Last day!

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The end has arrived! After 10 weeks we're on our last day 😞 Looking forward to a British Christmas though - hearing Xmas songs by the beach still seems strange!

Since the last time we wrote we've made our way from Brisbane to Sydney, stopping at Surfers Paradise and Byron Bay on the way. The Holiday Inn experience spoiled us in Brisbane and Surfers Paradise, but we were treated to the harsh reality of backpacking again in Byron Bay! The Australia Zoo in Brisbane was a great day out and a way to meet the native wildlife. It was Steve Irwin's zoo which was pretty awesome; saw some pretty huge crocs and more kangaroos.

Surfers Paradise wasn't the greatest place on earth to be honest - very much like Benidorm! Our day there was tainted by the wind and rain which may have contributed to our dislike, plus it was full of Aussie "schoolies" on the lash! Never mind, onto Byron Bay the next day!

More schoolies here, but not quite as bad! Byron is a small hippie town, nice beach, lots of little boutique shops, etc. We explored the local market one hot morning (which I was surprised Rich agreed to!) and relaxed on the beach with some GOOD ice cream :P

We actually ended up moving our travel date to Sydney to one day earlier as we were getting a little bored in Byron (again, the weather wasn't great so it cuts down the things you can do there). Our final Greyhound coach trip - a lovely over-nighter to finish off! - and we arrived in Sydney on Monday morning. It was pretty amazing driving in and seeing the Opera House and Harbour Bridge for the first time. Sydney has been great - such a nice city, not overly crowded, and a very friendly vibe! We were pretty dead after the coach trip so had a lazy afternoon the first day and went to the Harry Potter Exhibition, yay! We explored the Opera House and Harbour Bridge (climbing it costs a bomb so we decided to save that until we return when we're rich!). We've also done a day trip to the Blue Mountains which was great fun - albeit a very wet day! We saw an aboriginal (or what they tell you is an aboriginal!) carving of a kangaroo on a rock which was awesome, and went on the world's steepest railway through the rainforest (52 degree incline; with a lack of seat belts it's actually pretty scary!). Luckily the sun has come out today for our final day and we're heading back to the hostel now to pack up!

See you all in a few days back home 😊

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