This Is My 50th Post!
- Kelly McKenna
- Feb 26, 2021
- 4 min read
Back in early 2017, I published my first blog post. Four years later; after 9 countries, 3 blog name changes and eventually signing up to Instagram, I am finally about to publish my 50th post!
In celebration, I figured I would "write" a photo essay of 50 amazing places we have been fortunate enough to visit in those four years. As I have been so terrible at regularly posting content, I am very excited to share some of the places that I have never before written about on this blog...
Asia
This is one of my favourite photos of our time in Sri Lanka. It was our final stop before returning to the UK and this is one of the few days we had without rain. We travelled in the "dry season" and got much more rain than we ever did in the "wet season" in Bali, Queensland and Thailand! Mother nature can be tricky...
Clockwise from top left: Nine Arch Bridge, Ella, Sri Lanka; Gardens By The Bay, Singapore; Infinity pool at our Airbnb in Koh Phangan, Thailand; Galle Fort, Sri Lanka; Breakfast on the balcony at Will Guest Homestay, Ella, Sri Lanka; Wat Pho temple with my little sister, Bangkok, Thailand; Koh Phi Phi, Thailand; Gili Air, Indonesia.
We took our first tentative steps into travelling Southeast Asia with a trip to Bali, Indonesia in January 2017. Rich got a contract extension on his job in Sydney giving us the opportunity to splash out on our first accommodation and ease us in gently! We fell in love with The Alena Resort in Ubud and would love to return one day. You can read more about our Balinese adventures here.
Australia
Australia is a very special country to us and we love visiting Richard's family as often as we can. This photo was taken by his sister on our most recent visit back in 2019. This was a month before we were due to move to Canada and we had not a single worry or care in the world. I will never stop being in awe of the colours on the Australian beaches.
I absolutely cannot profess to understanding art, but this is by far one of the most amazing pieces I have ever been fortunate enough to see. We were in Melbourne at the time of the 2017 Australian Grand Prix and this exceptional "graffiti" was on one of the ever changing walls in the Melbourne Laneways.
Clockwise from top left: University of Queensland, Brisbane; Scarborough Beach Pool, Perth; Pinky Beach Lighthouse, Rottnest Island; Mornington Peninsula, Victoria; Leighton Beach, Perth; Etty Beach, Queensland; Thunderstorm over the Blue Mountains, NSW; Sailing around the Whitsunday Islands, QLD; Busselton Jetty, WA; Celebrating my 29th Birthday on the Gold Coast, QLD; Cheeky Monkey Brewing Co, Margaret River, WA; Nambucca Heads, Queensland; Paluma Range National Park, QLD.
I truly believe Western Australia is one of the most underrated places in the world. We've been fortunate enough to travel North and South from our base in Perth and I've always struggled to keep my jaw from hitting the floor. "Rotto" to the locals, sits just off the coast of Perth, is home to the Quokka which is honestly one of the best animals in the world, and back in 2019 we went on a camping trip there. This is me soaking up the sun at Porpoise Bay, one of the many beautiful beaches on the island.
Europe
I didn't really have a selection criteria when it came to choosing photos for this post, I just scrolled through the many thousands of pictures we have taken over the years and stopped when I saw something that caught my eye. Somehow, that left me with just two photos from my home continent!
As a surprise for Richard's 33rd Birthday, I took him on a day trip to Dublin. Fortunately, the weather was incredible for November and we spent the day traipsing round the city tasting many beers and whiskeys. I'm still amazed to this day that they let us on the plane back to England!
I think sometimes it takes leaving to appreciate how beautiful your home country can be. Rich grew up in the stunning seaside town of Tenby and I love any excuse to visit a beach so he introduced me to the pretty little cove of Manorbier back in October 2018. Another lucky weather day!
North America
I love this photo, not only because of its amazing colours and natural beauty, but also because it was taken when my parents came to visit us. Watching them fall in love with Canada the way we have, is truly one of my happiest memories from the past four years.
When we took our recce trip and travelled across Canada by train in August 2018, Western Canada was basically on fire and covered in smoke. We were so lucky to get an afternoon break from the smoke during our time in Jasper that happened to be the day we were out exploring the Rockies. This photo always reminds me to take nothing for granted as we could have so easily missed out on this incredible scenery.
Clockwise from top left: Wreck Beach, Vancouver, BC; White Rock Pier, BC; Tofino, Vancouver Island, BC; Lion's Gate Bridge from Stanley Park, Vancouver, BC; Human Rights Museum, Winnipeg, MB; Bloedel Conservatory, Queen Elizabeth Park, Vancouver, BC; Steveston, BC; Whistler, BC; Downtown Vancouver, BC.
I adore Las Vegas. The lights, the noise, the chaos. We were on a trip for our friend Sara's 30th Birthday when we took this photo. Little did we know, it would also turn out to be the last international trip we would take for over a year. (Thanks Covid.)
Clockwise from top left: Myra Canyon Trestles, Kelowna, BC; Lynn Canyon Rice Lake, BC; Old Alexandra Bridge, near Hope, BC; Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona; Osoyoos Desert Centre, BC; Deep Cove, North Vancouver, BC; Fort Berens Estate Winery, Lillooet, BC; Bowen Island, BC, Jericho Beach, Vancouver, BC.
I thought I'd finish with another photo of water since it really is my happy place. We took this photo on the Sunshine Coast in February 2020 and we will actually be able to take many more like it this summer as we will be moving house again in just 63 days. We are already SO excited for the start of a new adventure!
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