I don’t think I need to explain why I didn’t publish a single new post on the blog last year. We all know why. With the complete collapse of the multi-billion dollar travel industry, it’s not surprising my little blog didn’t survive. A global pandemic is not good for travel.

I will say though, I’m really feeling for my travel blogger friends who are struggling right now and all the small travel business owners I’ve befriended over the years. So many welcoming and generous people who have hosted me or showed me around their cities and villages or who have taken us out for a drink or three. Restaurant owners, Airbnb hosts, tour guides, drivers, they are all struggling to make ends meet. Unfortunately, many will never recover.

Personally, I’m very fortunate to have been in Australia during this time. I spent most of 2020 in Perth where we only had a brief lockdown and not a single case of community transmission since April. Hard borders and strict measures were needed and thanks to our state premier (with a bit of luck no doubt), we did ok on the whole. I’m also fortunate that my husband and I have received fairly significant government assistance, so we haven’t had financial worries. I know the same can’t be said for many others.

I don’t want to talk too much about the events of last year which are unfortunately continuing into 2021. I’m really trying to stay positive and keep the blog COVID and politics free. If you want to know my thoughts on those subjects you can follow me on Twitter where I’m a touch more vocal on current issues. But here, I would like to talk about travel.

You can read the full update and my future plans on the post I just published.

But wait, there’s more. I’ve actually published a second post already this year!

Seeing as travel prospects are looking bleak for the foreseeable future, I decided to go back to university last year. The government was subsidising university courses so I took to opportunity to study something completed different but something I’ve always been interested in. I completed a Graduate Certificate of Environment. I wasn’t sure how I’d feel going back to university as a mature age student but actually, I loved it. I’m very proud to say I graduated with a high distinction and did well enough to get accepted for a Master program at the University of Melbourne. That’s why at the end of last year I moved to Melbourne, my new home.

Part of my course involved studying natural hazards and I had the opportunity to write a piece on the Italian cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum. I’ve never been so it was completely research based, a fictional story based on historical events. It was written from the perspective of a journalist watching events unfold from a distance. I don’t want to spoil the story or give away the ending so I’ll let you read it here.

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I will leave you with the cover photo for my Pompeii post which is actually a photo of Rome, not Pompeii. I couldn’t bring myself to use someone else’s photo on my blog so I cheated a little there. Apologies in advance for that.