After an absolutely breathtaking train ride through the alps we arrived in Geneva and made our way to our accommodation. Geneva Youth Hostel was not at all what we expected but clean and comfortable nonetheless… other than the disgustingly smelly roommate we had. The hostel also put on a reasonable breakfast that helped us get started each morning which was a bonus.

Over the next two days (we had been told two days would be plenty for Geneva) we divided our time between long walks in the parks and making use of our free public transport card, provided by the hostel, to catch the ferry across Lake Geneva. Sure Geneva had an old town, some monuments and the giant flower clock (all of which we saw) but it was the hanging out in the parks, soaking up the sunshine and watching the locals appreciate the fabulous weather in the great outdoors that we enjoyed most.

On our second full day in the city we made an earlyish start since the plan was to see all the major attractions. After an hour and a half of walking we had seen all that we wanted to see. Thankfully the last stop on our tourist map brought us to a big park that was a bit protected from the cold winds blowing across Lake Geneva. We played an hour long game on the giant chess board that resulted in a tie, which I was happy with since it was the first game of chess I have ever played. We then spent a good 2 hours jumperless, shoeless and sockless sitting in the sun and watching people enjoy their Sunday. It was wonderful!

Our stop in Geneva wasn’t a lengthy one but it was certainly an enjoyable one. While we wouldn’t go back, since there really isn’t all that much to see or do, we are glad we made the trip.

We arrived at Rome Termini and had an easy 6 minute walk to our accommodation, Macao Rooms, where we were greeted by the owner. We stayed in a pleasant bed and breakfast that we luckily didn’t have to share with any other guests, so it essentially felt like staying in an apartment. The location of the room was in perfect walking distance to many of the attractions and, for us, in walking distance to all the attractions of Rome. On our first day we just explored the local area, including the Villa Borghese which was not too far up the road.

Day 2 started slowly as we made use of the free internet to try and get ahead in our booking of accommodation for our next few destinations. Unfortunately our sightseeing was further delayed by a trip to the Australian Embassy as we had learned that we had not been taken off the electoral roll, despite filling out forms in January, and needed to try and organise something to not be fined for not voting in the upcoming State election.

After a bit of mucking around we were on our way to the Spanish Steps to meet our friend Chad, an American studying in Italy who we met at a hostel in Vienna. He had kindly agreed to tour us around the city. The tour was a lot of fun and it was nice to have some extra company for the day too. Chad was able to share some of the information he has been learning about Italian history while studying abroad, and this made for a more interesting tour than we could have done ourselves. We saw all the famous Ancient Roman sites including the Colosseum and Roman Forum, and of course many fountains, statues and churches too. My favourite site of the day was, hands down, the Pantheon. It was so beautiful, highly decorated, well designed and well presevered – a very impressive building indeed. After saying our goodbyes to Chad at the Trevi Fountain, another amazing attraction, we made our way back to our room to have dinner and rest our tired feet from the day’s walking.

Another full day meant we were able to take our time walking from our accommodation to the Vatican City. As we headed up the road to Saint Peter’s Square a dozen tour guides flocked to us like seagulls to hot chips, trying to convince us to pay for a tour or express entry into the basilica. Of course we said no to them all, I didn’t really see the point of paying for something that has free entry, and the line moved quite quickly considering to volume of people, the metal detectors and the x-ray bag scans. The fuss outside was definitely worth the effort as the interior of the basillica was just amazing. In my opinion it’s magnificence is only rivalled by Saint Mark’s Basilica in Venice. I coud not believe how detailed every inch of the place was, and it was just enormous! After soaking in the sunshine and having a snack break in the square we made our way back to our accommodation via Castel Sant’Angelo. The afternoon saw us once again enjoy the sunshine at Villa Borghese before we went out for dinner and admired the Trevi Fountain at night.

We have really enjoyed our time in Rome. The relaxed pace, sunshine and constant surprises have made it a great 3 days. To my surprise, Jason has even said that, while different, it is on par with how much he enjoyed Vienna.

Nevertheless I think Florence was another very successful short visit. Yesterday we left our comfortable bed and breakfast and began our walk back to central Florence. From the centre everything was an easy walk away (for us anyway), and the warm weather meant we were able to walk through the city without jumpers, although the locals still managed to dress in more clothes than we did in Stockholm.

As with most cities, the major attractions come with an inflated entry fee, however we only had one day so there was no point. In fact our somewhat “frugal travel” is a lot of fun for the two of us as we usually end up seeing things that aren’t in the guidebooks and crowded by tourists.

While viewing the Orsammichele from the outside we saw many people paying to visit the church, yet when we walked around the corner we saw an entrance to a building across the road that offered free admission to a display on the second floor. We climbed the stairs, crossed the road via a walkway and entered the Orsammichele. Inside were numerous statues, all very impressive, not to mention the view that we also had of the Florence rooftops.

We made our way through the busy yet skinny streets, stopping frequently to see the famous sites along the way. The Basilica di Santa Maria Novella, Basilica di San Lorenzo, Cattedrale di Santa Maria del Fiore, Ponte Vecchio and so on.

Finally we had made our way to Fiume Arno – a river that makes it’s way through Florence. We had been told that there was a good view of Florence from Piazzale Michelangelo, and we were not misled! With the sun shining we sat outside on a bench and watched the other tourists walk by for about an hour. At one stage a Japanese couple even arrived in a chauffeur driven Bentley for wedding photos in front of the view. Perhaps a little bit more of an extravagant honeymoon than us!

In the early afternoon we made our back to the centre via the scenic route. If anyone is ever looking for something to do in Florence I suggest walking along Viale Galileo Galilei. The road was one of the nicest we had seen, dotted with trees the entire length, and provided views of both city and “country” Florence, perhaps providing an insight of what country Tuscany would be like.

We returned to our accommodation via the supermarket, picked up some supplies and cooked dinner. Exhausted yet satisfied it was an early night, all packed and ready to leave in the morning.

It is with great difficulty that I write this post. In fact, this is attempt number 2 at blogging on Udine. Never did Jase or I imagine that we would become so emotionally connected to near strangers in an unknown land, yet after not even spending half an hour with our family in their house we felt like we were at home with people we had known our entire lives. So, as you can imagine, emotions are running high as I reflect on our time there.

We arrived at the Udine bus station after a bus trip through breathtaking countryside. We caught a train from Vienna to Villach, a town on the border of Austria and Italy, and from there the bus. Upon our arrival we were warmly greeted by Daniele and his daughter Serena and then driven to their house in the village of Zompitta, not too far out of Udine.

Over the next 10 days we relaxed, ate, drank and toured the surrounding countryside. But our stay in Udine was never about tourism. Yes, during those days we were driven around to many beautiful villages however it wasn’t so much the sites we were seeing that made it an amazing experience, more the people we were sharing our time with. Whether it was watching Daniele make use of his Italian/English dictionary, listening to Claudio speak Italian and Andrea do his best to translate, or enjoying the beautiful scenery of the mountains with Giuliano, sharing time with the family was the most wonderful time we have had on our trip so far.

I have so many fond memories of our 10 days in Udine that I am finding it difficult to gather my thoughts and articulate them clearly. I close my eyes and remember. I can see Serena sitting on the couch using her laptop, or Ombretta standing at the stove making us more tea. I can hear us all sharing a laugh over “terramoto”, “ecco” or any of the other little jokes we had. I can feel the strong embraces of everyone as they greeted us at our welcoming dinner and as they said goodbye on our final night. I can taste all the coffee and vino we drank and all the tears we shed as we said our final emotional goodbyes at the train station.

The sense of belonging and attachment Jase and I feel towards the people and town we have just experienced has completely taken us by surprise. My words will never adequately explain how I am feeling or our time in Udine, so for now a rough quote from a conversation we had with Claudia on our final night will have to suffice. As we spoke about how connected we felt to everyone and the country, Claudia said that it’s as though there is a part of your heart on the other side of the world. And I guess that does sum up what I am feeling. As I sit here with tears swelling in my eyes, thinking of the father, mother, sister and extended family I have left behind, I really do feel as though a part of me will always belong in Udine.

To my fabulous Italian family; thank you so much for opening up your homes and your hearts to welcome both Jason and I into your lives. We feel so privileged to be able to experience Italian living first hand with you all, an experience we will always treasure and hold close to our hearts. We look forward to seeing you all again and want you to know that just as you were so generous with us, we will be with you. If we don’t see you in Udine first we await your visit to our home in Australia.

I’m not a particularly well travelled person – this is my first trip outside of Australia – but I have seen enough of Australia to know when something is extraordinary. Tanjung Sanctuary is exactly that.

From our window, the water below is perfectly blue, the trees and plants surrounding are healthy and green, and the temperature is an almost constant 30 degrees.

I am impressed by the planting that has been done on site here. It is obvious that the owners and managers of Tanjung Sanctuary want to not only maintain, but improve upon the health of the local habitat. The number of staff maintaining the gardens shows just how much they care.

Our time here has been perfect. Granted we are fairly “easy to please” people, but the staff have been extremely helpful, welcoming and flexible, and the quality of our room (and everything in it) is at a standard that we will no doubt be missing during the rest of our trip.

Ultimately, our goals have been met. We intended on our honeymoon being nothing more than a relaxing catch up between the two of us, and that is exactly what we have had.

If you are looking for a relaxing getaway, I could not recommend a better place. Their website is located at www.tanjungsanctuary.com.my.

As the complimentary airport transfer van took us to our resort I was feeling the mixed emotions that I’m sure many tourist feel, seeing the impoverished conditions of some of the locals and feeling as those holidaying westerners are exploiting these people and their beautiful island home. However, on the flip side I feel that it is the tourism that is providing their main source of income. Irrespective of my concerns, I have absolutely loved every minute of our stay here.

Tanjung Sanctuary is an amazing resort. I know that while Jase was researching where to stay he had several, simple criteria that we wanted our accommodation to meet. It wasn’t much, just things like complimentary breakfast and airport transfers, private bungalows and a private beach, in a great environment – and all for a reasonable price. Tanjung Sanctuary certainly fulfills all of that.

The staff have made us feel very welcome and we are definitely getting special treatment. Upon arrival we were told we had been upgraded to a beach view room as it was our honeymoon, and when we arrived at our room after dinner at the restaurant we found a bouquet of roses and a candlelit bathroom scattered with rose petals and smelling of scented oil awaiting us.

Over the last three days we have enjoyed relaxing in our beautiful room or on our balcony, using the gym, laying on the beach lounges and swimming in the clear and calm waters of the private beach. Most recently, we have been kayaking around the coastline – which I really enjoyed. The view from our room is simply breathtaking. Even now as I sit on our bed my eyes cast through the lush greenery of the rainforest trees to the crystal blue waters of the beach, all the while listening to the calming sounds of the waves gently crashing on the shore.

The food has been delicious, with a wide variety to choose from – both from room service and at the restaurant, and I loved the cocktails we sipped on last night while watching the sun set. The prices have been quite reasonable in our opinion (after all, we are at a resort) with meals typically between 30-60MYR.

Quite simply, we are loving it here.

When looking for accommodation, our prerequisites were:

• Clear, warm water to swim in
• Private villa with nice surrounds
• Reasonably priced food
• Near Kuala Lumpur or Singapore (for convenience)
• Semi affordable

We had no idea how much it was going to cost us, but it was what we wanted. We rarely blow cash on what we want so while we wanted to keep it reasonable, we were happy to spend what we had to get something nice. After all, you only have one honeymoon, right?

After spending literally months trawling through Tripadvisor pages, and searching the net for information on weather and other information, I decided that Langkawi was the place for us to go. The east coast of Malaysia can experience some pretty rough weather through January, so that limited our options a bit.

From there we had plenty of options, but all of them seemed to have a trade off here or there. The service got bad reviews. The rooms weren’t up to standard. The beach wasn’t any good. There was always one thing wrong with it, while everything else about the accomodation was great. I was about to settle for one place that seemed like “the best of the average”..

Tanjung Sanctuary

Then I luckily stumbled across some information about a place called Tanjung Sanctuary. It had bad reviews from the past – the quality of the rooms were average and the service was below par. It has however, recently been refurbished, and from the reviews I have read and the photos I have seen it looks as though it’s done the trick.

I’ve since booked us a “Hilltop Villa”, the least expensive of the three. I wanted to give Jess the best we could get but she reminded me that money saved would help us out later and she’s right. Not to mention there is no difference between all three of the villas, and the beachside villas don’t actually have direct access to the beach. We don’t want to spend the whole time in the villa anyway, so it doesn’t really matter where it is. The Hilltop Villa’s are MYR1200 a night, including breakfast and airport transfers, which works out to roughly AUD$400 with the current exchange rate. So for 5 nights it will be around the $2000 mark. Could be worse..

Tanjung Sanctuary

On 62 acres, with a private beach and only 32 villas to share that all with, I think we should be able to “get away from it all” there. I’m as confident as I’ll ever be that this resort will tick all of our boxes, but only time will tell. Can’t wait!

Tanjung Sanctuary