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Welcome!

Hi folks, and welcome to my website! I'm Despina - thanks for visiting.

About Me

I'm a Sydney-based Bellydance teacher and performer, Yoga teacher, Pilates instructor, writer, and animal activist.

I completed two business certificates before starting my own business in 1998 as Dreaming Of Jeannie Bellydance, and worked very hard to quickly build up Dreaming Of Jeannie Bellydance to be one of the biggest Bellydance schools in Sydney.

In 2005 I closed Dreaming Of Jeannie Bellydance to pursue other things - namely Yoga, Pilates, and Writing - but as you can see from the announcement above I'm firing up Dreaming Of Jeannie Bellydance classes once more!

Writing is my another passion of mine, and I have a Bachelor of Arts with English Literature and Sociology majors, and also five writing diplomas.

You can see my list of published work on the Writing page, and read my articles on animal rights here: Animal Thoughts. Also, check out my FREE online book by clicking here: Little Dog In A Big City.

Have a look at my Photos pages for Bellydance photos and Yoga photos.

And there's a Video page with animal rights videos, Yoga videos, and Bellydance videos. Below is one of the Bellydance videos as a taster:

This is my FREE online book: Little Dog In A Big City.

I'm vegan! Find out more about veganism by clicking here: Animals, Animal Thoughts, and Animal Videos.

I care about animals and that's why I'm vegan. In this photo I'm going nose to nose with my little angel, the late Jordan (RIP). Read about my journey to veganism here: My Animal History.

Plank Pose - a classic pose in both Yoga and Pilates. See more Yoga postures on the Yoga photos page, and Yoga chants on the Yoga videos page.

I often write whilst horizontal. See my list of published work on the Writing page, and articles on animal rights here: Animal Thoughts. Also, check out my FREE online book by clicking here: Little Dog In A Big City.

In the words of Mahatma Gandhi:
"The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated."

SAY NO TO PUPPY MILLS! SAY NO TO ANIMALS IN PETSHOPS! SAY NO TO BREEDERS!

Adopt a homeless animal instead - they all deserve a second chance

It's estimated that 130,000 dogs and 60,000 cats are killed every year in Australia because there are not enough homes for them all. And the global numbers amount to millions upon millions every single year.

Puppy mills are a major contributor to the terrible problem of overpopulation. Puppy mills are essentially 'dog factories' where dogs are forced to churn out litter after litter, with no thought for the welfare of the dogs and all thought for profit. The dogs live in appallingly dirty, cramped conditions all their lives, and when they no longer serve their purpose they're killed, dumped or sold to vivisection laboratories.

Petshops fit into the picture because puppy mills are generally where petshops get their animals from. Furthermore, having animals in shop windows encourages impulse purchases, and adding an animal to your family should be a conscious, careful decision - NOT one to be made while shoe shopping.

Breeders contribute enormously to the tragic statistics above too. And it doesn't matter whether they're professional breeders or backyard breeders, and whether they breed for profit or not, because while there are homeless animals sitting on death row in shelters, any and all animal breeding is utterly irresponsible.

Now, here's where you come in. You can either be part of the problem or part of the solution. You can either buy animals from puppy mills, petshops or breeders and be part of the problem. Or you can adopt from a shelter or rescue organisation and be part of the solution.

If I haven't convinced you, visit your local shelter to see the homeless animals. Let their innocent faces convince you that adopting is the only responsible choice to make.

"To my mind, the life of a lamb is no less precious than that of a human being."
- Mahatma Gandhi

All information and photos are copyright © Despina Rosales.
Apart from any fair use of the information on this site for the purpose of private study, research, criticism or review (as per the Copyright Act),
permission must be sought before reproducing it for any other means.