Bali, rediscovered Much has changed in Bali since my very first visit, back in 1994. Heck, much has changed with me, so this is not much of a surprise.  What hasn’t changed are the smiles. I saw that Finland was recently named the happiest country in the world. I would like to nominate Bali as […] The post Perfect Easter Break in Bali appeared first on Explore with Fran ..read more

Last minute preparations for the visitors to Perth One minute you are buying a new mattress and another wine glass so there is one for everyone. The next minute you are wondering what to do with the extra glass. It all goes by in a blur. An exciting blur. A fun filled blur. But a […] The post How to Spend Two Weeks in Perth appeared first on Explore with Fran ..read more

End of Year Reflections Another year around the sun. Another Xmas. Another time to pause and reflect. The year end, and the marking of another birthday being the perfect circuit breaker to reflect on the year gone, and set my intentions for the year ahead.  It is also a good time to catch up on […] The post Festive Fun on Australia’s East Coast appeared first on Explore with Fran ..read more

A land of contrasts Good day to you all. How have we been keeping since we last spoke? I suppose much of this depends on where in the world you are reading from. Our Southern Hemisphere readers have been warming up nicely as we count down to the festive season. And “oop North”? A lot […] The post We continue to explore Western Australia appeared first on Explore with Fran ..read more

Happy Elephants “Look how her ears flap. This is a sign she is happy”, explained Tan, our guide  “Sun” had every reason to be happy. She had as many bananas as she could eat and piles of bamboo to gnaw on. A far cry from her sad, previous existence as a working elephant, dragging logs […] The post The One Where We Trekked With Elephants appeared first on Explore with Fran ..read more

From brawn to beauty Although you could be forgiven for not realising this. There is a large portion of the WA population that seem to have a predilection for men in tight shorts and vests running in circles, chasing a rugby ball. That the majority of these men look like they have been transported from […] The post There is more to West Australia than Aussie Rules appeared first on Explore with Fran ..read more

Transitions Transitions are difficult. In whatever sphere of life. Adjusting from one way of being, one way of living, to something very different is hard. It is a process. As humans, we usually avoid change. Our brains see it as a threat to the status quo. Our amygdala kicks in. And we resist. Try to […] The post Transitions back into Australian life appeared first on Explore with Fran ..read more

Entering Malaysia by boat This was the second time on the world trip that we had arrived in a new country by boat. The first time being when we disembarked from the Norwegian Epic, after 9 days at sea, in a cold, wet New York City . Today, we were entering Malaysia through immigration at […] The post Moving south and into Malaysia appeared first on Explore with Fran ..read more

The travel day of all travel days As we crawl into bed, shattered, in a small bed and breakfast in downtown Manila, it is easy to forget the day we had to leave Malaysia. Our taxi picked us up just before 9am in Melaka to take us to the rather hectic bus terminal. The 9.30am […] The post Manic Manila and beach bound in Boracay appeared first on Explore with Fran ..read more

Leaving Laos and heading into Thailand Luang Prabang had been great. A wonderful place to close our Laos travel chapter. And it was time to hit the road again. Return to a country we have previously visited, and both love. For the people, and the food. We were headed to Thailand.  Despite several trips to […] The post Thailand, part 1 appeared first on Explore with Fran ..read more