So here we are about to leave Australia for the third time and tomorrow set off to Quito, getting ready to learn Spanish and how to sway hips to those amazing rhythms. Many thanks to everyone for your comments and updates from home, which are all so well received. Laos We left home seventeen months ago but in our blog we’re still back in November and deep in Asia and at last about to get on a boat to Luang Prabang. Travelling by boat beats the bus any time. Slow Boat down the Mekong River The boat trip takes two days, [View Full Entry]

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Hello again and we’ve finally got back to the blog. Thanks to everyone kind enough to say that they’re missing our blogs it’s nice to be nagged. I lost heart a bit as we write the blog to enjoy everyone’s email feedback and comments but that was a little sparse on our last blog. Thanks to those who did comment and to those who didn’t ... why not? (Come on don’t be shy). Now, we’re thinking back on our time in Thailand and if you want to hear about Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, China and the Antipodes let us know! We [View Full Entry]

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Malaysia We’ve just had an excellent couple of weeks in Melbourne, being wonderfully cared for by Jenny and Neil (Byrne). Its hard to believe but Jenny has been in Aus for almost two years (but happily, as yet, she doesn’t sound like Kylie). She and Neil have set up a lovely home in Melbourne’s suburbs, I won’t mention that she has a swimming pool as we hear that’s its been a bit cold at home (!) Melbourne, however, was having a heat wave and after three days of 43C or 45C we were glad to scoot over to new Zealand. [View Full Entry]

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So this is by way of an "Extra Ordinary Blog" or more a note to wish everyone a heartfelt Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. Hopefully, you were able to open the video; its slightly longer than initially planned but then it had an amateur camera man as well as amateur actors ( and no the Santa isn't Fiona in drag - but maybe there is a passing resemblance? Ho Ho Ho) And how strange is it to be sending Christmas messages from a palm fringed beach; would you believe that Dean Martin is crooning Let-it-Snow in the background. But then [View Full Entry]

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Thank you for all your encouragement and kind comments about the blog… but please keep them coming (she says quite shamelessly) as we really enjoy reading them and hearing about life back in the UK. We’re currently in Vietnam where it looks like we’ll be spending Christmas. Would you believe that Saigon is full of Christmas tat, including fake snow and penguins. Honestly when did it ever snow in Saigon and today they were playing Maria Carey’s “All I want for Christmas is You”. (Good Grief). Indonesia Arriving Kuala Lumpur [View Full Entry]

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Our blog remains weeks behind and so a hasty run through of our remaining weeks in India is needed, else we’ll never catch up with ourselves. Jude said to describe India you need every adjective in the dictionary and then some, which is so true. Chandigarth After the beautifully damp (and cool) mountains of Himachal Pradesh we reached the Punjabi plains and found that not only was it still really humid but also really hot. Oh well. Chandigarth is a new town, commissioned by Nehru after independence and widely held to be the most significant urban planning exper [View Full Entry]

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Firstly enormous thanks to everyone for sending messages or posting comments, as ever they were all gratefully received; in fact we’re slightly incredulous both that we haven’t received more abuse and that we have been nagged for not posting more about India. We left India about a month ago and are clearly well behind with the blog so here goes back to June 21st. Leh - Ladakh We stayed put in and around Leh for fourteen days (which is as long as we’d spent travelling around the whole of Uzbekistan). It was two weeks of blue skies, sunshine and m [View Full Entry]

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Incredible India Arrival Delhi was hot, really hot and humid. At the airport the innumerable taxis appeared to be playing dodgems both with each other and/or any pedestrians that got in the way. Excitedly three of us crammed our bodies and bags into a small taxi and after bumping into only a couple of other vehicles we were on our way. But only for 100 yards, when we stopped and picked up the driver’s friend, clearly there’s always room for “one more” in any vehicle in India. Its especially so on motorbikes; although not so much a game [View Full Entry]

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KYRGYZSTAN Herewith, blog from Kyrgyzstan and its just the three weeks late. We’re currently enjoying the Monsoon in India! Thanks to those who have sent messages … but please everyone we really enjoy your comments so don’t be shy! Kyrgyzstan is an amazing country; 90% of it is above 1,500m and the Tien Shan mountains, which run into China, form a beautiful backdrop to Bishkek the capital city. Arriving at Bishkek Airport Tashkent Airport had been voted the 2nd worst airport in the world and it did not disappoint. Manas [View Full Entry]

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Leaving Iran We flew from Iran to Uzbekistan, (our first flight since leaving home) as getting a visa to travel over land through Turkmenistan takes a lot of time, needs a letter of invitation (expensive) and even then may be a bit hit and miss. It was 1am by the time we reached the Emam Khomeni airport and on the departure board was a BMI flight to London; it felt odd that having travelled for over six weeks to get this far we could just pop on a plane and be back in Heathrow in 6 hrs. We’d fully expected the [View Full Entry]

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