The kids and I travelled up to my mother’s by car last night. We’re leaving the dog with his pal Louis and a dogsitter while we are away. It also happened to be my birthday yesterday, so we all went out for a lovely meal at Mallories to celebrate. This morning, James, the local taxi driver, took us to Leicester train station, where we caught the train to Birmingham New Street. From there, we changed trains again at Stafford finally arriving into Carlisle. The first two legs were really busy, and we were lucky to get seats, even though we had reservations. Thankfully our reserved seats to Carlisle, the longest leg of the journey, were available. ...

My mother is 80 this year, and being big walkers, she and her partner were looking for an 80-mile walking challenge to celebrate! Walking Hadrian’s Wall turned out to be the perfect fit, as since it is in the UK and we can complete it in 6 days, the whole family can join in. Sadly, at the last minute, Diana, has to pull out due to a new job and an urgent work commitment. ...

The flight is uneventful, with a stop-over in Singapore, where we stretch our legs in the terminal. We arrive in London in the early morning, and after clearing boarder control, we collect our luggage and take the tube home. We’ve had such a fantastic time in Australia, and we’re grateful to all our friends and family who made our trip so special. A real adventure!

Today is our last day in Sydney, and we have a few things planned before we head to the airport in the late afternoon. We start with breakfast at the cafe across the road, where we enjoy our usual fare. After breakfast, we pack and tidy the apartment, and that’s when we discover a snag. Diana’s phone is the only place where we have the details of the apartment lock box and no one can remember the code. She also isn’t able to log into her email because she needs to receive a text message on her phone, which she doesn’t have! ...

Today is bridge walking day! After our usual breakfast from the cafe across the road, the kids and I head to the shopping district as Bella would like to buy some cosmetics from Mecca. Once back at the apartment, we get ready and walk over to the Sydney Harbour Bridge. We arrive at the BridgeClimb office and check in for our climb, meeting the Boshier’s there. The staff are friendly and helpful, and we get kitted out with our climbing gear. ...

Today we’re off to Chris in Yarrawarrah. Craig has kindly lent us his car for the day, so we take public transport to Craig’s house and pick up the car first thing. We then drive down the highway, stopping at a shopping mall to buy gifts for Chris’ girls. We arrive to a warm welcome at Chris’ house, where we meet his family and catch up with his parents, who I haven’t seen in years. ...

I picked up Breakfast at the usual cafe and brought it back to the apartment while everyone else woke up. Coffee and pastries as usual. We Uber to Coogee Beach where we met Caitlin and the boys. We walked along the coastal path to the Bronte lookout point, chatting along the way. The views were stunning, Sydney is a lucky city! We then walked back to Clovelly Beach to meet Craig and had a swim and snorkel in the sea, finding lots of fish and an octopus hiding in the rocks. The kids have a great time swimming and playing in the water. ...

Today is our explore Sydney day, the kids haven’t been to Sydney before so we’re going to take in the main sights. We find a cafe just across the street from our apartment which serves delicious pastries, coffee and breakfast food, which we all enjoy before heading to Sea Life Sydney We enjoy the underwater walk the most, with excellent views of the sharks and sawfish, it was very busy, however. ...

Happy New Year! We had a bit of a lie in, enjoying real beds after swag camping for the last week and then packed and stowed our luggage at the hotel reception. I’d found a brunch place, Let’s Brunch, in downtown Adelaide which looked good, so we took a walk through the city to go find it, and we were not disappointed! The servings were very generous and the schnitzel, which Bella ordered, was absolutely humongous! ...

Waking up at midnight, I was greeted by a clear sky filled with a breathtaking display of stars—one of those moments that makes camping truly special. The day began early, with the sun rising at 6:30am and Dan already busy preparing breakfast at the camp. After queuing for a much-needed shower, I felt refreshed and ready for our final day of the tour. Breakfast was a hearty serving of eggs and bacon, which everyone enjoyed. The line for coffee was long, but eventually, we all managed to get our morning fix. ...