Category: Themed Posts

New Year, New Travels: Travel Goals

As we approach 2018, many blogs are looking back over their favourite posts and trips. It’s always nice to remind yourself of where you have been but we also thought that it would be useful to share some thoughts on where we are going.

Travelling can be an expensive business, but it doesn’t have to be if you plan properly! That being said, I’m not exactly what you would call a planner – I see a new place and that’s it, I get all excited and want to book it then and there. You could say my heart rules my head.

Wandering Beeb is the opposite. That’s not to say he doesn’t get excited, he does, but then he puts that to one side and works out the feasibility of us getting to our chosen destination. The two of us together cover both bases; aspirations and practicalities.

Take this year, for example. We will we probably be taking smaller trips in Europe, whilst we save up for a bigger (and further) trip later in 2018/19. This gives us two types of travelling goals. The first is a short term goal: short breaks in Europe which are comparatively inexpensive and can be booked at the last minute. For these, we will probably use search engines such as Skyscanner and Kayak. We won’t know where we are going until a couple of weeks before and we will probably be visiting for a couple of days at most.

Our second travel goal is the longer term one: a bigger (possibly two to three weeks) trip to somewhere far flung (possibly Asia). This takes time – both to save up and to plan where we want to see, as we will be looking at visiting multiple places and will need to know how to get about. For this trip, we will probably be using Trailfinders, as our past experiences with them have been excellent and they often have some insider knowledge to tailor-make a trip.

As well as these goals, we also want to try to build in more local hikes and trips to explore some more of the scenery on our doorstep. Even being out and about locally can go some way towards easing the itchy feet of those people infected by the travelling bug.

As always, in 2018 we will be sharing future adventures and past experiences with you lovely people. We also hope to bring in some new things to the blog – travelling tips and more responses to photo / inspiration challenges are some examples. Until then, a huge Happy New Year to all of our followers and happy travels for 2018!

Is there anything else you want to see on the blog? What could make it better? Let us know in the comments?!

Transformation

So I discovered a new thing today -The Daily Post’s Picture Challenge. A new theme is set on a Wednesday each week and the challenge is to share photos of your interpretation of that theme. That means a bonus post this week!

This week’s theme is Transformation and immediately it made me think of sunsets. There is something magical about sunsets, watching the sky change through its cycle of colours as the stars slowly become visible. We’ve had a few stunning sun rise/sets on our travels and I thought that we would share a few:

Dubrovnik

This was looking out from Dubrovnik towards Lokrum. A storm had passed, the rain had started to dry out and the sun was starting to set. It was beautifully peaceful, the only sound, the lapping of the waves.

One of my favourite places on Earth – Yosemite National Park. Getting ready for a stargazing evening, we had parked up and stood transfixed as the sun went down, casting shadows on the granite face of Half Dome. As the sun dropped, the sky was transformed from a beautiful blue to a blanket of shooting stars.

This was taken at English Bay in Vancouver. We’d had a hectic day exploring what felt like every inch of the city and as the sun set, we sat down against a log on the beach, slowing down the pace of the day and watching the boats out at sea. It was a scene that would stay with us long after the sun tan faded.

Stuck in traffic in LA, the novelty of a full day’s drive on such huge freeways had worn off and we were desperate to get to our hotel. As the sun went down, our energy was rejuvenated at the warmly-lit skies.

Arriving in Carmel, USA we found a hotel just as the afternoon was getting late. Having spent the best part of a week camping, we were all desperate to get showers. The hotel proprietor told us about the amazing sunsets and the best places to watch down on the beach. It was almost dark by the time we made it down to the sand but we stood there transfixed as the stunning oranges turned into full dark, leaving us exhausted but happy for the next stage of our trip.

Where was your favourite sunset? Tell us in the comments.