Firstly, apoplogies for the slightly delayed and probably rather brief entry! We'll try and bring you up to date... But memories of Australia might be a little hazy!

Back in May we enjoyed the last of our time on the beach at Bondi, near Sydney, spending a few very relaxing days watching the surfers and meeting up with a couple of guys we had met up in Cairns.

Then we moved to central Sydney and stayed in Wake Up hostel, where we bumped into a few people from back home... We spent one day seeing ALL the sights Sydney had to offer and really fell in love with the city. On our tour was the Botanical Gardens, Australia Museum, Mrs Macquarie's chair, the Opera House (of course), China Town for lunch, Darling Harbour, Harbour Bridge and the Rocks for a beer in a German beer bar - we had met up with some German friends from Brisbane earlier in the day! Our second morning was spent in a trip out to Palm Beach, the setting for Home and Away beach moments, where we saw the famous Alf Stewart shooting a scene with 'Ric' and 'Martha'! The afternoon was then spent shopping at Bondi Junction for winter and waterproof clothing for the coming months... Our final day we caught a ferry to Manly Beach, which was useful in blowing away the hangover from the night before...! The morning was spent doing a scenic coastal 10k walk from Manly Beach to the Spit, which was beautiful with some good views of Sydney skyline. Fish and chips on the beach for lunch and then a look round the shops for souvenirs.

A very early morning flight to Melbourne on 24th May, which neither of us saw a lot of... For the first couple of nights in Melbourne we stayed in King Street hostel and our first afternoon we found the free city circle tram, which gives a running commentary of all the sights and drops you off at strategic places, perfect after not a lot of sleep! May 25th was my (Miriam's) birthday and was spent on a Great Ocean Road day trip - Bells Beach to watch the surfers, London Bridge rock formation, wild koalas and parrots in the trees, a fantastic free lunch, Loch Ard gorge and the highlight of the day - the 'Twelve Apostles' as the sun set behind them! An amazing day followed by a very fun night out on Brunswick Street, watching free bands in the bars, including an 11 piece funk band, and treating ourselves to a couple of very posh and very tasty cocktails!

The rest of the time was spent staying with Susan, visiting St. Kilda beach town for lunch and dinner, where we caught up with a couple of Kristina's cousins... A big family day the next day - all of Kristina's relatives got together and kindly treated us to home-cooked spreads for lunch and dinner, including an excellent roast and a birthday cake! We also had another sightseeing day with Susan and Katie as tour-guides where we got to see some more of Melbourne, including an amazing fire display down by the river. Last day in Australia was spent meeting Susan's mother and sampling a traditional Australian market, where we found some excellent cheap UGG boots, perfect for keeping our feet warm in New Zealand (they've been worn everyday since!).

And then it was on to New Zealand...