Our winter wonderland. After a year of chasing the sun we decided to end our adventure with a week in the snow at Keystone in Colorado. It was a different world for us, so beautiful and magical and freezing cold.  It was the first time our kids had even seen snow and it took them a few days of shock to get over the temperature change. It also took them days to remember not to stick their hands in the snow. It was so white and powdery and after a huge dump over 3 days we had plenty to play with. We tried tubing, tried unsuccessfully to build a snowman (insert many a Frozen quote here), made snow angels and drank 27 hot chocolates...

Costa Rica, an adventure at every turn. We moved around the country, from hanging out with monkeys in the rainforest and beaches on Manuel Antonio National Park to the volcanos of Lake Arenal and over to the surf coast of Guanacaste. We hiked through the rainforest, fed monkeys in a rehabilitation centre, saw sloths sleepily hanging out in the trees, swam in hot springs, rode horses and ATVs, explored hanging bridges in the rain and escaped Hurricane Otto. 

Havana, Cuba. A place so different from any where else I have been. Cuba is not just stepping into another country, it's like a step back in time. Some buildings have been perfectly restored to their colonial glory, others look like they are in ruins. There is colour everywhere: in the buildings, in the clothes and in the lovingly restored 1950s American cars. Music emanates from each corner - with Afro-Cuban drum beats, son bands playing in restaurants, and even neighbours singing in hallways...

Our holiday in the middle of a holiday. We spent a week in Playa del Carmen with some good friends, sitting on the beach, eating tacos and swimming every day. The beaches are spectacular, with water so warm you can stay in for hours. We snorkelled with turtles in Akumal and swam with schools of fish off the beach. In Tulum we stayed in a little beach hut and chilled for a few more days, swinging in hammocks and visiting more beaches. We explored the cenotes in the area, swimming through caves in crystal clear fresh water. This part of Mexico is the perfect place to relax.

Our southern road trip started in Nashville where we listened to country music, visited a pumpkin patch and got into the fall spirit. We hit Memphis to visit the home of The King then headed south down the Mississippi, through swamplands and Louisiana plantations before arriving in New Orleans. The home of voodoo, streetcars, Mardi gras beads and of course the French Quarter.  Gumbo, jumbalaya, muffleta, beignets - all food with strange names but plenty of flavour. And that Southern accent y'all! 

Our Californian road trip started in San Diego and we spent the next two weeks heading north, checking out every beach town along the way. We seemed to spend most of the time at the beach, swimming and watching the sun set over the ocean. We tried stand up paddle boarding, watched plenty of surfers and camped out under the Redwoods...

There are a lot of beautiful states in the USA but there is something extra cool about Utah. The natural beauty in every corner is jaw dropping - the red rock canyons, the forests full of aspen trees, and then there is Zion National Park. Places that you can't really imagine until you are there...

New York, New York -  the city that never sleeps. Unless you have kids.

Times Square, Lady Liberty, the 9/11 Memorial, MoMa, Grand Central Station, a Yankees game and so much more. We walked thousands of steps across the Brooklyn Bridge, along the High Line and through Central Park, and spent the time in between sitting on the front stoop of our house in Brooklyn watching the Williamsburg crowd go by...

We spent just under a week living it up in an authentic Mongolian yurt in the middle of the Cornish countryside. It was green everywhere, a little bit like a children's fairy tale with rabbits and horses next door, a little stream by our camp and a path through the forest. We picked fresh berries and veggies from a local farm, visited some old English gardens and checked out the beaches.

London Town. We found plenty of colour and blue sky amongst the grey. There were some great parks and gardens for the kids, yummy street food on Brick Lane and Borough Market, a boat ride through the canals and my first English football game...

There was a bit of rain and grey sky, but plenty of colour in the Nordic buildings and Danish design. We saw the Little Mermaid surrounded by hundreds of other tourists, but we also spent time checking out the hipster food markets, the beautiful harbour at Nyhavn, art installations around the city and the oldest theme park in the world Tivoli Gardens. We rode bikes, roller coasters and even a giant swan shaped paddle boat across the canal...

Amsterdam, city of canals and bicycles, and possibly the best playgrounds in the world. Our time in this famous city was quite different to the average tourist. Who knew there was an awesome family-friendly side to Amsterdam? It is one of the easiest and safest places to ride a bike, we even managed to borrow a bakfiets cargo bike for the kids to ride around in (luckily it wasn't me in the driver's seat)...

Aahhh. The final instalment of our Greek Islands summer. The last 2 weeks were spent on Kimolos and Paros - both in the Cyclades but very different to each other. Kimolos is a small island with only 1 village and a permanent population of 600 hundred people, and donkeys are still used to get around. Paros, is a big island - huge in comparison. It has a full blown tourism industry with ferries coming and going all day. It has hundreds of restaurants and so many things to keep you entertained...

Part Two of our Greek Islands adventure in the Cyclades. It started with a quick trip to the island of Kythnos, exploring the small whitewashed villages. From there it was on to Milos, an island that for us was all about the beach. It is a volcanic island with rocks of every different colour and spectacular coastal scenery. We stayed in a tiny but amazing fisherman's hut on the beach that was only a metre from the water. At times the waves would crash against our front porch...

Our first 2 weeks in the Greek Islands didn't disappoint. We spent our time between 2 different islands - first Skopelos in the northern Sporades and then Kea in the Cyclades. Both were quite green (as far as greek islands go), both had delicious food and beautiful views over the water. We stayed with family and friends and spent much of the time under water or eating Greek delicacies. It is hard not to relax in a place like this...

There is only one Venice. A city where boats replace cars and you can cross hundreds of bridges walking from one side of town to the other. We walked the streets and squares of Venice, and of course checked out some of the tourist sights too. We spent a day on the outer islands of Murano and Burano, sipped Aperol spritz at canal side cafes and ate our way through the cicchetti bars of Venice...

We started our European summer on the island of Brač in Croatia. We visited one of Croatia's most famous beaches Zlatni Rat, drove through olive groves surrounded by stone walls and ate lunch at an isolated restaurant that can only be accessed by boat. Island life is pretty good...

Dubrovnik is a beautiful old walled city on the southern tip of Croatia's coast. Within the city walls are the turrets and towers of white stone buildings, narrow alleyways and streets paved in limestone so shiny that reflects the setting sun in the evenings. It is so beautiful that everyone wants to be there...

Montenegro is a only small country but it has huge mountains that rise straight up out of the sea. We stayed in Kotor, a UNESCO heritage listed town that touches the water, then grows up the side of the mountain. During the day the town is bustling with people, most of them arriving on cruise ships that dot the bay. At night, we had the place almost to ourselves...

We based ourselves in this part of Umbria because we found a wonderful place to stay. It was an old converted cowshed, originally built in the 13th Century and lovingly renovated and restored. From our house we explored the Umbrian countryside, the town of Perugia and the wine and food of the region...

Our farmhouse in Tuscany was on the edge of a tiny village. There were only about 10 houses clustered together, with pigs roaming the streets and deer in the forest. We visited the famous medieval towns of San Gimignano and climbed 14th Century towers, we drove past the rolling Tuscan hills full of Chianti grapes, swam in hot springs and visited an old abbey without a roof...

Even on a cloudy, rainy weekend, this city has something about it. The history, the stunning Duomo and ancient cathedrals, the piazzas and narrow streets. It is a wonderful place to walk around and soak up the atmosphere (just don't try to drive!)...

The 5 little Italian towns of Riomaggiore, Manarola, Corniglia, Vernazza and Monterosso. Each one hugging the edge of a cliff and overlooking the spectacularly blue and glistening Mediterranean. There is only 1 real beach, but there are hundreds of boats, and even more tourists...

The Cote d'Azur. The glitz and glamour and those multi-million dollar yachts. Our trip to the French Riviera started with a low key picnic as part of the French May Day celebrations. We then drove the coast road and saw the other end of the spectrum with the Ferraris and super yachts of Monte Carlo...

Our week in Provence was full of farm life and sightseeing. A giant maze, an illuminated art gallery in an old quarry, farmers markets, a Roman amphitheatre and plenty of little French towns clinging to the side of mountains...

Barcelona. A city I have loved since my first visit. Coming back with kids was different, but there is still so much to love! The narrow streets, the big markets in each neighbourhood selling amazing fresh produce, the street festivals that seem to pop up everywhere full of music and colour. We were lucky to stumble across the Barcelona Castellars building human towers one Sunday. There is so much life here and the locals can always find a reason to celebrate.