See the world - Explore it

Romania  The 17 hour over night train from Budapest into Romania was an adventure in its self.   Under the impression there were no borders in Europe, we settled down to sleep in the steaming hot carriage with fortunately at least underwear on. Only to be startled awake by the train coming to an abrupt stop and banging on doors. Jason hurriedly opened our door revealing 3 stern, armed military policemen wanting to inspect our passports while I'm sat clutching a sheet to hide my dignity. Michaels passport causing much discussion, was taken away with no explanation resulting in us scrambling around trying to dress without exposing too much. Resolved, we settled down to sleep again only to repeat the whole fiasco 20 minutes later as it turns out we were now in Romania. This time a chatty women guard who laughed my compromised position off as, ‘ok as she had boobs too!’ Awkward!!   Waking early the view from the train was as if we had stepped onto another plane...

Poland Our trip into Poland was very much an unplanned detour after Prague. Being so close by train, it was a great opportunity to visit Auschwitz, the notorious WW2 Nazi concentration camp as an important history lesson for Michael. What we hadn’t expected, was just how extraordinary Poland would be in its self and Krakow, where we stayed was incredible. Krakow one of the oldest cities in Poland, with its old town being listed an UNESCO World heritage site was beautiful, albeit cold. It boasts the biggest market square in Europe and houses The Cloth Hall, apparently the first shopping mall in the world. Also St. Mary’s Basilica as well as Rynek Underground, a maze of underground medieval tunnel routes that run below the market square. Krakow also has its own royal castle, Wawel which looms above the city complete with a fire breathing dragon monument, worth a wander past in the evening. We loved Krakow and even the cold added to the magical feel to the city. Our apartmen...

Prague Leaving the UK was always going to be hard, but was a real wrench after we had extended our stay with family and friends for two nearly 2 months. There was little excitement for being on the road again and our backpacks felt heavy and cumbersome, especially when crossing London via underground to the Airport during peak morning commute time. We could feel the glares as we squeezed ourselves into already over packed trains loaded with backpacks, taking the space of at least 10 people. As well as our lack of enthusiasm, we looked like rookies going through London City Airport. You would think we would be organised but no, we booked last minute flights from London to Prague without research and arrived just in time for a Bank Holiday weekend. With most of the city booked out and all the best deals long gone, we found ourselves scrambling around looking for accommodation and paying a premium, not a great start. My studded belt and hand sanitiser flagged me for further in...

Watching the UK coast line come into view was an incredibly emotional moment, remembering how long ago we had left to start a new life in New Zealand. The countryside appeared scorched from the ongoing heatwave, not its usual lush green, but still recognisable as home. We arrived into London after two flights and 14 hours which actually was remarkably pain free. Michael had slept and woke in a good mood which was fortunate as we had mistakenly booked to arrive into Gatwick Airport, meaning we had a train and the underground to navigate with backpacks before arriving at our Airbnb situated in Camden. Exhausted but determined to stay awake we dumped the bags and headed straight into chaotic colourful Camden Market where we were thrilled to watch the expression on Michael's face as he stared at the outlandish shop fronts, and marvelled at the range of Fortnite t-shirts and memorabilia every where. He decided instantly he liked London! Our first meal in London left us feelin...

HONG KONG & CHINA A glittering Metropolis of glinting sky rises, shops, bars and restaurants and we loved it! Hong kong was an amazing city, although our first impression was to turn around and go home. We arrived in the early hours of the morning after a delayed flight from Cambodia, tired hot and irritable. Our taxi driver warning us our hotel wasn’t great, which turned out to be situated 6 floors above a seedy looking shopping complex, strangely enough in the heart of downtown Kowloon. We stayed in the taxi while Jason hunted it down and gasped as we watched a man get attacked and beaten in the street, leaving Michael terrified, screaming for us to leave before even finding our hotel. On seeing our room, he promptly broke down into inconsolable tears. I have to say I felt like doing the same. A shoe box was an exaggeration to describe our new home. An over sized single bed masquerading as a double and a single wedged into a 2 x 4m room which also housed a bathroom, a shower d...