G'day from Melbourne!

Sorry for delay between blogs - first chance we've had in a while!

Last couple of days in Brisbane were nice, had chance to shop & chill for a bit & see some more of the city before we grabbed a greyhound bus south.

Byron Bay was our first stop, passed Surfer's Paradise on the way - not worth a stop over apparently! After checking in to the YHA in Byron we spent the day on the beach which was a few minute's walk from the hostel - got free body board from hostel to try out on Byron's huge waves! Byron is lined with nice beaches & after a few hours cooking in the sun we strolled further down to Cape Byron, where the pro surfers hang out! We watched the sun-set behind the mountains in the horizon - beautiful.

After a nice stop over in Byron we headed for Port Maquairie, the bus was an hour late which gave us more time in the roasting heat! We arrived in Port Maquairie around 7pm & were greated with a free shuttle to our hostel! We grabbed some dinner & an early night so we could spend the next day enjoying the place. The weather was hot in Port Maquarie but more cloudy & we got a bit of rain! We strolled around the port, past some nice beaches & harbours & past the painted break-wall rocks which protect the land form the sea, some of the rocks are very artistic! We had time to chill on the beach before grabbing a fab Red Rooster for dinner & catching our next Greyhound to Sydney.

We loved Sydney right from the start & had a great week there. We arrived at 1am from our bus & a couple of local ozzies walked us to George street where our hostel was - thanks guys!

Once checked into our double room - a luxury after sharing dorms for a while! We took our first walk around Sydney, past the Queen Victoria Building (Very expensive shops but lavish!) the Town Hall & Darling Harbour to the Sydney Aquarium. The Aquarium was great loads of native fish & best of all the shark, turtle & manta-ray tank! They had a Barrier Reef section too which was really cool - got to check out Nemo & co!

Next we headed for the Sydney Tower, we took a lift to the top & got some amazing views of the city & harbours, the weather was gorgeous so visibility was really good & we could see for miles.

After some window shopping in between we did some more sight seeing on our 2nd day, we walked up Kent Street to the Sydney Harbour Bridge & Opera House, got some great pics & had lunch overlooking the harbour, Gaz shared his with a cheeky seagull who nabbed a bite of his sarnie while it was in his hand :) On our way back we walked through the Botanical Gardens & past the Gouvernment House, Library & Parliament House.

After a couple of days of sight seeing we thought we deserved a beach! So we took a ferry to Manly on our next day! Manly is a nice sea-side town, with nice shops leading to the beach. We shopped & sunbathed for the day which was hard work but we got through it!

Next morning we were up early for our Blue Mountains trip, the bus picked us up right outside the hostel & took us to the base of the mountains where we saw wild Cockatoos, Kangaroos & Kookaburras. We grabbed a quick bite to eat in a small town called Black Heath before beginning our 3 hour hike of a valley within the mountains known as 'The Grand Canyon' The walk was beautiful, through rain forests, small water falls & creeks, saw some huge canyons which you can drop down even deeper than we already were - another time perhaps! The hardest part of the walk was saved until last, marked on the map as 'Many steps' they weren't kidding! But after reaching the top the views of the Blue Mountains are breathtaking & we spent a while at the top taking it all in & getting our breath back! Next was a stop off at a rock formation known as the 3 sisters, because there are 3 rock stems jutting out into the valley. Aboriginal legend has it that an Elder (Wise old aboriginal) turned his 3 daughters to stone to save them from a dragon... Then it was back to the hostel to unwind our muscles after a fantastic trip!

Next morning we caught a bus to Bondi Beach to enjoy another day of glorious sunshine! We sun-bathed & had a dip in the sea - not such big waves this time but dangerous currents in places where you can't swim. We caught the bus back for our sunset dinner cruise leaving Circular Quay near the bridge & opera house at 5pm. One word - 'Luxury'!! We had a 3 course dinner, Mezze, chicken & beef with nice trimmings & fab puddings, lemon curd & passion fruit tart & chocolate tart all washed down with complimentary champaigne, red & white wine, while cruising around the harbour, under the Sydney Bridge, past the Opera House & Fort Dennison & out to the posh bays where water front houses currently go for 2-7million quid! Some day! This was heaven after a nice but simple diet of pasta & meat! After returning to the quay suitably full, we did some souvenir shopping as it was late night shopping on thursdays before bed! Cracking day!

Next morning it was time to leave Sydney :( & head for Canberra via the greyhound. It only takes 4 hours from Sydney so we got almost a full day to see the sights that Australia's capital has to offer. The weather was superb again which helped but Canberra is well worth a look - there are some really nice views across Lake Burley Griffin, named after the designer of the city & some impressive sights to check out. We walked to the new Parliament House, past the old one - which is more impressive! checked out Regatta Point & the Captain Cook Jet, which is a memorial blasting 400meters of water into the air! Between the old & new Parliament houses & did the Ozzie of the year walk - which is at the lake's edge & commemorates ozzies who did something good that particlar year!

Our bus to Melbourne was not til 8pm so we got to see some more of Canberra next day, we walked around 8km during the day, to the War Memorial which is as impressive from the inside as it is outside, the dome building is directly opposite the New Parliament House & statues line the ANZAC (Australian & New Zealand Ancilliry Corps) Parade between the 2 buildings. Inside there is lots of replicas from the first & second World Wars & others since, including planes, tanks & boats etc & big screens which show footage from past wars.

From the war memorial we headed for the Australian National Museum, which was a nice but long walk around the perimeter of the lake. The museum is very modern & includes a cool revolving cinema, which gives a brief history of Australian culture & times. There is lots of cool aboriginal sections etc - worth a look.

After an Australian K-Bab it was time to board our last greyhound bus to Melbourne, this was the longest - it took around 9 hours to reach Melbourne & we travelled through the night arriving at our hostel around 6.30am! We've checked out the markets & grabbed a much needed nap, ready to take a good look around Melbourne, before our Penguin trip & then beginning The Great Ocean Road to Adelaide on the 19th Nov.

Will write again towards the end of our time in Adelaide, so speak soon!

Take care all

Love Gaz & Hannah xxx