Malaysia...hmm. We only spent 5 days here in total so couldn't really say we'd seen it all, but our overall impression was that it was quite a nice country. Polite and mostly fairly modern, cooler than Singapore but with the same mix of Malay, Chinese and Indian, there were a lot of similarities. We arrived in Kuala Lumpur fairly late in the day and although it was cooler than where we'd come from, our rather grotty hostel was boiling so it was a rather sleeples...

Oh..my...goodness, it's is SO HOT! It's very difficult to describe how hot it is, but feeling like you could either melt or explode at any given moment comes close! The only way to survive is to head for somewhere airconditioned, but the minute you step out the heat hits you like a wall and you're sweating in seconds! We were impressed on entering Singapore by how nice it all was in immigration. Soothing music, polite smiling officials, and even a lit...

We're in Australia! Very joyous we were too to be in another new country! We arrived in Sydney (somewhat blearyeyed from our night as tramps in the airport) and set about exploring as soon as we'd found a place for our bags and later for our heads. Sydney is very big and exciting and city like but also has a very laid back feel to it. It wasn't long before we'd crossed off the list the two main icons of Sydney, the bridge and the opera house. It f...

On the road again! It all began one Saturday morning, very very early...we bid our amiable hosts goodbye and set off for the horizon once again! After a rather turbulent but otherwise uneventful flight from Auckland to Christchurch, we trotted off to a worrying looking back corner of the airport where our next plane to Hokitika was due to leave. When Cal saw the size of the aeroplane that worrying was not helped - it was tiny! A 20 seater. After a short prayer se...

We made it to the end!Ah the life of leisure begins again! We feel we've have earnt it a little more this time with lots of toil and sweat at the pub, so shall be enjoying it all the more now! It was fun to go out for a meal and be the customers for a change...sitting at a table that Cal laid herself the day before! Well no real exciting stories yet, but we are about to hit the road again, so we live in hope! The West Coast of the South Island calls.... Som...