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

Tokyo

Day 1:

Waking up feeling a bit under the weather didn't dampen our spirits as Doug and I embarked on an unforgettable journey through the streets of Tokyo. After catching up on some much-needed rest, we ventured to Omoide Yokocho, better known as Piss Alley due to all of the bars and tiny hole in the wall eateries. We sampled many delights, some well known, some foregin but still exciting (whale?) and some that we thought we knew... but defintiely didn't (a very suspicious chicken). 

The highlight of the day? Mario Karting! Zooming across Rainbow Bridge and circling Tokyo Tower felt like stepping into a real-life video game, with Doug by my side as my co-pilot. The adrenaline rush was palpable as we navigated the bustling streets, laughing and cheering each other on throughout the exhilarating adventure.

Day 2:

Day two was packed with excitement as Doug and I delved into the heart of Tokyo's bustling districts. Starting off with a visit to Gigo 1 in Akihabara, we were both mesmerized by the endless array of tech gadgets and anime merchandise. The allure of the pokies added an extra thrill to our exploration, making it a truly unforgettable experience - although no wins on either of our parts.

Next up, we embarked on a high-tech sushi train adventure, ordering anything we wanted on an iPad watching our sushi whizz past us almost instantaneously! 

We then strolled through the eclectic streets of Harajuku (no Harajuku Girls) on our way a shrine where we received our fortunes.

When in Japan, eat as the Japanese do... so dinner was at Pizza Mauro - okay not strictlyJapanese but some of the most amazing pizza either of us has ever had. 

The night ended with a stroll through Kabukicho, where we said goodnight to Godzilla. 

Day 3:

Day three promised more enchanting experiences as Doug and I set out to explore Tokyo once again. Our first stop was Team Labs, where we were both immersed in digital flowers, running water and light rooms - all in the name of art!.  

Another sushi train lunch (I loved it so much the first time) fueled our excitement for the next adventure: attending a sumo wrestling tournament. The atmosphere was electric as we watched the mighty wrestlers clash in the ring, cheering on our favorites with enthusiasm - we even placed a few bets between us - but it was almost impossible to tell who would win!

I can't believe Tokyo, and our mammoth trip is at an end... did it satisfy our desire to see the world? Yes. But it has also sparked a monster and now all we want to do is travel again!!

7 weeks
13 countries
23 flights
74,291kms

Until next time,

- K x

The Happiest Place on Earth - Japanese Edition

Day 1: DisneySea Delights

 

Our adventure at DisneySea kicked off with a whirlwind of excitement as we embarked on a quest to conquer every ride on offer. We got in early due to our hotel privillages meaning we had access to some of the rides half an hour before the public!

 Here's the lowdown on our thrilling escapades, complete with our verdicts out of 10:

•           Journey to the Center of the Earth:8/10
•           Indiana Jones: 7.75/10 – so fun that we decided to watch the movie that afternoon!!
•           Raging Rapids: 8.25/10. We loved it so much, we had to do it twice... in a row! 
•           Sinbad's Adventure: 5.5/10 
•           20,000 Leagues Under the Sea: 6/10 
•           Aquatopia: 6.5/10 
•          Tower of Terror: 9/10 – my first tower of terror experience...and dare I say, I loved it!!
•           Fortress Experience: 2.5/10 
•       Mickey's Big Band Beat: 6/10  
•         Nemos Underwater Adventure: 7/10 
•          Soaring Fantastic Flight: 7.75/10 

 

The night was topped off by an amazing fireworks display over the park - a pretty magical day.

 

Day 2: Disneyland Adventures

After a heart-pounding 25 minute sprint to Disneyland, courtesy of Tokyo's cashless transport system, we almost missed our half hour head start but we were ready to dive headfirst into another day of Disney magic.

• Space Mountain: 8/10 
• Big Thunder Mountain: 7.5/10 
• Splash Mountain: 7/10 
• Cinderella's Great Hall: 6/10
• Monsters Inc.: 6.75/10 
• Pirates of the Caribbean: 6.75/10 
•  Star Wars: 5/10 
• Buzz Lightyear's Astro Blasters: 6.5/10 
• Pinocchio: 3/10 
•  Snow White: 4.25/10 

And there you have it – our whirlwind tour of Disneyland, complete with thrills, spills, and plenty of Disney magic!

 - K x

Palm Springs 🌴

Our brief stopover in Palm Springs turned out to be quite the adventure.

Originally planned as a catch-up with friends, conflicting schedules prompted a change of plans, allowing Doug and I to indulge in some retail therapy and culinary delights.

We stumbled upon a sprawling designer outlet complex, where I finally gave in to my shopping urges after showing remarkable restraint in London and New York. Doug even managed to find something for himself amidst the sea of luxury goods. Our day of indulgence culminated in a taste test of California's famed In-n-Out Burgers, I can confirm its the best fast food I've ever had!

As the sun dipped below the horizon, casting a golden glow over the majestic mountains, we were treated to a breathtaking vista from our hotel.

The following day began with an early trip to Walmart to acquire an additional suitcase to accommodate all my purchases, whoops!! They sell some very weird & wonderful things in Wallmart everything from 30 types of M&Ms to... $30 guns?!?!

With my new clothes safely packed in their bag, we embarked on a self-guided tour of the city's mid-century modern architecture, admiring th vibrant hues of its iconic doors. 

Our exploration continued into the desert, where we decided on a hike that led us to a oasis nestled among the sparse landscape. While the scenery was undeniably spectacular, the thought of tackling such terrain in the summer heat shocked us - it was 25 degrees in the middle of winter. 

We set out on the road to LA, making sure to make a pit stop for one last taste of In-n-Out goodness and a sneaky UberEats order of Levain Bakery cookies before our long flight to Tokyo...

Distance Travelled: 54,101km

Map:

K x

Thawing out in Jamaica.

Have you ever had an airline bring your flight 20mins forward, while you're at the airport?? After an extremely early wakeup and train to JFK we waited 40 mins to check in and another hour to get through security. Getting anxious I checked the flight details and between when we checked in and when we were at security the flight time had moved forward by 20mins! Doug and I sprinted and were the last ones on the plane! 

A 4hr flight and 1.5hr drive and I was handed a glass of champagne and finally in paradise. The rest of the afternoon was filled with relaxing reading in the sun (me) and Piña Coladas (Doug).

No rest for the wicked as we were up early the next morning for Scuba Diving! The resort we were staying at actually has complimentary Scuba - or as I like to call it, kids club for husbands. I fully expected to have to wriggle into a wetsuit as per usual, but was advised that the water was 29 degrees and a tshirt would be more than enough! To my surprise he was right! We jumped in and I would have passed out if I was in a suit. We descended and started seeing the usual sights, gorgeous coral, some fish and.... wait, what's that... a plane wreck! Yes at our dive sight was a small plane that had crashed 15 years ago, covered in coral and teeming with fish who had made it their home. We kept swimming and our guide started hunting lion fish which are pests in the area. After drying off, we ran over to our next activity, a corn hole competition! Doug and I played, and lost two games ... hmm probably not the sport for us. The rest of the afternoon was spent relaxing by the pool, finally an activity I excel at! 

Doug started Wednesday off with a dive while I enjoyed a sleep in. We then met at our first activity of the day which was a quiz on "how well do you know your partner". Unsurprisingly Doug and I were excellent at this and won! We then hung out at the pool bar and made some friends, a young couple who were actually eloping the next day. We spent a few hours chatting and playing cards with them before deciding we should teach them how to sail! We grabbed a Hobie Cat from the beach and were off! 

The next morning marked my second dive, and probably my favourite. The first ten minutes were fairly uneventful but then something amazing happened... I made a new best friend. I'd heard of the Remora fish before from Doug, they're little fish that stick to whales and sharks to help clean them and are totally harmless and quite friendly. I'm very glad I knew this information as a Remora decided I was it's best friend and kept sticking to me and followed me wherever I went. This fish, I'm not joking, followed me for 20 minutes playing and swimming around, sticking to my legs and nibbling on my pigtails. After our dive, and saying good bye to the Remora, it was time for me to do some reading. Not wanting to miss out on any activities, Doug jumped in the pool, piña colada in hand, to do water aerobics! He bopped along with the enthusiasm of a man 30 years too young to do water aerobics! Our final activity of the day was a 4pm sail, just the two of us which was lovely. 

On our final day, I decided that Doug simply had too much fun at water aerobics alone so I'd join him. Drinks in hand we set off for the pool ready to do some ridiculous moves. Well, I think the only work out I got was my abs from laughing so hard! A spot of reading was then on the cards before the final sail of our trip. The last activity for Jamaica was then a game of pool on the way to dinner. It was the perfect week spent in the sun, relaxing but with enough activities to keep Doug happy as well! We are already trying to figure out when we can go back!

Distance travelled: 49,758km

Map:

K x

Winter in New York

When Frank Sinatra sang “I want to be a part of it, New York, New York” it was for good reason.

There is just something magical in the air in New York isn’t there? 

After an uneventful 8hr flight and a very unglamorous train from Newark we checked into our hotel then walked across Bryant Park, past the glittering Christmas Tree and Ice Skating Rink. Our first stop was dinner at STK for their famous date night menu, consisting of Entree, Main, Dessert and a Bottle of Bubbles- the perfect way to toast to our first night in the city. 

Our second day in New York was a tale of two mornings, after 4 weeks spending 24/7 with each other I think we both needed some time apart. 

A girl from work was coincidentally in the city so I decided to spend the morning with her. 

I met her uptown for a true New York diner breakfast of pancakes! We then went to M&Ms World Times Square where we shopped up a storm and sampled all of the new flavours of course! 

Doug's morning went a little differently, he went to a bakery in Brooklyn, wanderd to Brooklyn Park then walked across the bridge. 

Upon stepping off the bridge he then saw his favourite calling card .... "China Town" where he had to indulge in a few dumplings. He then strided his way across town to a bar which was a favourite of Anthony Bourdain where you are offered a free hot dog with EVERY single purchase no matter what.

The three of us then met up for a very late lunch uptown at Tao, a little gem Doug and I discovered last time we were here. They have an amazing $25 lunch special and a $29 Three Martini flight (three Lychee Martinis for me!).

Doug's only request for New York was one show... a magic show! 

I begrudgingly agreed thinking oh this will be lame, but just go along with it. Words cannot explain how blown my mind was, magic is real and nothing will make me believe otherwise again. To get an understanding of what it was like, WATCH THIS LINK it was essentially 2hrs of stuff like this including intense audience participation from both Doug and I. 

Why do I think it’s real? Well, I was who he brought on stage in an act, which involved a card clenched in my fist disappearing. I still have the very card that I signed in my bag to show everyone! 

Our third day in New York was dedicated to a self guided food and walking tour. Stop 1 was Levain Bakery in Noho for one of their famous Two Chocolate Chip Cookies ... let's just say I was not disappointed - I was in warm, gooey, chocolatey cookie heaven. 

Next stop was Doug's dumpling tour of China Town, first stop was Tasty Dumpling where you can get 8 dumplings for $4, then onto Super Taste, which do little fried dumplings that look like tacos! We needed to work off all that food, so we decided to rug up and walk across the Brooklyn Bridge to our next stop. 

Voted the Best Pizza in New York we arrived at Luigis where we actually met the owner Giovanni, who's family have been making pizza there since the 70s. We ordered two slices and it was insane. Super crispy base but super gooey cheese topping, the perfect pizza. As we stepped out, we realised it had started to snow - it was actually the first snow the city had seen in 700 days. Not wanting to get caught in a snowstorm we sought refuge in a nearby bar, the Skylark. We found their games corner and got stuck into Monopoly Deal (I won 2/3) and Scrabble (Doug won 2/3) only to realise we had been there 5hrs and it was 9pm! 

Our final full day saw more snow, we had tickets to Liberty Island so jumped on the ferry early. Doug had organised special tickets which meant we actually got to climb up into the crown of the Statue of Liberty! We climbed all 550 stairs up to the very top, it was very narrow and windy so my anxiety was a little high! Outside was still freezing and snowing so we decided to head to the West Village for the best cacio pepe pasta in New York (Via Carotta which coincidentally is Taylor Swifts favourite restaurant). Warm and fueled up, we jumped on the train to MetLife Stadium in New Jersey to watch the Eagles play the Giants. I fell in love with the spectacle of the game, somehow cheering on both teams and loving the music and entertainment during each break (there was a corgi race). Every giants touchdown was met with fireworks and the crowd going wild. 

In a further stroke of luck both Doug & I both caught T-shirts from the cannon! I gave mine to a young kid, Doug kept his!

The Giants had an easy win so it was a very lively train ride back to the city. A very early night as we need to get up at 4.30am to catch our 8am flight to Jamaica!!

Distance Travelled: 47,245km

Map:

VIDEO HERE

K x

New Year in London

For the first time ever, I saw sun in London. We touched down on a glorious morning, to see sun and have it be 13 degrees in the middle of winter is unheard of for London! We checked into the Clermont in Victoria- only a quick walk away from Buckingham Palace and Hyde Park.

We knew that London would be expensive, but given we are the definition of "living above our means" we had found a hack to counteract the cost of living. There is a restraunt booking platform that gives you dollars for everytime you book, and sometimes there are bonus points etc. In melbourne you can cash these in for $50 off a meal...but in the UK it's £50 - so almost double. We saved up ALOT of these so you'll see them peppered through our trip. Anyway, our first booking was a late lunch at the Londoner in Piccadilly Circus, where we managed to get away with 6 dishes for only £20 after our discount! 

We then went on a little bit of a pub crawl through Belgravia (I professed to Doug I loved the area and wouldn't it be a good place for Nala and I to move to, he just laughed in my face and asked when I was marrying Bill Gates). We had booked tickets to Hyde Park Winter Wonderland, a massive Christmas Themed Fair that was bigger than the Melbourne Show! We wandered into a Circus style show where we saw daring acrobats spinning 15m above ground from hanging fabric and 4 motocross riders dodging each other in the circle of doom. After all that death-defying craziness, I decided that you only live once so we were skipping dinner and heading straight for dessert at a little pub on the way home. A Sticky Date Pudding and Apple Crumble was just what the doctor ordered. 

Day 2 in London started with a voyage to Borough Market. I'm not sure what I was expecting but it was madness! People everywhere and stalls selling everything from Soaps to Oysters! We had a wander around before settling on sharing "England's best Sasuage Roll". Looking for another budget friendly activity we decided to jump on a train out of town and head to the RAF museum where we saw planes from every war including a Spitfire and even got to try our hand at designing our own plane (mine was pink, great for speed and terrible at everything else unfortunately haha).

Keeping in with our budget theme that evening we found a Caribbean themed 2 for 1 cocktails, because we all know that Mango Mojitos are the perfect drink for a 10 degree night. We then went to a nice vibey restaurant in Mayfair for another £50 off! Finally we finished the night off at a local pub and met some puppies seeking refuge from the cold. 

New Years Eve had arrived and that meant our soccer game. We caught the regional train to Tottenham and weaved through the town houses enroute to White Heart Lane, I couldn't believe there was a 60,000 seat stadium literally next to houses in a residential area. We had no real plans to ring in the new year as we didn't want to spend a fortune on a planned event so just decided to do our own little pub crawl starting at "The Bear" in Paddington and ending at 1am at the "Queens Arms" in Victoria. It was lovely just sitting in a pub, watching the fireworks on TV with all the locals, we really felt like we were Londoners at this point.

New Years Day was understandably very slow, we visited China Town as I was told only Sweet and Sour would fix Doug's sore head. We caught some of the NYD parade on Oxford St and stopped in to explore all 7 of Hamleys toy filled levels before heading home for an early night. 

The 2nd of Jan was back to our regular jam packed schedule. We started the day commuting 3 suitcases across town to Covent Garden where our hotel was for the night (we extended our time in London and couldn't stay at the same hotel). We then ran across town to the F1 arcade, an activity we booked for boxing day but had to cancel in the flight delay madness. We did three tracks Bahrain, Zanvoort and Suzuka - unfortunately for Doug I was far too good and won every race! We then had lunch at an Argentinean restaurant and had the biggest cookie in the world for dessert! Doug had a surprise activity afterwards for me, a special exhibition at the Natural History Museum about the Titanosaur which was the largest creature to ever walk the earth, they had a full skeleton of it and this thing was MASSIVE! We also saw Hope, the skeleton of the Blue Whale which is the largest animal to ever to live on earth (including the dinosaurs). After seeing alot of really big things it was time to walk across Hyde Park as we had Curling to get to! Unfortunately due to super windy weather it was cancelled, however to our luck on our way back to the tube we found a pub running Trivia! With no other plans for the night- how could we not! We actually somehow ended up winning (team name Quizard of Aus) and lucked into a £50 free bar tab as our prize! Another budget friendly night for the Hutchinsons! 

Jan 3rd was a day I won’t forget but I’m very confident it will be forever etched into Doug's memory as we took a train to Milton Keynes. An unremarkable town in every way about an hour north of London. However it is the base for the Red Bull Formula 1 team.

Through a chance meeting in Easter back in 2022 Doug had gained a contact who was able to arrange an exceedingly rare behind the scenes tour of the entire factory.

Our phones had their cameras taped up and in we went. Doug's jaw on the floor almost the entire time, we saw the machining of clutch parts, the painting of the new car’s colour scheme four massive autoclaves as well as the engines being tested on Dyno’s.

We then were treated to lunch with the workers in the team and got to learn much more about the business of F1!

Rounding a very Doug friendly day we ended the day at an airport hotel which had a runway view, flight tracker app on hand Doug narrated 3 hours of flights for me until the Heathrow curfew mercifully started and 11pm and we hit the hay!

Distance Travelled: 41,642km

K x

Pilgrimage to Paris

Months ago when we were finishing the itinerary we were looking at ways to get to Paris from Salzburg, we both aren't the biggest fans of Paris but there was a burlesque show that I really wanted to see, so Doug was along for the ride.

Issue is, even back then there really wasn’t any flight options between the 2 cities despite only being 790kms apart. 

In the meantime we were also offed, tickets to the Arsenal match on Boxing Day which of course we say yes to.

There was a flight on Christmas Day at 3.25pm which meant we would get Christmas Day in Salzburg, Christmas night in London then Soccer on Boxing Day perfect, we lock it in, then book the 7.30 Eurostar to Paris that night.

Fast forward 3 months to September and the airline changed the departure time to 9.50pm, bit of a nightmare but at least we get there in time for the soccer, whatever, is what it is.

Then in November they completely cancel the flight and offer us the initial 3.25pm flight but on Boxing Day, blowing the soccer out of the water and the whole point of the pre-paris London trip.

After an hour on the phone they finally offered us a flight to London first thing on Boxing Day but departing from Munich at 7.50am arriving 9am London. We booked a Christmas arvo train to Munich and an airport hotel. Phew, sorted. 

Then the EPL, sell their broadcast rights in part to Amazon who then insist on moving the Boxing Day clash to the 28th…

But we are now flying to London at 9am only to get a 7.30pm Eurostar to Paris for no reason!!

Is what it is, better a day in London then Paris anyway...

Anyway we get on the plane and the pilot informs us of a delay, had a minor engine issue, engineers had fixed it - just signing it off wouldn’t be long. Sure enough, 20 mins later the tug for the pushback arrives and we start rolling.

To the crews credit they had been amazing at communicating, captain and FO both came into the cabin to give updates- told us it was engine 2 with the issue which we were sat right over.

As we rolled back they spooled it up and Doug could immediately hear it was no good. Sure enough they shut it straight down.

2 more hours on the tarmac later they finally pull the pin back to the gate.

Doug & I weren't too fussed, there’s plenty of planes in Munich headed to London, plus we really only need to be in Paris so surely they could just route us there.

We head back in through passport control, get our bags go the to British Air counter….

Who couldn't do anything and gave us a number to call.

Sure enough the number is a call centre in Bangalore and the fun begins...

For some unknown bureaucratic reason they can’t route us direct to Paris, and there’s no flights at all to London until the next day.

Doug ... well... wasn't impressed and miraculously after asking to speak to the manager they find 1 option:

LH0111 from Munich to Frankfurt

50 minute layover 

LH916

Frankfurt to Heathrow…

Issue is this plane gets in at 5.45pm and the Eurostar to Paris closes it’s gates at 7.15

To add to the fun the Heathrow express is down meaning the only option is the stopping all stations tube which takes exactly an hour!

With literally no options, our relaxed day had gotten incredibly tight.

Sure enough first leg delayed by 30 mins, we sprint across 2 terminals but somehow make the connection by a minute.

But that’s just out of the coalface into the fire,

To get away with it we’d have to land at LHR, Taxi, disembark, clear passport, collect baggage, clear customs and get to the tube in 28 minutes.

Incredibly though we made it, by 1 minute at both ends.

So in summary our journey to Paris was:

Salzburg -> Munich -> Frankfurt -> London -> Paris. To travel what is 790kms as the crow flies.

In 14hrs ALONE we passed passport control & international customs 6 times:

-Leaving Munich

-Re-entering Munich when plane broke

- Leaving Frankfurt 

- Entering London

- Exiting London

- Entering France

The guy at the Eurostar genuinely thought we must have been pranking him couldn’t understand all the stamps on the 26th!!

All to exit in a city that neither of us love, and only wanted to be in for a 2hr show!

After a sleep and a reset we walked the streets of Paris, passing the Louvre and the Seine before settling into a restaurant and a few bars in Le Marais. In typical French fashion there was a strike on so many attractions such as the Eiffel Tower were closed - thankfully we have been before and had already done all the touristy stuff we wanted to. Our Burlesque show was well worth the trip to Paris and we both loved it. 

Next stop -London!

Distance travelled: 41,297km (around 1,800 of them completely unnecessary!!)

K x

Christmas in Salzburg

As a self professed lover of all things Christmas, when planning our trip we faced a very real conundrum as to where to spend my favourite time of the year with many appealing options…

Doug however was quite insistent, to get the most magical Christmas experience We MUST be in Austria for... so to Salzburg we went. 

We arrived a little earlier than expected due to poor weather in Kitzbühel meaning we had some time to wander around. First stop was of course Chinese food for Poor Doug, who had gone the longest he ever had without the Asian cuisine (about 8 days). We the decided to walk up to the fort that overlooks the city, which was a good idea in theory but ended up being a very steep 2km hike! 

Once we reached the top the views over Salzburg were breathtaking - it is such a beautiful city. 

We visited the museum on the history of the fort, and learnt that first settlement there was in 870 with construction starting in 1077! After an hour or so we started to wander back through the Christmas Markets and found ourselves a tiny little Christmas Tree to make our hotel room feel more festive. 

Stiftskeller St. Peter is a restraunt within an Abbey (yes, Maria Von Trapp's Abbey) that opened around 803AD, making it the oldest restaurant in the world! 

So of course it meant we had to go there for dinner! There was a tiny Christmas Market out front then we walked into the tiny pokey little rooms all the diners were in.They were out of the pasta I had ordered so swapped it with a €50 Truffle Pasta free of charge instead- no complaints over here!

The next day was Christmas Eve, meaning not alot was open. We set each other a budget of €10 and split up to buy presents to pop under the tree for the next morning. We met up at lunch for a VERY large schnitzel- you know it's going to be good when they ask you if you want it cooked in butter, lard or oil! As everything after 2pm is closed on Christmas Eve in Austria we decided to spend the afternoon doing the Sound of Music tour. We got to see the house and lake in Salzburg then ventured into the Alps further to a little town, Mondsee, where the wedding scene was filmed. The movie sights were great to see (and I loved the sing-a-long), but visiting a church in tiny little Austrian town, on Christmas was pretty magical as well. As we ventured back we realised we hadn't adequately prepared for dinner, as everything including supermarkets were closed, so it was some 2 minute noodle style pasta from the service station for our Christmas Dinner! We ate in bed while watching The Sound of Music and Love Actually. 

Our last day in Salzburg was Christmas Day - which meant opening our small gifts from each other! We popped a bottle of service station champagne and made some Mimosas while exchanging gifts. We both bought each other a small ornament for our tree next year. Again, as not much was open we had a cooking class booked in. We learnt how to make the perfect Apple Strudel (ours was soooo tasty) and Vanille Kipferl which is what my Oma makes every Christmas. Then it was time to make our pilgrimage to Munich airport for an early flight to London in the morning. The airport oddly had an outdoor Christmas Market within it -which served as our last dinner - Currywurst for me and 1/2 metre! Bratwurst for Doug!

Distance travelled: 39,892km

K x 

Alps.

Now think of the most German place you can, let me guess, you're thinking of a Beer Hall in Munich. Well after a few flight delays, that's where our trip in Germany started. The Hofbräuhaus! We unfortunately were too late for food, but managed to sneak a few beers in (Radler for me) before heading to bed, ready for our early morning train to Kitzbühel. 

We arrived in Kitzbühel at around 10am, ready for a day of skiing, however unfortunately were met with hurricane-like winds and avalanche warnings meaning the slopes in the whole region were closed for the next few days. No matter, sounds to me like we will have to spend another Christmas over here!! We had a wonderful day walking around the town centre and seeking refuge from the cold with a hot chocolate at a Cafe. A few bars sounded like the perfect way to spend the late afternoon, including a wine bar that had a Mango Mojito on the menu - seemed fitting! Our final stop was a very authentic restaurant where no one even spoke English! I muddled through with my high school German and managed to order us two Schnitzels and some Käsespätzle. The Schnitzels were MASSIVE, but don't worry, I still left some room for Apple Strudel! Ahhh, the food of my people is so heavy but soooo tasty! Very full, and very happy, we went home to watch The Holiday in bed. 

Given the bad weather will continue tomorrow we've decided to get the early train to Salzburg to start the Christmas vibes asap!

K x

Lapland

Now, I've had short layovers, but have you ever had a MINUS 5 minute layover? We have. What was meant to be still a nail biting 55 minute layover was obliterated due to take-off delays and a sick passenger. It was an incredibly stressful 6hr flight, where we touched down in Iceland 5 minutes AFTER our next plane to Finland was meant to leave...seemingly this is quite common in Iceland and they actually help the plane for us! To make it even crazier, we later found out that Rekiavyk airport was plagued by traffic controller strikes and two days later all flights were grounded due to a Volcano so we were incredibly lucky. The second and third flights were beautifully uneventful and, despite all odds we finally touched down in Romenevni Finland.

We jumped in the car and hit the road, despite it only being 5pm out was beyond pitch black. I saw something weird in the sky, like a coloured haze. I turned to Doug and asked "do you think that's the Northern Lights?". Don't be silly he said, without looking as clearly the icy roads were more important than the skies, it's too easy for that. 20 minutes later we arrived at Apukka and to Doug's amazement... they were the northern lights (Kate crying in Finland tally is now at 1). We checked in to our Glass Igloo, enjoyed a yummy crab soup dinner and the lights just got progressively brighter over the next 5 hours. They danced amoung the stars while we lay in bed watching the sky and fighting sleep. Despite the rocky start - what a magical way to end my birthday.

But, the trip magic had only just begun. Upon waking up to an orange sunrise at 9am we had brekky (porridge is a seriously underrated breakfast buffet food) and wandered over to reception. In a stroke of luck we were actually offered an upgrade of rooms for our last 2 nights, so we grabbed our bag and checked into what could only be called a glass teepee suite. The downstairs consisted of kitchen, dining and living, while upstairs was a loft with a bed and a glass roof to watch the sky - how amazing! But that wasn't the only magic we were expecting- because it was SANTA DAY! At a balmy -5 degrees we got ready to jump in the car and head to Santa's Village just 20 minutes down the road. Only problem was, our car was COVERED in ice and snow! Okay, 10 minutes of cleaning up the car and then we were on our way. 

We arrived and made a beeline for Santa's Post Office, the busiest Post Office in the world. We saw letters from all over the world, and even managed to send a few of our own. Afterwards a walk through the village was a must, we crossed over the "Arctic Circle" threshold, stopped into Santa's favourite restaurant (Golden Bowl Dimsum) and even saw some Reindeer for good measure (no they can't fly). The moment had arrived, and it was time to meet the big guy. Panic set in when I realised, I had nothing to ask him for... I was already on a trip of a lifetime - what more could I possibly want for Christmas? I decided on a Puppy (which funnily enough Santa delivered a day later) and Doug on a very sensible gift for a 32 year old, a PlayStation 5. The moment was almost here, but we then realised it was €50 just to get a take home photo with Santa - yikes, I guess he has to make his money somewhere. Don't worry, Doug said, I'll sort it.... with the iPhone camera hidden in his jacket on record he managed to capture the whole 2 minute interaction between Santa and I (Kate crying tally now at 2). 

We then headed into Rovaniemi City centre for a bit of a walk around, a late lunch at Santa's favourite Kebab shop (pretty sure thats why they named the Reindeer Donner), and a stop at the local supermarket (our budget cannot keep up with eating every meal out!). 

Our evening activities were a touch more daring, our guide picked us up and we ventured an hour into the pitch black forest in the middle of a snow storm. From there we were shown our own private sauna, jacuzzi (doesn't sound scary yet...) as well as the nearly frozen lake where we were going to jump in (yep, there is the scary part). Dreading every upcoming moment I sat in the sauna for so long I felt I was going to pass out, I convinced Doug that a trial run into the snow was a good idea (and hopefully was a shock enough that he'd give me a pass on the lake). I geared up to jump in and... oh, it was cold but definitely not the freezing shock I expected, maybe I could do this?

Back into the Sauna we went, again for an eyewatering amount of time, until I was sure I'd pass out. We then ran through the snow to the lake, only to find others swimming in it... in full ice suits....damn, it must be cold. Doug got in first and then.... eeek, again was cold- pretty cold - but not the achingly, unable to move cold I had expected. I'd done it, I was Finnish now. 

To my shock, I ended up doing it another two times! We then spent the rest of the evening in the jacuzzi, while it was snowing, and with the northern lights putting on a show (Kate crying tally - 3). 

The third day will now forever be know as snow mobile day. After breakfast we went and got all suited up, proper snow boots, suit and helmet were provided luckily as we would be racing through the Finnish countryside on some serious horsepower. Our first trip out involved a chilly stop, Ice Fishing! We were given a very long hand drill and asked to clear the snow (no small feat as it was about 1 Nala deep) and hand drill through 40cm of ice just to get to the water. Unfortunately after 20 minutes Doug and I weren't in any luck so retreated to the fire (yes, fire on the ice) to warm up before heading home. The second trip of the day was a night snowmobile safari. It was meant to be northern lights hunting, however as it was cloudy we knew thay wouldn't be the case (we had seen them the last 2 nights so we were happy). The forrest was so different at night, white trees glowing and an eerie silence. We ventured an hour on snow mobiles and stopped in a clearing for a fire, hot sasuages and some warm juice where we were treated to some stories from our native Lappish guide. Home to bed to enjoy the warmth and comfort of our bed as the next night we wouldn't be so lucky. 

Once again all snugged up in our snow gear we got ready for another amazing activity. Husky sledding!! We walked to the husky kennel and saw the excitement on the dogs faces. I've heard of people being a touch wary about making these dogs run... let me tell you, it was hard to calm them down when they knew they were going to run, it was like telling Nala she's going to the beach and watching the Zoomies start. We got all set up and the dogs ran us through the snow, twisting and turning, knowing the exact route - so clever. Afterwards we had an opportunity to cuddle a 5 week old puppy! They don't get introduced to living in the snow until 10 weeks so this poor baby was a bit cold, but nothing a cuddle couldn't fix. (Kate crying tally - 4, how could you not he was just SO CUTE) 

It was finally time to leave Apukka and check in...to our Ice Hotel! I was terrified to say the least, but they assured me it would be warm. The hotel was around 20 rooms, all themed differently and make up entirely of ice except for the mattress (even the bedframe was ice!). We then had a central locker room and bathroom (not made of ice, obviously). First had dinner in the Ice Restaurant, where Doug tried Reindeer for the first time (honestly not too bad) then decided on a plan of attack to stay warm. The overnight temperature was due to be -20 so we had a serious task infront of us. We first decided to sauna until we could no longer take it, hoping our body heat rose enough, then packed on the layers until we got into our thermal sleeping bags. They say the more layers you wear in the sleeping bags, the harder it is stay warm. Doug took this one literally and slept in his jocks while I did a light set of pajamas. We jumped in, zipped all the way up so only out faces were showing and settled into a movie before falling asleep. 

It was 2.30am and a bright light in my face woke me up, hurry, the random person in my room said, the Aurora is on. Ooooh I remembered, we had asked to be woken up if the lights were active. Doug, still fast asleep (good to know I'll be protected if we ever have an intruder), needed a few gentle jabs in the side and finally awoke. We layered up and ran outside to see the green lights dance across the sky, given we were only in our PJs (Doug had sensibly transitioned to board shorts at this stage) and puffer jackets we only lasted 5 minutes before needing to get warm again and seeking refuge in the locker room. Back to bed we went, a little colder, but happy having seen magic, and went back to sleep.

We awoke the next morning and compared sleeping notes. Doug, a lover of all things cold, was more than comfortable and almost too warm in his sleeping bag! I was okay, a bit chilly from our 2am party, but managed to sleep in 2hr blocks so not too bad. I'm so glad we had the experience, but I'm not sure I'd be signing up for it for more than 1 night at a time!

A quick brekky and a last drive on the icy roads and we were off to Germany... 

FINLAND TRAVEL VIDEO HERE

Distance travelled: 37,253km

Map:

K x

Washington

As we touched down in the United States' Capital close to midnight and jumped in our car to the hotel, a quick survey of the available food landscape yieled little options aside from the classic golden arches. As it happens, in a lovely piece of history repeating itself, McDonalads chicken nuggets were our first ever UberEats order on our last trip stateside. Therefore, it was only fitting that we ordered them once again! Stomach's full and with alarms set for 7hrs time the Lincoln Memorial awaited... 

We were on our way after a number of outfit changes, necessitated by what was almost balmy winter weather of 14 degrees (pretty much like Melbourne Summer!). Fortunately the Lincoln Memorial was only a short walk from our hotel. I was genuinely stunned by just how large and grand it was! It was made even better by a cuddle with Lacey the Golden Retriever as I'm missing Nala so much! 

After being told off by our electric scooters for riding on the sidewall (which was actually a bike path), we ditched them next to the reflecting pool. We then grabbed an Uber to the home of all things espionage, the Spy Museum. 

Not only has my understanding of acronyms have greatly improved, from CIA, KGB, MI6, and everything in between we were treated to a fascinating history lesson of the worlds (known) spies and gadges I think Ds favourite part was definitely all of the WWII and Cold War spy stuff, I definitely got an additional history lesson from him! 

Next off we dashed to the Air and Space Museum, only to find out that while it was free we did need to "book in a timeslot", no matter, we booked for 1pm and ran across to the Natural History Museum instead.

I loved seeing the dinasour bones and learning even more about evolution via my tour guide, Doug, haha. Did you know Sloths used to be twice the size of an average car!! So wild. We then went through the geology exhibit (which featured some of Marie Antoinette's diamonds - nice) and quickly raced through Egypt and the Ocean sections as it was almost time for Air & Space!

We saw elements from Apollo 11, such as the command module, part of the engine, and Neil Armstrong's famous space walk suit. We also saw the original Wright brothers plane (yes, Doug was nerding out at this point) and watched a movie in the Planetarium.

Our final stop in Washington was none other than the Washington Monument. Now, if you think Doug loved Air and Space... just wait until you hear him gush about the engineering feat that is the Washington Monument... 

We soared 500ft into the air and once up there Doug acousted the lovely guard to give us all the information on how its built, did you know it's the largest free standing stone building without steel reinforcement? They used a rudimentary safety net to catch people falling as they finished the top, meaning no one died on the project - unheard of for the 1800s. It's perfectly balanced, requiring no morter at all, just gravity. So yeah, as you can imagine, Doug loved this. 

A race back to the hotel, a train, and the worst airport lounge in the world later we were in Iceland Air's hands...

Doug found a nifty little tool for me so see below for a summary of our trip so far!

KMs Travelled: 29,603

Stops Map:

K x

Blue Curaçao

It’s 7am at Toronto airport, we’re 4 continents in and headed to a 5th, caffeine is needed… I can’t quite bring myself to peculated so we seek out a Starbucks however one glance at the line and the quest for caffeine immediately changes course… 

Doug being the, shall we say, complex eater has immediately dismissed all “breakfast” food options instead taking me to “Smash Burger” generally speaking I would strongly disagree but as i peered at the outlet I spied what has become arguably the rarest (and best) beverage in existence… POST MIX DIET COKE.

It was meant to be as Doug tucked into a 7.15am smash burger my insides were treated to one big hug in the form of my favorite drink which I haven’t been able to have in over a year!

A 5 hour flight later, a comparative skip compared to previous legs we landed in Curacao. 

After accidently bypassing customs we were finally (legally) allowed into the country. We picked up our muscle for the week, a tiny Kia picanto which looked as if it could barely make it out of the carpark, let alone on the adventure we had planned. 

After some dicey roads and crazy drivers, we arrived at the hotel exhausted given the long few days of travelling. We managed to peel ourselves off the bed and made a beeline to Mambo Beach for some pizza then early to bed. 

Our first full day in Curacao also saw Doug using his first "yes activity day" for the trip meaning we were up bright and early ready for our adventure! First stop was Subway which saw us sharing an obscenely expensive sandwich as our next meal would be a late lunch. We then ventured to our first stop, Playa Piskadó. I was expecting maybe 1 lame turtle but we walked in from the shore and swam out maybe 20m and there was at least 30! They were everywhere. We got to snorkel and swim alongside them, which was amazing. We then headed to probably one of the most beautiful beaches I've ever seen, 

Grote Knip where the water basically glowed blue! We had two hours of relaxing, reading books and making friends with the wild pigs before heading off to Playa Forti. 

At Playa Forti was a gorgeous restaurant on a clifftop... it was so stunning until Doug burst my bubble and told me we'd be jumping off the cliff into the ocean as that's the "done thing". After a tense negotiation and me pointing out that nothing in the world could make me jump 40ft to my death, he conceeded that maybe lunch at the restaurant was enough. We then jumped in the car to a diveshop nearby to book in the next mornings dive. Then home just in time for a Sushi and Cocktail night at the neighbouring hotel!

Up early again, and in the car for some Maccas (can't dive on an empty stomach) and a 45min drive to our dive spot, Alice in Wonderland in Playa Kalki. The water was once again stunning and I did my first "shore dive" since my training course back in 2019. Douggie guided us the whole way and we saw some great purple coral, lionfish, eels and even some puffer fish. In between dives we ate on the beach and swam out to a floating pontoon to chill. Both beyond exhausted after a day of swimming and diving it was pizza in bed and a Christmas movie!

The day we had been waiting for had finally arrived.... back in Feb when we decide to go to Curacao, all the travel blogs said a trip to Klein Curacao (little Curacao) on a Catamaran was a must. Well, on day 3 our day came. The weather was spectacular, after a bumpy 2hr boat ride out (Doug slept the whole way) we finally arrived to stunning water and white sand. After swimming to shore, exploring shipwrecks and scaling lighthouses we headed back to the mainland and even got to sail for a little bit! Exhausted after a day of fun in the sun, and no room service avalible we had a very quick bite to eat then early to bed. 

Our last full day in Curacao started with a 2hr walking tour of Willemstad where we learnt about the history of the island and saw the Dutch architecture. The afternoon finally saw another few hours of me and my book in the sunshine which I was very grateful for, followed by a yummy vodka shrimp pasta. 

The next morning was spent by the pool before checking out at 12 and heading off to the airport for our next adventure...

K x

TRAVEL VIDEO

3 Continents in 48hrs...

After hopping off our 14hr flight surprisingly fresh as daisies (thank you business class flat bed) and knowing we only had 10hrs before our flight left the race was on to fit in as much as possible in Amsterdam. 

After a longer than anticipated customs line and a quick costume change and bag drop, we were off on the bus into Amsterdam at 8am. 

First stop? Winkel 43 to get the AppelTaart I've been dreaming of for 4yrs... with no wifi or knowledge of the public transport system we somehow arrived just as it opened. 

The smell of apple and cinnamon warmed the freezing cold air and I couldn't contain my excitement. We quickly ordered, and after a brush with death on the world's smallest spiral staircase, two slabs of AppelTaart with a mountain of whipped cream arrived. It was somehow better than I remembered and I'd happily fly to Amsterdam again, just for a slice.

Having eaten in record time, and the next venue not opening until 10am we found ourselves wondering a little farmers market in the square. Cheeses, spices and even some fur coats were all for sale!

We then walked across the canals to Tony's Chocolony chocolate store... (yes, I have somehow tried to make this whole trip a tax write-off haha). Our intention was to do the "make your own" chocolate bar but unfortunately it was out of service for the day. We still managed to have a look around the store and buy some chocolate, as if we weren't already full enough!

One of our favourite activities we did in London a few years ago was something silly called "The London Dungeon" which was basically an interactive experience that took you through the dark history of London. Of course, Doug couldn't go past the Dutch version in Amsterdam. It was in a similar format, but with a lot more jumps and scares! I was even put on "trial" for being a witch and definitely screamed the loudest through all the twists and turns. 

It was a very full morning but as the rain started, it was time for us to journey back to the airport in time for our flight. A quick bite in the lounge and then back on another flight (KLM for a change) for an easy hop-skip and jump across the pond to Toronto!

We arrived in Toronto at 7.30pm so with an 8.30am flight the next day we didn't really have an opportunity to explore. So how do you see an entire city, at night, in the 2hrs before going to bed??? Don't worry, Doug knows! 

After thowing our bags in our room at the airport hotel, we ran for the train into the city. Only 25mins and we were in the heart of Toronto. Doug figured the best way to see it all, was from the sky so he organised a dinner for us at the top of the CN Tower - and the restaurant actually revolved! We ate an amazing dinner all while seeing the whole city, it was so chilly that the cloud started decending and by the time we had finished dinner and walked outside, most of the buildings over 5 stories weren't visible! I can't imagine what happens as it gets even colder.

We ventured back to the airport hotel for a quick sleep, before our morning flight to Curacao...

K x