Cate and Drew

It was a typically grey, drizzly English day for our visit to the quintessential English town of York. Our visit co-incided with a food festival and we spent a pleasant late morning wandering through a local food market full of Melton Mowbray pork pies, Bakewell tarts, Stinking Bishop cheddar, English cider, real ale and other local delicacies. Unfortunately as we were enroute to Newcastle for me to compete in the Great North Run - a half marathon and the biggest fun run in the world which finishes in my Grandfather's home town of South Shields - I had to resist all the mouth watering temptations. This running business can be such a chore somtimes! After we had checked into our bed and breakfast we set off through the lush, green manicured gardens of the municipal park ... read more

After our long wait in the Johdpur train station we were finally ready to board the overnight train to Jaisalmer, a fortressed town in the middle of the Thar Desert not too far from the border with Pakistan. We settled quickly into the familiar routine of getting comfortable on the high bunk beds. Getting out of sleeping bags and ensuring that all our our luggage was safely stowed under our heads or beneath our beds so it could not disappear whilst we slept. These overnight train rides can be at worst an absolute nightmare so I was pleased to arrive in the very early hours of the morning in our destination having slept for some of the way. We were however still very tired, groggy and grumpy when we arrived and were very glad that the ... read more

Ever since I watched David Reyne appearing on Australian travel show Getaway standing next to a moose in the broad daylight at 3am I have dreamed of visiting Lappland: the land of the midnight sun. Our Christmas adventure to far northern Sweden this year meant I was finally going to fulfill my dream, but ironically I would be seeing the exact opposite of the midnight sun, visiting in the depths of winter when the sun never actually makes it above the horizon and there is only about 5 hours of light a day. One thing is for sure- we would definitely be having a white Christmas! The lead up to our departure was a little stressful with persistant fog settling over London town for two days prior causing British Airways to cancel all of its domestic ... read more

Well, maybe not. But we can all dream ... and I can think of much worse ways to spend your 30th birthday! The approach of thirty had caught me a bit off guard. Always used to being the young one, I started to feel a bit old when we moved to London and I befriended some spring chickens at the ripe old age of 25. Things just continued to get worse as I met more and more people who I presumed were my age, only to find out they were also in their mid-twenties. Eeek! I decided that ignoring my turning of age would be the best tactic, but husband dear would have none of it! Some things never change with age and I am still as indecisive as ever (which I do like to blame ... read more

Rannoch Moor. The vast expanse of Britian's largest uninhabited wilderness surrounds me. I am all alone save for the peaks of the magnificent Scottish Highlands that can be seen in every direction. Its 4pm Saturday 24th June, I have been going since 1am this morning and am now walking, my legs rebelling against the brains command to run, my energy levels seem to have hit rock bottom despite forcing bananas, gels and sports drink down my throat. I stop and sit on a rock and contemplate the magnificent surroundings, at least I can enjoy that. It's more than 10km till the next checkpoint and after that another 45km to the finish. I recall the course map and remember that the biggest climbs are in the last 40km. It seems a long, long way away. Help is ... read more