In late January I head off for a weeks snow holiday in Gstaad, Switzerland, resort town of the rich and famous. I flew into Geneva and was treated to a spectacular view of the Alps, including Mt Blanc (the highest peak in Europe). From here the great scenery continued as I took a train alongside Lake Geneva and then the Golden Pass train which climbed up into the snow capped Alps. As we moved away from the lake we gradually got deeper into the Alps and the snow inched its way closer to the train tracks. I arrived into the resort town of Gstaad and was picked up by my flatmates, Mark and Em, who took me to our luxury accommodation for the week. It was an incredible wooden chalet, and I was very lucky to ... read more

There are many joys about spending a few years in the Northern Hemisphere, and one of the best is the lead up to Christmas. Christmas in London has its own kind of magic, from the sparkling lights lining Oxford and Regent Streets, to the window displays at Harrods and the giant snow globe over the statue of Eros in Picadilly Circus. My festive season started early with our work 'Winter Party' staged at a posh hotel in Victoria during November. We were greeted at the door with champange and mojitos and were treated to an Indian feast, some carnival dancers and an open bar all night. They had an Indian DJ for the party so there were Bollywood moves being busted out on the dance floor. I put my previous Bollywood dance lessons to good use ... read more

A city break was needed to get away from all the 'stress' of big city living, so five of us Kiwi's took off for Denmark to spend a long weekend in the country's capital - Copenhagen. We arrived at lunch time on the Saturday to be greeted at the airport to a warm welcome from Mette, my Danish friend, who I had met in South Africa as an exchange student 10 years ago. Mette took us into Copenhagen city centre for lunch and our first taste of Danish culture, a traditional hot dog from the hotdog stands. These Risted hotdogs included fresh onions, deep fried crispy onions, three types of sauce and pickles, it was great takeaway food, and not too pricey for a country not known for its budget travel. The city center was buzzing ... read more

Despite having left Morocco over a month ago the aroma of a pot of intensly sweet brewed mint tea is still fresh on my mind. It had a lot to live up to after all of the detailed descriptions from returned travellers. They described mint tea with a sad look on their face, as they know that mint tea could never be as good anywhere else and it is a long way to go for a quick cuppa. Luckily it was all I could have hoped and dreamed of, however now I am one of those travellers with that sad look on my face as I type this and drink a cup of Dilmah peppermint tea that just cannot come close to the Moroccan experience. My Kiwi friend Mel and I headed to Morocco for the ... read more

I was lucky enough to visit Jo and Ewen in the Netherlands after a period of prolonged temperatures below zero. They live in Utrecht, a pretty little city in central Netherlands. On my first day in the flat country we took a train ride from the airport into Utrecht past frozen canals with Dutch people gliding along on iceskates, larger canals with cargo boats transporting goods, old and new style windmills and a lot of flat farmland. When in Utrecht they took me on a bike tour of the town, it was awesome to try out the Dutch bikes. There are no hills of note in the Netherlands so their bikes are very basic with no gears and huge seats. Bikes rule the roads and you feel totally safe roaming around on one, despite the fact ... read more