Brisbane 2010

Hi all well it has been a while since our last post ,we have been flating in Northern Brisbane and working casual
jobs trying to save some money for the final phase of our trip.
I have been doing engineering work fabrication and the like which I have not done for some years so I was quite suprise how easy it was to slot back in behind a MIG welder again.
We have been taking in the sights of Brisbane so will post some pictures of around the city.
Cushla has just been back to NZ for a short stint so am looking forward to her return soon.

Dorrigo,Inverell,Warwick

Well we have completed stage two of our trip and made it back to the gold coast safetly after traveling nearly 20,000kms this year,we have had a wonderfull time and seen some amazing sights, also met some great people.
From here we head back home for a xmas then we are hoping to find 6 months or so of work and then we may head west on stage 3 of our planed journey.
Will continue to post our trip when we get moving again in the mean time we will leave you with some pictures of Dorrigo,Inverell and Warwick.
Have a great Xmas everybody

Merry Beach,Braidwood and Sydney

We Traveled up to Sydney from Philip Island Stopping at Traralgon with friends and then on to Pambula
Lakes Entrance and then to Merry Beach for two Days ,while at Merry Beach we drove to Braidwood via Batemans bay.Saw some great coastline and had Kangaroos in the camp at both Pambula and Merry Beach.
Braiwood has been the setting for many Australian movies I can see why with all the cool Old Building.
Then on to sydney and the Opera House etc .Had a great time looking around the Powerhouse Museam some great displays and interactive displays for all ages.

y

Melbourne/Philip Island

Spent three nights in Melbourne. Went into the main centre by train and then used the City Circuit Tram which is free to use and stops at all the interesting spots within the city area. You can hope on and off as you want to see things. Had a good look around the Victoria Markets (did notice the price of fruit and produce was more expensive than the supermarkets) also found the Docklands Development looking really good. Had a look through Meyers etc in the centre of the city - they had all there Xmas displays set up in the windows - heaps of pigs doing different things e.g. baking etc.
Visited Fitzroy shops which has a real Italian influence, and had a nice meal and some good wine at one of the many restaurants and cafes. Mike had a little conversation with the police when he turned right out of the wrong lane - they informed him very nicely that he would cause a collision if he carried on doing that and advised him not to repeat the error - just as well we didn't have the caravan on the back of the car.

Left Melbourne and drove to Phillip Island - what a fantastic spot. Plenty of really nice beaches that appeared very safe for swimming with a lot of children using them. We booked into a motor camp at Cowes and had a good walk around the township - no major business identities there like KFC, MacDonalds etc so plenty of great local businesses with all the great nic naks that seem to get lost in the malls. The weather was extremely hot so put the camping ground swimming pool to good use. Went for a drive around the island and there sure is some very pretty spots. Has a pier at the beach with ferries etc.
Visited the Phillip Island Grand Prix Track where the Super V8's are held. They were on the day we arrived but we got in mid afternoon and with it being so hot it wasn't appealing to go and stand in it. Visited the new chocolate factory which has a really neat display of a huge chocolate statue, chocolate village with working trains etc (we didn't go in to look at the displays as there was a entrant fee).

Left Phillip Island and headed inland to Traralgon to visit friends that we hadn't seen for yonks!!

Apollo Bay Torquay Queenscliff

Left Port Campbell and travelled to Apollo Bay which is a very popular holiday spot.
Saw our first wild fox on the side of the Road today - he had some poor creater in his mouth - really a neat litle
animal. Had a good walk on the beach around the bay but there was heaps of dead birds on the beach
not sure what the story was but they could have been poisioned by the look of it - shame.
Drove from Apollo Bay to Torquay on the way drove through a number of beautiful seaside townships
Lorne, Airly Inlet and Angelsea all fantastic looking spots for a holiday with lovely sandy beaches.
The Great Ocean Road is a bit windier and narrow in this area but no worse than the Wioweka Gorge.
Booked into the largest camping ground we have come across yet for two nights.
Went for a short drive out to Bells Beach (where the film Point Break was filmed). The surf is huge
and the beach had very dangerous looking rock frontages with just a small bay of sand.
The surfers were having major problems getting out to surf as they were coming up against
huge walls of water - really brilliant to watch with a big crowd out surfing.
Went for a day trip to Queenscliff where you catch the Ferry to Sorentto and cross the bay avoiding Melbourne
if you want ,some amazing okd buildings see pic,s below

The Great Ocean Road

Left Warrnambool and headed to Port Campbell for a nights stay and spent the whole day tramping the hills viewing the sights of the “Great Ocean Road” We saw the Grotto, The Blow Hole,London Bridge The Arch the 12 Apostles, the Razorback and many more.Must have walked about 8 Kms but all of it worth it .At the 12 Apostles we had to compete with many hundreds of other tourists who had come by the bus load ,car load and van and even Motorcycle.
Looking forward to more of the same tomorrow, some amazing coastline.