AGJ

AGJ

THE ROAD TRAVELLED

I first dipped my feet in the pool of European-water in my final year of University. Deciding wisely to get a general feel for Europe through a Top Deck tour, I visited ten countries. The UK, France, Belgium, Germany, Austria, The Netherlands, Italy, Slovenia, Croatia and Czech Republic. I loved every moment of my tour; the friends I made during the 23-days we spent together. I have since spent time with my gorgeous friend Katie, who lived in Athens at the time; and the lovely Jodie who resides with her beautiful family over in Perth.

Of course I had to return to Europa to explore further...this time I saw some unique and beautiful places for the first time. I escaped to Greece to visit Athens and the Greek Islands (Mykonos, Santorini and Crete), Turkey, Israel and Egypt. Most of these new destinations I visited whilst on a cruise, run by Contiki. There was no “crazy Contiki” feel about it however and for the most part we were all mixed in with other tour groups. Again, I met some wonderful fellow-travellers. I have since visited my 'Tasmanian family' the Freemans in their hometown of Launceston. This was also my first taste of the Cannes Film Festival; knowing this would now be an event I simply couldn’t miss.

With the introduction of Air Asia’s flight path to Paris, my Dad managed to pick us up some super-cheap flights and again, I returned to Europe in May 2011. It was amazing to see my Dad amongst the many places he had read and heard so much about; historical and tourist destinations alike. With only two-days at Cannes in our three-week trip, it was a short but successful visit. It was my first time in Spain, with Barcelona's pickpockets targetting Dad within our first hour in country! With my best friend Bec living in London at the time, we made a trip to Hungary to the sprawling city of Budapest. Dad and I also visited Kuala Lumpur for six days; a place I knew I would be visiting again (if not just for its' amazing textiles).

Through racing fashion, I won flights to Thailand in late 2011. My sister and I spent nine days on the island of Phuket during the time of Bangkok’s floods. I would have liked to have spent more time in seclusion or out on the islands. The best parts of Thailand seem to be tucked away from the tourist mecca of Patong; luckily Kata beach provided us some of this insight.

My husband Matt and I decided to see as much of Australia as we could before heading overseas. Perth was a delight in 2011 (and again in 2013), Adelaide and Melbourne charmed us alike with their mix of heritage and alternative-street vibes in 2012 and Tasmania was an amazing showcase of true natural beauty in 2013.

It was off to Malaysia and Borneo on New Year's Eve in 2013, with a quick island hop to Thailand thrown in. We relaxed in Langkawi and marvelled at the Orangutans outside of Kuching, took in the sights of Penang and enjoyed all the cultural diversity KL had to offer. In 2015 we headed to Bali and the Gilligan-style Lombok island of Gili Meno for our honeymoon. It was off again in 2015, this time to Hong Kong and Macau thanks to Matt's first racing fashion win.

THE ROAD AHEAD

Matt and I are off to Europe (thanks again to our team racing fashion prowess) in September 2017 - we'll be stopping by Paris, Epernay, Venice, Slovenia, Plitvice Lakes and Istria county in Croatia, Rome, Naples, the Amalfi Coast, Madrid, Barcelona and Munich - for Oktoberfest!

I cannot wait to explore Scandinavia and Iceland, Africa/Tanzania and the one city I haven’t visited in the US – New York! When I return to the US I'll definitely be visiting my friend Ashley in Texas, as well as a pencilling in a trip south to Mexico. Would love to spend time with Matt in the snowfields of New Zealand's South Island and many more snorkelling trips, particularly off Malaysia's East Coast (Perhentian Islands), Bali's East Coast (Tulamben), Belize (Ambergris Caye) and the Galapagos Islands in Ecuador.

Time will tell 😊