Bali and Sydney

Hello All

We're now in New Zealand and Tim is stocking up on all his favourite NZ crisps and chocolate bars that he can't get in England! The sun is shining at the moment but the weather is a bit cooler than we're used to. We've both just had haircuts and are feeling very smart. All in all we're feeling glad to be back to some home comforts.

Our week in Bali was very enjoyable, with some relaxing beach time in Lovina on the north coast and then a trip through the beautiful rice-paddy and volcano countryside to Ubud, the arts and crafts centre of Bali. We spent a day on bikes touring around the local temples and bright green countryside, and a day wandering around the town checking out the monkey forest and art galleries and enjoying the good food and coffee. Our last day in Indonesia was back in Kuta, walking up and down the huge beach all day and avoiding the hawkers selling 'genuine fake Rolex's'. For our last meal we ordered all the classics - nasi goreng (fried rice with a fried egg and prawn crackers), gado gado (veg with peanut sauce), nasi campur (rice with bits of chicken, fish and veg), chicken sate (chicken skewers with peanut sauce) and Bintang (the local beer which is very good) - delicious and all for about 4 quid.

Next we were in Sydney, and the prices were a little more challenging for our budget! We arrived a few days earlier than originally planned (due to Indonesian visa complications) so headed out to the Blue Mountains first. We spent three very pleasant days hiking around 'the bush' and spotting all sorts of local wildlife including black cockatoos, bright parrots, a spiny echidna, lots of lizards and a brown snake (which we nearly stood on and later heard may have been poisonous!) as well as some stunning views.

In Sydney, we stayed in Newtown, a trendy studenty area with lots of cool cafes and strange people. We got the ferry to Manly and watched school children learning surf lifesaving skills on the beach, we wandered around The Rocks and over the Harbour Bridge, we admired the Opera House, we soaked up the sun at Bondi and we saw a kookaburra sitting in an old gum tree! We also managed to catch up with some friends - Jo and Greg who moved from Leeds this year and Jason who was over from Wellington for work - nice! All in all we had a pretty good time. Although we learnt you can have too many lunches of Vegemite sandwiches.

We're now in Christchurch, and looking forward to picking up our own little campervan tomorrow to tour around the South Island for a couple of weeks. Tim's parents are in Queenstown at the moment so we will end our tour there before flying up to Auckland.

All for now. Hope you are all well!

Lots of love
Kirst and Tim xx

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