On the Sunday, we got up early and headed down the marina. We had booked ourselves on a Dolphin watching/swimming cruise. The boat left at 8am prompt and after Leigh and I getting into our wet suits we headed out. I might add at this point that it was incredible cold and the thought of jumping into the Sea was not seeming overly attractive. The other slightly disconcerting part was the waver we had to sign saying that we understand that marine animals can be unpredictable and dangerous. They also explained about the shark protector that was an electric box dragged at the end of a rope behind the boat and emitted an electric pulse. Supposedly this scared off the Great Whites that are known to swim about the area we were in!

The dolphins can swim about the boat and then disappear pretty quickly so it was important that you got into the water as quickly as possible. I was first into the water as Leigh stayed with the kids who watched on a little apprehensive about Daddy jumping off the boat.

The crew were shouting at us where to look I managed to see them swimming underneath me.



After a few more false alarms we managed to get a couple of glimpses. The dolphins were swimming around the front of the boat so the kids and Leigh got some great views of the dolphins. Unfortunately not quite as good from the back :(

We made it back to the shore a little wet and cold, but very exhilarated.

After lunch we went to the The Beach House, which is a large fun house with games, dodgems, rides etc. We bought a prepaid card and the kids went mad. We had a shot on everything including Emily and Leigh going down the flumes.



Later on that day we walked past the elastic boucey contraption and Emily to the surprise of Leigh and I announced that she wanted a shot. Even much more to our surprise she jumped on and jumped a mile in the air with a huge smile on her face. "Extreme Games Emily"!


Adam, not to be out done, decided that he too wanted to jump up and down like a loon.


On Monday we met up with Anne and Derrick for some lunch at the Museum of South Australia. We chatted and caught up on all our Ex-Pat gossip.



We then walked across to the zoo. Adelaide Zoo is part of the same chain as Sydney one, so we got in for free. The zoo was very beautifully lade out. A little smaller than than Taronga, but the displayed allowed you to get really close. The kids very very excited by the monkeys.. think they felt a connection!

 

Adam, Emily and I set off from Sydney on Friday morning to meet Leigh in Adelaide. After a very uneventful and quick 2 hour flight we touched down.



Friday was pretty relaxed, just walking about getting the lay of the land. The only thing that stuck out was the lack of sun and warmth. This should have been predicted as I didnt bother to bring a pair of trousers.

Leigh had booked a half day bus tour for us for Saturday morning. It worked out really well, as we saw things that we would not have done otherwise.

- Tour round the city
- Tour round the Haigh choclate factory. Gave us an apprecation of why they are so expensive. Each individual chocolate is hand made!
- Visit to Mount Lofty which gives a great view of the city.
- Visit to Handorf an "authentic" German village.



Our driver was very friendly and explained all about the city and its origins. We even drove part of the section of the road race part of the city. I "think" the F1 used to be here before it moved to Melbourne.

We wandered round the city and had some lunch before heading back to Glenelg and watched the sun set.

Yesterday we went to Luna Park for the day and we all surprised ourselves by how much fun we had. We did the proper Sydney thing and took the ferry - all we needed to do was jump on a bus up to Balmain and then the 9-minute ferry to Milson's Point.



We all had unlimited rides passes (including the kids) so we did our best to get our monies worth - Tango train, Ferris wheel, Wild Mouse, Spider, Tumblebug, Jolly Roger, Carousel, Dodgems, U Drive, Space shuttle, Magic castle, Whirly wheel and the Mega Drop.

Not all of us did all the rides but Adam amazed us by going o n the Wild Mouse (like the Mouse trap in Alton Towers for those that have been there) and not freaking out and then going on it again (he needed to be accompanied by an adult so the first time he went with Oli and then with Colin/Daddy). We all did go on the dodgems and the Ferris wheel with some amazing views - including some man who had just caught some huge fish (Marlin I think)



The one ride that only the Colins and I did was the Mega Drop - you get lifted up  and dropped ....................................


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46 metres to the deck. I think it is fair to say that a few naughty words were heard on the shores of Sydney at the time.

Oli and I went on a few rides and I hate to admit it, screamed like girls!!

Yesterday, Colin G and I jumped out a perfectly good aircraft from 14,000 feet.  Don't ask why as I and the other Colin have absolutely no idea. But thanks to David and Ryann for their voucher, I took the plunge.

The day before we hired an 8 seater Toyota and at 8oc in the morning we headed off for Wollongong, 80kms south of Sydney. We got to the office just in time to be told we were taking off in 20mins. Colin and I signed our lives away and declared that if we died we wouldnt sue anyone. We were then told to put on lovely blue trousers and that our instructors would be along shortly.

Dougg (my instructor) and Redeye (Colin's), arrived and helped us put on our harnesses. We then got our 5mins of instruction on what to do and after a bit of faffing about and a few final trips to the toilet we headed off in the mini-bus to the local regional airport. About 30mins later we were shuffled into the small plane.



Once up in the air, it was a 20minute flight to reach the jump altittude. 14 very very high thousand feet. The view was amasing, although slightly disconcerting that the only thing between me and the ground was a thin plastic shutter. I wasnt even attached to the instructor and more importantly the parachute at this point.

About 5mins out we had a quick chat with our instructors to remind us what to do and were then attached. The point of no return was approaching at a rapid speed.
I was told I would be third out the plane.
The buzzer then went and the roller was lifted. The first couple of guys then fell out. If you have seen a Bond film where the guys get sucked out a small window when the cabin pressure goes. It looks just like that!!!

We quickly shuffled along and then JUMPED!!...



The free fall takes about 60 seconds and I pretty much screamed the whole way down. Its just a surreal experience watching the ground get closer to you very quickly. We even fell straight through a cloud. I managed to eat some!!



The parachute was then pulled. Thankfully it opened alrighty and we drifted back to land.. PHEW!!!

I even got a shot at controlling the chute by pulling on the guide cords. Left to go left.. etc.. But if you pull them both, you slow so quickly that you feel that you are almost stationary.



After spinning round a few times, which my stomach really didnt agree with. We landed smoothly and I was very happy to feel the ground under my feet.

Colin G landed fine too and we were both rather relieved to have made it in one piece.

If you want to experience the whole thing.. I have uploaded the full video of me screaming like a girl. BTW.. I asked the kids what silly faces I was to make to the camera.. so they were their idea!!!.

On Saturday we met some of the ex-pats and friends at Manly Skiff Club to go whale watching by sail. The only problem with the plan was that it is winter (the best time to see whales) but it meant it was quite choppy.

We all got on - after spending about half an hour discussing who got sea sick or not - not a brilliant start - and Adam and Emily were given life jackets. We were also told that the second best thing for curing sea sickness was to steer the boat - the best thing being sitting under a tree!

Once we got out beyond Manly bay, the waves really picked up and as we were trying to motor out to see the whales we couldn't just go with the wind/waves. At some points the waves were so high they were coming over the bow of the boat. After about an hour or so, I was feeling super ill - which is not like me - so I asked to steer the boat - the combination of adrenaline and focusing on the horizon stopped me feeling sick almost instantly.

One of the most surprising aspects of the trip - given how choppy the sea was - was that Adam and Emily both fell asleep!!

We were almost at the stage of giving up in our search for whales when the captain noticed about three other whale watching boats in the one area so we headed out to see them. After another ten minutes of desperate searching - hard to spot water spouts in choppy seas - we spotted the spouts - which are more like water puffs than spouts!! We then also saw the fin and back of the humped back whale as it dived back under the water - at one point it was only about 50 metres from us - the advantage of going by sail rather than in the big cruiser boats - no noisy engines to scare them away.

We then headed back in - the only problem being we were a good hour away from Manly so I had to steer the boat again to save my stomach/lunch.

Adam enjoyed himself - he decided he wants to be a sailor when he grows up but he would like it when it is not so wobbly!!

As the trip was not brilliantly successful - big waves and very few whales - the captain has offered us the same trip again but for half price - we might wait a few more weeks for the weather to improve and the later in the season we wait, the more chance we have of seeing dolphins. 

Our holiday started with a nice easy check-in, although in a strange twist, the Australian budget airlines don't let you have much carry-on luggage so we had to put one bag in the hold. After our uneventful flight - well apart from a little bit of bickering from Adam and Emily over who could have the seat, we arrived in Maroochydore airport - also known as the Sunshine Coast. We got our hire car with little fuss (well apart from me queueing for Hertz when the rental was with Budget) and following the directions of the nice lady from tourist information (turn left and drive in a straight line) we arrived in Noosaville and our resort.

The Islander

We got checked in and unpacked in our lovely little villa - two bedrooms (air con in master bedroom and living area - essential as although it wasn't super sunny in Queensland, it was very humid), nice fully kitted out kitchen and living area. We then went exploring and found the pool and the cafe called Moondoggy. After lunch we went to the pool and after a bit of nervousness, mainly because the water was so cold, we all ended up in the water. Emily has no fear of the water and quite happily launches herself into the water. Adam, thankfully is a bit more cautious, but still enjoyed jumping in the pool.

In the evening we went for a nice long walk to explore Noosaville and after a bit of exploring, found a fabulous restaurant called Maisie's. Like so many places in Noosaville, they had a nice children's menu and as we had a table in the pavement seating area, we didn't feel like we were distracting other people.

The only downside of our villa was that with only two bedrooms, Emily slept in our room so when she woke at 6.30am and saw us in the room, she was not for going back to sleep.

On the Sunday we decided to relax by the pool - mainly because Colin was hungover! - the fabulous Moondoggy cafe sold brilliant fruit smoothies which made us feel much better. Again, Emily loved throwing herself into the pool and we bought a few toys that kept both of them very entertained.  Lunch was entertaining just for Adam enjoying his chicken-fish nuggets!!

Another relaxed afternoon followed by another great, family friendly restaurant.

On Monday we hit the beach - gorgeous sand and brilliant waves. After a bit of persuasion, Adam was happy running away from the waves - a few times he got caught and got knocked off his feet! Emily, on the other hand, did not like the waves at all, she even screamed at Colin and me when we were in the sea. The strength of the waves here is amazing, you could really feel the pull of the rip-tide as the waves receded.  We then explored Noosa Heads - the Hamptons equivalent, apparently - and had lunch. Unfortunately, Emily developed a sore eye - either salt, sand or sun-cream so she was really clingy and not happy. She then did a very un-Emily like thing - she fell asleep on my shoulder which helped rest her eye. We got eye drops from the chemist and it cleared up her sore eye in no time.

We visited the floating restaurant opposite our resort for our last Noosaville meal and it was delicious. Again, Adam had chicken-fish nuggets.

Tuesday was our last day, so after loading up the hire car and then checking out, we headed to Maroochydore to kill some time til our flight. Again, we had no hassles with check-in (the airport was smaller than Prestwick) or the flight. One of the best things about the trip was how easy it was to get through Sydney airport - our flight landed at 6.15 and we were home by 7.15 - getting our luggage and getting the car from long term parking was super easy!!

We hope to go back to Noosa again bit for a bit longer so we can explore some more of the sights.

As Sydney likes to celebrate every occasion, Chinese New Year is being celebrated in style.

We decided to go to the New Year parade... we took the light rail to Paddy's Market and found a perfect spot at the end of the parade route.  We then watched pigs (it is the year of the pig), dragons, dancers and all manner of Chinese celebrations.

At the weekend we went to see the A1 Qualifying. Unfortunately we didnt actually get to see the qualifying, but we did see the practice, formula 3000, classic single seaters and GTs.

We got there around 10am and found a nice shaded section under a tree on the home straight and got our little camp set up. Then went for a wander and saw some motor cycle free style jumps or something like that... Anyway, have attached some photos.

The A1 cars then came out and we got the kids ear plugs in... unfortunately they hated the ear plugs as much as the noise and Adam wanted to go home. Strangely he was fine for the first 40mins, but then would not put the ear plugs back in... we made it through the practice and thankfully we had a few hours of "quieter" cars. Adam and Emily were much happier now and both enjoyed watching the cars fly by.

The qualifying was due to start again, so decided to play it safe and head home. It was also absolutely roasting as Eastern Creek is more inland so was over 30degrees.

Yesterday (Saturday) we decided to head up to the Blue Mountains:

http://www.nationalparks.nsw.gov.au/parks.nsf/parkContent/N0004?OpenDocument&ParkKey=N0004&Type=xo

We had planned to go on Thursday but Colin had work traumas due to an earthquake in Taiwan!!

The Blue Mountains (or Malcolms as Adam calls them) are about 100k from Sydney so we loaded up the car and headed off. We set the destination into Betty (Sat-Nav) and once we got on the motorway she told us to ....follow the course of the road ...for a while.

We had no particular plans so just stopped whenever we, or the kids felt like it. The first stop was Wentworth falls which was very picture-skew. We went then on to Leura and the Toy and Railway Museum.

http://www.toyandrailwaymuseum.com.au/

Which reminded me a bit of Haggs Castle Museum, when it existed, with lots of rooms full of some-body's collection of toys. It was a bit disappointing for Adam and Emily as they weren't allowed to touch anything but there were some buttons to press that made trains go or cable-cars work.

After lunch we went to Leura Cascades.



It was about a 500 metre walk from the car park down some quite serious steps. Adam did a great job going down and was quite happy jumping down (like a skateboard guy, he informed us). Emily was on Colin's shoulders - I think if we are going to do this again we need to get one of those baby backpack carriers. Unfortunately Adam didn't like climbing the stairs as much as he liked jumping down them so I gave him a piggyback to the car park. Considering he was complaining of being tired, it was amazing how his energy levels came back at the sight of an ice-cream van!!

The final official stop on our tour was Echo Point and the Three Sisters

The whole range is huge and really is blue. The blue is from the light reflecting off the eucalyptus oil on the trees.

By this time it was nearly time for tea so we went on to Lithgow and stopped at Red Rooster - KFC but without the fried bit. All day clouds had been gathering and we knew that rain was forecast but before we finished, some serious storm clouds had appeared. The heavens opened - it started really heavily and we thought we could wait 5 or 10 minutes for it to ease off and then go to the car but then it got really serious with thunder and lightning and at one point the lightning blew the lights in the restaurant. Throughout this, Adam and Emily were perfectly happy running round ignoring the near Biblical rain, thunder and lightning.

After getting into the car, we changed Adam and Emily into their pjs and set off home - Adam said it was just like when they went to Granny's house. It took about two hours to drive home and we arrived home with two sound asleep children.

Today we are not planning on walking any further than to the car as we Colin and I have very tired legs!!