Now I've swum with have snorkelled with the fish on the Great Barrier reef. We had to wear Stinger suits because of the jelly fish around at this time of year.
We've visited coffee plantations, tea gardens and eaten exotic fruit ice-cream !
We left for Ulura (Ayres Rock) on the 18th. Saw sunset then got up early to see the sunrise, it is all magical! Been on a cultural walk with an Aborigine guide. It was 40C at 5pm out there, just a touch warm!!!
Next was King's Canyon where we did a rim walk of 6km starting at 6am, to avoid some of the heat!
Alice Springs was a flying visit over night!
Now in Perth, the storm was amazing but we were fortunately with our friends Jo & Bruce in their house. Saw all devastation the next day. I've never seen lightning quite so close or thunder so loud!!
Lunchtime so must go. See you all next week.
Tuesday 23 March 2010
Sunday 14 March 2010
That was ONE amazing experience!! Even for those who can't stand opera; the sets, costumes and atmosphere was so intoxicating it was over before you had time to think too hard!! Even Paul admitted he'd enjoyed it!
On Wednesday we took the local bus out to the SMALL Bondi Beach. Honestly, I thought from the pictures it was huge, but no, it is about 3/4 of a mile in total, with a tented area where there is live music every so often & the lifeguards hang out. It's more like the front at one of our older resorts like Hunstanton!! From there we took a walk along a wonderful cliff path which clung to the edge of the sea & every so often you would round a corner into a little cove. It was absolutely delightful. We swam in Clovelly cove where there was both a sea water pool and a long inlet onto a beach. The small jelly fish didn't put us off & we used our masks to watch Gropers swimming under us & other tiny fish doing fishy things! We ended up at Coogee & got the bus back into Sydney. I think I saw the cricket pitch Anna but wouldn't be 100% certain!
Thursday we flew up here to Cairns, collected our hire car & drove up to Port Douglas. It is very hot, often rains (it being the rainy season) & is sometimes humid. We have an appartment until Thursday. Everything grows like mad & is very green. There are lots of tiny & bigger bugs but most seem fairly harmless unless you disturb them! We have a small pool at the complex so it is lovely to cool off in it in the late afternoon.
Yesterday, we went to explore the rainforest. Up to the Daintree National Park which is a world Heritage site. It is very lush with very tall trees of many varieties, a lot of which I had never seen before (29 different types of Palm!!) plus Rosewood and other hard woods that I've only ever seen as furniture! We stopped at Cape Tribulation which is the only place in OZ where the rainforest touches the Great Barrier Reef. You begin to imagine a set for a really gripping adventure movie! We then turned back & st5opped at the Daintree Discovery Centre which is a brilliant place with walkways and a tower to climb above the canopy! We saw Orange footed Scrub fowl & whilest eating an icecream a Cassaway walked passed!(a bit like an Emu with a bright blue comb!!)
I also saw a tea Plantation and tasted the tea grown there - never done that before!!
The rain has stopped so we're off to see more sights & visit a Coffee plantation.
Hopefully, we're snorkling on the Barrier reef tomorrow but there is a cyclone hovering not far away so we will have to wait & see!
Ayres Rock on Thursday, so should be warm there!!
Bye for now......
On Wednesday we took the local bus out to the SMALL Bondi Beach. Honestly, I thought from the pictures it was huge, but no, it is about 3/4 of a mile in total, with a tented area where there is live music every so often & the lifeguards hang out. It's more like the front at one of our older resorts like Hunstanton!! From there we took a walk along a wonderful cliff path which clung to the edge of the sea & every so often you would round a corner into a little cove. It was absolutely delightful. We swam in Clovelly cove where there was both a sea water pool and a long inlet onto a beach. The small jelly fish didn't put us off & we used our masks to watch Gropers swimming under us & other tiny fish doing fishy things! We ended up at Coogee & got the bus back into Sydney. I think I saw the cricket pitch Anna but wouldn't be 100% certain!
Thursday we flew up here to Cairns, collected our hire car & drove up to Port Douglas. It is very hot, often rains (it being the rainy season) & is sometimes humid. We have an appartment until Thursday. Everything grows like mad & is very green. There are lots of tiny & bigger bugs but most seem fairly harmless unless you disturb them! We have a small pool at the complex so it is lovely to cool off in it in the late afternoon.
Yesterday, we went to explore the rainforest. Up to the Daintree National Park which is a world Heritage site. It is very lush with very tall trees of many varieties, a lot of which I had never seen before (29 different types of Palm!!) plus Rosewood and other hard woods that I've only ever seen as furniture! We stopped at Cape Tribulation which is the only place in OZ where the rainforest touches the Great Barrier Reef. You begin to imagine a set for a really gripping adventure movie! We then turned back & st5opped at the Daintree Discovery Centre which is a brilliant place with walkways and a tower to climb above the canopy! We saw Orange footed Scrub fowl & whilest eating an icecream a Cassaway walked passed!(a bit like an Emu with a bright blue comb!!)
I also saw a tea Plantation and tasted the tea grown there - never done that before!!
The rain has stopped so we're off to see more sights & visit a Coffee plantation.
Hopefully, we're snorkling on the Barrier reef tomorrow but there is a cyclone hovering not far away so we will have to wait & see!
Ayres Rock on Thursday, so should be warm there!!
Bye for now......
Tuesday 9 March 2010
Wow we've hit Sydney - it's hot, 27C or above most days. Today, it's cooler only 25 so I'm catching up!
We arrived on Saturday afternoon, our hotel is bang in the middle so it's easy to walk to most of the famous attractions. We've walked over the Harbour Bridge. This is an amazing construction of 1920/30, so not Health & Safety considerations, the men hanging from ropes & balancing on beams suspended over the water 50m up!! The museum is really informative but the continuous drum of traffic passing over the 6/8 lane highway depending on the time of day is amazing!! There is also a rail line & footpath & bikes track.
The Opera House is superb the arching roofs house 2 big theatres & 3 small ones. It is all rented space so companies & artists are continuously moving in & out. Going to see La Traviata tonight which is very exciting!
We went to the Blue Mountains. They are sandstone which has iron running through it so it is striped orange. The 3 sisters are pillars sticking up out of the Jameson valley which is all rainforest, very green!
Also been wine tasting in the Hunter Valley, Lindemans is huge but also went to Oakvale who sell lots of wine to Tesco. It's cheaper to buy in England than here because the tax here is so high!
You can travel a long way in OZ without seeming to go very far, hence the need to fly!! Off to Cairns on Friday!
More later, love to everyone.
We arrived on Saturday afternoon, our hotel is bang in the middle so it's easy to walk to most of the famous attractions. We've walked over the Harbour Bridge. This is an amazing construction of 1920/30, so not Health & Safety considerations, the men hanging from ropes & balancing on beams suspended over the water 50m up!! The museum is really informative but the continuous drum of traffic passing over the 6/8 lane highway depending on the time of day is amazing!! There is also a rail line & footpath & bikes track.
The Opera House is superb the arching roofs house 2 big theatres & 3 small ones. It is all rented space so companies & artists are continuously moving in & out. Going to see La Traviata tonight which is very exciting!
We went to the Blue Mountains. They are sandstone which has iron running through it so it is striped orange. The 3 sisters are pillars sticking up out of the Jameson valley which is all rainforest, very green!
Also been wine tasting in the Hunter Valley, Lindemans is huge but also went to Oakvale who sell lots of wine to Tesco. It's cheaper to buy in England than here because the tax here is so high!
You can travel a long way in OZ without seeming to go very far, hence the need to fly!! Off to Cairns on Friday!
More later, love to everyone.
Tuesday 2 March 2010
South Island is just as beautiful as North Island. We are now moving across from the west to the east. We visited Mt Cook on Monday. It's mighty high when you get close up!! But as luck would have it by the afternoon the weather had closed in and it was pouring!! Still, it is March & autumn has begun! We spent the day at the Visitors Centre and then the Hermitage, the shangrila of mountaineers! It devotes a lot of space to Ed Hillary and his achievements, which are immense!! There is a large smart hotel, restaurant & cafe as well as a cinema showing the beauty we couldn't see! There were some amazing characters around, dedicated climbers in faded shorts, professionals with followers listening attentively to every word and single minded young men who going out whatever they were told by the advisers on duty. I saw one young Japanese lad later, soaked to the skin cos he just got over enthusiastic!!
Tuesday (2nd) we visited the most southerly astronomical observatory in the world. This was at Mt John 1000m up between Twizel and Geraldine (where we are at present). This was set up by a wealth American in the 1960's. It started because the americans wanted to map the southern hemisphere night sky. By 1968-82 the american military had taken it over to track spy saterlites (sp?) communist! 1984 that had all finished & the americans moved out. The University of Canterbury took over & with the support & money from a wealth Japanese gentleman established the most fantastic 2m mirrored dish telescope. This works using digital photography & is at present looking at galaxies beyond ours. They have found over 200 new planets & according to our guide other planets with life are all over the place it is just that they are so far away & may be very different to us!!
Today, Paul has met the Pope, she was a lovely lady while watching Golf croquet!!!! You can tell we have been apart today! I've been taking in the museum here which tells me that before/during the 2nd World war they grew all the linen flax that was woven in Scotland to make the covers for the Spitfire & other planes. 200 ships a year were transporting it to the UK. It is all gone now but just shows you how we depended on places like NZ for a long time.
I may not get a chance to do another before we hit OZ. I'm keeping your list ready for Sydney Anna, thank you, it is good to hear from home. Even the papers get here several days late! So I'm all at sea.!!!
This is such a lovely country, there only 4 million people and the roads are a delight to drive on, I can understand why Brits come & live here.
Bye for now........
Tuesday (2nd) we visited the most southerly astronomical observatory in the world. This was at Mt John 1000m up between Twizel and Geraldine (where we are at present). This was set up by a wealth American in the 1960's. It started because the americans wanted to map the southern hemisphere night sky. By 1968-82 the american military had taken it over to track spy saterlites (sp?) communist! 1984 that had all finished & the americans moved out. The University of Canterbury took over & with the support & money from a wealth Japanese gentleman established the most fantastic 2m mirrored dish telescope. This works using digital photography & is at present looking at galaxies beyond ours. They have found over 200 new planets & according to our guide other planets with life are all over the place it is just that they are so far away & may be very different to us!!
Today, Paul has met the Pope, she was a lovely lady while watching Golf croquet!!!! You can tell we have been apart today! I've been taking in the museum here which tells me that before/during the 2nd World war they grew all the linen flax that was woven in Scotland to make the covers for the Spitfire & other planes. 200 ships a year were transporting it to the UK. It is all gone now but just shows you how we depended on places like NZ for a long time.
I may not get a chance to do another before we hit OZ. I'm keeping your list ready for Sydney Anna, thank you, it is good to hear from home. Even the papers get here several days late! So I'm all at sea.!!!
This is such a lovely country, there only 4 million people and the roads are a delight to drive on, I can understand why Brits come & live here.
Bye for now........
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