Steven worked away in Toowoomba for 4 weeks. It was difficult to be apart after so long together but we had no choice. We needed the money for the rest of the trip. I continued to work until a week after he came back (12th June). That evening we went out for a meal with my sister and her husband to celebrate Andrews 30th Birthday and the fact that we had no more work!

After we had both finished working it was all 'go' again. We spent time with my sister and the kids and our friend Gido and his girlfriend Alie came over to Melbourne from WA for a week. We spent the weekend in the city at the casino, bars, shopping etc and then we took off to the Great Ocean Road for three days. We stayed in hostels along the way and spent the days enjoying the gorgeous scenery. The twelve apostles were amazing (even though there are only 7 left!!). When we returned to Melbourne we watched Australia play Japan in the world cup qualifier at the MCG.

After their week in Melbourne we flew over to Western Australia with Gido and Alie to Dunsborough where they live. It was really nice to see how happy he is with his life in Australia. Dunsborough is gorgeous, even though it rained a lot (that'll teach us to go in winter), the beaches were amazing and I definitely want to go back in summer to see him again! We had such a nice week relaxing, enjoying good company and food. I learned how to play poker (and beat everyone). It was a welcome break from the city. It was really hard to say goodbye to him when the week was over because we don't know when we'll see him again.

Steven and I flew back to Melbourne and stayed with my sister for a night before leaving for Fiji. It was really really really upsetting to leave my sister and the children after getting to know them all over again. My sister left to travel when I was young and pretty much never went back so it was such a special time for me to live so close and just 'pop' into her house to see her. I will miss her everyday!!

Leaving Australia left us with mixed emotions. Melbourne brought with it many challenges for both us. Most of which we have risen to, faced and overcome together. I was sad to leave my job, my new friends, and most of all my family but I was also very excited about the next chapter of my travels…

We flew to Fiji on Sunday and arrived after dark, and picked up our rental car from the airport. It was supposed to be a Suzuki swift bit was actually a 'Jimny'…rubbish!! We set off to find our hostel to discover that Fiji's roads weren't very well lit. There were pot holes everywhere!! After a bit of an effort and a pinch of drama we finally found our hostel.

In the morning the sun was shining so we decided to get on our way to the coral coast in the south of the island. We wanted to drive all the way around the island in 7 days.We stopped at a few beaches and coves along the way but we were struggling to find the picturesque paradise Fiji you see on postcards!! We continued until we came to the village of Koralevu-where we decided to sleep for the night. The hostel there was nice; it had a pool and a nice stretch of beach in front of it!! That afternoon we went down to the beach. It felt great to have my bikini on again and as I lay down on the sun lounger it started to rain….and didn't stop for 4 bloody days!!! At times it was torrential and we couldn't even head out in the car because the roads were unsafe.

With the weather putting a stop to our plans we had no choice but to stay put for a few days. We went out during the days when the rain wasn't as severe - to check out the local towns and the capital city. When driving to the capital city I got caught speeding by the Fijian police. They fined me $40 Fijian dollars, he then reduced it to $25 (about 7 pounds 50). He told me to pay him in cash because it was too difficult to explain where the transport police office was in Suva. Hmmmmmm….I gave him the money and Steven told him to "have a beer on us". On the way back from Suva we decided to pick up two Fijian women trying to thumb a lift. They were going to a special church service two villages on. It was raining and I felt sorry for them…they were sooo lovely.

The speeding fine wasn't the only issue I had with the car...one night I left the lights on so when we went to take it out the next morning the battery was completely flat. The Fijian guy who ran the boathouse at the hostel jump started the car…thanks Sana!!

One day the rain stopped in the morning and the sun came out for a few hours so we grabbed the opportunity to go and check out the Savu Na Mate Waterfall in the highlands. We drove to the village of Biasevu, parked up and set off on what the 'lying' planet described as an 'easy 15-30 min walk'……an HOUR later and with mud up to the shins we arrived at the waterfall. It was completely worth it!! It was breathtaking; the recent rainfall made it flow heavy and fast. We stripped off and jumped in…it was soooo cold it actually pushed the air out if my lungs. We were completely alone so we decided to shout and scream at the top of our voices. It echoed off the rocks and rang out through the jungle-it was such an amazing feeling!!!!

The Fijian people are defiantly the nicest we have met on our travels so far. They are genuinely friendly and helpful and don't have the sinister money hungry aspect to their character that we found in some countries. Unfortunately we never found the picture perfect Fiji we both had in mind. The islands off Viti Levu are where the gorgeous beaches are but with so much rain we thought we'd save it for another time. We did, however experience a true slice of Fiji's socio-economic culture which still proved to be a valuable insight into the country's society.

We are currently in New Zealand; we arrived today and are setting off on the Kiwi Experience bus tomorrow to travel both islands. We have lots planned so you won't have to wait as long for the next blog……