Wakefield is a tiny village in the Nelson district at the top of New Zealand’s South Island. It’s also where my grandparents live, and is a great place to escape to when we need some sunshine, hugs, and hundreds of cups of tea. We were only able to stay for three nights during our latest visit, but it was just what we needed to feel rested and refueled before heading back to Palmerston North for work.…

Looking at those Namib Desert sand dunes, I never imagined that there could possible be more than a few creepy crawlies living under all that sand…. I had been told to watch out for scorpions and I expected there to be a couple of ants….what else could possible survive living under such harsh conditions?…

http://frugalfirstclasstravel.com/2013/05/19/eating-well-in-the-cinque-terre/

One of the things I love about Indonesia is the food, in fact it is my my favourite Asian food. Living in Holland it was always easy to satisfy my craving for it. Not so much here in London. So when I went to Indonesia I was really looking forward to pigging out.

Read more on goo.gl/DiXE0…

Just a few of my culinary adventures in London, including fish & chips, pie with mushy peas, Sunday roast, and sticky toffee pudding. Which will win the taste test?

Read on at Eat, Repeat.…

Have you ever wondered how to use the lucky opportunity to discover amazing London while being forced to leave as soon as the very same day you arrived? Here a 'London-in-a-rush' list with ideas leaked from a secret service mission of London's promotion office not published because it offers lots of fun for a low budget. …

http://www.themumblog.com/my-top-10-luxury-hotels-of-the-world.html

http://www.themumblog.com/my-top-10-luxury-hotels-of-the-world.html

http://www.seemytravels.com/2013/05/11/philipsburg-st-maarten-in-photographs/

This post is brought to you by Josh. He usually takes the photos for our blog, and lets me do the writing, but this time it’s his turn to attack the keyboard and tell you a bit about how he’s found life as an American expat in New Zealand. Over to you, Josh.

I arrived in New Zealand in February 2010 to be closer to Bonnie and ask her to marry me (spoiler alert: she said yes). Over the last three years here I’ve encountered things I love about NZ and things that haven’t been…

Following the theft of 10 of my blog posts on Thursday night, and my discovery that this scraper site was scraping lots of different travel blogs, I've written this post - hopefully it will give you some tips about what you can do to protect your content from scrapers:

http://www.themumblog.com/someone-stole-my-blog-posts-this-is-what-happened-next.html

Abandoned buildings can be a real eyesore in an otherwise pretty and elegant city, like Lisbon. But there are ways to transform ‘aesthetically depressing’ sites into impressive pieces of art……

It was a fine Spring day in France. Winter was finally replaced by joyful Spring and it brought the sun with it. With the sun shining and a warm temperature, my feet, as usual, started to itch begging me to find a new place to explore.

“Let’s bike to Clisson” suggested a friend. 

Read more…

Jono's blog: MOUNT EVEREST 60 year anniversary this month, and NOMADIC THOUGHTS' first visit 30 odd years ago

http://www.jonovernon-powell.com/mount-everest-60-30-years-on-08-05-13/

Nine years ago, age 14, I (Bonnie) went to Thailand for the first time. It was also the first time I ever traveled to another country without my family. We were based in Darwin, Australia at the time and I saved $1400 AUD to go with eight others as part of a school volunteer group. For a 14 year old, $1400 seemed like a huge amount of money. Every weekend my long-suffering mother helped me make fudge, cupcakes, lavender bags, and cards. Then I walked from door to door selling my little wares…

http://frugalfirstclasstravel.com/2013/05/04/travel-gear-review-my-new-case-handbag-toilet-bag/

Love them or loathe them, cats are everywhere in the Cinque Terre!

http://frugalfirstclasstravel.com/2013/05/04/cats-of-the-cinque-terre-a-photo-expose/

UNESCO Press Freedom Day - the surprising League table of 'MOST FREE PRESS' HOLIDAY destination countries.

http://www.jonovernon-powell.com/press-freedom-in-tourist-destinations-03-05-13/

The food at the Gili Trawangan night market was by far our favourite (and cheapest!) dining pick during our time there. But we also managed to suss out some other delicious options around the island. All were walking distance from our accommodation and had sea views (which aren’t hard to find on Gili T!). Here’s our round-up of the best (in no particular order):…

I have been trying to visit Namibia for quite a while now but, something else always came up that seemed more interesting or exciting and, quite frankly, being a countryside / ocean kind of person, I wondered if all that sand and desert was really going to rest my soul….…