last stage of our aussie driving tour

---

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JULES - bet it was the soberest birthday you've had for many a year !!! hope jingo spoiled you and bump !
Just spent 2 fabulous days in bryon bay - it was a bit of shock sharing the beaches with so many people after all the deserted coastal retreats we'd just come from.
The atmosphere and nightlife here is fantastic as there are loads of backpackers and tourists.
Chose a lovely hotel for 2 nights - Bay View - recently renovated architect designed rooms just across the road from the beach, fantastic location. First day we spent on the beach enjoying yet more wave-bombing and watching the mad surfer-dudes cruise the waters (although we still weren't brave enough to try out the surfing ourselves). Second day was the national holiday Anzac day but unfortunately it rained most of the day - so did a bit of shopping - bought a didgeridoo, carl got a lesson in how to play it, can't wait to hear him create some magic on that. Just hope it actually turns up back in England (Spanner - it's arriving at yours for safe-keeping!). The guy in the shop uses them for spiritual healing - could be carl's new career ! Spent the afternoon walking up and around the lighthouse through a coastal rainforest at the end of the bay throughout the rainstorms - one side of the bay was starting to clear and rather sunny and the other was still stormy and raining. The top of the lighthouse leads to the most easterly point in Australia where the views were amazing back towards Byron Bay.
Found the perfect location for the clan's old peoples retirement home - Watego beach - not sure they'd welcome our kind of clientele though!
We then headed up to Brisbane along the Gold Coast (the last part of our 1000k journey) - what a contrast - very tacky, almost blackpool like in places although still some amazing beaches and fab marinas.
Brisbane was great but not as impressive as Sydney. We headed into an internet cafe to get forbes's number to make our way to his house - thinking that he lived in brisbane - to be somewhat shocked when we had a new email from forbes saying p.s. do you know we live 1.5 hrs north of brisbane !!!!!!!! so we had to get back in Harry once more - we were somewhat zombified and a bit tired and managed to head back south of brisbane down the same road we'd driven up 4hrs earlier but didn't realise for about 1.5hrs - I'd been sleeping for the last part of the journey (surpise surprise) to brisbane so didn't really recognise the town names, then I started to think haven't we been here before - so we had a detour back to brisbane again just in time for rush hour traffic and then another 1.5 hr journey to forbes's. We'd followed the Gold Coast again instead of the Sunshine Coast. Never mind !!! We're now in Chez Forbes being entertained - fabulous

---

Photos

view from lighthouse
tallow beach (i think) other side of lighthouse to byron bay

watego beach
just perfect

Comments

[Barbara Evans]

Auntie Barrrrberrrrraa
Just got back from our fantastic 3 week tour of sunny Florida, its been brill reading and seeing your adventures. I think that carl will need to join slimming world with skunk when you get back as they actually look like twins now both being very large and lardy!!! Enjoy the rest of the trip. luv ya both xxxxxxx

[MUM & DAD]

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY
Happy Anniversary! What a way to celebrate! Photo of you two looked very apt for your anniversary. Beaches look fabulous - as do you. Sunny but cold here, cut the grass, weeded garden, planted pots,wahed cars, and did washing and ironing. Oh well life goes on. Keep enjoying yourselves as long as you can. Hope Harry keeps up with you.

[david gray]

Dja vous
Its like going back six months looking at all the places you have been really strange. enjoyed the story about getting lost more of those please. Say hello to the Forbes faimily from me and get Ian to work on that BBQ