We were driven to the Blue Mountains yesterday by John. A two hour drive from Sydney and a world away. The landscape is of high stone cliffs and deep forests with dramatic rock formations and waterfalls. We also visited a now almost deserted village called Hartley. Its claim to fame is that the buildings are still as they would have been in the 19th century when convicts were used as a workforce in the area. The village once had around 1000 inhabitants and was...

Arrived in Sydney yesterday afternoon and decided to take the airport shuttle to Kings Cross, the area in Sydney where Laura lives, and who is kindly sharing her flat with us for the next week. Firstly, taking the shuttle was a bad idea but as we landed at 5 pm we were told that a taxi would get caught up in rush hour and take much longer than usual. The shuttle bus took over two hours! However, we did see a lot of Sydney on the way as ours was the last drop of...

Haven't visited the tennis in last couple of days as tournament is now only semis and finals matches and tickets sold out/ too expensive. We explored Melbourne centre, visiting Queen Victoria Market, reputably the biggest covered market in the world......lots of 'tat' but also good quality fresh produce - meat, seafood and fruit and veg. Bought some patriotic tee shirts to wear on Australia Day. (Today). We are going to a BBQ in Kensington, a suburb of Melbou...

On Sunday, David and I went to the MCG to watch England women's cricket team thrash the Aussie women's team! After record breaking attendance of over 91,000 at 1st day of men's test match, there were probably less than 1,000 watching the women. I left David there in the afternoon as I had a date with Sarah at the Lindt chocolate shop in the centre of Melbourne. Sarah treated me to a chocolate feast. See the photos! Absolutely delicious. Hot choc drink with ...

Unable to visit the tennis on Thursday and Friday as 'confined to barracks' by the extreme temperatures. Swam in pool both mornings but heat has burned the leaves on shrubs near the pool which the hot wind then blew into the water! Record breaking temps even for Melbourne with 40c+ both days - Tom's outside thermometer gave up at 47c. All windows /doors closed and air con on all day and night for 60 hours. Watched tennis on TV until they closed outside courts an...