Agnes Water couldn't be shorter

After our lovely few days in Brisbane with Sophie, Dan & Evie, we headed up north for the next part of our road trip. Every Australian we met had been shocked at our plans to drive so far up the coast, so it was a relief when Dan didn't seem worried about our plans to get up north by Christmas (less than a week and about 1600kms).

We stopped in a town called 1770 for just one night because we wanted to make our way to Airlie Beach, home of the Whitsundays, the next day which was another long drive. The town of 1770 is Queensland's most northerly surf beach and is quite small. and We stayed in a little village called Agnes Water (which I think is actually part of 1770 or vice versa). First impressions were good, we were almost sad to be only staying the one night but we knew time was running away from us.

We booked into our Cabin, called Japan, and headed out for a little exploration of the beachside town, and then a bite to eat. On our return, there were a few bugs flying around the cabin which reminded us that we were indeed getting further into the tropics. We were missing the luxury that was Sophie's automatic bug spray (basically like an automatic air freshner but it pumps out something that repels the insects instead, and it seemed to work).

After running like a girl from the bathroom back to the room, I got ready for bed & settled down for the night. Unbeknown to me, Chris had seen a couple of bugs in the room but didn't think much of it. We closed all the windows to stop them getting in and then settled down for the night... We only stayed in Agnes Water one night, but it's probably one of my more memorable nights. I didn't sleep at all as I could feel midgees or something similar flying on me all night. I decided to duck under the covers to escape them, but as you can imagine it's quite warm in the tropics so I got a bit warm. Not only that, it didn't help as I appeared to have trapped the midgee in with me... or so I thought... ohhhh noooo. As soon as daylight broke I was suddenly aware that it wasn't just the odd midgee or two, it was in fact what looked like little baby cockroaches and one had been crawling on me all night. EEEUUUUUGGGGHHHHHH!!!!!!! There were loads of them and it didn't matter that the windows had been shut because they could get in under the door. Doh!

I went to Gran Canaria a couple of years ago which was the first time I had encountered full grown cockroaches in mass, and those that were there will have witnessed my wussyness at them all. So the idea of having little baby ones crawling all over me was not good. Needless to say, I threw a girlie hissy fit until Chris had removed (and by removed, I basically mean killed) all the nasties. It was then we realised that I'd left my luggage open all night and so a further hissy fit ensured Chris' help in removing them for me! It was a blessing in disguise - I found pockets I didn't know I had... sadly, so did the cockroaches!

When I am able to again, I will post some pictures - despite my fear, I did manage to get a close up shot of one to show everyone as I wanted you to feel my pain!

I got up before 6am that day, and yet because of all the drama, we still didn't get on the road until gone 10.

Next stop, Airlie Beach!

I'm sorry I'm a bit behind the times, but hopefully I'll catch up soon. For now, happy festivities!

Take care
Hannah
xXx

Moreton Magic

Wow, it's amazing how fast Christmas seems to be approaching and yet I still don't feel Christmassy. So instead, let me tell you about some of the things I've been up to recently. I'll do it in smaller stages again so there's less of an essay to read...

The day after our Mt Tamborine picnic, we went to Moreton Island. I came here last time with Louisa for a couple of days, but this time we decided to do it as a day trip with Sophie & Dan as we realised we probably weren't going to get enough time to do Fraser Island properly (both islands are large sand islands). It still seemed completely different though which was good.

We had chosen to do an Eco Tour where we would go to a lake, but because no-one else was on this tour, we got upgraded to a more adventurous tour which involved snorkelling the wrecks. We had arranged to be met at a 'servo' (petrol station to you & I Brits) but some miscommunication meant we had to walk and meet the bus on the boat instead! But we got there, and that's the main thing.

So off we headed on our catamaran destined for Moreton Island. It is a relatively new boat (within the last 4-5 years) and was different to the one Louisa & I went on last time. This one is designed especially to land on sand I believe. I'm sure 'land on' is not quite the right terminology, please forgive me Iain & any other boat experts! On the way, I was lucky enough to see a couple of sightings of wild dolphins. Not enough to get a picture, but enough for my memories at least.

Once on the island we got into our 4WD bus. Because Moreton Island is a sand island (the 3rd largest in the world, and the top 3 are all in Queensland, Australia), it is only accessible by 4 Wheel Drive vehicles. The tide was up when we got ashore and I was quite startled by the angles we were driving at down the beach. I attempted to get it on camera, but I failed I'm afraid! It felt like we were nearly on our side anyhow. Our guide, Grant, was a great laugh but didn't always inspire us with confidence. When we got off the beach, we headed inland which was very bumpy and at times quite hilly. It was as we were struggling to get up these hills that Grant would merrily say how he often fails to get up the hills... great! Anyhow, we managed it. The 'roads' (aka tiny tracks in the sand) were very thin and only really one vehicle at a time could fit, but we managed to get there at rush hour it seemed and met 2 other buses coming from the other direction. So a crafty bit of reversing was needed in order to pass.

Once we eventually got to our destination (called The Desert), it was no later than 11 and yet the sun was baking hot. It was hot when we attempted to meet the bus at 8 too so that heat had only intensified in the last few hours. It was at this 'desert' that we went sand tobogganing. This involves a flat bit of wood, a mountain of sand (a sand dune) and some wax. Oh, and a massive hike up the dune in this baking heat. Had we hiked this in England, and if it was normal ground rather than sand, it would probably have taken a few minutes and a lot less energy. As this wasn't the case, it took much longer and so much energy that I decided only to do the run once this time! Even then I still nearly passed out with exhaustion by the time I got back to the bus. Still, it was a fun part of the day.

After this, we headed back to the beach where we would have lunch and then start the snorkelling. The snorkelling was around the Tangalooma Wrecks. Basically, old government-owned ships deliberately sunk to try and attract the fish. I chose to opt out of the snorkelling this time, as did Sophie. I'd snorkelled there last time and I didn't feel it was much fun. Instead I swam in the sea where I could firmly touch the ground, although there was quite a strong current so in the end I sat on the beach.

Whilst the snorkelling was still going on, our Catamaran returned. Amazingly, it fitted through this tiny bit of water in front of the wrecks where people were still snorkelling, and others were still swimming. I was glad I wasn't in the sea at the time.

We all piled back onto the bus ready to get onto the boat home, only we were too early to board so Grant took us for a further little drive along the beach. I was surprised to discover some police on the beach with their speed guns. I can't imagine anyone would be able to go too fast on a sand island, but obviously anything is possible! Oh, and Dad... I've decided your car is wasted on you - you should totally find some sand dunes to tackle when I return!!!

We eventually got back on board our ferry home, got dropped off at the Servo and then made our way back for our last evening in Brisbane. We went out for a Persian meal and then headed home, ready for our long drive to the Town of 1770 the next day. All in all, my experience of Brisbane this time round has been much more positive than last time, all thanks to our brilliant hosts, Sophie, Dan & Evie (Sophie's kitten!). Thanks again guys!

I'll write again with my next update when I can. Internet has been a bit more intermittent since we've got up north, and we've been doing more excursions.

TTFN, and if I don't write again soon (I will try), happy Christmas everyone! Hope you all have a pleasant day, and maybe even get a white Christmas that doesn't muck up your festive plans!

Drive safely everyone.

xXx

Brisbane Baby

After our jaunt to the zoo, we decided we really should start making more plans for our trip up north, especially after we'd passed a sign on our way to the zoo saying it was over 1600 kms to Cairns (we're going further north to Port Douglas, and we've got less than a week to do it).

However, we soon got distracted when Sophie & Dan suggested an outing to Mt Tamborine, which we had heard was a good place to go. So we readily accepted their invitation and headed off up the mountain to some lovely scenic views, cooler temperatures, distillery, vineyard, brewery & cheese factory - what brilliant combinations! I enjoyed a few tasters at the distillery before volunteering to be the designated driver later (only a few tiny tipples, and Dan is a policeman so I definitely wasn't going to risk any loss of license!). Anyone who knows me knows that I severely dislike wine and beer so I thought it was only fair that I let Sophie, Dan & Chris enjoy a brew or two.

So, after the distillery (which I would highly recommend), we headed off to the winery. It looked very swish and I was shocked to discover that the girl serving the others was currently studying for a degree in wine science... I wasn't shocked that she was doing a degree, I was shocked that a wine science degree existed - amazing! From what I hear of uni students, this could be a perfect excuse for your first year drinks - all in the name of research.After the wine we headed to the cheese factory which was on the same site as the brewery. We all had some tasters of various cheeses. My favourite being one called 'Cow Philly'. Now, if I'm honest, I can't remember that it tasted that great, but it was the name that caught me. It was the fact that when I asked the lady for a taster, she heard my accent and realised that I'd be familiar with the type of cheese it actually was - 'Caerphilly' (I'm not 100% on how you spell it). It was just a play on words... oh those hilarious Ozzies! So we each purchased some cheeses (we were having a picnic later) and then went to the brewery where the others had 4 small tasters each, before choosing a full sized drink.

Dan liked his so much that he even managed to persuade them to sell him a case for $40 less than it should've been. Now he's trying to convince Sophie that the next house they get needs to be big enough for a brewing tank thing (first picture) and the car (picture above)... I think she's coming round to the idea!

We drove a bit further and went for our picnic on the edge of the mountain. It had stunning views and is where a lot of hang gliders launch themselves from. It was also quite breezy which made the temperature more bearable. The only down side was literally that, we were on the downward slope of a mountain whilst it was windy - holding onto our lunch was a task in itself. I made efforts to be healthy with the salad that Sophie had kindly prepared, but half the lettuce just flew down the mountain! So I stuck with the cheese I'd bought which was yummy (and heavier, so not so prone to rolling down the hill).

All in all it was a great day out. We even got home safely, despite the long detour down the other side of the mountain (very windy and narrow), and the navigator's falling asleep just as we needed their direction the most! Fortunately they woke up just in the nick of time and the day had a happy ending.

Cheers Sophie & Dan! x

Time flies when you're having fun

I know you've all been waiting with baited breath for my next blog instalment, and I can promise you it's gonna be a good'un! Well, maybe not promise but I've got to keep you interested somehow!

Since I last wrote, we've done lots.... swam at the beach, swam at a lake, relaxed, etc. So let's start where I left off, I'll try to keep it brief but you know me! We met Chris' old school friend Lindsay, and his girlfriend Lisette in Sydney for a drink under the Opera House. This involved going via the Manly ferry which is a really nice scenic view, one of which you can see to the left (Chris isn't part of the scenery usually).

Chris hadn't seen this guy since he was 11, it was a Facebook reuniting, so when we'd got our seat at the bar (swooped in like vultures to an only-just-vacated table - the place was heaving), I suddenly wondered how on earth they were going to recognise each other. I thought perhaps we should've bought a white carnation or something! Anyhow, they eventually found each other and it was a really nice evening. We sat & chatted, drank lovely drinks, ate lovely food and generally soaked up the Sydney atmosphere into the evening. We then realised we were about to miss our ferry back and cut the evening short to leg it for the ferry (which we made just in the nick of time).

The next day we left Sydney off on our next road trip. After much deliberation about where we would stay, we chose to go to a little place further inland called Belinger. This was about a 7 hour drive, but it was less than we'd done previously so we didn't mind. We phoned up the hostel though and they were really concerned. When we got there I realised why. This place is just sooo laid back, I think they must've thought we'd be really rushing ourselves to get there. We were now in the warmer climates, almost a bit too unbearable to be honest because suddenly there were lots of nasty bugs! When I say nasty, they were perfectly harmless, but I have discovered in recent years that I have a growing fear of beetles, I almost hate them more than spiders.

Anyhow, enough about the creepie crawlies! We went out for dinner at a really nice restaurant, probably too nice for the likes of us. I had some fish thing, Chris had some steak thing, neither of which were described as 'thing', both of which had some fancy French name that went with them! So fancy that they didn't even do apple juice...

The next day we set off for our alternative to Byron Bay (which was all booked up), Lennox Head, via another beach town called Yamba. Lennox Head is a bit further south than the famous Byron Bay, but I would say it is equally, if not more great. The location is a bit smaller in that it's not as built up, but the surf is still amazing. Unfortunately for Chris, he turned up with a sore ear and after a trip to the local medical centre, it turned out he has an ear infection & can't get his ear wet for a while! Never mind, we found plenty of other stuff to keep us amused. Initially we were both in the wars as my cold was just getting to its peak, so guess what? We had another rest (life is tough)! Then we started to enjoy the pace of life at Lennox Head. We went to the lake which is fed by nearby trees which have Tanning in it, which makes the lake brown. Apparently this has medicinal properties or something. It was quite shallow so Chris was able to take a dip without getting his ear wet. It may've been medicinal, but the brown colour completely put us off, so we went to the nearby beach instead. I think the tadpoles swimming around didn't help! The nearby sea was excellent for surfers, and there were also people swimming. I paddled, but I was put off by the tiny Jelly fish that were being washed up. I'm sure they were harmless or there would've been no-one else there, but for a girl who hates seaweed when in the sea, jellyfish are a step up!

After Lennox Head, we headed out of the state of New South Wales to Brisbane, Queensland, where were were staying with our friend Sophie. We went via Cape Byron (with a lighthouse), ate lunch in Byron town and then drove to Surfer's Paradise, just because we had a bit of time to kill before we got to Sophie's. We had planned to meet Sophie at 8 and were most confused as there is an hour's time difference between NSW & QLD... unfortunately yours truly got it the wrong way round! So we spent the extra time in Surfer's Paradise. Those of you who read my blog last time will know that Surfer's Paradise isn't paradise when it rains. Fortunately it wasn't raining this time, but I still wouldn't class it as Paradise. After the other beach towns we had been to, this is just a very built-up town that didn't really have anything special going for it. Having said that, it was nice just to sit on the esplanade watching the waves until it was time to set off.

Yesterday we went to Australia Zoo. It was quite sad going here and seeing all the tributes to Steve Irwin and being reminded of all the great work he did for wildlife. The road that takes you to the zoo is called the Glass Mountains Road or something like that, but they have now renamed it to Steve Irwin Way in honour of the man himself. There were various Khaki shirts & shorts scattered around on stands with people's tributes to him, and loads of pictures dotted around (they've always been there, but it still makes you a bit sad for the family - seeing his big beaming smile everyday at the zoo must be both a comfort and a painful reminder).

We ate our lunch when we got there, overlooking the 'Crocoseum'. The Crocoseum, as you might imagine, is where lots of animal shows happen. We saw some snakes, we learnt about how endangered tigers are, we then saw the funniest show. There was this girl who looked after the birds, and it was her debut on the 'stage'. All the birds were flying around and she then did some audience participation. The volunteers had to make squawky noises to get the birds to come and land on them. As she set this flock of birds flying round the Crocoseum, the people would make the embarrassing noises and the birds would fly towards them. Only one chap was obviously too embarrassed to make the noise, and the birds promptly flew out of the Crocoseum never to be seen again in that show!!! I'm sure they went and got them back, but needless to say the show had to be cut short a little. I hope the lady has a better success rate next time!

After the birds came the Crocodiles. Well, Crocodile. His name was Sharky, named by Steve Irwin because of all the teeth he had. So that was comforting! It was educational though - Chris had previously told me how Crocs could run really fast even on land and if we met one we were basically going to be lucky to escape alive. This is an incorrect myth taught to him by a prior teacher (Steph & Leanne, beware!)... Crocs are extremely fast in water, but on land they are no match, as demonstrated by the picture on the right and the chap just calmly sat in front of a massive croc. They are not designed for land running. Mind you, nor am I so maybe I should keep my distance anyhow! We saw Kangaroos, Koalas, Tigers, snakes and various other wildlife. It was a thoroughly good day out. When we got back to Sophie & Dan's, they had got some stuff for a BBQ so we had beef burgers and kangaroo steak... I didn't feel too guilty!?

Well, that brings you up to date with my travels so far. Sorry for the massively long post after all that, it wasn't exactly brief at all! But compared to everything we've done since I last wrote, this is a very brief synopsis I can assure you!

I'll pop some more pics on Facebook sometime soon and update this post with a link - keep your eyes peeled over the next few days.

Take care

Hannah

xXx

Melbourne, Mallacoota & Manly

On Sunday we started to head towards Sydney. In my wisdom I thought it would be a great idea for us to drive from Melbourne to Sydney, as last time Louisa and I flew and missed out on what I thought was so much scenery.

To break up the journey, we decided to head for a little town called Mallacoota for the night. Lonely Planet said it would be good, and it was nice but we were too shattered to appreciate it properly. It seemed another world away, another generation even. We had driven about 8 hours to get there, and when we arrived at our "Hotel Motel", I confess to being relieved that we were only there for the night. We went in the bar, which felt very 'local-pub-for-local-people' to me. It seemed to be the main hub of the area though, and when we went through to the Bistro I wouldn't have believed the building was the same. The atmosphere changed completely into a very family/visitor-friendly dining area. The food was good - quite basic but nice. At least one of the guys serving did seem to resemble a character from Grease too, which made me smile.

The hotel had advertised wireless Internet, so we enquired about this and were met with great confused faces. It was as if they had never heard of the Internet, let alone wireless. After much searching around for someone who had heard of said Internet, they came back to suggest we went across the road to the Post Office. So we gave up and went back to planning our route the old fashioned way, by book & map!

This may all sound like I'm dissing Mallacoota, I'm not. I just think it was one of the more surreal places we've been to so far. In the morning they certainly redeemed themselves and gave us loads of maps to help us on our way. By this time we had decided we would not bother with Canberra as it would probably have been another several hour detour to somewhere with not much in it. Instead, we headed straight for Sydney. On our way out of Mallacoota we saw our first live Kangaroo staring straight at us (I didn't hit him). We'd seen loads of dead ones on the road, and the back of one at night time in Phillip Island, but this was the first wild one in broad daylight.

On the way to Sydney, we Stopped in a little town called Narooma which the Lonely Planet reckoned was a sleepy little village filled with retirees. It didn’t really seem filled with retirees, but it was quite sleepy – most places have their day off on Mondays. Doh! We managed to get some food at a pub though and it had really lovely views of the sea.

Oh, and at one point we had to stop at some rest rooms. Now, I'm not normally freaked out easily, but I didn't 'rest' in these rooms - there was an ant the size of a caterpillar on the floor and lots of other creepy crawlies. The loo wasn't a proper loo, and was worse than something you'd get at your average music festival. Yuk! Sorry, you probably didn't need to know all that, but as I'd gone through the experience I thought I should share it with everyone else!!

With regards to the drive from Melbourne to Sydney, in hindsight I am glad we drove it, but next time I think I'll fly again. Sydney is about a 12 hour journey from Melbourne. Mallacoota was still about 10 hours away from our final destination, Manly, just outside Sydney.

Manly is a lovely little beach side town. Chris and I went to the beach yesterday and practically got knocked out by the waves. I can see why surfing is so popular in Australia. We're staying in Manly Beach House, which is a hostel that boasts a 5 minute walk to the beach. Either I walk very slowly, or they should correct it to about 15 minutes but it's still close enough for me! In addition, they advertise a free 'washing machine' & cheap dryers, plus parking. The washing machine hasn't been delivered yet, I don't think there's a tumble dryer and we've had to move our car twice to allow builders to park in the drive! Still, the owner Dev makes up for it with his very cheerful, relaxed & friendly approach. The hostel is really clean and nice too so I'd still recommend the place to anyone coming to Manly. We went for a Japanese meal last night which was really nice. Hopefully we'll be able to find something a bit more Australian as we get up North.

I'm still not very well so we're still having to take it easy but as we're coming back to Sydney for New Year that suits me just fine. Better go now, we're off to Sydney city to meet an old school friend of Chris' who had no idea Chris was in Oz but had suggested that if he ever fancied a trip they should meet up for a drink. So that's what we're off to do. Small world!

To keep you going, here's some more photos which you should be able to access even if you're not on Facebook:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=137816&id=669980946&l=602e2911a5

Speak soon.

Hannah

xXx

Neighbours makes me sick!

Having got our early night on Friday, we got up at the crack of dawn on Saturday for breakfast (about 6.30ish, ready for brekkie at 7)... we had our last breakfast in St Kilda and then headed off to the bus stop ready to be picked up by our Neighbours tour bus at 8.05. I was pleasantly surprised when we got to the stop and discovered 2 other people waiting, who were Aussies!! I knew there had to be some Australians who liked the show!

The bus arrived and we headed into the city to collect the rest of the tour group (and seize the opportunity to buy a CD for the car journey - Dr Karl's band, Waiting Room, live at the Elephant & Wheelbarrow pub).

This tour was a bit more special than when I went with Louisa last time (sorry Lou!) as we actually got to meet a cast member (past or present) and see some of the set rather than just visit the street. Once we'd picked up the rest of the people for the tour we headed for Pin Oak Court, otherwise known as Ramsay Street.

We took lots of cheesy pictures in front of all the houses, and I educated Chris a bit more on who resided where.

After the street, we drove past 'Erinsbrough High' which is just another local school. Turns out the Neighbours tour is no longer allowed to stop outside because there were complaints from local residents! Plus, at the weekend it apparently gets used for Dog training classes which were just as fun to watch.

After the street, we headed to the studios. I was beginning to feel a little car-sick by this time though so had to have a little sit down and make Chris take lots of pictures for me. I actually felt like I could've been sick in the Lassiters grounds, but luckily I managed to hold back!

We then got back on the bus to head for our final stop, back at St Kilda, to meet the Neighbours 'star'. I think the actors must have something written into their contract to say that they have to come back and do various meet & greets with fans even after they've left, as we had Stuart on Monday, and then on the tour we met Janelle. Shame I was too ill to appreciate it really so I got an autograph but no cheesy picture. The reason? I'd just thrown up on the Neighbours tour bus 10 minutes before meeting her! And can you believe she accused me of having a big night out the night before!? I was almost ashamed to admit it was just motion sickness, but it did make me appreciate our car so much more - we were only on the bus tour a few hours in total, imagine how rubbish I'd have been on a proper Australian bus tour this time round!

There's nothing better to make you feel well again than a massive Chinese meal, so we headed back to China Town, to a different Chinese, and tried to order a slightly smaller meal than last time. We failed, but I still felt better for it!

We finally got our car and headed for Phillip Island, home of the Little Penguins (who also live all along the south coast of Australia). This particular place is all named after the IOW and has Penguin Parade (in Ventnor) - I did this last time I came to Australia too, but it was well worth repeating the trip. Especially as it wasn't raining this time round so I got to stay dry! The little penguins came up the beach as expected (I wonder if they've ever had a night where the penguins haven't 'performed'?) and after a while we went and watched them on the Board Walks. We watched what I think was a little family setting up home - Daddy making the nest, baby wandering off all over the place, and mummy beating the kid up to get it to tow the line and stay in one place!!

After this we headed back to our new YHA hostel, where we'd been upgraded to a Cabin (ooh, swish) and I had a really good night's sleep, ready for our long drive the next day.

Great Ocean Road

On Friday morning, Chris and I ventured onto the tram for one of the last times as we collected our car from Hertz that day. As you can see below, we have a big car from Victoria - the state that appears to love itself judging from the number plates.

Let me start by telling you about said car. It is the ultimate lazy person's car. I've never successfully driven an Automatic before, so was a bit nervous about getting one to take us round Australia (in my defence, I've only ever driven one down a very gravelly track for about 2 minutes). However I'm glad we got this one as it's so much easier for the random terrain we're covering (one minute flat, next minute mountainous hills). It also means I have to do nothing with my clutch foot, which is the first lazy part to the vehicle. Second is the Cruise Control. On the long vast stretches of road I don't even need to do much with the acceleration foot. Occasionally I'll brake, if I feel like it! I'm not sure how I'm going to cope when I get back to the UK!

Anyhow, enough about the car. As you may've guessed from this blog title, we took our car down the Great Ocean Road on Friday. It's not called the Great Ocean Road for nothing. It's both great in scenery, and great in size. Such a nice drive, albeit a bit bendy.

On our route was the famous surfing beach, Bells Beach (we took a picture then legged it). We also went & saw the lighthouse from the kid's TV show Round The Twist, as seen on the right.

In addition, we passed several hundred, what I can only assume were completely mad, cyclists who were doing some big Victoria bike ride. As far as I could tell, it was a bit like the London to Brighton bike ride, only bigger and with nicer beaches.

Anyhow, after we passed the millions of cyclists, we stopped for some lunch. Well, attempted to. Most of the towns along the Great Ocean Road seem to stop around lunchtime. That didn't deter us though, after we'd restocked our bellies we then drove on to the Twelve Apostles. Lots of rock formations off the coast. Those of you who have been in my lounge in the last 4 years will have already seen the picture on my wall. There wasn't much else at the site though as they were working on the visitor centre. There was a bird's nest above the loos though which some tourists seemed very interested in. So I tried to take a picture in case it was a rare species of some sort, but failed miserably. It just looked like I'd taken a picture of the public loos. Oh well.

After we'd done our sightseeing adventure, we headed back into St Kilda, Melbourne, armed with our 'Never Lost' system from Hertz. That's basically a Sat Nav or Tom Tom to you & I. We had to wrestle with it a bit - the guy in the Hertz shop said it gets a bit confused in cities. From what I could tell, it got a bit confused anywhere that we weren't sure of the route. There's a lot to be said about ye olde maps. Once it finally got us out of loads of little back-roads in Geelong, we wrestled with the road vs trams situation in the car (poor Chris) back at St Kilda and then got an early night ready for our Neighbours tour the next day...

Awesome Australia

Ok, so it's been a while since I last wrote. so I thought I would break my time down into mini blogs, this being the first. Let us first recap on what adventures we have had since my last blog...

1. I continued to have jetlag

2. I got Chris' cold

3. I got hayfever

4. I felt generally quite ill whilst in Melbourne

However, this did not stop me having a great time. I just had a more chilled out time - we did practically nothing between our Neighbours night on Monday up until Friday morning (except eat & sleep). Sure, we ventured into town, got some of the nicest coffee we've ever had, ate some of the biggest Chinese meals we'd ever consumed and generally mooched about, but being ill and jet-lagged had put a dampner on our energy levels.

As I say, we ate big Chinese meals - despite being ill, we made it to China Town on Wednesday, and it was full of lovely Chinese restaurants, one of which we chose to eat at. They say you can always tell a good Chinese restaurant when it is full of Chinese people. Well, the one we chose to eat in was certainly in that category. But so was China Town generally. Unfortunately, being the English tourists that we are, we didn't entirely get the etiquette of Chinese meals, and it turns out that their portions are HUUUUGGGGEEEE! We had some pork dumplings. I love these back home and there's never enough on the plate (about 4-6 tiny dumplings between 2). Not so here, no siree! 10, massive dumplings! We ordered a plate each too!! Then, for our main, I decided to get adventurous and had some meat noodle soup thing. Oh my, it was like spaghetti bolognese with soup on the side, and it too was massive! It was nice, but way too much for the two of us as Chris had also ordered something different (see his blog for details!).

Due to fullness/illness/tiredness/jet-lag-ness, we didn't eat dinner for the first few nights in Melbourne! We've now adapted to the time zones and the meal times though, so are gradually getting back on track.

On Sophie's recommendation, we went to a little place in Melbourne called Beer Deluxe. I had a refreshing Malibu & Coke (as I don't like beer). To your left, you will see a picture of Chris drinking the beer, and showing off the Beer Deluxe 'Beer Bible' which features fine ales from places such as Australia, Europe and... Dorset! (ok, I know Dorset is in Europe, but I was impressed they considered some beer from near us to be good enough to import Down Under).
Right then, don't want to bore you so this is the end of mini-blog one, more to follow!

Hannah

xXx

Tired Tuesday

We had a great night last night (I say we, I think Chris genuinely enjoyed it even if he was a bit overwhelmed by Dr Karl Kennedy's sex appeal with da ladeeez)! Sorry Louisa, but this one was way better than last time. For a start, 2/3 of the characters hadn't been written out or killed off this time, and the one that had was always a favourite of mine anyhow (Stuart, pictured left with me), and to top it off, Waiting Room (Dr Karl, aka Alan Fletcher's band) finished the evening off with a gig. Brilliant!

The brilliance only lasted so long however. Having tried all the tricks that people told me to get over jet lag (set my watch to Oz time at Heathrow, sleep on the plane from Singapore to Melbourne etc), I was disappointed to discover that it hadn't worked when I woke up 2 hours after having gone to sleep when I got in last night, and then proceeded not to sleep until, ooh, "wake-up o'clock"! So at about 9 when everyone else was getting up, I was just falling asleep. Doh.

As a result, today wasn't very active for either of us as poor Chris has a cold, and I had jet lag. So after a massive breakfast (breakfast is served til at least 3.30 round here!), a tram ride into the city and numerous cups of coffee, we decided to head back and chill out at St Kilda where we're currently staying. We grabbed some lunch and then headed back to the hostel where I watched my first episode of Neighbours since arriving. We've also planned/booked up some other stuff to do while we're here so it wasn't a complete waste of a day.

I have added some pictures of the trip so far to Facebook. I don't think you need to be on Facebook to be able to see them, just follow the link below:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=136223&id=669980946&l=4815a28225

Hope everyone is well. I've fought off sleeping all day and am now off to get some well-deserved sleep!

N'night.

Hannah

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