Banana Girl: the controversial Aussie who's moved to Ecuador and is now a vegan in the jungle

Hi, All: this is interesting. Our very own Debra knows Banana Girl's mother, and we've just been talking about her at length. She's somewhere in Ecuador.

Here's a starting point:

• https://news.com.au/lifestyle/real-l...c72e839bbfff16

Freelee the Banana Girl moves to the jungle and off the grid

The Queensland social media star known as “the Banana Girl” has moved “off grid” and now spends most of her days naked, eating fruit.

https://i2.sdpnoticias.com/sdpnotici...2_620x6200.png

Freelee the Banana Girl, a popular vegan YouTuber and blogger, has shared her new “off grid” lifestyle with her followers on social media, by moving to a cabin in a jungle in South America.

Originally from Queensland, Freelee (whose real name is Leanne Ratcliffe) says she now spends most of her days naked, no longer shaves her body hair or wears make-up.

Posting to Instagram and her YouTube channel, Freelee showed viewers her “day in the life”. The clip shows the blogger riding a bike and having a shower outdoors, then consuming fruit which she grew on her property.

She lives in the tropical oasis with her partner and says her alternative lifestyle saves her thousands of dollars (“I’m not buying make-up, shavers, beauty treatments, jewellery, heels, and unnecessary fashion”) and brings her a kind of peace that she could never achieve in the “9-5 grind”.

She also writes on Instagram: “My vegan diet is far cheaper than my old sad diet ... It also keeps me healthy and away from expensive pharmaceuticals.”

“I used to work in a concrete jungle, now I just work in the jungle,” she wrote in the above Instagram post on Tuesday.

“How did this happen? Well, I woke up one morning dreading the work day ahead. I was exhausted with the 9-5 grind. Waking to an alarm, commuting over an hour a day dressed in a restrictive suit, painting my face to ‘look the part’, binding my feet in high heels and faking a smile to the public.”

“I was sick of working my life away making someone else rich. Maybe the worst, I was bored. I wanted to be turned on and to FEEL something meaningful every day. That morning I decided to free myself from being a slave. There wasn’t any social media back then so I transitioned by becoming a personal trainer with my own business. Soon after I found veganism and my true passion in life. Don’t be afraid, you CAN create this too.”

Freelee made headlines in 2014 when she revealed her extreme diet on social media.
She stated that her day on a plate usually consists of “mono meals”, made up of a single fruit, such as two entire pineapples in a sitting or five mangoes, two litres of orange juice or as many as 20 bananas at a time (hence the “banana girl” nickname).

She also said she remains “raw until four”, eating no cooked or heated food until the afternoon. Then, she usually still sticks to her mono meals, sometimes baking several kilograms of potatoes in the oven.

https://youtube.com/watch?v=1l7YuaYW2yU
Her Instagram account:

• https://instagram.com/freelee_official

I’ve followed Freelee off and on for a couple of years. Here are a couple of her recent videos.

Freelee YouTube

We made an outdoor fruit storage! | Rat/fly/ant proof DIY

Source: https://youtube.com/watch?v=toerKC7n0zc

Published on May 10, 2018

This storage is amazing! Keeps out all rats, most fruit flies, cockroaches and ants.

If you want to leave me any feedback on this video then feel free to do it here on the community tab.

Money

Source: https://youtube.com/watch?v=3yVcHE9T07k

Published on May 22, 2018

What do I REALLY need in this World to be happy? Do I need that extra clothing? Do I need the latest iphone? Do I need that beauty treatment? We get so caught up in getting rich that we forget the true meaning of life.

If you want to leave me any feeback on this video then feel free to do it here on the community tab

I wonder if the Ecuadorans are worried about all these foreign people coming and changing their native culture.

Does the average Ecuadoran want immigrants coming to their jungles?

Interesting to note how immigration to "developing countries" isnt seen as the deep state cultural marxism that fill other threads on this site.

But immigration from those countries to "developed" countries is.

Compare this thread with the thread about Sweden.

I admire their industriousness on the one hand.

But it's presented as being way too idyllic. I wanna see the part where she stubs her precious manicured toe for the 4th time in a day and goes on a wild cursing tirade ..(f#ck these motherf#cking logs! Someone get these God damn motherf#cking logs away from my motherf#cking tent!!)

Or the part where, utterly defeated, she gives up on swatting the mosquitos away from her face and is left slump shouldered and weeping in her cute little jungle bikini.

Call me a cynic, but there is no way this lasts. I DO give her credit for trying. Perhaps she will prove me wrong (she won't). It looks like a big PR stunt to me.

She is adorable, there is no denying that. But within a year her teeth will be ruined from eating all that fruit.

Indeed Praxis.. (post 3)
Bravo

first post I have read in a very long time that expertly exposes the elephant in the room

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Posted by Mike

I admire their industriousness on the one hand.

But it's presented as being way too idyllic. I wanna see the part where she stubs her precious manicured toe for the 4th time in a day and goes on a wild cursing tirade ..(f#ck these motherf#cking logs! Someone get these God damn motherf#cking logs away from my motherf#cking tent!!)

Or the part where, utterly defeated, she gives up on swatting the mosquitos away from her face and is left slump shouldered and weeping in her cute little jungle bikini.

Call me a cynic, but there is no way this lasts. I DO give her credit for trying. Perhaps she will prove me wrong (she won't). It looks like a big PR stunt to me.

She is adorable, there is no denying that. But within a year her teeth will be ruined from eating all that fruit.

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I share your sentiment a little ... ever seen the show "Naked and Afraid" jungle edition? That's probably closer to the reality of living naked in a jungle. :)

She probably lives near the jungle in reasonably good living conditions with access to normal amenities, allowing herself to safely choose how much "jungle" life she wants to live ... and there's nothing wrong with that either. :)

Edit" To add ... here's what living naked in the jungle fully "off grid" is really like ... :)

Source: https://youtube.com/watch?v=aR_OXjeXvdE

Quote:

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Posted by Praxis

I wonder if the Ecuadorans are worried about all these foreign people coming and changing their native culture.

Does the average Ecuadoran want immigrants coming to their jungles?

Interesting to note how immigration to "developing countries" isnt seen as the deep state cultural marxism that fill other threads on this site.

But immigration from those countries to "developed" countries is.

Compare this thread with the thread about Sweden.

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Yes, I do agree. I live in Ecuador, as you probably know, and I've written before about how, though the Ecuadorians are almost uniformly very gentle and pleasant, I can sense their disquiet and unease at all the foreigners coming in.

They're worried for their culture... I can sense it. It's interesting being on the other side of the fence, where it's ME who doesn't speak their language, it's ME who doesn't attend their church festivals, it's ME who has the different colored skin.

And all this is justified. I never came here to contribute to Ecuador's wealth and culture... though I do my best, with my extremely limited Spanish, to be as friendly as I can be to everyone I come across.

I'm here because I could be. I'm the self-interested immigrant here.

It may be the same with Banana Girl. But I've NOT yet read any of her posts or watched her videos, so I really don't know how much trouble she's taken to learn Spanish, and make friends and integrate with the locals. I'd be interested to know.

* Nor is she living 'off the grid', btw. For sure, she has better internet access (and probably a better computer, and a better camera, and a better vehicle), than I do. :) She talks a lot about diet and disconnecting from materialism (and good for her, too, because that's important) — but I've not heard anything yet about the diesel generator they use, or how they've made a giant water wheel to power everything they have.

I suspect that apart from maybe not going to the supermarket quite as often, they're as dependent on the grid as you and I are. But they're just in a different place, promoting an 'Anastasia' lifestyle, and making a moderately good living directly from that, too. And again.... that's no bad thing.

Quote:

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Posted by Mike

Call me a cynic, but there is no way this lasts. I DO give her credit for trying. Perhaps she will prove me wrong (she won't). It looks like a big PR stunt to me.

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Yes, kudos for her life changes and uplifting messages. Here’s the but…

What isn’t mentioned in the article is that until recently, Freelee’s fame and fortune as a YouTube blogger was made through stirring up controversy and judgement on folks lifestyles and looks. Her focus was on her physical appearance which also included breast implants and botox injections.

In part, she’s able to live off the grid because she continues to make money off those earlier videos. She removed many of the over the top, raunchy ones, and at least one other YouTube channel. Maybe she doesn’t need bushels of money, but knowing you have an ongoing financial cushion makes the current lifestyle easier. Also not mentioned was the maintenance on their top of the line bikes and gear and tech equipment.

I see the immigration comparison as an apples to oranges thing. Bill correct me if I’m wrong but the two sides are immigrating for very different reasons and I doubt there are millions sneaking into Ecuador illegally, trashing the jungle, increasing crime rates and expecting the Ecuadorian government to provide free food, housing, school and medical care.

Matt

I think maybe she’s suggesting being not out of the grid but above the grid.

All the “grid” is actually, merely a human infrastructure and eco-system to get us all something to eat and a warm place to live. The grid now is about expanding creature comforts as far and wide as possible.

We’ve moved beyond (we hope, though, probably not the case) the survival level to a world where we can consider reality beyond the survival level of the dog eat dog rapacity of our past.

Somehow humans have to grow out of the attachment to the intrigue of war and strife. We have to really learn to love peace, really want peace, learning how to truly love, and not just be addicted to marshal pursuits of neocon/nazi philosophy: always something to beat up, something to fight, something to steal from others, someone to feel superior to.

Unless we realize the truth that we are our own enemy and the war is about what’s inside you not outside of you.

The banana girl may have perceived this and is living inside that insight.
....Living inside her self.

Quote:

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Posted by RunningDeer

What isn’t mentioned in the article is that until recently, Freelee’s fame and fortune as a YouTube blogger was made through stirring up controversy and judgement on folks lifestyles and looks. Her focus was on her physical appearance which also included breast implants and botox injections.

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Yes. Do a Google image search for [Freelee Banana Girl]. You get this:

http://projectavalon.net/Freelee_Banana_Girl_images.jpg

Mike....you are EVER the optimist! :bigsmile: Apparently this lady has learned how to "use the system" quite well....and it's worked for her! :ROFL:

Actually, I have to say that I've seen enough already to know a narcissist-who-wants-to-be-a-celebrity when I see one.

My suspicion is that she's misrepresenting how she's living and just not being completely honest.

But that doesn't mean that she might not have a valuable message for some people (who really need it!). Marketing is all about catching people's attention, which she's clearly very skilled at.

Ugh. Freelee. She's everything wrong with veganism, off-grid lifestyles, and the like. She's a self-righteous, judgmental bully that is very dark and mean inside. She's also a total crook.

Here's a few reasons why Freelee should not be looked up to or respected:

- Her diet has absolutely no scientific basis. She adheres to this insane 98-1-1 diet: 98% of her 3000 calories a day (she claims) come from carbs, with the remaining 2% from fat and protein, respectively

- She rose to fame selling a book claiming that eating 3000 calories worth of fruit, especially bananas, and going raw vegan, is healthy and will make you lose weight. It doesn't, and she made a small fortune peddling this lie to her followers.

Oh, and of course, she's staunchly anti-GMO and waxes poetic about whole and natural foods (nothing wrong with any of that, btw), yet she eats primarily bananas. Irony much?

- She has said in her videos that she believes people should be forced to go vegan, and those that refuse should be killed

- She's been a massive bully to other YouTubers, particularly women, saying nasty, mean things about their appearance. Among her many, many grievances was one particularly memorable incident in which she called a young teenaged girl recovering from severe anorexia (which she had to be hospitalized for) "dumb and irrelevant".

She and her boyfriend take photos of fat people secretly and shame them on social media regularly, as well.

Yet she claims she's a feminist into female empowerment, who doesn't shave, wear makeup, etc. because she doesn't believe in that.

There's way, way more. I could go on. I could cite all of this, but frankly, I don't want to wade through years of her incendiary videos just to find the ones where she said those things. You'll just have to trust me when I say, she's a hypocrite and another not so nice word I won't say here :)

I don't know about her mother, of course. She could very well be lovely.

Quote:

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Posted by mpennery

I see the immigration comparison as an apples to oranges thing. Bill correct me if I’m wrong but the two sides are immigrating for very different reasons and I doubt there are millions sneaking into Ecuador illegally, trashing the jungle, increasing crime rates and expecting the Ecuadorian government to provide free food, housing, school and medical care.

Matt

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If you have the money you are ok.
If you don't, you're not.

Crime does tend to cling to the ankles of the underclass, tis true

Mind you, depends what crime you are focusing on. Banking and deforestation permits and condos in the sun lol

Just glad I have a passport and the money.. I am too sensitive for jail.

Thanks for the affirmation I wasnt wrong in my perception of the current

Her videos are just too darn slick to be believable for me. Truly going back to the land would involve a great deal of gut-wrenching hard work, disappointment and watching predators and pests gobble up your hard work all in the knowledge that your best efforts may well come to nothing.

In some countries, starvation, malnutrition and poisoning among very poor tribal communities is a very real threat and happens in spite of government intervention.

For me, the recent Avalon thread on the back-to-the-land movement taking place in Russia ('From Vedic Russia with Love') was much more believable, authentic and sincere:

https://projectavalon.net/forum4/show...ia-with-Love--

My own stance on this is that it's not necessary to be an absolute purist when it comes to living a simpler, natural life - why disown your evolutionary heritage?

There is no need to completely disconnect oneself from the grid.

Food? An intensively utilised suburban plot can provide a large portion of the food a family needs, but you can start with just a garden. If you are able to have chickens where you live, you can easily be self-sufficient in eggs. Revive the lost art of foraging - my earliest happiest memories were of mushroom picking with my dad in St Fagan's in South Wales.

Clothing? Learn to sew, knit, weave, spin and darn. Just like my great-grandmother did.

Shelter? Learn to choose a dwelling that is suitable for your needs in an area where taxes are reasonable. Are you really benefiting from having a huge house with mortgage payments you can barely meet - I realise I'm probably preaching to the converted here.

I spent time gardening this past spring planting potatoes, tomatoes, kale, carrots and a few other vegetables. This was done during blackfly season. I had multiple layers of clothes and mosquito netting on. When i got indoors after 3 or 4 hours, my face was dripping blood from multiple wounds. It was like living through a torture of a thousand pin sized knives.

Quite frankly, i dont know how our anscestors survived the bugs. I know that the aboriginals here in northern north america used to make smudge fires (a lot of smoke) and sat in the smoke to get away from the bugs.

I just wonder how bad the bugs are in the Equatorian jungle, and how banana girl survives them in the raw?

Quote:

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Posted by happyuk

Her videos are just too darn slick to be believable for me. Truly going back to the land would involve a great deal of gut-wrenching hard work, disappointment and watching predators and pests gobble up your hard work all in the knowledge that your best efforts may well come to nothing.

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Offgrid Jungle Vlog | We have a big problem…

The feral pigs are a big problem here and although I love animals we are forced to put ourselves and our food source, first. That means using primitive technology at this stage by creating deterrents made of bamboo that will stop the pigs destroying our gardens and uprooting our seedlings.

Critters on clothing @ 4:44...
https://i.imgur.com/Z5xLr4L.jpg

Source: https://youtube.com/watch?v=NUW7Oo7LBAQ

0:07: Pigs are beautiful but breeding rapidly and need food
0:48: We collect the fallen breadfruit to reduce breeding
0:54: They root up soil all over property and destroy its integrity
1:09: Pedalai has been damaged by pigs
1:24: Using sharp bamboo sticks to deter pigs from rooting around
2:24: They destroy our seedlings and vegetables so we need to act
2:36: Lucky enough to find some mangosteens
2:56: Saving the seed and sprouting into a baby!
3:09: Planting new life and future food
3:17: Collecting breadfruit leaves for compost and mulch
3:55: We get through a new compost bin very quickly
4:08: Robin trying to make it secure against the pigs
4:58: Robin keeping fit with the rings
5:26: Harvesting breadfruit for dinner is not always easy
5:58: Harvesting avocados, really nice
6:20: Harvesting papayas
6:50: Salad of Okinawan spinach, sweet leaf and more
6:55: Stirfry in water breadfruit experiment
7:10: Sugar Apples atemoya
7:35: Harvesting some grapefruit
8:17: Night falling sounds, enjoy.

Quote:

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Posted by Mike

I admire their industriousness on the one hand.

But it's presented as being way too idyllic. I wanna see the part where she stubs her precious manicured toe for the 4th time in a day and goes on a wild cursing tirade ..(f#ck these motherf#cking logs! Someone get these God damn motherf#cking logs away from my motherf#cking tent!!)

Or the part where, utterly defeated, she gives up on swatting the mosquitos away from her face and is left slump shouldered and weeping in her cute little jungle bikini.

Call me a cynic, but there is no way this lasts. I DO give her credit for trying. Perhaps she will prove me wrong (she won't). It looks like a big PR stunt to me.

She is adorable, there is no denying that. But within a year her teeth will be ruined from eating all that fruit.

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Publicity stunt. I don't give people like this credit for trying. Two pineapples at one sitting? Complete nonsense, unless she has the GI tract of an elephant.

Quote:

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Posted by AutumnW

Two pineapples at one sitting? Complete nonsense, unless she has the GI tract of an elephant.

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Made me laugh! :bigsmile:

I've done that once or twice here in Ecuador... but your stomach needs to be pretty empty. And NOT something to do every day. :)