Friday 1 May, 7:30 pm local time. At an internet café in Brisbane, and I'm going dizzy from the smell of fresh paint... gonna wirte as quickly as possible so apologies in advance for any spelling/grammatical errors ;-)

Greetings from downunder!!!

WOW! We've already been in Australia for over a week, and time has just wizzed by (I get dizzy just thinking about everything we've done so far, or maybe it's just the paint?!). Here's a quick update of this past week and a half...

We landed in Sydney last Thursday (23 Apr), and have been having a blast - we just love, love, LOVE Australia! Sydney is such a vibrant city (in the words of our dear friend, Tony Ferrer, hehe) with so much to see/do/experience that instead of staying for 2 nights/3 days, we ended up extending our visit to 4 nights/5 days. We did all the touristy things, naturally, but the highlights would definitely have to be the following (and in no particular order):

- Darling Harbour at night. All the restaurants, cafes, and bars seemed to sparkle!

- The IMAX (supposedly the largest in the world)! We saw "Under the Sea" in 3D complete with the funny glasses, of course! See our latest album for a good laugh!

- The tour of the Sydney Opera House. This is one of the most incredible spaces/buildings we've ever seen, and the story/drama behind it is even more fascinating

- The Botanic Gardens (we saw plenty of BATS, Ibis birds, and exotic plants/flowers). Didn't hurt that it was close to 25 degrees that day ;-)

- Drinks with Christoph (Daniel's friend from the MBA). On our last night in Sydney, we met up with Christoph for drinks at the very trendy Bungalow 8 located in Darling Harbour, and chatted about everything that's happened since we last saw him in Miami 4 years ago!

We were sad to say goodbye to Sydney, but very much looking forward to the rest of our time in Australia. From Sydney, the plan is to drive up the East Coast (to chase the sun!), all the way to Cairns (and the Great Barrier Reef), while stopping along the way at different beaches/ports (so far we've stopped in Port Macquaire, Byron Bay, and Surfer's Paradise). I'm also happy to report that we are no longer travelling in a campervan, and have traded it in for a sexy little convertible (to make up for all the campervan drama!)!!!

Our first stop along the way was in Tuggerawong to meet, and visit with Daniel's great aunt, Mrs. Elizabeth Belshaw. She's a lovely, quintessentially English (89 year old) lady full of great stories! We had a brilliant time chatting with her over dinner, and breakfast the following morning. We're both so pleased to have met her!

We were also fortunate enough to spend time with Elizabeth's daughter, Victoria, and her husband Michael in Terrania (an 1hr or so from Byron Bay). The night we arrived, they prepared a Kangaroo curry for dinner, which was very tasty, and the following day, they took us on a true, and proper hike. Daniel enjoyed every minute while I struggled to keep the blood-sucking LEACHES off of my shoes and ankles! I was pretty much shaking the entire time. I'd also like to take the opportunity, again, to apologise to Victoria and Michael for screaming (and swearing!) along the way. So very sorry! They are both such warm people and we loved every minute spent with them (and charlie, their puppy, and horses!).

We're now in Brisbane, and will be for the next day or so before continuing our drive North.

Until next time, lots of love from Australia!

Jennifer & Daniel x