Cat Griffin

Hey there Instagram, it’s been a while, what’s new? Quite a bit it seems, reels (I still don’t have), guides and shops with a whole new interface - I guess I’ve a bit of catching up to do. I’ve been very quiet on here, living in a Korea bubble watching what’s happening back at home and just not feeling like posting. But it’s time to get back into it, there’s light at the end of the tunnel and hopefully 2021 is going to be a lot brighter! I’ve done quite a bit of local exploring this autumn, here is #bulguksa temple which is just down the road from me. It’s one of Koreas most famous temples, which is why it was utterly packed with everyone trying to get the final shots of the autumn leaves. How are you all doing? What have I missed in your lives? #visitkorea #imagineyourkorea #explorekorea #discoverkorea #koreatravel #koreatour #travelkorea #wheninkorea #ilovekorea #corea #lovekorea #koreabyme #ig_korea #koreanlandscape #gyeongju #경주

Damn, being the other side of the world is hard! Growing up I spent far more time with my grandma than grandad, she loved walking and would take (drag?) me out for walks with her and Cindy the dog. Over Christmas as a teenager I would help out in the shop she worked at. Grandad was always much quieter, always to be found with a pipe in his hand, loving his fishing and a quiet pint but also very involved in the communities he was part of (I remember boasting to every one at the clubs Christmas parties that he was my grandad). They love each other deeply and today they will embark on their final journey together as they are laid to rest in a joint ceremony. Having been apart for months (COVID) they will now be together for eternity. Oh, and I loved that my grandad wore trainers to my wedding and my grandma hoarded the Ferrero Rocher, it’s so what I would have done! (Well, I kind of did, hidden under my dress are purple crocs and I paid for the Cadbury’s creme eggs, I was definitely having some 😂)

Does anyone know why this island is famous? Have a Martini, shaken not stirred, while you ponder it 🍸 I’m currently watching the Presidential debate and avoiding throwing things at the TV by organising some photos. Apparently I feel the need to take at least 4 identical photos of everything I see when I travel, I’m such a weirdo! Most of these then sit in virtual storage never to see the light of day again so I’m trying to work on that. Do you take a zillion photos or are you happy with a select few? So back to the Presidential debate, I’m a Brit so have no say in this one but please if you are American register to vote and vote wisely. The rest of the world is begging you (hint, voting for Trump isn’t wise). Not that I’m particularly happy with the UK government either, between their handling of BREXIT and COVID I’m not so sure I will have a country left to return to. . . . . . . . #phuketthailand #phuketisland #travelthailand #amazingthailand #thailand_allshots #thailandinstagram #thailandtravel #thailandtrip #explorethailand #lostinthailand #phandnga #ilovethailand #igthai #instathailand #igthailand #jamesbondisland #travelwithme #travelpictures #wanderlusters #worldofwanderlust #travelmemories #traveltogether #travelinstagram #instatravelgram #globalcapture #welivetoexplore #sharetravelpics #wanderlusting

So my winter plans of going to Dubai for the Expo have now been replaced with shivering in a Korean winter. So until the world becomes safe again I will be staying put and living my travels through photos. We headed here for drinks on our final night in Dubai, TripAdvisor had failed me but a friend suggested we head to the Souk Medinat for shots of the #burjalarab and we weren’t disappointed by the views. It’s definitely not a budget spot (thank you happy hours!) and a complete tourist trap but nice to wander around. While you can take an Abra (traditional boat)trip on the fake canals save your Dirham and enjoy an authentic Abra trip over in the Old Town instead. Any Dubai recommendations? I can start planning for 2022 instead. . . . . . . #visitdubai #dubaï #dubaitravel #dubaitourism #dubaitrip #dubaitour #exploredubai #visituae

I’m not even sure where this is, but I want to be there. I wonder if I could get away with it? “Teacher, are you at the beach?”, - nah, that’s just a zoom background. “But what’s that noise teacher? It sounds like the ocean” - Erm, that’s just the dog snoring again (this they have definitely heard in class before). The next problem might be finding this spot again, it’s somewhere between Cusco and Lima and I remember there being some Inca Ruins close by, so yeah, not too helpful! I don’t suppose anyone has invented teleportation yet either have they? I’m also not too keen on all those hours on a plane right now. Oh well, I guess it looks like I’m stuck here in my office (more commonly known as the spare bedroom) for a bit longer yet. How about you, are you traveling anywhere or are you “stuck” somewhere right now? . . . . . . #perutravel #visitperu #instaperu #adventurelover #wanderlustribe #travelingaroundtheworld #iwannagoback #themoderndayexplorer #adventureon #travelideas #wandertheworld #travelandexplore #takemetothebeach #traveldreamseekers #letstravel #igtraveller #tripgram #adventuregram #adventuremore #instatravelgram #exploringtheworld #wannagoback

If anyone is heading to Sweden this year then definitely check out these mountain bike adventures my friend Fin runs (and tell him I say hi!). @mountainbikinginhalmstad offer family friendly mountain bike adventures set in the beautiful Halmstad region. They offer lessons and tours and if you are just traveling through don’t worry they have you covered with rentals too. There’s over a 100 kilometres of secluded single track riding ranging from coastal routes to the forest, although I’m assured you don’t have to cover it all! It looks awesome! Anyone fancy an adventure? . . . . . . . #halmstad #halmstadcity #swedenimages #sweden_by_us #swedenshots #igsweden #loves_sweden #discoversweden #swedennature #mountainbikes #biketravel #bikeriding #gotravel #roamearth #travelexperience #adventuregram #tripgram #exploresweden #adventuremore #travelideas #travelandexplore #lifeoutdoors #wanderlustlife #chasingtheworld #worldofwanderlust #glt #adventuregirl

I may be a little bit biased being a Yorkshire lass but trust me when I tell you that York should be included in any trip to the UK. It kind of has everything. Viking ruins ✅ A castle ✅ Medieval buildings✅ Chocolate ✅ Ghosts (lots of them) ✅ Harry Potter filming locations ✅ National railway museum ✅ A stunning cathedral ✅ Lots of pubs✅ River cruising ✅ And more... Make sure to take full advantage of the York Pass which includes entry to pretty much all of York’s attractions, plus quite a bit of the local area. Pictured here is Clifford’s Tower, or the Keep of the original castle structure has seen its fair share of drama, war and rebellion over the years. Now it has a much more peaceful life offering tourists spectacular views over the city and along with the castle museum nearby is one of the many spots included in the York Pass. [Gifted] . . . . . . . #yorkpass #onlyinyork #visityork #visityorkshire #uk_greatshots #englandtrip #uk_shots #scenicbritain #explore_britain #explorebritain #bestukpics #visituk #visitbritain #instabritain #uk_shooters #englandtourism #visitengland🇬🇧 #capturingbritain #ukscenery #britishcountryside #yorkshiredales #beautifulbritain #northofengland #welcometoyorkshire #bbcyorkshire #igersyorkshire

Because I can’t travel right now I’ve given the Doctor a call and asked to borrow his Tardis for a touch of Time Travel. Where would you travel back to if you could? You all voted in my stories for my first trip back to be Cologne so here we are outside the cathedral. Work on this Gothic cathedral began back in 1248 but history happened and it wasn’t until the 1840s that it was completed. It suffered significant damage during WW2 but remained standing and was repaired to its current glory today. While the outside of the Cathedral is impressive the inside is stunning, I’m sharing some pictures and videos in my stories today so go check those out. I’m going to share more of Cologne this week but where should I share next? Let me know in the comments . . . . . . #colognecathedral #colognegermany #colognecity #colognegraphy #cologne_bestplace #colognegraphy #koln #kölncity #kölnbloggt #kölnstagram #köln🇩🇪 #kölnblogger #visitcologne #visitgermany #visitgermanyofficial #germanytravel #germanytourism #germanytrip #germany_fotos #germany_greatshots #germany_insta #travelgermany #exploregermany

Abu Dhabi, Dubai’s little sister and an often forgotten spot in the Emirates. We took advantage of a free stopover option last time we flew home and had a blast. Traveling out of season meant there were some great deals on for brunches and dinners at the hotels (check Groupon if you ever go, I love getting a bargain!) we had the perfect mix between pools and beaches and enjoying the local sights and culture. We will definitely be using it as a stopover destination again when the world opens up. Are you a beach/pool lover or do you prefer to get out and about? Ben loves to stay at the beach, I have the attention span of a two year old and I want to be out exploring and experiencing new things. Can you guess who usually wins? #abudhabi #abudhabilife #abudhabiinstagram #abudhabicity #abudhabiblogger #inabudhabi #abudhabiphotographer #abudhabibest #abudhabibloggers #visitabudhabi #abudhabitourism #visituae #uaetravel #exploreuae

Three years ago I was cruising around Halong Bay, just me, a boat full of people and hundreds of other boats for company. Don’t get me wrong, I loved every minute of it but the experience was slightly dampened by the over tourism, and the rain! Things are very different now as nature takes this chance to heal itself I hope the people who have lost their income through the end of tourism can also recover. A lot of people are saying travel and tourism will never really return. Personally I think it will, from the beginning of time humans have felt compelled to explore beyond the known. #travelvietnam #vietnamtravels #discovervietnam #explorevietnam #vietnamtrip #vietnamcharm #visitvietnam #ilovevietnam #igvietnam #halongbay #halongbaycruise #catba #instavietnam #halongbayvietnam #halong #halongbay

I’m pleased to see the Roman Baths (in Bath of course!) are open again. Visiting here was one of the highlights of my UK trip this past winter. . The pump room remains closed but you can easily spend an hour or more admiring the Roman baths and experiencing the displays around the museum accompanied by audio guides. I was really impressed when I visited with the hologram displays bringing the different parts of the baths to life and giving you an insight to Roman life in the city. . Like most tourist spots around the UK currently pre-booking is required, numbers are limited and social distancing precautions are being taken. People are strongly encouraged to wear masks throughout their visit. . . . . . . . #visitbath #visitbathuk #bathuk #igersbath #cityofbath #bathcity #worldheritage #unescoworldheritage #unescoworldheritagesite #worldheritagesite #visitbritain #beautifulbritain #visitengland #visitengland🇬🇧 #ukpotd

Edinburgh is the perfect spot for a Harry Potter and history nerd like me. From exploring the castle and Rerormation-era buildings of the Royal Mile today to going below ground and seeing the cities medieval routes my history inner geek was happy. . Moving on I got to totally geek out at the graveyard spotting Harry Potter characters on the graves followed by a hot chocolate at the Elephant House Cafe where JK Rowling spent time writing her books. Wondering around the city you can clearly see where her inspiration for many of the settings in Harry Potter came from. . Any fellow Harry Potter needs out there? I’m currently doing the Harry Potter quizzes with @thevirtualpubquiz on YouTube, check them out! . . . . . . #royalmile #visitedinburgh #edinburghscotland #edinburghcity #ig_edinburgh #edinburghsnapshots #lovesedinburgh #exploreedinburgh #historicalscotland #discoverscotland #ilovescotland #scotlandtrip #scotlandtravel #scotlandphotography #scotlandexplore #scotlandlover #travelscotland #harrypotterworld #harrypotterfacts #harrypotterbooks

Are you planning to explore locally this summer? . Long before the rest of the world went into lockdown Korea was at its peak of this horrible pandemic. I knew back in February any form of international travel would be highly unlikely this year and certainly not in my summer vacation. I had just begun to make plans to travel to Sri Lanka and probably back to Cambodia and Laos but they are now postponed until hopefully next year. . What this pandemic has forced us all to do is appreciate what is local to us more than ever. Stalking my local Facebook group in the UK I have seen so many beautiful spots that I never knew existed on my doorstep. Here in Korea I have lots of plans to explore more and the bonus is the dogs can come too. . If you’ve been following my stories over the last few days you will have seen I’ve been on Namhae island here in Korea which turned out to be far more beautiful and have so much more to see than I expected. I’m now excited by what else I will find this summer. . . . : . . #visitkorea #koreatravel #explorekorea #namhae #남해 #남해여행 #ilovekorea #islandlife🌴 #islandtime #islandhopping #traveldestination #travelcaptures #shetravels #traveltheworldwithme #passionfortravel #mytravelpics #travelaround #traveldestinations_ig #traveldestinations #discoverkorea #koreatravel #koreatour #travelkorea #wheninkorea #ilovekorea #corea #lovekorea #koreabyme #ig_korea #koreanlandscape

If you’ve been following my stories you will know that Ben, the dogs and I are currently having a few days away on an Island here in South Korea. We bought our first car in January, which turned out to be perfect timing given how the world has flipped itself upside down since, and now we are taking our first proper road trip. Aside from wearing masks in crowded places and hand sanitizer being everywhere life is pretty much back to normal here. I don’t for a second take for granted how lucky we have been and how most of the world is suffering so much more than we have throughout this pandemic. . I haven’t posted on my feed in well over a month. I’ve started many posts but it hasn’t felt right with everything happening right now. I’ve also been insanely busy, teaching online takes so much more prep than classroom teaching. Alongside this I’ve been working on some personal goals and I’m in the process of setting up my own business which is all exciting but exhausting! . After a really great few days I felt it was time to start sharing again. This photo is Daraengi village on Namhae, an area of rice fields located on the coast. A beautiful spot to explore but hot work walking back up the hills in the midday sun. . . . . . . #남해 #남해여행 #다랭이마을 #visitkorea #imagineyourkorea #explorekorea #discoverkorea #koreatravel #koreatour #travelkorea #wheninkorea #ilovekorea #corea #lovekorea #koreabyme #ig_korea #koreanlandscape

This time last year (according to Google photos) I was at Samgwamgsa temple exploring in awe the thousands of lanterns on display as part of the lantern festival. While photos really can’t do the amount of lanterns here (and just how pretty they all look) justice I hope this gives you a taste. . Hoping next year to be able to go back, for now avoiding crowds gathering is the priority. I hope you are all staying safe. . . . . . . #visitkorea #koreatrip #imagineyourkorea #explorekorea #discoverkorea #koreatravel #koreatour #travelkorea #wheninkorea #ilovekorea #corea #lovekorea #koreabyme #ig_korea #koreanlandscape #부산 #busan🇰🇷 #busantravel #visitbusan #busankorea #lanternfestival