We’ll be gone till September, gone till September

Since Wellington we Bombed it up to Aukland a nice 10 hour bus ride! Aukland isn’t the nicest city in the world, Queen’s street equals very long road many starbucks, burger kings etc.left after a day headed north east too hi hei.

Ha hei Miller on a bus with 6 girls including driver and is only bloke, (story on NZ more girls on Stray bus tours than blokes, lots more. bus of 20 people 4 guys, bus of 10 one guy me anyway) on this bus of 6 girls and Miller one evening we head of to the beach which has hot springs running onto it. The idea is to dig a hole let the hot spring water fill hole and you have a free spa, tide water comes in and cold sea water and boling spring wtaer mix, very nice temperature. So Miller has a cold, adviced by personal phasician (doctor)to sit this one out, its late at night 9ish tide comes in then, its cold outside and being outside in only your swimmers not a hot idea.Point taken doesn’t meen I can’t help the girls dig hole.Doesn’t meen Miller in 4 layers and a long rain coat can’t satnd around and watch 6 girls in bikins get into a big spa, and take pictures while standing in the dark. Ok that sound REALLY DODGY but its how it happened.

We moved on to Roturoa where myself, Princess our driver, and A Zorbed. This involved the three of us getting in a big inflatable ball, part filled with warm water and rolling down a hill.Very Cool, I now know what it feels like to be in the washing machine. Roturoa is famed for smelling like bad eggs, its the sulphur in the air due to the volcanic activity and hot springs. Aslo large Maroi population and a good place to learn about the culture, legends and do the HAKA. We went to a cultural evening where we got to throw sticks, girls danced, guys did Haka, and we watched a play. Interactive play as Amanda was dragged kicking and screaming up on stage, and got involved in one of the storylines, she was in contention to be a maroi cheifs wife, but lost out to local competition. The throwing sticks where cool got a good rythm and a display thing going, did get the big ending wrong… we do this movement dance step in a long line playing with sticks Amanda steps froward kneels down and countinues movements just lower down… finish is amanda turns around and i throw too her a stick and her catches it over her left sholder. I Lob Two sticks At her and it doesn’t work. Still a very interesting night learned about a new culture and the Haka is very cool.

After a Castlemaine XXXX of a shitty morning, in Wellington, booking tours, credit cards not working, phones eating money, catching a bus at 7am tomorrow, quatus shut so can’t book flights AAARRRHHH.

Still you make the most of these things, BEER. Popped into local sports bar, A spies the pool table sugests a game. sure I’m up for that, after almost 8 balling the lady missed the black. Got distracted thought of A running around topless bad shot. After I won that game, next two games Amanda comes back, Miller gets the four and the 5th is All Amanda’s.

Still good game good game, had fun disapointed didn’t get the 8 ball win.  

We have been in New Zeland now for 9 days, like it love it, reminds us of home. Christchurch is very homely even down to the rain, the city has a certain Englishness to it. Drving around the north of the South Island is beuatiful the landscape is rugged mountains green forests, a mix of Scotland lakedistrict type places.

We have joined a hope on hope off bus tour around NZ Stray travel, didn’t start too well we got left behind in Christchurch……. driver forgot about us had to get a normal bus up to the town we where visiting to catch the tour bus. then that night in the hostel we had an all night power cut. Since than it has got better and better, the scenery is breath taking we have just walked up a glasier. The people on the bus are great, have found montieths black a nice dark almost stout like beer drank lots. We have seen seals, walked a hostel dog, walked around a forest, made a knife, played bingo, and walked on ice.

 Making a knife and walking up an ice glasier or two of the most cool things i have ever done. We made the knifes from scratch, a piece of old steel, and 1500 year old wood for the handle. Handle wood was chopped down in the mid 1800’s to make the first looney bn in NZ, trees where very old when they where cut down (they are now protected by law), Lonney bin closes dude buys the wood, and then we turn it into handles Sweet. A bit of blacksmithing on the steel a hammer and an anvil, walla a blade. took us most of the day to make these knifes, and later we drank 2 hour old moonshine 🙂 This was in Barrytown on the west coast, the locals are a bit strange, and I wouldn’t really call it a town more a pub come hostel, and a few houses.

 The Glasier was is in Franz Josef, we hiked up hard to explain in worlds will add pictures just fantastic.

 So NZ so far is Sweet as they say down here. we are 11 hours ahead of England and I don’t think we could get much further from home.

its the end.

So Cairns is a nice town meet up with Sarah from Echuca (who goes home soon, good people) and Amanda of all people, shocking. Went out said goodbye to friends and Oz, cinema wine goodway to leave a country, the 05:45 flight is a bit early.

We had all been to Cape Tribulation (the worlds only rainforest that mets the ocean) at different times over the corse of a few days. All three of us did the same trip just on different days, its a nice rainforest which has another beach….. ok I may not have explained yet but after a month on the east coast I hate to say it but…I’m beached out. Loads of great beaches, many deserted and streaching for miles (mission beach is 14 miles long, 4 mile beach isn’t 4 miles not sure where the name comes from) so a beach with a rainforest next to it is nice but its a beach been there done that got sand EVERY WHERE. I have SOOOOOOOOO many pictures of empty beaches (on me tod had no A to take pic of me in forground) that I get bored of them, I’d hate to be you guys at home who get to see the slide show….”thats a beach, and another, same beach.. no sorry thats a different one.. a crab, swimming with turtle”.

Well this is the end, we travel to NZ on the 1st of june and we are so looking forward to it. Have enjoyed our time here in Oz just after 5 months its time to leave, a change is a good thing. Had some gerat time seen the Opera House, watched Madam Butterfly at the Opera House, trekked in the Blue Mountains and brought back a forests worth of leaches into our hostel room, worked with fruits and rugs, manchester, and bras, travelled the Great Ocean Road, visited Melbourne for the Open, and Commenwelth Games, travelled up east coast, surfing sailing, snorkelling, sea kayaking, rainforests, SOOOOOOOO many beaches, had a good time, even the work we look back apon with a smile.  Will be travelling together from here on in and its gooning to be GOOD! NZ, South America, and New york New York, expected time of arrival back in ENGLAND mid September 2006.

Have arrived in Cairns Tropical north Queensland, that means sunshine and 27c in the winter!!! COME ON:-)

It is also the place to hit the reef, well you can’t hit it there are laws and BIG fines and stuff. Lower down in the Witsundays I tried an introductory sucba dive and did some snorkelling of a boat, among the reef. Was a bit murky so didn’t see too much on the dive, the next day around Black Reef snorkelling was great sun shining fish reef, me in a big Gimp suit. Ok so you have to wear a full wetsuit and head cover plus clovers to go in the water due to the Jelly fish. You look kinda funny I have pictures. When I arrivied  I Cairns I went out on another boat to the outer reef and did some more snorkelling, well worth it I have swam with turtles!!! Still need to work on my free diving, not the best at holding my breath.

So having fun will see Amanda in a fewdays I’m of to Cape tribulation rainforest.

So here is me (miller in front) with my group on frasier island. A self drive safaria, meaning that 9 backpackers get in a Pink 4×4 and drive and camp around the worlds largest sand island. A cool 3 days, cooking BBQ ever night dodging dingos, and seeing some great sights. I still have sand in places sand should never be, its one huge beach. put it this way the beach is a national highway witha 80km speed limit, and panes use it as a runway, said it was big.

ok so after flying to Brisbane, checking in at 1am and evacuating at 3am due to fire alarm, i find myself in Byron Bay. Home of captain cook’s look out, the most eastery point in ozm a lighthouse, and miller getting out of bed VERY early to watch sunrise at the most easterly point in oz. 

All cool, better still surfing!!! Crashing the wipeout is fun, I can noise-dive with the best of them. Toome awhile  but I can stand on the board, turns out i’m a GOOFEY, meaning that my right foot goes forward on the board, naturals put their left foot forward. really cool, would like to spend more time here, the surf is great, weather is 10 degrees higher that geelong!!! time to get a sun tan!!!!

doing good, traveling on my own is different, good and bad in equal measures. a new experiance it’s all good. 

Its time to start travelling again so good bye rainy Geelong, hello sunshine coast!!

A new start to are trip after working for so long and a new twist…..we will be travelling alone. Miller and Amanda are to go there separate ways; amanda has already gone to melbourne and is planning on travelling up to sydney, hit the hunter valley wine region and head up north brisbane, noosa, frasier island carins etc.

meanwhile Miller will fly straight to brisbane and head up the east coast from there, we will meet up again in carins at the end of May and fly together to NZ, south america, new york and home. 

Should be fun.

ok a quick note: We split up because we spent more time together than married couples: now not being a couple, not being married this puts strain on a friendship, you share a room, job, friends, hostel, etc. with one person. try it we have done it for 7 months and its been ok, it is just now some fresh air is needed.

There was no big fight nothing is wrong, we are still mates, have seen each orther in havey bay for a few hours its all good. tierd of being asked why? so thats is why, nice to have a chat about new experiances and new freinds what did you do yesterday, oh yeah i was there i was a boring question. now its not.

saying that haveing a big fallong out would be a good story, be kind of funny, as it was we just agreed one night to travel on our own for a while. nice and quiet no arguments easy.

Hi,

so we have travelled along the great ocean road in possibly the worst weather we have seen since leaving the UK. Windy Rain, just like a cold day on the coast Anywhere in the Uk, but the 12 Apostels Well 8 the rest have fallen down, you don’t see from Blackpool pier.

Rented a car with some freinds Micheal and Jamie, drove around for a week leaving Melbourne, down to Torquey, bells beach, portland, up to Halls Gap in the grampians. Just a good time for a week. unfortunatally weather was against us didn’t damen our fun as we headed to the grampians, to do some walking. The grampians was the scene for some of the worst forest fires on record in january and ealy feb this year so much of the area around halls gap is black. still it is amazing how quickly the trees over hear start to recover, only a few months later and they are starting to stoot new leaves and have signs of life. Did a few walks took in an amzing view of halls gap from one of the mountains, we enjoyed the walk first time since the blue mountains we had gone out and done a walk worth doing.

We are now working in a rug show in Geelong an hour south of melbourne, Amanda is a Manchester Chick, (i.e. works in linens) and Miller is a bouncer/ bra man (meaning when I’m not on the door I work in the lingerary section) still its all fun.

ok just a bunch of RANDOM pictures. from sydney to the blue mountains the oz
tennis open, Echuca on a night out and stuff.
we leave echuca for the great ocean road on Sunday Canny wait, will have
more pics and sme travel news then. We have been here for 10 weeks!!!!
working for 9 of them Echuca where we call home, SOOOOOOOO time to leave.
Commenwelth games and some more recent pictures are on amanda’s camera so
will send them when we get the chance. we hope everyone at home in england
is enjoying the spring glad we missed the winter, everyone else where ever
you are hope u are well.
Miller
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