Little Footprints, Big Adventures

Little Footprints, Big Adventures We are an English family living in the UK who are embarking on worldschooling adventures around the globe with our children.

Italian lunch. I am in heaven!
26/03/2025

Italian lunch. I am in heaven!

Reflections in a moment of solitutde. Spring in Ancient GreeceI’m walking along paths once trodden by the Ancient Greeks...
16/03/2025

Reflections in a moment of solitutde. Spring in Ancient Greece

I’m walking along paths once trodden by the Ancient Greeks—philosophers, priests, healers, and ordinary citizens like you and me. These stones have felt the weight of time, yet they still whisper their stories.

We wander through ruins—limestone columns, broken pediments, amphitheatres, statues. My mind tries to conjure the grandeur of what once stood here. I can almost hear it: the solemn lines of a Greek tragedy echoing across the theatre, the shuffle of gladiators moving through the dark tunnel into the blinding light, the roar of the crowd. I can hear the desperate prayers of the sick and their families, making their offerings in hope to Asclepius, the God of healing and medicine, for a miracle cure.

And now, in 2025, where once there was such life, there are only ruins. Yet they are magical, offering glimpses of the past, hints of a history that still lingers in the stones. And while all the tourists are on the islands or in Athens, we find ourselves alone in the Asclepeion of Epidaurus. So I am more easily transported back 2,300 years ago.

It’s mid-March in Greece. 25 degrees, the sun warm on my skin, a light breeze refreshing the air. I sit in the middle of the Temple of Asclepius, god of medicine and healing. A moment of quiet reflection, taking in the peaceful atmosphere.

The amphitheatre of Epidaurus, the most intact in the ancient world, looms nearby. We've had fun playing with the acoustics which allowed the spectators up high in the back rows to hear the drama unfold.

But here, in my place of solitude sitting on a sun-warmed temple seat, nature has woven itself into these mystical ruins, giving them life and vibrancy.

Swathes of purple and yellow spring flowers push through cracks in ancient stone.
Distant hills, dotted with pines and olive trees, rise up as a glorious backdrop to the spendid theatre.
A hazy blue sky stretches endlessly above.
A lazy gecko basks on a sun-warmed seat beside me.
The sounds of life—birds chirping joyfully, a distant cockerel, the steady drone of a passing bumble bee, all unchanged in the 2,300 years since this place of healing and pilgrimage was built.

Spring in Ancient Greece. Quite wonderful.

Greek food heaven...
14/03/2025

Greek food heaven...

Lorne made it! He drove through eight different countries and arrived in Athens yesterday. An epic journey. Athens conti...
13/03/2025

Lorne made it! He drove through eight different countries and arrived in Athens yesterday. An epic journey.
Athens continues to delight. Every time you turn a corner here it seems there is something to gasp in awe at. Yesterday, we finally made it to the Acropolis - and the Parthenon was a thing to behold. The scale and grandeur of it. Quite a different experience being dwarfed in its shadow than seeing it from the bottom of the hill. Learning about Greek mythology, architectural tricks, Greek theatre, it was good for the brain as well as the eyeballs! Sienna is loving all the references to things she knows from studying the Ancient Greeks at school and reading the Percy Jackson series. She's a big Poseidon and Athena fan!
Francesca is less thrilled by looking at "all the old broken rocks" though she does like my stories when I'm doing our walking tours.
Today, Lorne took the children to see the Museum of Ancient Greek Technology which educated them on how the Greeks were the originators of many modern inventions, like the robot, the alarm clock, the intruder alarm.
I took the opportunity to explore the Ancient Agora, the birthplace of theatre, law courts and democracy ('demos,' meaning 'people'). It was fascinating. The Ancient Greeks were a very clever bunch indeed. It is fascinating to learn about this period. It also helps that the sun is shining and spring flowers are everywhere.

10/03/2025

The changing of the Guard at the Athens Presidential Palace. While I can appreciate the dedication and discipline to do this, it is still definitively one of the funniest things I have ever had to keep a respectful straight face for. I love tradition. I love that people care so much to keep it alive. I understand that these movements have purpose to not shock the body after the sentry has been immobile for so long. I love everything about this. It will remain for me one of the joys of my travelling experiences that I got to enjoy this spectacle. Possibly you just had to be there to get just how funny it was. The glacially slow step. It was compelling. I assume John Cleese was similarly inspired...

Athens is GORGEOUS! We have had a girly day today walking the charming streets around the Acropolis, meandering through ...
10/03/2025

Athens is GORGEOUS! We have had a girly day today walking the charming streets around the Acropolis, meandering through villagey pastel Plaka, gawping at incredible artefacts in the National Archaeological Museum of Athens, learning about the rivalry between sibling gods, Poseidon and Athena (Athena won and ruled the city named for her - girl god power!), gawped admiringly at the stunning site of the Ancient Agora and the simply mind-melting site of the Temple of Hephaestus, with all of Athens spread out below and against a backdrop of undulating mountains and cornflower blue skies. We have also laughed till we cried today. So many good belly laughs. It was a belter of a first day.
Meanwhile, in other travel news, Lorne has passed through the Alps, digested Austria and has now reached Croatia. He's making great time in the motor car.

The adventure continues in Athens!Timely for Sienna who is devouring the Percy Jackson book series! And for Francesca wh...
09/03/2025

The adventure continues in Athens!
Timely for Sienna who is devouring the Percy Jackson book series! And for Francesca who will learn about the Ancient Greeks next year in school.
I flew here with the children yesterday. Joined by Jayne McAneaney this week.
Lorne is savouring some solo time by driving our car here to join us. He's reached Germany. A European road trip is the next cultural and educational chapter of our slow travel vision.
We have no plans beyond Greece so, if you have a beloved place in Italy, Austria, Southern Germany, Northern Spain or France that we should not fail to see as we spend the next three months making our way back to Nottingham, let me know in the comments!

Things I learned from being a nomad in Morocco for a month:1. Morocco has some of the most stunning geography of all the...
02/03/2025

Things I learned from being a nomad in Morocco for a month:

1. Morocco has some of the most stunning geography of all the countries I've been privileged to visit.

2. I personally need only three outfits for the rest of my life. And some nice earrings.

3. Camels are actually really sweet and elegant animals. I did not think that before we arrived.

4. Morocco has a massive litter problem. It is heartbreaking to see it amidst the beauty.

5. I don't need half of the crap I keep at home.

6. That said, I was definitely missing 3 carpets, 1 silver teapot, a bag full of fossils and geodes in my life.

7. My A level French language is not as hopeless as I assumed.

8. The Moroccan Police are shady and difficult and looking to line their pockets.

9. The women in Morocco bear a huge burden of labour. Outside of professional roles, women lead a very hard life. They were to be admired.

10. Moroccan teeth are not a good advert for copious amounts of sugared mint tea.

11. It is not healthy to spend 24/7 with your family in small hotel rooms without gin or wine. It is essential to have these items around you at all times even in a dry Muslim country.

12. For all the array of colourful spices on display in shops, none of it seems to find its way into Moroccan food which is, for the most part, simple and bland.

13. Lorne and I both discovered we now like kittens!

14. Once your feet have been in the dunes in the desert you will have sand between your toes for the rest of your days, even when you're wearing socks that never went to the desert, even when those socks did not go to Morocco!

15. Moroccan oranges 🍊 might just be the best taste of any food in the world that has crossed my tastebuds.

We dreamed it, we talked about it, we did it. That's a wrap for this second leg of our family cultural expedition.Goodby...
02/03/2025

We dreamed it, we talked about it, we did it.

That's a wrap for this second leg of our family cultural expedition.

Goodbye Morocco. It's been a true nomad adventure.

Though I don't feel quite the same regret as when we left Thailand for home, Morocco did provide one of our greatest travel experiences. Definitely in my personal top 3. Playing and sliding about, leaving our family footprints in the magnificent rose gold dunes of the Sahara Desert.

Morocco in a month: Thirteen different accommodations, 3000 kilometres, one Hollywood movie shoot, three camel rides, two abandoned kittens rescued, climbing challenges overcome, mountains, deserts, souks, dunes, canyons, gorges, three (yes, three) carpets and a teapot coming home in our case (I know!). Would we recommend family adventures in Morocco? Hell yes! But venture beyond Marrakech to see its beauty and soul.

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