wif, wifi, where for art tho wifi

well hello from sunny new zealand, as seems to be the norm these days i have had to find a computer with internet as no where seems to want to provide wifi, it would seem the laptop we brought might have proved redundant had it not been for the fact we are using it as a dvd player to keep ourselves amused at night. we are in the middle of the first series of 24 - i soo cant believe we have never watched it before - we are quickly becoming very addicted and are straining ourselves not to have to watch too many episodes a night so we can stretch it out further.

since i last blogged we have had a change in scenery again and arrived in new zealand on saturday afternoon to lovely sunshine. makes a change from the rain that almost seemed to follow us around in sydney however we did have a beautiful day on friday for our bridge climb, it was an amazing thing to do although our legs felt a bit weary afterwards and the views from the top were breath taking - i am only glad that the photos they provided were complimentary as i wouldnt have paid to recieve an image of us both in the extremely attractive grey jumpsuits you have to wear although i think ricky was quite taken with his, he looked less so of a michelin man in his than i did.

auckland was a completely different kettle of fish to sydney and a lot more hilly - very hilly actually, but it did lend itself for some lovely views across the bay to the islands in the distance. we went to the auckland museum where we spent a very educational afternoon learning about maori culture and history and it made us really excited about getting to explore new zealand and learn more about its people.

the fun started when we picked up our van on monday - i wouldnt exactly call it modern and ricky still hasnt got the hang of putting it into reverse without using two hands. to say it is a bit of a beast is an understatement but its quite cool in a mini bus kinda way. we had a lovely (if a tad stressful) drive through the kiwi orchards and vineyards heading towards rotorua where we stayed at a campsite last night. its basically a thermal area with lots of natural thermal springs and boiling mud pools which is pretty cool although the air does resemble picnics when you were a kid as there is something of the egg sandwich about it. obviously this is coming from the sulphur in the air and not ricky (well at least i hope it is)

the van decided not to provide us with any power last night and after a lot of swearing and screaming (it dawned on ricky we wouldnt be able to catch up on the latest episode of 24) we phoned for help and got the owner of the site to come and see what was wrong however everything seemed to be fine, que a trip to the garage this morning (all is now resolved but it was pretty annoying way to start our trip)

however we didnt let it bother us too much and we visited wai o tapu which is a kinda volcanic thermal wonderland, there were geysers and lakes coloured the most amazing blues and greens through minerals coming through the surface. tonight we are off to maori performance and traditional feast and tomorrow we will make our way south to lake taupo before heading for wellington on thursday. as usual time is running out so will speak to you soon - fiona will give you a buzz soon to make plans for next week - so excited about seeing you

speak soon xxx

whitsundays or the wetsundays???

apologies for the lack of communication over the last few days, finding an internet connection has been a tad difficult but i am at the airport killing time in cairns before we hop on a flight to sydney so i have plenty of time to fill you in on what the chat is.

we moved on from trinity beach last sunday after enjoying our last few days chilling on various beaches and visiting cape tribulation on friday. this trip was spent cruising down a river trying to find crocodiles and we did see a baby but we saw more snakes and spiders than i would have liked - the spiders were mammoth and you didnt even spot them till you were underneath uuurgh. my heart nearly gave out a few times but at least they werent poisonous. (seems to be the only thing not life threatening in this country after the bloomin sharks, jelly fish and crocs). we then went on to emmagen creek (very aptly named) for a swim (no crocs i was assured would be there, i thought i was very brave) and then on to cape tribulation to the most amazing beach you have ever seen. unfortunately we couldnt swim in the sea because its stinger season but we did take some lovely photos and i did see a bush turkey - that didnt really make up for the lack of swimming but i suppose it was rather amusing.

on sunday we had a 7.5 hour drive down to airlie beach - it was kinda a boring drive but we had made a grand playlist for occasion and we laughed at the very amusing creek names such as humdinger creek!!!! you could see some of the damage which had been done by the cyclones and floods which had ripped through the area a few weeks back but it didnt seem too bad.

when we reached airlie we went straight to the pub as we needed a drink and some food after being in the car that long - airlie was a really cool place - full of young folk partying so it had a nice laid back vibe and the beer and food were cheap. it was great being in amongst it again as we had been in quite a quiet area in cairns so it was a nice contrast. after quite a session on sunday night we managed to get up very early on monday to board the Alexander Stewart for 3 days cruising round the whitsunday isles.

now whenever i see folks pictures of being in the whitsundays its always amazing white beaches, azure blue waters and lush green tropical plants - on the first day the only thing i saw which was lush green was ricky's face - poor soul was a bit icky on the crossing over to the islands - mind you it was a bit rough. we also saw no bright yellow sunshine that other people claim to see however we were bright yellow through our wearing of yellow raincoats as the heavens opened and we got pelted. however lucky for us it wasnt to last and we enjoyed some good snorkelling - didnt see anything particularly nasty which was nice - i half expected to come face to face with bruce from finding nemo rather than nemo himself (unfortunately he was hiding so we didnt see him either). we did see some sea turtles and cute wee coloured fish in the water as well as sea eagles, cockatoos, lizards and more humungous spiders out of the water.; we also fitted in time for some bushwalks to see some aborigine drawings and a visit to the beautiful whitehaven beach where the sun finally came out and shone for us making it the best day ever. we met some lovely folk and ate some great food as well as seeing the clearest skies i have ever seen - you could see the milky way and some planets without the need for a telescope it was so immense.

sadly the cruise had to come to an end and we had to endure the drive back up to cairns so we could catch our flight back to sydney which is where we are now. ricky is spending his time trying to work out where we will be for the scotland match on sat - i think we will be in auckland already however i have no idea what the time difference is between there and the uk yet. we arrive back in sydney tonight and we have a full day there tomorrow when we will climb the harbour bridge and then meet up with goggs and his missus in the evening for a wee farewell session. we head to auckland on sat morning - cant believe we are leaving australia already, have absolutely loved it here however i am sure new zealand will be equally as amazing. will try and get some of the many pics we have up soon but for now will catch you soon xx

humid schumid

well its been a few days since i blogged and man it feels as though we have seen and done 101 amazing things since then. the pace has slowed quite a lot and its brilliant to be in our own apartment overlooking the coral sea. its run by a man named bruce who says stoked a lot - honestly you couldnt make it up, he is a real character. the weather has changed quite a lot and its really humid and we are expecting storms tonight and rain which will hopefully clear the air a wee bit.

we are staying in a beachfront apartment in the town of trinity beach which is just a long the road from cairns. we arrived after a very quick flight and picked up the car no probs - think ricky is just getting to grips with working a manual car, its a rather rubbish car, we have nicknamed it frumpy flo but its getting us from a to b. the first day was spent just catching up with ourselves and lazing by the pool and yesterday we took a trip to port douglas and 4 mile beach. what a stretch of road that is to drive by the way - beautiful white beaches around every corner -we are hoping to explore more of them tomorrow.

today we took a cable car up to kuranda over the roof of the rainforests for about 7.5 km, it was amazing and the views were spectacular. seeing into the rainforest was just brilliant, some of the trees grow to 50m can you believe that. we managed not to get eaten by beasties on the board walk around part of the rainforest by putting on industrial strength bug spray - i think it would even keep the midges at bay its so bloomin strong. when we got to kuranda we had a stroll through the shops and then went to a koala sanctuary where we were able to cuddle a koala - it was an immense experience, she was so cute and actually awake and we got some good photos. i will remember that forever.

after lunch we got the scenic railroad back down and were hit by some more amazing views - of a different kind this time as we were going over bridges which i have no idea how they built and had sheer drops on either side - those with a disposition for heights may not have enjoyed it quite so much. anyway i have uploaded some more photies for you to see and you can find them here http://www.new.facebook.com/album.php?aid=84211&id=732850985&l=9afaf650db

hope you enjoy - loving hearing all your news from back home - congrats to kelda on the date setting - cant wait ma dear and to joe who has become and uncle to Luke, looking forward to seeing the photos - also a big mention to my mum you make me laugh every time - love you lots

till next time
x

another glass? oh well i dont mind if i do

sitting in an airport hotel before we jet off to cairns tomorrow and i thought i would write a quick blog to update you on the last few days. its going to be quick mind as the internet here is bloomin expensive and i think we have free wifi in the apartment we will be staying in for the week so will write in more detail then. its also taking an age to upload photies so will need to post them later in the week.

the last couple of days have been spend in a kind of drunken haze as we have been touring the vineyards of the hunter valley. the sun finally shone for us and we found ourselves ala sideways touring the various winereies and drinking as much free beverages as possible (you can take the girl out of cumnock and all that) and boy was there a lot of free wine, not to mention olives, olive oil, cheese and chocolate, talk about food heaven. we didnt disgrace ourselves though even though we met a nice man from edinburgh who worked at one of the wineries and insisted on giving us large measures (he also gave us proper glass glasses and not plastic ones since we were from edinburgh and not glasgow, i didnt let on about my west coast roots.) our accomodation in the hunter valley was just immense, such an idyllic setting and with great food and more free wine and cheese, they also had a pet kangaroo called chloe who was and still is the first kangaroo we have seen.

the couple of days before that was spent in the blue mountains just north of sydney which were just amazing. i have some really good photies which i will hopefully post during the week. we saw so many wild cockatoos which was pretty amazing.

so anyway i had better go - we fly to cairns tomorrow so are up early, we have an apartment for 6 nights at trinity beach so it will be nice to catch our breath, eat some home cooked food and just generally chill at the beach.

Just want to say Big Happy birthday to Zoe who is 2 today - hope you have a brilliant day, we love you and miss you lots xx

anyway, i am off to sample some of the wine we bought yesterday - it helps me sleep, honest governor xxx