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Hello everyone! We have finally made it to Australia, after waiting many years to come here it is definitely worth it so far!
For our last week in New Zealand we hired a small camper van for four nights, which seemed an appropriate way to end our time in the country as we started out by hiring a car! First on the agenda was a night in Hanmer Springs, and seeing as it is described as an 'alpine resort' we really should have guessed that it might be a bit cold! When we arrived we went for a walk up a nice big hill to look at the views of mountains, trees and other nice big hills, then on the way down we took a different track that sent us through some forest and lots of people's back gardens - at this point we were starting to think we had come the wrong way and those thoughts were reinforced when we came out in Hanmer forest and didn't know how to get back to the van. Luckily our wonderful (!) senses of direction prevailed and we found the van and settled down in a random place for a night of trying not to freeze! The next day we headed off to Kaikoura, which is further north and lower down, therefore warmer! Whilst there we went on the cliff top walk which went around the coastline for a while then there was a path that went down to the sea and just happened to have a seal lazing about on it which was very cute. He posed for a few pictures, then we tried to walk back along side the sea but the incoming tide meant we had to climb up the side of a cliff. Ok - that was said for dramatic effect, the path was grass and had foot and hand holds however it was almost vertical! Our sleep in Kaikoura was much warmer and we woke up to the sound of the sea and breakfast amongst nature. Later on that day we went whale watching and saw three big sperm whales lazing about in the water and blowing the water into the air before they went down for more food. The boat trip itself was pretty nasty, very bumpy with lots of people being sick, however it was definitely worth it to see the whales!That evening we headed down to Akaroa, which is a french settling just south of Christchurch and bedded down by the sea under the cover of trees. The following day we had a look around the town and decided to embark on the purple peak track which started in the town and continued uphill for about four hours to the most fantastic views ever. The track took us through lots of farmland and then through overgrown plants, sliding all over the place before we reached the summit of the hill and saw the town and so much countryside laid out before us. So much fun! For our final day in our van, we went for a walk around Akaroa and saw the pier and lighthouse, then we headed back up to Christchurch for two days of gathering final New Zealand souvenirs and pictures and packing all our things!
We headed to Tasmania on June 9th, getting to the airport nice and early and finally arriving in Hobart nice and late! My second cousin, Niall, picked us up and took us back to his home in Launceston where we stayed with his family and his crazy dogs! It was great to spend time with the family and see Tasmania, Niall was wonderful and took us out on some trips. We went for a drive along the river Taymar (inculding the Batman Bridge) and to Liffey Falls, which Ellie and I walked down the side of for our first bit of Australian hiking which luckily didn't involve any nasty creatures! Launceston is a very nice town, with some lots of shops and a lovely river. Vicky introduced us to what I think must be her favourite shop called Chicken Feed which as lots of random things in, all very cheap. One day Ellie and I went to the gorge which is really pretty, it still surprises me that there are so many areas of natural beauty so close to towns this side of the world. We walked along the edge of the gorge until we reached a small bridge that took us over to the other side where we found some rocks to sit on. The reflections of the rocks and trees in the water were so clear and when we walked back along the other side of the gorge the track took us quite high so we could see great views across both the gorge and the town. It was lovely spending time with Niall, Vicky and Rory and I really appreciate everything they did for us. I'll definitely be going back for a longer visit to take in more of Tasmania, especially Cradle Mountain which we didn't quite make it to!
After a week in Tassie, we headed off to Melbourne to stay with my cousin Deanna and her family, and this has been our base now for nearly three weeks. It's not that we've forgotten to travel, but we're just enjoying being stable and sorting out our plans for the next leg. Whilst here, we have become very acquainted with Dee and Paul's daughter Abbie who is adorable and who we have babysat a few times. It's a great excuse to play with toys and go in childrens play areas - not that we really need one! We've done some walking, down by the creek and also up in Dandenong National Park, where we rekindled our love of hills. Dee and Paul took us to Marysville, where we went to Stephenson falls and walked up to the top in the pouring rain wearing tshirts much to any Australian we met's amusement! We have also spent some time with my cousin Susan and she took us to Healesville Sancturary where we saw wombats, emus, dingoes, birds of prey, reptiles and got to feed kangaroos. The kangaroos were so cute and soft and they take the food really gently. Susan also took us to Sorrento which is down by the beach and we had a lovely time walking along the pier and taking pictures of a large pelican! A few days ago we also decided that since we were here we should probably go into Melbourne city, so we caught the train into the centre and explored the streets, taking in the parks (of course), the open air music bowl, the old melbourne jail, the chinese street and getting a ride on a tram. The city is one of the prettiest I've seen with all the parks and gardens and the river running through it, and some of the buildings were very arty.
We have another week here in Melbourne, and we'll be off to see some penguins on Phillip Island and taking in a game of Aussie rules at the weekend before heading off to Sydney.
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Chris & Dave
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Seems like you are still having a whale of a time. You should ejoy the penquins at Phillip Island the are so small and its lovely to ess them scurring out of the sea.