It’s the last day of 2016, and that saying about time speeding up the older you get seems more poignant than ever. It feels like yesterday we were packing up our little apartment in Sydney, bound for London with no firm plans beyond family time with our English contingent and a little bit of travel. Flash forward twelve months and here we are, reflecting on a jam-packed year of bucket list highs and heart-breaking lows.
It wasn’t a gentle introduction. January was marked by a family loss that compelled a bit of a rethink about what our time in the UK would look like. We decided to play the year by ear, taking a more spontaneous approach to our comings and goings. We dubbed it ‘John & Dan: Unplanned’.
We’ve since travelled to thirteen countries across Europe, North Africa and Asia, in search of the experiences on our bucket list. Between trips, we returned to our home base in London for family time, to work on projects, and explore the history and culture in our British backyard.
Looking back, ‘spontaneous’ has given us some truly epic experiences this year, and some hilariously ordinary moments. We’ve learned a lot about where we are on our travel trajectory, and how we want to roll going forward. Which is a good thing really, as 2017 is going to be huge.
Here are our highlights (and some of the lowlights) of 2016!
Falling for the panoramas, people and blockbuster pasties of Cornwall
In February, we embarked on our first road trip of the year – a jaunt to the south-western corner of England.
Not that you’d call it that to the locals. Cornwall’s staunchly independent folk are adamant that their part of the world is very much its own place, and if you don’t agree, you can go back to England. We loved every bit of it. Even the weather.
Munching through the souqs of Marrakech
A night reminiscing about our most memorable travel eats resulted in a long weekend in Marrakech in March. One of our all-time favourite cities and just a three hour flight from London, it was a fait accompli the moment John said ‘tagine’.
This visit was all about the food, from rooftop antipasti to roast lamb rolls to a scrumptious food tour through the souqs. It’s a feast we won’t soon forget.
Wine-ing our way through the Italian countryside
Italy has us hooked. No matter how often we return to this beautiful country, we find more to tempt us back.
April found us in Florence, embarking on an epic Italian road-trip that would take us through the gorgeous Tuscan countryside, a handful of Umbrian hill towns, and several medieval cities packed with history, art, food and wine. So much delicious wine!
On a whim, we also visited San Marino, the teeny tiny country no one’s heard of.
Searching out the past on the island of Sicily
The Italian vacanza didn’t end in Tuscany. From there, we flew south to the intriguing island of Sicily.
With a history stretching back thousands of years, and ancient temples said to rival the very best of Greece and Turkey, we were on a mission.
Our road trip started in the tiny seaside village of Scopello on the north-west coast and wrapped up ten days later on the black lunar peaks of Mount Etna. Stay tuned for blog posts on this extraordinary island!
Time-travelling on Malta
I’d wanted to go to Malta since seeing a tourism advert on the London tube in 2004. So there was no way we were going to Sicily without making the short hop to this historic archipelago.
We split our time here between Malta’s main island and the smaller island of Gozo, exploring the epic and enduring historic sites on both islands, and diving the impressive geology of rock-falls, caves and swim-throughs below the waves off Gozo.
Squelching our way through Northern Europe
In late June, we bought a second-hand car, kitted her out for camping, and set out on what was supposed to be a three-month summer road trip through northern Europe.
From day one, we were tracked by a rain cloud that diligently dumped a freezing deluge on us just about every single day. One evening, as we ran through the rain in a small, seemingly deserted town in Sweden, we made a call: after nearly ten weeks of saturated sightseeing, we’d had enough. We set off back to London.
Perhaps it was just a really wet summer, but it was a soggy reminder that even in the ‘right’ travel season, the weather doesn’t always come to the party. Still, it was an epic trip, and the good bits were out of this world. Like…..
Getting outdoorsy in Norway
Wow is a place: it’s called Norway. From the moment we cruised into the Oslofjord from Denmark, we were hard-pressed to find adjectives that do justice to this extraordinary country.
We felt the call of the wild here (a good thing as as it was too expensive to hang out in the pub): We hiked mountains, kayaked through fjords and climbed glaciers in crampons.
We also set out on a musk ox safari, one of the stranger experiences of our travels and one that ended in mud and bee stings. Our one Norwegian lowlight? Probably.
Immersing in la dolce vita on Ponza
A visit to Italy by our US-based bestie gave us the perfect excuse to head back to the boot in late September, this time to the tiny island of Ponza off the coast of Naples.
Rising sheer out of the blue Mediterranean, Ponza’s striking cliffs and pretty bays are still well below the radar for most foreigners, who flock to nearby Capri.
Our apartment, at the bottom of a steep staircase and overlooking a beautiful bay, was the perfect spot for sipping wine, munching on antipasti and watching the sun set. So we did.
Diving with Mantas in Komodo
Perhaps our most extreme spur-of-the-moment travel decision this year came about following another wash of wet weather. We wanted some sun. We wanted some warmth. We wanted to dive. We ended up in Indonesia.
From Java and its impressive temples of Borobudur and Prambanan, we made our way to Flores and travelled the length of this stunning island in the company of a local driver and guide.
The absolute highlight of the trip though was diving in Komodo. Over five days, we dived some of the most beautiful reefs we’ve seen, and experienced two spellbinding sessions with large mobs of mantas, the graceful giants of the reef. More posts to come from this amazing trip.
Eating our way through Singapore
Food is one of our favourite travel pastimes, so our stopover in Singapore en route to Indonesia was the perfect opportunity to eat our way through this vibrant foodie city.
From pork porridge breakfasts to hawker market dinners and a cultural cooking class, we spent four fabulous days chowing down.
Road-tripping around southern Iceland
We’ve very recently returned from Iceland, the newest contender for our Best in Travel. We were in two minds about visiting in early winter, but we were keen to see the island in all its icy glory…and we were hoping for a glimpse of the aurora borealis.
With just six hours of good light each day, we focused on the island’s south and were rewarded with incredible, sweeping landscapes of volcanic peaks, vast lava fields, immense glaciers, steaming hot springs and a ghostly lake filled with huge blue icebergs.
We barely scratched the surface but we’ll definitely be back, next time for the midnight sun.
Sipping mulled wine in Innsbruck
As Aussies, Christmas is hot weather, cold meats and even colder beer. So for our final trip of 2016, we took to the continent one last time for a taste of a chilly European Christmas.
Innsbruck in Austria was the perfect setting, with snow-capped mountains forming a stunning backdrop to the clusters of tinsel-draped huts selling mulled wine and gloriously gluttonous sweet and savoury delights.
What’s in store for 2017?
We’ve collected some amazing memories in 2016, and next year is looking even more exciting. After a year coming and going from London, it’s time to farewell the old city for a little while and get back on the road proper. We’ll be posting an update on our plans very soon.
For now, friends, we want to thank you for all your support and encouragement over the past year! Wishing you all a very, very happy new year and all the best for 2017!
What were your holiday highlights of 2016? Share with us below!
This blog is a gift! Such an attractive pair doing such lovely things! Hugs from US mum!
Aww, thank you so much Gail, we’re so pleased you like it. Looking forward to seeing you on our 2017 adventures! xxx
Having travelled across continents oneself, it’s odd to be in awe of someone else’s travels. Maybe that’s because you see more through someone else’s eyes. As I sup a coffee in my Spanish house, I am now daydreaming about following in your footsteps to do more of Europe. Hopefully with better weather. Good luck in 2017. Can’t wait for the updates.
Mik, you’ve been such a wonderful support! Thank you so much for all the kind words and encouragement. We hope to visit your Spanish abode someday…for now, happy new year and wishing you much fulfilment (and sunny Euro travel) in 2017. 🙂