Sunday 3 December
This morning at 2am Western Australia was introduced to Daylight saving (to us Brits putting the clocks an hour forward).  They are having a 3 year trial before voting on whether or not it should stay!

Had a steady drive from Freemantle back to Perth, dropped of the car and headed to the airport.  Flying to Bangkok today via Singapore.  OUr flight was at 15:30 but due to their new daylight saving it meant our flight time moved forward an hour - not sure how they worked that one out!!!!  Arrived in Singapore, hung around for a couple of hours waiting for our flight.  Singapore has to have the best airport in the world.  At 11:30pm we were waiting to board the plane, only to be told that it would be leaving until 3pm the following day!  WHAT!!!!!  To our surprise we got shipped of to a very, very nice 5 star hotel who also fed us very well. Anne's wish was granted as she wanted to stay in Singapore.

 

Saturday 2 December
OUR PROPER LAST DAY IN AUSTRALIA
Anne was still getting pains in her shoulder and heart burn so we went to the chemist.  He was a bit of a tool and started going on about pressure on the heart, heart attacks and basically being the messenger of everything that was doom and gloom.  We got some gaviscon for Anne on the chemists recommendations and then went for breakfast.  Well that was it.  In her own mind Anne had already had a heart attack and her days were numbered.  We decided to just see if the gaviscon worked.

We went through to Freemantle and had a quick look around the markets before heading for our campsite.  A lovely little cabin where we stayed in for the evening.

Big flight tomorrow but a new country beckons.

 

Friday 1 December
NEARLY CHRISTMAS AND ONLY A FEW WEEKS BEFORE WE COME HOME!!!
Anne had woken up in the middle of the night with a pain in her shoulder and heart burn.  We drove through to Bunbury which is much more than an industrial town with not a lot going for it - it is industrious, pretty, lovely coast line and drives and a great town centre with bars, cafes and restaurants.

We had booked ourselves onto a dolphin watching boat trip for this morning so we went straight to the jetty for our trip.  The trip was a very gentle and casual sail into the harbour area and there were plenty of dolphins!!!  Hopefully some of the pictures will come out!!

We then checked into our motel and decided to upgrade the room to one with a big balcony over looking the sea - beautiful!  We relaxed about the room and in the pool for the rest of the afternoon and early evening.  chris also booked us into the restaurant and asked for a table with a view - they would see what they could do.  Whilst we were on the balcony we could see the dolphins playing in the sea - how cool.

We got ready for what we were christening our "last supper" in Australia (tomorrow evening we would be packing everything properly and just geting ready for the long flight the next day).  We got the the restaurant and there was a Christmas party in full swing in the bar - in t-shirts and stood on the balcony - not right for Christmas!!!  We went through to the dining room and had a fantastic table next to the window where we could see the sea and the town and the sun setting.  We had a beautiful meal and last evening in Australia.

 

Thursday 30 November
Chris went off early for his diving.  Dunsborough is just over an hour away from Margaret River in the car.  The dive is on a decommissioned battle ship that was deliberately scuttled in 1997 to create an artifical reef and promote marine life.  The dive is awesome - the fish life is good but the state of the ship is extremely impressive and the swim throughs and penetration of the wreck are numerous and really interesting.  Two very good dives.

Anne stayed in Margaret River, looking around the shops and trying to organise some accommodation for us in Bunbury and Freemantle.  Chris got back about 3.30ish and we relaxed for the rest of the afternoon.

In the evening we went to the bar/restaurant where we were staying.  Chris had been diving with a girl called Karen who was camping with her boyfriend nearby and had arranged to meet them in the bar.  They turned up and we had a really pleasant evening with them.  At about 10pm we realised that no where was open for food so Karen and Steve asked us to go back with them to their camper van to share the food they had prepared earlier.  We went back with them and shared there food which was really nice and well needed!!  After getting lost trying to find our way back to the hotel we finally got there and went to sleep.

 

Wednesday 29 November
In the morning we set off to do the tree top walk in some "big trees".  It was a miserable morning, raining and very cloudy - just the weather to be walking amongst the leaves and branches of some of Western Australia's tallest trees!! By the time we got there, it was only about an hour away, the weather had cleared up and the walk was really good - stunning views from the top of the canopy.

From there we drove through to Margaret River where we spent the afternoon walking around the town.  We decided to stay 2 nights in Margaret River as Chris was going to Dunsborough tomorrow to "Dive the Swan".  It is also a nice town so 2 nights would be cool and the Lonely Planet had said that Bunbury (our next stop) was an industrial town and not much to it.

 

Tuesday 28 November
Drove back to Albany to meet with Anne's Aunty Ida.  Anne had not seen here since she was 10 and Aunty Ida's last memory of Anne was her wearing long white socks - no change there then!!!

It was amazing to meet her - she is 81 but the most spritly and wonderful 81 year old  you will ever meet.  Anne wants to be just like her when she is 81!  Spent the morning with her having wonderful scones and jam. 

Then headed of to Denmark - not much in Denmark, bit of a one horse town - but only here for the night before heading off around the coast.

PS - Got an email from Gina G about the Isle gang meeting on 28th December - count me in and already looking forward to it - can only take so much of the Oz beer!

 

Monday 27 November
We are picking up the car today to start our little tour around the south west corner of Western Australia.

After picking up the car we headed off down the Albany highway and ended up in Albany at about 6pm.  We drove out to Middleton Beach and managed to get the last chalet in a caravan park by the beach.  It was lovely apart from the chalet smelling of old fish.....

And that was today!

 

Sunday 26 November
We had a lovely relaxing morning in the hotel updating the website and diary as well as looking for accommodation in Albany where we are heading to tomorrow.

In the afternoon we met up with David. Without going into too much family history, David is the son of my dads cousin, Aunty Ida.  It was excellent to meet him and his partner June.  He kindly drove us to up to King's Park where there are stunning views over Perth city centre, the Swan river and surrounding suburbs.  We then drove over to South Perth and had a drink right next to the river again with stunning views.  David dropped us off in Northbridge where we had a few drinks until Anne started to feel "funny" (nothing to do with the drink!!).  We had been talking to a guy from Sutton who has been working out in Australia as a brickie for the past 4 years.  A total loon but a funny guy.

We walked (or staggered in Annes case) back to the hotel for an early night.

 

Saturday 25 November
Up early and a cab to the airport to fly to Perth.  Luckily Chris' ears were starting to get better so it should be no problem.  The flight went well and with the time differences we left Adelaide at 12.30pm and got to Perth at 1.15pm after a 3 and a half hour flight. We did not have anywhere to stay but new that we would be able to book something at the airport in Perth.  Well - EVERYTHING was fully booked.  Not a jot available.  Chris had to go back through security just to get to a computer and spent nearly 90 minutes trying to find something on the internet.  Just dont ask how much it was!!!

We got to our "place" which was in the centre of Perth and relaxed for the evening.  Nothing much but a few drinks and some food.

 

Friday 24 November
Absolutely boiling today.  Chris took the car back in the morning whilse Anne did some washing.  When Chris got back Anne was in a panic as she could not find our Lonely Planet - we must have left it in Victor Harbour.  We phoned to place in Victor where we stayed and they said that it was not there.  Anne then said that we must have left it in the car but Chris said that it had been empty when he dropped it off.  We phoned the car hire place anyway and low and  behold the book was in the car - oooh Chris was in trouble!!!

We got a bus up to the car hire place, picked up the book and then got the bus back to Adeliade where we wandered through the town centre and then back to where we were staying.

We are not doing well in the Ashes!!!!

 

Thursday 23 November
Chris's ears were still blocked from the cold he had a couple of weeks ago so we tried to find a doctors this morning to see if it was OK to fly.  Also with Thailand approaching we needed to make sure that Chris would be fit to dive!  The doctors was full so we set off the Adelaide.  On the way there we saw a big medical centre.  Chris waited to see the doctor and Anne went to get her hair cut.  Chris was given some antibiotics as there was a slight infection in his ears which should sort them out along with decongestants.

We got to Adelaide and had a reasonably relaxed evening in a hotel bar down the road.

 

Wednesday 22 November
Today we just thought that we would try to get as near to Adelaide as we could.  We drove most of the day stopping in Robe about halfway there.

We ended up deciding to stay in Victor Harbour which is about 1 hour south of Adelaide.  It is a little coastal village with a walkway across to Granite Island where you can also watch the Little Penguins come in from the sea at the end of the day. We did not do much apart from eat and go to sleep.

 

Tuesday 21 November
Today was photo day!  We set off after breakfast and started along the coastal drive, camera at the ready.
Our first stop was the "12 Apostles" which is/was 12 pillars of rock sticking out of the ocean - there are now only 6.  The weather was hot (despite how it looks in the picture) and the view was spectacular.  We then moved on to Loch Ard Gorge, The Arch and then London Bridge.  How could 2 Southerners (!!) not go to London Bridge.  At this point we were still appreciating the scenery but there are only so many rocks in the ocean that you can see before you start going "oh look, another one".  And the flies!!!!!  Because of the odd weather they have had recently the flies are out in force and bloody annoying.

Later on in the afternoon we drove through Tower Hill Reserve which is a nature reserve based in a huge crater.  During our drive through we saw emus, koalas and kangaroos - brilliant.

By the evening we had driven through to Port Fairy and finished the Great Ocean road - an amazing 2 days.  A relaxing evening was a great end to the Great Ocean Road.

 

Monday 20 November
This morning we went to Sovereign Hill which is a 25 hectare reconstructed gold mining village from the 1850's.  Gold was discovered in Ballarat and Sovereign Hill, in Ballarat, was reconstructed as a whole township of what it was like for the gold diggers and miners of the time.  It is constructed at the site of where gold was originally found.
As you walk around the town there are people who are dressed in traditional costumes of the time who just walk around as if they are living there.  They will talk to you, talk to the shop keepers (who are also dressed up) and go about their daily business.  There is a school, bowling alley (!!), living district, main street, hotels, bakeries, river and mines, all of which are authentic to the time and fully operational.  You can walk anywhere and you would still think that people could live there.  We both thought it was fantastic and would recommend anyone to go there.  We both went panning for gold and came away with of our pockets full - of stones!

From Ballarat we headed down towards Lorne via Geelong.  Geelong was purely a stop for Anne to pick up a top.....

Heading out of Geelong we headed towards Torquay which is the start of the Great Ocean Road.  The Great Ocean Road is a coastal road running from Torquay to just before Warrnambool. It has some spectacular coast lines and scenery and is famed for its rock formations carved out by the sea.  From Torquay we continued along the Great Ocean Road through Anglesea and Aireys Inlet through to Lorne where we stayed the night.

In Lorne we had a few drinks and then headed out for something to eat about 8.30ish.  We had heard about this Spanish tapas place but only knew it was at the other end of the main street.  We walked all the way down, could not find it, tried to get into somewhere else that was closing and was told that the tapas place was past where we had gone to originally.  We walked back along and eventually foud this tapas restaurant.  We sat outside for 2 minutes and were driven inside by the flies and flying termites.  Having started to relax within the restaurant we then ended up having some of the best tapas we have had. 

Fantastic food and great staff made it a very relaxing and enjoyable evening.  The restaurant had run out of aubergine for one of the dishes so we just said bring it without.  They brought it out and had made it slightly differently due to the different ingredients.  At this point the owner came over, picked up a fork and started trying the dish - quality!  Everything was good and we had a brilliant time.

The "schoolies" are out at the moment.  People finising the equivalent of GCSEs and A levels.  In Australia they just go mad for a week and go to all the cool Australian places to hang out.  There were some in Lorne - god I felt old!

 

Sunday 19 November
A long(ish) drive today from Phillip Island back past Melbourne to Ballarat.  We are staying in Ballarat for this evening before going to Sovereign Hill tomorrow.  When we got to Ballarat Anne loved it.  The buildings are very ornate with many of them still retaining the original architecture from when they were constructed in the mid 1800's during the gold rush era.  Avery ornate and elaborate town centre in architectural terms.  We had a few drinks in the George Hotel (which again Anne liked due to its atmosphere and character before heading around the corner to a newer bar.

Apparently Sunday is a huge night in Ballarat for drinking with most people going out around 10.30-11pm!!!  We were drunk by ten and Chris almost had to carry Anne home.

 

Saturday 18 November
Checked out of where we were staying in Melbourne and picked up our hire car.  We were driving from Melbourne to Phillip Island as we were doing watching the penguin parade this evening.

The journey was fine and when we got to our accomodation we checked in but they had double booked us - BONUS - we got a room upgrade.  After mooching about the shops we got some food before the penguins. Anne had the nicest jacket potato ever (what's that all about!!).  We then drove to the penguin parade.

A little about the little penguins. They are actually called "little penguins" as they are the smallest breed of penguins normally reaching approx 30-35cm in height.  Every day some of the penguins come back to the nest before going back out to sea to fish the next day.  Just before sunset they gather along the waters edge using the encroaching shade of nightfall to give them cover as they cross the beach to start heading along the paths back to their nests.  The penguin parade is the march of these little penguins from the sea to their nests.  There are platforms set up on the beach and along the walkways where you can watch them waddle their way back home.  It was a great night but there are 2 stories to go with it.  Firstly Anne got sat next to a middle aged man who acted like he was 12!!  He shouted and screamed when he saw the penguins, argued with his wife when she wanted to move as he would not have as good a view of the penguins and kept leaping up and down when they walked past - what a loon!!  Secondly, when we were walking back along one of the pathways someone leant down, shoved their arm through the fence and literally grabbed one of the penguins.  Having been nearly squashed it squarked and waddled off even quicker than before.  The man got hit by one of the wardens, who also screamed at him.  He then turned around to Chris and laughed and Chris told him he was a t*@t in no uncertain terms.  A good night though.

 

Friday 17 November
NEIGHBOURS DAY!!
Yes, you've guessed it - Anne dragged Chris on a Neighbours tour.

In the morning we did not do much but just wandered along the Southbank promenade and ate at the food court there - great food.  We then headed over to where the bus was going to pick us up from.  It was also the first day of the world G20 conference in Melbourne.  It was being held in the Hyatt Hotel and the whole street had been cordoned off.  There was a very high and visible police presence around the city centre as there has been for the past few days.  There was also a high expectation for trouble from protestors.  As it turned out there were other rallies going on in Melbourne up and done the main street (Swanston Walk) in relation to perceived poltitcal persecution and violence.

Anyway, back to Neighbours.  The bus eventually turned up - not a small inconspicuous bus but a minibus with Neighbours plasters all over it!!  So much for trying to blend in and not be noticed.  The bus was full and was made up entirely of people from the UK (apart from 2 Germans).  We firstly headed off to the school that they use in the filmig (it is a small school used only for teaching English) - we did not recognise it.

We then headed off to the studios where they do the filming "on set" (inside of houses and external buildings such as Lassiters and Lou's Garage).  There was  a member of the cast there to sign autographs etc - we did not recognise her - a teacher apparently?!

Finally we went to Ramsay Street itself - otherwise known as Pin Oak Court.  I will not bore you with all the stories (there aren't any really) but if you want to know more please ask Anne!!  The final torture that lasted with us all was that everytime we were on the bus we watched an espisode of Neighbours itself.  We watched, Scott and Charlene's wedding, Madges's death, Helen Daniels' death and Brad and Beth's wedding - arrrgghh!!

In the evening we got drunk along the Southbank promenade trying to forget the torture and humiliation of what was the Neighbours tour.  We managed to get 50% off our bill also because they forgot our food and then forgot our bill after we had complained.

PS - this was written by Chris - Anne loved it.

 

Thursday 16 November
Not as cold today but still rainy and chilly. In the morning we went to Quen Victoria Market which is a huge undercover market with over 1,000 stalls.  It ranges from cheap tat (which is the predominant feature) to clothes, souvenirs and food.  It was good to wander aound.

In the afernoon we headed over to the MCG, managed to watch the third day of the test match sv Victoria.  Shane Warne was bowling - bit of a bonus and only $5 to get in - bargain!  Once Chris had answered all Annes questions (How do you get a bowler out?, Why dont they just hit the ball really hard? and "Why has Trailby got a big score?") - a good time was had.

 

Wednesday 15 November
Very cold day today (only 16 degrees but this is cold for Melbourne spring time).  It was also the coldest November day in Melbourne for 125 years.

Did not do much apart from go around Richmond and Collingwood for a few hours in the afternoon.
In the evening we had fun and games trying to order our take-away which took 90 mins to come and even then it was wrong - never mind.

 

Tuesday 14 November
This morning we got the free tram that circles the city centre.  We got off near the MCG and decided to go and have a look to see what was on over the next few days.  At the moment there is state cricket (Victoria vs Tasmania) for the next 4 days, we are going to watch the game tomorrow. We then walked past the Rod Laver stadium, over the bridge towards the city and up towards Flinders Street station along the Yarra river.  It was a lovely day and a beautiful walk.  We walked up to Princes Bridge and had some food around Federation Square before walking around the city centre.

We stayed in this evening and had drinks in the bar.

 

Monday 13 November
We got the train to Central Station for 8am in order to get our last greyhound trip down to Melbourne.  Not much to say other than we got double seats each again and the trip was not that bad.

Luckily we had booked into the Comfort Inn in Melbourne before we left Sydney.  For those of you wondering we had finally worked out that, for a double room, it is normally cheaper to book into a motel/hotel rather than get a double room at a backpackers!!

We checked in at about 10pm, had a couple of drinks in the bar and went to sleep.

 

Sunday 12 November
We made our escape with all our bags and waited for the bus to take us to the Blue Mountains.  When we got on the minibus the driver said that he would be able to sort out our bags so they would not be too much of a pain during the trip.

After picking everyone else up we headed out to the Blue Mountains - it should be a good day but at the start of it we are homeless for this evening.  Lunchtime would be busy with phone calls.

We stopped off at various look out points seeing the Blue Mountains including the blue haze which gives the forest its name (it is a forest and not mountains and the blue haze is a "mist" from the heat reacting with the eucalyptus).  It is very scenic and very peaceful.

We had luch at Leura which was gorgeous but we wolfed down our food and rushed to the phone just to try to find somewhere to stay for the evening.  After trying all the numbers we had no luck.  In the end we got the number for the Holiday Inn at King's Cross and got a room there!!!  Back to where we had just left.

The rest of the trip was good and we ended up in King's Cross having a few drinks in the bar which we had become very familiar with.  Tomorrow is the next 12 hour greyhound trip to Melbourne, our final trip on the greyhound - whey hey!  Anne is very relieved - she does not do buses very well!

 

Saturday 11 November
Today we moved to Manly.  Chris was feeling a bit shitty still so we did not do much.  We relaxed in the afternoon and in the evening we went for a walk along the coastal path around to the next beach.  We walked back, got fish and chips and sat on the sea front eating our food - a really nice evening.

There was a gold phone in the hostel (Ian!) so Anne spent most of the evening on the phone.  Anne started using the phone (to excess) to the extent that at 10.30pm the owner came out of his room asking what she was doing as she was keeping other people awake and anyway the phone had not worked for over a year so why was it working now.  Anne spluttered for a bit and then came back to the room.  Ask for the whole story!

We decided to check out the next morning as it fitted our plans better than staying in Manly for the Sunday night also - even though it meant trying to find somewhere else to stay for the Sunday night.

A restless night and up early tomorrow for the Blue Mountains.

 

Friday 10 November
Today we headed over to Bondi Beach - we have been busy this week.  The sun was shining and we strolled along the beach - great!

There was also  a "sculpture on the rocks" show on for a couple of weeks.  We went for a walk along the coastal path that takes you from Bondi beach along the coast to other little bays and there are sculptures and pieces of art all along the path, in the rocks and on the grass next to you.  It was really cool.

We then cut in land to try to get a bus back.  Some old geezer at the bus stop told us that he was waiting for his wife and that he would give us a lift back to Bondi junction where we could get a train back to King's Cross - how lovely of him!

Tonight was our big night out.  We started off at Jackson on George (the pint glasses are a pint and a half - fantastic!) and then moved on to the Rocks.  After many hours and drinks we were a bit tiddly (alternatively plastered) and went to a great little pizza place before heading to Circular Quay to take photos of each in the pitch black next to the Opera House.

 

Thursday 9 November
Today we got the ferry over to Manly - a busy little beach suburb around Sydney harbour.  We managed to find somewhere to stay in Manly for Saturday and Sunday night - cool - we can now do the Blue Mountains on Sunday and we have somewhere to stay.

We watched the surfers and went for a walk along the beach front - Manly is nice!

We got the ferry back and got some great photos of the Harbour Bridge and the Opera House as it had turned out to be a beautiful day and really sunny.

I think Anne likes Sydndey....

 

Wednesday 8 November
Chris has caught Anne's cold and felt like shit all day.  Anne spent most of the day on the internet trying to find us a room for Sat night as well as doing emails and all sorts of other internet related things (who knows how she manages to ammuse herself so much on the net).  No accomodation - everything is booked up due to the concerts - we will be homeless at this rate.

We went out for lunch and that was the highlight of the day.

 

Tuesday 7 November
MELBOURNE CUP RACE DAY.
A bank holiday in Melbourne we knew we were in for a good time even though we are in Sydney.
We went through the city centre as were on our way to Darling Harbour to watch the big race.  The TAB had set up in Martin Place which is a big pedestrianised area near lots of big office blocks - it was late morning and it seemed like most people were betting rather than working!  We put our bets on and then made our way to Darling Harbour.  Most of the bars were "pre booked" with all the tables booked out for office parties.  We ended up watching it over in the Pyrmont Bridge Hotel which is a pub just on the other side of Darling Harbour.
Just need to mention - Chris won (backed both the 2nd and 3rd horses each way) and Anne lost.  Ho hum.

We then went back to Darling Harbour to drink along the wharf area in the afternoon sun.  It is absolutely hilarious - all the women actually get dressed up (hats and all!!) just to got the pubs to watch the race - amazing if not stupid.

We then went back to King's Cross and went to the Darlo Bar for a few before heading back to our hotel.

Good day!

 

Monday 6 November
Checked out of Big and left our bags there until later when we could check in to the Holiday Inn.  We went to Quantas to change our flights to Perth.  We are  now going to fly to Perth from Adelaide and miss out Ayers Rock and we are changing the date.  By the end of it we had also changed ourflight back to the UK - staying in Hong Kong for an extra day and flying back with Quantas rather than BA.

Dropped the camera into a repair shop and moved from Big to Holiday Inn.  Had a rather quiet evening.

 

Sunday 5 November
This was a bit of a marathon day.  We walked down to Circular Quay and saw the Harbour Bridge and the Opera House. We then walked around the Rocks (cobbled streets and old colonial buildings) which was cool and there was a market on.  We then walked through Hyde Park and made our way up to King's Cross.  After mooching around KX we walked via Bourke Street to Oxford Street and then back to the hostel.  A long day but a good walk and we saw lots of the City.

We are moving tomorrow to goup to King's Cross - Holiday Inn - good price and a good location for public transport.  Having got back to the hostel Chris had to go back up to King's Cross to book it.  We were supposed to be booking up to and including Saturday night but they now only had availability to Friday.  We know it is going to be hard to get a room for Saturday night as U2 and Kylie are both playing and the England cricketers have arrived.  More of that later.

 

Saturday 4 November
In the morning we had to check out as we were moving to the "Big Hostel" just up the road.  Anne was still feeling ill so it was not going to be an easy day.

We checked into Big and then Chris dragged Anne out to go to Quantas as we neede to change our flights to Perth.  After walking 30 mins in the drizzle ("it's spitting!!" - quote for Sarah) we got to Quantas and it was shut.  Suffice to say that chris was dreading Anne's reaction but she was very calm and said we should try to find some food.  After 30 mins trying to find food Anne was grizzly again and we went back to the hostel hungry.

Big was supposed to be a "boutique" hostel - my arse.  The room was cold and all we could hear was water dripping through the pipes.

In the evening Chris went out to get a take-away - thai green curry for the both of us.  The hottest thai curry ever - we both had tears in our eyes by the end.  At least it did clear Anne's sinuses.

 

Friday 3 November
Greyhound day - sounds like a film!
We checked out and made our way to the bus stop.  The bus was supposed to arrive at 11am but did not turn up until midday.  Not a great start particularly as it was not due to get into Sydney until gone midnight anyway.
Luckily when the bus turned up not many people got on so at least we were able to get double seats each which meant we did not feel hemmed in - murder would have occurred had we had to sit next to each other!!

The journey was not a bad journey although Anne was feeling very unwell and sitting on a coach for 12 hours was not good.  It started raining really heavily as well and the sky light started to leak as well as the airconditioning unit - great, musical chairs to avoid the rain.  We told the coach driver and he said, "it always does this - just move."!
We got into Sydney about 1am Saturday morning.  As we entered Sydney Chris was excitedly pointing out the Opera House to Anne as we crossed the Harbour Bridge.  "So bloody what" was the response Chris got back.  We got to the hostel we had booked and they did not have our booking or any double rooms available.  Luckily they said we could have a 4 bed dorm for the same price but it would only have the 2 of us.  We got to the room, Anne moaned that she wanted a double and Chris just kept quiet thanking his lucky stars that tonight Anne and Chris were in separate beds!

 

Thursday 2 November
Last day in Byron Bay so Chris did his last dive.  Anne has a stinking cold so did not do much all day apart from trying to get a bit better before the Greyhound tomorrow.

In the afternoon Chris went out to take some photos.  It was a nice and sunny afternoon so Chris strolled around the beautiful leafy streets of "the Bay" snapping happily as he went.  Half way through this photoshoot the batteries started to die so Chris eeked out the last of the battery life until the camera shut itself down.  Bought more batteries, put them in the camera and nothing happened!!  Bought more batteries and the same thing happened.  Oh no - David Bailey was stumped as to what to do next.  He went into the pub to figure out this conundrum over a beer - always better.  Nothing came to mind so Chrs thought it would be better to take the camera to the camera shop to see what they said.  "oh dear oh dear oh dear" - never a good start to a conversation.  "I think it is basically buggered", said the shop keeper.  "Not much you can do but take it to a Canon dealer and get them to send it off to a repair centre.  It will cost a lot.".  Bloody, chuffin' hell Chris thought.  Anne was a bit more expletive - nothing like a drama to make Anne feel better.  We decided to leave it until Sydney to try to get it fixed.

Did not do much in the evening - long day tomorrow.

 

Wednesday 1 November
Another dive, another drink, another day.  What bliss!

 

Tuesday 31 October
No diving but another day at the beach - ho hum.

 

Monday 30 October
Another morning dive for Chris and then we both hit the beach.  Not much else really happened apart from Chris being bitten.

 

Sunday 29 October
Another couple of dives for Chris whilst Anne spent most of the day either in bed or moving from the bed to somewhere else in the apartment.  No she was not ill - just having a lazy day!  To be fair, Chris went back to bed after his first dive and slept for a couple of hours before getting up again to go for his second dive.  Exciting stuff hey!

We cooked in the evening and had more of a relaxing day.

 

Saturday 28 October
Chris dived in the morning with Sundive.  The dive was to Julian Rocks which is a national marine park just off the beach at Byron.  The dive was good but quite similar to being back in the UK - limited vis and a current which made it a bit of a drift dive.  Still good though with sharks, turtles and lion fish.

In the afternoon we went to the beach and relaxed before hitting Byron again in the evening.

 

Friday 27 October
We got up early to get the greyhound at 6.40.  The bus was going straight through to Byron Bay but took about 8 hours due to the number of stops.  We finally made it Byron and walked the few hundred yards to our hostel just up the road.

After making some enquiries abnout diving we had a wander around and then headed to the bar, food and then bed.

 

Thursday 26 October
The weather has been great for the past few days so today was beach day.  We did a bit of shopping in the morning and then headed to the beach.  Mid afternoon we wandered back to the apartment as we leave at 6am tomorrow to go to Byron Bay.

 

Wednesday 25 October
Not supposed to be an eventful day but it turned out that way.

Messed about in the morning and then in the afternoon we went to the beach.  Chris innocently mentioned to Anne about a brown mark on her back.  PANIC - must be a malignant mole and Anne was reduced to near tears in about 3 mins.  We went to the local doctors and managed to get an immediate appointment.  It was an allergic reaction to something Anne had worn!  However, as we were there we both got our moles checked out by the nurse.  This, apparently, is vey common practice for the majority of Australians and New Zealanders.  We were cool!  Anne was chuffed as the nurse commented on how great her skin was.

Celebratory beer at the Reef bar and then back EARLY to make sure that Chris had his indian - lovely.

 

Tuesday 24 October
Today we spent most of the day pratting about trying to change flights, trips and our whole journey - ho hum.  The one big decision we have come to is that we are going to miss out Ayers Rock.  Anne is understandably upset but time is not on our side.  Chris has an IOU to bring Anne back within 24 months via Fiji!!  At least the trip will be more chilled with more beaches and diving along the way.

We went to the Reef bar and Chris was getting excited about having an indian takeaway.  We got back to the apartment at 8pm - one of the takeaways does not open on Tuesday (!!!) and the other shut at 8pm.  What kind of tin pot town is this!!

 

Monday 23 October
Today was the last day of having the car so we decided to drive out to Rainbow Beach which was described as "greeting weary travellers like the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow".  It rained!

It was quite a cool beach and a cool little town but probably better when it is sunny.  We drove back and went to Sunshine Beach in Noosa for an hour or so and then back to the palace.

In the evening we went to Hastings Street which is the main street in Noosa Heads - a trendy little road with boutiques and wine bars - very cosmopolitan.  Anne and I fitted in right well!!

 

Sunday 22 October
Anne was on a mission to find us somewhere else to stay.  Koalas had been OK but I think Anne wanted a bit more luxury, sharing a bathroom with 10 randoms is not Annes idea of fun.  We went to the tourist info centre and they recommended a place for us which was an "apartment" with a pool etc.  It was only $20 more than Koalas so we said yes.

We could not check in to our new place until later in the afternoon so we decided to go to Australia Zoo - the zoo made famous by Steve Irwin.  The zoo was very well set out and huge.  We saw some great animals (Wombats, kangaroos, koalas, crocs) as well as a brilliant tiger show.  Just to clarify the tiger show was the handlers running about in the enclosure with the tigers with big play toys for them - it was not a circus type show.  The whole time we were there though there was this strange atmosphere - there were old posters every where with Steve Irwin on and you got the impression that the whole zoo and the staff were all still in shock over what had happened.

We got back to Noosa and went to our new home.

WELL - when we got to the "apartment" we found out that it was a 2 storey, 3 bedroom, 2 bathroom, huge living room with 42" plasma tv, remote controlled garage palace.  Bargain!!  Anne immediately felt like the Lady of the Manor - from Lady Muck to Lady of the Manor in a few days......

 

Saturday 21 October
The day was spent driving to Noosa - approx 1,000 km.
Just before boarding Wings Anne was having a fag, she bumped into a Swedish girl and after chatting to her for a while Anne offered her and a friend a lift to Noosa with us.  We had spoken to them last night and said that if they wanted a lift they should meet us at reception this morning when we were checking out.  They were there waiting for us (Elin and Daniel).

As we were approaching Noosa at about 7.30ish it suddenly got really dark and before we knew it the rain was chucking down.  It is the worst rain I have seen  never mind driven in.  At one point we stopped driving right in the middle of the road as we could not see a thing - bloody awful.

We eventually got to Noosa but due to the rain it was more difficult to find where we were going - not helped by the fact that we did not know where we wanted to go anyway!  we decided to go to Koalas backpackers and after 30 mins trying to find it we eventually checked in.

 

Friday 20 October
Another poor night's sleep but up early for a dive.

We then sailed back to Airlie Beach getting back around 3pm.  Everyone was quite tired but we had all arranged to go to Beaches for drinks about 8pm.  Anne and Chris had a lazy afternoon getting things ready for the trip to Noosa tomorrow.

We met John and Jess (some people from the boat) for a drink in Magnums before we went to Beaches.  It was a good evening but we did not stay long - must be our age!

 

Thursday 19 October
An early start and the boat headed over to Whitsunday Island.  We walked to the other side to Whitehaven beach which was just absolutely stunning.  Extremely fine sand and amazing colours.  Just walking along the sand you could see rays swimming in the shallow water.  We then went up to a lookout to take pictures over the beach.

In the afternoon we did some more diving, snorkling etc.  Most people left the boat to either go diving or snorkling but Anne stayed on the boat.  She thought she was someone famous and rich - Lady Muck on her yacht.  Poor deluded soul.

Another fantastic evening meal, drinks and then bed.

 

Wednesday 18 October
We checked outof Magnums, put our main bags in storage and headed down to the pier.  We got on to the boat, "Wings",  and settled into our cabin.  We had booked a double bed cabin and I'm glad we did.  The dorms were tiny and the single beds were narrower than my little finger!

We met some cool people on the boat and after sailing for a couple of hours it was time for Chris to do his first dive on this trip.  The boat was a bit rocky and there were a couple of people who were sea sick - oh dear.

After a fantastic meal we chatted for a bit and then bed.  Even though the boat was a moored it swayed gently which was quite relaxing for some but not for others.  What kept us awake was the constant nose of the water hitting the boat as we were right next to the side.  Bugger.

 

Tuesday 17 October
Had a nice relaxing day around Airlie Beach - mooching in the shops and trying to arrange for a hire car to drive from Airlie to Noosa after our trip tp the Whitsundays.  The car hire was an absolute rip off but we decided to do it rather than 15 hours on a coach overnight.

We met up with Anne, Hayley and Andrew in the evening for a few drinks.  There was a Robbie Williams tribute band playing in the club next to the hostel.  It sounded OK but they were charging $30 to get in!!!  As the evening went on they were getting desperate for people to go in. The ticket price came down from $30 to $15 to $12.50.  Half and hour later on one of the promo girls came over and asked if we wanted to go in for half price ($7.50).  How desperate are they!!  Hayley chirped up "half price and two for one and you've got a deal".  That was it, we all went to see "Robbie" for $3.75 (about 1 pound 50p).  It was a hilarious night and the act was quite good also.

 

Monday 16 October
Chris was up early to do the dive and Anne got up to wave him off!

The diving was fantastic.  There was not much swell and the boat out was only about 30 mins.  After gearing up Chris went in with one of the guides and one other person.  Could not wait to take some photos as the first dive was all about looking at the marine life.  WHAT A MUPPET - Chris forgot to take his camera!!  The dive was amazing - sharks, a turtle, huge wrase and sea snakes were just a few things to see.  After a brief surface interval we dived again which was just as awesome.  The wreck is in good shape and the dive is incredibly relaxed.  So cool!

Irwin, as mentioned yesterday, got on the boat and professed to getting sea sick.  After 15 minutes he was as sick as a dog and did not stop until we got back to land about 4 hours later.  He did his first dive and then laid on the side of the boat for the rest of the time as he was so ill.  The funny thing was that in the afternoon he had a 2-tone face - red one side from the sun.

Whilst Chris was diving Anne was at a bit of a loose end.  She got a lift into Ayr for something to do.  Anne, Hayley and Andrew were getting the bus down to Airlie Beach.  Anne ended up spending 2 hours on the side of the road playing cards with them until she could get a lift back but loved every minute of it.

After diving there was a big BBQ before we needed to get back to Ayr to get the bus down to Airlie Beach.  The bus was 25 minutes late but eventually picked us up.

We got to Airlie Beach and Anne looked for our pick-up to the hostel.  Our hostel was the only one that did not do pick-ups.  Anne had her paddy but we then walked to the hotel to check in.  We bumped into Anne and Hayley and Andrew as we checked in, had pizza (we eat a lot of pizza) and then bed.

 

Sunday 15 October
We had to get to the other side of Cairns in the morning get the Greyhound as we were leaving to get to Ayr.  This was the first time that Anne had to carry her rucksack like a rucksack.  Everyone that knows Anne will appreciate that she was not silent in carrying her heavy "bag" for 15 minutes. In her words 'i feel like a tortoise with a shell on my back' Chris did the only thing he could - ignored her and walked ahead!  The Greyhound was 7 hours and dropped us off in Ayr - a small town with nothing going for it.  The reason we were stopping was so that Chris could dive the SS Yongala.  We had heard that we could do this from Townsville but we then heard that Ayr was much closer. The dive company had a purpose built hostel which was lovely just for people who were doing the dive.  A big hello to Anne, Hayley and Andrew.

We picked up food and drink at the "supermarket" (small randomn shop") and got a lift to the hostel which was in the middle of no-where, a place calle Alva Beach.

We met a guy called Irwin (more of him tomorrow) from the Netherlands.

A nice evening, cooking and watching the Australian Pop Idol - Anne loved it.

 

Saturday 14 October
Anne woke up in her words ''with a back bent like a boomarag'.  After a lazy morning we got back on the minibus to go back to Cairns (Anne was very relieved).  We visited Mossman Gorge (where Anne was very brave and walked across a wobbly rope bridge) and did a river trip looking for crocs (we saw one 6 inches long....) before ariving back in Cairns at about 7pm.

 

Friday 13 October
We caught the bus early in the morning to start our trip.  The minibus was not full which was good and there was quite a good crowd of people on the bus (about 12 in total).  On the way there we visited a wildlife sanctuary (aka tourist trap) where we saw snakes, dingos, weird aussie animals that I cant spell and crocodiles.  Anne screamed at the crocodile - because she was scared and not because it had not plumped up the cushions after sitting on the sofa.

We then continued to a lookout over the sea and the accomodation in Cape Tribulation.

We were in a dorm but did not know who with as there were not around as we checked in.  As the day progressed Anne got more and more paranoid that we were sharing with mass murderers. We had a lazy afternoon next to the green pool (photos are available) and then had some food and a few drinks. We did not go swimming due to the croc warnings.  True to its name later in the evening it rained like you might think in a rain forest.  We did not have our matching paca-macs so we got wet.  Chris snored all night, sleeping above Anne in our bunks, and apparently looked like he was going to fall through (so much for his new slim physique!).  There were also warnings that mice might be about if there was food available so Anne slept in her hoodie with the hood up and sleeves clenched tight in her hands - what a woose!

 

Thursday 12 October
Woke up to the sound of rain again but today was going to be busy.  We went back to Tribal Travel to book our trips.  Surprise surprise (sounds like Cilla) we managed to book Anne on a night in the rain forest in a dorm (shared bathroom and beds - no plug for the hairstraightners!) and later in the trip a 3 day canoe trip camping in Noosa.  Bloody hell.  We also booked sailing in the Whitsundays.

We then booked the Greyhound and, as it was still raining, we decided to look for his and hers macs!!!  We found them but Anne wanted to look for more as they were not cool enough.  After searching high and low Anne decided that the original ones we saw would be OK.  The shop was shut!!!  We then went somewhere else where we got (almost) matching macs - super.

Pizza again for food and then bed - got to be up early in the morning, its a hard life!!!

 

Wednesday 11 October
In the morning we got up and planned to book our trips to Cape Tribulation and possibley the Whitsundays and Fraser Island.  We walked to the park, sat down, got our maps/books out and it started to piss down - great!!  We rushed to a couple of travel places and ended up in Tribal Travel where we started our plans.  With lots of information we decided to peruse it over a few drinks.  We got drunk and then decided what we were going to do.

After drinking in the afternoon we had pizza and that was that.

 

Tuesday 10 October
We had a nice lazy morning just making sure that we had not left anything for Becky or Christian to post on to us.  At about 11am, just as we were getting everything together, the doorbell rang.  Chris wandered outside to see what was happening and saw that the post man had left a package.  We were waiting for the Lonely Planet guide to be delivered from England (thanks Sarah) - this was it.  Just at that moment Anne came hurtling out of the house moving like a woman possessed (Lent/Colin, you would have been proud of her) screaming like a banshee, "STOOOOOPP".  Casually chris looked at her and said "you muppet" and walked inside with the book.

After that little drama we got the taxi to the airport and had an uneventful flight to Cairns via Sydney.

A big thanks to Becky and Christian for their hospitality and tourist guides around Christchurch and the area - please come and stay with us in Kingston and good luck with the wedding plans.

A late arrival in Cairns and straight to bed in our room at Caravella's - nice room!