As all guidebooks say Chilie is very European and a really pretty city to walk around, the small shop fronts and sidewalk kiosks giving it away as not actually being in Europe! It was a complete revelation to be in a country where bananas are not a coveted good, need not be guarded at all times and do not cost a fortune, in fact I think all my fruit came to the grand total of 20p. One of Santiago's parks has the most wonderful pool over set with waterfalls, whose spray lightly hits you and is a great reprieve from the [View Full Entry]

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We thought we would be so tired coming back from Fraser....and we were, maybe that's why we went so mental in Beaches.... [View Full Entry]

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We literally lay around on the boat all day sailing back to Airlie, only moving ourselves to stop for some snorkling and lunch! Irene and I decided there was no point in staying in Airlie that night, we would go for a few drinks but everyone would really be going home at about ten-ish anyway, so we may as well get the night bus to 1770. By nine-ish everyone was anihilated and the bus wasn't looking that attractive, cue a drunk Irene, and drunker Tommy and sober Vanessa and Karoline going down to the bus stop to try and tell the [View Full Entry]

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We sailed to Whitehaven beach today to do a bit of sunbathing, clean our jewellery and snorkel. Cecelia and I saw sea snakes, sting rays, a turtle .... so it was worth our time, plus of course the fabulous coral! Whitehaven beach really is fantastic - only spoilt by the fact that you need a stinger suit to guard against dying! Mind you Dan and Mike seemed to survive diving in constantly without one....and even diving when the boat is moving for a bet! [View Full Entry]

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We boarded the Pride of Airlie today and sailed out to South Molle island where we got our rooms, we ended up with No Drama, who turns out to be really Tommy and actually does have more words in his vocabulary, Laura, Ingo and Daniel. We decided to skip the idea of tennis or golf and just head straight to the bar for jugs of snakebite.....which turned out to be the staple of the night. Played some drinking games, which were quite amusing esp when the skipper "performed" oral on Irene for one of the tasks. [View Full Entry]

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Irene and I rocked up to the cutest little hostel, Tui Lodge, in Coromandel, nearly by accident. It's not technically a camp ground but you know you can just park up over by the gazebo or in the orchard....can you get nicer than that?! Met Margaret and Gav who were working for their keep and otherwise keeping us entertained and up-to-date with all the soap gossip! We arrived just in time to be invited to Friday night's BBQ catered by some of the German workers that were also staying there, a variety of culinary dishes were on offer including bacon bones [View Full Entry]

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Arriving just at low tide, we quickly rented our spade, that you could dig a grave with - and joined the rest of the frantic tourists trying to dig themselves a hole on the beach. Thankfully some kind soul informed us two shovelfuls into our dig, that we were digging in the quite the wrong position and really want to be in front of, and gesturing to, the big rock in the ocean. Apparently the thermal heat runs in a straight line from there. Some more dedicated souls had shown up much later than the rest of us stragglers and had [View Full Entry]

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Lovely [View Full Entry]

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You really haven't seen the world until you have seen it at 15,000 ft and falling out of a plane! [View Full Entry]

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This is definitely the most fun you can have rolling down a hill with hot water! And if that sounds strange you have to see the Zorb balls to understand how truely strange this idea is. You hop in this plastic bouncy ball, fill it up with hot water and then roll it down a hill. Irene and I got in one together - and when I say got in, I should explain that you have to take a headfirst dive through the small entrance about four foot off the ground. I flopped in, waited for Irene who looked to have [View Full Entry]

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