well beingof people is quite high,it's a healthy city.

CAROThe last two months I spent working with Lulu Lemon left me feeling soempowered and inspired to smash every goal I'm going to create thisyear. I left on a massive high and that's definitely been a turning pointand a really big moment in my life.

Favourite food that reminds you of home:Sausage rolls.

Favourite city:Malta, my heritage extends back there. So it was super amazing to seewhere my background comes from. Barcelona too, I love the city, beachand Spanish culture merged together.

JOEYI was 15 years old in New York City, at a title competition and it was a lifechanging performance night for me. I had done and felt things on stagethat I had never felt before. It was a time in my life where I had figuredmyself out and come to terms with who I was. It was a big breakthroughand at the awards ceremony I knew I was going to win, something insideme made me so happy. So my happiest moment was winning 2008 teen MrDance of America.

Favourite food that reminds you of home:Anything from Tim Horton's.

Favourite city:I love LA because I gain three hours of sleep and have a huge energy boost!

BOBefore being marriedand having kids I'd sayI'm most happyperforming. Seeing theaudience before mycurtains open. For myact I have two curtains.One I can't see theaudience, but with thesecond curtain I cansee them but they can'tsee me. So when thatcurtain goes backI see the whole audience around meand that moment isvery special.

Favourite food thatreminds you of home:Spicy Chinese foodfrom my home.

Favourite city:Miami for the beachand weather. Londonfor the beautifulbuildings.

VALI studied music and sound engineering in college and everyting wasabout sound and that's why I started working in entertainment. ThenI joined the circus and touring, seeing the world. It changed mecompletely from hearing to seeing. All cities kinda sound the samebut they all look very different and I became interested in art andgoing to every museum I could. I then studied Art History and I will goto my awards ceremony at Oxford University in two days!

Favourite food that reminds you of home:My Mum's meat pie.

Favourite city:London and Amsterdam because they're fabulous and Moscowbecause it's totally insane!

JOHNMy proudest achievement and happiest moment is the same...marryingAnnie! She brings so much to my life and makes me feel complete.

Favourite food that reminds you of home:Herring fish.

Favourite city:Melbourne because it has culture, feels good. Madrid and Barcelonabecause I love Spanish cities. And Amsterdam because it's my home.

TIMI was looking for mysecond act in life andcareer. I'd been aBroadway actor for 20years and that waswonderful and I checkedall the boxes I wantedto.

Then one day I looked upand I'm not 20 anymoreand I'm wondering whatcould I be workingtowards next so I wasdesirable and hireable. Istarted assistingDirectors on originalcreations in New Yorkand I loved themanagement side of thetable. A friend suggestedCirque du Soleil and alightbulb went on. Fiveyears on its been areally great fit.

Favourite food thatreminds you of home:Italian! Pastas andsauces.

Favourite city:New York City, its aworld city for everyone.

SVETAMy proudestachievement was avictory in thechampionshipRussian acrobatics.

Favourite food thatreminds you ofhome:Herring withpotatoes.

Favourite city:Barcelona, it's verybeautiful, thearchitecture, whatstruck me was thisbig fountain and awonderful museumof Salvador Dali.

TONIMy happiest moment is when I put everything together for aneducational concert that I created for kids. I created all of the songsand the characters, it was for 12-15 year old kids to teach them English.Seeing it all come together made me really happy.

Favourite food that reminds you of home:Pork loin with cheese in the middle and crumb it. We call it 'tiny book'at home.

Favourite city:Barcelona, that's my city, it's where I've lived all my life.

I always wanted to bein the circus as a kid, Iwanted to be a flyingtrapezist, and I alwaysdid circus arts on theside. I'm a self-taughtjuggler and I reallyliked passing clubs andI’m an actor. I reallylike working withpeople. I like tricks, Idid gymnastics andflipping around butnever at a level where Ithought I could be in acircus. Never, never,never!

Favourite food thatreminds you of home:Nachos, with hot salsaover the top, gratedMonterey Pepper Jackcheese and Cheddarcheese…and coffee icecream.

Favourite city:New York City, Iachieve a lot there andI’m inspired to do stuffthere. I feel part of anorganism that I’mplugged into, a greaterthing.

AMO

DELGERI just passed 14 exams and became internationally qualified as achartered certified accountant. Very few people pass at their firstattempt and I made a record in Eastern Europe by passing my firstattempt in all exams.

Favourite food that reminds you of home:Anything beef and flour...fried dumplings.

Favourite city:Paris, its so beautiful, so much to do, churches, restaurants, beautifulstreets, river cruises, the architecture. I could visit again and again.

AMANDAMy proudestachievement wasraising money forfour Ethiopianwomen and twoCambodian womento go to university.Education issomething we cantake for granted butit's the doorto opportunity,freedom and choice.

Favourite food thatreminds you ofhome:Chicken schnitzelwith peppercornsauce, salad andchips.

Favourite city:New York, there'ssomething foreveryone and thefood is fantastic.

AKOSI'm proud of two things, one that I've worked with circuses for over 20years and two, I've worked with elephants and a tiger and I'm still hereto talk about it...cause I've had some close brushes!

Favourite food that reminds you of home:Pasta with ground poppyseeds and sugar.

Favourite city:Manhattan in New York City, it reminds me of how Rome must havebeen back in the day when Rome was the centre of the civilized world.You find all nationalities and anything you want in New York City.

BAISAI used to watch thecircus as a kid andthink "Oh that's socool". So I joined acircus school at 13years of age. Irememberwatching Gangiperform onYouTube. Then 3.5years ago I joinedSaltimbanco. Ifeel lucky that Itravelled so much,nearly 50countries and 300cities withSaltimbanco andKooza.

Favourite foodthat reminds youof home:Large beefdumplings.

Favourite city:Sydney, I feel calmthere and have afeeling I don'twant to leave thecity. I also like thefood.

I studied music in school with saxophone and flute. Then I studiedmusic at university thinking I would become a teacher and teachteenagers but the class was too boring. I love playing but the theorywas boring and I didn't like the analysis.

Favourite food that reminds you of home:Shepherd's pie!

Favourite city:Osaka is more an American Japanese city, everyone smiles andtalks to you, it's really nice. New York City because there is a B&Hstore, all kinds of photography stuff that I love.

STEPHAN

MARIE-LEEMy proudestachievement wasto open my ownbusiness while stillworking withKooza. Althoughmy happiestmoment wouldhave to be the firsttime I performedunicycle in Londonat the Royal AlbertHall.

Favourite food thatreminds you ofhome:Poutine!

Favourite city:Salou and Floridafor the beach. Bernis also verybeautiful.

Proudest achievement was that I gave the Queen Mother crabs for her100th birthday.

Favourite food that reminds you of home:Beer can chicken on the BBQ cause it's delicious along with creamypotato bake.

Favourite city:Singapore for oyster omelettes and long neck Tiger beers.

SKIP

Coming out of collegeone of my teachersstarted working withCirque. I told him tolet me know whenwas a good time toapply. Then I startedrock climbing threedays a week for sixmonths to get overmy fear of heights.

Favourite food thatreminds you of home:Poutine because itsf%^&* delicious!

Favourite city:Tokyo, because youare out of thefishbowl looking ininstead of beinginside the fishbowllooking out.

JORDAN

Putting a ring on Jeni's finger was my happiest moment. We weremarried in Arlington Virginia, we took a week of vacation and gotmarried mid week on a Wednesday in a small park. After that we wentto Washington for dinner and had a good bottle of wine. It was abeautiful day.

Favourite food that reminds you of home:Smoky BBQ gravy that's spicy and you eat it with chicken.

Favourite city:Chicago. You're right beside Lake Michigan, weather in the summer isamazing and I'm a big fan of blues, there are lots of blues bars inChicago. I love it.

NICO

I had a lot ofachievements in mylife, and each ofthem was special.One example is whenI left South Americato join a traditionalcircus in Europe. Itwas a dream come true!

Favourite food thatreminds you ofhome:SancochoColombiano.

Favourite city:I don’t have one citythat I like the most,everywhere issomething different,but I would sayParis, France.

RONALD

I came to Kooza as an acrobat for teeterboard and now I workwith Yury on the unicycle. This is a very good achievement.

Favourite food that reminds you of home:Soup, Borsch.

Favourite city:Too many too choose from!

OLGA

Right now is my happiestmoment. It's like making asoup, you put thingstogether and then thingsstart to work. A fewpersonal projects aremaking me very happy.

Favourite food thatreminds you of home:Salmon with a littleherb and lemon.

Favourite city:Bern for the air, New Yorkfor the life, Paris for Paris.

JEAN-LOUIS

I thought giving birth was the hardest thing but actually being a goodMum is the hardest job in the world. I have moments every day whereI think I’m a crappy Mum because it’s just so hard to be your best allthe time. It's hard not to be tough on yourself, you’re responsible foranother human being. It’s more important than any other job I’vedone.

Favourite food that reminds you of home:Thai food

Favourite city:Bern, because the mountains almost brought me to tears, it remindedme of home.

BONNIE

My proudestachievement isgetting to do whatI like. I know itsounds verygeneral but I get tocook and travel,which I like.

Favourite foodthat reminds youof home:Octopus boiledwith paprika andolive oil.

Favourite city:Vienna is cool, Ihad a good timethere.

MAURO

My proudestachievement was tofinish building myhouse in Berlin lastAugust. I designedhow I wanted it tolook, all of therooms, and it took acompany and it took3.5 years to do. Nowit's done!

Favourite food thatreminds you ofhome:Sushi.

Favourite city:Chicago and NewYork, both big townswith goodrestaurants andgood metro and bustransport.

YURY

Proudest achievement would be that I produced and arranged analbum with a full classical orchestra, with me on the drums. It'ssomething unusual for a drummer to play with a classicalorchestra so I am very proud of this.

Favourite food that reminds you of home:Meat balls with tomato sauce.

Favourite city:Los Angeles because of the incredible weather andthe music opportunities.

ANDREA

PERRINProudest achievementwas the first time Imade a costume frombeginning to end andthen I saw on stage. Itwas for a theatrecompany in France. Soseeing what I made inthe audience for thefirst time was supernice.

Favourite food thatreminds you of home:Chouquette, which islike a profiterole withchocolate and a chunkof sugar on top.

Favourite city:Lome, the capital ofTogo. I was there forhumanitary reasonsfor two months. It wasso different fromanything I'd seenbefore.

FERNANDOThe happiest thing in my life, by far, is my son. Fatherhood teaches youthat your child is your priority over everything, absolutely everything.It also teaches you to be patient.

Favourite food that reminds you of home:Tortilla or eclair chocolate.

Favourite city:Paris, not just because its my home but because its the mostpresitigious city.

MARTAThe last two years Ihave had so many happymoments in my life. Youcould pick any randomday and I would say thatI've been happy. Butwhat I love is seeingpeople who smile a lot.Smiling people makesme feel good withinmyself.

Favourite food thatreminds you of home:Little lentils withchorizo and blackpudding.

Favourite city:Berlin, it has a greatatmosphere and it's verydifferent to the rest ofGermany.

I'm proud that I have two diplomas; one to be a mechanic and now alighting technician/rigger. As a Quebecer I have a lot of pride inworking for Cirque du Soleil.

Favourite food that reminds you of home:Mum's meat pie with Christmas spice, cloves and nutmeg.

Favourite city:Granada, it's beautiful, cheap, food and weather are good. You are 45minutes to the snow, 45 minutes to the beach with lots of climbingareas too.

ERIC C

ANASTASIAHappiest moment was when our lovely daughter, our little angelKristina, came to this world.

Favourite food that reminds you of home:Seledka pod shubo, herring under fur coat (I know it's a funny and weirdname for a salad). It reminds me of my home.

Favourite city:St. Petersburg. It's described as the most westernized city of Russia, aswell as its cultural capital. The city is romantic always, but especiallyduring the White Nights. I also like San Francisco, it was our first UScity on tour with Kooza.

The happiest moment is always when I see my family smiling, whenI see them full of happiness and joy! Keeping my family safe andhappy even with all the problems around us.

Favourite food that reminds you of home:Russian dumplings.

Favourite city:Volgograd. It is hard to imagine how this city survived during theBattle of Stalingrad against the German Army in World War II. It isa very strong city. Second is New York. I like this city because itsbusy and has many opportunities for anyone who is coming to thiscity.

VOVA

My best achievement was winning the Clown D’Or in Monte-Carlo International Circus Festival. We were the only Spanishand the only High Wire Troupe, in the world, to win this prize.

Favourite food that reminds you of home:Baked octopus Murcia style.

Favourite city:Madrid, Spain. I was raised there, went to school, watched RealMadrid F.C. soccer matches. I have good memories in this city.

VICENTE

WITTYI achieved a fewthings in my life,but my biggest oneright now is to get ajob with Cirque duSoleil. I worked aslocal staff in 2006,but since 2011 I’vebeen followingthem in Europe.And now, 2015, I gota permanentposition. I am reallyhappy about it!

Favourite food thatreminds you ofhome:Potatoes withCuttlefish that mymom cooks.

Favourite city:Lisbon, Portugal. Ilove the language,their history, andthe culture mix. Forme it’s the mostromantic city inEurope.

It was 2006 and I working in a mine in Queensland. I became friendswith a guy who asked me to come work for Cirque. I was reluctantfor a little bit but he beat me down and now here I am.

Favourite food that reminds you of home:Mum's lamb roast.

Favourite city:Melbourne, because it's home.

BEN

Proudest acheivement would be when I'm playing the trickster anddoing the hand to hand act in the show. When I perform those acts I gofrom crooner, to trickster and then quick costume change withoutwarm up for hand to hand. But performing all of those in one show iswhat I feel really proud of.

Favourite food that reminds you of home:Meat with pepper sauce or fish.

Favourite city:I love Madrid and Amsterdam.

PHILLIPE

ABRILProudestachievementwas when I gotto workhandstandbecause it washard and and Ialmost gave upbut I tried andpracticed harduntil I finallymade it!

Favourite foodthat remindsyou of home:Mole, it's fromMexico.

Favourite city:GuadalajaraMexico becauseit is the citywhere I wasborn andspent some ofthe best times inmy life!

NATHALYI have performed in musicals and shows in New York, but being inCirque du Soleil is one of my greatest achievements.

Favourite food that reminds you of home:White rice with beans, braised chicken and salad.

Favourite city:Disneyworld, Florida. I have been there three times and alwayshad fun.

I'm not sure if Ihave had myproudest momentyet but I think itwas pretty coolthat I got a greencard without hiringa lawyer. Onceupon a time I ran5K in 21min.44sec.That was prettyrad.

Favourite food thatreminds you ofhome:Beets.

Favourite city:Buenos Aires forit's welcomingwarm soul andPortland because itrains a lot andcalms down mynon-stoppersonality.

YULIA

Happiest moment was meeting my niece for the first time...It wasprobably one of the scariest as well because I don't think theworld can offer her everything she deserves and I am partlyresponsible for anything that ever happens to her.

Favourite food that reminds you of home:Meat pie.

Favourite city:All cities have shown me a high and a low at some point and I likeboth of these aspects in every city.

MARTY

In 2005 I watchedQuidam and Ithought, I could dothat for living. Ifinished universityand applied for anyshows available at Cirque. It didn’ttake too long toreceive a call and Igot a job withQuidam in 2010.

Favourite food thatreminds you ofhome:Lamington's.

Favourite city:After all this timetravelling aroundthe world, it’sAdelaide,Australia. Easyplace to live,everything is soclose andconvenient.

BEN

I am happy whenI am on top of theHigh Wire! Mybest achievementis working withthe Los Quirosfamily, they arethe best. When Isaw themperforming forthe first time, inOsaka, I almostcried.

Favourite foodthat reminds youof home:SancochoColombiano.

Favourite city:Osaka, Japan

BRAYAN

RONGetting my first Broadway show would be my proudestachievement. I had left a previous job as a news anchor and wentafter my dream. So my first show, Joseph and the AmazingTechnicolor Dream Coat, would have to be my crowning moment.

Favourite food that reminds you of home:Fried chicken.

Favourite city:San Francisco because it's cosmopolitan, intimate, diverse andhas an east coast feel on the west coast. The other would have tobe Denver, my home town, it's a surprise city in America with abackdrop of the Rockies.

My greatestachievement inlife is, of course,my kids! Myhappiest momentis the birth of mychildren, it was anindescribablefeeling!

Favourite foodthat reminds youof home:My favourite foodis sushi as itreminds me of thewonderful timespent in Japan.But food thatreminds me ofhome is probablythe dumplings.

Favourite city:My favorite city isBerlin. I likeeverything here!Good people,beautifularchitecture, Ijust love this city.

INNA

Before coming toCirque du Soleil, Iwas in College,performing in aMongolian Circus,training. I metSundee in College,but we didn’t knowthat both of us wereauditioning for thesame show. I toldher that I wascoming to Kooza,and she was reallyhappy because shewas going to thesame show.

Favourite food thatreminds you ofhome:Buuz, MongolianBeef Dumplings.

Favourite city:Vienna, Austria.The city isbeautiful, so muchhistory.

NINJIN

I'm really proudof making myjewellery. WheneverI see glitter beads Iget excited!

Favourite food thatreminds you of home:Pancit noodles withpork but preferablythe belly. That'swhere the bestflavour is.

Favourite city:Barcelona as it'sclose to the ocean orAmsterdam as it'squiet and beautiful.

ANNIE

My happiest momentwas performing to anaudience with morethan 1,000 people andreceiving a standingovation.

Favourite food thatreminds you ofhome:Bandeja Paisa yMondongo. Everytime I am inColombia, I just wantto eat these.

Favourite city:Miami, USA. I like itbecause theirlifestyle is very LatinAmerican.

JIMMY