17 December 2025 Steps: 11,523 This morning we got up nice and early to drive from Te Anau to Milford sound, for our boat cruise through the fjord. Fun fact : Milford Sound is actually a fjord, not a sound, as it was created by erosion by a glacier, not a river We drove straight to Milford Sound without stopping, and managed to get one of the last free parking spots, but that meant a 20 minute walk to the terminal, which added a bit of unnecessary stress! We probably should h

16 December 2025 Steps: 5,450 This morning we drove to Te Anau as we have a boat excursion booked for the next day at Milford Sound , and we wanted to split up the four hour drive. As we were heading out of town, we passed the Kawarau bungy site , and we watched a few people bungy jump off the bridge. Not a chance that I would voluntarily do that! Evelyn did seem keen to do the zipline though, so we’ll see if we get time to do that when we are back in Queenstown. Driving to T

15 December 2025 Steps: 10,739 Today we took a short drive from Queenstown to Arrowtown and started with a nice walk along the Arrow River Gorge . The trail followed the river and passed through an old gold mining area , with stone huts and the remains of early settlements tucked into the hillside. Lupins were everywhere and the views over the river were beautiful the whole way along. Arrowtown After the walk we headed into Arrowtown itself. It is a lovely little town with a

14 December 2025 Steps: 13,765 Today was Jessica’s 11th birthday , and her uncle Michael had arranged a special surprise for her as a present. All he mentioned was that it involved taking the gondola to the top of the mountain - but nothing else! Cue the jokes about him getting her a bungee jump for her birthday… The Skyline Luge, Queenstown The views over the lake were incredible , although it soon became obvious what the surprise was as we passed over the tracks where peop

13 December 2025 Steps: 7,568 This morning was an early start as we had to catch an Uber to the airport for our flight to Queenstown , New Zealand, and to meet up with Susie's brother Michael that lives there. More Flight Delays We had planned to spend some time in the lounge and grab some food before boarding, but unfortunately things didn’t exactly go to plan. The Virgin bag drop machines weren’t working properly, and it took almost two hours to get through security, which

12 December 2025 Steps: 13,495 Although we had already seen our fair share of koalas at the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary a few days earlier, we wanted to try our luck spotting a koala in the wild . It always feels more rewarding when you see an animal in its natural habitat. I started researching “ where is the best place to see koalas in the wild in Brisbane ,” but everywhere we looked seemed to be hit and miss. Koalas don’t move much and tend to sit high up in the trees, whic

11 December 2025 Steps: 9,748 We enjoyed Brisbane Southbank so much last night that the girls were keen to go back for some swimming at the Streets Beach, which is a man made pool right by the river. It is such an amazing free thing to do in Brisbane, and the pool is divided into different sections, with varying depths. The sand is lovely and nice to sit on and even inside the pool, so it’s really soft on your feet. In the afternoon, me and the girls went to go watch Zootopi

10 December 2025 Steps: 14,611 Today has to be one of my favourite days on our trip , as not only did we get to see koalas up close, I also got to see how happy Evelyn was seeing a koala , which for everyone that knows Evelyn, means the world to her. The Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary The Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary is best known for its koalas, but there are plenty of other animals to see as well, including kangaroos, birds, reptiles, and a wide range of native wildlife. Before hea

9 December 2025 Steps: 10,830 Our first day in Brisbane didn’t start off too well as Susie still hasn’t managed to shake off whatever bug she’s caught, so we were a little slow getting moving today. While the girls were stirring, I headed out to Woolworths to pick up some cereal for breakfast, and what a gorgeous morning it was! Lovely and warm, but without the crazy humidity that we’ve experienced in Asia. QAGOMA (Queensland Art Gallery and Gallery of Modern Art) Our first s

8 December 2025 Steps: 5,401 Today we said goodbye to my parents, who are flying back to the UK with a night in Singapore, and we said goodbye to Asia after two unforgettable months . Our time here has been incredible, but now we’re off to Australia for a whole new part of our journey. It’s hard to believe we’re already about 70 percent of the way through our trip . We’re all really excited for Australia and New Zealand, but no one more than Evelyn, who has been counting down

7 December 2025 Steps: 3,324 It’s a short entry today. We had planned a day out at Sanur Beach , but unfortunately Susie still hasn’t shaken whatever bug she’s caught and wasn’t well enough for the one hour ride each way. We decided that since it was our last day in Bali, we would spend some time relaxing by the pool and then head into Ubud for a nice family dinner instead. Susie wasn’t feeling up to anything unfamiliar, so we went out for another Italian meal , this time at

6 December 2025 Steps: 8,389 (but around 1000 actual steps)! We had been wanting to visit a temple in Ubud for a water purification ceremony . Jessica has really taken to visiting temples on this trip and the ceremony felt like something completely different from anything we’ve seen elsewhere in Asia. The main temple visited by tourists is Tirta Empul, but it’s about a 50 minute drive from our hotel, and gets very busy unless you arrive early in the morning. We did some searc

5 December 2025 Steps: 11,886 Today we headed into central Ubud to visit a few temples and explore some of the markets . We were dropped off at the Coco Supermarket on the south side of town, and it was about a 20-minute walk to Ubud Palace. It was incredibly hot , so we had to stop for a drink along the way before we even made it there! The Ubud Palace The Ubud Palace is free to enter , and while it isn’t the most impressive temple complex we’ve seen on this trip, it’s stil

4 December 2025 Steps: 10,838 Today we spent the morning relaxing by the pool at the hotel, before heading into Ubud for an afternoon at the Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary to see the Balinese long tailed macaques, followed by dinner in town. A Relaxing Morning by the Pool After a full day of travel yesterday, we promised the girls some pool time in the morning, and it was a lot of fun. The hotel has a few different pools, but we loved the crescent shaped infinity pool , and

3 December 2025 Steps: 7,922 We don't have too much to report today as it was mostly a long day of travel. We said our goodbyes to Koh Lanta and made our way to Bali, which we’re excited about as it’s our first time visiting. We used the same minibus service as we did on our way to the island and Mun Lanta was great again. The price was reasonable compared to others we saw and they were really responsive on WhatsApp at +66 89 971 7792. We’d definitely recommend them. We were

2 December 2025 Steps: 8,208 After our early morning wake up to go see the elephants yesterday, we had a lazy morning before heading to Khlong Khong beach in the afternoon, as it is the best beach for kids in Koh Lanta . We spent the afternoon at Koala Bar relaxing on the bean bags under the shade of a tree and it was wonderful! The sand is incredibly soft and the great thing about Khlong Khong Beach is the gentle slope into the sea, makes it perfect for kids. We took the

1 December 2025 Steps: 6,732 Following Giants, Koh Lanta Ethical Elephant Sanctuary We had spent some time looking for an ethical elephant experience and Following Giants Elephant Sanctuary in Koh Lanta kept coming up as the place that truly puts the elephants' wellbeing first. Ethics around animals is something we think about much more now than we did years ago. Back in 2006 when we were backpacking around the world, we rode elephants without really questioning it , and at

30 November 2025 Steps: 7,777 Koh Lanta Old Town Today we caught a taxi over to Koh Lanta Old Town to explore the famous town on the island that is known for its wooden houses , some of which are built on stilts over the water. We started by walking to the end of the pier and spent some time watching locals fishing both in the water and from the pier. From there, we wandered into the heart of the old town and found one of the wooden restaurants perched on stilts. Nothing be

29 November 2025 Steps: 11,205 Relax Bay, Koh Lanta We spent most of today at Relax Bay , which is just a short walk from our hotel. What we love about this beach compared to more famous beaches like Long Beach, is how close the water is to the bars and restaurants. It feels very intimate. It’s perfect for families because you can sit with a drink in the shade while the kids play nearby without feeling like they’ve wandered too far. It's funny to realize that after all this t

28 November 2025 Steps: 4,680 Today was my birthday, which was a bit of an odd experience as I don’t think I’ve ever had a birthday overseas before and I’m usually in work! It’s also been a while since I’ve had family with me, so it made the day feel even more special, especially as we celebrated with a cooking class at Lanta Thai Cookery School. Lanta Thai Cookery School I absolutely love cooking classes , and in fact me and Susie did a class here back in 2011 when we last