Blogs from Port Macquarie, New South Wales, Australia, Oceania - page 4

If our visitors from Canada weren't enough, we have had many frequent visits from kookaburra's, wild bush turkey's (and no I am not talking about my Dad), so many lizards that you have to watch where you step sometimes and even a few koalas in the wild. We also had Brett's aunt and uncle, Shelly and Dennis come up for a week visit and they stayed in the caravan park right next door to our apartment. So with them coming up that meant partaking in a few happy hours or 2 and trying to knock of work early. It was also Melbourne Cup Day which in Australia is pretty much an national holiday (and definitely is a stat holiday down in Melbourne!). Most businesses shut down at the very least for the afternoon when the horse ... read more

Well another month has gone by and where are we now?! It's kind of beginning to feel a bit like that at times... We flew back to Sydney on the red eye from Perth and got in around 6:30am. From there we grabbed a rental car and headed down to Wollongong (since it's cheaper when there are 2 of you than the shuttle, and we weren't really up for a couple hour train journey with heavy bags at that time). We picked up our truck that had been parked at Brett's cousins, had a bit of a visit with them, and then went and grabbed our caravan out of the storage yard and back to our usual spot at Shellharbour Caravan park. Have to admit is always nice getting back to our little home on wheels, ... read more

John, que j'ai rencontré en plongeant à Fish Rock, m'invite à passer quelques jours chez lui près de Port Macquarie. Cet écologiste milite activement pour la protection de la faune et de la flore australienne et me propose de partir à la découverte des animaux symboliques de l'Australie. Je ne tarde pas à voir mon premier kangourou à l'état sauvage. Près de South West Rock, un groupe de kangourou se repose dans une prairie près d'une plage. Ils se laissent approcher et continuent leur petite vie sans se préoccuper de nous. Une maman éduque son petit qui ne pense qu'à essayer de se cacher dans sa poche pendant qu'un grand mâle est en pleine parade amoureuse et saute gaiement autour de sa partenaire. Moi je suis impressionnée, je ne pensais pas qu'ils étaient si grands ! ... read more

Thank god I found Charley! Without her I think I might have been flying home after Newcastle! Got to Port Macquarie 2 days ago and have been wound up so much by Phil the caretaker... Never know when he's serious or not, but I am a bit thick sometimes so it's hardly surprising! Went on a little kayaking adventure yesterday morning and did some shopping in the afternoon - 5 new tops and 2 skirts (1 skirt is a size 14 so i must be doing a lot of walking to get my arse into it!! And before anyone says anything, Aus have the same sizes as the UK!!!!) It's raining today so will probably just read my book and go to the koala hospital down the road - riveting I know!!! I've had loads of ... read more

After a successful first week Wwoofing, we headed to Port Macquarie with our spirits high, and we were not to be dissapointed. Our second hosts have been so hospitable, we find it remarkable that people can be so welcoming considering we are strangers in their homes!  The lady of the house is so motherly and called us her 'children' from the day we arrived. She is Burmese and has cooked some beautiful Asian dishes for us, she is also the cousin (by marriage) of Aung San Suu Kyi, which we thought was pretty impressive. Our hosts have worked on numerous projects for the UN all over the world; they are very interesting and giving people. They have recently opened a school in Burma and are in the process of constructing a clinic; we have been invited ... read more