• Chris Winfield-Blum
  • Jaxon WB
  • Ericka Dela paz
  • Chris Winfield-Blum
  • Jaxon WB
  • Ericka Dela paz

Family in Europe 2023

A 114-day adventure by Chris, Jaxon & Ericka Read more
  • Milan! :)

    September 22, 2023 in Italy ⋅ 🌧 22 °C

    Milan was another city that I missed on my last Italian trip so was excited it was on the itinerary for this one. We only spent a couple of nights but I enjoyed the energy of the city and definitely want to visit again in the future and spend more time.

    The trip is starting to feel like it's rushing to the end at this point; we're only here in Italy for a few more days 😭
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  • St Moritz

    September 23, 2023 in Switzerland ⋅ ☁️ 3 °C

    I don't know that I've ever seen such a pretty scene or expensive little town haha we caught a bus up through the Swiss Alps and were very excited to arrive in St Moritz.

    Looking forward to the train trip back to Milan though!Read more

  • Wowwww I am speechless

    September 23, 2023 in Switzerland ⋅ ☁️ 10 °C

    The Bernina Express left us all speechless. We were lucky that it had snowed 2 days earlier so we managed to capture the alps with their snow caps.

    We were left wanting more of Switzerland though; another location on our list to explore more in the future!Read more

  • Day trip around Milan

    September 24, 2023 in Italy ⋅ ☀️ 23 °C

    It is our last day in Milan and we are taking the opportunity to explore the city, duomo, and the famous cemetery.

    There were sculptures in the cemetery that would not have looked out of place in Victoria Square. The craftsmanship and beauty are such a contrast to the morbid nature of a cemetery.Read more

  • A night in Venice

    September 25, 2023 in Italy ⋅ ☀️ 24 °C

    Unfortunately, we only have time for one trip into Venice on this adventure. We couldn't be so close without exploring though and the beautiful canals and buildings really made Ericka smile!

    Not a bad way to wind up this European adventure though; tomorrow we leave for our visit to the Philippines! We're excited to settle into a routine and spend time with the Filipino family there 😃Read more

  • One night in Malaysia

    September 27, 2023 in Malaysia ⋅ ⛅ 30 °C

    There's something about Malaysia that will always resonate with my heart. I have a lot of history here; it was the first country I visited outside of Australia and I lived and made many friends there when I was younger. Maybe more than all of that; I miss the food! haha

    We just stayed near the airport this time as we need to be back at the airport around lunch time but it still feels nice to be back!
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  • Family time in Lipa

    October 2, 2023 on the Philippines ⋅ ☁️ 29 °C

    We arrived safe and sound in the Philippines and I made some rookie mistakes on this trip!

    1. I booked a hotel connected to Terminal 3 thinking we could just walk using the connecting bridge BUT since booking all of this Philippines airlines swapped from T3 to T1 - meaning we couldn't walk. That left us fighting with taxi drivers who wanted to scam us and waiting for a Grab driver to accept our request. After nearly 2hrs we made it to the hotel

    2. I cancelled my alarm and slept in; we were only woken up by the hotel staff calling to ask us to leave haha

    3. We trusted that we could arrange transport on the day without realizing that Grab no longer operates outside of Manila. That left us with a very expensive option of paying for a Grab and then negotiating to pay them in cash to take us all the way to Lipa.

    4. I booked a nice house but didn't realise how far out of town it was. The host was also very unwilling to compromise on house rules so it did leave us feeling a little isolated.

    In saying all of that; it was great seeing Jaxon spending time with his aunties and cousins!
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  • BGC we meet again!

    October 7, 2023 on the Philippines ⋅ 🌙 28 °C

    We have now moved from Lipa to BGC and I feel like I'm back to civilization! I can walk around and explore the city without worrying about trikes and we can push Jaxon around in the stroller too!

  • Awesome Motive meetup

    October 8, 2023 on the Philippines

    Today I met up with the Thrive Themes / Awesome Motive team at St Louis for a coffee and some churros.

    Was great to meet the team to spend some time with them and also to gift them some AM kit that I had arranged for them.Read more

  • It's beautiful to watch

    October 15, 2023 on the Philippines

    These connections he has made despite not seeing his Filipino family members for two years is heart warming. It makes us all happy to witness and you can just feel the love that every freely offers him 🥰Read more

  • Our final step home

    October 17, 2023 in Malaysia ⋅ ☁️ 28 °C

    We get to spend another night in KL but this time we stayed in the city. Took Ericka to explore Bukit Bintang and KLCC. Of course we must take the typical tourist photo 😃

  • We’re home

    October 19, 2023 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 17 °C

    After 114 days, 12 countries, countless friends made or met, amazing moments with family, and a lifetime of memories for us all, we are home.

    We all have mixed feelings about our return but we are grateful for the opportunity we've had to take this trip and are happy to be home and able to settle back into a routine.Read more

    Trip end
    October 20, 2023