Rachey1987

So we arrived in Phnom Penh later than expected - by about 6 hours! Obviously a nap was required before wandering around in search of the market where we found amazing doughnuts and books for 2 dollars! Then onto the independence monument but were chased away by the guards, so we moved onto the park where we suppressed our giggles at everybody doing their dance classes and gym routines - so tempted to join in! Spent a while chilling out by the river where we tried to guess all the flags, definitely needed James back for his boy knowledge! To end our first day in Cambodia we went for dinner and cocktails with some Scottish girls that we met at the hostel. Our second day was chocker block with sightseeing; we started at the royal palace ... read more

Ok so we got the night ferry to Ko Tao and actually all slept very well. We were met at the ferry by a very happy bustling lady and went to stay at her Bungalows which were in between both of the main beaches which meant it was a walk into town but nice quiet spot and cheap! That day we went on a snorkelling trip which was fun to see all the coral and fishes but it actually rained proper rain, not tropical rain. It was strange and much warmer in the sea than out! In our group were 2 guys called Dave and Matt and a girl called Susie. That night we all met for drinks and ended up dancing on the beach at a bar till the early hours. The next day we ... read more

I returned from NZ and spent the next few days, applying for jobs, looking after my cousins and the house, while my auntie Rach was away on a course. Then I left for Sydney! I landed and headed straight to Kings Cross to a hostel called Sugar Shack where I met Jen(friend I'd met in NZ) and her brother, David, who had not been in Oz long but long enough to have made friends with birthday celebrations we could join in with so that night we headed out for a dance at the club associated with our hostel after having been to the hostel across the road to meet some of his friends, 2 from Blackpool! Small world! The next day we left that hostel (and Jens brother) and moved to Bondi, where we stayed at ... read more

Continuing on..the next day we left Taupo and had a little walk in the NP, saw a couple of waterfalls, etc then we were off to River Valley, this was my favourite place we stayed! It was literally a hostel/outward bound centre on a river and that was it, we parked the bus at the top of the drive and had to walk down! :-) By the hostel the river was very calm so we could swim and there was a rope swing/pully bridge across the river which you could jump in off. They also had a cosy way of setting up some dorms-8mattresses in a row on the bottom bunk and another 8 on the top bunk, good job we all knew each other by this stage! The scenery here was just beautiful and the ... read more

Ok so after my trip to Sydney I spent most of my time applying for jobs, having an interview or two, riding horses, seeing church friends as well as a few meals/trips out with Pili and Simon. Additionally I started some volunteer work through church, Friday mornings I help out a playgroup with 2 disabled twins and Thursday evenings I also go into the city and give out free pancakes. Its a nice community act and hopefully shows all Christians are not judgmental and homophobic, which apparently is the general perception! It's also pretty fun and good for getting to know people! Labour Day-8th March we had a family day out to Marysville to see some waterfalls. Me and SJ had been last time we were in Oz but this time we couldn't actually get to ... read more