New Zealand, South Island

Me up Franz Josef Glacier

That's us in Kaikoura today, on the East Coast of the South Island. I've just been on a Whale Watching tour, saw about 7 Sperm Whales and loads of Dusky Dolphins and even an Albatross! It was excellent - got lots of photos!

Sperm Whale diving under

We've been quite busy on the South Island seeing all the sights. We went to the Franz Josef Glacier on the West Coast, and got a Hellicopter Ride to the top which was great. Also saw the Fox Glacier, Mt Cook and Lake Mathieson. Then we drove down to Queenstown and spent a little while there, it was a nice little town. We had hoped to drive to Milford Sound but the roads were very icy so we decided it would be safer not to chance it so we went across to Dunedin on the East Coast instead - it was a small town very similar to Edinburgh, with similar street names etc!

Lake Mathieson

We went past Lake Tekapo on the journey up to Kaikoura which was a nice little spot in "MacKenzie Country." Planning to drive up to Picton today and get the ferry across to Wellington and go to see Rotorua, Lake Taupo, and Gisborne. So it's all been quite busy! We've done over 3000km in our Camper, but it seems to be pretty reliable and no problems yet (other than the amount of fuel it uses!)

New Zealand, North Island

That's us in Wellington, in the North Island of New Zealand! Everything is going fine so far, we've got a little camper and we've stayed in it for most of the nights so far. We're heading down to South Island tonight on the ferry and everyone says it is much colder so we will need to see how it goes, might have to check ourselves into a hostel more often!

We went up to the Bay of Islands, looked around Auckland, went to Waitomo Glowworm caves and on to New Plymouth yesterday, where we saw Mt Taranaki.

I've uploaded my photos so far to flickr. Not taken very many as what we have seen so far hasn't been all that impressive. Hoping the South Island will be more scenic and we are planning to go past Rotorua and Lake Taupo on the way back to Auckland [we come back to the North Island on the 31st July] which should be really good.

Must go and put a new parking ticket on the camper!

Sydney

Sydney Opera House from Harbour Bridge

Getting ready to set off now. Leaving tomorrow at 11.30. We walked across the Harbour Bridge on Thursday and got some great photos of the Opera House. Went back at night and got some aswell.

I went out to the Blue Mountains yesterday, it was really nice. The mountains give off a blue haze because they are covered in Eucalyptus Trees and their oils affect the light spectrum making the air appear blue apparently! Did lots of walking around the hills and went on a Cable Car across the valley and a scenic railway (the steepest in the world) down the mountain.

The Three Sisters and the Blue Mountains

Planning to go to Rocks Market today and have a last look around Sydney. I've uploaded lots more photos on flickr.

Southern Queensland

Been a rushed week! Been to a few of the main stops on the east coast:

Brisbane

Seemed like a really nice city. We just arrived when the doctor was arrested for the terrorist thing in Glasgow so that was all over the news! We went to the Castlemaine XXXX Brewery, Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary and Southbank. It was State of Origin weekend, kind of like Six Nations games in Edinburgh so it was very busy. We went to the cinema to see Oceans 13 - was quite good.

Surfers Paradise

Much bigger place than I imagined. It's on the Gold Coast, and the beach stretches all the way down the city. We went up the Q1 Residential Tower (20th Tallest Building in the World!), and relaxed at the beach.

Byron Bay

This is another surfers area - it's the first main stop in New South Wales. We hired Bikes and went a tour around, then today we went a walk upto Cape Byron Lighthouse - the most easterly point in Australia. Its normally a great spot to see Whales and Dolphins but today its been very windy so didn't spot any, lots of surfers out about though!

Getting the overnight bus to Sydney tonight, that's going to be a 14 hour trip. Staying there until Sunday when we head off to New Zealand. We've hired a camper for 3 weeks, its going to be winter there so we're preparing ourselves for the cold weather.

The last six months in Australia seem to have gone by incredibly fast!

Koala with Baby from Lone Pine Koala Park

Me in Surfers Paradise with the Q1 Tower in the background

Airlie Beach and the Whitsundays

That's us just arrived in Brisbane this afternoon (After an 18 hour bus journey down!). Airlie Beach was very nice, very touristy but it had a nice lagoon and the weather was great. We stayed at a place called Bush Village, which was slightly out of town but quite nice. There were lots of Rainbow Lorikeets around which were very tame and shared our Breakfast with us!

Rainbow Lorikeet at Bush Village, Airlie Beach

We went out on a day trip to the Whitsundays and did some more snorkelling - it wasn't as good as Fitzroy island but still quite a lot to see. It turned out there was a Sea Snake in the water when we were in but thankfully it didn't get anyone! Then we got to Hill Inlet to look at the shifting sands of Whitehaven Beach - it was really amazing, the sea was clear as anything, you could even see the Stingrays in the water from the top of the hill! We got along to Whitehaven Beach then and got a few hours on the beach - it is a Silica Sand beach which is really fine sand.

Not much planned for Brisbane so far - going to go to a Koala Sanctuary at some point and possibly the Castlemaine XXXX Brewery - apparently there are lots of freebies!

Shifting sands from Hill Inlet

Me with Whitehaven Beach in the Background [Need to crop out the corner of the boat!]

Magnetic Island

That's us on Magnetic Island at the moment - just off Townsville, QLD. We got the bus down from Cairns yesterday, passed by loads of sugar and Banana plantations on the way. Apparently it is the place in Australia which gets the most Sunshine per year - 320 days! Its certainly been very nice weather here today, been up at Horseshoe Bay enjoying the sun, then went on a walk to Florence Bay and on the way I saw an Echidna - kind of like a Hedgehog (Native to Australia I think). Hostel here isn't very nice, we're setting off tomorrow, heading down to Airlie Beach and the Whitsundays.

The plans so far are:

• Whitsundays 29th June


• Brisbane 3rd July


• Gold Cost 6th July


• Byron Bay 8th July


• Sydney 10th July

So it's all a bit of a rush but hopefully we'll see the main sites!

On Tuesday we went Snorkelling on Fitzroy Island (on the Great Barrier Reef), it was absolutely amazing. There were loads of fish all around, and the colours of the Coral were great. Definately one of the best things I've done out here, the water seemed quite cold but you soon got used to it once we got in! Saw one of those Clownfish (like Nemo) hiding in a bit of coral and there was a shoal of fish which seemed to have thousands of fish kept swimming around us.

Anyway I've just been uploading a few more photos to flickr. We're planning to book a Camper Van for New Zealand shortly, going to be there for around 3 weeks, so it will be a long time in a small space!

Here's a snap of me in my Snorkeling gear on Fitzroy Island!

Cairns and the East Coast

That's us in Cairns now. Arrived yesterday and planning to leave on Wednesday. Had a look around the city yesterday, its a nice place but there isn't a lot to do as it is really only a base for tours to the Great Barrier Reef. We're planning to do a daytrip to Fitzroy Island, an island in the reef tomorrow.

Darwin went well, our last day there was really hot so we got to see a bit of the real heat!

We've ordered a bus pass with Greyhound today to travel down the East Coast from Cairns to Sydney with unlimited stops. It's a huge distance but hopefully with plenty stops it will be manageable!

I'm uploading my photos now so they should hopefully be up on flickr shortly. Heres a photo of Cullen Bay in Darwin to show off how tropical it was looking!

Kakadu, Litchfield and Mindil Beach Market

Been a busy few days these last couple of days! On Wednesday we went on the Tour Tub (Open-Sided bus) and did a circuit of the main sights in Darwin. We went to the Museum which had a really good exhibition about Cyclone Tracy which came here in 1974 and almost totally destroyed the city. Then we went to the Botanic Gardens, Fannie Bay Gaol and some WW2 Oil Storage Tunnels. Wednesday was apparently the coldest June day on record in Darwin - it was 22 degrees! There's also been a little rain and the locals can't believe it as usually in the dry season (April - November) they get absolutely none. It does mean theres been more rain in the waterfalls and things so it's fine in a way. It's getting steadily warmer and the forecast for tomorrow is 31.

Yesterday we went to Kakadu National Park. It's a vast park in the Northern Territory (bigger than Switzerland apparently). We went to a few cultural centres there, as there are still a lot of Aboriginals living there. We saw some ancient rock paintings, and we did a cruise on the Yellow Water Billabong. Saw loads of birds and a few wild crocs - one really big one. On the way home we went by Mindil Beach Market which is a night market which runs until 10pm at night. It had a real asian feel about it, and the temperature was quite nice for a walk around.

We went to Litchfield National Park today, a much smaller park and closer to Darwin so we didn't have to get up so early! We went on the Adelaide River first and saw some Jumping Crocodiles then went into the National Park and saw Florence Falls, Wangi Falls and Tolmer Falls. They were pretty spectacular and there were lots of folk swimming in the plunge pools (apparently they are thoroughly checked for Crocodiles before they are opened for the dry season!).

I'm going to try and upload my photos once I get a faster internet connection. Planning to have a look around Darwin again tomorrow, go to Cullen Bay and look around the centre.

Darwin

Made it to Darwin on Monday. Flight was fine - much quicker than the train! On Monday we just had a look around the centre and got settled in. It was really warm on Monday, a bit like Singapore again. Yesterday we went to Aquascene in the morning - which is a place where you can hand feed all kinds of fish, they come right into the pier and swim around your feet. That was pretty good, then we went out to Crocodylus Park which is like a Crocodile Farm. They had hundreds of Salt water and fresh water crocodiles, which they farm for their meat and skins. We made it in for a feeding so that was really good, they seem so docile then all of a sudden they turn a bit crazy! There was also a little Zoo at the park so we saw lots of different native animals.

Today we're planning to get the Open Top Tour bus and go out to the Museum and Botanic Gardens and a few other sites. Then tomorrow we're off to Kakadu National Park and on Friday we're going to Litchfield National Park and doing a Jumping Crocs tour where they feed wild crocodiles off the side of a boat and they jump out of the water for their food!

I've put some new photos on flickr but haven't had time to title them yet!

Uluru and Kata Tjuta

Me at Uluru

Got out to Uluru yesterday. We did a day tour, left at 6am! Started off by going to Mount Ebenezer, then past Mount Connor, then to Yulara (Ayers Rock Resort). Saw some 'Brumbies' (Wild Horses), Wedge-Tailed Eagles and a Kangaroo on the road out. Got into the national park and went to Kata Tjuta (The Olgas) first. They were pretty spectacular. Had a walk around them, then headed to Uluru. We got a few walks around the base and some of the caves and things are impressive and the rock paintings were quite good (although our guide told us a lot of them aren't very old). It is quite strange how it just rises out of nothing! We watched sunset over the Rock while we had a BBQ and it was pretty spectacular the way it changes colour at sunset.

Anyway the photos are up here.

I've also put up some Panoramas here

Been around Alice Springs today, we went to a baby Kangaroo rescue centre and held some baby Kangaroos. Planning to go to the Flying Doctor's Museum tomorrow. We're moving hostel as the one we're in at the moment (Annie's Place) isn't terrific!

Adelaide and The Ghan

Just arrived in Alice Springs today. First impressions aren't too bad, seems a bit rough around the edges!

Adelaide was good, went out to Glenelg (a beach-side suburb) on Monday, but as it was a public holiday lots of shops were shut. We went on a wineries tour on Tuesday which was really good, went out to the Barossa Valley and saw Jacob's Creek, VineCrest, Richmond Grove and Bethany Wines. Lots of samples at all of them! Saw Shrek 3 at the cinema in Glenelg - would highly recommend it!

Got the Ghan up to Alice Springs yesterday - got on at 12.20 got off at 13.40 the next day! It was a long trip but the time seemed to go by quite fast. There's a restaurant carriage and a lounge so you're not stuck in your seat all the time. It got dark quite early so we didn't see all that much until this morning, but it really gave the feeling you were in the middle of no-where!

We've booked a tour to Uluru (Ayers Rock) tomorrow - leave at 6am and get back at Midnight. Also thinking about going to the Devils Marbles on Saturday, but it depends on if we can find someone willing to hire us a car!

Great Ocean Road

Me at Great Ocean Road Memorial Sign

We're now in Adelaide, got the overnight bus last night from Melbourne. We're staying at a Hostel in the centre of town. Tomorrow is another public holiday-Queens Birthday this time! We're hoping to do a Winery tour, but not sure if it will be running because of the Holiday.

Great Ocean Road was really nice, we stopped the first night in Apollo Bay and the second night in Warrnambool. Saw all the main sights, and had plenty time compared to Tasmania. We hired a car again and did around 700km. The weather was ok, but not spectacular - only to be expected as it is Winter here now. The Twelve Apostles were very impressive, and there were lots of Arches and Gorges around the coast. Anglesea Golf Course was a highlight - as there are loads of Kangaroo's all around the course! My photos are up on Flickr

Heading upto Alice Springs on The Ghan on Wednesday.

Kangaroo's at Anglesea Golf Course

Tasmania

Me in King Solomans Cave (With Limestone Column)

Thats us back in Melbourne tonight from Tasmania. Got a flight from Hobart. We're staying in Melbourne International Backpackers tonight then collecting another hire car tomorrow to do the Great Ocean Road for the next few days.

Here's a brief outline of what we did in Tassie! The scenery there was amazing and really enjoyed it, the weather stayed pretty good.

Sunday

Got hire car. We got an upgrade - we ordered a Hyundai Getz and we got a Toyota Corolla. It was pretty good, roomy, nippy and seemed to be pretty efficient on fuel. By the time we returned it we had done almost 1500km! First of all we went to Cradle Mountain, via a little town called Sheffield which had lots of murals painted on the buildings, but it was quite misty so didn't see much of the mountain. We went around the West Coast instead - past Zeehan, Strahan and Queenstown. Then we went to Lake St Clair, which was pretty nice, and drove back to our Lodge in Launceston along a gravel track. It was quite a bad road but luckily we didn't see any other cars - lots of wildlife so we were going really slow.

Monday

Went to Cataract Gorge just outside Launceston - it was pretty spectacular (see the photo). Then we went out to King Solomans Cave which was full of limestone formations, I really enjoyed it. All the sites were quiet as it is winter here so we almost had the tour guide to ourselves! Then we went along to Liffey Falls, again we had to go on a gravel track to get there, but it was worth the drive as it was very picturesque. Then we drove down to Hobart (The Capital) and checked into another lodge. They were pretty ideal as they cost around the same as a hostel but we got our own little cabin with a double bed and a set of bunks, and kitchen, tv etc. They were a little bit out of town but it is fine with a car.

Tuesday

We went out to Port Arthur, on the Tasman Peninsula. There are lots of old penal buildings here from when the UK sent out the convicts. It was quite different, and a nice drive out there. We went back into Hobart in the afternoon and drove up Mount Wellington (1300m) and saw some great views up there. It was absolutely freezing so we didn't stay up top for long! We went into Hobart and looked around the shops for a little while and relaxed at night!

Wednesday

We went to the Cadbury's Factory. They make most of the chocolate for Australia at the factory, and the tour was pretty good. You got right out on the floor of the factory - some of the machinery they have is amazing. Got a few freebies! We went out to Russell Falls in Mount Field National Park in the afternoon, which was pretty nice again. Then we went into town and looked around the shop and returned our car in the afternoon - thankfully in one piece!

Me at Russell Falls

Cataract Gorge

Most of my photos are up here

Panoramic Test

This is a wee test - hopefully there will be a Panoramic of Canberra below!

Made it back!

Kangaroo I saw at the start of my climb up Mount Ainslie.

Made it back to Melbourne last night. Had a good time in Canberra, on my last day I climbed up Mount Ainslie - a Hill (843m) behind Canberra. Got a really good view from the top of it so have taken loads of photos - they're on flickr here. In the afternoon I went out to a shopping centre beside the Airport called Brand Depot - sort of like McArthur Glen in Livingston. Flew with Virgin Blue - they are one of the main 'cheap' air liners out here. Staying in a hostel in the centre of Melbourne now - Greenhouse backpackers, on Flinders Lane. It is really handy as we don't need to get a tram pass, can just walk around.

Heading off to Tasmania tomorrow night, on the boat. I'm fearing it is going to be quite rough as the Bass Strait is supposed to be quite a rough patch of water. We've hired a car (A Hyundai Getz!) for the whole time we're in Tasmania as it's quite a big place - apparently the size of Ireland! We're planning to stay in Launceston one night, and Hobart two. Flying back to Melbourne on Wednesday evening, then we'll be driving along the Great Ocean Road Thurs, Fri and then getting the overnight bus to Adelaide on the Saturday.

Not much else to say at the minute, keep the comments coming, it's good to hear from folk!

Canberra - Day 2

Australian Parliament Building

I have been pretty busy today. Got up early and went out to the National Museum of Australia first thing. That was really good - quite a new Museum building and lots of interesting stuff. Came back into town and went to the Australian National War Memorial - which is really a War Museum, it was also pretty good, and in a really nice setting. Walked down ANZAC Parade which is where all the War Memorials are, and then went to the National Capital Exhibition, which is all about Canberra - how it was planned; what was here before, etc. Everywhere I went I seemed to just beat the bus loads of School kids which was good!

Went to the Cinema tonight to see 28 Weeks Later - was o.k. but not great, passed some time as everything is closed in the evening.

Been quite a nice day but again it was quite cold. There was a lot of rain last night but seemed to have dried up by this morning.

I've uploaded some of my photos to flickr but I've not had time to title them yet, so I've put some of the best ones in here.

Captain Cook Memorial Fountain & The National Library in the background.


Parrot outside the National Capital Exhibition


Me with view towards ANZAC Parade and across the Lake to the Old and New Parliament Buildings.

Canberra

Made it to Canberra! Flight was good, up at 5.15am and got into Canberra at 9. Hostel is fine, I'm in an 8 bed dorm but not sure how many of them are taken. It is really Central, right beside a Cinema so might see something there. It was pretty cold when I landed - 7 degrees! But it soon seemed to heat up and was quite a nice afternoon.

I went over to Capital Hill to see the Parliament Building. They are in session at the moment so I got to Question Time to see The Prime Minister (John Howard) and all them! Building was pretty impressive, it was built in 1988. Also went to the Old Parliament Building, Parliament Gardens and the National Australian Art Gallery.

Its quite a strange city as it was purpose built so there are lots of circular roads and things which makes it very difficult to navigate! It seems to have been more designed for Cars than pedestrians and at times the pavements would just come to an end. Have taken lots of photos - I got a Canon Ixus 70 at the weekend so will get them uploaded ASAP.

Tomorrow I am planning to go to the National Museum of Australia, The Capital Exhibition and the War Memorial. Might go to the Science Museum if I have time - it's great because most of these Museums are free.

Electronics Troubles!

Thought I'd update this as we're at the weekend again! Was working on Monday, and we moved flat on Tuesday (as Heather is away to Kuala Lumpa, we're in a smaller flat for this week). On Wednesday I went out to Werribee - a Suburb in the South. It was fine but wasn't too much to see there. I tried to take some photos and my Digital Camera died - must have been over used! Now it just takes black photos, so since then I've been looking for a new one. Been looking at the Canon Ixus 70, and a Nikon Coolpix (Possibly L5). Would like a Digital SLR but it wouldn't be very practical so I may just get a 'cheap' camera to do me until I get home. There's alot to think about with warranties and things though. It's annoying as I was very happy with the camera I had - and my camcorder just went bust a few months ago!

Nothing much else to report. Going to Canberra on Tuesday, back on Thursday night and off to Tasmania on Saturday night. Will be strange getting back into living in Hostels. We've been looking into a few tours to do when we're in Darwin. Thinking about going to Kakadu and Litchfield National Parks and do a cruise to see jumping Crocodiles!

Going to see the new Pirates of the Carribean tonight. Anyway must get back to the Camera research. Any suggestions welcome!

Latest News

This week seems to have gone really fast! I got some temp work through the week working for www.realestate.com.au - doing some data entry and checking work mainly. Working on Monday for a Chiropractor doing some data entry for Statistical data so that will be fine as it'll be a bit of extra money!

On Friday I went to watch 1 vs 100 being filmed. It was filmed at the Melbourne City Centre Studios which are the biggest TV studios in the Southern Hemisphere apparently. They are at Docklands in the City. It was really good, had to wait for about an hour and a half before we actually got into the studio but they were quite well prepared for it and had lots of free food and drink! It's one of the main prime time quiz shows on one of commercial the channels out here, and the host is the same person who does Who Wants to be a Millionaire. The woman did quite well and won $74,000 so that was a good.

We're out of our current flat on Tuesday so will be cleaning it this weekend getting ready for that. The landlord is hopefully going to give me and Julie a smaller flat for a week (Heather is away to see family in Kuala Lumpa), but she is waiting to hear back from some people who had already viewed the flat before she can tell us for sure. Otherwise we will be in a hostel.

Been lots of rain here these past few days, and more forecast apparently. The people at work got quite excited when they saw all the rain!

Neighbours Night

Me and Harold Bishop!

Finally made it to the Neighbours Night last night, which was really good. It was a new one which has been set up by one of the stars (Toadie) as a rival to another one which has been running for years, so as not many people knew about it, there was hardly anyone there which was great as we got much longer with the stars! Toadie, Harold, Elle and Janae were there. See my photos here and Heathers photos here.

Not been much else happening lately. At the weekend we were planning to go to an Australian Rules Football game at the MCG (Melbourne Cricket Ground) but it was sold out so we're going to try and book tickets for a game shortly I think. Went into town and had a wander around the centre on Sunday.

On Friday I went into Albert Park and had a walk around the F1 circuit. Theres a lake in the middle of it with lots of Birds so it is quite a nice area. The circuit is used as a main road when all the F1 stuff isn't in the way.

Starting to think about packing all my stuff again which is a bit of a thought! Looks like it will be Cold when we go to Tasmania and very warm in Alice Springs and Darwin so going to need clothes for all weathers. Little bit of rain today but seems to be clearing up now.