Tasmania to Brisbane

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8 months in the southern hemisphere draws to a close tomorrow and we find ourselves asking where on earth has it gone? It has simply flown.

We've had an enjoyable past couple of weeks and, generally speaking, the sun has finally come out in Australia. I said generally though - having arrived in Hobart in 30+ degree heat, there was snow on the hills when we left! Shortly after our last blog, we picked up a campervan and hit the twisty tassie roads for 5 days of outdoor adventure in some of australia's most beautiful country. The weather let us down a bit though as we huddled around the electric heater in the van, rather than lazing outside under the stars we had planned. Tasmania was beautiful though - definitely my top spot in Australia.

And then to Sydney. We spent almost a week there, mainly catching up with Andy's friends from his time there, with a handful of mine for good measure. It was great to put faces to names and I hope we can return some of the hospitality people showed us if they ever feel like a trip to the UK. We also spent a lot of time sorting stuff for our next leg, but did manage to fit in the key touristy bits, but sadly mainly in the pouring rain! We also blew the backpacker status and booked tickets (restricted view I should say) to see La Boheme at the opera house. It was my first opera and I thoroughly enjoyed it - and what a good place to see the first one.

With our time here coming to a close, we picked up a car and headed for the Blue Mountains. We spent a few days there in beautiful scenery under sunny skies, with some pretty steep walks up and down the canyons. We then had to make the final push for Brisbane, spending a great night in Port Macquarie on the way with Andy's uni friends Nick and Jo who have braved a campervan holiday with their two young children. It was lovely to see them and meet Oscar, and spot red cars with Geroge. We then had 3 days near Byron Bay before getting to Brisbane today. Tomorrow we fly to Singapore and I really can't believe we are on to the last leg of our trip.

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Photos

Nick, Jo and Andy
A bit dark, but it's the only one we've got!