so what has everyone been up to since we last spoke??? we have been really busy hence the lack of update. well we headed south to airlie beach and spent three days sailing around the whitsundays. we had an amzing time, we slept on the boat which was an experience as they had no shower. we spent sometime sunbathing on whitehaven beach which is quite possibly the most beautiful place i have ever seen. the beach feels like flour under your feet and is purw white and the sea is a mixture of so many different blues its unbelievable. we sailed on a maxi racing yacht, which has won all seven major competitions that it had been in. it was even entered in the sydney hobart. we acted liek the crew and learnt to tack the boat and pull up the sails to move the boat into the wind. we made some great friends on the boat, and mike spent some time gettig drunk!!! we did a couple of dives off the boat and saw turtles, we could also hear whale noises under the water which was unbelievable. we also saw whales while up on deck. when we got back on dry land we met with our ship mates and went out for a meal and some drinks as it was a girl called emma's birthday. the next day we spent the day chilling and sunbathing with emma and simon, who got engaged on the boat, and caught the overnight bus, 13 hours, down to hervey bay. this is where we started our fraser island adventure. we spent three days driving around the worlds biggest sand island in an eleven seater 4x4 vehicle. no one wanted to drive at first so mike volunteered me, how sweet!!! it was so cool we had a huge 4x4, bouncing across about 1/2 m of sand. the car was bouncing and jumping around everywhere, but it was so much fun. on the first day we went to lake mackenzie which was cool. its a fresh water lake the crystal clear and surrounded by a white sandy beach. we set up camp a little later, it was the first time i have ever slpet in a tent, which was an experience in itself. i would ljust like to add that there was once again no showers (i thihnk we have a theme) and our toilet was any hole we could dig. we had to dig a hole as leaving things out can attract dingoes. we had a dingo incident on out second night, wher eone of the girls had her bag stolen by one. we had seen a few but we missed this one, he ruined her camara and her phone. on the second morning we were up at 5 am and drove on the beach to indiand head the highest point on the island, it overlooks crashing rocks and the ocean. we could see tiger sharks, hence no swimming in the sea there, whales and dolphine. we had a quick breakfast a drove around admiring some of the other beauties that the island had to offer. we set up camp early and had a bbq. we spent the night drinking and playing drinking games, that our 2 new canadian friends had invented, very drunk on cheap wine hence the fact we missed the dingo. they call wine in a box 'goon' and believe me it works (reminds me of our lambrini days mel). the stuff is lethal but a good night was had by all. the next morning we were up at 6, and headed to eli creek for a quick swim. the creek was cool and a nice way to wake up. we then went to a palce called rainbow gorge and did an hour walk in the sand which changes colour as you move. that was pretty cool, we headed back to lake mackenzie to kill some time before our barge back to the mainland. the next day we caught a bus down to noosa. we spent two days here and went to the cinema to see you, me and dupree, how funny is that !!!! the next day we went to australia zoo, home of the crocodile hunter. we had a wkd day. saw koalas, snakes, dingoes, kangaroos and loads of other stuff. we got to hand feed the kangaroos, i was like a child. they also had a kidies section where you could feed shapp, pigs and goats. i was loving this until a nasty goat stole my bag of food and ate the whole thing, including the bag. we then headed to brisbane and did a 5 mile cycle along the river and aroudn the city. they place was really pretty. we also went oto the lone pine koala sanctuary, and i held a koala called lionus- mel i tried to steal a kangaroo for you but he kept jumping around. headed form brisbane to surfers and had the best night out ever. it wa shannah the girl form singapores birthday so we all went out for a bar crawl. i have never been so drunk, on goon once again. mike got us chucked out of a bar for being drunk and unable to stand up, but ti was so much fun. he spent the next day in bed with a hangover, so much fun!!! we left for byron bay the next day and spent 2 nights here, just chilling out. its a really nice relaxed hippy town. we did atrip up to see sunset over the lighthouse and spent some time on the beach. it was a really nice place. just like to say we are having an amazing time, the feel of this whole country is great. also congratulations to kirstin and scott, who got married last week. hope the whole day went amazing, if you could send me some picks i would be really grateful. i can understand why you love this country, when you move here i think you may have two guests, as we love it here too. well we arrived in sydney then and checked into a posh and for once clean hostel right in the centre. on the first day we walked to darling harbour and had a look around. we then went to the sydney aquarium, yes more fish. it was wkd we had a really good time and the place is so big, once again the shark section was really good and i wanted to get in. we spent the evening in the bar with the girls we met in singapore. we got up early the next daya nd did the sydney harbour bridge climb, which was amazing, it was a really clear day so you could see for miles. we could see all over the harbour, well it is 134 m up, and 1500 steps. it was really worth it though. we did a bit of shopping ad more looking around before heading to our hostel as we had to go back to get ready as we were doing a dusk harbour cruise at 5pm. so we get ready and go to walk out of the door and it starts to rain, mike runs back upstairs to get water proofs, not that they worked but hey!! while he was ogne it started to hail, and i mean hail they were the size of golfballs and hurt when they hit you. as been as we didt want to lose our mney we decided to make a run for it, how stupid were we. as soon as we stapped outside we got soaked, but we did manage to make it to the harbour just as the boat was leaving. we went on an old fashioned paddle baot with a big wheel at the back. we were the only people on the upper deck so made sure we got our moneys worth of tea and coffee. as we boarded it stopped raining so we went out on deck to make the most of it. the sight was quite spectacular as the sky was dark due to the rain without it being pitch balck and there was thunder in the distance. the next day we caught a train 2 hours inland to a place called katoomba, which is in the heart of the blue mountains. we stayed in a lovely little hostel called the flying fox and the owner is the nicest ozzie i have ever met. he upgraded us form 2 dorm beds to a double private room and did it us for the same rate. we had a look around the town on the first day before retiring in front of the log fire to watch a dvd, ooo how pipe and slippers does that sound. our second day there we decided to go for a bit of a hike. we walked for 20mins from our hostel and then reached the site of the three sisters, if your thinking what they are im sure you have all seen pictures you just dont realise, ill put my pics on when i get chance to jog your memory. we then descended down the giant staircase which was actually huge and walked along the tracks for an hour before we reached the overhang of the sisters. we then walked through the bush for another hour and reached katoomba cascades, they were really beautiful. we then caught this little train back up to the top, which is actually the steepest in the world. i was crapping myself, and all mike did was get the camcorder out to video how scared i was. we left katoomba the next day and headed back to sydney. we checked back into the same hostel as we were in before but just chilled the first day. on our second day abck there we went ot the famous bondi beach. i was really windy and quite cold so we didnt stay there long, long enough for me to buy a new bag. the next day we walked up to the bridge pilon lookout as we got it free with doing the bridge climb. again it was a clear day so the view was good, but a bit disappointing after being on the top. we then went to a lovely weekend market, which was full of locally made gifts, i really like dit as i love hand made stuff. mike liked the chilli stand and proceeded to try everyone except the final one as it was 10+++ in strangth and came with a warning not for the faint hearted, and he wimped out!! later that day we caught the overnight bus to melbourne. on the monday night we went to neighbours night at the elephant and wheelbarrow in st kilda. this was so much fun and we got to meet toadie, stingray, boyd and got to see dr kennedys band play (who were actaully quite good). boyd is sooooo fit. the next day me and mike took a tram tour of the city and went to get some aussie rules football tickets for us and our roommate eve. during the evening we entered the hostel quiz in the bar and had a few drinks. on wednesday we did a tour of ramsay street, which we both really enjoyed. we got to meet ned, who again is really fit!! i cannot believe how small the street is. the afternoon was spent just chilling out. on thursday we went to phillip island and did the penguin parade, now i will explain. we started the day off at a winery so got to try some high quality stuff, before heading to a nature reserve and onto philip island. not the penguin parade is something totally naturala nd happens everyday. basically everyday penguins come back form the fishing trip at sea to spend the night in their burrows on land. they are nicknamed the little penguin and are in fact the smallest in the world. as sson as it turned dark we saw little white bellies start appearing in the surf, beofre slowly making their way up the beach and onto the grassy bank. we had to sit on the beach in the freezing cold and be really quiet but it was so worth it. we finished the night off with pizza. we spent out last day shopping for jackets to preapare for the cold. we both bought really nice snowbaording jackets from ripcurl in the sale, bargain!!! on the evening we went ot watch the western bulldogs play st kilda. the game really good, and although its called football its more like rugby. we really enjoyed it. went to bed when we got back as had to be up at 2:45 am to catch a fligth to new zealand...... and that is where my story stops, we are currently in christchurch on the south island, we picked up our hire car and arrived safely, but i dont want ot spoli it so i will update again soon. have had a good day today, and this is the most beautiful country we have been to. we did over 250 miles today and it was a shear pleasure to drive...anyway i better stop rambling. take care everyone and will speak to you soon. love me xxxxx