So... from where we left off; George was sitting on a rock, like a hobbit in the middle of a river and we'd been to visit the incredible moeraki boulders and taken a walk along the beach. Then, after a day of chilling out in the sun, we had dinner and drinks by the river and brought the duvet outside to do some stargazing - we saw tons of shooting stars!!

There didn't seem to be a huge amount going on in Christchurch, the city center still seems to be suffering from their earthquake in 2011. We were running way over budget but we still had a couple of days before flying to Sydney. Our two options were: stay in a free DoC campsite for a couple of nights and read our books, go for walks etc...or splurge just a little bit more and go up to kaikoura for a whale watching trip. As we will, most probably, never be in New Zealand again, you can guess which option we went for!! We drove straight through Christchurch and started on the two hour journey to Kaikoura.

When we arrived, we headed to the i site to book our trip and ask about somewhere to stay. We then had a walk around the quaint little fishing village before driving to the campsite. We treated ourselves to a nice campsite with hot showers and even rented a DVD for the night - big spenders!!! We had free WiFi so did a bit of skyping then got an early night before our early start on the trip!

We were both super excited about the trip and the sun was shining which made it even better. We were up and at the Whaleway (this was actually the name of the place!) Station by 7.30am. The day started with a 20 minute safety video then a bus ride to the boat. We had been warned about the rough conditions and told how to deal with sea sickness, which came in handy as it was pretty choppy but nothing compared to the cook straight ferry!! The crew introduced themselves, told us loads about the marine life in the area then explained that there was currently only one main sperm whale in the area and he only comes up for air once every 40 minutes so we would be very lucky to see him. We sailed for a while, stopped to look for him, got chucked around the top deck for half an hour, had no luck then sailed a little further. This time the crew had spotted him and were racing to get us up close and personal with the whale. George and I were lucky enough to find the best viewing spot right at the front of the boat and we watched the whale spurt out water from his blow hole and flick his tail up as if to wave goodbye. Amazed by what we'd just seen but knowing that that was all we would see, we were having mixed feelings about our whale watching experience. However, the best was yet to come!!! On the way back to shore we stopped to watch a pod of dolphins. There were hundreds of them! Jumping, somersaulting, splashing and clicking. It's by far the most incredible thing I have ever seen. I absolutely loved it! It was one of, if not, the best experiences of the trip so far. I wanted to jump in and swim around with them! Not to forget the giant albatrosses that were flying around the boat!

Sad it was over and extremely hungry, we decided that the only acceptable lunch on a day like this would of course be fish and chips! We drove towards the seal colony and stopped at a little hut by the sea. George had a whitebait and crayfish pattie and I asked for a mild fish sandwich - oh my God!!! Delicious!!!! Followed by a gigantic chocolate ice cream cone :D We took a walk with our ice cream up to where the seals should be. Before walking along the shore, we went up hill to get a good view of everything. From up high we could see loads of seals but weren't quite sure how to get to them so we sat and watched for a while as we let our food go down. On the way back down, George spotted, through the trees, a seal right on the beach. We got right up close to it, took some great snaps then watched for a while after noticing a few others that had camouflaged into the rocks. Two of them even had a little stand off for territory and put on a little show for us. All this and to think we only had to walk for 5 minutes!! After such an eventful day, we were both pretty tired so we drove around for a bit to find the nearest DoC.

The next day was our last full day in New Zealand. We drove towards the airport, found a campsite, did some laundry, packed, checked in online and tidied the van. Nothing too exciting. Our flight to Australia was the following afternoon. We double checked everything was packed, went to have lunch in the botanical gardens in Christchurch (where we got attacked and pooped on by pigeons) then said goodbye to our jucy van.

We had another great flight (this time we even had a menu to choose from!) But now it was time for a bit of a reality check! Way over budget in just 3 months, our next few days would be spent flat and job hunting. We arrived with a bump and the people were less than friendly (just like landing in Gatwick) we'd booked a few nights in a hostel in Manly, in the northern beaches of Sydney, and to get there either meant a very expensive cab or a train and a ferry with our backpacks in tow. By the time we'd arrived in Manly and walked to the hostel we were knackered. The hostel was horrendous! It stank of sick and was full of drunken 18 year olds who were running around until 5am the next morning. Thank God we spent the extra $20 on a private room rather than a dorm. Eeeek! Even more of an incentive to get sorted quickly.

We were up and in the library early the next day. Searching the web, the paper and the notice board for rooms and jobs. I contacted o2 to get my phone unlocked, we opened up a bank account and then met George's friend Jaryd (who funilly enough, lives 5 mins from the backpackers) for a few drinks in the evening. Jaryd gave George a phone to use and his flat mate worked for a childcare agency so we finished our first day in oz with phones and bank all sorted and a possible job for me and a few flats to go and look at. Not bad.

The next day brought more of the same - job and flat searching. We had two very different places to look at. The first was a family home in Manly Vale (20 mins bus ride from the beach). The place was huge and had a little studio attached to the front which is where we would stay. Unfortunately, we got there too late and it had already been let out to someone else although Maria (the very kind lady who owned the house) said we could stay until Wednesday if we can't find anything else. We then got the bus into the city center, went to Apple to finalize unlocking my phone, had a delicious lunch at darling harbour then got the train to kirribilli to look at the second place. The location was incredible! Directly opposite the opera house with a top floor view over the water. It was a converted hotel and the building was stunning with a gorgeous bbq area at the bottom. Ranes (the girl who we would be sharing with) was nice enough, gave us a glass of wine and seemed quite friendly and the flat was stunning but there was no tv or WiFi and she spoke a lot about peace and quiet. We had a big decision to make so we went back to the backpackers and slept on it.

We woke up with clear heads and decided to take Maria up on her offer while we looked for something more suited to us. Within 5 minutes of talking to her on the phone she was already on her way to pick us up. She drove us around the area to show us where the supermarkets, the mall and the library were then we unpacked and settled in. She then gave us a lift to the mall so we could do some food shopping and print off some cvs.

We got the bus in to crow's nest to see about possible bar work but soon realised that it'd be too far to travel. We still met with the guy to keep our options open.

When we arrived back at the house, Maria and her two little girls were making pizzas and asked us to join them. Greg (Maria's husband) then arrived home with a bottle of champagne to welcome us to Australia! We felt pretty happy that we'd made the right decision. Maria then said that if we wanted we could have her spare room upstairs in the family home once our week in the studio was up. We jumped at the chance and that is where we are now.

We're exactly two weeks in to our Sydney experience and I'm now working full time. I've joined a child care agency who phone me in the morning and tell me where to go. My first day was 9-6.30 in a creche changing nappies, not ideal then on my second day I was sent to a Montessori school as a pre-school room supervisor, much more to my taste and also very interesting. They have since asked me back and I've been asked to work there for the rest of this week. I've had to turn down a few days as I'd already committed to nannying for two different families on a Tuesday and a Friday. Today I'm going to look after 3 kids at a big house by the beach in Manly and tomorrow I'm back at the Montessori school. Enjoying it, but also missing our fun, lazy days in fiji and Hawaii. It feels strange adjusting to working life in another country.

George has had a days plumbing work with a guy he found on gumtree and has been looking for bar work. He's found it hard getting plumbing or gas work as he has no tools with him so he's completed his Responsible Service of Alcohol certificate and he had a trial at a bar by the beach on Sunday. He's been given another shift on Wednesday. His job is now to find us somewhere nice to live in manly while I'm off out at work. It's looking increasingly less likely as its now peak season but hopefully we'll find somewhere soon. We've not had to dip in to our savings any more which is great and I'm looking forward to spending some time on the beach at the weekend. We're both doing well and settling in to life in oz. I'll keep you posted xxx