Hello!

We have been in Australia for a little while now and we have really enjoyed it here so far. Olivia was very ill when we first arrived in Cairns which wasn't the greatest start but since then she has thankfully got much better and we have been quite busy.

On January 16th we picked up our cmapervan in Cairns, loaded it up with supplies and began our road trip south to Sydney. The first day we decided not to drive too far and after about an hour we came to a town called Innisfail and found a campsite right on the Johnstone river. We spent a fun first night with the camper playing guitar by the lakeside and keeping refreshed with some homemade cocktails. The next morning we headed to a nearby crocodile park which was very exciting and, at times, quite scary (especially when Simon's namesake "Simmo" tried to attack us through the protective fence)! Whilst at the park, we were given the opportunity to hold a baby crocodile named "Fluffy" and a python named "Tangles" and we were also given food to feed the resident kangaroos. We also witnessed a clearly insane Aussie park ranger enter the pens and proceed to tease the crocodiles with a small lump of chicken on a stick!

Having just seen first hand the destructive capabilities of the Australian croc, we were more than slightly concerned when we arrived at Saunders Beach, our free campsite for the night, to find signs warning that the beach was unpatrolled and saltwater crocodiles were in the area! We survived the night, however, and continued our journey south.

The next day we came first to Townsville, the unnofficial capital of North Queensland. After a visit to a tourist info centre to find out about campsites and activities in the area, we were sitting in the van plotting our next step when we were approached by two police constables. Simon was severely reprimanded for parking with the van facing the wrong way and had his name taken. Despite the seriousness of the offence, we escaped without a prison term or a fine and quickly decided to move on.

We were very pleased with our decison when we arrived at Bowen, a beautiful, laid back town with blissful, award winning beaches. We stayed here for two days which we spent mostly lazing around on the grassland or beach in the 35 degree heat. One morning we hired some scuba gear and went diving at local "Horseshoe Bay" which was a lot of fun. We were able to walk right in off the beach and immediately we were floating around colourful coral, surrounded by a variety of fascinating fish!

After diving, we loaded up the camper and set off again. After a few hours drive we decided to stop at Seaforth, another small relaxed town with a wonderful coastline. However, the warning signs for crocs and jellyfish returned and swimming was confined to within a specially built stinger net. This didnt look altogether completely croc proof but the locals were swimming so we decided to have a dip.

During our travels in Australia so far, the one difficulty we have found with the camper (other than the morning heat!) is the lack of free places to stay. Last night, however, we struck gold by finding a secluded site on the beach of Carmilla.

We have thoroughly enjoyed our time here so far and will write again soon when we next find some internet!