Australia Part 1

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  Surfers Paradise, Australia
Sunday, October 28, 2007

We've been in Australia for about two weeks now, and have one week to go.  We rented a campervan again, like we did in NZ, so more driving on the other side of the road.  Traffic is way busier here, but at least you aren't driving on a narrow, one-lane road on the side of the mountain like in New Zealand!  Actually, Bonnie and I have realized that for the most part, Aussie's and Kiwi's have got it right when it comes to driving- they have traffic-circles EVERYWHERE, meaning there are fewer red lights and stop signs, and thus less traffic jams.  Genius.  They also have emergency phones on the highway in case of accidents, which seems quite smart as well.  If only they drove on the right side of the road here.......

We started our time here in Sydney, where we stayed for three nights in a real cool area called Glebe- it's an area just out of the downtown across the harbour, and it has lots of cool shops and great restaurants (best Thai food EVER!).  We didn't get to any beaches in Sydney, but we did a beautiful harbour cruise, went to the Opera house, and basically just walked the streets, exploring and marvelling at what a beautiful city Sydney is.  From Sydney, we flew to Brisbane, where we stayed for a couple of days, and went to the Koala Sanctuary!  We were able to feed kangaroes and Bonnie got to hold a koala, which, after seeing in real life, I have decided is the cutest animal in the world! 

In Brisbane, we picked up our campervan, and drove north about 4 hours to Hervey Bay.  For some reason the Aussies pronounce it "Harvey Bay," and couldn't quite understand why pronounced it "Her" instead of "Har"?!  I thought the spelling would tip them off, but I guess not.  Anyway, Hervey Bay is supposedly the whale-watching capital of the world, so we went whale watching.  We did see whales, but not exactly up close and not very many.  Still a cool experience, just not as good as advertised....

From Hervey bay, we went on the ferry to Frasier Island, the world's largest sand island, which somehow hosts a massive rainforest and beautiful lakes as well.  There was a beautiful stream as well, and the 4x4ing on the beach in a huge bus was great as well.  As you can see from the pics, the lakes are a beautiful baby blue colour, and the water is amazingly clear, while the sand is pure white.  Not exactly Little Fishing Lake or Sandy Beach.............I wish we had more time at Frasier Island, and if we ever make it back to Aussie it would probably be the thing we would most want to do again.

Next, we went to Tin Can Bay, where we were able to hand-feed dolphins who come into the lagoon every morning for a visit and food!  They were so beautiful, but we weren't allowed to pet them or hug them, which one wants to do when that close to a dolphin.  From Tin Can Bay, we went to Maroochydoore, where we met up with Chris and Amber Baxter, who are from Lloyd as well!  We went to the Steve Irwin Australia Zoo, which was decent but maybe not quite as good as you would expect, just merely a typical zoo.  Still, it was nice to see some people from back home, and we ended up meeting up that night, getting some beer and a "box" of wine, and drinking way too much on the beach!  It was an awesome time and we all had lots of fun, but Bonnie and I weren't exactly feeling well in the morning, especially Bonnie.  The next day was a long one, but as usual McDonald's (or Macca's as Aussies call it)  can cure any hangover! 

Now, we are in Surfer's Paradise/Gold Coast, an area with huge beaches and more amusement parks than imaginable.  We went to Wet N' Wild yesterday, which was the best waterpark I've ever been to, and I love my waterparks.  Awesome day, but neither of us can even walk today, as our feet, knees, and hips are sore.......getting old we are. 

Well, a quick update but its hard to stay inside on a computer when its so warm outside!  Heard Lloydminster got a bit of snow yesterday!  It's so hot here that I would gladly dive headfirst into the snow, if only for a few minutes.  That would be enough.....

Hope all is well in Canada, New Zealand, Holland, etc, wherever you are while reading this.  We miss you all, and have you in our thoughts.  We appreciate the comments on the blog, or Facebook, email, whatever, so keep in touch.....

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A koala we nicknamed "Yoda"	More cuddly koalas!	Kangaroos!	Tyler feeding a kangaroo
whale watching..its really hard to get a pic!	yes, this is a whale, it's just hard to see	75 mile beach at Fraser Island	Tyler in Eli Creek, Fraser Island
Us at Eli Creek	Lake Makenzie, Fraser Island	Relaxing at Lake Makenzie	THe lake is sooo clear!
A shipwreck, Fraser Island	Tin Can Bay, Dolphin feeding!	Bonnie feeding an elephant	Steve Irwin's wife at the zoo   Comments!
Huge croc at the zoo	Chris, Amber and us at the beach

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