last week in london

So it turns out, there IS sun in London, and in winter no less!

We split up for the day, with Doug heading off to meet a work contact for lunch in Milton Keynes while the rest of us tackled the touristy sights. We kicked things off at the London Dungeon (still as scary as ever!), before heading into Chinatown for lunch. We ordered an absolute spread I think we had all been missing some decent Asian food! Afterwards, we managed to get completely lost across all four floors of M&M's World before grabbing a well deserved hot chocolate. I then met up with Doug and his client for dinner at a pub, while the rest of the crew went to see The Producers.

The next morning, I took the opportunity to sleep in and try to shake off a cold that was brewing. The rest of the team wandered through Kensington and Hyde Park en route to the Natural History Museum. They walked back through Mayfair Arcade, marvelling at the chandeliers, before we all reunited for a late, quintessential Sunday pub lunch at The Windmill. I ordered the BIGGEST Sunday roast in the world, followed by an exceptional crumble, of course. I also managed to steal a taste of Doug’s pie, which was huge and seriously tasty. Later, we caught the train to go see ABBA... okay, not live, but their holographic ABBA Voyage show. It genuinely felt like they were right there in the room with us, and we danced the night away to hit after hit.

Finally, the day we had all been waiting for arrived: Harry Potter Studios! We all piled into the car and drove out to the 'burbs to experience some REAL movie magic. We spent a solid three hours wandering around the sets, taking it all in, and, naturally, drinking Butterbeer! Afterwards, the kids headed over to Covent Garden and stumbled upon a pre-theatre gem called Bancone (I had the truffle cacio e pepe and it was absolutely heavenly). We then all met up to see Hercules the musical in the oldest continuous theatre in London, having hosted its first show back in 1663! The "Muses" were a definite highlight, and we even got Rob up and dancing.

Our final day in London kicked off with an early-access private tour of the Churchill War Rooms. Even though Doug and I had been before, we got so much out of it this time around. It is just so fascinating being down in the very rooms where such massive decisions about WWII were made. We then bid farewell to Russ, who was flying out in the arvo, before taking a stroll through St James's Park to pick up our rental car. We were off to the Cotswolds!

Rob drove us through the winding country roads (perhaps a little too fast for my liking!), and we finally arrived at Diddly Squat Farm, better known as Clarkson's Farm. We walked around the perimeter before heading inside to sample some of the farm shop's delights, including "Cow Juice" milkshakes and caramel fudge. From there, it was another twenty-minute drive over to Jeremy Clarkson's pub, The Farmer's Dog. We enjoyed an incredible three-course meal where ALL the components were sourced directly from British farms (meaning no tomato sauce or Coca-Cola in sight!). We called it an early night, resting up before a big day of travel for Doug and myself to Jamaica! 

Nordic Norway

Well… you can’t fight the weather as we found out upon landing in Tromsø from Vienna. Our initial plan was to fly into Tromsø (about ¾ of the way to the top of Norway), then to “bunny hop” up to Kirkenes on a local flight. Well, after landing (and several delays) it seemed that would not be happening. The weather was so bad they cancelled ALL flights out of Tromsø for the day, and we were rescheduled for the next, this meant getting to the cruise we were scheduled on the following afternoon was looking very unlikely. With nowhere to go, we started looking for accommodation but it seemed EVERYONE was in the same boat with every hotel booked out! We luckily found a 3 bedroom AirBnB and made our way over there. Upon arrival we were all starving. Doug and I (the heroes that we are) hiked through a genuine snow storm in search of food and came back with the biggest pizza’s you’ve ever seen in your life and some Norwegian sweets to get us through the night. A restful night's sleep was well deserved (although it was somewhat broken by the world's noisiest clothes dryer) and we all went into the next day fresh for this adventure.

We were hoping for better news but unfortunately, our flight was delayed once again meaning that meeting the cruise would be impossible. We called Havila who advised us to stay put as the boat would be docking the next night. We checked out of our AirBnB and found another more central for our second night in Tromsø. Knowing we’d be there for another 36hrs meant we had some planning to do! First stop of course was to source some hot chocolate and create a plan of attack, we then walked across the bridge where we could see the entire town from above which was gorgeous. The streets were incredibly icy, and we only had 2hrs of daylight, but we went to almost every tour shop in the city trying to get on any activity to make the most of our time. Turns out the week between Christmas and New Year is the busiest period all year so the only space was for 3 on a Reindeer tour the following day, Doug and I bowed out and booked Rob, Wendy and Russ on this. We still had the afternoon to fill so after buying some Ice Cleats for myself (they’re metal spikes that you attach to your shoes, it made walking INFINITELY easier), Russ, Doug and I jumped on a bus to Tromsøbadet, a public (heated) pool that also has an outdoor swimming area. It was definitely not that easy to locate the pool in a blizzard with us almost walking straight past it due to a white out! We hid out in a hall and did a quick google only to realise it was right in front of us! Shows how strong the blizzard was haha, probably best we didn’t fly in it! We decided we needed some comfort food so off to the local Chinese we went, let me tell you the language barrier between English, Mandarin and Norwegian made for a very interesting dinner! Once home we started working on logistics for the next day as our boat wouldn’t arrive until 11.50PM!

Rob, Wendy & Russ had an early start as they ventured into the forest to play with Reindeer and experience the Sami Culture. Doug and I had a sleep in before dropping our luggage at a storage facility in a 7Eleven (random!?), we then headed over to the Tromsø Cathedral where we started our walking tour in the dark and snow. It was ambitious by us, we lasted about an hour before tapping out due to the wind, snow and freezing weather. A hot chocolate and regroup was well deserved, we warmed up and decided to head to the Arctic University Museum of Norway where we got to see Norway’s biggest diamond (about 0.1 carat! haha) as well as learn all about both the scientific and mythological details about the Northern Lights. After a few hours we ventured back into the city for lunch and a bit of a pub tour. In an effort to stay up until midnight, despite it being pitch black since 2pm, we all decided to meet at the cinemas and watch Zootopia 2 (screening in English, thank god!), afterwards we went bowling and finally had a 9pm dinner to get to the final stretch! Come 1am we were checked into our rooms on the boat and off on another adventure.

The next four days on the Havila were heaven, cue hours of relaxing, watching snow dusted fjords drift by, and indulging in incredible food. We also learned a crazy Austrian pickle/bean game which kept the family entertained for hours! I hadn’t realized this route was nicknamed the 'third most treacherous cruise voyage,' so I did turn a little green in parts, but we powered through!

New Year’s Eve was the highlight with fancy dinner in the main restaurant followed by champagne on the upper deck as we pulled into a tiny town (Bracken) that put on a fireworks show just for us. We kicked off 2026 in the hot tub as the snow was falling and some lucky Northern Lights sightings that evening, then capped off the voyage with an epic seafood feast. After docking, it was time to transit to Bergen Airport for the flight to London!

Schnitzel in Vienna

Getting off the plane in Vienna meant only one thing… Schnitzel. After landing, we raced to our hotel to dump our bags then walked to find Vienna’s best schnitzel. We had a booking at Lugeck who’s owners first started serving Weiner Schnitzel in 1905! I’m unsure if it was the BEST Schnitzel I’ve ever had but at 10pm post 11hr flight it was much appreciated.

A cold and drizzly start to our first day in Vienna was not a deterrent for us, we set off on a free walking tour to fill our morning we immersed ourselves in the city's history, walking from the famous State Opera to the imperial Hofburg and eventually finished up at the iconic St. Stephen's Cathedral. After seeing the sights Vienna had to offer it was time to eat the food! I’d seen a famous Viennese “coffee house” dessert on Instagram and finally it was my time to try it! We lined up for around 30 minutes to secure a table at the famous Demel Kaffeehaus in the centre of Vienna and finally were seated and got to try Kaiserschmarrn which is a fluffy pancake that is shredded and topped with rum-soaked raisins and stewed plums. Demel is renowned for having the best rendition and let me tell you, they did NOT disappoint! That afternoon it was time for yet another schnitzel of course, this time at Meissl and Schadn, the sister restaurant of one Doug and I discovered two years ago in Salzburg and spent Christmas at. Of course the schnitzel was AMAZING but also HUGE so we shared one between two and had all the trimmings (Austrian potato salad, yum). Afterwards the “kids” decided to do a bit of Christmas shopping so we headed over to Belvedere Palace Christmas Market where I strongly hinted at what I would like Santa to bring me. We then finished the evening at a mall shopping for board and card games so that we’d have something to keep us occupied on our upcoming cruise.

Austrian Christmas (aka Christmas Eve) had finally arrived and the first snowfall as well! The “kids” got a bit of a sleep in while Rob and Wendy headed to a tour of the Schönbrunn Palace. The kids then decided to head to the Museum of Illusions, where we spent the morning taking hilarious pictures defying logic and gravity. We then headed to the Imperial Treasury at the Hofburg Palace, where we got to see impressive jewels and even part of the tablecloth from the Last Supper! Speaking of supper, we were getting hungry so we headed over to meet the parents at a snowcovered Schönbrunn Palace and strolled the Christmas markets there looking for something to nibble on! Sausage in hand we then headed to something VERY cool on the palace grounds, a ZOO! The Zoo was massive and took us 3hours to get around, we saw everything from Cows (okay, probably didn’t need to go to a Zoo to see those), Kangaroos (again, probably could have seen them more locally but not with snow), but also met some very friendly elephants, hungry giraffes and one very happy panda! Exhausted from a big day of exploring, our day wasn’t quite finished yet, it was time for… MORE SCHNITZEL… but with a twist, we would be making it! Nabeil shared his secrets on how to make Schnitzel, crispy as hell and fluffy as heaven and let me tell you, THIS was the best Schnitzel we had in Vienna and probably my life! The key is to get the veal super thin, flour and egg wash TWICE before crumbing and then fry in deep oil, we aren’t winning any health awards here. The result was a super puffy, fluffy, crispy crust and amazing tender Schnitzel 10/10 in my books. Our dessert was Apple Strudel which, despite me learning in Salzburg, still did not go to plan! After being told off for not cutting the apples thinly enough I bowed out, sipped some Austrian sparkling wine and left the prep to the experts before digging in. It was time for bed, and to see if Santa came!

Santa came and so did MORE SNOW! Well, the first snowfall in 28 years on Christmas in Vienna to be exact (it was short lived and melted upon touching the ground, but I’ll take it!). After a late brekky, I took advantage of the fact that I had already done my Christmas shopping so popped my pyjamas on, watched the snow and watched my favourite Christmas movie, Four Holidays. Everyone else's morning looked a little different with them running around to buy their presents and of course, a tree to put them all under! Well, somehow we ended up with TWO makeshift Christmas trees in our hotel lobby but that was okay, we all exchanged gifts, some sentimental and some very practical. As it was Christmas, not much was open for the day so we headed over to some very touristy but fun attractions, the first was Sisi’s Adventure which was essentially a virtual reality short history about the Empresses life. We then went across the road to Vienna Time Travel, which encompassed 10 or so rooms, taking us through the history of Vienna from the Roman Empire to WWII. We all then split up to go our different ways, with Doug and I ending up at a traditional Viennese pub, drinking Radlers and learning how to play Yahtzee (which will feature heavily from here on out). We then met the entire family for a traditional Austrian Christmas dinner where we had all the traditional English style foods like roast beef but also some Austrian delicacies like roast goose with potato dumplings (was okay) and an amazing beef broth and pancake soup (my favourite). We finished dinner off with Gingerbread (of course) and Vanillekipferl which always reminds me of Christmas as my Oma makes an extra big batch every year just for me. Our final stop of the night was a spectacular light show “Lights of Creation” within the Votive Church. While it was freezing, it was absolutely stunning with lights bouncing off of the ceilings and alter, depicting the story of creation, from the Big Bang to the development of life. It was the perfect way to end Christmas.

Our final day in Austria had arrived, but the kids weren’t spending it in Vienna, it was time to hit the slopes! It was quite a trek to get out to Stuhleck but VERY worth the trip. The snow was incredible and runs so long they took half an hour each (or maybe that was just my slow skiing, haha). Several hot chocolates were had and after a very quiet train ride home it was time for a big sleep in preparation for a big day of travel to Norway!

 

BKK

After months of planning, booking and quietly building excitement, the day finally arrived. Hutch Fam Trip was officially underway. Yvonne dropped Doug and I at the airport, we met Russ, and just like that we were airborne. Nine short hours later we landed in Bangkok, shuffled our way through an impressively long immigration queue, and jumped in a taxi into the city. A quick pasta dinner with Rob and Wendy was all we managed before calling it a night. An early start was looming.

The 6am wake up was softened by the fact that our hotel had already opened the breakfast buffet. Fried chicken for breakfast? Bangkok, you have my attention. Our over enthusiastic tour guide was ready and waiting and, because it was a Saturday, Bangkok traffic was unusually kind. We slipped out of the city with ease, watching the orange sun rise slowly over the skyline.

Our first stop was the River Kwai Bridge, part of the infamous Death Railway built by Allied POWs during World War II under Japanese occupation. Standing there, it is hard not to feel the weight of history. A place that looks peaceful now, but holds stories that are anything but.

From there we headed to Erawan Waterfalls. Seven tiers, with the top sitting around 2km high. That does not sound too bad on paper, but let me tell you this was a VERY dicey hike. Wendy sensibly tapped out at waterfall two and opted for a swim. Russ, Doug, Rob and I pushed on through the blistering heat until waterfall five, where Doug decided the effort to reward ratio was no longer stacking up. He opted for a dip instead, complete with fish nibbling at his feet. Against all odds, Russ, Rob and I made it all the way to the top. Hot, sweaty, and extremely proud of ourselves. Going down, however, was almost harder than the climb up. Back at the bottom, a cold drink and a traditional Thai lunch never tasted so good.

Next stop was Hellfire Pass Museum and Memorial Walking Trail. The museum, funded by Australia, tells the story of the POWs forced to build the railway through the mountains. Rob had thoughtfully prepared us by making us watch The Railway Man, which gave the experience even more weight. Walking through Hellfire Pass itself, you can still see markings in the rock, remnants of tools, and artefacts left behind. Quiet but powerful reminders of what happened here.

Our final stop for the day was Tham Kra Sae Bridge, clinging dramatically to a cliff face above the river. Stunning views, and a fitting way to end a big, heavy, unforgettable day.

Back in Bangkok it was a quick turnaround. Thai food for dinner and straight to bed.

I had dreams of sleeping in the next morning, but Doug does not holiday that way. Instead, we were up and off to the local markets where we tried mangosteen, a purple skinned fruit with creamy white flesh that tastes far better than it looks. From there we headed into the kitchen for our cooking class.

First up was Tom Yum Goong with prawns. Something Doug and I had seen a hundred times but never tried. Turns out it is insanely simple. Water, lemongrass, kaffir lime, ginger, chilli, coconut milk, a few vegetables and prawns, done. And it was AMAZING. Doug has been instructed to add it to our weekly rotation.

Next came Pad Thai. Which I thought I was doing reasonably well until the chef predictably stepped in to rescue it. This was followed by Penang curry. Just as easy and an instant crowd favourite. But the real star was mango sticky rice. Beyond simple and possibly my favourite Asian dessert of all time.

With very full stomachs and some light negotiation about what to do next, we headed to Chatuchak Weekend Market. Thirty five acres. Over 15,000 stalls. Russ, Doug and I wandered for hours before deciding to beat the heat and head up to a rooftop bar overlooking a Christmas market. The Mahanakhon SkyWalk was right next door, so it would have been rude not to. We went up to the 75th floor where the boys did the tilt. Stepping into a cage that leans you out at a 65 degree angle over the city. I chose to sit that one out, but they swear it was incredible. Then up to the 78th floor for the glass skywalk and uninterrupted city views.

Our Bangkok finale was a tuk tuk food tour. Four hours of zipping through the city, Chinatown, Michelin star food stalls and tiny hole in the wall spots. Highlights, again, included mango sticky rice and charred chicken noodles, where we were taken out the back to see the kitchen. Open flames and all.

Exhausted, full, and completely satisfied, we had officially done Bangkok. Next stop something much more chilly...

Raja Ampat, like being in a Disney Movie

Well, Raja Ampat isn't particularly easy to get to. It took a Drive to the airport, 8hrs to Jakarta, 6hr layover, 4.5hrs to Sorong, 3hr wait, 3hr ferry, 2hr speedboat just to get there!

We arrived at lunch time on Saturday to torrential rain. Despite only having 3hrs sleep over a 40hr period we were determined to not nap. We managed to stay awake for the 5pm briefing to find out what we were doing the next day and struggled through a 7.30pm dinner before a long sleep. 

Our second day called for an early wake up, luckily there were clear skies as we set off for our first dive of the day. We arrived near a pier and upon our decent saw a turtle, eagle rays and a million different types of fish. After a quick break and refuel we set off to our second dive site, at two tiny islands.

Day 3 was jam packed with a 7am call time. Our first dive of the day Melissa's Garden which was my absolute pick of the trip! I felt like Ariel in the Little Mermaid, floating amongst some of the most vibrant coral and marine life I've ever seen. Even better was that we had a private tour guide so could go at our own pace and take it all in.

We then stopped off at Piaynemo Island and hiked the 300 stairs to the look out. The view was phenomenonal. Second dive was at Batu Rufus where we saw a mantis shrimp (Doug's favourite animal) and swum in a real mermaid lagoon that was as colourful as a disney movie.

We then stopped off at Rufus Island for lunch and a relax before our third dive at Famwall where we spent most of our time following a turtle! 

Doug thought I'd done very well with all of the activities so I was finally granted a rest day. We had a bit of a sleep in, then after breakfast, we wandered to the other side of the island barefoot, snorkles in hand and trailed by a cat who clearly thought she was part of the group.

It felt like we had our own private island with no one in sight, or perhaps a deserted island where we had been stranded haha. Doug and I spent hours drifting over coral gardens, snorkelling until my book was calling.

After such a relaxing day all we needed was... a bump in the road. It turned out our ferry for our last day had been cancelled and our options were either leave a day earlier or pay $1600 for a private transfer. After having no luck with our travel insurers we decided on the less risky option and decided that this would be our last night in paradise.

Another early morning, another set of tanks. Our first dive of the day was at the manta cleaning station huge, slow moving rays sweeping past getting cleaned by their fishie friends. At one point the current picked up and I genuinely thought I was going to float off to sea!

We motored to another island for two more dives. The current didn’t let up and we definitely got a work out! 

We rushed back to catch the afternoon ferry to Sorong. However, it almost didn’t make it. A 30 minute delay then 3 hours with no air con (despite being in "first class", packed in like sardines... we were not particularly happy by the end of the ride.

Eventually we got in to our unintended stopover in the shanty town of Sorong... late, sticky and just in time to collapse before our early flight to Bali to see our friends!!

Komodo

 

Ski Weekend in Queenstown

 After a VERY bumpy landing and barely touching down safely we did make it to magical queenstown in one piece. We jumped in our rental car and drove the 15 minutes into town where we sorted out ski gear, tickets and checking into our hotel. Our first night was an early one with dinner then a spa - ready for an early wake up. 

Day 2 consisted of skiing, skiing and more skiing. We went to the Remarkables and despite some heavy snowfall managed to get a good 6hrs of skiing in before making our way back to Queenstown and to Soda, a restraunt overlooking the lake. A quick pre-bed jacuzzi soak was required to rest our muscles. 

The next day was all about conquering fears - but first.... Frisbee Golf! Given I don't think I've ever thrown a Frisbee I wasn't surprised that Doug absolutely smashed me! Then after a Ferg Burger lunch it was time. I had somehow managed to stay away from videos explaining what I was about to do... first off Doug laughed his way down the terrifying 134m bungee drop (crazy) and then it was my turn. While I wasn't doing bungee, I had opted for the swing... something that I thought would be easier, turns out some people think the swing is worse. The swing consists of a 70m drop then swings you back and forth a few times until you are pulled up to safety... sounds easy right? No. After a few minor tears, shaking, massive anxiety, Doug managed to get me on it and safely strapped in. A massive squeal erupted out of me and down we went. Being pulled back up was almost as bad as being dropped!! Am I glad I did it? Yes. Will I do it again? No. Fatigued by my adrenaline rush nothing too crazy was on the cards that night... a walk through the towns pride festival, dinner and a soak in the jacuzzi when we got home was all I could manage.

On our third day the mountain weather was still bring unkind so we found ourselves dodging the rain and doing activities instead. A few games of bowling, shuffle board and a cheeky quaddie all sufficed as an excellent wet weather timetable. We ended the night with Coconut Margaritas at Margo's and hand made artisianal chocolates.

Our final day and the weather looked PERFECT. We woke up super early, stopped off for a pie at Ferg Bakery and tracked the hour to Cadrona. Despite the mountain being a touch slippery and neither Doug or I being able to fit chains properly we managed to make it safely up the mountain in one piece just in time for the first chairlift to open. The sky was bright blue, and a fresh 20cm of snow had fallen overnight making for the most amazing skiing. Doug and I tackled the Blue and Red runs with ease due to the powder snow and long, not too steep runs. After a full day of skiing (and a few hot chocolates) we were both exhausted but happy. We managed to find the ONLY Chinese place in town and tucked into an early dinner. I managed to find the famous hot cinnamon doughnut van on the way home and it was the perfect end to our little ski trip.

- K x