Monday 24th December
Arrived yesterday from Christchurch after a 3.5 hour flight and very little sleep - we thought it would be a good idea to say goodbye to Christchuch in style (good timing as usual!), and painted the town red (white and blue!). Went to several clubs as we met some nice people. True to form, the minute we walked into a particular club, Charlie ran over to the DJ to ask for... wait for it... JOSH WINK! We were still there 5 hours later as thankfully he had it on CD!! yahoo! Staying at the Unilodge which is self contained apartments, very clean and close to town (10 mins on bus). After a mammonth sleep, we took a walk around the Harbour and surrounding. We were quite surprised just how close together the bridge and opera house are - literally next door! Today was the day to find our bearings and we walked down to 'The Rocks' area which is full of restaurants and bars.

Tuesday 25th December - MERRY CHRISTMAS! - Manly Beach
Luckily Santa received our letters this year so we opened our pressies and cards in our santa hats! Our biggest Christmas present was being half way round the world and the opportunity to spend Christmas in the sunshine and on the beach... or so we thought!! Along with Fiona (our New Zealand traveller friend), we took the ferry to Manly Beach, this is a short ferry ride from Circular Quay. Manly Beach is lovely and we had a nice Christmas Meal in one of the beachside restaurants. Took to the beach for a spot of Chrimbo Day sunbathing but unfortunately the sun didn't make an appearance today! We enjoyed the beach and the atmosphere in our jumpers and santa hats!

Wednesday 26th December - Taragon Zoo
Caught the bus to Taragon Zoo, a Christmas present from Sarah's folks to us. What a way to spend Boxing Day! Not an Only and Fools and Horses episode in sight! or some tragic episode of Eastenders! What a day.. what a zoo! There is so much to see and do here that we haven't got time to tell you exactly what we saw but then again we didn't know half the animals we were looking at! We had never heard of alot of the animals so it was fascinating day to see and learn about them. We got up close and personal with Mr Koala and had our photo opportunity with him. We did think that Charlie was going to smuggle him into her bag at one stage as he was v.v.v.v. CUTE! The pictures speak for themselves as the views included the Opera House and Bridge from the Zoo. Also, on Boxing Day the Sydney to Hobart yacht race starts and every sailor and his dog comes out to wave off the yachts.

Thursday 27th December - Botanic Gardens
Spent the day in the Botanic Gardens admiring the cockatoos and birds. We are getting into our Botanical Gardens malarky and definately think this is the best one. It's a nice place to sit and have a picnic with amazing views.

Friday 28th December - Palm Beach
The home of Home and Away! As Sarah was starting to get the shakes from lack of bus journeys (Magic has alot to answer for!), we took a 2 hour bus journey to Palm Beach. We would recommend this bus journey, we passed Deewhy Beach on the way which looked lovely too. The long stretch of golden sand and good surfing waves made it a great beach. We had a go at body surfing and spent hours watching the surfers do it properly ;)

Saturday 29th December - Blue Mountains
Our first early start for a long time was a bit of the shock to the system! Haden was our driver for the day on this organised tour. What a character! Very informative and entertaining, even his music was entertaining! Stopped off on the way to see the kangaroos in their natural environment but unfortunately as it was too hot, they didn't come out to play today :( Drove onto the Blue Mountains and saw the famous Three Sisters rock formation. Well worth a tour to go and visit as it is beautiful but as we have spent the last month in NZ, the views we not as breathtaking as what we have already seen but still definately worth a visit. In the evening, went out for a few drinks at the Opera Bar, sipping our beer while looking at the Bridge (not Stamford!).. it doesn't get much better than that! Went onto a place called Jacksons which, in a nutshell, is a Chicago Rock Cafe but there a 2nd floor which had dance music. Again, true to form (this is going to get boring after a while but you know me - chaz) Charlie rushed over to Mr DJ to ask for JOSH! His face lit up and he put the tune on straight away! It was a good night and we had a good time.

Sunday 30th December - Bondi Beach
Oh what a chore. Watching the surfer dudes on Bondi Beach while soaking up the rays! This place is mental and the beach was so packed but yet so comfortable! Make sure you put your name on your sun tan lotion as it's easy to get muddled up with your neighbour! The waves were quite vicious and we attempted some more body surfing which we managed, not in a pretty fashion! The surfers are very brave and extremely fit! We stayed there till late evening, had dinner and few drinks then caught the train back. We found a cheap way of getting to Bondi as the Bondi Explorer costs around $40. If you catch the train from Central to Bondi Junction, then a bus from Bondi Junction to the Beach, this only costs less than $10 and there are frequent services.

Monday 31st December - NEW YEARS EVE
Oh what a night! Spent the day in Victoria Park which is 5 minute walk from the Unilodge, then after getting our glad rags on, walked to the fish markets to catch our boat! We were very concerned that our NYE vessel was going to a fishing boat complete with hooks, fish guts and captain birds eye complete with yellow mac.. how wrong with were! (phew) The boat was called the Rhythm Boat and the organisation was fantastic. The boat held around 150 people but there was plenty of room on deck and you didn't feel like you were crammed in, unlike some of the other boats we saw. After a 5 course dinner, which was very tasty and as much wine/beer/champers as you can drink without throwing yourself 'Overboard' (aka Goldie Hawn), there was a disco on board so we had a boogie to the likes of Girls Aloud and Prince! Met some lovely people from Liverpool and Manchester. The boat toured around the harbour and we were part of the parade that lines the harbour. There were loads of boats and the atmosphere was electric - this is definately the best way to spend NYE. The Fireworks themselves were SPECTACULAR!! costing over $4m, they put the Campbell Park display to shame! It really was an amazing night and one we won't forget.

Tuesday 1st January 2008 - NEW YEAR'S DAY - Victoria Park
HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!
Surprisingly, very little hangovers were present in the Unilodge so we walked over to Victoria Park (5mins from Unilodge), where there is a public swimming pool and sunbathing areas. The pool is great value at only $4 each and it was a great way to relax.

Wednesday 2nd January 2008 - Internet Cafe day!
Today has been an 'getting organised' day! This morning we contacted the Oz Experience (bit like the NZ Magic bus but in Oz!) to arrange our first pick up and was told that instead of the 4th that we wanted, we can be collected on the 8th! This put us in a state of shock so today we went online to get organised and book our Oz trips! 3 hours later.. we are sorted! Watch this space for details!!!! all will be revealed :)