Today I was supposed to be returning from a two week holiday in Japan. Of course, like thousands of other people's 2020 travel plans, ours were scuppered by COVID.

Since her late teens, Mum has dreamed of visiting Japan, but for various reasons, never got there. In May, she celebrated a big birthday and the holiday was a special birthday present from family and friends. Four of us were going: Mum, my brother, sister-in-law and me. We found a fantastic deal during the British Airways Christmas sale, and on 27 December booked her holiday of a lifetime.

Up until late July, we hoped it might still happen, but as the pandemic worsens again, it became clear we were waiting for the cancellation notification. The current UK Foreign Office travel advice being 'against all but essential international travel'.

In a way, I'm glad it was cancelled, as the travel and holiday experience would not have been what Mum had yearned for all those years. Wearing a face mask for an hour or two, is all well and good, but for an eleven hour flight would have been awful. So, we will wait until the situation improves and we can enjoy the Japanese adventure at its best.

So, as travel is suspended, I'll enjoy reminiscing past trips.

The first post I wrote on my TinkyTooky Facebook page was about my love of travel: "One of my great enjoyments in life is visiting different places. I've been very lucky to have visited many wonderful countries and cities over the years, met fabulous people & tasted new foods. Being a little old fashioned, I print all my photos and put them in albums. There's nothing better than losing hours flicking through the albums and instantly being back on the beach, walking down 42nd Street or climbing Chichen Itza. The world is an amazing place. Go see it."

When I was ten or eleven, I was taught about three places and historical cultures that, even as a child, enthralled me: the ancient Egyptians, the Mayans of Chichen Itza, and the Galapagos Islands. Without me realising, it was the first indication that travel would become one of my life incentives.

My appetite for travel comes from my Mum, who started travelling at aged 17. I appreciate learning about different cultures, tasting new foods and meeting people. My Dad, on the other hand, is a real home bird who finds it difficult to leave our beautiful island, Jersey.

Strangely, this time last year, Dad and I were visiting Vancouver Island, following a five day city stay in Vancouver. It was another family and friend present for Dad's special birthday. Victoria, B.C. is the prettiest and chillest city I've ever visited, with some of the friendliest Canadians, and that's saying something, as all Canadians are naturally sociable and welcoming. The Fisherman's Wharf was only a five minute walk from our hotel. It's a hive of activity, with tourists and locals meandering around the pontoons surrounded by brightly coloured floating shops, restaurants and homes.

I enjoy visiting cities as they're such a different environment to how I live. I don't go for shopping, (although can't deny that a few extra items do end up in my luggage), I enjoy wandering around city streets looking at the architecture and skyscrapers and experiencing the buzz of city life. Cities always have great entertainment options too, my favourite choices being either a concert or theatre visit, especially musical theatre.

Having friends who live about 40 minutes north-east of Toronto, it's hard not to take advantage of relatively cheap airfares offered by Air Transat and 'pop' over to visit them. My last trip was in May 2019, when I spent a few days in the city itself where the iconic CN Tower dominates the skyline. In 2012, my youngest daughter and I decided to do the CN Tower Edge Walk. I've never been afraid of heights, in fact, the higher, the better. It turns out nor is Shannon, so I bought the experience for her 16th birthday present. Some mothers buy clothes and makeup; I hang my daughter off a 5ft wide metal platform 356m/1168ft (116 storeys) above the ground! Even though it was July, the wind was blowing and it was cool. Every loose item had to be removed, including hair grips and jewellery, and glasses had to be attached with a strap. Anything falling from that height could seriously hurt someone on the ground. It was a fabulous experience, and after 45 minutes walking 360° back to the entrance/exit, I could easily have sat with my legs dangling over the edge, eating my lunch.

From left to right: Kevin & Susi’s daughter, Bailey, who was only 15, Shannon and me.

Kevin and Susi often book a show during my stay and thanks to them, I've seen Muse, Green Day and Biffy Clyro perform at the Air Canada Centre; the Toronto Football Club (TFC) play Liverpool at the BMO Field; as well as performances of The Wizard of Oz and the emotional roller-coaster that is 'Come From Away'.

The surrounding area of Toronto has so much to see and having been at different times of the year, I have to say the most beautiful is The Fall. Nature's Autumnal colours of reds, yellows and burnt orange are all around. During a visit with Kelly, one sunny September day, we drove 200 km north from Toronto to Lake Muskoka, where we took a steamboat cruise around the southern end of the lake. There are many little islands in the lake itself, some with houses and a boat jetty alongside. We even saw a seaplane coming into land and dock by one of the larger islands.

Canada is such a vast country and one day I would love to take the 4500 km Trans-Canada rail journey from Toronto, Ontario to Victoria BC, but it's pricey!

With my girls being young adults and perfectly capable of looking after themselves, I travelled more between 2016 -2020 than I had the previous ten years. I skied in the French Alps, roamed around Rome and supped Cuba Libre cocktails in Havana. Yet, there are two stand out vacations, one being the trip of a lifetime.

To celebrate my Big 50 and thanks to family and friends' contributions (spot the theme), Susi and I felt a trip to the Big Apple was appropriate. She took the one hour flight from Toronto, and I took the 8 hour flight from London. I suspect you think I got the short straw, but to my absolute amazement, I was given a complimentary upgrade to Business Class! I'd heard about this type of thing happening to people but never expected to experience it myself. Remarkably it has happened since too - I knew there was a good reason why I often fly British Airways!

New York, New York, certainly is a wonderful town. It was everything I imagined it would be: yellow cabs everywhere; skyscrapers; bright lights.

We went just after Thanksgiving when the whole city was decorated for Christmas. We crammed in as many of the sights that we could from the beautiful Empire State Building and Central Park to the sombre Ground Zero memorial. We watched the Broadway performance of 'Kinky Boots', which was great fun and after walked through Times Square. Wow! The lights are so bright that 11 pm seems like 11 am. It sounds strange, but a must-see is Grand Central Station. Not just from the outside - go in and walk around. There's a shopping arcade, a food hall, the world-famous Oyster Bar and entrance gates to almost 120 tracks.

Iconic. Tip - we went up about 6pm and there were no queues.

Shopping was always going to be a big part of the holiday, especially so close to Christmas, and the shop decorations were spectacular. Macy's on 34th Street is a whole block and ten floors high. We managed to spend 6 hours in there and came out with plenty of bargains because the Black Friday sales were on.

What surprised me was the noise. When you watch TV shows of NY they must mute the sound - I've never experienced constant noise like it, mainly from car horns. I now understand the reason people go back time and time again. There's a unique energy about the city, and I hope it's not too long before I can revisit it.

Then two years ago, I got to experience the trip of a lifetime. Four weeks visiting friends in Brisbane, Eastern Australia and Auckland, New Zealand. I've come to realise that although it's sad when friends emigrate, there is a plus side! They took me to so many stunning places, yet I only saw a speck of these two beautiful countries, and they deserve a post all to themselves.

Living my best life - Emirates A380 Business Class bar

Yet another iconic building - Sydney Opera House at sunset with the shadow of the Harbour Bridge. One of my more arty photots!

Waitakere National Park, Auckland, New Zealand

I wonder what ten year old me would think if she knew all the wonderful places she would see in the ensuing 40 years? I am yet to visit the Great Pyramids of Egypt or see the salt-water iguanas of the Galapagos. Still, I'm happy to wait for those experiences as and when they come along - the freedom of travel is something to be cherished, and as recent months have proved, not to be taken for granted.

Wanderlust - it’s in my blood

Hello, Mo!

Bonjour, La Belle France