Jenny & Kim's travels

The end!

2008-05-12T03:03:00.000-07:00

All good things have to come to an end!!!

We would just like to say thank you to everyone who made our travels what they were. We will always remember this amazing experience and nothing will ever be forgotten.

Bangkok, Thailand

2008-05-12T02:45:00.001-07:00

Our last stop before home!!!!!

Bangkok is crazy. Its huge and as we only had 24 hours there we based ourselves on Khao San Road. Here there are lots of places to eat, drink and shop. We stayed in D&D's Inn which had a lovely roof top terrace with swimming pool so we could soak up a few last rays before heading back to England. However, our priorities while we were here were to go and witness a ping pong show (... cant believe they do such things, absolutely hilarious...) and enjoy a shop around the markets!

It was a shame we didn't get to go to all the other great markets but I think it was for the best... realistically we could not have carried anymore in our bags and we only had pennies to spare!!!!

Sihanoukville, Cambodia

2008-05-06T04:09:00.000-07:00

A little beach resort on the south coast of Cambodia. Not the most idyllic place but nice to relax for a couple of days and go out drinking with other travellers. There are plenty bars around to keep you entertained and an air conditioned cinema if you fancy just chilling out.

Unfortunately due to our luck, there was a storm while we were here so we didn't have that much time on the beach. You probably wouldn't want to spend too long there anyway as you constantly get pestered by the locals, especially children, who try to sell you bracelets, food, manicures, massages etc. They also work as theives, as we found out... Greg got his wallet stolen by a group of kids, they did it right under our noses, but luckily it had little money in it and we still had our camera and ipods!!!

Siem Reap, Cambodia

2008-05-02T03:57:00.000-07:00

Siam Reap is home to the famous Temples of Angkor. They are magnificent and can take a long time to look around them all. We went there for sun rise so we would have all day there, but unfortunately the weather wasn't on our side so we did not get the postcard picture of Angkor Wat. However it was nice to do some of the walking around before the sun came out. We ended with the temple best known from the film Tomb Raider. It was beautiful with tree roots growing through the walls and breaking through the grounds of the temple. We also climbed to the top of another one, which was a little scary as the steps were almost vertical but the tranquility at the top made it worth it.

Apart from the temples there is not much else to do. There is a small market there and plenty of nice places to eat and drink. We also stayed in a brilliant hostel which had everything a traveller could need, indoor swimming pool, friendly and helpful staff, lots of communal areas to meet other travellers, giant jenga and connect four, TV, free pool table, darts, great food... think ive got my point across.

Phnom Penh, Cambodia

2008-04-30T05:24:00.000-07:00

There are not many things to keep you busy at night in Phnom Penh, but by day there are a few breathtaking sights to see. First we visited the Killing Fields, where Cambodians were sent to their death, by the truck load. Sometimes up to a hundred a day. At first glance it comes across as a beautiful and tranquil place, that is until you see the monument and read the plaques. The scripts on the plaques tell the tragic story of the killings, and the monument displays hundreds of the victims skulls along with some of their clothes.

When you visit the S 21 prison, you begin to comprehend the brutality of what went on. This is definitely the most shocking thing we have ever seen. You walk around the prison (which was converted from a school) and see the many torture and detention rooms, which still contain weapons and blood stains. You also witness the small cells they were locked up in. The most graphic part was seeing the display of photographs of the victims. The photos showed head shots of all the detainees, some old, some young and some still cradled in their mothers arms. There were some photos showing the prisoners after they had been tortured, some even when they were dead.

On a slightly lighter note the views of the Royal Palace were lovely and very grand. We also visited a shooting range where you got to buy your own bullets for whatever gun you wanted, it was absolutely mental and completely surreal. Kim got to have a go with the James Bond hand gun and both Greg and Kim fired a machine gun. The machine gun was brilliant if not a little scary. To top it all off we bought a hand grenade. After a short briefing greg reluctantly pulled the pin and threw the grenade into a pond. The explosion shook the ground like an earthquake... We couldn't believe they let you do such things.

Ho Chi Mihn City (Saigon), Vietnam

2008-04-30T05:23:00.000-07:00

We were prepared to face the meyhem of Hanoi but instead Saigon came across as a lovely city full of cheerful people. Before sunset everyone would be out exercising in the parks, the men would be playng badminton or football while the woman would be in their groups doing aerobics, with the kids joining in wherever they could.

We visited the Cu Chi Tunnels which were fascinating. It was where the viet cong fought the Americans. The tunnels had three layers, and were so small you had to crawl through them. We got given the chance to go through some of them and it was horrible. Greg managed to make it through the whole 120 metres however Kim only made it through the first 20 before having to go out through one of the exits!!! That day we learnt a lot about what went on and how they fought. We even got to have a go at shooting an AK.47 at the end. The gun shots were so loud but so exciting! We loved every second of it.

Link to photos of Hoi An, Nha Trang and Saigon:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2302157&l=87694&id=197810485

Nha Trang, Vietnam

2008-04-30T05:22:00.000-07:00

Nha Trang has a long stretch of beach that seems to be never ending. Due to tummy bugs we spent most of our time here chilling out in Louisiana's cafe which is set right on the beach front. If we were feeling better we would have made it to the nearby island with a water park, which you get to by cable car, but instead we opted to do some of the local sightseeing.

We visited the Long Son Pagoda to see the Buddha that looked over the whole of Nha Trang. We also went to the Po Nagar Cham towers just before sunset. Both were very impressive.

Hoi An, Vietnam

2008-04-22T03:30:00.001-07:00

Hoi An is a charming and pretty little town. It has a bustling market down by the riverside along with plenty of little places to eat. We sampled some of the local cuisine here and it was delicious.

You cant walk very far without coming across one of the many tailor shops there, we definitely got carried away. You go in, point out some clothes from a magazine, or bring in one of your favourite tops from home and they will copy it all for you. You then go back for a second fitting and they adjust it until its perfect. They are unbelievably cheap too!

While we were here we also hired out bicycles and cycled to the beach. It was beautiful and strecthed for miles. There are several little islands too that you can visit by boat.

Harlong Bay, Vietnam

2008-04-22T03:29:00.002-07:00

Harlong Bay was absolutley beautiful. We spent two days on a gorgeous boat, sailing through some of the 3000 limestone islands which are there. We also walked and kayaked through one of the largest caves. Everything about it was spectacular.

There was a good bunch of us on the boat so when it came to the evening, the drinking games started to flow and by the end of the night the boys decided it would be a good idea to jump of the boat wearing only their birtday suit... typical!

Link to photos of Hanoi and Harlong bay:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2299064&l=1cef3&id=197810485

Hanoi, Vietnam

2008-04-22T03:29:00.001-07:00

Unfortunately we didn't get a very good view of Hanoi, except from the hostel we stayed in and the people we met.

Hanoi is extremely hectic. It is a constant struggle to walk the streets without being run over by motorbikes or being hassled by locals who are definitely out there to scam you. The sound of everyone's horns are deafening, you cant go 2 seconds without hearing one, some even play a little tune!

We spent a whole day wandering around the city and thanks to Thomas (a friend we met at our hostel) we didn't get lost. We went to the Temple of Literature, had a look at the opera house and a few old buildings around the same area before doing a bit of shopping! While we were here we also went to see the famous puppet show... it was brilliant and hilarious to say the least.

Vientiene, Laos

2008-04-22T03:27:00.001-07:00

There is not much too vientiene, and it certainly feels more like a small town rather than a city. As a result we only spent a few hours here before catching a flight to Veitnam. We had a wonder along the river front, a bit to eat and then went to see the famous 'That Luang' Temple. It has three levels and being painted gold it looks very impressive.

Link to photos of Laos:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2297514&l=22107&id=197810485

Vang Vieng, Laos

2008-04-14T20:00:00.001-07:00

Vang Vieng is a little town, which is best known for its 'tubing'.

Tubing involves getting in a big rubber ring and floating down the river, stopping at all the make-shift bars made out of bamboo on the way. It takes up the whole day. We started at around 11am and Kim and Jenny were still floating down it when it got dark!!! It was brilliant, everyone is in high sprits, drinking buckets, swinging off the rope swings or eating a bit of grub. Definitely the best bar crawl ever invented.

We were only here for a couple of days as there is not much else to do. So after spending the whole day tubing we nursed our hangovers the next day by paying to use the swimming pool at a near by hotel... luxury!

Luang Prabang, Laos

2008-04-14T19:59:00.000-07:00

Luang Prabang is known as the prettiest town in Laos. We could definately see the potential, however we arrived as the locals were celebrating their new year (to them it is the year 2552)... absolutely mental!!! They celebrate by having 5 days of water fights. You cannot walk along the street without being soaked by water guns, hoses or buckets, or being covered in powder or black grease.... even when you are carrying your big backpack and trying to find a hostel to stay in... no one escapes it!!!

After a good nights sleep we woke up, went out on to the streets, armed oursleves up with our own water pistols and joined in the festivities. We have never experienced anything like it, it was brilliant. All the kids would be out, some so young their water pistols were bigger than them, and as for the adults... they got more carried away than the kids!!!! What a great way to celebrate new year!

We also visited the waterfalls here, again due to it being new year it was manic and not as tranquille as we had hoped but it was still definately worth the visit. It was so pretty and formed gorgeous turqouise pools at the bottom that you could swim in. A nice way to cool down and escape the humidity.

Chaing Mai, Thailand

2008-04-10T08:45:00.001-07:00

The 36 hour journey we made to get to Chaing Mai was definately worth it.

Chaing Mai's old town is surrounded by a moat and the whole town is a maze of little streets. Getting lost is a given, especially if you have Kim's sense of direction. The night bazaar here was amazing, we went two nights in a row and still did not manage to see it all! It had everything there... clothes, jewellery, art work, ornaments, lights, gadjets, on one stall we even saw kittens and puppies for sale... they were tiny and only cost 15 pounds!!!

Trekking - hardest thing we have done so far but definately rewarding and good fun. The first day involved a 4 hour trek in the midday heat. We were constantly hiking up stupidly steep hills or stumbling down them. We were all dripping with sweat, our legs were shaking like leaves and we are proud to say that not one of us gave up.
We were the happiest people when we made it to the tiny long neck tribe village that we were staying at for the night... they even had cold beers ready for us... just what we needed!

The long neck tribe are very shy so we only met them briefly. There are several stories behind why they wear the rings around their necks. One is that they believe it makes the woman more beautiful, another is that they believe it will protect them from the tigers.

That night they cooked us green curry (not very nice but we couldnt go hungry so down it went), then we lit a bonfire, had a few more drinks and a sing song around the fire.

After waking up to the sound of cockrells, our second day began. We started off to another hour and a half trek which eventually brought us to the elephant camp. Here we got to ride on the elephants, on land and through the water, and got to feed them bananas to say thank you, they were adorable.
In the afternoon we did white water rafting down the river, stopping as we passed little villages on the water edge, where all the children were playing. We then floated down the rest of the river on a bamboo raft before returning back to our hotel in Chang Mai. The funniest part was seeing us try to get onto the rafts, Kim and Greg fell over several times and Greg managed to put his foot through one of the rafts... definitley a 'youve been framed' moment.

Link to photos of Chaing Mai:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2293143&l=1f2df&id=197810485

Phuket, Thailand

2008-04-05T07:39:00.002-07:00

Phuket is quite a big island but has little that appealed to us. It was very 'touristy' and didnt have a very good feel to it. We stayed on Patong beach, spent one afternoon there and then spent another day at Karon and Kata beach.

We decided to book ourselves on a boat trip and do a bit of fishing while we were here. We had our fingers crossed that we would catch a barracuda or a big sail fish but unfortunately we didnt. We didnt even really get to do that much fishing. But we still made the most of it. Greg caught a big tuna and the rest of us caught groupers and snappers.

Link to Photos of Koh Phi Phi and Phuket:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2292322&l=9e604&id=197810485

Koh Phi Phi, Thailand

2008-04-05T07:39:00.001-07:00

After the horrible experience of a night boat, then being crammed onto a mini bus, then having to buy our ferry ticket twice due to being scammed we finally made it to Koh Phi Phi.

Koh Phi Phi is a beautiful little island, with lots of little market stalls, places to eat and places to drink. Hippies and Carpe Diem are two great bars where you can either chill out and watch the fire shows or get up and dance. The Irish pub was also good, its always busy and you get to play connect 4 while ordering your drink! Places like the reggae bar are a little more tacky with a boxing ring in the middle, where they encourage friends to get up and fight each other in order to win a free bucket of alcohol.

Although overall we rate Koh Tao above Koh Phi Phi, Koh Phi Phi is definatley the best place for scuba diving. Greg and Kim did two more fun dives while they were here. They saw sea snakes (extremly poisionus), trumpet fish, angel fish, trigger fish, scorpion fish, yellow box fish, flute fish, barracuda, lion fish (again very poisonus), clown fish, cleaner shrimps (who used their tenticles to clean under your fingernails), black tipped reef sharks and the giant moray eel which was definately the favourite. The giant eel must have been 3 metres long and wider than us, its head being bigger than ours too!!! Incredible!

Koh Tao, Thailand

2008-03-25T06:41:00.001-07:00

Apart from everyone getting ill from a tummy bug, we fell in love with Koh Tao from the moment we got there. By day you can shop, scuba dive, snorkle, kayak, fish, hire out a moped and go around the island to all the other beaches.. the list is endless. By night you can chill out on bean-bags sipping cocktails on the beach or you can purchase a few of the deadly alcohol buckets, watch the fire shows and enjoy a bit of dancing in places such as the lotus bar.

Greg and Kim did Scuba diving here whilst Jenny and PJ did a bit of kayaking over to nearby islands. We all managed to stay in luxury bungalows with air-con - what a lovely change.

Koh Tao is one of the cheapest places to obtain your open water suba diving qualification. It consisted of 4 days, including several class sessions, a bit of homework, 1 confined dive (where you learn all the skills you need) and 4 open water dives, and then a final exam. The first two open water dives were at Mango Bay. We went down to 12m and saw lots of lovely tropical fish swimming around the corals. We also saw one massive school of fish which surrounded all of us to the point where we couldnt see anything else, it was brilliant. The third dive was literally in the middle of nowhere, you couldnt see anything around us until we got under the water. We went down to 18m and saw schools of batfish and barracuda, sea eels and trigger fish. The final dive was at White Rock, again it was amazing, but the best bit was when we saw a green turtle sleeping at the bottom. We were able to get so close to it, it was incredible. Next new job... to become a Scuba diving master!!!

We ended up stayin here longer than we were supposed to as the Koh Tao festival was on. Acts were performed, prizes were won (dont even bother asking if we won anything!!!), bands played their music and we danced the night away!

Link to photos of Koh tao:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2288262&l=def91&id=197810485

Koh Phangan, Thailand

2008-03-25T06:40:00.003-07:00

Haad Rin is the main place on the island where all the full moon comotion happens. We knew not to stay right on this beach as its too hectic and not the cleanest of places. Luckily we bumped into a lovely couple on our way to the island who recommended staying on Haad Juan, where they live, its beach further up from Haad Rin that is only a 10 min taxi boat ride away. It was a gorgeous little beach with its own places to eat and drink. Eden was definately one of our favourites by night whilst Big Blue was heaven to chill out in throught the day when the heat got too much for us. We managed to find a couple of cheap bungalows there, they were quite basic with outside toilets/showers and they only had electricity from 7pm till 7am, but what more do you need???

Haad Tien was just north of Haad Rin and was just as pretty. The Sanctuary was based here, which is where Greg took Kim for her birthday so she could treat herself to a massage and a manicure/pedicure.

The full moon party (and Kims birthday)...
Not only is it celebrated on the day of the full moon but there are parties every half moon, black moon, the day before the full moon and the day after, three days before and five days before... basically whatever day your there you will be guarenteed to have a party to attend to.
We went on the night before and the night of the actual full moon. Both were brilliant. With glow and the dark paints out in force, everyone was covered from head to toe and the atmosphere was crazy. The beach becomes packed full of nutters drinking and dancing the night away. Definately a birthday to remember.

Funny note: Dentist in Thai is pronounced 'morefun'

Link tp photos of Koh Phangan:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2288245&l=0193b&id=197810485

Perhentian Islands, Malaysia

2008-03-25T06:40:00.001-07:00

Absolutely brilliant place. A lovely exotic island, which is basic but has brilliant snorkling.

On one day we went on a boat trip and got to swim with lots of tropical fish, black tip reef sharks and green turtles... absolutely amazing! Believe it or not when you see the sharks all you want to do is swim after them rather than away from them... it sounds crazy I know but its true, they were beautiful!!!

While we were here we stayed with a local who had just set up his business, we were his first customers. This meant that he charged us next to nothing (80p a night) but provided us with pretty much nothing except from a wooden hut. We had no electricty, running water, hot water, flushing toilets... you would all probably dis-own us if you saw the state we were in by the end of our time there. Im surprised you couldnt smell us from England!!!! On the food front though we definately could eat like kings as it would only set us back by about two pounds... hurray!!!!

Link to photos of the Perhentian islands:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2288230&l=09df5&id=197810485

Taman Negara, Malaysia

2008-03-25T06:39:00.001-07:00

The highlights of Taman Negara were floating down the river in the little boats, watching the water buffaloes graze on the banks, and walking along the canopy walkways high up in the jungle (except from when the boys decide to rock the boat or jump up and down on the bridges).

However as far as the jungle experience goes it was crap!!! It sounds good when we say we went on a night safari and saw a leopard cat and a tree snake, but when the cat looks like a domestic cat which stays behind the trees so you cant even see it and the tree snake is no bigger than a worm you realise your not getting your monies worth. The best was yet to come though when our guide actually pointed out a grass hopper... you know that rare insect that cleverly rubs its legs together to make a noise.. all together now... wwwwwooooooowwwwww!!!!!!

Anyway apart from that it was nice to get out of the cities and to be living in wooden huts, eating in floating restaurants on the river and seeing a bit of wildlife. Although note to everyone - careful with what you buy to drink and eat, what looks like a blackcurrant drink may end up tasting like deep heat, and what looks like a strawberry lolly might end up to be made of red beans... yuk!!!

Link to photos of Kuala Lumpar and Taman Negara:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2288207&l=77fce&id=197810485

Kuala Lumpar, Malaysia

2008-03-25T06:38:00.000-07:00

A way to sum up Malaysia...

Riding a motorbike/moped on the pavement is a given, whether its to cut corners, to beat the traffic or because they just fancy it. It is also not strange to see them coming towards you on the wrong side of the road.
You are never far away from a rat or a cockroach, even when your eating dinner.
It is common to have noodles for breakfast, noodles for lunch and rice for dinner... what a good balanced diet!
People ride past on their bikes carrying everything they own, including tables, chairs, trays of food, bags, you name it they can carry it, its a mystery how they manage to keep their balance.

Looking on the up side, food is cheap, the people are really friendly and plug sockets are the same as in England... no adapter needed! The small pleasures in life!!!!

Kuala Lumar is a lovely city with an amazing skyline. The patronas twin towers are spectacular, especially at night when they are all lit up. Through the day we also got to walk across the bridge which goes from one building to the other. You get a lovely view of the whole city.
While we were there we also went to the Batu caves. You had to walk up 272 steps to reach the temple at the top, it was quite impressive and we saw lots of monkeys chilling out up at the top, trying to steal food from every tourist.
The China town here was even more hectic than in Singapore, even though it was smaller. It was almost impossible to get down some streets as they were so busy. However there was still a brilliant atmosphere and it was even where we ended up staying!!!

Singapore

2008-03-25T06:21:00.000-07:00

There are 3 main sections to Singapore; Little India, the Centre, and China town.

Little India is definitely the poor part where Indian's have come over to seek jobs. The streets are dirty and the poverty is noticeable, however there are many temples around which are anything but dirty. They are all so bright and colourful, full of religious figures and amazing to look at. The difference between the different religions are noticeable and very interesting.

The centre of the city is heaven for the shopaholics, they range from little market stalls to big designer shops... no need to ask which bit we shopped in!!!!

China town is definitely how you would imagine it... the streets are packed full of stalls and you cant walk very far with out getting hassled. Still, it was a good place to pick up bargains and if your in a bartering mood its great.

While we were here we decided to get in the full swing of things and try the local cuisine... god knows what we have been eating, we would have asked but to be honest we were all a little scared too!!!

Its definitely good to be back in a place where the culture is so different to ours. You find yourselves trying new things, having different yet great experiences, and learning new things everyday.

Link to photos of Singapore:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2288198&l=e23df&id=197810485

South East Asia

2008-03-25T06:18:00.000-07:00

So the time came to eventually leave Oz and make our way to South East Asia to see Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Cambodia, Viehtnam, and Loas.

Cairns

2008-03-05T23:24:00.001-08:00

Cairns is a nice little city but as the place was flooded when we arrived and continued to be rubbish we didnt get to do any of the activities we wanted to, such as go out to the Great Barrier Reef. It was such a shame but at least we did some snorkeling while we were at Whitsundays! We spent most evenings getting our free backpackers meals, having a few drinks and watching TV!

We tried the hardest to sell our car, reducing the price down to practically nothing... eventually with hours to spare we sold our little baby. We didnt get our money back but at least it put something in our pockets.

Link to photos:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2279470&l=bd625&id=197810485

Mission Beach

2008-03-05T23:23:00.000-08:00

Well, what can we say, except from rain rain and more bloody rain! Kim and Greg were brave and still decided to set up their tent whereas Jenny and PJ had a better idea and booked themselves into cabin. Thank god they did because otherwise we would have had no where else to go. The beaches were flooded and the place was dead! So that night we invested in some beer and goon and played centurians to help pass the time. In the morning we left and headed towards cairns before the roads got flooded.

Magnetic Island

2008-03-01T16:25:00.003-08:00

On the first night we decided to stay at the base hostel. We stayed in these tent/teepee things,was a nice change from setting up our own tents but when you comein after a few drinks at the bar and find a littlepossom eating away at your bread your not best pleased. Suppose it was Kim and Gregs own fault for leaving food in there but the little bastard wouldnt stay away... even after we squirted him with water and PJ gave him a 'gentle shove' (politely out i know). We did see the amusing side of it though...thanks to the beers!

The second night we went to Bungalow Bay which was amazing. It was a campsite with its own sanctuary. You only had to pay $14 and you got to hold a snake, a koala, a 2 year old croc, a blue tounged lizard and several birds. The Rainbow Lorikeets were so noisey and all of them wanted food, so they would fight over you... you would have a few on you hands, some on your arms, on your back, or your head... hungry little buggers! The cockatoo there was the funniest, he hated men but loved attention from the ladys. If Kim or Jenny went up to him he would point where he wanted to be scratched, but if Greg or PJ went near him he would move away from them!

Kim, Greg and PJ also did their own little bush-tucker trial. The woman showing us around the santuary said you can eat the green tree ants, or even just lick them so we stupidly decided to do it. At first you get a citrus burst but then it just stings a little!!!! Yuk!

Whitsundays

2008-03-01T16:25:00.001-08:00

We stayed at Airlie beach before we jetted off on our sailing adventure. Its a lovely little town with quite a lively night life. The night before Whitsundays we met up with a couple of old friends from New Zealand, it turned out to be a good night but not so good for our early rise the next day!

Whitsundays is made up of 74 Islands and is absolutely gorgeous! We loved every second of it. We sailed around the Islands on a catamaran called Avatar, and ended up having a really good group again, there were 25 of us all together including the crew. The first day we made it to Whitehaven beach and luckily for us the sun was shining, the place looked magical, its just such a shame you cant go and jump into the crsytal clear waters because of all the stingers!!! We also saw lots of fully grown logger head turtles sticking their heads out of the water and taking a few breaths before disappearing again.

On the second day the weather wasnt that great but it was fine as we spent most of the day snorkling. We saw some beautiful fish including a Maori Wrasse which was the size of us!!!! Around lunch time there was a massive storm with lots of rain and strong winds... it made sailing brilliant, we were speeding along the open ocean and we were all wearing our yellow fisherman macs... great fun!!! That night the good old drinking games came out and we all had a good giggle on the boat, before gently being rocked to sleep!

On the final day we went snorkling again in the morning, the visability was not as good as yesterday but we did get to see a sting ray!!! After lunch we put the sails up for one last time and headed back to the main land. Overall... absolutely fantastic trip!

Links to Photos of Whitsundays:
http://leedsac.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2277102&l=70cd3&id=197810485

Cape Hillsborough

2008-03-01T16:24:00.002-08:00

Cape Hilsborough is a national park, which has plenty of bush walks to do and beaches to see. We stayed right by the beach and we made it just in time to watch the sun set. It was gorgeous and the tide was out so you could walk for miles. In the morning we woke up at 5:30am to watch the sun rise and see the wallabys and kangaroos. They come down to the beach every morning to feed. It was beautiful and as we were the only ones there it was really peaceful. A couple of Kangaroos had little Joeys in their pouches too... how adorable!

Link to photos of Rockhampton, Yeppoon and Cape Hillsborough:
http://leedsac.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2277093&l=c296c&id=197810485

Rockhampton and Yeppoon

2008-03-01T16:24:00.001-08:00

It was an absolute scorcher when we arrived in Rockhampton and all of us were far too hot in the car so as soon as we arrived into the city we went to a big outdoor swimming pool (as you cant go in the sea without a stinger suit on). We only stayed one night in the city and we think the campsite owner forgot to tell us that there were thunderstorm warnings that night... the bastard! When we got back to our tents after the cinema the heavens poured and continued to pour the whole night, the lightening was incredible and the thunder was so scary, we were glad when that night was over.

Yeppoon was a lovely little place. It is where you catch the ferry to go to the Great Keppel Islands, which was where we were originally going to go until we found out the cost of it and that most things have closed down on the island! They are trying to make it into an exclusive resort. So instead we decided to go fishing for the day, the sun was shinning and we found a nice little spot by the river and near the sea. We caught 9 fish between us all, but Greg definately won by catching 5 of them and catching the biggest. The only negative was the amount of mosquito bites we came away with!!!! The little buggers!!! Next new job... to find a way to kill all mosquitos.

Agnes Water and Town 1770

2008-03-01T16:23:00.002-08:00

Agnes water is the last spot to surf on the east coast but unfortunatley there were no waves while we were there. After spending an afternoon on the beach we headed to Town 1770 for the evening. We stayed at a campsite right on the beach, it was gorgeous. In the evening the tide went out and the sunset right in front of us.

Link to Photos of Hervery Bay, Bundaberg and Town 1770:
http://leedsac.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2277090&l=8e4bb&id=197810485

Bargarra, Bundaberg

2008-03-01T16:23:00.001-08:00

We Stayed in a little town called Bargarra which was just outside Bundaberg. We met up with a couple of PJs friends while we were there who luckily told us about Mon Repos (the turtle sanctuary). That night we went there and watched baby logger-head turtles hatch on the beach, it was amazing, they were so tiny.

Bargarra also has several beaches which are good for snorkling and sometimes surfing. But while we were there the surf wasnt good and you couldnt snorkel as the flood water had polluted the sea! Not all bad thought as we still got to lay on the beach, enjoy the sun and swim in the lagoon.

Tin Can Bay and Hervey Bay

2008-03-01T16:22:00.000-08:00

We went to Tin Can Bay to feed a wild bottle-nose dolphin. We got there at half seven in the morning and there he was. We actually went into the water to feed him. He swam straight up to you and took the fish out of your hand. All donations made from this help protect the dolphins. They feed them every morning but they will only ever get given 1/10 of the fish they would normally have in a day so if this activity ever had to stop the dolphins would not be affected. They have been coming into the bay for years, but this one in particular had so many scars. A year back he was attacked by bull sharks and came into the bay for help. He rested there for ten days and luckily survived.

Hervey Bay was a lovely little place, with a gorgeous beach where you can walk out to sea for ages and it is still only up to your knees. It was lovely and so peaceful, we were the only ones there for most of the time.

Fraser Island

2008-02-14T19:44:00.000-08:00

After a bit of a long and boring briefing we got into our groups and started to load everything onto our 4x4. 'Merv' was our instructor who told us everything we needed to know, he was quite a character. We got given everything that we needed including two eskys... one for alcohol and the other for food. The amount of food we were given was luxury, we actually had a good balanced diet for a few days! Once we were all packed and ready to go we drove to the ferry and off we headed to Fraser Island.
Driving the four wheel drive across the beach was so much fun, although driving it along some of the tracks were a little bit more scary as you could easily lose control or get stuck.

The first day we went to Eurong where we stopped and stocked up on ice and water, then we headed to Lake McKenzie. It was absolutely beautiful, with crystal clear waters and sand surrounding it. That night we set up camp right on the beach front, we had nothing around us and when you needed to go to the toilet you had to take the shovel with you and dig your own hole... classy we know! After drinking nearly all our alcohol in one night, everyone got to know each other and have a really good laugh together.

The next morning we all woke up bright and early and went down to the sea to wash our dishes before making scrambled egg on toast for everyone, yum! That day we drove all the way to the top of the Island where we climbed up to Indian head. From there you could see all the sand dunes which made up the Island, you are also supposed to see sharks from there too but unfortuantely we didnt.
That night we stayed at an aboriginal camp where we had a bonfire, got painted like aboriginals and learnt more about the digeridoo. There were also a few dingos roaming around the place trying to eat you food... they may look cute but you definately wouldnt get too close to them.

On our final day we went to Eli Creek before making our way to Lake Wabby. Just before we made it to the lake our good old 4x4 decided to break down... just our luck. We had to walk to the nearest liitle town where we rang Merv and he sent a mechanic out to us. Once the mechanic arrived he sorted out a few battery connections and we were back on the road... it wasnt completely fixed though as we could only turn the car off by opening the bonnet... classic!

Lake Wabby had big sand dunes surrounding it, it was really pretty. After spending a hour or so there we headed back to our ferry and said farewell to Fraser Island.

Overall the weather wasnt amazing but it was definately better than previous weeks, we also had a really good group which completey made the trip what it was.

Links to Photos:
http://leedsac.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2272675&l=37066&id=197810485

Brisbane and Noosa

2008-02-10T02:48:00.001-08:00

Unfortunately when we arrived in Brisbane we did not have a hostel booked and everywhere was fully booked.... until finally a hostel let the four of use squeeze into a three bed dorm, thank god. It ended up being a really nice hostel too, the bar was good and cheap and the people were really friendly. Our second night there we ended up being moved into a four bed en suite with a fridge and TV....luxury! As we were hungover anyway we decided to make the most of our room by staying in it most of the day, we had a lovely little inside picnic and watch a couple of films.... fantastic.

There wasnt really much to do in Brisbane expect from have a look aroung the shops and walk around the city, so we just had a day of sorting our lives out and deciding on our next plan of action.

Noosa was a gorgeous place but unfortuantely the weather decided to turn horrible!
The first night we arrived we had to put out tents up in the dark and in the pissing rain!!! But worse was to come. When we woke up the grass was completely waterlogged around us and as soon as we stepped out side our tent we got drenched. One dry place to escape to would have been the car... but because boys will be boys and they had to buy a soft roof to put their surf boards which actually leaves a slight gap in the doors resulted in the whole of the inside of the car was soaked through. We were all cold wet and all we had left to do was to drive to the nearest indoor shopping centre so we could dry off and get some breaky! Later on in teh day we figured out that the only way to beat the rain was to join in, so we got into our bikini's and boardies and jumped into the sea! We spent the next few hours there until we decided to go and treat ourselves to fish and chips for dinner.

That night there was no way we could go back into our tents, so we told our sob story to the campsite owner who let us upgrade to a deluxe cabin for only a few dollars more... it was amazing... it had a kitchen, sitting room, TV, pots, pans, cups, glasses, 2 double bedrooms, bathroom etc!!!

We all went to Emundi market while we were in Noosa. It was quite big with lots of tat as well as some cool things. we also got another free digeridoo lesson, think we will be pros by the end of our trip!

On Valentines day all four of us went to Steve Irwins Australia Zoo, it was really good and had lots to see. The croc show was a little disappointing but the crazy tiger keeper made up for it by playing and restling with 3 young tigers. Next new job... to be a tiger trainer! In the evening each couple went off and did own own thing then booked into a lovely appartment for the night.

Links to photos of Brisbane, Noosa and Tin Can Bay:
http://leedsac.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2272655&l=c3aae&id=197810485

Gold Coast

2008-02-04T23:55:00.001-08:00

We stopped at several places along the Gold Coast but as the weather was not too good to us we didnt get to enjoy the beaches as much as we had hoped.

We spent an afternoon on Fingal bay in Tweeds Head, and when the rain got too hard we headed back to camp for the evening with a good old chinese takeaway. Another day we went to Rainbow Bay and Coolangatta where the waves were amazing.. but the current was so stong it was impossible to surf! Burleigh was a lovely little place where the sun finally decided to show its face. Jenny however decided to have a bit of a wobbly moment on the beach and fainted... obversly not used to the sun!!!!

Surfers paradise was bigger than we expected with a tall skyline and a massive beach. Unfortunately the weather was really bad while we were here so we didnt spend much time on the beach and the boys didn't really surf as the conditions were rubbish. We did however make the most of the nightlife. One of the nights we went out with seven other hostels, we all got free cowboy hats, glow sticks and drinks, free entry into clubs and finger food to held absorb some of the alcohol! Another day we went to the theme park there called Dreamworld. It was brilliant, not only did it have crazy rides but it had tiger shows, kangaroos and everything. The Vortex ride was definately our favourite ride. It is one where you get spun around so fast you stick to the wall. We were constantly trying to see who could move around the fastest, who could go upside down, climb over someone etc... endless fun!

Overall Surfers did feel a little bit tacky... but still definately worth the visit!

Links to Photos:
http://leedsac.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2269122&l=edc90&id=197810485

Byron Bay incl link to pictures

2008-02-04T23:54:00.005-08:00

Byron Bay is a gorgeous little place perfect for chilling out and doing some surfing. Our campsite was right on the beach so we could just wonder down when ever we felt like it. There are beaches facing all directions so there is never any problem finding the right waves to surf on. Finally us girls managed to stand up on our surfboards even if it was only for a second or two!

One day we had a wonder around the shops and a guy who worked in one offered to teach us how to play the digeridoo. It was hillarious, at first we were all just making loud raspberry sounds, but eventually we got the hang of it (kind of). You couldnt last very long though because it hurts your cheeks and makes you really light headed.

At night you could enjoy listening to the people busking in the street, or go to the lovely hotel on the beach which always had a live band playing. We also went to a couple of cheap backpackers place where there was plenty going on and lots of cheap drinks available. We ended up staying here for a few days but we could have easily stayed here longer.

Link to pictures of the east coast so far:
http://leedsac.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2269104&l=92d67&id=197810485

Coffs Harbour

2008-02-04T23:54:00.003-08:00

We didnt actually get to see much of coffs harbour as we were not there for long but we did go to the pet-porpoise place, which was brilliant. Kim got a kiss from a seal and a bottle-nose dolphin. The seal kiss was the best, he gave her a right smacker. We also got to feed the sharks, fish and turtles.

We did get the chance to see Park beach and Digger beach in the morning before we left, where we watched a few really good surfers, they made it look so easy!!

Port MacQuarie

2008-02-04T23:54:00.001-08:00

A beautiful green town, with a lovely river to walk along and go fishing in. There are several beaches too all in a line next to each other. We didnt have time to see them all but tried to get to as many as we could.

Port Stephens

2008-02-04T23:53:00.002-08:00

We arrived here when it was the last holiday weekend for the ozzies so it was pretty busy, but luckily we managed to find one last space at one of the camp sites. It was actually Australia day when we arrived so everyone was out and about celebrating the day. That night we walked to the harbour to eat fish and chips and watch the fire work display. It was really pretty and very romantic.

The beaches around Port Stephens are endless. Shoal bay was one of our favourites, so we spent most of our time there. We tried to go snorkling but the water was a little too rough, however we did see a man catch an octopus!!! Solider point was also another nice little spot where we went one evening to watch the sunset.

Breakdown!!!

2008-02-04T23:53:00.001-08:00

Uuh ooh!!! Viser minelli almost died on us, the poor thing.

The engine overheated and our battery was dying. After 3 hours in the sun the boys realised our drive belt had gone!! A few people did stop to try and help us but because we were in the middle of nowhere, most of them were driving big log trucks and just couldnt help us. We were officially in the worst place for breaking down!!! Anyway about 7 hours after we actually broke down one log man towed us about 30km back on ourselves to a little town where we had to wait until the morning for the mechanic. There was nothing much around except from a pub and a few scary people, so that night we thought it would be safer to sleep in the car. Probably one fo the worst nights sleep ever, brought us a little closer but i dont think we will be doing it again in a hurry.

Luckily the mechnanic came to viser's rescue in the morning and saved her. Finally we were back on the road to carry on with our journey.

Wilsons Prom.

2008-01-24T18:18:00.003-08:00

Absolutely gorgeous place. There are places to fish, sunbathe, go walking, driving, hiking, it just had so much to offer. We got the chance to see a lot of wildlife too, we saw and eagle eating road kill, wombats, parrots and possoms. Wombats were our favourite, they are much bigger then you think and looked quite cute. We came across a couple of scary ones tho, one of which charged at PJ and scared the crap out of him.. funny!! One night we even had one munching outside of our tent!

While we were there we went to Whiskey beach and squeaky beach, both were deserted and beautiful. We spent several hours playing games on the beaches as we practically had them to ourselves.

Mount Oberon was definately the highlight of Wilsons Prom. The bus picked us up and took us half way up and we had to climb the rest. It took us about 45 mins and it was definately a stuggle... all of us are a little out of practice on the excercise front! But when we reached the top it was definately worth it, the view was unbelivable, we could have stayed up there for hours.

Link to photos:
http://leedsac.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2262934&l=19832&id=197810485

The Great Ocean Road

2008-01-24T18:18:00.001-08:00

What a beautiful drive!! It had the most amazing and breath taking views of the ocean, rain forests, valleys, every couple of minutes there was another look out point to go and see.
Torquay was a little place with several deserted beaches and was good for surfing. Lorne was the next place we stopped at which was a little more busy so we didnt stop there for long. As we left we tried to go and see some waterfalls but after dragging viser minelli along some horrible roads and making her do many u-turns we thought we would give up before we all strangelled each other.

Apollo bay was a beautiful place, again with lovely scenery and beaches. On the way out of the bay we did the maits rainforest walk which was really bright and colourful.

On our way to Port Campbell we saw some koalas in the wild, they were adorable. We never thought we would be able to spot them... and if we hadnt seen someone else pull over we probably wouldnt have!! From Port Campbell we drove to see the London Bridge and Grotto lookout, which you will be able to see in the piccys.

We all took a helicopter ride over the 12 Apostles! We were all like excited little kids. It was amazing... next new thing... to become a helicopter pilot.

On the way back along the Great Ocean Road we were going to stop at all the beaches and have a go at surfing but the weather turned a little grey and miserable so we decided to buy 2 fishing rods between the four of us and go fishing for the next couple of days. It was brilliant... we all were guilty of getting a little competitive and even stayed out in the dark one night, with no light... dedication!

Link to Photos
http://leedsac.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2262930&l=8cf28&id=197810485

Adelaide

2008-01-24T18:17:00.006-08:00

The city itself is lovely and very easy to find your way around. Further out from the centre you have Glenelg bay which has lots of nice little shops and places to eat and has a coast line which seems to stretch for miles. Kangaroo was tried for the first time... absolutely delicious (its like steak but even tastier). Over all is was a perfect place to just chill out and enjoy the weather.

Links to pictures of Blue Mountains, Melbourne and Adelaide:
http://leedsac.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2262929&l=3cdcc&id=197810485

Melbourne

2008-01-24T18:17:00.005-08:00

The Drive to Melbourne from the Blue Mountains took quite along time so we had a little stop over point in the lovely town of Eden.

When we made it to Melbourne we set up camp just on the outskirts of the city, it was a bit of a mission to get into the city but it didnt bother us too much!

Melbourne is a lovely city, which is not as daunting as Sydney. You can find your way around a little bit more easily, yet it is just as pretty. There is a river which runs through the centre and you can ever go and sit on some floating bits of Grass/astroturf for your lunch. St.Kilda is a place just outside the city centre on the beach where you can chill out through the day or go and watch the sunset at nights. We went there one evening and got to see the little penguins (also known as fairy penguins) come in to their little homes in the rocks once the sun had set, they were adorable. One day when we were there it actually reached 41 degrees, it was boiling so we made it to brighton beach which was just further on from St. Kilda!

We all feel that our time in Melbourne was not long enough and that we still more to see, so its on our list to come back too!!!

Blue Mountains

2008-01-24T18:17:00.003-08:00

So after finally finding our car whose name is viser minelli (named after her little viser she has) we hit the road! To begin with we didnt have much camping stuff, we didnt even have a map so the boys became in charge for getting us to our first destination, the Blue Mountains. We made it there with only a few detours and no arguments... result!

We set up camp in Euroka which was in the national park. Dont think Kim and Jenny were ready for how basic everything was, there was no shower block, no where to get water from and only a long drop (whole in the ground) for a toilet. We definately did not become prepared for this.... Pj and Jennys tent was not waterproof, Kim and Greg borrowed a tent but didnt realise it consisted of one half of one tent and one half of another, which were not even in the same shape, none of us had anything to sleep on, sit on, we had no light, we burnt our dinner and we even had to start rationing our water!!!! What more can we say!!
Apart from that though there was so much wildlife about, we saw hundred of birds, such as cockatoos and parrots (which were so bloody noisey, especially in the mornings). We also saw Kangaroos hopping about the place
After the National Park we headed straight to a camping shop to kit ourselves out properly... our lesson was learnt!

We stayed over in Blackheath for a night to wait for the weather to improve before we went sightseeing. The next day we went to see the Katoomba falls, and went to echo point to see the three sisters, they were all beautiful, which were all spectacular.

Sydney

2008-01-24T18:17:00.001-08:00

Sydney has some fantastic scenery and plenty of beaches to choose from, however for most of our time there the weather decided to go against us (nothing new there)!!!
The Harbour Bridge and Opera House look amazing, and one afternoon when the sun was shining we decided to treat our selves to a few drinks in the opera house bar. You get an amazing view of the whole harbour when you go on the ferry to Manly beach.

We went to Sydney Aquarium and Taronga Zoo. The sharks in the aquarium were very impressive, and I hope to god we never come across them in the open ocean! When we went to the Zoo our favourite animals were actually the merecats... they were adorable and hilarious to watch!

The Beaches...
There are so many to chose from! Manly is lovely when its not too busy, its really good for surfing and its got a few shops to keep the girlies happy. We also visited coogee beach and then did the two hour walk from there to Bondi which was beautiful and took us across several other beaches. Another day we went to long reef beach too, which was so peaceful... that is until the boys decided to have crocodile races along the shallow bits of the water!!!!
Bondi beach was where we stayed for three weeks, thanks to our two lovely friends Sammy and Mike. We lived in their sitting room for the whole time and saved ourselves a hell of a lot of money! Bondi has a lot going for itself, with lots of shops, lots of surfing and lots of bars to go to at night. We spent many nights drinking GOON, which is wine that costs $12 for 5 litres and it says on the ingredients may contain fish, eggs and nuts.... tasty!!! One thing that actually was tasty though was the $6.90 steak and chips, a good backpackers dinner!

Christmas...
What a brilliant day! None of us had really been looking forward to having christmas away from home and the forecast was terrible... it was forecasted to rain for the second time ever in history!!!!! But with everyone getting into the christmas spirit and a bit of luck with the weather the day was a success. Kim woke everyone up at 8 in the morning by jumping on all of their beds and handing them a bag of goodies. We all then sat in the sitting room and opened our cards from home and our silly little pressies such as, bucket and spade, crackling chocolate, candy, glowsticks, water pistols etc. We then made up a massive fish bowl of sangria... by half nine we were all feeling a little tipsy, so a trip across the road was necessary so toast could be made for all. After we got through our first fish bowl we headed over to Warricks flat where the party continued and food cooking began. Drinking was banned on the beach so thats why we ended up eating in the flat then we just headed down to the beach for a few hours later on in the day. Typically the girls were put in their place in the kitchen while the boys sat on their bums drinking. The whole day was brilliant and went on till early hours the next day... good effort from everyone!!

New Years Eve...
Another success! After a laze on the beach through the day we headed back to the flat to prepare ourselves for the night ahead. Unfortunately we decided to miss the fireworks but it ended up being worth it! Instead we went to a concert which was held on Bondi beach, the atmosphere was amazing! Everyone decided to go a little crazy with their outfits.... they consisted of rave t-shirts, shades, body paints, glowsticks, flashing jewellery... a colourful bunch! We partied hard all through the night, and slowly began to recover on new years day! A night never to be forgotten.

Link to Sydney Photos:
Sydney
http://leedsac.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2255170&l=fb6f8&id=197810485

Christmas and New Year
http://leedsac.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2262928&l=1574f&id=197810485

Off to Australia!!!

2008-01-24T18:16:00.003-08:00

So the time had come for the three of us to leave New Zealand and head off to our next destination and meet up with PJ. Our flight to Oz was painless as only lasted a few hours and no days were lost.

Kaikoura incl link to Nz South Island photos

2008-01-24T18:16:00.001-08:00

Eight of us hired out a van and drove up to Kaikoura. It was nice to finally break away from the Kiwi bus and do our own thing! Just before we reached the town we stopped off at a little cafe on the sea front to get some food. Just as we all sat down jenny spotted lots fo dolphins out at sea... there were loads of them and they were all jumping out and doing acrobatics through the water, it was so nice to see them in the wild. Later that day we went whale watching, unfortunately it was really dissapointing. We got to see one sperm whale, but we didnt get that close to it and it only came to the surface for a few seconds, for all we knew it could have been a rock in the ocean! Although we must admit it was impressive when we saw its tale flap as it decended into the depths of the sea.

The next day I think we had the most amazing morning EVER!!!!! We set off on our dolphin hunt at 5:30am!!!! It was well worth it once we came across a pod of 500 playful dusky dolphins. As soon as we found them we jumped in and started to swim with them. They were amazing, you could make noises or dive down in order to keep them interested. You could even try to compete with them by swimming round in a circle and see who could go the fastest... they always won! They stayed around us for ages and would swim underneath you, by the side of you, swim straight towards you, some even had there little nippers with them.... it was incredible! When we got out everyone felt slightly sick, especially kim, due to swimming around in circles too much and getting far too excited.

Link to photos:
Part 1
http://leedsac.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2245285&l=6d3df&id=197810485
Part 2
http://leedsac.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2247457&l=f4466&id=197810485

Millford Sounds and Christchurch

2008-01-24T18:15:00.002-08:00

Milford Sounds is one of the worlds natural wonders but unfortunately we didnt get to see its beauty!!! We travelled for five hours on a bus and when we got there it was freezing and pissing down with rain. The clouds were low, it was slightly foggy and we could hardly see 10 metres in front of us let alone the gorgeous sights of the Milford Sounds. We got close to a few waterfalls but unfortuantely that was exciting as it got! Then before we knew it we had the 5 hour journey back!!!

Christchurch was a nice little city where we got time to recuperate from queenstown and chill out for a couple of days. We ended up booking ourselves into the pent house in our hostel, as it only worked our $3 more expensive and you got the luxury of an open plan kitchen and sitting room, with a terrace and BBQ... perfect!

Queenstown

2008-01-24T18:15:00.001-08:00

Perfect place for those who like to scare themelves by doing all the extreme sports and enjoy themselves by partying hard at night.

When we first arrived in Queenstown we watched a few fellow travellers on our bus do one of the smaller bungy jumps! They were all petrified but all managed to go ahead and jump off the bridge. After that we decided to have a massive group photo, even though there were two bus loads we still decided to do one big pile up which consisted of us all laying on top of each other. We were all on the bottom two rows and were officially crushed by everyone.

Nights out were a good laugh, we always ended up finding ourselves in the same places drinking the same drinks. Teapots (cocktail drink in a porcelain teapot served with as many shot glases as you wished) were a must. A typical end to the evening involved making our way to the one and only FERGBURGER... mmmmmmm! The best and biggest and most delicious burger in the world. One night Kim had two... one at 12 to sober her up and one at 4am before bed time!

The nevis bungy jump - what were we thinking! 134 metres high, with an 8.5 second freefall from a cable car in the middle of a canyon! Shat our pants! Got to be the craziest and most stupid thing i think we have ever done. None of us have ever experienced that level of being scared, feeling sick, emotional, faint.. you name it we felt it. Greg went first and i think his face said it all. He didnt say a word before he went and for about an hour afterwards, he was in a complete state of shock but still enjoyed every second of it. Kim was next, after holding back a few nervous tears she stood on the edge and wouldnt let go of the instructors hand, but after realising the only way to get herself out of this situation would be to jump she flew herself off. She came up with the biggest smile on her face and wanted to do it all again, biggest thrill ever. Poor Jenny was last and took a little more persuasion to jump off but after listening to the count down she screamed as loud as she could and then jumped off. Before she knew it she was back at the top, also with the biggest smile ever on her face. Absolutely amazing experience and one never to be forgotten.

Franz Josef and Wanaka

2008-01-24T18:13:00.000-08:00

Before we made it to franz josef we were taken to this random deer museum, which was run by a crazy man... we learnt all about how he used to jump out of hellicopters and tackle the deers... mental! He also showed us a few possoms and a giant pig... again very random!!!

Franz josef was a tiny little resort town, but the glacier hiking there was absolutely incredible. It was a 6 hour hike which involved you climbing up the glacier, squeezing through tiny gaps and generally just enjoying the incredible views. Greg did the ice climbing which was even more difficult, it involved using picks and spikes to climb sheer ice walls.

On the way to Wanaka we stopped off at some beautiful lakes, where you sould see perfect mirror reflections of the mountains. We also stopped off at a glacier pool where a few brave people decided to get into the freezing cold water and have a little swim. Our bus driver also got thrown in... poor thing! We ended up staying in a converted hotel where we had the luxury of a tv and a bath... heaven!

Westport and a fancy dress party in the middle of nowhere!

2008-01-24T18:11:00.000-08:00

Westport was a quite little town, with nothing much to do except from to go jet boating down the river, and to join the locals in a little pub and amuse ourselves with a few drinking games. Greg managed to get away with drinking 4 jugs of beer and not spending a penny!!!

When leaving Westport we stopped off for an hours walk along the coast, which ended in us seeing lots of fur seals and their pups. It was a really preety walk which helped get rid of the hangovers. Later that day we were sent on a mission to find our fancy dress outfits for the evening. It had to cost less than $10 and not be an item of clothing... took alot of of thought but in the end Greg went as spongebob and kim and jenny were snowmen... cant really say much else but the pictures will say it all!!!!

Nelson, Nz South Island

2008-01-02T00:09:00.000-08:00

We got up at 6:30am still feeling a little drunk from the night before and eventually made it on to the ferry at 8am. Once we got to the South Island we got straight back on the bus and made our way to Nelson. We stopped off a beautiful little place on the way where we had a little swim in the freezing water and a sunbathe on the rocks. When we reached nelson we stayed at a good old fashioned pub and watched football!!

Link to photos of New Zealand, North Island

2007-12-12T22:27:00.000-08:00

http://leedsac.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2240980&l=babc4&id=197810485

Wellington, Nz

2007-12-12T21:52:00.000-08:00

After a long journey (due to our bus breaking down), we finally made it to Wellington, which was our final stop in the North Island. We were only there for one night, so although we did not get to see the city by day we managed to go out and sample a few of the bars at night! In the morning we got on board the ferry and made our way to the South Island.

River Valley, Nz

2007-12-12T21:38:00.000-08:00

We stayed at River Valley lodge, where there was nothing around you except from trees, rocks, the river and the lodge, it was gorgeous! This was where we did our white water rafting. In the morning they took us up stream and we finished our journey right outside the lodge. The rapids went up to Grade 5, which is the most dangerous you can do!!

On one of the less violent rapids we were allowed to jump out to practice keeping our feet and head above the water in case we were to fall out when we got to the bigger rapids. It was quite diffcult to do and even more difficult to get back into the raft! Our instructor was hillarious, he was from taupo so didnt know the river that well, so it became quite funny when he would ask us what to do next. We also were the only ones with a new raft, which means it becomes more likely to stick to rocks in low levelled areas. Therefore in order for us to fit though some of the rocks and not get stuck we had to keep jumping left or right to tip the boat onto its side! At one point we were stuck for about 5 minutes and in the end our instructor had to climb onto a rock and try to move the boat while we were all still in it, jumping up and down like maniacs.

At one point we got out to have a look in one of the caves, but as we did our raft started to float away, luckily our instructor jumped to the rescue and managed to grab on to it, Jenny and Greg managed to get in just in time too, leaving Kim behind who then had no choice but to jump in the water and to swim to it!!!

On one of the grade 5 rapids there was a small waterfall where you had to make sure you positioned the boat correctly in order to avoid any injuries. Luckily we did, but two other teams didnt manage too. One went sideways and the instructor ended up smashing into a rock on the way down and slicing his arm open, another didnt distribute the weight properly and ended up toppling over, making the people at the back fly forwards off the raft.

The guides told us that when it comes to White Water Rafting, ignorance is bliss, thats why we did not get that scared as we did not know what was around the corner or what could happen if it went wrong. This is one sport where the guides are actually more scared then you!

Taupo, Nz

2007-12-12T21:20:00.000-08:00

Taupo was a lovely little town, which became the destination for our skydives! We were all very surprised at how we were a lot more excited than scared about jumping 15000ft out of a plane. The flight up tested our heart rates the most, especially when we had to put on oxygen masks once we were above 12000ft. But before we knew it we each took our turns to sit on the edge of the plane with our legs dangling then out we went into a 60s freefall... absolutely incredible. We decided to go for the highest jump as at this point you actually get to see the convex of the earth. During the freefall you got to hold hands with the camera man who came down at the same time with you and spin around with him. Once the parachute opened and you started to breathe again you could start to focus on things and notice all the beautiful scenery around you. The mountains and lake taupo looked spectatular!

While we were in Taupo we also went to a gorgeous spot at sunset, where hot pools had formed and ran into the river there. The temperature could reach up to 40 degrees in some parts.

The night after our skydive we celebrated still being alive by going to Mulligans and joining in a local pub quiz! Believe it or not we actually came second (with the help of many many many others). That night our bus drivers (Spud and Ginny) were out too and they were absolutely hillarious, especially Spud who luckily did not have to drive the next day! Another night we ended up in a karaoke bar, which was also a good laugh, especially when Kim decided to get up and sing 'freebird' and 'light my fire' with Spud.

Waitomo, Nz

2007-12-12T21:10:00.001-08:00

Waitomo is a very small town where there is only one pub, one shop, a backpackers place and a few houses. But this is where we did Black Water Rafting as it is the only place in New Zealand where you can do it.

The first challenge we had was getting into our wet suits, once we had accomplished that we headed into the caves. You go though the caves on black rubber rings, reaching a depth of 65m, where it is absolutely freezing and the water is like ice. But it was amazing, some of the gaps we had to get through were pretty small, at one point we had to lay flat on our ring and push our way through using our hands, as the rock was so low it came right up to our faces. There were also a couple of small waterfalls which we had to jump off backwards - scary! Some parts were relaxing though such as when we all had to turn our lights off and float along looking up at the glow worms at the top of the cave. By the end of it our fingers were blue, our toes were numb but it was definately worth it!

Rotorua, Nz

2007-12-12T20:51:00.000-08:00

On the way to Rotorua we stopped off at a beautiful gorge where we had to walk through dark tunnels and across scary wooden bridges that could only hold 10 people at a time. At one point a guy called Jin sat down in teh middle of one of the bridges because he got too scared as others were trying to rock the bridge from side to side!

When we arrived at Rotorua the first thing to hit us was the smell. The town has several mud pools and many geysers, which let off sulphur steam into the atmosphere... the smell can only be described as rotten eggs, not good when your hungover.

In the evening we made it to a Maori night, where we experienced what it would be like to come face to face with a tribe. To begin with we had to choose someone in our group to become cheif and tell the tribe we were there for peace and not war. Before the chief was able to do this the Maori's performed their tribal routine, which envoled several of them coming out with weapons and displaying there skills to us. This is a very serious ritual and we were not allowed to laugh, talk or even smile while it was being performed. There faces were so scary, especially when they made their eyes bulge, stuck their tounge out and screamed out noises to us!
Once this ceremony was over we were allowed to enter into their village , where we were able to learn more about their culture, watch the Haka being performed and enjoyed a big traditional dinner.

Auckland, New Zealand

2007-12-12T20:02:00.000-08:00

Our first stop in New Zealand (North Island) was Auckland. One day we managed to make it up to the top of the sky tower which enabled us to get a 360 degree view of the city, it was amazing but we didnt enjoy walking along the glass floor sections!! We also walked round by the harbour, where all the fancy bars and restaurants were.... would have spent a fortune if we went in anywhere so instead we decided to make our own sandwiches then head to the supermarket to pick up some cheap drinks!!!! When we left Auckland on the Kiwi bus we also got the chance to see Auckland from the top of a dormant volcano, not something you get to do everyday! From Auckland we travelled south to a little place called Mercury Bay, stopping off at cathedral cove on the way. It was really pretty but would have been more enjoyable if it wasnt so cold.

Link to Fiji photos

2007-12-08T15:52:00.000-08:00

http://leedsac.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2240972&l=d7956&id=197810485

Fiji

2007-12-04T21:56:00.000-08:00

We left on Wednesday 14th November and landed in New Zealand on Friday!!!!!!! After meeting up with Greg a few hours later, all three of us spent the rest of the day looking like zombies. The next day we had a bright idea.... that was to spend a small fortune on a flight to Fiji that night... budgets had to be recalculated!!!!!

The first night we stayed in Nadi on the main land, where the mosquitos were there to welcome us. The next day we set sail to Bounty Island; home of Celebraty Love Island. Everywhere in Fiji you are greated by the locals playing the guitar and singing to you with flowers in their hair... including the men! Such a lovely atmosphere.

Bounty was a little taste of paradise, with only taking 20 minutes to walk around it. It was also surrounded by coral reefs which were great for snorkling. We saw some amazing colourful fish including one which was bigger than the three of us put together (almost..)!

The next place we dropped anchor was Walu beach. This was a bigger island and home to several beaches, but all of which seemed to feel remote and tranquil. Luck was on our side as we got upgraded to a gorgeous little lodge with several balconys overlooking the beach. Breakfast lunch and dinner all came as part of our package and every time it was amazing. The first night we even had a three course dinner.... no complaints there! Spent a lot of the time chilling in the sun, sea kayaking, learning to play the guitar and watching the shooting stars at night.

The day we left it decided to tip it down. We got drenched as we had to board a little fishermans boat in order to make it to our ferry which was further out in the ocean... everything went in bin liners including ourselves... it was funny to look back on but freezing at the time!

Fiji has hundreds of small islands and although we only got to see a couple of them we were pleased to get a taster. We definately enjoyed living on 'fiji time' for a while ('fiji time' is their excuse for being chilled/relaxed and never being in a rush to do anything).

Chile

2007-11-15T13:30:00.000-08:00

Driving through the Andes to cross the border into Chile was spectacular. We only had time for one night here and being our last night in South America we decided to treat ourselves to one last steak then a few drinks. The next day we had a little walk around the city before boarding our flight to New Zealand!!!

Mendoza

2007-11-15T13:03:00.000-08:00

Famously known for its wine we spent the first day on the wine tour. We hired bicycles and cycled to the different vineyards tasting plenty of red wine, liquors and chocolates. We tried to be sophisticated, holding the glass at the base, swirling it to let it breathe, sniffing it twice and swishing it around our mouths for 6-7 seconds before swallowing... but realised we had failed miserably after laughing at the question "do you spit or do you swallow?", Jenny smashing a wine glass all over the table, not being able to tell a blind bit of difference between the wines and Kim tumbling off her bike after a few too many.

Mountains form the backdrop of Mendoza due to it being next to the Andes. To get a closer look we decided to go quadbiking through them... a lot more fun than hiking! We kept getting the giggles as we both looked ridiculous in our orange sunglasses, vest, and massive helmets... but as we all know safety comes first! We spent three hours racing up and down the mountains, enjoying all the breathtaking views.

Mendoza is a beautiful city, with lovely parks, shops, restaurants and bars! Could have easily spent more time here.

Buenos Aires

2007-11-11T12:31:00.000-08:00

In comparision to Brazil it is cheap and has a european feel. We spent many hours bustling around the brilliant shops and markets trying to resist the bargains, especially on leather goods.

We arrived at midnight assuming we had missed our first night out due to our delayed flight, however we still had time to find a hostel, have a shower, drink a few bottles of wine and still make it to a club. BA is definitely a party city!

We stayed at Millhouse hostel which hosted a fancy dress party on halloween. A few hours before kick off we decided we would dress up... looking at the pharmacy across the road we decided we would go as mummy's.. a slight underestimation of bandages left us with bare arms and legs, but we made up for it with our crazy hair and makeup.

We attended a killers concert and went to Pacha (one of the biggest clubs in BA)... both were absolutely amazing!! Unfortunately in Pacha our money and camera were stolen which put a bit of downer on the evening. To make up for it we decided we come back the following weekend and go to the creamfields festival... best decision ever! Partying from 6pm - 6am we loved every second of it.

By day we visited the famous Recoleta cemetry where Evita was burried. It was like walking down streets rather than through a grave yard with the gravestones towering above us with amazing architecture and statues. We also visited the colonial town of La Boca, which had live music, tango dancers in the streets all the buildings were multicoloured.

Link to photos of the east coast of Brazil

2007-11-03T12:39:00.000-07:00

http://leedsac.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2231122&l=694fa&id=197810485

Argentina!

2007-10-31T10:51:00.000-07:00

After a few tears and our wallets telling us it was time to move on (as Brazil is the most expensive place to be in South America) we finally made our way out of Brazil and in to Argentina.

Ipanema, Rio

2007-10-31T10:47:00.000-07:00

We travelled back to Rio just for one day, as a stop over before heading to Argentina. Was lovely to be back, although instead of staying in Copacabana we stayed in Ipanema, which is a little bit more up market. The streets were filled with fancy cafes and posh shops. If only we could have been rich for the day!!!

Saquerema

2007-10-31T10:33:00.000-07:00

After kim falling to the floor like a sack of potatoes with her ruck sack on her back we finally made it to our Hostel in Saquerema. It was right on the beach, you could see and hear the waves from our room. We had the sweetest woman at our hostel who looked after us, told us all about her life and family and even drove us to the bus station when we left.

The beach seemed to stretch for miles and only ever had a few people on it. We spent many hours on it just chilling and watching people surf... they were brilliant. But the water there was freezing and some of the waves were massive, think we are going to wait until we get to Oz before we master the art of surfing.

Buzios

2007-10-27T14:00:00.000-07:00

Famously known as the St. Tropez of Brazil. Questionable? We only ended up spending two nights and one day here as the weather was terrible and it was not going to improve. Looking past the torrential rain we could see the potential of this pretty town. It is very wealthy, with plenty of posh shops and restaurants, which we were sure to make the most of. We both treated ourselves to a couple of fancy meals, consisting of steaks, seafood and even indulged in a couple of desserts. All of this still only costing less than ten pounds each... fantastic!

Morro de Sao Paulo

2007-10-27T13:21:00.000-07:00

Probably the most fantastic, gorgeous and spectacular island ever with the most amazing people, beaches, and way of life. Can you tell we enjoyed ourselves here?

After salvador we followed recommendations and took a boat to Morro de Sao Paulo. What we thought was just going to be a pleasant day on a little beach, turned out to be a few surreal days of paradise. From our hostel we walked through the streets, which were covered in soft golden sand and headed towards the beaches. We strolled along the first beach which was beautiful, letting the clear warm water splash over our feet. As we ventured further we discovered the other four beaches, which stretched for miles!!!!!! Our favourite spot was on the fourth beach, the biggest out of the five, the water was shallow and calm, with only the odd local selling coconuts to disturb you. Horse and carriage rides trotted by, while others rode their horses along the beach front. After our constant bad luck with the weather we were more than pleased to start bronzing ourselves.

In the evenings we made ourselves at home at Toca; the sunset bar. It was far up in the hills, where you would spend a few hours after the beach watching the sunset and listening to the DJ playing chillout music.

The locals here were fascinating to talk to, their way of life is incredible. They really appreciate their natural surroundings, using wheelbarrows to transport things across the island, and telling the time by the sun only, we fell in love with the simplicity of their life. We were told to throw our watches away as time was irrelevant, you eat when your hungry, sleep when your tired, and dance when you want to party!

We were almost in tears when we had to leave, but on our journey back down to the south of Brazil we came up with a plan! We WILL return and set up our own cocktail bar, living the dreamful life of Morro de Sao Paulo.

Salvador

2007-10-27T12:55:00.000-07:00

The music capital of Brazil with an afro-caribbean culture!

We arrrived on the tuesday night which happened to be the party night of salvador, after only a couple of hours we found ourselves in the centre of the action. Every street we walked down there were drums banging, guitars playing and men dancing. There were crowds everywhere with locals meeting up and choreographing their own routines, what would start off with two or three people dancing would end up with ten or more. The atmosphere was incredible. We sampled a few of their cocktails made from fruits of the amazon, after which we found our hips wiggling and our shoulders swaying to the beats of the drums! After a few nights we were able to follow their routines and feel like a true local.

By day you can appreciate the citys beautiful architecture, whilst the atmosphere in the streets remained with the bustling markets, live music and the famous capoeira (a local marshal art) being performed.

All in all definately worth the painful 36 hour journey from the pantanal. We feel like we have experienced the true Brazil, and loved every second.

Link to photos of Iguaçu falls and the pantanal

2007-10-19T13:47:00.000-07:00

http://leedsac.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2223914&l=5c73b&id=197810485

The Pantanal

2007-10-17T12:40:00.000-07:00

Day 1: The Arrival

What a disaster of a night!!!!! When we first arrived the place looked beautiful with wooden lodges located on the river bed, wild horses roaming and the sun setting. But as the night set in the flys, mosquitos, beatles & cockroaches came out in force! We were led to our room only to find out we were staying in the concrete shack at the end only accessible by a creeky bridge with no barriers or lights. Jenny decided to brave it in the shower first but came face to face with 5 big slimey frogs. You would know when one moved by the screams coming from the bathroom! Kim went in second knowing what she had to face but little did she know she would get stuck in there with no handle on the door. After fits of giggles Jenny failed at kicking the door down and ran out in the dark to get help.

The flies in the room were digusting... landing on our beds, in our hair and on our skin. It was horrible! After intoxicating the room with bug repellant we ran to get dinner. Again this was not a pleasant experience with more bugs on our chairs, tables and in our food!!

It was ridiculously hot trying to sleep, we managed to borrow a fan off the barman. After finally cooling down and drifting off to sleep the fan blew up into flames next to kims head! That was enough bad luck for us.. we wanted to come home!

Day 2: Jeep Safari and Trekking
When we woke up we were pleasantly suprised.. the bugs had gone, our mood was lifted and we were ready to start our jungle experience. The jeep drove us down the dirt tracks stopping at the waterholes to look at the animals. The storks were the size of ostriches and the colourful birds were beautiful, especially the toocans.
The caimans (aligators) were everywhere. We found one all alone so our driver only decided to catch the bloody thing! Some were brave to hold it but we were scared and didnt think we were strong enough. We did however get up close for a quick photo but then we were out of there!!

The trek led us through woodlands where we came across many animals such as monkeys, parrots, deer, racoons, anteaters and kingfishers. We were forced to walk through the swamps up to our thighs.. they stank and we were petrified of stepping on anacondas!

Day 3: Boat Trip, Horse Riding, Jewellery Making and Caiman Hunting
The boat trip in the morning was very relaxing. The air was cool and the waters were calm. We managed to get up close to yet more caimans and hear the deafening noise of the howling monkeys.

In the afternoon we got on our horses (more like mules) and rode for 3 hours through the Pantanal, finishing with us galloping into the sunset.

After dinner our tour guide showed us how to make necklaces out of the some of the plants we had collected from the trek and made us both one to keep as a souvenier.

After dark we went caimen hunting! We took our torches, watching our every step and walked to the river. We came across a small poisenous snake that was luckily spotted by Jenny before clumbsy Kim would have stepped on it. As we reached the river the noises of the jungle were intense. Fear hit us when we shined our torches onto the water and saw the hundreds of pairs of eyes staring back at us! Our tour guide caught a baby one, we were brave enough to hold this one.. he was cutie!

Day 4: Piranha Fishing and Tubing
When we were told to stand in the water and fish for the piranhas 3 feet in front of us we were not amused. Nevertheless we jumped straight in. While little fish were sucking and nibbling our toes we were concentrating of the constant bites on the end of our rods from the hungry piranhas! Kim got excited when she caught her first fish only to be disappointed when she was told it was a sardine. We went through half a cow and a ton of eels but we successfully caught some piranhas which we cooked up for lunch. We could have fished all day, being the only ones left in the river they had to drag us away.

Tubing.... not the most sensible of activities but we couldnt miss out. They took us up the river and crueley dropped us off next to a caiman where we had to enter the water and drift back to the hostel for 45 minutes on our rubber rings. At first we were terrified jumping and screaming at anything we felt but we quickly relaxed and thoroughly enjoyed our float back. You will be pleased to know we survived our swim with the caimans, anacondas and piranhas!

Iguaçu Falls

2007-10-17T12:17:00.000-07:00

We spent the first day on the Brazilian side where you get the panoramic views of the falls. We walked the entire width of the falls which are 4 times greater than niagra. Then we crossed the border into Argentina where we miserably tried to adapt our portugese phrases into spanish. The hostel we stayed in was luxurious. We had our own little house by the pool, a bar, a laundrette, pool tables, table tennis and a nice restaurant. We were happy!

On the argentine side we walked across the rivers along the top of the waterfalls. We were surrounded by beautiful butterflies which made the place feel magical, we felt like two little fairies. The views and the sound of the water crashing down was amazing. We made our way down to sea level by jeep where a speed boat took us over the rapids and towards the waterfalls. Little did we know we would end up fully submerged by part of the waterfall gasping for breath and holding on for dear life! An experience never to be forgotten.

Link to photos of Ilha Grande, Paraty and Florianopolis

2007-10-05T06:36:00.000-07:00

http://leedsac.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2217479&l=c3a44&id=197810485

Link to photos of our first week in Rio

2007-10-05T06:35:00.000-07:00

http://leedsac.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2212671&l=bfab6&id=197810485

Florianopolis

2007-10-03T07:58:00.000-07:00

After a 6 hour bus journey to Sao Paulo, and then an 11 hour night bus we arrived in Florainopolis very tired and in need of a place to stay. But it took us about 4 hours of trekking with our bags in the heat of teh day to finally realise where we needed to get to!! Shoulder and backs killing us! A lovely couple welcomed us to their quiet hostel, where we met up with another friend from mellow yellow.

After a well needed kip on the beach we had a lovely BBQ and drinks at the hostel. The next day the sun finally came out so we the morning on the beach and went to the town for the afternoon for some lunch.

The day after we went sand boarding.... it was so much fun. We started off on the stand up boards but after a few too many falls and eating a ton of sand we decided to try out the bum boards..... we were hilarious to watch. There is a video of us on facebook, for those of you that can get on to it, but to fill in for those who cant get on it - we are sand boarding from one of the biggest peaks and ended up with kim loosing control and slamming into the back of jenny.... jenny ended up flipping over, getting her leg stuck in the board and kim ended up in histerics!!!! The boys were a bit better than us as they are used to surfing but they still had a few funny tumbles on the way down.

Supposed to leave on friday night.... but ended up missing the bus... thanks to our fellow travel buddies!!! But it didnt turn out to be all bad as ended up staying in a nice hotel in the centre of florianopolis. We didnt want to travel back to our hostel as it was too far and this hotel worked out to be cheaper than the hostels in the centre! Lucky us. We forgot what it was like to be some where so clean.... we had a sea view, a lovely bathroom, toilet paper that was folded into a point at the end.... couldnt believe it! That night we decided to go out for dinner and hit a couple of clubs where we danced the night away!

The next day we hired a car out and went to the south of the island, it was really nice just to travel round and stop where you wanted to. Finally on our last day we just spent a bit of time in town then got on our night bus to go to the iguassu falls.

Paraty

2007-10-02T18:33:00.000-07:00

After a ferry ride and few hours bus journey we arrived in Paraty. When we arrived there was a tropical rain storm so we dumped our bags in the hostel and decided to not let it stop us explore the town. We got drenched!!!!!! Ended up getting lost and being in the rain for 5 hours, i think buying rain jackets on the way home was too little too late!

Paraty is a colourful little artists town on the coast with cobbled streets and lots of nice shops. A little pricey but well worth the visit. There are lots of small islands nearby that you can visit by boat but the weather stopped us from doing that. Had a quiet few days here apart from our last night where we went to the beach as there was a live band playing. Ended the night by dancing and singing along the cobbled sreets on our way home.... again in the rain!!

Ilha Grande

2007-09-30T06:51:00.000-07:00

After a bus and a ferry ride we made it to Ilha Grande. What a beautiful place and just what we needed after such a hectic week in Rio. We ended up staying in the most amazing room, overlooking the whole beach, with our own balcony.
We were only planning on staying there a couple of nights but ended up staying there 5!!!! The weather wasnt great (as its still winter here), but we were determined to make the most of our time there, so on one of the days we went on a boat trip to the blue lagoon and went snorkling.... taking no towels or jumpers we ended up shivering for most of the trip. We did brave it and go snorkling and the fish swam so close to you but when we got out our toes went blue and we couldnt stop shivering. After a couple of hot chocolates and cuddles we managed to get the blood flowing again.
The next day a few of us decided to walk across to the old prisons on the island, but after taking the wrong road at the beginnng we ended up on a 3 hour hike through the mountains to the other side of the island, where we found a quiet little town. We had a little walk around, went to the beach (we were the only ones there, it was lovely) and then realised we had the horrible trek back.... got histerical towards the end, lost count of how many times we nearly fell over... wearing flip flops was not the best idea we have ever had!!!
Finaly when the sun decided to come out on the thursday we went to Lopes Mendes, a gorgeous beach with sand that felt like flour. It was fun watching the guys trying to surf, we would have joined in but it was a bit too rough for us little girlies.
Made friends with some spider monkeys, adorable little things, greedy buggers tho.
To top it off we saw dolphins on the boat back, so exciting!

Spent most of the evenings on the island going out for cheap dinners and drinking till early in the morning. Always a sign of a good night whe you wake up with permanent marker all over you!!!!!

Finally we left on Friday and headed to Paraty.

Boat trip, Christ statue, Sugar loaf mountain and Favela tour

2007-09-21T09:03:00.000-07:00

Boat trip was brilliant, not very cultural just consisted of drinking and eating and singing as loud as we could while dancing on top of the boat... all good fun. Then that night we went to Da house club in Leblon, brilliant music.

The next day we went the christ statue, we didnt go all the way to the top as they had stopped letting people in so we went to a spot just further up the road, but the views were just as good, you could see for miles.

The next day we decided to do sugar loaf mountain for sunset, you have to get a tram which takes you to the top of the mountain, pretty scary but well worth it when you get to the top, it was so peaceful, you could just sit there for hours. When we got back we just stayed in at the hostel.

Today has been a little bit more of a culture shock, we went on the favela tour (a shanty town), when we arrived we had to get on the back of these motorbikes and get taken to the top of the town..... very scary, but so much fun once we realised we were still alive when we got to the top! Then we walked throughout the whole town, there was 200,000 people living there and only 4 schools, crazy!! Its hard to take in how people live like that, and yet they all seem so happy, the children there were adorable, they all wanted to be cuddled or have their picture taken with you.
We were encouraged to take pictures and show the kids as they enjoyed seeing themselves, but at certain times you were not allowed to take pictures, this was when the men with guns and fireworks were about. The fireworks get set off if police come into the shanty town as this then alerts all the men with guns to get ready for fire. The police and the gangs then fire at each otherand people get caught in between, such a culture shock but really good experience.

Life at Mellow Yellow in Rio

2007-09-17T12:10:00.000-07:00

Went to the BBQ and just stayed in the hostel drinking on the sat night, originally it was supposed to be a quiet night as we were quite jet lagged but instead we didnt end up gettin to bed till 5am!! Everyone at the hostel are lovely and such a laugh. Eventually when we managed to get out of bed at 2pm on the sunday we went to one of the biggest football matches in Brazil, it was a local derby, and it was an amazing experience. There was about 120000 people there and the atmosphere was crazy, couldnt understand any of the chants but we still joined in. Will put piccys up soon. Then we got back at about 9, had a power nap then headed out at around midnight to go to a samba party in favela. Dont know how to explain what this party was like, but there was extreme dancing, indoor fireworks and beers for about 35p... another good night!

Today the weather hasnt been very good, went to the beach but it started to rain, we were going to see the christ statue at sunset too but we are going to wait for a better day. Got a boat trip planned for tomorrow so going to try and have a quite night in... ??? Or at least try not to drink too much!

Hope you are all well back at home.
Lots of love xxx

First Day in Rio

2007-09-15T10:32:00.000-07:00

After a very long but suprisingly enjoyable flight we landed in Rio. Past our first scam test where a dodgy taxi driver tried to rip us off at the airport but our clever senses told us NO!!!
Arrived at our Hostel, little shocked with how it all looks... our faces said it all! All we can say is we have a sheet and a mattress each and a very hot room!!! Nevertheless we wandered down to copacabana beach but again became a little shocked at the size and amount of people, but we had a little dip in the sea, a little sleep on the sand then had a walk through Rio back to our hostel, where we would love to have our first shower but we do not think we are brave enough yet - they are grotty!!

Think we are going to go to a BBQ tonight then head out to a samba party. Got lots of trips and sightseeing planned for the week so will keep you all updated.
Lots of love xxx

The day of our departure

2007-09-14T04:37:00.000-07:00

Spent most of the morning on the phone to each other asking the same questions over and over again and i dont think we managed to answer any of them? Stressful day, but filled with excitement. Going to miss everyone. x