G'day!!!

Soooooo much to talk about in such little time!! So we are now in our campervan (two weeks of it so far!!!) and it is excellent!! The van is like a large transit van, and it has a double bed/table+chairs, sink, gas hobs, microwave, fridge, shower and toilet, and all the utensils and pots and pans we could need!! It's suprisingly spacious also!!!

We picked it up in Sydney and headed straight for the Blue Mountains. The views and scenery there are amazing, and its really not that far from Sydney!! We took the steepest train ride in the world (at a 52 degree incline) then a cable car.

We then headed for the beach where Home & Away is filmed (called Palm Beach). The beach there is stunning, and the houses equally so (I think the rich people of Sydney must live there!). After that we headed for the Hunter Valley wine region! Again the scenery was stunning, but the wine was even better! :) We did a little wine tasting at a few vineyards before heading off towards the Gold Coast.

We stopped at a few quite beaches before reaching the Gold Coast, and all were quiet yet white sands with clear waters. We headed for a place called Surfers Paradise, and although it was very built up (being the Florida of Australia), the beach was fantastic, and sea clear (not good waves unfortunately).

After a day and a half there, we headed for Brisbane, where we spent two nights. Brisbane is a really nice city, very clean and easy to get around. The city is much less touristy than Sydney and therefore there wasn't that much to do around the place, but we filled a day. After leaving Brisbane, we headed to Australia Zoo. As you will see from the pictures (coming soon :) !) the animals there, and the shows and interactions were fantastic! Set up and run by Steve Irwin (and now his family), the influences of the crocodile hunter are everywhere!! Its a great place and well worth a visit.

I've run out of time now but I'll fill you in on all the rest as soon as possible!!

Dave & Becky

xxx

P.s Slight correction! Somewhere inbetween Palm Beach and Gold Coast we went to Byron Bay which was awesome!! Not only did we spend some time on the amazing beach, but we also headed up to the lighthouse to see the view from the most easterly point of Australia. From there we saw humpback whales migrating north, and also a couple of dolphins playing in the shallows at the bottom of the cliffs where we were standing!!