2024 – a year in review

Wow, this year has been a wild ride, hasn’t it? From amazing highs to some pretty tough lows, I can’t believe how much I’ve packed into each day. If there’s one big takeaway from 2024, it’s life is too precious to leave on the shelf for a later date. Why put off visiting that dream destination or trying a fun new activity when the present moment is full of possibilities? None of us knows how much time we have, so let’s make the most of what we’ve got!

I’m all about living in the present and having as much fun as possible, and I’m super excited to make 2025 my most adventurous year yet! I can’t wait to see what new experiences and adventures await. Here’s to living life to the fullest!

2024 travel round-up:

Countries – The Netherlands, UK, Poland, Slovakia, Singapore, Hong Kong

New countries visited: The Netherlands, Hong Kong (for my photographer)

Flights – 12

Trains – 0 (I’m not counting Singapore or Hong King’s MRT)

Boats – 5

Miles travelled –26,289 or 1.05 times around the world!

11% of the world visited.

38/500 of Lonely Planet’s ultimate places to visit ticked off.

January

As always, January is my month off. A time in which I do nothing but lie on the couch and plan my travel for the year. It’s the best way to sleep off those extra Christmas calories.

I’m thrilled to announce I won my first travel writing award. It feels surreal to say this. Thank you so much to everyone who nominated and voted. It truly means the world to share my adventures with those who cannot travel and to inspire others who wish to explore new places.

February

Spending a weekend at the beach in Scarborough in the middle of winter might seem crazy (I know, I think it is). Most people prefer to visit the beach during the summer, but my photographer is an exception. However, I didn’t mind this time because we spotted whales, seals, and dolphins from our apartment window.

March

I visited the Netherlands with the noble aim of exploring the tulip fields (and maybe tasting one or two—don’t tell the humans!). During my trip, I discovered stroopwafels and made friends with Miffy. Spending a day in Lisse was a beautiful way to welcome Spring in Europe. My photographer spent a week trying to avoid being run over by bicycles. We visited some wonderful museums and took the time to slow down for a few days. I also had the pleasure of flying with KLM, which is an excellent airline, mainly because of its blue colour.

The blog posts from this trip are still pending, as a certain photographer hasn’t managed to sort out the photos yet.

April

I went to Harrogate, to see the famous flower show. This year is turning into a floral-themed year. This time it was to eat the Dahlias that were bigger than me. Harrogate is one of my favourite towns in the UK, it’s so beautiful and I always feel so relaxed after visiting.

May

I returned to Krakow, and then traveled down to the Tatras Mountains via Slovakia. I will always love Poland, one of the friendliest and most understated countries in the world. Every time I visit, I realise there is always something incredible waiting to be found. I met up with some wonderful friends and had a very relaxing trip.

Of course, back in the UK, I headed into the woods to see the bluebells, but I mistimed it and instead witnessed the forest being carpeted in white garlic flowers. My wellies still smell strong enough to repel vampires!

June

Hello Singapore!

We made the move! Southeast Asia wasn’t prepared for my arrival. Coincidentally, it happened to be National Dinosaur Day and my birthday (turning 7 doesn’t mean you get 7 birthday cakes, unfortunately). It was the most stressful and exhilarating move of my life, as I spent six weeks living in a hotel.

Ultimately, it was the best decision we could have made. I do have to share my apartment with two lizards and a very mischievous gecko, but I get to watch the sunrise every morning, and I never tire of that beautiful view.

July

My photographer’s workplace (not team veganosaurus) gifted us free tickets to Gardens by the Bay whilst the Monet exhibition was happening. Guess who ate more flowers (I think it might be time to admit I have a problem). I loved the interactive art displays and the way flowers were used to bring his art to life.

My favourite moment was escaping into the lesser known areas of the country. Hiking in Singapore was incredible, I didn’t realise the middle of the city was one of the best places to be surrounded by nature (or eaten by it, if you are a human).

August

It rained on National Day for the first time in 58 years, and I blame my photographer for that! Fortunately, the weather cleared up just in time for the fireworks display. I can’t wait to see the New Year’s Eve display, especially since this was considered a smaller event.

Most of the month was spent getting lost in MRT stations. I wish I could say that I know my way around Orchard and Outram MRT stations, but that would be a lie.

The summer heat was a shock to the system and I learned the hard way with a trip to the beach where I nearly became a roast dinosaur.

September

During the Singapore Mid-Autumn Festival, I was amazed by the impressive and large lanterns. This celebration coincided with the reopening of the Chinese Gardens at Jurong, which is one of my top five places to visit in Singapore.

If you pick one month of the year to visit Singapore, I would recommend September as the Mid-Autumn Festival is like nothing I have ever seen in Europe.

October

Hello Hong Kong! I had forgotten just how much I love this city. It was a beautiful adventure exploring some of the islands and experiencing Hong Kong again for the first time, especially since my last visit was without my photographer. Unfortunately, we couldn’t do as much as I had planned as I was travelling with an injured human, but that just gave me an excuse to return to Hong Kong in the future. Hopefully, next time I will finally make it to Macao.

During my visit, I rode on Ding Ding, indulged in plenty of Dim Sum, and wandered through the alleyways of Kowloon. However, my favourite moment was watching the sunset and city lights come to life from the top of Sky100.

Back in Singapore, I was transported to the World of Studio Ghibli, an exhibit I cannot recommend enough. The entire exhibit was incredibly well planned and flowed beautifully through each film. However, I was disappointed that the world of Arrietty wasn’t included. We also sneaked into the TeamLab installation at the ArtScience Museum, and I thoroughly enjoyed becoming a part of the immersive installations. A trip to Japan is being added to my 2025 wishlist so I can visit the Ghibli Museum and also TeamLab in Tokyo.

Unfortunately, my photographer experienced a breakdown and suffered an injury, so I spent the rest of the month taking on the role of a support dinosaur. I’m hoping this extra work earns me a well-deserved holiday!

To help counteract the breakdown, we focused on small adventures close to home. Sometimes, simply leaving the house for a walk around the block can feel like a significant achievement. We began with a day trip to the Singapore Zoo and River Wonders, which turned out to be a lovely surprise, especially since we received free tickets from my photographer’s workplace (not from team Veganosaurus).

The month wrapped up with a visit to Little India to experience the beautiful Diwali lights, which was both memorable and a little anxiety-inducing for travel.

November

Our November was incredibly stressful as we were called back to the UK. I had to say goodbye to the sunshine and hello to the snow. We celebrated Christmas seven weeks early and barely had time to unpack our suitcases before heading out on a small road trip. Though I did make sure I had enough time to finally try out my new sledge.

While my photographer attended a conference in Harrogate, I visited Betty’s for tea and cake and strolled through the Christmas markets.

December

We landed back in Singapore just in time to see all the holiday decorations. My jet lag felt as confused as I was about the sudden change in seasons and time zones.

We spent our first Christmas alone, so we decided to embark on an adventure to Hogwarts. Then, we celebrated New Year’s Eve by watching the most incredible fireworks display ever. My final act of 2024 was grabbing my backpack and heading to the airport for a brand new adventure in a new country—my 20th!

Finally, I want to thank all my followers, friends, fellow adventursaurus’, hotels, travel companies, and tour agencies for joining the fun and providing unwavering support. 2024 was an amazing year, especially with the bonus of crossing off a few items from my bucket list. I can’t wait to see what 2025 has in store!!