• Amsterdam City Break - feature photo - tall 'dancing' houses tilting and leaning on each other along the canal waterfront near Damrak in the historic centre of Amsterdam, Netherlands
    Travel

    Amsterdam City Break

    After a very busy summer moving into my new flat and returning to tour guiding, I was in need of a holiday again. I took my sister on an Amsterdam city break for her birthday in September. She’s an art…

  • Long Weekend in Puglia, Italy - feature photo - view overlooking the Sassi di Matera, a medieval city built into the hillside
    Travel

    Long Weekend in Puglia, Italy

    Just as I moved back to Scotland at the beginning of 2025, a friend of mine went off to work in Rome for six months. So naturally, I had to take advantage and book a trip to Italy. I went…

  • Moving Back to Scotland - feature photo - view from an airplane window, with the wing above a blanket of clouds and sunrise on the horizon
    Life

    Moving Back to Scotland | 2025 Recap

    In October 2022, I moved to Canada for a working holiday visa. Then, in February 2024, I moved to New Zealand. And then, two and a half years after first setting off, in February 2025, I was finally moving back…

  • Borneo's Islands and Villages - feature photo - golden sand beach and turquoise ocean under a blue sky on Manukan Island off the coast of Kota Kinabalu, Borneo, Malaysia
    Travel

    Borneo’s Islands & Villages | Part 2

    For those who missed it, part one of my adventure through Malaysian Borneo is here! This was one of several stops in Southeast Asia on my journey home after finishing my year in New Zealand. I had embarked on a…

  • Borneo's Jungle and Wildlife, part 1 - feature photo - orangutan hanging from a rope by four feet in the jungle at the Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Centre near Sandakan, Sabah, Borneo, Malaysia
    Travel

    Borneo’s Jungle & Wildlife | Part 1

    As I’ve travelled more over the years, I’ve become increasingly interested in seeing wildlife around the world. One thing that hasn’t changed, though – ever since I was in school, I’ve been fascinated by orangutans. When I lived in and…

  • Two Days in Singapore - feature photo - Supertree Grove lit up at night for the Garden Rhapsody show at Gardens by the Bay
    Travel

    Two Days in Singapore

    Asia, I’m back! For those who don’t know, I spent two years living in Hong Kong and South Korea, and travelling much of East and Southeast Asia. But I haven’t been back again since I left in 2017. I was…

  • South West Australia road trip - feature photo - turquoise blue bay lined with white sand and a small hill in the background - Lucky Bay in Cape Le Grand National Park, Western Australia
    Travel

    South West Australia Road Trip

    The coastline of South West Australia has so much to offer, from dazzling beaches to maritime history to towering giants of trees. Starting from Perth, the largest city in Western Australia, a road trip to Esperance could take anything from…

  • Long Weekend in Perth - city skyline of glass skyscrapers around the harbour at Elizabeth Quay - Western Australia
    Travel

    Long Weekend in Perth | Australia

    Australia is big, and Western Australia is the biggest state in it. I mean, it’s a third of the entire country! I explored a fair amount of the other states when I was in Australia last year, but I didn’t…

  • Life,  Travel

    A Year in New Zealand

    A year very nearly to the day! Yes, after arriving in February 2024, my 1-year working holiday visa in New Zealand expired at the end of January. I could have extended but decided against it – more on that below…

  • A Weekend in Christchurch - feature photo - vintage tram driving down New Regent Street, with pastel coloured Spanish Mission heritage buildings - New Zealand South Island
    Travel

    A Weekend in Christchurch | New Zealand

    We’ve almost made it to the end of the road! After travelling north from Dunedin, with a couple of days for my parents to experience Tekapo en route, we arrived in Christchurch. This was my final destination, not just of…