It has been such a long time since i"ve had the chance to blog. Finally, found some time to sit in an inet cafe and update the blog with our adventrues. We are currently in Wanaka which is a lovely town (nice shops!) by Lake Wanaka and surrounded by mountains and snowy peaks (I keep getting very excited by the snowy peaks which look just like they do on a toblerone wrapper!). We went on an amzing 3 hr walk up a small mountain yesterday and had a phenomenal view of the peaks (inclding Mount Aspiring which gives its name to the national park we are in) and the lake-breathtaking from both sides. We have had a great time so far in new Zealand. We loved the North Island - geothermal hot springs everywhere so we were able to bathe in a hot spring resort and have a mud footbath right next to bubbling mud pools and steaming springs. On our first night in New Zealand we drove up to the Coramandel Penisula and our campsite looked straight onto turquiose sea peppered with islands-probably our best van view yet. We feasted on a New Zealand lamb BBQ and washed it down with a New Zealand red! Before dinner we went off to hot sand bay where you are meant to be able to did yourself a ittle mini spa in the sand as the water is heated by an undergroudn spring. Our digging made very big holes but no hot water so we kindly accepted the invitation to join a British family in their large hole and promptly burnt our bums-its very hot water!

We had a horribly rough crossing on the ferry to South Islad and then got drenched to the skin but kept our spirits up with dips in hot spas (kiwis have got the right idea there) and glow worm viewing! Now we are travelling through the southern alps. We have climbed the Franz Josef glacier - wearing crampons and walking on blue ice was very fun and also saw kiwi chicks in a kiwi sanctuary-very cute. Today are heading to Glenorchy (where they are filming the Hobbit) although if we find a pretty stop off we may change our plans (we are getting good at that!).

Our last week in Oz was brilliant-we went on a two day boat trip in the Whitsundays and dived/ snorkelled on the great barrier reef just by jumping of the back of the boat!I swam with a green turtle, saw two types of sharks (harmless) and a sting ray as well as lots of wonderfully colourful fish and coral. It was amazing! After that we headed up to Cairns via a Murdering Point winery where we bought mango wine and pineapple port and the Atherton table mountains where we swam in a waterfall and a huge lake and saw more platypuses (I can't remember if I blogged about our adventrues in Eungella national park). On our last day in cairns we went up oveer the rainforest in a cable car, came back down in a vintage train and stayed in a fairyland holiday park where we had moonlit swims, tried a jumping pillow (like a big bouncy castle) and had free pancakes for breakfast (very butlins!).

Got to finsdih there as running out of time,

Off to Christmas shop!