The day we picked up Ramsey and headed to a campsite in the Sydney suburbs was the day the weather changed for the worse. So there we were with a car full of unfamiliar camping equipment trying to erect a tent - a task neither of us have done before - and half way through it began to rain. Luckily the guy in the tent opposite us came back and lent a hand, among other things he turned our fly sheet the correct way round. As we lay in the small dome-style tent...

We had been pleasantly surprised in New Zealand at how easily we found our rented campervan, Blanche. We therefore arrived in Sydney wondering whether we would be able to repeat the trick. It was unreasonable to hope for another mere five-hour search, but perhaps we could do it in five days? Making it more difficult was the fact that we were buying rather than renting, and we wanted a 4x4 rather than the more plentiful estate cars and campers. On the plus sid...

We had been pleasantly surprised in New Zealand at how easily we found our rented campervan, Blanche. We therefore arrived in Sydney wondering whether we would be able to repeat the trick. It was unreasonable to hope for another mere five-hour search, but perhaps we could do it in five days? Making it more difficult was the fact that we were buying rather than renting, and we wanted a 4x4 rather than the more plentiful estate cars and campers. On the plus sid...

I spent my teenage years avidly watching Neighbours and Home & Away, and ever since then I just knew I would love Australia. We arrived in Sydney just over a week ago to bright sunshine and warm enough to wear a t-shirt - not bad for late Autumn I thought. We'd pre-booked a private room in Eva's Backpacker hostel in the heart of Kings Cross. We chose that one because it had a good reputation for cleanliness and free wifi in the kitchen/dining area. It was...

So, that's New Zealand pretty much done. We arrived on November 19th 2008 and leave on May 12th 2009. In almost six months of travelling around both islands, we have covered a total of 12,150 kilometres (nearly 7,600 miles) using 1,154 litres of petrol. We have stayed at 64 different campsites with an average cost per night for both of us of $26.78 - roughly £10 a night when we arrived but a little over £11 now given the decline in the pound. We have spent 168...