Family Fun at Moors Valley Country Park

With the return of the British spring weather, we spent a sunny Saturday in March with our family at Moors Valley Country Park, in Dorset.

Moors Valley has been home to countless picnics, muddy boots and steam train rides over the years for us, and today we got to re-live some of our childhood memories with the next generation.

Set in the beautiful woodlands of Ringwood Forest, Moors Valley is a great day out for all ages, with a nature trail speckled with huts, animals and climbing frames to get kids moving. Sure, there will be muddy knees and perhaps a few bumped heads, but all are soon forgotten as you move from stop to stop.

I can still remember the old home video's of me on the climbing frames, a little to short and relying on a helping hand from an adult to complete the courses, but there's nothing like taking a plunge and testing your limits. Year's later I still love watching those moments, even if I can't quite remember them myself!

Our nieces, Millie 6, Abigale 3, Hollie 1 and Isabel 0.4 had a great time playing in the parks and exploring in the woods and we made a short video with out GoPro Hero4 Session of our day.


The on site cafe serves hot drinks, Dorset Tea, cake and lunches but you're also welcome to bring a picnic to enjoy by the duck pond.

Find out more about Moors Valley and plan your trip online at moors-valley.co.uk

What travelling has taught me

It's been over 2 months now since I left the UK for what I thought would be a new life as an English teacher in Vietnam. We all know how that worked out, but as I come to the end of my time in Asia I think now is as good a time as any to reflect on what the whole experience has taught me.

1. Try to see running a gauntlet of hawkers as a practise in tolerance
Yes boss, Hello motorbike, Want massage? And breathe. It happens to everyone, so just pretend you don't speak English and stroll on by with your eyes focused on the horizon.

2. Fans make better hairdryers than air con
Air con is great for cooling a room, but fans are the best for your barnet!

3. Asia loves boy bands
Correction, boy bands and power ballads. Backstreet Boys were the favourite, but we also spent a few evenings being serenaded by The Carpenters, N*Sync and Whitney Houston! Bob Marley was also everywhere.

4. There is such a thing as too hot
Before leaving the UK I think I boasted a little about loving the heat, but the reality is its only good when coupled with a pool or cold cocktail. I now see that living, working, sleeping and travelling in such heat is not always so fun or tolerable.

Hot monkey in Bali cooling off

5. I should be open with Mark about my feelings, chances are he is feeling the same

I've lost count of the number of times we've walked down the street silently thinking the same thoughts before confessing them to one another. Be it 'I'm sick of hawkers' or 'I want an ice cream', I've learnt the sooner I open up, the quicker I'll know I'm not alone, and get an ice cream!

6. I miss my friends and family much more than I expected
I knew my pictures from paradise would generate a little envy, but I wasn't prepared to feel it myself when I was the one struggling being away from home. The first few weeks away were so difficult and it didn't help knowing everyone else was having a great time.

Can't wait to see my two BFFs in Milan

7. The comforts of a cozy bed and a movie cannot be underestimated
The nights are long here as the sun sets around 6pm everyday, and I'm not exactly a night owl! After all the evenings reading or researching it's sometimes lovely to cuddle up with a movie and Mark. It proves to me that home or away, this is my favourite past time.

8. Mr Bean is loved all over the world

Mugs in Vietnam, art in Indonesia, movies in Thailand. Mr Bean was as popular as a beer brand T-shirt, but I secretly loved having this slice of quirky British culture with me!

Mr Bean on the beach

9. Always carry your own toilet roll

Trains, bus stations and even some hotel toilets are often poorly maintained in Asia, I'm talking soaked floors, lack of flush and some truly terrible conditions. Make the experience a little better by knowing you have one essential in your pocket. Antibacterial gel is also comforting, as is a peg for your nose.

10. Sometimes it really is best to cut your losses and move on to better things
It was a big decisions of ours to cut the working bit out and go straight to travelling with a severely reduced budget and diminished enthusiasm, but it was definitely the best decision we could have made. In the future I think it will be easier to go with my gut and trust myself that I'll be OK even when one of my safety nets has disappeared.

11. I had a pretty good life at home
This has been the most important lesson so far. My friends, my family, the towns I call home; I had it pretty good there, and I can't wait to get it all back after spending what will surely be a memorable summer in Italy.

Bournemouth and Poole Bay, Dorset

Setting Sail

We've been planning this adventure right up to the last second, but now it's time to down tools and enjoy some precious time with our friends and family before finally leaving.

Its our last chance to see some people until we come back to the UK, which could be any number of months away depending on how we find the experience.

I can't begin to tell you how much I am going to miss everyone. I'm lucky enough to see most of my friends and family frequently enough to not often miss people, so I am wondering how I'm going to handle it.

I'm so used to the occasional text and regular Facebook message threads, in jokes and making plans for the weekend, meeting for a drink after work, or a cuppa.

Somehow I don't think the gravity of what we are doing is going to hit me until I'm sat on the plane with all my belongings around me and very little in terms of a plan.

Planning this move abroad has been a massive undertaking; stressful, expensive and time consuming. But now it's actually upon us! We've made it through and now all that's left is to pack up and board the plane.

I don't think I've even been anywhere with so little planned; most of what we have organised is for our work permit and our financial commitments in the UK.

Here is what I do know; we will land in Ho Chi Minh at 7am (midnight GMT) and start wondering until we can check into the hotel at 2pm. It's ok, I've found an amazing blog of the best cafe's in HCM so we'll be set!

Then we wait until our appointment with the British Consulate - hopefully on Monday.

After that its back into the unknown as we move into our new home.

But first some emotional goodbyes before I step out of my comfort zone, my reality, my country. Speak to you in Vietnam!

The realist adjusts the sails

A few weeks ago, I finished the last of my online TEFL course. I've got all my certificates for  the core content, and grammar, plus specialist modules in teaching young learners, business English, large classes and one to one lessons.

I haven't been this excited about a qualification since I claimed my degree exactly 3 years ago. This is truly the catalyst that will put all my dreams of living abroad into action.

With only the weekend classes of the course left, we will soon be able to start applying for jobs and planning our wish list of places to see whilst we are travelling.

What's more, the idea is catching on! All around us our family and friends are talking about 'making the most of the time we have together' and the coming events we are going miss.

Each time this brings a tear to me eye and a pang of guilt to my heart, but as soon as I'm back in my office on a Monday morning I remember why this change is so important.

Our families and friends will still be here when we get back and if anything we are seeing more of everyone and making a bigger effort because pretty soon, we will be gone.

So hears to changing the sails, and being the change I want to be. The light at the end of the tunnel is getting a little bigger every day!