Port Maquarie, Coffs Harbour, Yamba

Nicole dragged me out of bed for a run along the beach.
Great way to start the day.

We headed north again and stopped in at Trail Bay to see the Trial Bay Gaol.
We popped in at Coff's Harbour for lunch and went to the main beach for a swim. Then put a little more tar under the tires.

We filled up the car and I was surprised at the price of fuel. It was fraction cheaper than the UK. The price of alcohol was also exorbitant. One could argue that the old exchange rate is not great at the moment, however the cost of living seemed very high in OZ!

We popped in at Yamba for the night and got eaten by Mozzies...

Newcastle and Port Stephens

After Hunter Valley we set the sat-nav and headed to Newcastle to see yet more of Nicoles family friends.

They were an old couple in their 80's who emmigrated from SA in the 60's and we had a fantastic time chatting to them about days of old in the old country.

We wished them farewell and headed to Port Stephens (Shoal Bay).

We settled in to a camping site in 1 mile beach and listened to Koalas chattering away which sounded like babies crying.

The next morning the local semi wild Wallaby came and checked us out. We got close enough to pet the little fellow who was very cute.
I went for a shower and had the privelige of a Possum peering at me as i showered. Most unnerving...Creepy little bugger.

We went for a walk of 1 Mile Beach and then to Anna Bay to see the 32 Km of sand dunes. I even climbed one and admired the view.

We went for a walk up to the viewing point (an old radar station) and saw beautiful views of the ocean, fingle bay and even a school of dolphins. I went for a swim at Fingle Bay.

We headed north on the Pacific Highway and through an abundance of lakes and pretty countryside all the way to Forster.

We went into Port Maquarie and stayed there for the night.

Hunter Valley

We picked up our Jucy Campa from Sydney and headed north to the Hunter Valley (Wine Country) to meet up with Nicoles other friends who live there.

We met Clodagh (its Irish), at their house up in the beautiful Cassnock region and soon Russell came home from work and we had a brilliant time catching up.

Russell and Clodagh have a great spot in the country with loads of bird life. We went for a drive and saw our first Wallabies and Kangaroos.
Had a good ol ozzie BBQ and sunk a good many beers before calling it a night.

The next day we went for a drive around the wine region of the Hunter Valley and even popped in to a Winery and had a tasting before buying a bottle.

Ozzie!

Well all, i have arrived safe and sound.

I have flown a few different airlines and i can categorically state that Singapore Airlines is the best i have ever flown. Granted, flying on a new Airbus A380 did help the experience as one has a lot of leg room and a large TV to keep you company on the 12 hour flight to Singapore. We did "downgrade" to a 747 from Singapore to Sydney, but the service by the Sing Air staff was amazing! This coupled with the fact that they were one of the cheaper airlines has me first in line to sign up for their miles program as i will definitely be traveling Singapore Air again!

But god damn was i jet lagged. I have only just recovered!

Sydney is just amazing!
For so many years i have said that Oz is not for me as it is full of Ozzies, I have to retract that statement. They really do have something over here!

We have gazed upon the Harbor Bridge, the opera house and been to the aquarium. Been to Darling Bay, Swam at Bondi Beach, stayed in Manly. Caught the ferry to and from Manly to the city. Just brilliant! What a great city!
Its our last day in Syd today and leave tomorrow to fetch the car and start heading north on our adventures.

Will be sad to see the back of Sydney, but onwards and upwards!

*This post was sponsored by Singapore Airlines - A Great Way to Fly*

just joking...but not really

Ozzie...The Beginning

How to pack for 2 months in a hot climate.

"Pack as little as possible."
I have read a few posts and have taken this advice on board.
I bought a 35 litre Berghaus Freeflow pack with an 8 litre lid attached.

In it i placed the following: (Some may find this useful, other inane.)

Travel Bag
Day travel bag
3 shirts
1 x zip up top warm
1 pairs of longs (Craghoppers - easy drying ones)
1 x Shorts
1 x board shorts
3 x under wear
3 x socks
Viscose Travel Towel (large Lifeventure)
Hat / peak
Torch – Small Pen Sized (Mini Mag)
Crappy Mobile phone + Charger (incase i lose it or have it stolen...)
Plug Adaptor
Ipod (fully loaded with music for long bus trips)
Sunglasses
Pack of cards
Passports
Dollars
Camera
Slops
Travel Book
Print outs of flight details (times etc)

Photocopies of all docs / passports etc put online (google Docs)
Travel Insurance

Meds:
- Sun cream
- Lip salve
- Anti Diarrhoea
- Pain killers

Toiletries
- Toothbrush
- Toothpaste
- Razor + Blades
- Deo

Dont know if i got enough stuff, but time will tell.
Wish me luck!