Buying stuff doesn’t work for me — It’s great to cherish your travel memories. Some people buy souvenirs wherever they go. This is not how I remember my trip for two reasons. Firstly, I travel on a tight budget. After accommodation and food (and wine), I want to spend what’s left on experiences — a walking tour…

Don’t let them choose you — I hadn’t had much experience travelling with anyone apart from my husband until I turned 60. My sister and I planned a “trip of a lifetime” — four months travelling Europe by train. There were six of us — two of my daughters, my sister, my niece and my best…

My journey to writing about everything and nothing. — I’ve been doing a daily journal when I travel for as long as I can remember. It wasn’t until 2011 that I wrote it as an online blog for my friends to read. They enjoyed reading about my adventures and misadventures, but writing also helped me remember details that I…

Believe it or not — it’s my real name. — Believe it or not — it’s my real name. G’day. I thought I had better start with that although I never actually say g’day in real life. But at least you know I’m an Aussie. Yeah, we do say Aussie, not Australian. I have been described as “a riddle wrapped…

Today’s list — it might change tomorrow — BBC Radio 4 has a podcast called BBC Radio 4 -Desert Island Discs. I live in Australia but I found out about this podcast from a fellow writer, Gerald Sturgill who was tagged by Belcairn. We writers all glean material from each other. Gerald challenged me to come up with…

What’s wrong with the US of A? — I rarely watch the news these days. There’s nothing happy happening in the world. Bushfires, floods, cyclones, and natural disasters are all part of living on our planet Earth. But war…that’s probably an unavoidable part of the human condition. I mean if I can’t have harmony in my family, how…

I am going to have a good day — I woke up just after 6 am determined to have a positive day. I was ushered to Restaurant No 2 and was surprised to find they had pre-prepared omelettes. I helped myself to two plus two pieces of pre-cooked toast that were kindly reheated, making them as hard as a…

Less than an hour from home — Living in Brisbane and need a day to recharge your batteries? My advice is to head to North Stradbroke Island affectionately called Straddie or Minjerribah by the original settlers on the island. It’s the second-largest sand island in the world (Fraser Island is the biggest and more famous) but Straddie…