Mum B; I know I know.. i hang my head in shame..

I know - i should have listened to you. Rather than say that the scales that you could weigh the bag on before the check out was wrong and because we were first in the line they would let it slip! And telling you it would be fine!

Now all plane flights will be wearing coat and walking boots!

Don't worry - we got you a set of Steve Irwin tinnies holders!

Just about to drive up to meet Hannah - was on the phone to her yesterday - she is staying with us in this beautiful hotel, so told her not to turn up with dreadlocks looking like a tramp, and she said did smell at the moment! Spending two days with her before moving on to Townsville!

Will update later as hotel has Wifii!

Rockhampton

Currently holed up in Rockhampton - a cowboy town left over from the Goldrush..

No one walks anywhere here - they all drive. Looks a lot like towns in America - massive trucks, really wide roads and fast food joints everywhere.

Off to the oldest pub in the town tonight - the Criterion on Quay st - it's a sandstone building built in 1890. Going to watch Aussies v All Blacks - not sure who we're supporting!

Leaving early tomorrow to meet Hannah in Airlie beach - staying here for 2 nights:

http://www.watersedgewhitsundays.com.au/

Hervey Bay - day 5

Got here late on Thursday and fell into the cabin room - put the alarm on for half an hour nap, woke up at 7am Friday morning!!

Never mind, extremely hungry, headed for the beach/strip, found a great place for breakfast then crossed the road to find this beach: Torquay would you believe!! Raced back to cabin for beach gear - realised had none as everyone told us it would be winter, so all had was scarves and mitts (will need them in NZ, last weather update -3). Quick stop in crappy souvenir shop for beach umbrella and towels and local surf shop for boardies then lolled on this beautiful beach all day..

Paradise.

Crikey! day 4

Left Brisbane for the hour drive to Beerwah - where Steve Irwin's zoo is - something we couldn't wait for but did turn out to be a tad disappointing...

Cost us $57 each and wasn't really a zoo but more of a shrine - pics and vids of Steve everywhere!! Got a bit sad, really. Anyhoo, here're some of the pics - obviously got loads of the usual tigers, elephants and croc pics as well..

Bloody dingo wouldn't turn round.. obviously just stolen a baby.

Raargh! Tasmanian devil!!

I got a bit carried away in the shop...

My new favourite creature - a drooling red panda!

Aaaaaaaaaaaaw!

Scary lookalikes..

Everyone's present!!

Erm, no, I don't want to hold it, thank you very much!

Next stop - Hervey bay.

Arriving in Brisbane - day 3

Touched down in Brisbane, 30 odd hours later, absolutely knackered even though we both managed to sleep most of the flight to Singapore!

Got the car - automatic!! Never driven one in our lives and had to negotiate our way out of the very busy airport into the even busier city of Brisbane to find our very centrally located hotel!!

First coffee in Oz

Trying to get our bearings at 8am, feeling more like 11pm!!

Nervous smile - Butler never told me there'd be D3, D2 and D1!!

Stayed in Brisbane for just the 1 night - driving to Hervey bay, via Steve Irwin's zoo.

HELLO FROM OZ!!! days 1-2

G'day g'day! Finally made it here after the trauma of that last day packing - seamless flights from Heathrow to Singapore to Brisbane - all took off and landed at exactly the time on the itinerary - outstanding..

HOWEVER, the best drama of all happened at the check-in desk at Heathrow when Little Jen's optimism of her bag being 'fine' was abruptly dashed by the robot at the Qantas desk - 24kg is the max allowed - Jen's weighed 29kg, mine 22kg.. we got told it would cost us £30 PER KILO we were overweight!!! None of this, we're first in the queue, they'll just put it through, oh no - cue mad opening of MY bag (Jen's had already shot off on the conveyor belt) to get 3kg of weight out and into our already jam-packed hand luggage - you should've heard the tuts from the idiots in the queue behind us...

So, ended up going through passport control with my walking boots around my neck, my wash bag under my arm and the bag of tech leads hanging out of Jen's bag as she guffawed her way through...

Think we may have problems at Cairns...

cheap ikea rubbish...

Yeah well, still looks fab - must admit, when heard the smashing of glass, proper thought it had gone through the telly!! So needless to say, was mighty relieved was just a lil ol' ikea frame needed to go and get..

Everyone stop panicking!

Is okay, everyone can stop worrying, just got back from Ikea with a new frame and photos now looking as good as new!

But was that traumatic, had to have a recovery drink and lunch at pub on way back!!

1 more sleep - but disaster!

Can't wait, can't wait - but yet, had a disastrous morning this Sunday before we go.. all the paperwork for the trip, the hotel bookings, car confirmations, tickets, visas have lived on the dinner table since last week - and had an entire cup of coffee spilt over it this morning!!

Cue much panic, reprinting of docs and sodden kitchen roll everywhere..

THEN, about 10mins ago, whilst cleaning all the photo frames, making the flat spotless for Calv's feeders on Thur, put the New York frame back up, moved onto Madonna and Wonder Woman when the lovely silver frame of said NY pics crashed to the floor - prompting an unplanned trip to Ikea that we can well do without!

Tried just pritt-sticking the frame to the back board but just looks crap...

Just 2 more sleeps..

Can't quite believe how excited am getting!! Got our holiday trainers yesterday (well, I did) and there was no one to tell me off for wearing them to the pub last night! tee hee

Have finished the schedule for all of the kindly volunteers willing (somewhat reluctantly, Vince) to feed Calv. Hard copies are being distributed by Jen as I type... Rob, yours is on top of the kitchen work-top, to be perused on your arrival.

3 Sleeps to go...

3 Sleeps to go!!!

Work all done and dusted till September - YAY!

Hopefully, today we will actually pack somethings into a suitcase. We'll see!

Off to buy half off Jolly's for Calvin, then off to post office to change money (so excited).

3 Sleeps .... 3 SLEEPS!

70-300mm lens has arrived

Hurrah, my new Nikon lens has just arrived at work - but forgot to bring camera with me so will have to wait till get home to play with it..

Bring on the diving whale, I say! Ooh, and an albatross - would LOVE to see one of those..

5 sleeps!

Eep, STILL not packed - can't even begin to think about it though, until leave work - which is tomorrow!! Yay!

Although, got told in car this morning that the 'last wash' is being done tonight, so non-holiday clothes only from then on... weekend spent in kacky clothes it is!

Hope new camera lens arrives today.. need a shot of that whale's tail!

our itinerary - so far!

itinerary

the intrepid twosome

Actually, he probably won't be fed from when we leave on Monday to when you guys arrive on Thursday... remember the face hugger in Alien??

the boy, calvin

6 sleeps to go

BigJen: Can't quite believe we've got just under a week to go!

Haven't packed a thing, still haven't booked the first car and just read that we'll need 6 layers on when we're in Queenstown.. hmmm, not sure about the skydive now..

Oh well, at least I've got my trusty penknife, Jen's got her Cath Kidston toiletry bag and our passports are sitting on the bookshelf as I type... Got tickets, money, passport - everything else is gettable out there... pah!