Oz Update number 2

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Time for another Oz update!! (This has now been composed over several days so I'm sorry for any discrepencies and/or memory loss).

I can't quite remember where I got up to last time, I think it was somewhere around the jet boat ride so I will just start from there. A group of 11 of us who had chosen to do the 'Skills and Thrills' package got a free jet boat ride around Sydney Harbour. We got offered red waterproof ponchos, which we all took since it was only about 14 degrees and very windy, and were told to leave anything valuable and advised to take off our shoes...by this point we pretty much gathered we were going to get soaked and were just hooping the sun had come out by the end of it!! The ride itself was really fun, the driver did a lot of tricks like spins and twisting side to side very quickly, and of course the sharp braking which braking which got us very soaked!!! We passed by the house where Australia's Next Top Model contestants are held but we didn't actually see any of them. It was very very cold but the views made it worthwhile, we were right next to the Opera House and beneath the Harbour bridge and the water was bright blue just like it is in the postcards. And even better, the sun came out once the half hour was up so we even managed to warm up a bit!!!! I just remembered that I think I did talk about that ride last time but I won't delete it just incase....I'll just move on!!

On Friday the same 11 of us set of on a coach to Hunter Valley, a winery area about two hours north of Sydney. We stopped at a little village along the way where we entertained ourselves doing handstands on the grass; there wasn't a lot to see there!! We got to Hunter Valley at around 11 where we met our guide Nick. He left us at our first winetasting (at Lindeman's....apparently it's quite famous...) while he took our bags bag to the hostel. We then spent the rest of the day touring more wineries in the little purple minibus. Needless to say, we had quite a lot of wine and it was all very fun!! When we eventually got back to the hostel we discovered we were in a room share of 8 and 3 which turned out to be just the best fun ever!! Someone came up with the fantastic drunken idea of jumping in the pool even though it was freezing, which we did, but luckily there was also a sauna so none of us actually died of hypothermia! I believe we then had kangaroo burgers and went on to the pub but naturally me merories of the night are rather sketchy...!! The next day we hired bikes and, after a few risky right turns, made it to Hunter Valley Zoo. It was quite small but completely different to British zoos in that we could go right inside most of the enclosures so we got to feed and pet kangaroos! We also got up close to koalas, baby crocodiles, dragons, and we all even managed to hold a snake. Unfortunately the weather wasn't great so we had to cut short the visit when it just got too cold in our shorts. And of course we then proceeded to get caught in a huge thunderstorm and ended up back at the hostel absolutely soaked through with no dry clothes and then then the sun came out! A few of us rode along the road a bit more but we had to get back to create our own pizzas which were then baked in an onsite kiln. And then we discovered some alcohol and once again it got pretty messy. The next day was taken up with a quick walk into town to get the biggest bowl of potato wedges ever served up, then a long bus ride back to Sydney where we had a 52 seat coach just for the 11 of us!

After a very quick stopover in Sydney we headed off 2 hours south of Sydney to a village called Gerroa for....Surf Camp!!! It was located almost in a caravan park but the Surf Camp has overtaken a corner of it where there are 10 or so log cabins each sleeping 6 people. And each designed to sleep possibly 2 people! It was very tight!! We arrived and literally got wetsuited up and were in the water within the hour. I was terrified it was going to be freezing but the wetsuits certainly did their job and it wasn't uncomfortable at all. We were all standing up by the end of the first 2 hour lesson, which is thanks mostly to the excellent instructors, all of whom were young guys who fitted perfectly into the surfer dude stereotype....we all definitely paid attention to what they were saying!! We had 4 hours of surfing each day broken up with fantastic food back at the camp. The only things we had to complain about were the very early starts - we were up at 7, in the water at 8.30, and in bed by 10 - and the trek carrying the surf boards. It wasn't really that far but it seemed much, much further carrying an 8 or 9 foot surf board!! The second and third days brought amazing weather in which pretty much everyone managed to get burnt, but the last two days didn't have brilliant waves so we ended up doing a lot of sitting around on the boards in the water waiting for a good wave!! There was a photographer at every session and everyday we had 'photo and video lessons' where we essentially sat and laughed at the results of each other falling off!! Definitely one of the best weeks ever though...if you plan on going to Australia then make sure you fit it in!

So, on return from Surf Camp a lot of our group broke off and have begun their travelling. However, me and a few others had a course today so we had a few days free. I met up with Daniel on Friday, he's here on a 3 week holiday so I enjoyed gloating that I plan on being here for a whole lot longer! On Saturday we went up to the 47th floor of an office block where there is a revolving restaurant and bar so we got some great views of the city. On Sunday we moved hostels to a brand new one on the harbour which is very posh. Every room is en-suite and it's almost like staying in a hotel. We also took the ferry to Manly beach, about half an hour north of Sydney. It's a typical beach town and was very crowded since the weather was so good. However, it was very picturesque with bright blue water, white sand and palm trees, and it was good to finally get in some sunbathing time! On Monday I had a day trip to an area west of Sydney called the Blue Mountains. The weather was terrible in the morning and there wasn't a whole lot to see except clouds, but it cleared up in the afternoon so we could go on the 4 hour trek through the Grand Canyon. It was fascinating because one minute we were going through cool climate rainforest and the next we were in sandstone canyons that went up 400ft. I took pictures but they don't really do it justice. The climb out at the end was very painful but the view at the end made it worthwhile...about 90km of eucalyptus trees surrounded by the canyons. We also went to see Katoomba Falls and the Three Sisters which are apparently the biggest tourist attractions of the Blue Mountains.

Anyway, finally I'm up to today. We had a Bar Service Skills course where we got dressed up in black and white and went to learn how to work behind a bar! It was actually incredibly useful, we literally learnt everything except cocktails so I will just have to avoid anyone wanting to order them!! I have put pictures up from Hunter Valley and a few from Surf Camp. I have the professional ones form Surf Camp on cd so may get round to getting them up at some point. No promises though. I'm off to Byron Bay on a 12 hour coach trip tonight so it's goodbye Sydney for now. Soooo, until next time xxx

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