Hi All! It’s been a while since I have posted as I haven’t been able to get to the internet easily. This will have to be a quick post as I only have an hour on the computer and the shore of Rainbow beach is calling me!

Well, we picked up the camper van on 16th March. We collected the van from the Maui center near Sydney and then we headed off for the Blue Mountains. Somehow I was the first person to drive the van and managed safely to get us to our destination with the help of my co pilot, Anita. The only incident to occur on the way was throwing the toll money on the floor instead of the bucket! When we got to our campsite I had to reverse the van onto the plot. I managed it without knocking anything over, it was quite a task as it’s a lot bigger than my KA!

After cooking tea in the van we were very tired so next came the job of getting out the bed. We watched a DVD before we got the van to show us how everything works, but we couldn’t really remember how the beds came out. We looked at the seats for a while and looked at the planks of wood and somehow we made some beds! It was my turn first to sleep above the driver seat which was really fun!

In the morning we headed to Scenic World, where we could see the Three Sisters. They are a rock formation, there is a story behind it as to why they are called the three sisters but it has slipped my mind for now. At Scenic World, we went on a cable car across the National Park and then went on the steepest train in the world, it was a bit hairy as the cart slips backward so you are nearly lying down! We had a great day out and then we headed to park up for the night. All the camp sites in the area were full so we found a car park next to Leura Cascades which is a waterfall. It was very pretty but a bit scary during the night.

Our next destination was Coffs Harbour. We stayed for a few days there. When we were there we managed to make an awesome BBQ - so that night we were well fed. The next day me, Anita and Naomi went to a Marine Park. When we were there we got a kiss from a dolphin and a sealion. We played with the dolphins by throwing balls to them which they brought back to us, it was just amazing! We also were able to fed a sealion and penguins.

We got to Byron Bay late afternoon and managed to find ourselves a campsite. It was a bit further out from town as the other camp sites were full. The next day we went to the beach, which was just perfect. We went into the sea and sunbathed all afternoon. In the evening us three girls decided to go out, the boys didnt fancy it so we persuaded them to drive us into town in the van. We had a great time out. We got back to the campsite and couldn’t get back in. They had gates all around the campsite and you needed a code to get in. The code wouldn’t let us in! We tried for ages and then Naomi decided that she would squeeze through the gate. The gate was as wide as her hand. Then Anita managed to get through. It was then my turn - I got a bit stuck and Naomi had to help pull me through the gates! In the morning we couldn’t believe that we managed to get through such a small gap!

We stayed at Surfers Paradise for a couple of days. The others decided to have a surf lesson. I decided not to as I didn't want to injure myself for the rest of the trip. Instead I just chilled out on the beach. The beach was huge and lasted for miles! We went in the sea but couldn’t go in very far as the sea was far too strong and the waves were so high, we got taken out a lot! Whilst in Surfers Paradise I purchased myself a rather large didgeridoo. I now have the task later today to wrap it up to post back home. I have just been to the post office and bought rather a large bundle of bubble wrap! We went to the Hard Rock Cafe too, which was really tasty! It was the best meal I had had for ages - as the most we can prepare in the van involves a hob and a microwave, if we are hooked up to power. I had a great time in Surfers Paradise and would love to go back again.

After we left Surfers Paradise, we headed to Movie World. We had such a fun day there going on the rides and seeing the shows. That night we had a little incident to attend too! We were at the camp site and for the past few days we had been moaning about the smell. We just thought it was us, as it is hot and there are 5 of us in a camper van. The smell was so bad we decided to hunt for the smell. Naomi found a moldy bag of carrots in her cupboard - we thought we had found the culprit. Once the carrots had been thrown outside the smell was still there. James had opened the toilet and the smell came out of there and there was lots of liquid in the bottom. We haven’t been using the toilet as we didn’t want to clean it out. But then we realized that we didn’t take the water cap off the van for the last 6 days! The water from the sink which goes out of the water cap was blocked up and then started coming out of the shower. The smell was awful! Next came the job of opening the water cap top release the pressure. Guess who got the job? Me! It was disgusting! Anyway after opening the cap, the smell disappeared. We cleaned up before we went to bed and we had a much fresher night’s sleep!

Yesterday, we went to Australia Zoo. It’s the zoo that was Steve Irwins. We all had such an amazing day. I held a koala bear!!! It was just amazing and she was so soft. I had my photo taken too so will post it up when I can. I also fed a kangaroo which again was amazing. I also fed one which had a joey in her pouch.. We also fed some elephants, which was a bit slobbery! They had lots of animals there and of course they had some huge crocodiles!

At the moment we are in Rainbow Beach. In the morning we are heading to Fraser Island for the day.

Sorry the post is short and I have missed a lot of things out but hopefully when I get to Cairns I will be able to add more. I have been trying to upload pictures but the computer isn’t having any of it! Will try again as soon as I can! I think I have reported back on the main parts of the trip.

Anyway, that all I have time for now.