Where ever I lay my hat….accommodation
So where did we stay? Accommodation is obviously one of the biggest expenses and we try to keep costs down here by staying in anything other than your general run-of the-mill hotels (where you could be anywhere in the world) … so where did we stay? Well, that changed depending on the country and what the cheapest or best value option is for the best experience …. for example in Thailand we stayed in guesthouses, small style hotels with private facilities (because) with hostels you pay by bed so once we multiply the cost of a hostel bed by...
read moreDo something today that your future self will thank you for ….
About Us We are a family of four from Mackay, Queensland who have decided to check out of ‘normal’ life for a while and go discover the world together… Sally Sally has a background in Management, Travel and Sales and since having her two daughters has worked from home as a Consultant in Relocation Services. Travel has been a passion and a part of life for as long as she can remember. She left Australia in her early 20’s and after five years and two circumnavigations returned home to ‘settle down’. A continuation of a career in...
read moreSuccess Occurs when Opportunity meets Preparation
Packing List Lists, lists and more lists I am the Queen of lists. I like that things can be categorised and written down so they aren’t forgotten – packing lists and to do lists coming up to trips ranking right there on top. I love the sense of accomplishment when I tick things off the list – and have been known to write things on the list so I can immediately tick it off if it was something I forgot to write down in the first place. The thing is I thought I was becoming more laid back over list making (I would only really make lists...
read more‘Facts are stubborn things, but statistics are pliable’ – Mark Twain
According to the Travellers Point map/stats we travelled: 70 767 kilometres or 43 972 miles 48 619km 11 653km 8 336km 2 918km 2 273km too many to count! One year, 24 countries, 70 767 kilometres, and a lifetime of memories. Would I do it again? In a...
read moreHanging loose in Honolulu … DIPS back in the Pacific
Our flight from Las Vegas to Honolulu got in around 9pm local time and we found the pre-booked direct shuttle our accommodation for the next two nights just two blocks from Waikiki Beach – a smallish but certainly adequate self-contained studio apartment on the 23rd floor with a queen bed and double sofa-bed. When looking for accommodation we wanted something close to Waikiki Beach because we were here for such a short time. The regular high-rise hotels quoted quite exorbitant nightly rates ($300+) so we again looked to...
read moreLas Vegas – what was I thinking!?
For the first time during the whole trip, we hit a major delay. We set off from our hotel in Playa del Carmen after a quick breakfast at around 7.30am for the hour long drive to Cancun airport with the taxi driver that I had used the day before, running around getting some last minute things. We flew over the hugely built-up Cancun ‘Strip’ and knew we had made the right decision having our Mexican beach experience at Tulum – it just looks like the Gold Coast on steroids – yuk – environmentally irresponsible...
read moreOur Yucatan adventure continues … our last ruin and cenote.
We are on the countdown now for our departure out of Mexico and not that keen to stay in the tourist hub of Playa del Carmen for any longer than necessary (too touristy for us), so we extend our stay at Valladolid by an extra night and after the visit from Alejandro (see previous post) plan our visit to one final set of Maya ruins before leaving Mexico. Ek Balam is the Mayan city about an hour’s drive to the north and well known for its plaster sculptures and reliefs. So, after a stop at Casa de los Venados in Vallidolid to look at the...
read moreMore Mayan ruins and amazing cenotes – and the charming inland town of Valladolid
by David. We bid a sad farewell to the gorgeous coastal area of Tulum and set off mid-morning, strictly adhering to the posted speed limits so as not to give the local constabulary any reason to pull us over. Taxis and buses overtook and sped past on the open highway, however everyone must slow down when approaching villages as have speed humps (called ‘Topes’ in Spanish) of various sizes to keep vehicular speeds down. The Mexican roads and highways are in very good condition and directions are (mostly) well signposted, making it...
read moreDIPS in the Mexican Riviera – Tulum
The Mexican government had organised a welcoming committee for our arrival at the seaside town of Chetumal in the form of armed guards and a sniffer dog. Actually, we didn’t feel that special as this is standard for all boats arriving at the port. Central America and Mexico are part of the super-highway for the drugs making their way from the producers in South America to the users in the US. Along the wharf, more armed guards sat in high speed recon boats, ready should any suspicious craft be spotted in Mexican waters. Our bags were removed...
read moreUN BELIZE ABLE !
What an amazing day we just had off Caye Caulker Belize yesterday enjoying a DIP on the other Great Barrier Reef….. the Belize Barrier Reef, second in size after ours. Part of the Mesoamerican reef system, it runs from Cancun on the northeast tip of the Yucatan Peninsula down the Belize coast into Honduras. The Belize Barrier Reef Reserve System, includes seven marine reserves, 450 cays, and three atolls. We did a four hour trip which included four stops around the Hol Chan Marine Reserve between Ambergris Caye and Caye Caulker (Caye...
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