Runaway Brit - Teacher. Expat. Traveller.

Julbocken: the Swedish Tradition that Usually Goes up in Flames

Europe, Featured, History, Humour, Life in Sweden, Swedish History, Swedish Tourism, Tourist Attraction, Tradition gävle, gävlebocken, goat, julbocken, sweden, yule, yulegoat

“Runway ready! How do I look?” tweets Gävlebocken, the official social media account of Sweden’s famous Christmas goat. Indeed, he's not only famous in Sweden: according to the Guinness Book of Records, Gävle's Julbocken is the world’s

Enjoying the Swedish Summer in Öregrund

Beaches, Europe, Featured, Food and Drink, Life in Sweden, Swedish Tourism, Tourist Attraction harbour, Öregrund, seaside, sweden, tourism

With over 3,000 kilometres of coastline, Sweden has plenty of coastal towns; and, although the most beautiful beaches are in the south, the east coast has many gems. The Stockholm Archipelago is a great place

Åre: an Autumn Visit to Sweden’s Most Famous Ski Resort

Europe, Featured, Health & Fitness, Life in Sweden, Nature, Swedish Tourism, Tourist Attraction, Travelling åre, sweden

With Covid still limiting overseas travel, I have travelled locally in Sweden over the past few months. Recently, I’ve been to Sundsvall, Västerås, Kristianstad and Stockholm. My favourite trip, however, was Åre, a lakeside ski-resort

Malmö: Sweden’s Gateway to Europe

City Break, Europe, Featured, Life in Sweden, Swedish Tourism, Tourist Attraction, Travelling, Working Overseas malmö, Öresund, Skåne, sweden, The Bridge

As the gateway to Europe, Malmö 's youthful, cosmopolitan vibe is distinctive from other Swedish cities. During the summer, tourists flood the city beach, and residents stroll through leafy parks or run along the beachfront

Eating My Way Around the US

Featured, Food and Drink, Travelling food, United States, US, USA

With my visit to the US coinciding with the fourth of July, I hoped to experience at least two of the 'four Fs' that form the tip of the cultural iceberg: food and festivals. I'm

Čičmany: Slovakia’s Charming Gingerbread Houses

Bratislava, Europe, Expat, Featured, Tourist Attraction, Tradition cicmany, design, museum, Slovakia

Čičmany in central Slovakia comes straight from the pages of a fairy-tale book. The picturesque village sits in a verdant meadow surrounded by pine forests, but this is not what makes it so delightful. What's

Kayaking on the Danube in Bratislava

Bratislava, City Break, Europe, Expat, Expat Life, Featured, Nature, Tourist Attraction, Travelling, Working Overseas Bratislava, danube, kayaking, lake, Slovakia

Peeping through the trees ahead of me, the iconic shape of the castle reminds me that although I am kayaking in the countryside, I’m actually still in the city. That’s the beauty of Bratislava, one

Lofoten: A Winter’s Dream

Europe, Expat Life, Featured, Nature, Photography, Tourist Attraction, Travelling lofoten, norway, photography

Waking long before daylight, we found our car concealed beneath the icy shroud of the first winter snowfall. Once outside and puffing impatiently into my hands to enjoy a momentary sensation of warmth, I opened

Clothes May Be Optional, but Masks Are Not!

Bratislava, Europe, Expat, Expat Life, Featured, Health & Fitness, Life, safety, Working Overseas coronavirus, face masks, naked bathing, social distancing

Approaching a large metal gate crossing our path, my friend whispered ‘Do you think we can walk here?’ ‘Well, it’s open, and there’s no sign saying we can’t’, I replied, trying to sound more

Lockdown! A Teacher’s Thoughts on the Corona Pandemic

Bratislava, Europe, Expat, Expat Life, Featured, Health & Fitness, Heartbreak, Life, Relationships, School, Teaching, Working Overseas international teaching, teaching, teaching overseas

It’s been 26 days since my world shut down. It’s been far longer for others. It began slowly. Back, in January, news of an unknown virus in China reached us here in Europe. I barely took

The Hidden Dangers of Quarantine

Bratislava, Expat, Expat Life, Featured, Humour, Life, Working Overseas Bratislava, coronavirus, humour

Stay indoors. Stay safe, they said. They're right, of course: if you stay indoors you won't catch Coronavirus, and – more importantly – you can't spread it. But what I didn't know is that being

Love in the Time of Coronavirus

Bratislava, Europe, Expat, Expat Life, Featured, Friends and Family, Health & Fitness, Teaching, Working Overseas Bratislava, coronavirus, europe, international teaching, Slovakia, teaching

With coronavirus currently decimating the travel industry, it’s a good time to write about my life as an international teacher instead. I don’t write frequently, because I can't travel full-time like I'd hoped I would

A Surprise Birthday Trip to Budapest

City Break, Europe, Expat, Expat Life, Featured, Life, Tourist Attraction, Travelling budapest, city break, For Sale Pub, hungary, New York Palace

I left work on Friday with my bag packed for a surprise birthday trip. All I had been told was that the bus departed at 4pm and I would need my passport. Of course, I

Why You Should Visit the Bratislava Christmas Markets This Season

Bratislava, City Break, Europe, Featured, Food and Drink, Tourist Attraction, Travelling Bratislava, christmas market, market, Slovakia

Once again, Christmas—the most wonderful time of the year—is upon us; and Bratislava just burst into life with festive crooners singing jovially of snow, sleigh-bells and chestnuts roasting on open fires. Ridiculously cute wooden cabins

Cyprus: Birthplace of a Goddess

Europe, Featured, Nature, Tourist Attraction, Travelling cyprus, Greece

Most people visit Cyprus during the summer, but you shouldn't avoid this charming Mediterranean island during low season. Known for being the birthplace of Aphrodite: the Goddess of Beauty, Cyprus has much to love -

Why I Love Working in Europe (And Never Want to Leave)

Advice, Europe, Expat, Expat Life, Featured, Life, Teaching, Working Overseas europe, expat, international teaching, living overseas, teaching overseas

Recently, I've been reflecting on why I love living in Europe out of all the places I could go. And, yes: publishing this post as Britain perches precariously on the brink of Brexit is ironic.

Winter Break: Malta

City Break, Europe, Expat, Featured, Travelling city break, Malta

Here in Central Europe, summer hangs on a thread. The long, light evenings are closing in, the sun's warmth is fading fast, and I'm already thinking back to my first holiday of the year in

Shifting My Paradigm

Featured, Friends and Family, Life, Relationships changes, life, Life Lessons

When I've reached a grand old age and, like any self-respecting old lady, I am surrounded by an army of cats, I will look back over my life, and remember the following things: living in

Košice, Slovakia: Try Once, Love Forever

City Break, Europe, Featured, Health & Fitness, History, Tourist Attraction, Travelling biela noc, Kosice, marathon, peace marathon, Slovakia, white night

Home of Europe's Oldest Annual Marathon Slovakia is an underrated travel destination; most people I meet have never heard of it, and could not point it out on a map, so it was surprising to learn

Goodbye, Serendipity

Asia, Beaches, Featured, Heartbreak, Life, Relationships, Travelling cambodia, heartbreak, love, occheuteal, relationships, serendipity, sihanoukville

In March 2008 I visited a place that changed my life. Of course, back then bracing myself for every bump in the dusty road I had no idea where the rusted bus careening wildly along