Thursday 25th October 2007

The hostel is fantastic although having no door is an abslute pain in the arse! ALL NIGHT there were people walking past, chatting and making loads of noise - plus it was absolutely freezing underground. I woke up at 9am and Nikki had already had a shower, so I quickly got up and had one before having bacon sarnies for our breakfast and then checking out of the hostel.

Once we were out of the hole and back up on the surface we went out exploring around the strange town that is Coober Pedy. We started by walking next door into the underground Church - which has literally been dug into the floor. Apparently, most of the people live underground here, and if they want extra rooms in their 'dug-outs' - they're within their rights to just start chipping through the walls!

Next we walked to the edge of town and booked ourselves onto an opal mining tour for this afternoon. Before we went on that we did some more exploring. We went in a couple of shops and even a museum - all of which were either underground or built into a huge hill. We managed to walk up to one of the highest points of town and looking down was quite surreal. If we'd not know better we'd have thought that nobody lived here - and that the town was only half built. There are only a handful of buildings on the surface! Coober Pedy looks like the surface of a planet in a sci-fi film. It's even been used in a couple, including Mad Max!

This afternoon we went on Tom's Real Mining Tour, which - as the name suggests - is a tour of a working mine. We got to see all the opal mining machinery on the surface, before going 45 feet underground. It was amazing down there - with loads of tunnels going off in different directions. We could see little pieces of opal in the wall - and I even got the chance to try and mine for some! I was getting really excited, hammering away at the walls - and can definitely understand how people get hooked. Apparently someone made an opal find of over $483,000 just a few weeks ago, so you never know!

When we got back to town, we went into Tom's shop and, as we're in the opal capital of the world, bought Nikki an opal as a present. It's pretty big - and looks really sparkly! Afterwards, we came back to the hostel for some food and packed our bags before going back to the bus station.

This evening we boarded the bus for Adelaide, which set off at 7pm and is expected to arrive at about 6am... we hope!

Living underground is... interesting!

Wednesday 24th October 2007

We were up at about 8am this morning, because me, Nikki and Steve had decided that we'd move on from Alice Springs and head for Coober Pedy. We'd already booked our Greyhound tickets, so we checked out of the YHA and were on the bus stop before 10am to catch our bus.

The journey South took a couple of hours and we passed over from the Northern Territory and into Southern Australia. Almost as soon as we did the landscape changed. Southern Australia looked just like i'd imagined the Red Centre would - it was very barren, with just miles and miles of nothing. We made a couple of stops along the way and finally made it in to Coober Pedy at 6pm tonight.

There was a guy from the local hostel waiting on the bus stop, so we checked there was room and then went back with him to Radeka's Downunder Dugout Motel. From the outside the place looked like it was a tiny building, with a big hill behind it, but when we got inside we discovered that it was actually built INTO the hill. The three of us checked into a dorm and were shocked to find that, not only was it over 6 meters UNDERGROUND, but it was just a hole in the wall - that had bunk beds in - THERE WAS NO DOOR!

After sorting out our beds, we went and had some food for our tea and then went for a wander around the hostel, before coming back and chilling out in the (not so private) hole-in-the-wall.

6 meters underground? What are we... moles?

Tuesday 23rd October 2007

Last night was much clearer than the night before and Nikki and Steve both said they woke up in the middle of the night to a beautiful sky full of stars! We were allowed to sleep in this morning, and woke up at 6am. Once we'd packed our swags away, we had some breakfast and then drove onto Kings Canyon.

The Kings Canyon walk was even more demanding and straight from the start we knew what we were up against - the first climb was called 'Heart Attack Hill'. Kings Canyon was AMAZING! It was nowhere near the size of the Grand Canyon in America, but the good thing was we could walk right through it - up from the bottom and right across the top. Part of the walk took us into the Garden of Eden, which is quite greenl looking, with a large fresh water lake - but nobody swam.

After about 3 hours, when our walk was finished we re-boarded the bus and set off home. We stopped a couple of times - once for lunch, and then again on a camel farm - where we got out to stretch our legs and see the animals that live there.

We got back to Alice Springs at about 5.30pm and checked back into the YHA before having showers and then going out to a bar called Melanka - where everyone from the trip was meeting for food and drinks. The food was pretty pants - but the beer was free, so that was cool! We even entered a quiz with the locals and our team came second - we're not sure how though!

The Rock Tour... DEFINITELY the BEST tour we've done so far!

Monday 22nd October 2007

I have to say, sleeping in the swag last night was a lot more comfortable than I imagined! Everyone in the group was awake by 4.30am and we were all soon on the bus headed for the other side of Uluru - this time to watch the sunrise - unfortunately, the clouds were there too. The drive was only about 20 minutes, so we were there just after 5am and the sun wasn't due to come up until 5.50am. At this time of the morning, Uluru was definitely a different colour - it was pitch black. Pretty soon, the sun was starting to come up and the different sides of 'the Rock' were getting lighter - in different shades, at different times. Once the sun was high in the sky (and hidden behind the layer of cloud), we all boarded the bus and drove over to Kata Tjuta, which translates from Aboriginal as 'Many Heads'.

Kata Tjuta is actually more sacred to the Anangu men than Uluru is - because the whole site is considered to be so. According to Creation Stories, the 36 rock domes to be the heads of their creation ancestors. That's all we were told - because Anangu men are the only ones who know the full story.

Today the whole group did the full walk through 'The Valley of the Winds', which was 7.4km and took about 3 hours. Some of the views were spectacular. The rock domes are made of a different substance to Uluru - but are a similar colour and when it started to rain slightly, it turned from a reddish colour to a grayish green. The track was quite demanding - but the views were definitely worth the effort. After the long walk yesterday, Nikki wasn't sure if she'd enjoy this one - but she did, and she did it without moaning once... that's my girl!

After our walk we all re-boarded the bus and set off on a huge drive out of the Uluru / Kata Tjuta National Park and towards tomorrows destination - Kings Canyon. On the way, to break up the driving, we stopped at the side of the road at a place called 'Mount Connor Lookout', which is often mistaken to be Uluru - but is in fact MUCH BIGGER - it's huge! We had some lunch and then drove on for a few more minutes before pulling over and gathering some wood to make a camp fire tonight.

Late this afternoon, we pulled into Kings Creek Farm, where we're spending the night and unloaded the van. After a while, me and John (an Irish guy) were in charge of starting our camp fire, so that we could start cooking our tea. We spent this evening sat around chatting, trying to play the didgeridoo and heating marshmallows over the camp fire.

Boy... the Outback is AMAZING!

Sunday 21st October 2007

The alarm woke us up nice and early this morning - at about 5am, because Dom, our Outback tour driver was picking us up at about 6am. We'd already packed our bags last night so we got up, had some breakfast and then got on the bus. We did a couple of stops and then were headed South out of Alice Springs - on our way to the heart of the Red Centre.

It is almost 500kms from Alice to Uluru and so we were going to be making a couple of stops along the way - to break up our journey. Our first stop was on a farm, where Dom was able to refuel the bus and the rest of us could buy some beer. Although we only seen the petrol pumps and shop, the actual property was huge... it was roughly the same size as Holland!

We made a couple more stops and then made it to the Ayers Rock Resort, where we were gonna be spending the night. Dom checked us in and found our 'patch of dirt' we were gonna be sleeping on before we all jumped back on board and headed for... The Rock.

Before going to Uluru, we went to the Cultural Centre, which was just a short distance away - and we could see Uluru in the background. Despite seeing tons of pictures - it was still pretty spectacular when we saw it. As we approached it, the first thing I noticed was how it was a bright orange colour - and it was surrounded by thousands of trees. The soil is really red and the landscape is so hostile looking that you'd think NOTHING has a chance of growing there - but it does - and it's all quite green! The Cultural Centre explained how the site is sacred the the Anangu - who are Uluru's traditional owners. It also showed how they lived around the area - hunting for food and looking for water etc.

When we left the Cultural Centre, we did a drive around Uluru in the bus - to prepare ourselves for the size of it. When that was done we started to walk around the base of this HUGE rock. We walked for about 2kms as a whole group - and Dom told us the creation stories that he knew for various spots. Only parts of Uluru are sacred - and not the whole site. Only the Anangu know the stories for these parts - and even then you need to earn the right. Some parts are sacred to men - and the women don't know and others sacred to women, that the men will never know about!

Next it was time to decide on what 'walk' everyone wanted to do. As today's temperature was above 36° - climbing Uluru was out of the question (80-odd people have died trying to do so - so they close it if it's too hot), but seven of us decided that we'd still like to do walk the entire base - a total distance of 9.4km (Nikki included). The walk was fascinating! Uluru is massive - in some parts it just towers above you and is quite a sight. As there were clouds in the sky today (apparently for the first time in 5 weeks) it also kept changing colour as the sun passed behind them - from the orange, to red - to an almost purple colour. Apparently, if it rains, it can even turn a greenish colour.

Once everyone was back together on the bus we drove to the point in which we were going to watch the sunset. The viewpoint was packed, but we found a spot and Dom started to cook us some tea whilst the rest of us watched the sun go down. Even though the sky was quite cloudy the change in light still had an amazing effect on the colours. We ate our tea in the last of the sunlight and then headed back to our camp.

Tonight, we all had showers and then sat around chatting before setting up our swags (basically a mattress inside a thick sleeping bag thing) and sleeping in the big outdoors. Nikki was terrified that some creepy-crawly would climb in with her - but was much braver than I imagined she would be and fell asleep quite quickly. I decided not to tell her than Dom had spotted dingo tracks around our site!

Uluru... DEFINITELY worth a visit!

Saturday 20th October 2007

We woke up this morning at around 9am, after a good nights sleep (well, better than last night anyway). We got ready, had some breakfast, and then decided we'd go exploring. We took a walk into town and up a massive hill to the Anzac Hill War Memorial - where there were fantastic views over Alice Springs. Afterwards we had a look in a few of the shops including an opal factory - where they had a thermometer (in the shade), which was reading 100°!

This afternoon we explored some more. Firstly we found an internet shop and went in to book a mini holiday, (we're starting to feel we need a rest). We booked two flights to Tasmania for 7th November (I still can't keep Nikki out of the travel agents, even though we're on the biggest holiday ever, oh and the smallest budget!). We're going to stay there for 10 days and do some exploring, we'll probably rent a car too. Afterwards we went to the Old Hospital building, the historic Gaol (which unfortunately was closed), and had a look around an Art Gallery at all the Aboriginal paintings.

Tonight we packed our bags for our 3 day camping trip tomorrow, had our showers and then had some tea.

A holiday on a holiday, have you ever heard anything like it? Obviously Nikki has!

Friday 19th October 2007

The bus finally rolled into Alice Springs at about 9am this morning. In total, we'd been on the road for nearly 16 hours. I think Nikki slept for most of it - she did wake up when we made the occasional stop, but no sooner were we back on the bus, then she was asleep again (I don't know how - trying to get comfortable was a nightmare). I on the other hand slept for about an hour and a half... brilliant!

We made quite a few stops on the way down - in some of the places that we'd stopped on the way up, but once we'd passed the Threeways Junction (where we turned right onto the Stuart Highway with Bruce) - we were in new territory for us. On one of our stops, in a place called Tennant Creek, we were walking around waiting for a driver change - when Nikki bumped into the guy she used to go to school with in St George - he's called Steve! He didn't remember her, because he's a few years older but they were soon chatting away, and we found that he was also heading for Alice Springs... cool!

As usual, we didn't have anywhere to stay in Alice Springs - but Steve said he was staying at the YHA, so we took a walk there and, thankfully, managed to book in. We couldn't go to our room straight away so we went for a walk instead. When we were out and about we came across a company, that people have been raving about, who do tours out to Uluru (Ayers Rock) - so we went in to check it out. We ended up booking a 3-day tour for ourselves and when they asked if we wanted to hire sleeping bags? I asked, "If I can get you another customer, can we have them for free?" - the guy said yes, and then Nikki text Steve - because we knew he was gonna book too - he was just having some breakfast first (ha ha). So, all three of us got sleeping bags... for free!

With our 'Rock Tour' booked (where were gonna be sleeping under the stars - in swags), we took advantage of the free internet and then went into town. The first thing we did was some food shopping for our lunch. We bought some bits and also a 'cooked chook' - we then came back to the hostel and had chicken & salad sarnies.

This afternoon, we went to the Royal Flying Doctor Service Base & Museum - which was very interesting! It's the actual place from which emergency aeroplanes are sent out into the remote Outback towns that don't have a doctor of their own. The guys are doing a fantastic job - and it was brilliant to see!

Tonight, we came back to the hostel and I had a swim in the pool - but when I got out, I fell asleep in the chair - Nikki said I looked like an old man, with my magazine on my chest. Afterwards we both had showers and then had some tea. We had crusty roll and dips - which was all a bit posh for me, so I had a chicken leg as well. We decided to have an early night, because we were exhausted, so jumped into bed and watched the first episode of the current X Factor series - which I'd downloaded for Nikki. Nikki was in tears the whole way through, and if thats a sign of things to come, then I might have to delete the rest (he he)!

Nikki sleeping in the Outback in a swag - with all the creepy-crawlies... I can't wait to see that!

Thursday 18th October 2007

We were up bright and early this morning - for two reasons really. One was to get out of the sweatbox as quickly as possible, and the other was to book a trip to Katherine Gorge. We managed to get ourselves booked onto the 8am bus, (nothing like forward planning!), and had some breakfast before we left.

The journey to the Gorge took about 30 minutes and we were soon queueing up to collect our double canoe to paddle up the river, through the Gorge... boy was it a bumpy ride!

No sooner had we sat in the canoe when the arguments started - Nikki told me I wasn't allowed to get her wet - me explaining that we were sat in a huge river fell on deaf ears. The ride through the Gorge was beautiful, and it was something else hearing our arguing bouncing off the huge rock walls. It went something like this... "I TOLD YOU NOT TO GET ME WET", "I SAID PADDLE LEFT NOT RIGHT" and my personal favourite "THAT'S IT, I'M GETTNG OUT - I'D RATHER BE IN WITH THE CROCODILES THAN YOU!".

We paddled for about an hour up to the end of the first Gorge and stopped at a small beach. I went for a walk to look for some Aboriginal rock paintings while Nikki sat in the shade (it was about 38°). After an hour or so, we headed back. This time I sat in the front to see if it would make any difference - and it did, our paddling got worse and we ended up going around in circles. We saw loads of crocodile nesting areas and Nikki thought she saw something in the water too. Apparently they're only freshwater crocs and you're safe with those, but we didn't hang around to find out!

When we were safely back on dry land, I went for a walk up to the viewpoint, while Nikki went to the visitor centre for a cold drink and look around. We met up afterwards to share stories, and then caught the shuttle back to town.

This afternoon, we bought some food for our lunch and then hung around the hostel until 5pm when we headed to the coach station and got on the 5.15pm Greyhound heading for Alice Springs. The journey to Alice is almost 16 hours, so we spent the rest of the evening on the bus...

Next time we hire canoes - we're getting two, so that I can paddle away!

Wednesday 17th October 2007

We woke up this morning, not long before checking out time because we were smart enough to pack our bags last night. We got ourselves ready and then went and had some breakfast before checking out and then just hanging around the hostel. When it got to about 10.45am, we took a walk down to the Greyhound Terminal, to catch the coach to Katherine. We dropped off our bags and then I went to get us a smoothie from Boost.

The Greyhound turned up slightly late - and that pretty much set the tone for the rest of the journey. First, as we were leaving Darwin, the driver suddenly remembered that he'd forgot to collect some post and then it was just a massive drive South. The good thing was that the Greyhound was air-conditioned... yippee!

We made a couple of stops along the way - but only in places we'd already seen with Bruce. We arrived in Katherine (where Nikki randomly bumped into someone she used to go to school with!) at some time between 3 and 4pm and in our old tradition - had not bothered ringing ahead to book any accommodation, so when we asked at the desk in the Coach Terminal about availability - we were told that there was only one hostel with spaces - and that they only had dorm rooms. We should've known what we were getting ourselves in to, when we found out that the hostel was called Kookaburras Palm Court...

The hostel seems ok - it's a little bit rough around the edges - but we've seen far worse on this trip, and so we checked into our room. We're sharing with 2 girls. one is from Germany and the other is local from Katherine. When we arrived she was led on the bed with the curtains drawn and no air-conditioning on. Walking into the room was like walking in a sweat shop - it was really hot and stuffy, so we though we'd go out exploring instead.

We had a look around Katherine and then headed back to the hostel for some food. When we were out we found a little cinema, and it was 'cheap Wednesday'. We thought we'd go and watch a film, (even though I think we've seen more than Jonathan Ross lately), but we wanted to eat first. When we got back to the hostel, the heat had made us totally lose our appetites - so we sat chatting with the other travelers before going to watch Evan Almighty later on. The staff were really pleased to see us - because they said we were the only customers they'd had all night. They even let us in for cheap - charging us less than child price ($5 instead of $10).

We worked out that, in Australia, we've spent almost $70... on smoothies!

Tuesday 16th October 2007

Yesterday's trip to Kakadu obviously wiped us out - because we didn't wake up this morning until after 11am - and even then we stayed in bed till 12pm. We only got up at that time because we were hungry, so we had showers and then went for breakfast.

This afternoon we went into town to book our seats on the Greyhound, heading South. With that sorted Nikki exchanged some books, so that she's got a new one for the journey and then... I went to get my hair cut! We've been away for 6 months today and, I admit it - it's a mess! That's it though, I won't get it cut again until I get home and Jason can have a go at it. Afterwards we went food shopping, before coming back to the hostel and having some tea.

We went to the cinema again this evening - it so lovely and cool in there, plus it was Bargain Tuesday - so we couldn't pass it up. We watched a film called 'The Brave One', staring Jodie Foster, which was pretty good - before coming back to our hostel to pack our bags for tomorrow.

WOW, 6 months! I hope the next 6 months are as much fun as the last!

Monday 15th October 2007

This morning we were up at 5.25am, so that we could have some breakfast before the bus picked us up for our trip to Kakadu National Park, which was a 3 hour drive away. Even at 6am, we could tell today was gonna be a hot one!

Our first stop of the day was at an Aboriginal Cultural Centre, where we got to learn about the history of the Park and the Aborigines that have lived there in the past. Next, we went on a boat cruise on the Yellow Waters River, which was great! We got to see loads of different birds - plus we saw about 6 or 7 crocodiles - one of which, swam right up past the boat. We also saw a Water Buffalo, which is apparently VERY rare - because a few years ago, the Park owners tried to eradicate them, because of the damage they were causing!

After lunch, we were taken to an Ancient Aboriginal Art Site, where we were shown some really old rock paintings - and told the meaning behind them. The walk between the different paintings took about half-an-hour and it was very hot. I asked the guide how hot it gets, and he said that last week it was about 45°. At the end of the walk, we were taken to a place the Aborigines called Dreamland, which had amazing views of the park. We were also told that this was where some of Crocodile Dundee 2 was filmed... cool!

Our last stop of the day was at a beautiful Billabong, where we got to take pictures with wildlife drinking from the water in the background. Afterwards, we re-boarded the bus and drove back to Darwin.

I'm getting used to the heat up here in the Northern Territory, but the flies are a right pain!

Sunday 14th October 2007

We got up this morning and decided that we'd have a day by the pool. We had some breakfast and then did some washing. The weather is so hot that it was dry in about 20 minutes!

This afternoon, we thought we'd go out to stretch our legs and found Darwin's old Town Hall, which was destroyed by Cyclone Tracy some years back. Apparently, Darwin has been built four times because of different reasons! On our way back to the hostel we went shopping and bought some salad and a fresh chicken, which we had for our dinner.

We chilled out for the rest of the afternoon and then this evening Nikki did a Skype call with Veniesa, her old supervisor from Lloyds TSB - and caught up on all the latest gossip from Bristol. Afterwards we did a Skype call with my Mum and Keith. We didn't have any food tonight, and so once the Skype calls were finished, we went out for a milkshake from Baskin-Robbins.

11pm... is there a better time for a Baskin-Robbins Strawberry Milkshake?

Saturday 13th October 2007

We woke up this morning in our little double room - and I have to say, in the nick of time - no sooner had I opened my eyes and said 'hello' to Nikki, when some slats fell out of the stupid bed! With that, we got straight up and went had had some free pancakes from the hostel kitchen - before checking out and moving to the hostel directly opposite - the YHA.

Once we had dumped our bags in the YHA we went out for a nice walk. We walked all along the Esplanade again - but this time in the opposite direction. When we made it back to the centre, we were both really thirsty and had a smoothie each.

This afternoon we booked to go to Kakadu National Park on Tuesday and then caught the bus to a place called Fannie Bay - where we went to the Museum and Art Gallery. Both were really cool, filled with all sorts of Aboriginal art and history.

When we got back later this evening, we got ready and then went out to Nando's for some food. Apparently it's new to Darwin, so we were really lucky to get a table - it was packed! Afterwards we came back and did a Skype call with Nikki's Mum and Katie. It was really nice to see them for the first time in 6 months, although I think we were more excited than they were, because at one point or another, during the call, they both got up and walked away - at one point, both at the same time!

With that call ended, Nikki rang her Grandma Iles to wish her a Happy Birthday - and also got to speak to her Uncle Bob - so all in all, quite a good evening on the family side!

Even free pancakes weren't enough to keep us at the Wilderness Lodge - the place stank!

Happy Birthday Grandma Iles!

Friday 12th October 2007

Seeing as Darwin was in touching distance, we allowed ourselves a little extra time in bed this morning, and woke up at 7.30am. Before doing anything else, we ran over to the swimming pool and went for a swim - it was lovely and warm - both in and out of the water. Afterwards we had showers, had some breakfast and then moved on.

We had no problems getting into the city of Darwin and drove around looking for a hostel. We booked into one, Wilderness Lodge, for one night and then went for a smoothie before returning Bruce back to Britz Car Rentals. They were really impressed with us, because we got the van there using less kilometers than what their chart says it should take!

When we got back to the centre we went out exploring and then came back to the hostel for some lunch. Afterwards we went out exploring again and went for a nice walk along the Esplanade, which took us past Parliament House.

Tonight we went to the cinema, to watch a British comedy called Death At A Funeral, which was VERY funny! It was also really cool (temperature wise) in there, so that made us happy too - it's about 34° outside, which although is cooler than what it was in the Outback, is still taking some getting used to.

Goodbye Bruce - thanks for the lift!

Happy 40th Birthday Jason!


Distance travelled today: 46km Distance travelled in total: 2851km

Thursday 11th October 2007

OH! MY! GOD! I have to admit it - Nikki was right - this is the HOTTEST we have ever been! Because we're in the centre of Australia, the minimum temperature at night is about 35° - but in our small van, where we're tucked about 6 inches from the ceiling, it feels more like 135°. We were so uncomfortable last night that, when we woke up at 2.45am, we almost started crying because we couldn't start driving with the air-con on again for another couple of hours.

We eventually woke up at about 7.30am - and after getting ready and checking that Bruce was still ok, we set off. I don't know how but, when we were switching the air-con on this morning, we accidentally turned it off - meaning the only air that was coming through the vents was warm. All the way to our first stop in Mataranka, Nikki was moaning that she was melting (or something like that) and I have to say - it was hard going. I did try opening the window, but that just made things worse. Luckily on the way into the town, we passed a mechanics and he kindly told us what was wrong. Nikki left a much happier (and cooler) little girl. We did plan on visiting the 'thermal pools', but because of the heat, thought it was a waste of time - if they were 'ice pools' - we'd have been there in a shot! We did stop to look at the biggest Termite mound we have ever seen though!

Around lunchtime we got to the town of Katherine, where we stopped and did some shopping, before eating some lunch in the back of the van. We didn't bother going to the National Park, because we figured we'd stop when we're coming back down on the Greyhound - it'll give us a chance to break up our journey. Instead, we left and just decided that we'd try and get as close to Darwin as we can - so that we don't have much driving to do tomorrow, and we'll have no problems in getting the van back on time.

We eventually stopped this evening in a place called Howard Springs, which is just 23kms outside of Darwin. Along the way we stopped to change places (Nikki has been a great help with the driving) in Pine Creek and then Adelaide River. In Adelaide River, we had a longer break and went to visit the WWII War Cemetery - the last person to visit before us, was from Bath - it said so in the comments book.

After being shown to our patch, we set up the van and then went for a swim - which was brilliant - just what we needed to cool us down after being so hot all day. We were in the pool until well after the sun had set - and even then, the heat dried us off before we'd got back to the van. We then had a Thai green chicken curry for our tea.

Not far now - were almost in Darwin!


Distance travelled today: 562km Distance travelled in total: 2805km

Wednesday 10th October 2007

Nikki had real trouble sleeping last night and so she was up and about before 6am this morning. She'd already had a cold shower and got herself dressed long before I'd opened my eyes - I have to admit - it was already feeling like today was gonna be a hot one!

We left Barkly Homestead at about 7.15am and set off West (in the same direction we've been traveling for the last two days). The roads are so long and straight out here in the Northern Territory that when we eventually came to the Stuart Highway turning, i'd totally forgot how to use the indicators! We turned right and were finally heading in another direction - we'd travelled almost half way across Australia - and now it was time to start heading North.

Just after joining the Stuart Highway we pulled into a place called the Threeways Roadhouse (because you can only go North, South or East). It was still quite early, but we were exhausted so we took advantage of the 'Driver Reviver' and then Nikki took over the driving.

Our next stop was Renner Springs, but only so we could swap places and drink more coffee (I can't believe we drink hot coffee when the heat outside is unbearable - it's surprising what you'll do when you're thirsty). I took over and we carried on. Next, we stopped in a small place called Elliot. This time we had a drink and then had a sarnie in the back of the van.

We set off on the last leg of todays journey, blasting through Newcastle (where the landscape stopped looking all red, and started turning green again), and then finally stopping in a place called Daly Waters. We chose a site that was right on the main road and then set up camp for the night. We hung around the bar having a couple of drinks and watching the TV (we still can't believe Sally has a daughter in Home & Away - where did she come from?) before having some food in the restaurant. Just before coming to bed we got into a bit of an argument with one of the barmen. We were sat outside watching the frogs catch bugs when all of a sudden he came out, stood on one and then kicked it across the carpark. We couldn't believe it - and when we told him we thought it was a bit unnecessary, he started getting all loud. He even picked it up by it's leg to show us that it wasn't dead (which was worse - it was probably in loads of pain). Eventually we came back to the van to get away from him, but sat up for ages - terrified he was gonna do something to Bruce. Thankfully, he didn't... the prat!

The only problem with all this driving is that only my right arm is getting a sun tan!


Distance travelled today: 566km Distance travelled in total: 2243km

Tuesday 9th October 2007

The couple we were talking to last night had a look on the internet and warned us that it going to reach about 39° today - so we decided we wanted to try and get as much driving done as we could before the sun was too high at about 2pm. We had our breakfast and then set off...

Surprisingly, the landscape is still quite green at the moment - it's not quite as lush a colour as it is in 'tropical' Queensland, but there are still lots of trees everywhere. After a couple of hours driving, we stopped in a place called Cloncurry - to stretch our legs and put some diesel in the van. We bought some bottled water from a small supermarket and then Nikki took over the driving. She drove for over 100km to our next stop (we're trying to stop every 1-2 hours or so), which was called Mount Isa. We knew when we were getting close because the land suddenly went from really flat to really red and rocky.

Mount Isa was quite a big town and we stopped in McDonalds for some lunch before hitting the road again. When we were about 20km outside of the town the landscape suddenly changed back from the red rocks to the long grass and small bushes - only this time the grass was almost white - if you looked out towards the horizon, it looked like a huge shag carpet.

The next place we came to was called Camooweal, which is the last town in Queensland before you cross over into the Northern Territory. Nikki stopped to use the toilet and told me to walk around for a bit to stretch my legs - but it was nearly impossible. The wind was blowing really strong and the heat was unbearable - it was like standing in front of a huge hairdryer - so instead I sat in the passenger side and did my stretches from there.

We had almost done our 500km for the day and so we weren't sure how much further we were going to drive today - and the couple from last night told us about a 'campsite' they'd stayed at in a place called Avon Downs - so we thought we'd check that out. About 15 minutes after leaving Camooweal we crossed over the border into the Northern Territory and into a new time zone - we had to put our clocks back by half-an-hour - and I felt younger straight away! We reached the site at Avon Downs after about 45 minutes and were surprised to see that all it was, was a large picnic site with a toilet - and a police station on the other side of the road (I don't know who they're protecting or serving - they're in the middle of nowhere!). We stopped to have a cup of free coffee that you find every now and again, which is to encourage drivers to stop, but then decided we didn't want to stay here and moved on.

After a couple more hours (so much for stopping before the sun was too high), we finally found a place to stop. It was called Barkly Homestead and it's a million miles from anywhere - and this was reflected in the petrol prices - we had to pay $135 to fill up our tank! We set up the van and then had showers before having some fried eggs and bread for our tea. Later on we went into the onsite pub for a couple of drinks and to watch the TV - we tried to stay in there as long as we could because it was air-conditioned and outside was really sticky. We came to bed at about 10pm and jumped into 'the furnace' - or campervan to everyone else, and did our best to fall asleep in the sweltering heat.

We've seen hundreds of kangaroos on this road trip - unfortunately, they've all been dead at the side of the road - we've not seen 1 live one yet... d'oh!


Distance travelled today: 696km Distance travelled in total: 1677km

Monday 8th October 2007

OH! MY! GOD! When we were in a campervan in New Zealand, all Nikki did was complain about how cold she was! Well, now we're in one in Australia - it's the exact opposite - apparently, this is the HOTTEST she has ever been! I do agree that it is very hot (I don't tell her that) - but it's not that bad... yet!

We woke up at 6.30am this morning so that we could get an early start, but by the time we'd farted-about and got going it was about 7.45am. As we didn't manage to do our planned 500km yesterday, we thought we'd do a few extra today and hit the road.

Not far out of Townsville, we hit the 'Northern Outback' - and this place has to be seen to be believed! At first, everything was a lush green colour and quite busy, but after a while all the traffic disappeared and the landscape suddenly became a very dry looking green colour and was flat for as far as the eye could see!

The first place we stopped today, was a place called Charters Towers, which was only small - but it had a garage so we stopped and filled the van up with diesel. There wasn't much else about, so we moved on - to a place called Hughenden, where we had some lunch in the back of the camper and sent some postcards home. Next we stopped in a place called Richmond. We got out to stretch our legs and bought some ice creams, which we ate whilst looking around the small town. Judging by the things we read, at some point or another, every building that has stood in the spot of the current pub - has been destroyed by fire. It was safe to say - we didn't stop for a drink!

We moved on a made our final stop of the day in a place called Julia Creek. We found a small campsite and then went out for a walk. This place in tiny - there is one main street and all the buildings look like they been stolen from the set of a western. It was so hot walking around, we went back to the campsite and jumped into the small (cool) hot tub they had - that had a view out over the outback. It was the perfect way to wind down after a hard days driving.

This evening, we cooked some pasta on our small gas stove and then sat chatting to a couple who have been on the road... for over 8 years! Thankfully, by now, the millions of flies had finally gone. We'd spent most of the afternoon running away from them - they were everywhere - and even tried flying into our eyes and ears! Going to brush our teeth before bed was a bit of an adventure... it was pitch black, and so we took our torch and I went into the ladies to keep Nikki company. When we'd finished and were about to leave, when we saw the BIGGEST frog I have ever seen guarding the door - it was about the size of my head. I told Nikki not to panic, that the toilets were a great place to sleep the night, but then the frog moved, so we could go back to the van... happy days!

Boy is it hot - i'm never gonna complain about being cold again!


Distance travelled today: 634km Distance travelled in total: 981km

Sunday 7th October 2007

We were up earlier than usual this morning - so that we could have some breakfast and make sure our bags were packed, so that we could check out at about 9.30am. With all that done, we walked down to the campervan rental place - and got there at about 10am. We filled out all our paperwork and then were given the keys to our new home for the next 6 days - a 4wd campervan - it's awesome and we called it Bruce (because the road South is called the Bruce Highway)! After collecting our bags from the Bohemia Resort, we set off on our road trip to Darwin, and said goodbye to Cairns.

The campervan company had told us that they'd like for us to take the van down the East Coast to Townsville and then cut across Queensland into the Northern Territory. From there, we would head North to Darwin. The total distance is about 2900(ish) kilometers and we're only allowed to drive between dawn and dusk - driving outside of these hours increases the risk of hitting wildlife! With all that in mind, we started heading South...

We drove the exact same route on which the Greyhound had travelled (but obviously in the opposite direction) and everything went really well. The weather was beautiful - it was about 29° - and we had some good tunes on the radio. Not long after we'd passed by Mission Beach, we pulled into the same road side café as we'd ate in on the way up... and had fish & chips again.

Because of the large distance we have to drive before Friday, we decided that we wanted to do 500km a day - but by the time we'd reached Townsville it was about 5pm so we thought we'd stop and set up camp for the night. As the camp was quite out of town, we just parked up and ate in the café that's on site before hanging around the site and then going to bed. This campervan is slightly different to the one we had in New Zealand - the bed is up by the ceiling - so I hope it doesn't collapse in the night!

Oh, I did wonder why people seemed to be ignoring me today - then I realised it was because I was wearing my England shirt, and England beat the Aussies in the Rugby World Cup last night... come on England!

Yippee! On the road again!


Distance travelled today: 347km Distance travelled in total: 347km

Saturday 6th October 2007

We woke up at about 8.30am this morning, but were both still absolutely knackered, so after breakfast we just chilled out by the pool for a couple of hours.

Afterwards we ventured into town for a look around. We used the internet in Travel Bugs for the last time and then went to Rusty's market, where we bought a fresh pineapple. We were so hot - all we wanted to do was cool off in the pool, so we caught the bus back and spent the rest of the afternoon at the hostel.

We sat by the pool for a couple of hours, and when the sun went down Nikki went off to phone Nicola for a chat. When she got back, we had showers and got ourselves ready, had some noodles for our tea and then went out to Dunwoody's, where we watched the Man Utd vs Wigan game and the start of the England vs Australia rugby match.

Goodbye Cairns - we're going on a road trip!

Happy Birthday Mum!

Friday 5th October 2007

The alarm woke us up at 6am this morning - because we'd booked to go scuba diving on the Great Barrier Reef. The first thing I did, before getting ready, was to fall straight back asleep for another 20 minutes! Luckily, I woke up in enough time for us to get ready and get down to the Reef Fleet Terminal for check-in, by 7.30am. We did start walking, but when the Bohemia bus passed us after about 5 minutes - we were happy to jump in! Once we were all checked, we filled in our paperwork and then relaxed as the catamaran set off.

Our first stop of the day was a place called Saxon Reef, which was quite a way off the coast! The catamaran set off at about 8.40am and we had our safety briefing (which was at the Reef) at 9.45am. We were told that, as we were introductory divers, we'd all be taken down to see the Reef in groups of four - one group at a time. We were group 5, so had about an-hour-and-a-half to do what we wanted. We were only having one dive today - but could do as much snorkeling as we liked! Me and Nikki didn't hang about - we dived straight in!

The water was fantastic today - it was about 25° and a gorgeous crystal blue. We were out for ages, snorkeling about - looking at all the different coral and fish. The coral didn't seem to be as bright as it was on the Whitsundays - but it was still pretty fascinating. Our time passed really quickly and we were soon being called for our scuba dive - I couldn't wait, but Nikki was terrified - she was worried about her ears exploding, running out of air and... getting eaten by a shark!

We started by getting fitted with our oxygen tanks and weight belts and then sitting on the edge of the water whilst everything was checked. In no time at all we were all in the water doing our safety tests. Test 1 was to clear water from our masks and Test 2 was to remove you mouth-piece, blow bubbles and then put it back in - all about 6 feet under water. We all passed fine and we were soon linking arms and setting off into the deep.

Nikki dived for about 10 minutes, to a depth of about 5 or 6 meters, but then decided she didn't want to do anymore (I think she felt quite restricted with me hanging on her arm). I was so proud of her though - for weeks, as we've been seeing companies offering dives on the Reef, she's been saying she doesn't know if she'll do it, she's scared, but she gave it a go and the instructor was really proud of her. So was I - what a gal!

The rest of us continued for another 10 minutes and got down to about 12 meters - it was crazy down there - a completely different experience to the snorkeling. The coral was huge and we were coming to walls of it that looked about 20 feet high. We didn't see much different to what Nikki saw, so that was good (for her) - but we did get to swim through some underwater valleys and I got to see some massive fish and picked up some Sea Snail things, which are like giant, furry cucumbers.

I got back on the boat just in time for lunch. I loaded my plate up (we had an Aussie BBQ of fish, steak, sausages and all sorts of salad) but when I sat down to eat I came over all weird - I think I came to the surface too quickly and so I had a quick snooze. I woke up about half an hour later feeling much better - and amazingly my food was still there, so I ate that and then found we were at our second stop - Hastings Reef.

We didn't go snorkeling straight away. Instead we got on a glass bottom submarine thing and went for a tour of the reef. As the tide had just changed the water was quite cloudy - but we still got to see loads of cool coral - some of which was about 100 years old. We also saw a Reef Shark having a quick nap on the bottom and we saw Nemo - he was hiding, but we spotted him... finally! When we got back to the catamaran I quickly put my wet-suit on and went snorkeling again. Nikki didn't bother because she didn't know if she'd dry again in time for when we got back - so I went out on my own. The coral was much the same, but there were thousands more fish - all different shapes and sizes - and all amazing bright colours. When everyone was safely back on board we headed back to Cairns.

This evening we hung about in the centre - sat at the Lagoon, chatting about how brilliant scuba diving was - and how cool it was that our first dive was on the world-famous Great Barrier Reef. Then we caught the free bus back to our hostel. We didn't bother having any tea. Instead we had showers and then went to one of the pubs, just round the corner, for a well deserved beer.

I knew Nikki would be ok - she jumped out of a plane for God's sake!

Thursday 4th October 2007

We got up this morning and, because it was so hot, we just led by the pool reading. When we'd finally saved up enough energy, we took a walk into town. We started by going back to the shopping centre, where Nikki changed one of the tops she'd bought yesterday for another colour and then looked around - looking at things we would definitely buy if we weren't on a budget.

This afternoon, we went back to the café where we've found a open wireless signal and shared a sarnie whilst I updated some of the blog. I couldn't do it all - the signal was quite weak and it was taking ages, so once we'd finished eating and i'd dragged out my strawberry milkshake for as long as I could, we moved on.

After wandering around, we walked down to the Lagoon and bought some ice lollies, which we sat eating whilst chatting. We stayed for ages and eventually decided that we'd like to go to the cinema... again - so we walked round.

Because the film wasn't on for another hour, we ate a McDonalds and then got some sweets to eat whilst we were in there. We watched Rush Hour 3, and it was pretty good - not as good as the first two, but pretty light hearted all the same.

I'm gonna miss Cairns - we've been here so long, it's like home now!

Wednesday 3rd October 2007

We were up nice and early this morning, so that our hostel could take us back to Cairns in time to pick up the next set of guests. Yesterday's rain had stopped and the sunshine was starting to break through the clouds, and it made the drive back really pretty. Once we were back at the Bohemia Resort, we checked into our new room and then headed into town to collect the laptop.

Yippee! The laptop was finally fixed - and because of the mistakes the Apple shops were making, it's like brand new! I only took it in the have the bluetooth module replaced and yet i've come away with... a new logic board, a new keyboard, a new bottom case and a new top case as well as working bluetooth - and all for free... bargain!

We hung about in town and then spent some time in Travel Bugs on the internet - catching up with people from home. Afterwards we walked round to the Cairns shopping centre which was nicely air-conditioned and had a coffee and slice of 'cookies & cream' cheesecake. We then spent the afternoon looking around the shops.

This evening we got ready at our hostel and then went back into town for a meal. First we rang my Mum to see if she'd had a nice holiday in Alaska, and to warn her that we were gonna be on the road for a week (from the 7th) and so not to worry when she doesn't hear from us. She must be getting tougher, my old Mum, because she didn't cry when she put the phone down this time! Afterwards we went across the road and had a nice meal in the Mexican. We shared our meals - Nikki had Mexican meat balls and I had some chilli-pie thing - they were lovely! On our way back to the bus we stopped in a pub and washed our food down with a nice cold beer.

We're in there so much, they know us in Travels Bugs now!

Tuesday 2nd October 2007

We woke up this morning, and as promised it was raining - although not very hard - and it was still absolutely boiling. Even worse, it was really muggy. It did have that nice smell though - when it's been hot for ages and then the concrete gets wet.

After breakfast, (I had trusty old Weetabix and Nikki had scrambled egg on toast (which, I have to say, I did NOT know was an option!!)). We went out on a trek in the rain. We started by walking up to the Port Douglas Look-Out, but because of the low cloud couldn't see much. We did find some marks on a tree - and blood stains - and a chocolate wrapper - so we started our own little 'murder investigation'. Nikki decided someone was obviously killed in a row over the chocolate bar!

We were out wandering for a few hours, and when we went into Wendy's (the ice cream place), in town, to use their internet, Nikki had a run in with the woman behind the counter. The lady, Jenny, was really evil and we were fuming about how she'd spoken to us - so we went to another internet café and wrote to the Wendy's Head Office to complain. Not long afterwards someone rang to apologise and said they'd send us some special gift vouchers... yippee - free ice cream!

Later we went back to the hostel and we had some scrambled egg on toast for lunch (it was all I could think about all morning). When we'd gobbled that up, we went out exploring again. This time we went for a walk along 4-Mile Beach. The beach looked really nice, and was quite busy - seeing as it was still raining slightly. We walked for quite a long way (though, not the full 4 miles) and then back into town.

This evening we had another chilli - finishing off the ingredients and then watched some TV whilst writing some postcards for the people at home.

Stupid rain - It was supposed to cool us down - not make things worse... d'oh!

Monday 1st October 2007

Today, we'd arranged to go and stay at a hostel in Port Douglas - and they were coming to pick us up at about 10.30am, so we got up nice and early - had some breakfast and then walked into town to try and get the laptop fixed... again! Once we'd dropped it off we walked back to the Bohemia Resort and arrived just in time to check out.

Our hostel in Port Douglas is called Port 'O' Call and is really nice. We dropped off our bags and then took a walk down into the small town. Apparently Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg are in town, shooting a new movie - so our first stop was to the casting office to see if we could get parts as extras. Bummer! We had to be in town for a couple of weeks - and not a couple of days, so our dreams were shattered... nevermind. To make up for it, i bought a HUGE ice cream from the shop next door and ate that before hitting the shops.

We made some enquiries about doing some scuba diving whilst we're in town, but apparently the weather forecast is not very good for tomorrow and so boats are canceling their trips. We did find one that looked really good, and they pick up, from Cairns, for free - so, we'll see!

This evening we came back to the hostel and watched some TV before making some tea. Me and Nikki (yep, still helping) made another chilli (using the ingredients from last time). Afterwards, Nikki rang her Grandmas and Mum for a gossip.

It's so hot at the moment - i'd welcome a bit of rain!

Sunday 30th September 2007

Seeing as it was Sunday, and it was once again a beautiful day, we thought we'd spend the day relaxing (pretty much like every other day really). So, after waking up in our own time, we went down for some breakfast and then spent the morning led by the hostel pool - reading our books, listening to our iPods, and having the occasional swim.

After a few hours we went out for a walk, to see if we could find the place we're supposed to be renting our campervan from next Sunday. We found it no problems - it's just down the road, so we came back and on the way we bought some eggs in the supermarket and then Nikki made us egg fried rice for our lunch.

This afternoon we went into town. We spent a couple of hours just hanging around - checking our emails etc, and then this evening we went to the cinema - to watch Superbad, which was... interesting! When we were going in, Doughnut King was just closing - and selling off their doughnuts - so we bought a big cup full of tiny jellied ones to eat when watching the film.

Mmmmm... doughnuts!

Saturday 29th September 2007

When we were out yesterday we'd booked a trip to the town of Kuranda today - on the Sky Rail, which is a gondola system that takes you high above the canopy of the tropical rainforest. Our bus was picking us up at 9.10am, so we got up at 7.30am to have some breakfast and got ready in plenty of time.

The Sky Rail is 7.5km long and has three stops (the third being Kuranda). We got off at the first two and walked around, taking pictures. We walked through the forest and out to a lookout where we could see the Barron River, Gorge and Falls. We got to Kuranda at about 11.30am and had a nice look around all of the old markets and shops.

This afternoon, instead of coming back on the Sky Rail, we came back on the scenic train, which took us around the edge of the mountains and back into Cairns. It was really pretty looking out of the train window - but some of the rickety bridges were quite hair raising. They looked about 100 years old, and the drops below were over 300 meters!

When we got back to Cairns, we went and did some shopping and the I helped make a huge chili for out tea. It was lush - and a couple of the other travelers commented on how good it looked. We sat and ate as much as we could - which still left loads for another day, and watched Monsters Inc. on the big screen.

Ben helped with tea again did he... what's he after?

Friday 28th September 2007

We couldn't check out of Bohemia Central quickly enough this morning. The two other people in our dorm were older men - and they absolutely stank! Plus, one of them woke Nikki up this morning with a fart so loud, I think it may have woken everyone else in the hostel as well. We left the room and waited for the free bus, which came at 10am - and took us back to the Bohemia Resort (the first Cairns' hostel we stayed in). When we got there, we booked into a double room and were finally able to block out the horrors of Bohemia Central, and even eat some breakfast.

Once we were ready we walked into town. It took about 15 minutes, but was really nice out in the sunshine. We decided that the first thing we would do, would be to go and check on the laptop. They said it was currently being fixed and to come back this afternoon. There was some good news though - when i'd got it back from the Byron Bay Apple shop, I discovered that they'd scratched the lid... pretty badly - but the Cairns' shop agreed to replace it for me... yippee!

We spent the afternoon wandering about in the sunshine. We walked down to the lagoon , where we lay on the grass chatting, and then had a picnic. Afterwards we went into Travel Bugs to use the internet and look around the shops. I even managed to spend some more of my birthday money (the money I don't even know if i'm gonna get yet) - and bought myself a new Billabong wallet. We also went back to the Apple shop the collect the laptop - only to discover that they'd replaced the bottom case and not the badly scratched top one. They realised it was their mistake, and though I was a little annoyed that I was going to have to take it in AGAIN, I didn't really mind because with all the news parts i've been given, it's almost brand new... WooHoo!

On our way back to the bus, we went into Rusty's Market and bought some more of the cheap vegetables for our tea. Then when we got back to the hostel I cooked us tea (again). I made us a vegetable cous-cous thing... and it was lovely. We ate it and then watched Silent Hill on the hostel big screen.

That's two meals in a month i've cooked now... this traveling lark is doing me the world of good!

Thursday 27th September 2007

We had to be checked out of our room at 9.30am this morning, so we were up in plenty of time to have our breakfast and pack our bags. Afterwards, because our bus wasn't picking us up until 1.30pm, we walked over the road from our hostel and went in the Bat Sanctuary. The place was only small, but they did have a 'Flying Fox' (a bat with a 1 meter wingspan) hanging up in the corner - and we arrived just in time for me to feed him. It was quite weird because they have little thumb things on the end of their wings - and he used it to pull my hand closer to his mouth.

When we left the Bat Sanctuary, we went on a bush walk along the Dubuji Boardwalk, which passes through the mangroves and coastal forest - and ends up on the beach. It took about an hour and when we got back to the hostel we had a well deserved ice cream by the pool, chatting about all the hostels we've stayed in on this trip so far. Then we went to the bar and had a 'liquid lunch' of Aussie beer.

The bus picked us up at 1.30pm and we were soon on our way back to Cairns. We made a couple of stops. First, we stopped at the Alexandra Range lookout - where on a clear day (like today) you can see out over the ocean for miles. We didn't know what we were looking for, but apparently you can see Cairns! Next, we stopped at Mossman Gorge - which has a huge fresh-water pool that comes down from the Mossman Mountains over some waterfalls. Nikki didn't fancy it, but I went swimming and it was... absolutely freezing! I swam for about half-an-hour - trying my best to swim against the current from the falls, and when I got out I was dry in no time... you beauty! Our last stop was at Port Douglas. We only had just over half-an-hour to look around, but it looks pretty nice - so I think we'll go back next week sometime.

When we got back to Cairns we collected our big bags from Shanannigan's, but didn't fancy staying there again - so we walked around the corner to Bohemia Central. We booked in a 4-bed dorm for the night and then went out for some food. We had a voucher for a Mexican, which just happened to be across the road from the hostel - so we went there, and the meal was lush! Just what we needed after the long drive back from Cape Tribulation!

I can understand why the salmon get in trouble - swimming UP a waterfall is near impossible!

Wednesday 26th September 2007

Our alarm went off at 8.30am this morning and we got straight up to go and have some breakfast. We used our own plastic bowls this morning - because we didn't want to re-hire the dirty ones, (that look like they're buried in the mud at night) from the hostel. After we were ready we went outside and waited to be picked up for an excursion we'd booked. Today, we were going 'Jungle Surfing'.

Jungle Surfing was brilliant! We were taken to a private part of the rainforest, where we were strapped into harnesses, given helmets, and then sent out into the trees. There were 5 platforms dotted around - the highest being around 20 meters up - and we passed between them on zip wires. As we went on they got faster, and we all got a bit braver. On the last one, we were hanging upside down, without holding on. The views were amazing, and the noises up high in the trees were fascinating.

This afternoon, we had a sandwich at the hostel, and then went out on a bit of a bush walk. We started by walking along the beach, and then on a track, through the trees, which eventually came out at Cape Tribulation beach. The beach was beautiful, and the water seemed a different shade of blue on this side of the Cape. We would have stayed longer, but it was very hot (as every day is now) and the sand was burning our feet.

When we'd finished our bush walk, we were absolutely knackered - and so we went and chilled by the hostel pool. We did some reading (I managed to finish a book I haven't been able to put put down - its The Shining, Carrie and Misery (by Stephen King) all in one novel... I can finally sleep with the lights off again), and then Nikki had a little snooze while I went swimming.

Tonight, we made ourselves some tea and then went into the bar for some beer. It was pretty cool tonight - there was a band in playing some music, and they were pretty good - plus they were called Ben Jammin', which I think helped!

Finally - some surfing we're good at!

Tuesday 25th September 2007

We were up this morning at 6.25am, so that we could have breakfast and get ready in plenty of time for when the bus picked us up at 7.30am. We made it to the bus stop easily - but the stupid bus didn't - it was half-an-hour late! We boarded and once everyone was on, we headed to Cape Tribulation.

The drive North was beautiful. The girl driving the bus said that it was second to only the Great Ocean Road as one of the most stunning drives in Australia. We were right on the edge of the country and all we could see for miles was the amazing turquoise ocean.

Our first stop of the day was at the Daintree River, where we got on a boat and did a river cruise. We were told that at low tide it's possible to see crocodiles - but we didn't see any - we did see a few snakes though! On the other side of the river, we re-boarded the bus and moved onwards. Not far up the road we got off again and had a walk through the Daintree Rainforest, which is supposed to be the oldest one in the world - it was amazing - it was really dense and a very lush, green colour. The guide talked to us about the trees and wildlife and then we were taken to our hostel. The place is a bit grubby - we hired some plates, cutlery and pans... for $40 - and they were gross. I think someone had been digging up the rainforest with them... nevermind!

After checking in to our room, we had a toasted sandwich for lunch and then went for a walk along Myella Beach. The beach was lovely - partly because there was nobody around and it seemed like we had the whole place to ourselves. We walked all the way up to Cape Tribulation and started to wander off the track... until we saw a sign warning us about recent crocodile sightings - and so we rejoined the beach. We stayed at the beach for a couple of hours. I tried knocking some coconuts out of the trees, we did some reading and then I had a snooze.

This evening, we came back and both had showers before going out for some tea. Afterwards we went into the bar and chatted whilst enjoying a few beers, and then came back to our room.

I hope we don't get eaten, sleeping in the rainforest!

Happy 60th Birthday Pops!

Monday 24th September 2007

We slept until quite late this morning, but still woke up feeling really tired. The double bed we slept in last night was possibly the squeakiest bed in the history of the world - and every time one of us rolled over, or took a deeper breath than normal, then it would start making a right racket! Once we were finally up, we had some breakfast in the TV room with an Irish girl and she was telling us how she'd driven to Cairns from Darwin, and how wonderful it was. Afterwards we went into town.

Our first stop was the Apple shop. Because we were going to Cape Tribulation tomorrow, we thought it would be a good idea to leave the laptop with them. It should be safer there - and hopefully they can fix the bluetooth this time! We were in the shop for ages and when we left, it was about time for lunch so we came back to the hostel and Nikki made us a picnic, which we ate sat down by the lagoon.

After chilling out, we stopped in Travel Bugs to use the internet. Whilst we were there, I managed to find a Campervan that needed relocating from Cairns to Darwin. I quickly rang the company and booked it for the 7th October. The cheapest we can find flights (direct) is for $365 each - but this is gonna cost us only $5 per day... and they give us the first $250 towards fuel. They've also given us 6 DAYS to deliver the van... it is nearly 3000km after all!!

Later we went to the supermarket to buy a chiller bag for tomorrows trip and also bought a HUGE family Apple cake, which we sat and ate whilst having a coffee in a café. The cake was so big - we could only manage half of it.

Tonight, when we got back to the hostel, we stopped in the bar for a couple of hours and had a few drinks. We didn't stay out too late because we've got an early start in the morning - plus we were being hassled by some drunk fisherman. They were friendly enough, but way to drunk for us to understand - whatever they were saying didn't make any sense.

$5 Campervan - and the chance to see the Northern Outback... Rock On!

Sunday 23rd September 2007

Once again, we were up nice and early this morning so we could go through our routine of shower, dress then get the free breakfast - only eating the toast so we could save the Weetabix. When we'd done all that, we caught the free hostel bus into town because we were moving hostels today. We moved to one called Shanannigan's, which is much closer to everything - and checked in with no problems.

With all our things safely in our double room we went out for a walk, and right next to our hostel was a HUGE indoor market. The market was amazing! They had every fruit and vegetable imaginable and it was all really fresh looking (plus it has different names to the UK veg) - it put the Fruit Market in Bristol to shame. We spent about half-an-hour looking about and came out with tonnes of vegetables for tonight's (and a fair few nights afterwards) tea. We dropped the vegetables back at the hostel and then went for a look around the shops.

We went into Travel Bugs and spoke to them about possibly doing some scuba diving on the Great Barrier Reef, but we didn't book anything because we're going to Cape Tribulation on Tuesday - and so we'll leave it until we get back from there. Afterwards we took a nice walk along the Esplanade.

This evening Nikki made us a vegetable Thai green curry and then afterwards we went to the cinema to watch Hairspray which, surprisingly, was pretty good! When we got back to the hostel we went into the bar and had some beers whilst watching some of the footie highlights on the TV. I was hoping they'd be showing the Man Utd vs Chelsea game (which was on at 1am) but for some reason they were closing before that... nevermind!

What the hell is a Zucchini anyway?

Saturday 22nd September 2007

We got up this morning, had our free breakfast (toast only - we're saving the Weetabix) and then sat by the pool whilst we did some washing. Afterwards we took another walk into town and had a look around the shops.

This afternoon we went back into Travel Bugs and booked a two-day tour up to a place called Cape Tribulation, which is a huge rain forest and National Park. We also found the number for the Blue Horizon hotel in Vancouver, Canada...

When we left we had a small picnic under a tree near the sea and then, when we finished, we called my Mum and Keith - who are staying at the Blue Horizon hotel. They were really shocked to hear from us and it was nice because Keith turns 60 next week and we got to wish him a Happy Birthday. We also spoke with my Mum again, and she cried... again!

Because we'd booked the Travel Bugs tour we were given vouchers for a free meal in place called the Rhinobar, so this evening we went round for that. Even though it was only about 6pm the place was like a little nightclub with a room with a few tables and chairs - so we had our free meals (we both had Thai Green Chicken curry - which was pretty good) and left. Afterwards we walked around for a bit and then caught the free bus back to the hostel, because we had to pack our bags - we're changing hostels tomorrow.

Good evening Canada... this is Australia calling!

Friday 21st September 2007

We woke up at about 8am this morning and had showers before going down to reception for our free breakfast. It was only 2 pieces of toast with butter and jam, Weetabix and either tea and coffee - but you can't complain when it's free! We ate the toast and saved the Weetabix for when we get to the next place, and the breakfast isn't free (clever eh?).

After breakfast, we moved our bags to another room (because a group of 4 had been booked into ours) and then headed into town again. When we got there we had another look around the shops (Cairns is pretty big, so there was loads we didn't see yesterday) and then tried to contact Glen and Jade, from Magnetic Island, because we knew they were here too. I even started spending my birthday money (I hope I still qualify - even though i'm away from home) and bought some new Billabong shorts.

This afternoon we went into Travel Bugs to use the 'free' internet and finally managed to book some accommodation for a couple of days over Christmas in Perth. We've been trying to find something for ages, because we wanna take Emma to the beach on Christmas Day, and everything has been booked - but we found triple room at Scarborough Beach and snapped that up... yippee!

Afterwards we went to have some lunch before we met Glen and Jade and went in a really nice café not far from the sea. The place was quite posh and I ordered a chicken & avocado sarnie and Nikki ordered a prawn roll. It seemed like a simple request, but little did I know - all hell was about to break loose. First, they brought out my sarnie and had made Nikki's wrong - they brought her a sarnie instead of the roll. D'oh - back that went! Next, when that had been corrected, I was tucking into my sarnie (which was bloody lovely) and Nikki into her roll when she had a look inside to see what was in there - and only found two prawns. Apparently that was a problem, so she was straight up to the counter. She made them feel so bad they gave us a side-plate with about 4 prawns and everyone was happy... brilliant!

We spent the rest of the afternoon down at the Lagoon with Glen and Jade. Me and Glen played footie while the girls chatted and then we went for a swim. Afterwards we found a shop called The Great British Lolly Shop - and it was amazing, they sold all sorts of sweets, chocolate and crisps - all delivered from the UK. We had a field-day!

This evening me, Nikki, Glen and Jade went for a meal in a posh looking Chinese place. We felt really out of place because we were in our shorts and vests, when the other diners were all dressed up. We didn't care though and had a really nice meal. When it was finished we went back to their hostel for a beer before coming back to ours.

4 prawns... you call that a prawn sandwich? Get me the manager!

Thursday 20th September 2007

When the alarm went off this morning, we took our time to wake up and then walked round to the kitchen for some breakfast. Afterwards we packed our bags and then went and used the internet whilst we waited for a lift to the bus stop. The Greyhound was supposed to arrive in Mission Beach at just after 11am, but was late and finally turned up at about 12pm - we didn't mind though - when we rang them yesterday to book our seats to Cairns, they told us we didn't have enough km's left to get there (because we'd gone off course when we went to Agnes Water & 1770). They finally gave in though and gave us the km's we needed to get there... for free! Yippee - free ride!

The journey to Cairns took a couple of hours and the view out of the window was beautiful - because we're in Tropical Queensland everything is a lush green colour - and the land is covered in thousands of trees - of all shapes and sizes.

When we finally arrived, we rang up one of the hostels that had been recommended to us: Gilligan's, to see if they had any double rooms. The guy on the phone said that they did... at a cost of between $120-$170 a night! We couldn't believe it, that's nearly double our daily budget ($100) so we said 'thanks, but no-thanks'. Instead we phoned Bohemia Resort where, as part of our Travel Bugs package, we had a free nights accommodation. A couple of minutes later they picked us up and we went back there. The hostel is really nice. We're in a 4-bed dorm, with a girl - but there are no bunk beds, so the room seems much bigger than normal.

With our things safely in our room we went for a walk into the centre. We walked along the Esplanade, which runs right into town. When we got there we had a look around the shops and looked at all the tour options for scuba-diving on the Great Barrier Reef. We also made enquiries about flights from Cairns to Darwin... it's gonna cost us about $360 each!

This evening, when we'd finished looking around the shops, we were heading back when we passed an Indian restaurant. As we'd not had a curry since we'd got to Australia - we thought we'd give it a bash. We were glad we did - the curry was lush! I had a lamb madras and Nikki had a chicken byriani and then we shared half each. The only thing missing was Wilksi and Vicky (or June) - that would've made it a proper curry night!

Finally, after 5 months of searching - a curry as good as home... Yippee!