Hi, I am Laurian, an avid traveler and animal lover looking for the next adventure to take. I have visited over 40 countries however there are so many more to see.

I went on my first international trip when I was 18, with my family, and that is when the travel bug bit, and I couldn't get enough.

After about 5 years backpacking around the world and working to fund my next trip, I came home and tried to settle back into a "normal" life.

I got married to Colin, moved to a farm, and had two sons. 

My bucket list is very long still, so while we are young enough, we are in our mid 50's now, we wish to keep exploring.

The Countries I Have Visited:

When I was 18 and traveling with my mother and brother - we started in Europe in Luxembourg, traveling to Brussels, Amsterdam, Cologne, along Rhine, Heidelberg, Lucerne, Rigi Mountain, Liechtenstein, Innsbruck, Verona, Venice, Rome, Florence, Pisa, Nice, Grasse, St Paul-de-Vence, Monaco, Cannes, Avignon, Lyon, and Paris.

Then across the channel to London, onto Stonehenge, Dartmoor, Looe, Lostwithiel, Penzance, Lands End, St Ives, Tintagel, Clovelly, Castle Combe, Gloucester, Stratford-upon-Avon, Wales - Llangollen, Betsmycoed, Caernarfon, Conway, Chester, Blackpool, the Lake District, Scotland - Peebles, Kelso, Edinburgh, Perth, Inverness, Loch Ness, Fort William, Loch Lomond, the Yorkshire Dales, York, Oxford, Windsor and back to London.

Then when I was 19 I set off on my own - traveling all around the United States.  First off I joined a Trek America camping tour leaving LA, staying at Big Sur, San Francisco, Yosemite, Lake Tahoe, Nevada, Salt Lake City, Wyoming, Yellowstone, South Dakota, Mt Rushmore, Minnesota, Chicago, and Niagra Falls to New York.

I then found work in Rye-New York, as an au pair for a few months. After that I did the Southern States back to LA on another Trek America tour. We visited Washington, New Orleans, Houston, San Antonio, Del Rio, Carlsbad, Tucson, hiked Grand Canyon, Lake Powell, Las Vegas and San Diego before flying to London.

I worked off and on in a London pub and then later on doing admin work in a book company to fund my next trips. All in all 5 years living in London with trips to Paris, Andorra to ski, Greece (Athens, Santorini, Rhodes, Marmaris, Kusadasi, Ephesus, Samos, Mykonos, Piraeus, and Hydra), and Israel (Jerusalem, Dead Sea, Jordan Valley, Sea of Galilee, Capernaum, Mount Carmel, Nazareth, and Tel Aviv).

I did another trip with friends to Spain - driving through Bordeaux, Biarritz, Madrid, Nerja, and Segovia.

A trip to South Africa - Durban, Drakensberg Mountains, and Cape Town.

After working again in London I then went to Australia for 3 months traveling from Sydney to Melbourne, Adelaide, Cooper Peedy, Ayers Rock, Darwin, Townsville, Cape Tribulation, Cairns, Whitsundays, Mackay, Noosa, and Brisbane.

When I was 25 my cousin Heather and I did a round-the-world backpacking trip, which took over 5 months. We left London to Boston, up to Montreal, Halifax, Quebec, Hamilton, and Niagara Falls, and from Toronto, we caught the train across to Vancouver. Seattle to New Zealand.

After driving all around both islands - Auckland, Waipona Kaurii Forest, Pahia, Whangerei, Coromandel, Waihi, Hamilton, Cambridge, Rotarua, Waitomo Caves, Wellington, Taupo Lake, Picton, Kaikoura, Christchurch, Mt Cook, Harriot, Queenstown, Lake Moeraki, Punakaiki, Nelson, and Napier.

Then flew across to Australia - starting at Sydney, Melbourne, Noosa, Rockhampton, Great Keppel Island, Airlie, Whitsunday Islands, Townsville, Dunk Island, Cairns, Norman Reef, Ayers Rock, and Perth. Then I headed off on my own around Asia (Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, Ko Mook, Krabi, Ko Phangan, and Bangkok, before going back to London.

We did lots of local trips while the boys were growing up and then a few international trips later on. We took the boys all around Italy in a motorhome visiting Colin's family that the boys had never met before. We also took them on a cruise around the Mediterranean and a driving trip around Europe. 

Our last international trip was a ski trip to Chamonix, in France.

Now the boys are grown up, finished studying, and have lives of their own. It is our time to travel on our own now.

LIFE NOW

We live on a very remote farm which is beautiful, but I want to spend a decent amount of time off, travelling now.

Ideally, I would love to spend a fair bit of the year living the laptop lifestyle, working remotely, while exploring new corners of the globe.

I do not want to have any regrets later on in life, and travel is such a wonderful thing to do.

My biggest concern is leaving our 3 cats for a long period. I have always been animal crazy and the most amazing trips I've had have involved animals. I also want to inspire you to have an animal encounter while you travel.

I understand how daunting it is to plan that trip to far-flung lands but imagine the thrill of seeing a new country, meeting new people, languages, and experiencing new food. Or connecting on a deep soul level with animals, in their natural habitat, it is such an adventure.

So I'm pushing you to take the plunge - see the world and grow.