(If you are reading this then you have probably missed my last post on New Zealand as I added it about 5 minutes ago - probably best to read that first!)

I left Auckland and arrived in Melbourne at about 8.30pm. I didn't really have a clue where my hostel was or what the transport was like, so I ended up taking a tram and then wandering around St Kilda for 2 hours before finally finding it! So I was knackered and went straight to bed. Unfortunately the girl in the bunk below me had some sort of disorder that made her scream and shout in her sleep so none of the room got any sleep! The following day I wandered around St Kilda, went to the beach and had a meal on the sea front, including 6 oysters (like a true backpacker!). I initially didn't know what to make of St Kilda, but after my 2nd visit 2 weeks later I really liked it.

That evening I flew to Perth and was greeted at the airport by my uncle Sam. It had been 5 years since I was last in Perth so it was good to catch up with Janet and Sam. We went back to Dianella and didn't get to sleep until quite late that night! I also got to meet the two new shiatsu dogs, Louis and Mischa who were both very excited to have a new person in the house! Very cute and friendly dogs.

On Tuesday (the day after I arrived) I went to the Galleria Shopping Centre in Morley with Janet. I bought a few things and in the evening Janet cooked a steak (the best meal I had had in quite a long time!) On Wednesday I went into town to try and sort out my credit card problems with HSBC to no avail (a problem which is still ongoing). Banks are useless. I stayed in the city for a few hours having a look around. I walked around the centre which was how I remembered it. It is close to the water front so I walked down past the water and decided to go up the bell tower, where I managed to get some good shots of the city and water. There was a new shopping centre being built in the city which looks like it will be quite big. In the evening myself and Janet went to an old favourite restaurant, Sizzlers! It did not disappoint and I had a fillet steak with as much as you can eat buffet for $25. Definitely recommend to anyone, especially if they are hungry!

On the Thursday we went to Mandurah, which is to the south of the city. The train link there is new and the journey was excellent (and cheap - only $8 for a family ticket which included buses) and the weather was 23 degrees and sunny. The buses in Mandurah weren't very frequent though! It's grown a bit since I was there with quite a few new apartment blocks going up. We walked around the city, went to the Marina and had fish & chips for lunch which was great. When we were walking back to the main street we had a look around a new apartment on the waterfront. It was very nice and contemporary (although someone coming past on their boat could see you on the toilet)! However we got a shock with the price - $1.9m! It definitely wasn't worth anywhere near that, luckily myself and Janet didn't laugh when they told us how much!

On Friday the weather was excellent and about 25 degrees. We went to Fremantle for the day. Today was Anzac day in Australia so there were quite a few people about in their uniforms. I really liked Fremantle, it had a good vibrant feel to it and was pretty busy when we arrived. We went for a drink and then walked around the town, including visiting the markets, watching a street performed and then to the front. Luckily we stumbled on Joe's famous fish and chip shop so we stopped there for lunch. On the way back home we stopped off at Cottesloe beach and I went into the water (kind of). We then had a drink before heading home to watch The Grudge!

On the Saturday I went back to Cottesloe to meet Orla who was someone me and the lads had met in New Zealand. The weather picked up in the afternoon and we stayed on the beach for a few hours before heading to the pub! There was a great live band on so we watched them for a while before I headed back to Dianella for dinner with Janet and Sam.

The following day myself and Janet headed to the market that takes place each Sunday in the galleria carpark. We ended up going into town so I could buy some smarter clothes as we were planning on going to the casino that evening. I got a bargain with some $10 trousers, down from $70! In the evening we all went to the Burswood Entertainment Complex for a meal and then to the casino. We didn't lose any money as none was bet! But it was good to have a look around. We went outside of the Pearl Room where the minimum bet is $300k, so we didn't go through the door!

On my penultimate day in Perth we went to Trigg Beach (famous surfing beach). Saw quite a few surfers in the water (that'll be me after surf school!). We then headed towards Hilary's Boat Harbour for lunch. It was a longer walk than we were expecting but made it in the end. We went to the Aquarium which was excellent - saw loads of exotic fish, string rays, turtles, seals and even a few sharks. We then went to the same ice cream place that we went to a few years ago (where they make it in front of you). We then set out for Scarborough Beach but the buses weren't particularly good so we had to walk half the way! We got there in the end and had a few drinks. That evening we watched the launch of Big Brother Australia - quite a few interesting characters! On my final day I watched the series 'Worst Week of my Life' which is great, never seen it in the UK before! After some food Sam took me to the airport. Thanks Janet and Sam for a great week!

I arrived in Melbourne at about 7am and didn't really have any sleep the night before. However as the hostel was still cleaning I couldn't go to bed, so I went into the City. I randomly got off the tram at an interesting looking building, which happened to be the Museum of Victoria. I stayed in there for a couple of hours (I didn't recognize many artists except Picasso and Rembrandt). It is free to get in and some of the paintings are spectacular. I then went on to the Botanical Gardens before meeting back up with Steve and Tom in St Kilda and going for a few drinks.

For the following 2 days we hired a car and went down the Great Ocean Road. The scenery was pretty spectacular, especially when we reached the 12 Apostles (although there are only about 9 now as the rest have eroded). We stayed in a small town called Port Campbell in a very homely hostel called Ocean View (which, unsurprisingly was right on the front).We then slept for a long time before heading back to Melbourne.

On Friday (May 2) we went around the City and went to the Crown Casino (largest in Southern Hemisphere). I lost, Steve lost and Tom won about $2 so all in all not a great visit! In the afternoon we made our way to Tom's cousin's house in a place - believe it or not - called Ringwood! Now I've been to both the UK and Australian version. Tom's cousin Katie, her husband Carlos and children (Sam & Alisha) were kind enough to put us up for a few nights. That night we went out with the family to a place in Ringwood. There were a few sore heads the next day but we made it to the AFL match with Carlos and Ken (husband of Tom's other cousin, Torrie). The game was held at the MCG and was Collingwood Vs Hawthorn. I decided to cheer on Hawthorn which was a good choice, because they won! I just about understood the rules by the end of the game! That night we went to a few bars in Melbourne.

On Sunday Tom's auntie and uncle (Chris and John) were having a family gathering, and myself and Steve were invited as honourary guests! The place was out "in the bush" in a place called Warrandyte. Tom's Auntie, Chris, gave us a tour of the area and we went out to a local park which has a cool walk where you could see koala bears and kangaroos! We saw a few of each before heading back to the house for a huge feast with the family. Again many thanks to the Evans family for their hospitality (starting to sound like an Oscar speech!)

The next day we went back to St Kilda and headed straight to the Neighbours day (pretty sad but had to be done). We went to Ramsay Street and Erinsbrough High School for plenty of pictures. We then stopped for a meet and greet with a Neighbours star - none other than Dr Darcy! Pretty funny. That evening we went to the Neighbours night and met Dr Karl Kennedy, Connor and a few others. Dr Karl's band performed live and I won a dancing competition (had a few drinks by this point!) and won a voucher for sailing worth $370! All in all a great night.

I am now in Sydney and had a great first day. Will update more a bit sooner this time (hopefully!). We have also booked to go to Fiji at the end of June so looking forward to that!