Uluru, Australia

Uluru is the Aboriginal name for the World Heritige Listed rock, which used to be known as Ayres Rock. It is a stunning site and it truly took my breath away.

On the first night we enjoyed a delicious meal under the stars, watching the sunset behind Kata Tjuta (also known as the Olgas).

We were treated to some traditional Aborginal dance with our champagne and a star gazing lesson with our meal. It was magical.

The next morning we were up early to see the sunrise over the rock - whilst riding camels... There are hundreds of thousands of wild camels in Australia (estimates range from 300,000 to over - million) and it has the largest camel population in the world.

I was a little nervous to climb aboard these big creatures as they don't have the best reputation, but it was a wonderful experience.

Riga, Latvia

Next stop on the Baltic adventure was Riga, which is most famous for its art-nouveau architecture. I have never seen so many gargoyles before! Almost every building is decorated in some way.

The beautiful buildings made exploring this city great fun, we spent a lot of time searching for funny/scary/beautiful sculptures. 

Tallinn, Estonia

For New Year 2014 we decided to visit Tallinn, the capital of Estonia. It is a magical time to visit the city as the Christmas markets are on, with the city's decorations still on display.

The medieval city is very compact and mostly contained within the ancient walls. It's beautiful and easy to explore on foot, with lots of winding cobbled roads and old merchant houses.

There are beautiful views of the city from the top of the very narrow staircase leading to the tower of the Dome Church. The church has been in existence since 1233 and was filled with history inside.

St Alexander Nevsky Cathedral is dramatic from the outside.

Estonia was great fun and easy to explore. I would love to go back.

Venice and the Veneto: Venice

The final day of the trip was spent in Venice.  It is a wonderful city and I thoroughly enjoyed exploring the waterways and little lanes. These first shots are taken from the vaporetto was we sailed down the Grand Canal from the train station to St Mark's square.

St Mark's square is at the heart of Venice and contains the Basilica Di San Marco along with other beautiful buildings. There was some restoration work at the basilica, mearning there was some scaffolding, but this didn't ruin the picture perfect square at all.

We wandered through the streets, crossing the canals and stopping now and again for some refreshments.

This is Harry's Bar, where we tried the Belinis at the place where they were invented.

This is the Basilica Di Santa Maria Della Salute, which was commissioned by Venice's plague survivors in in 1600s.

I loved this city and the people watching on the banks of the Grand Canal was exceptional.