Our camper-van trek across Australia is now complete!
December 26, 2013.
Still in Perth, Western Australia. Christmas has come and gone! It was a very different Christmas for us this year. We are used to spending time with Family and Friends, but not so this year. We made the best of it and ended up having a great time. On Christmas Eve day, we decided to head a little north of Perth and check out an area called the Pinnacles (check out the pics!). It was quite a place. The Pinnacles are limestone rocks in the desert that jet out of the sand and they actually are not 100% sure how these formations came to be, although there are some theories. You can drive through these limestone formations and walk around wherever you like. We spent a couple of hours checking it all out. Had a most excellent meal on Xmas Eve, lots of seafood, including rock lobsters (for me of course as Tricia doesn't really like lobster), shrimp, and some nice fish for Tricia (which she ended up not licking). Bennett, of course, opted for pasta, his favourite. On Christmas day, Bennett was very excited when he woke up, Santa paid us a visit and dropped off a bunch of presents! Tricia's family also sent out a care package for Bennett to open up. I made us a nice pancake brunch, but they don't have (or even know about) maple syrup here. Instead, they have what they call golden syrup, which is basically just liquid cane sugar. Not quite as good as maple syrup. Bennett and I spent a few hours watching Toy Story 3, twice, which Tricia had bought for us to enjoy. We had a nice relaxing day on Christmas, only venturing out of the house for a short trip to the local beach where Bennett could play at the park. I made us a great chicken dinner (we thought a turkey would be too much) including all the trimmings. I later made a nice chicken stock with the leftover chicken (and made a great soup with it for tonight's dinner). Today we had a fantastic day, probably one of the best we've had in Australia. We went to a place called the Caversham Wildlife Park where you could mingle with dozens of very tame kangaroos, koala bears and various other Australia fauna. There was also a farm with livestock animals that you could interact with, feed and pet. They had various shows available including a Farm Show, where they showed you how they sheer shape and milk a cow. It was quite entertaining and lots of fun. To cap the day off, we went on a train ride on the Bennett Brook Railway. The train had open air coaches which slowly looped through some pristine bush country. We were, at one point, the only passengers on the train and the conductor let Bennett help him out with some of the train duties. Bennett was extremely happy! We are now getting ready for the next leg of our journey, flying out to Malaysia in a 2 days. We're excited to move on to new adventures and discover new things. This will be our final Travel Log for Australia. On the 28th of December, we will be in Kuala Lumpur. Can't wait! I hope all of our Family and Friends enjoyed Christmas. Next stop, Asia. I'll try to get Tricia to update her log in the morning.
Tricia: Christmas just isn't Christmas without friends, family and SNOW! We sure did miss the familiarities of home but as Bart said, we made the best of it. Also, Facetime and Skype are so amazing - it really makes you feel like you are there! Christmas Eve at the Pinnacles was spectacular. I was a little skeptical seeing as it was a 2 hour drive to go see rocks, but it ended up being totally worth it! It was amazing and we spent quite some time there. Bart was in heaven with his seafood feast that night! I tried in vain to be a domestic goddess...it just is not my forte! First Bennett wanted to make cookies for Santa. We bought the premade roll (like Pillsbury), but the oven was NOT working properly (ok, I didn't know how to operate it) and we ended up with 4 intact cookies...the rest I had to chisel off the pan...(Bennett still ate the scraps!). Then we had to have a special plate for Santa's cookies (really?). So I put tinfoil on a plate and had Bennett put stickers all over it. Even he was not impressed!!! Oh well, we all have our strengths. Christmas Day was still so exciting. To see Bennett's little face when he saw that Santa had come. He turned to me and said "See, I TOLD you I was a good boy! Santa came!)" was priceless. (He's becoming quite cheeky, yesterday he said "there, there dear" to me! I blame Connor) We had a fairly lazy day and definitely different from our usual Cosgrove Christmas Chaos...Boxing Day ended up being fantastic. We were able to pet kangaroos and koalas and we spent quite a few hours at the Caversham Park. After we went to a splashpad because it was boiling and Bennett was desperate to go play in the pool. As Bart mentioned, the train ride ended up being a highlight! The conductor, Chris, took a little shine to Bennett and let him into the signal station box, wave the signal flags. Bennett was LOVING it! Today is our last day here and we are so excited about KL. We are ready to experience different cultures and places. We hope everyone had a fantastic Christmas (Although my poor friends Sarah and Dave were without power for over 4 days and had to evacuate their house over Christmas!).
Still in Perth, Western Australia. Christmas has come and gone! It was a very different Christmas for us this year. We are used to spending time with Family and Friends, but not so this year. We made the best of it and ended up having a great time. On Christmas Eve day, we decided to head a little north of Perth and check out an area called the Pinnacles (check out the pics!). It was quite a place. The Pinnacles are limestone rocks in the desert that jet out of the sand and they actually are not 100% sure how these formations came to be, although there are some theories. You can drive through these limestone formations and walk around wherever you like. We spent a couple of hours checking it all out. Had a most excellent meal on Xmas Eve, lots of seafood, including rock lobsters (for me of course as Tricia doesn't really like lobster), shrimp, and some nice fish for Tricia (which she ended up not licking). Bennett, of course, opted for pasta, his favourite. On Christmas day, Bennett was very excited when he woke up, Santa paid us a visit and dropped off a bunch of presents! Tricia's family also sent out a care package for Bennett to open up. I made us a nice pancake brunch, but they don't have (or even know about) maple syrup here. Instead, they have what they call golden syrup, which is basically just liquid cane sugar. Not quite as good as maple syrup. Bennett and I spent a few hours watching Toy Story 3, twice, which Tricia had bought for us to enjoy. We had a nice relaxing day on Christmas, only venturing out of the house for a short trip to the local beach where Bennett could play at the park. I made us a great chicken dinner (we thought a turkey would be too much) including all the trimmings. I later made a nice chicken stock with the leftover chicken (and made a great soup with it for tonight's dinner). Today we had a fantastic day, probably one of the best we've had in Australia. We went to a place called the Caversham Wildlife Park where you could mingle with dozens of very tame kangaroos, koala bears and various other Australia fauna. There was also a farm with livestock animals that you could interact with, feed and pet. They had various shows available including a Farm Show, where they showed you how they sheer shape and milk a cow. It was quite entertaining and lots of fun. To cap the day off, we went on a train ride on the Bennett Brook Railway. The train had open air coaches which slowly looped through some pristine bush country. We were, at one point, the only passengers on the train and the conductor let Bennett help him out with some of the train duties. Bennett was extremely happy! We are now getting ready for the next leg of our journey, flying out to Malaysia in a 2 days. We're excited to move on to new adventures and discover new things. This will be our final Travel Log for Australia. On the 28th of December, we will be in Kuala Lumpur. Can't wait! I hope all of our Family and Friends enjoyed Christmas. Next stop, Asia. I'll try to get Tricia to update her log in the morning.
Tricia: Christmas just isn't Christmas without friends, family and SNOW! We sure did miss the familiarities of home but as Bart said, we made the best of it. Also, Facetime and Skype are so amazing - it really makes you feel like you are there! Christmas Eve at the Pinnacles was spectacular. I was a little skeptical seeing as it was a 2 hour drive to go see rocks, but it ended up being totally worth it! It was amazing and we spent quite some time there. Bart was in heaven with his seafood feast that night! I tried in vain to be a domestic goddess...it just is not my forte! First Bennett wanted to make cookies for Santa. We bought the premade roll (like Pillsbury), but the oven was NOT working properly (ok, I didn't know how to operate it) and we ended up with 4 intact cookies...the rest I had to chisel off the pan...(Bennett still ate the scraps!). Then we had to have a special plate for Santa's cookies (really?). So I put tinfoil on a plate and had Bennett put stickers all over it. Even he was not impressed!!! Oh well, we all have our strengths. Christmas Day was still so exciting. To see Bennett's little face when he saw that Santa had come. He turned to me and said "See, I TOLD you I was a good boy! Santa came!)" was priceless. (He's becoming quite cheeky, yesterday he said "there, there dear" to me! I blame Connor) We had a fairly lazy day and definitely different from our usual Cosgrove Christmas Chaos...Boxing Day ended up being fantastic. We were able to pet kangaroos and koalas and we spent quite a few hours at the Caversham Park. After we went to a splashpad because it was boiling and Bennett was desperate to go play in the pool. As Bart mentioned, the train ride ended up being a highlight! The conductor, Chris, took a little shine to Bennett and let him into the signal station box, wave the signal flags. Bennett was LOVING it! Today is our last day here and we are so excited about KL. We are ready to experience different cultures and places. We hope everyone had a fantastic Christmas (Although my poor friends Sarah and Dave were without power for over 4 days and had to evacuate their house over Christmas!).
December 23, 2013.
Still in Perth, Western Australia. We've now settled into our new (temporary) home in Burns Beach after spending the last several days here. Such a nice place, especially after driving around in our camper-van for the past month. We also rented a little car as well, which is WAY better than driving the camper-van. By all accounts, this beach home is a luxury. Bennett is really happy having his own bedroom (as are we!!). For the past couple of days, we've been doing some day trips into downtown Perth and Fremantle (a suburb of Perth). Fremantle is a cute place that had a great Market, kind of similar to Toronto's St.Lawrence Market. While in Fremantle, we enjoyed lunch on a local beach, riding in a ferris wheel and we met a Scottish Santa. Perth has a really nice street shopping area, closed off from traffic where Tricia and I both did our Xmas shopping (by taking turns looking after Bennett). A great place to take Bennett (and allow Tricia and I to escape to shop) was the Scitech Discovery Center. He actually would have spent the whole day there with all the interactive activities they have to offer. It was also free for us with our Ontario Science Center family membership, nice score! Perth also has a huge park right in its center, called Kings Park, a great green space area. Yesterday, we went to a Christmas tree farm, just outside of Perth. We chose the tree, then they chain sawed it down for us to take home. The owner also took Bennett for a ride on his ATV. We are now all set for Xmas, with our shopping and Xmas decorations all complete. A strange sensation for us is that it's 30+ degrees C out in the late December here! Definitely not something we are used to back home in Toronto. We heard that there was a big ice storm back home and temperatures have been very cold. Haven't heard any recent news about Rob Ford, how's he doing? I'd like to wish all of our friends and family a very merry Xmas!! The next time I will update this website is probably just after Xmas. Enjoy the most recent pics and vids, Tricia will update shortly.
Still in Perth, Western Australia. We've now settled into our new (temporary) home in Burns Beach after spending the last several days here. Such a nice place, especially after driving around in our camper-van for the past month. We also rented a little car as well, which is WAY better than driving the camper-van. By all accounts, this beach home is a luxury. Bennett is really happy having his own bedroom (as are we!!). For the past couple of days, we've been doing some day trips into downtown Perth and Fremantle (a suburb of Perth). Fremantle is a cute place that had a great Market, kind of similar to Toronto's St.Lawrence Market. While in Fremantle, we enjoyed lunch on a local beach, riding in a ferris wheel and we met a Scottish Santa. Perth has a really nice street shopping area, closed off from traffic where Tricia and I both did our Xmas shopping (by taking turns looking after Bennett). A great place to take Bennett (and allow Tricia and I to escape to shop) was the Scitech Discovery Center. He actually would have spent the whole day there with all the interactive activities they have to offer. It was also free for us with our Ontario Science Center family membership, nice score! Perth also has a huge park right in its center, called Kings Park, a great green space area. Yesterday, we went to a Christmas tree farm, just outside of Perth. We chose the tree, then they chain sawed it down for us to take home. The owner also took Bennett for a ride on his ATV. We are now all set for Xmas, with our shopping and Xmas decorations all complete. A strange sensation for us is that it's 30+ degrees C out in the late December here! Definitely not something we are used to back home in Toronto. We heard that there was a big ice storm back home and temperatures have been very cold. Haven't heard any recent news about Rob Ford, how's he doing? I'd like to wish all of our friends and family a very merry Xmas!! The next time I will update this website is probably just after Xmas. Enjoy the most recent pics and vids, Tricia will update shortly.
December 20, 2013.
In Perth, Western Australia. Our long journey across Australia has finally come to an end. We started in Sydney on November 22nd, and we are now in Perth (almost 6000 km of driving later!). We spent several days in Margaret River, which were awesome! Nice dinners, wine tours, cave exploring, beaching and relaxing in our cabin (as opposed to our not so relaxing campervan). On one of the days in Margaret River, I took Bennett to one of the local caves in the area. Tricia opted out because of her fear of bats (there were not bats in this cave) and instead she chose to do some Xmas shopping. Bennett thoroughly enjoyed the caving experience. It wasn't a huge cave, only about 100 meters in length, but it was still a great cave nonetheless. Be sure to check out the pics of Bennett and myself down about 85 meters below the surface. While in Margaret River, we also went on a guided wine tour (which means no driving for me), which included 3 wineries, a Venison farm, a chocolate factory, cheese factory and brewery (guess what was Bennett's favourite place?). That was an excellent day! Bennett was so good throughout the entire day, never complaining. We met a really nice couple, Thomas and Alexandra, during the wine tour. We got along wonderfully and hooked up for dinner a night later in downtown Margaret River. Last night was our final night with the campervan, so we opted to actually sleep in the campervan. We spent the night in a town, just south of Perth, called Mandurah. The campervan park was as usual, like a prison camp (what do people do in these places??). After checking in to the campervan park (at around 2PM), we promptly headed out for a day of fun at the beach, a scenic drive around the area (which was quite beautiful) and then we went to McDonalds (yes McDonalds!) because it had a Play Area for Bennett. In the Play Area, there was another child, close to Bennett's age, and they played for a good hour together while Tricia and I wolfed down a Big Mac and a Quarter Pounder. We stayed at the McDonalds until the sun went down and then drove back to our prison (oh....I mean campervan park) which didn't seem as bad in the dark. No more campervanning for us for a long, long time (if ever). Today, we drove into Perth and checked into the beach house that we will be staying at until December 28. The beach house is incredible and wildly exceeded our expectations. It's a 4 bedroom (not that we need them, does anyone want to come for visit?), ultra modern house at a place called Burns Beach which is actually just outside of Perth. It will be most excellent to spend the next 8 days here exploring the area and enjoying the 30+ degree weather during the Xmas Holiday Season. The forecast for the next week is Awesome, yes with a capital A on the Awesome! I would say we miss Toronto right now, but we only miss our Family and Friends back home (not the frigid weather). Tricia and Bennett are fast asleep right now as I write this log sipping on a fantastic glass of Tawny Port that I purchased at one of the Wineries in Margaret River. Tricia will (I hope) update her log in the morning.
Tricia: Ok so by the sounds of this, I'm always sleeping! However, Bart chooses to update this at 1am and that is past my bedtime friends. I LOVE MARGARET RIVER. We had SUCH a great time there and just kept extending the stay each day. We also burned through our Australian budget in record time! The beach at Cape Naturaliste was spectacular and Bennett and I were in the water for hours (with Bart safely fishing on the beach). He was in his element and even caught some little fish. The town of Margaret River is so cute and has some great shopping (although only window shopping for this kid)...I did get a few Xmas gifts for Bennett...he is very specific on his list for Santa. He wants a MAGENTA teddy bear (Thanks Aunt Catherine for teaching him that colour, now everything is magenta - all his pictures, his magenta crayon is worn down to a nub!), a Xmas Beast (which for those who don't know, his beast is his blanket that my grandmother made him as a baby) BTW - WOOL blankets are not such a big thing in Australia during their SUMMER! and he wants a purple and orange racing car! Yeah, super easy to find...Why can't he just ask for a red car???? Granny Meek - get your crochet hooks out! BTW Rachel Earle, the beast is in need of repair again, STAT! Back to Margaret River - we went to several winerys and it was nice to do some adult activities! The nice thing is that kids are totally welcome at the vineyards so most of them have playgrounds and bouncy castles for the kids to play in while the adults drink wine! PERFECT...The tour was so fun and we allowed Bennett to go nuts at the chocolate factory! Needless to say, he complied and had a GIANT ice cream, and handfuls of the samples...and I mean handfuls! We met a great couple that live in Switzerland and had dinner with them the following night which was a lovely time. Margaret River is DEFINITELY a highlight for us! We arrived last night at our beach house and WE LOVE IT!!! I was scared because I rented it off VRBO and there was very little to choose from but the owner JUST put the ad up the day I was looking. It is the first time he has rented it so there were no reviews...but beggars can't be choosers. Thankfully, it is amazing! It has 4 bedrooms and 2 living rooms, a formal dining room and an amazing outside area with a wraparound porch and huge table. The house is brand new and beautiful. It makes being away for Xmas much more bearable. (That and it is 30 degrees and sunny everyday). Today we are heading to Fremantle to enjoy the day...hope all is well back home!
In Perth, Western Australia. Our long journey across Australia has finally come to an end. We started in Sydney on November 22nd, and we are now in Perth (almost 6000 km of driving later!). We spent several days in Margaret River, which were awesome! Nice dinners, wine tours, cave exploring, beaching and relaxing in our cabin (as opposed to our not so relaxing campervan). On one of the days in Margaret River, I took Bennett to one of the local caves in the area. Tricia opted out because of her fear of bats (there were not bats in this cave) and instead she chose to do some Xmas shopping. Bennett thoroughly enjoyed the caving experience. It wasn't a huge cave, only about 100 meters in length, but it was still a great cave nonetheless. Be sure to check out the pics of Bennett and myself down about 85 meters below the surface. While in Margaret River, we also went on a guided wine tour (which means no driving for me), which included 3 wineries, a Venison farm, a chocolate factory, cheese factory and brewery (guess what was Bennett's favourite place?). That was an excellent day! Bennett was so good throughout the entire day, never complaining. We met a really nice couple, Thomas and Alexandra, during the wine tour. We got along wonderfully and hooked up for dinner a night later in downtown Margaret River. Last night was our final night with the campervan, so we opted to actually sleep in the campervan. We spent the night in a town, just south of Perth, called Mandurah. The campervan park was as usual, like a prison camp (what do people do in these places??). After checking in to the campervan park (at around 2PM), we promptly headed out for a day of fun at the beach, a scenic drive around the area (which was quite beautiful) and then we went to McDonalds (yes McDonalds!) because it had a Play Area for Bennett. In the Play Area, there was another child, close to Bennett's age, and they played for a good hour together while Tricia and I wolfed down a Big Mac and a Quarter Pounder. We stayed at the McDonalds until the sun went down and then drove back to our prison (oh....I mean campervan park) which didn't seem as bad in the dark. No more campervanning for us for a long, long time (if ever). Today, we drove into Perth and checked into the beach house that we will be staying at until December 28. The beach house is incredible and wildly exceeded our expectations. It's a 4 bedroom (not that we need them, does anyone want to come for visit?), ultra modern house at a place called Burns Beach which is actually just outside of Perth. It will be most excellent to spend the next 8 days here exploring the area and enjoying the 30+ degree weather during the Xmas Holiday Season. The forecast for the next week is Awesome, yes with a capital A on the Awesome! I would say we miss Toronto right now, but we only miss our Family and Friends back home (not the frigid weather). Tricia and Bennett are fast asleep right now as I write this log sipping on a fantastic glass of Tawny Port that I purchased at one of the Wineries in Margaret River. Tricia will (I hope) update her log in the morning.
Tricia: Ok so by the sounds of this, I'm always sleeping! However, Bart chooses to update this at 1am and that is past my bedtime friends. I LOVE MARGARET RIVER. We had SUCH a great time there and just kept extending the stay each day. We also burned through our Australian budget in record time! The beach at Cape Naturaliste was spectacular and Bennett and I were in the water for hours (with Bart safely fishing on the beach). He was in his element and even caught some little fish. The town of Margaret River is so cute and has some great shopping (although only window shopping for this kid)...I did get a few Xmas gifts for Bennett...he is very specific on his list for Santa. He wants a MAGENTA teddy bear (Thanks Aunt Catherine for teaching him that colour, now everything is magenta - all his pictures, his magenta crayon is worn down to a nub!), a Xmas Beast (which for those who don't know, his beast is his blanket that my grandmother made him as a baby) BTW - WOOL blankets are not such a big thing in Australia during their SUMMER! and he wants a purple and orange racing car! Yeah, super easy to find...Why can't he just ask for a red car???? Granny Meek - get your crochet hooks out! BTW Rachel Earle, the beast is in need of repair again, STAT! Back to Margaret River - we went to several winerys and it was nice to do some adult activities! The nice thing is that kids are totally welcome at the vineyards so most of them have playgrounds and bouncy castles for the kids to play in while the adults drink wine! PERFECT...The tour was so fun and we allowed Bennett to go nuts at the chocolate factory! Needless to say, he complied and had a GIANT ice cream, and handfuls of the samples...and I mean handfuls! We met a great couple that live in Switzerland and had dinner with them the following night which was a lovely time. Margaret River is DEFINITELY a highlight for us! We arrived last night at our beach house and WE LOVE IT!!! I was scared because I rented it off VRBO and there was very little to choose from but the owner JUST put the ad up the day I was looking. It is the first time he has rented it so there were no reviews...but beggars can't be choosers. Thankfully, it is amazing! It has 4 bedrooms and 2 living rooms, a formal dining room and an amazing outside area with a wraparound porch and huge table. The house is brand new and beautiful. It makes being away for Xmas much more bearable. (That and it is 30 degrees and sunny everyday). Today we are heading to Fremantle to enjoy the day...hope all is well back home!
December 17, 2013.
In Margaret River, Western Australia. Finally!!!!! Australia has TOTALLY redeemed itself in our books! We were getting a little depressed with our latest voyages through central Australia, but now that we are in the far west, starting with Albany and now the Margaret River, we love it. We actually have given up on the whole sleeping in the campervan routine and are now sticking to the cabins within the caravan parks. Our campervan is old and totally gross so, since Albany, we've found cabins the way to go. We spent 2 nights in Albany, in a cabin, that was right on the ocean. Having a bedroom for Bennett to sleep in and our own bedroom, makes a total difference and we have been so happy. The cabin was also super clean (according to Tricia the most spotless she's ever seen!). The town of Albany was quite good, fair sized, by Australian standards and offered a few things to see and do including a historic drive, a wind farm, a decent bar on the beach and lots of amenities. The best part of Albany, for us, was living in the cabin for a couple of days. The campervan park we stayed in also had a really nice heated, outdoor pool and hot tub which Bennett and us really enjoyed. But the jewel of the trip has definitely been Margaret River. We are now in another cabin in a campervan park and our cabin is right on the Margaret River. I've taken Bennett out canoeing twice so far in canoes that the park rents out. We've also had 2 excellent meals out for dinner. The city center of Margaret River is only about a 10 minute walk from where we are. Today we had probably the best day of our entire Australian trip. It started this morning with a nice canoe ride, followed by a visit to a fun park called Xcape for Bennett where they had a huge play area, trampoline and giant bouncy castle, then lunch at one of the many, many wineries in the Margaret River area called Wise Winery (thanks for the recommendation Greg and Judy!), followed then by a couple of hours on a nearby beach in Eagle Bay (where I caught 2 fish while surf fishing on the beach!), then followed by a fabulous dinner at a local restaurant (which we walked to) in downtown Margaret River. The 2 amazing restaurants we have tried so far are Morries Anytime and La Scarpetta Trattoria. We recommend both to anyone who is visiting Margaret River. Peter and Lu, if you are reading this log, you will be very happy with those picks. A couple of interesting things about the actual Margaret River river is that there are no big fish in it, but they have giant (and I mean almost lobster sized) cray fish in the river. These babies were huge! I snapped a few pics of them. Apparently you can eat them but they can only be caught during the month of February. Tomorrow, we have booked ourselves into a winery tour. We will be driven to several wineries, a cheese factory and a chocolate factory as well. We've told Bennett only about the chocolate factory part of the trip. Should be a great day tomorrow! Also, the weather here is fantastic. Today it was 30 degrees C and the evening is around 20C, just perfect for an evening stroll outside. We will be staying in Margaret River for a couple of more nights and afterwards we head off to Perth. I've uploaded a bunch of new videos (and pictures), so make sure to check them out. Tricia is sleeping right now, but she will update her part of the log tomorrow. Take care y'all!
In Margaret River, Western Australia. Finally!!!!! Australia has TOTALLY redeemed itself in our books! We were getting a little depressed with our latest voyages through central Australia, but now that we are in the far west, starting with Albany and now the Margaret River, we love it. We actually have given up on the whole sleeping in the campervan routine and are now sticking to the cabins within the caravan parks. Our campervan is old and totally gross so, since Albany, we've found cabins the way to go. We spent 2 nights in Albany, in a cabin, that was right on the ocean. Having a bedroom for Bennett to sleep in and our own bedroom, makes a total difference and we have been so happy. The cabin was also super clean (according to Tricia the most spotless she's ever seen!). The town of Albany was quite good, fair sized, by Australian standards and offered a few things to see and do including a historic drive, a wind farm, a decent bar on the beach and lots of amenities. The best part of Albany, for us, was living in the cabin for a couple of days. The campervan park we stayed in also had a really nice heated, outdoor pool and hot tub which Bennett and us really enjoyed. But the jewel of the trip has definitely been Margaret River. We are now in another cabin in a campervan park and our cabin is right on the Margaret River. I've taken Bennett out canoeing twice so far in canoes that the park rents out. We've also had 2 excellent meals out for dinner. The city center of Margaret River is only about a 10 minute walk from where we are. Today we had probably the best day of our entire Australian trip. It started this morning with a nice canoe ride, followed by a visit to a fun park called Xcape for Bennett where they had a huge play area, trampoline and giant bouncy castle, then lunch at one of the many, many wineries in the Margaret River area called Wise Winery (thanks for the recommendation Greg and Judy!), followed then by a couple of hours on a nearby beach in Eagle Bay (where I caught 2 fish while surf fishing on the beach!), then followed by a fabulous dinner at a local restaurant (which we walked to) in downtown Margaret River. The 2 amazing restaurants we have tried so far are Morries Anytime and La Scarpetta Trattoria. We recommend both to anyone who is visiting Margaret River. Peter and Lu, if you are reading this log, you will be very happy with those picks. A couple of interesting things about the actual Margaret River river is that there are no big fish in it, but they have giant (and I mean almost lobster sized) cray fish in the river. These babies were huge! I snapped a few pics of them. Apparently you can eat them but they can only be caught during the month of February. Tomorrow, we have booked ourselves into a winery tour. We will be driven to several wineries, a cheese factory and a chocolate factory as well. We've told Bennett only about the chocolate factory part of the trip. Should be a great day tomorrow! Also, the weather here is fantastic. Today it was 30 degrees C and the evening is around 20C, just perfect for an evening stroll outside. We will be staying in Margaret River for a couple of more nights and afterwards we head off to Perth. I've uploaded a bunch of new videos (and pictures), so make sure to check them out. Tricia is sleeping right now, but she will update her part of the log tomorrow. Take care y'all!
December 13, 2013.
In Albany, Western Australia. Again very limited internet for the past while. It has been a very, very long road getting to Albany. Many kilometres were driven over the past few days (over 2000). The glamour, if there ever was any, of our campervan has just about worn off now. As such, we decided to rent a cabin within the caravan park that we are currently in. Such luxury to have a bedroom (2 in fact), a kitchen, dining area and living room, and a bathroom! If we had the knowledge we have now, we would have probably splurged on a nicer campervan as ours is a bit of a crapper. We pass so many nice ones while driving and yearn for a little more comfort during the long drives as well as when we settle down for the night. Some of the campervan sites that we've stayed at have been atrocious, much like prison camps complete with only dirt and barbed wire. Since leaving the Barrosa Valley in Southern Australia, we've stayed in Port Augusta, Streaky Bay, Eucla, Esperance and Cape Le Grand National Park. There have been few highlights, but it definitely has been an adventure. Driving across the Eyre Peninsula and the Nullarbor Plain were certainly not highlights, but we can at least say we did it! The one highlight was probably the beach at Lucky Bay which is in Cape Le Grand National Park (close to Esperance in Western Australia). The water colour was like sapphire (be sure to check out the pictures!) and there were wild kangaroos right on the beach. The camp spot we had at Lucky Bay was depressing, basically a patch of dirt. Most of central and western Australia is so very sparse. We are used to sparseness, coming from Canada, but it might be even sparser here. There are so many stretches of highway that contain absolutely nothing, even the rivers are all dried up. I was expecting to see more kangaroos or wildlife than what we have seen so far. Apparently, most of the wildlife comes out at sunset. There are huge amounts of dead kangaroos on the road. I was trying to keep myself occupied while driving so at one point I counted the number of dead kangaroos I saw over a 50km stretch of highway on the Nullarbor. I counted 16 road kills over the 50km. So, by math, over a 2000km stretch, we probably saw around 640 road kills. Another small highlight, for me anyway, was the campsite we had in Eucla (which is right on the Western Australia and South Australia borders). The campsite was located on a elevated area which offered a great view of the Ocean and the flat Nullarbor Plain. We were also able to have a campfire there (which is the first one we've been able to have since leaving the Sydney area). So nice to sit outside with a campfire and look at the stars (the Southern Cross is easily discernible in the sky from Australia). I mentioned in the last log about the price of fuel. We paid $2.03 a litre on the Nullarbor Plain! There is a border check point when passing into Western Australia whereby you have to hand over all of your fruits and vegetables. There are some plant diseases which they are trying to keep out of Western Australia. Unfortunately, we didn't know about the quarantine and we had to give up quite a bit of food. Dinner for that night was supposed to be a tasty rice and veggie stirfry, instead it was basically plain rice with chicken. Bennett has been so good with our long driving over the past few days. He rarely complains and is entertained by the IPAD and he also loves to draw. We have big expectations for the rest of our trip in Western Australia now that we are in the far west where there is a bit more population. We will be coming into the Margaret River in a couple of days. Tricia will update in the morning!
Tricia: If anyone ever tells you that renting a campervan in Australia for 26 days will be fun, run like hell because they are a bloody liar. I feel like I have just run a marathon...a very dirty, hot marathon. Only kidding! It wasn't that bad. Actually, we have had a good time up until now but as Bart said, we have reached our campervan limit. I told him that although we technically have 6 more days left, I can't sleep in it one more night! Bennett will be crushed because he loves it.We decorated it for Christmas and put up Christmas lights and balls and Bennett coloured a bunch of pictures that we taped all over...but it still can't cover up the grossness. In hindsight, we should have rented a nice campervan because I totally would have had no problems but we ended up with an old one...and it's gross! We are in Albany right now and we still are in a campervan 'holiday park" but we are in a deluxe suite with 2 bedrooms, spotless bathroom and living room. It's brand new! I took a 1/2 hour shower and for the first time in a month, i didn't wear flip flops in the shower (i'm trying to block these details from my mind!) The drive across the Nullarbor was long! But I kind of feel like I can say we did it! Poor Bart drove for 2 days without a break almost 10 hours each day! We saw a lot of dead kangaroos. Bennett was so GOOD! I felt like we were bordering on abuse at times because I would look back and he was just looking out the window at nothing, but then we fed him chocolate and he was happy! We are great parents...The beach a Cape Le Grand National Park was probably the most beautiful beach I have ever been on...it was crystal clear. We spent the entire day on the beach and had so much fun! But the campsite was a breaking point for us. We were literally sitting in a pile of dirt right next to a bunch of people...We are heading to Margaret River and I am looking forward to some nice wine! Hope everyone is having a good time and getting ready for Christmas...
In Albany, Western Australia. Again very limited internet for the past while. It has been a very, very long road getting to Albany. Many kilometres were driven over the past few days (over 2000). The glamour, if there ever was any, of our campervan has just about worn off now. As such, we decided to rent a cabin within the caravan park that we are currently in. Such luxury to have a bedroom (2 in fact), a kitchen, dining area and living room, and a bathroom! If we had the knowledge we have now, we would have probably splurged on a nicer campervan as ours is a bit of a crapper. We pass so many nice ones while driving and yearn for a little more comfort during the long drives as well as when we settle down for the night. Some of the campervan sites that we've stayed at have been atrocious, much like prison camps complete with only dirt and barbed wire. Since leaving the Barrosa Valley in Southern Australia, we've stayed in Port Augusta, Streaky Bay, Eucla, Esperance and Cape Le Grand National Park. There have been few highlights, but it definitely has been an adventure. Driving across the Eyre Peninsula and the Nullarbor Plain were certainly not highlights, but we can at least say we did it! The one highlight was probably the beach at Lucky Bay which is in Cape Le Grand National Park (close to Esperance in Western Australia). The water colour was like sapphire (be sure to check out the pictures!) and there were wild kangaroos right on the beach. The camp spot we had at Lucky Bay was depressing, basically a patch of dirt. Most of central and western Australia is so very sparse. We are used to sparseness, coming from Canada, but it might be even sparser here. There are so many stretches of highway that contain absolutely nothing, even the rivers are all dried up. I was expecting to see more kangaroos or wildlife than what we have seen so far. Apparently, most of the wildlife comes out at sunset. There are huge amounts of dead kangaroos on the road. I was trying to keep myself occupied while driving so at one point I counted the number of dead kangaroos I saw over a 50km stretch of highway on the Nullarbor. I counted 16 road kills over the 50km. So, by math, over a 2000km stretch, we probably saw around 640 road kills. Another small highlight, for me anyway, was the campsite we had in Eucla (which is right on the Western Australia and South Australia borders). The campsite was located on a elevated area which offered a great view of the Ocean and the flat Nullarbor Plain. We were also able to have a campfire there (which is the first one we've been able to have since leaving the Sydney area). So nice to sit outside with a campfire and look at the stars (the Southern Cross is easily discernible in the sky from Australia). I mentioned in the last log about the price of fuel. We paid $2.03 a litre on the Nullarbor Plain! There is a border check point when passing into Western Australia whereby you have to hand over all of your fruits and vegetables. There are some plant diseases which they are trying to keep out of Western Australia. Unfortunately, we didn't know about the quarantine and we had to give up quite a bit of food. Dinner for that night was supposed to be a tasty rice and veggie stirfry, instead it was basically plain rice with chicken. Bennett has been so good with our long driving over the past few days. He rarely complains and is entertained by the IPAD and he also loves to draw. We have big expectations for the rest of our trip in Western Australia now that we are in the far west where there is a bit more population. We will be coming into the Margaret River in a couple of days. Tricia will update in the morning!
Tricia: If anyone ever tells you that renting a campervan in Australia for 26 days will be fun, run like hell because they are a bloody liar. I feel like I have just run a marathon...a very dirty, hot marathon. Only kidding! It wasn't that bad. Actually, we have had a good time up until now but as Bart said, we have reached our campervan limit. I told him that although we technically have 6 more days left, I can't sleep in it one more night! Bennett will be crushed because he loves it.We decorated it for Christmas and put up Christmas lights and balls and Bennett coloured a bunch of pictures that we taped all over...but it still can't cover up the grossness. In hindsight, we should have rented a nice campervan because I totally would have had no problems but we ended up with an old one...and it's gross! We are in Albany right now and we still are in a campervan 'holiday park" but we are in a deluxe suite with 2 bedrooms, spotless bathroom and living room. It's brand new! I took a 1/2 hour shower and for the first time in a month, i didn't wear flip flops in the shower (i'm trying to block these details from my mind!) The drive across the Nullarbor was long! But I kind of feel like I can say we did it! Poor Bart drove for 2 days without a break almost 10 hours each day! We saw a lot of dead kangaroos. Bennett was so GOOD! I felt like we were bordering on abuse at times because I would look back and he was just looking out the window at nothing, but then we fed him chocolate and he was happy! We are great parents...The beach a Cape Le Grand National Park was probably the most beautiful beach I have ever been on...it was crystal clear. We spent the entire day on the beach and had so much fun! But the campsite was a breaking point for us. We were literally sitting in a pile of dirt right next to a bunch of people...We are heading to Margaret River and I am looking forward to some nice wine! Hope everyone is having a good time and getting ready for Christmas...
December 7, 2013.
In the Barossa Valley, Southern Australia. We haven`t had much internet access over the past week, so I haven`t been able to update our website in a while! We have done and seen so much over the last 6 days. We were sad to leave Melbourne after having such a great time with Nigel and his Family, however, we are on a journey of exploration, which means we must keep moving. We have basically been slowly making our way westward towards our final destination of Perth. After leaving Melbourne, driving west, we have stayed at the following places: Apollo Bay, Port Fairy, Robe, Mannum, and Nuriootpa. Along the way, we have been spoiled with incredible coastal scenery (such as the 12 Apostles which are giant limestone stacks jutting out of the ocean), rugged private beaches (they are public but we were the only soles on the sand), a rainforest hike, wildlife galore (wallabies, kangaroos, koalas and emus!), a sinkhole, and nice wineries (Elderton and Penfolds which are wines we have drunk before back in Toronto). The camper-van experience has been.....interesting. We are not actually sure what you are supposed to do at the trailer park, which is basically where you park the van for the night and attach a power cord to the van so the secondary battery remains charged. It seems that many people enjoy these parks for days on end at the same spot. Many are devoid of scenery or privacy and some are packed to the gills with tents and campers with minimal activities available, except sitting next to your vehicle or makeshift abode. Well, to each there own I guess. Some of the caravan parks have these interesting things called called "bouncy pillows" which are kind of like trampolines. Fun stuff actually! The restaurant food and restaurant service that we have experienced thus far in Australia has been abismal. Our only great dining out meal in Australia was today and it was lunch in a small town in the Barossa Valley which is known for their excellent wineries. A theory of mine (and Tricia disagrees) is that the minimum wage here is almost $17 per hour and tipping is not customary, so really, it costs a restaurant dearly to hire a lot of staff and the staff that are working have no incentive to go out of their way to provide exceptional service because they won`t be tipped. I guess we have become very accustomed to American restaurants where fine dining is a norm and service is bar none. It totally could be that we have just been very unlucky in our restaurant choices. Anyways...I`m digressing. We driven through many seaside towns that are very cute (as Tricia would call them) and have charm. Oh, did I mention the gas prices yet? How about 1.50, 1.60, or even 1.70 a litre? Plus we've heard that prices get over 2 bucks a litre in Western Australia! It's certainly not a cheap country to visit. An interesting point is that the price you see, is the price you pay. All taxes are already included in the price. How about alcohol? How does $17 for a 6 pack of cheap bear (like VB) sound? Cigarettes? Not that I smoke anymore but I did see that a small pack of smokes sells for over $20! Ok, back to some highlights. The biggest highlight, for me, in the past few days was the Tower Hill Wildlife Reserve. In the Reserve, animals and humans are free to roam about where they please. We spied many of Australia's native species during a slow drive and nice hike throughout the park. We are now in the Barossa Valley where there are tonnes of wineries and, hopefully, some fine food to be found. Tomorrow is another day, and we will continue our journey westbound. Enjoy the latest pics that I've uploaded. As I'm writing this, we are all snuggled together in our camper-van, both Tricia and Bennett are fast asleep. Tricia will update in the morning!
Tricia:So the charm of the campervan is wearing off...only 12 more days!) I think i have fared pretty well and been a trooper but even Bart looked at me yesterday and said "We voluntarily signed up for this!". But it is definitely part of the journey and what doesn't kill you right? We actually have had fun...we put up fairy lights and xmas decorations to make it a little festive in the van...Bennett loves it but I think mainly because he can watch the IPAD at night all he want...We have seen some awesome things, as Bart said Tower Hill was amazing - there were so many animals wandering within arms reach! Robe and Port Fairy were lovely little towns, the 12 Apostles were incredible and the Barossa Valley has been great! Wine tasting with a 4 yo is a little different, but Bennett's been REALLY good (also, we bribe him with chocolate and promises of going to the park right after!). We were going to go to Adelaide but the Cricket match (Australia v England) is on. All the hotels were SO expensive - $450 for a Comfort Inn?! But that just meant we changed plans and ended up wine tasting instead...not a bad thing. One thing that I had a REALLY hard time with is all the flys...seriously there are millions EVERYWHERE! The first day I saw them all I almost had a breakdown because Barts white shirt was literally moving with black flies all on the back. However, I am learning to live with them! We will be heading across the Nullarbor in 2 days which I'm a little bit dreading. Everyone we meet asks us why we would do that, and do we realize that there is nothing and nothing for 3 days! All the websites warn to bring gallons of water and there is absolutely NO connectivity...I am imagining the prairies in hell. We will see! We have rented a house in North Perth for a week from the 21-28th and it will be nice to be somewhere for a week...
In the Barossa Valley, Southern Australia. We haven`t had much internet access over the past week, so I haven`t been able to update our website in a while! We have done and seen so much over the last 6 days. We were sad to leave Melbourne after having such a great time with Nigel and his Family, however, we are on a journey of exploration, which means we must keep moving. We have basically been slowly making our way westward towards our final destination of Perth. After leaving Melbourne, driving west, we have stayed at the following places: Apollo Bay, Port Fairy, Robe, Mannum, and Nuriootpa. Along the way, we have been spoiled with incredible coastal scenery (such as the 12 Apostles which are giant limestone stacks jutting out of the ocean), rugged private beaches (they are public but we were the only soles on the sand), a rainforest hike, wildlife galore (wallabies, kangaroos, koalas and emus!), a sinkhole, and nice wineries (Elderton and Penfolds which are wines we have drunk before back in Toronto). The camper-van experience has been.....interesting. We are not actually sure what you are supposed to do at the trailer park, which is basically where you park the van for the night and attach a power cord to the van so the secondary battery remains charged. It seems that many people enjoy these parks for days on end at the same spot. Many are devoid of scenery or privacy and some are packed to the gills with tents and campers with minimal activities available, except sitting next to your vehicle or makeshift abode. Well, to each there own I guess. Some of the caravan parks have these interesting things called called "bouncy pillows" which are kind of like trampolines. Fun stuff actually! The restaurant food and restaurant service that we have experienced thus far in Australia has been abismal. Our only great dining out meal in Australia was today and it was lunch in a small town in the Barossa Valley which is known for their excellent wineries. A theory of mine (and Tricia disagrees) is that the minimum wage here is almost $17 per hour and tipping is not customary, so really, it costs a restaurant dearly to hire a lot of staff and the staff that are working have no incentive to go out of their way to provide exceptional service because they won`t be tipped. I guess we have become very accustomed to American restaurants where fine dining is a norm and service is bar none. It totally could be that we have just been very unlucky in our restaurant choices. Anyways...I`m digressing. We driven through many seaside towns that are very cute (as Tricia would call them) and have charm. Oh, did I mention the gas prices yet? How about 1.50, 1.60, or even 1.70 a litre? Plus we've heard that prices get over 2 bucks a litre in Western Australia! It's certainly not a cheap country to visit. An interesting point is that the price you see, is the price you pay. All taxes are already included in the price. How about alcohol? How does $17 for a 6 pack of cheap bear (like VB) sound? Cigarettes? Not that I smoke anymore but I did see that a small pack of smokes sells for over $20! Ok, back to some highlights. The biggest highlight, for me, in the past few days was the Tower Hill Wildlife Reserve. In the Reserve, animals and humans are free to roam about where they please. We spied many of Australia's native species during a slow drive and nice hike throughout the park. We are now in the Barossa Valley where there are tonnes of wineries and, hopefully, some fine food to be found. Tomorrow is another day, and we will continue our journey westbound. Enjoy the latest pics that I've uploaded. As I'm writing this, we are all snuggled together in our camper-van, both Tricia and Bennett are fast asleep. Tricia will update in the morning!
Tricia:So the charm of the campervan is wearing off...only 12 more days!) I think i have fared pretty well and been a trooper but even Bart looked at me yesterday and said "We voluntarily signed up for this!". But it is definitely part of the journey and what doesn't kill you right? We actually have had fun...we put up fairy lights and xmas decorations to make it a little festive in the van...Bennett loves it but I think mainly because he can watch the IPAD at night all he want...We have seen some awesome things, as Bart said Tower Hill was amazing - there were so many animals wandering within arms reach! Robe and Port Fairy were lovely little towns, the 12 Apostles were incredible and the Barossa Valley has been great! Wine tasting with a 4 yo is a little different, but Bennett's been REALLY good (also, we bribe him with chocolate and promises of going to the park right after!). We were going to go to Adelaide but the Cricket match (Australia v England) is on. All the hotels were SO expensive - $450 for a Comfort Inn?! But that just meant we changed plans and ended up wine tasting instead...not a bad thing. One thing that I had a REALLY hard time with is all the flys...seriously there are millions EVERYWHERE! The first day I saw them all I almost had a breakdown because Barts white shirt was literally moving with black flies all on the back. However, I am learning to live with them! We will be heading across the Nullarbor in 2 days which I'm a little bit dreading. Everyone we meet asks us why we would do that, and do we realize that there is nothing and nothing for 3 days! All the websites warn to bring gallons of water and there is absolutely NO connectivity...I am imagining the prairies in hell. We will see! We have rented a house in North Perth for a week from the 21-28th and it will be nice to be somewhere for a week...
December 1, 2013.
In Melbourne, Australia. For the last few days we've had an excellent home base in Melbourne, staying with Tricia's cousin Nigel and his wife Jacqeline and 3 children Felix, Justin and Louie (aged 13, 10 and 7). They have made us feel as part of their family! We arrived on Friday, late afternoon, and we were invited to attend Justin and Louie's school Xmas party. Parents are permitted (and encouraged I believe!) to bring relaxing alcohol containing beverages which can be consumed while enjoying watching the children perform. We watched the Nativity scene, participated in carol signing and even witnessed a surprise visitor (Santa) hand out presents to the kids (Bennett was able to get a present from Santa as well!). Had a lot of fun at the Xmas concert and it was interesting to see it in Australia. On Saturday, Nigel took me to see one of Felix's tennis matches. Felix stomped on his opponent 6 love! Later, Felix took Tricia, Bennett and myself for a tour around downtown Melbourne. Quite a busy city, tonnes of people walking around. The only bad thing we've found is that there are lots of annoying flies out right now! They are not biting ones, but kind of fly around your face and land on exposed body parts. Jacqueline cooked us up some great Aussie steaks for dinner (there was no "shrimp on tha barbie"!). Bennett has had a particularly fun time with Louie who is 3 years older than Bennett, but the youngest so probably feels great to not be the youngest when playing with Bennett. All the kids have been excellent and Bennett loves all the attention he gets from them. It will be tough for us to leave the excellent hospitality that Nigel and his Family have given us. I've been practicing my Australian accent with Felix who has taught me some new Aussie words. I can now fit it with the locals! I've been teaching Felix how to speak "Canadian". It's easy enough, just throw in an "Eh" after every sentence. Today, Nigel and myself took all the boys out to the beach. It was a beach close to Melbourne that was shallow enough to walk out quite far into the water, even for Bennett. The boys had a great time playing and Bennett fit right in. Afterwards we all enjoyed some fish'n'chips, a favourite Aussie thing to do. Our timing was great when arriving at Nigel's house during the weekend which allowed us to spend a lot of time with them without work or school getting in the way. Tomorrow we head out on further adventures in our camper-van heading towards Adelaide which is located in south-central Australia. Thank you Nigel, Jacqueline, Felix, Justin and Louie for a excellent time in Melbourne! Maybe we can meet up with you all in Perth at Xmas?!
Tricia: We have had such a great time with Jacqueline, Nigel and the boys. The boys adopted Bennett right away and made him feel so loved...he has had the BEST time. He loved being able to play! We were able to go to the Xmas concert (which was awesome!) It was exactly how school concerts should be - with champagne! Melbourne was a great city and thanks to a terrific tour guide (thanks Felix!) we saw a lot of the city. It is really laid back and we ended up at an Ecoliving festival! When the boys went to the beach, Jacqueline and I went and did a little shopping in a nice little area near their house. It was a great little break. Then I did a little planning for the next part of our journey (and I am finding it a little overwhelming!)...Today we are heading to Lorne, a beach town about 3 hours away. Sadly, we go back to the camping life...ah well, it will be ok. It's already 31 out and it's only 9am! Definitely time for the beach.
Tricia: We have had such a great time with Jacqueline, Nigel and the boys. The boys adopted Bennett right away and made him feel so loved...he has had the BEST time. He loved being able to play! We were able to go to the Xmas concert (which was awesome!) It was exactly how school concerts should be - with champagne! Melbourne was a great city and thanks to a terrific tour guide (thanks Felix!) we saw a lot of the city. It is really laid back and we ended up at an Ecoliving festival! When the boys went to the beach, Jacqueline and I went and did a little shopping in a nice little area near their house. It was a great little break. Then I did a little planning for the next part of our journey (and I am finding it a little overwhelming!)...Today we are heading to Lorne, a beach town about 3 hours away. Sadly, we go back to the camping life...ah well, it will be ok. It's already 31 out and it's only 9am! Definitely time for the beach.
November 27, 2013.
In Lakes Entrance, Australia. We ran into a bit of a snag with the camper-van pickup in Sydney. Apparently the drop-off location was screwed up. We had booked the camper-van to pick up in Sydney and drop-off in Perth, but, the rental company had us as dropping it off in Cairns. Long story short, we had to take a different camper-van, not sure if it as good as the one we had rented, however, this camper-van could be driven and dropped in Perth. We've been on the road now in Australia, for the past several days. I thought that the beaches in California were nice, but I think Australia has them trumped! After getting accustomed to driving on the wrong (left) side of the road, we started to head our way south to Melbourne and arrived at our first stop, just south of Sydney, at Killalea State Park, which had an unbelievable beach and because it was raining a bit, a nice rainbow formed over it (check out the pics!). Our first night camping was interesting, just getting used to the camper-van in terms of driving it and how everything inside functioned, like the bed and the kitchen area. The night was quite chilly so we all snuggled together. There are actually 2 beds in our van, kind of bunk-bed style, however, Bennett only wants to sleep with us though! Second night we stayed in a town called Dalmeny, which offered an incredible beach view from our campsite. We were attacked by seagulls when we attempted to eat at a picnic table beside our van! Tricia hid in our van while I continued to eat outside with Bennett chasing all the birds away. This part of Australia, the south eastern part, is very lush with vegetation and hilly unlike most of the rest of the country. On our way to Dalmeny, we stopped in an area called Jervis Bay which, again, had unbelievable beaches and beautiful turquoise water. Last night was spent in a town called Eden, and we stayed at the Garden of Eden campground (not quite like the one described in the Bible). It did have a nice swimming pool and kids play area for Bennett. While Tricia entertained Bennett, I managed to get a little fishing in. I tried fishing right from the beach, however, the surf was a little strong so I was not very successful. It was still fun though! After driving across the border from New South Wales into Victoria, we are now in Lakes Entrance which is roughly 300km outside of Melbourne. Unfortunately, the weather has turned on us a little. Rainy and a little chilly. So, at this moment that I'm writing this log, we are inside a sheltered common area of our campground and Bennett is watching some Netflix and Tricia is surfing the net on her IPhone. Around the campsite we have spied some beautifully coloured birds (parrot like). Oh, we have only seen a couple of kangaroos so far, but many dead ones on the road during our driving. Today, while driving out of a small town, we went through a random drinking and driving police stop. They made all drivers take a breathalyzer test. Good thing I didn't have any alcohol in my system! The Policeman was very friendly and I got Tricia to take a picture of me with him. Tomorrow we will make it into Melbourne where we will be staying a couple of days with one of Tricia's cousins, Nigel and his family, whom we actually met last when we were in Scotland a couple of years ago.
Tricia: Patience is a virtue. It's true. I don't have much. Bart on the other hand, is FULL of patience. Good thing. We ended up with a VERY dated camper van...in other words, its old. However, I have been quite proud of myself and the way i have been handling things. The camper van is actually good fun. I was super worried about the bathrooms at the campgrounds but they have been spotless! We have seen some incredible beaches and landscape and have met some really nice people along the way...While we were in Killalea, we met a nice couple from England - Kate and Byron and chatted around the campfire for quite some time. Bennett was excited to stay in the van himself and watch his movie. Jervis Bay was spectacular and I would totally recommend it. It was almost empty and we saw a kangaroo! As mentioned, the weather today is not that great and we are trapped inside while it rains. I'm excited to see Melbourne! Also, hope my mum is feeling better after having 3 wisdom teeth pulled - poor thing! xo
Tricia: Patience is a virtue. It's true. I don't have much. Bart on the other hand, is FULL of patience. Good thing. We ended up with a VERY dated camper van...in other words, its old. However, I have been quite proud of myself and the way i have been handling things. The camper van is actually good fun. I was super worried about the bathrooms at the campgrounds but they have been spotless! We have seen some incredible beaches and landscape and have met some really nice people along the way...While we were in Killalea, we met a nice couple from England - Kate and Byron and chatted around the campfire for quite some time. Bennett was excited to stay in the van himself and watch his movie. Jervis Bay was spectacular and I would totally recommend it. It was almost empty and we saw a kangaroo! As mentioned, the weather today is not that great and we are trapped inside while it rains. I'm excited to see Melbourne! Also, hope my mum is feeling better after having 3 wisdom teeth pulled - poor thing! xo
November 24, 2013.
Still in Sydney, Australia. We've been in Sydney for a couple of days now. This could be one of the nicest cities in the world! We have yet to see a bad part of the City. There don't appear to be any "Jane & Finch" type areas (if you're from Toronto, you'd know what I mean). Even if you found a bad area, you would still have a beautiful view and a lovely climate! We have been very lucky to have been "chauffeured" around the City by one of Tricia's old friends Sam and his wife Hannah. They picked us up from our hotel, treated us for brunch and took us to a few different beaches! They have actually picked us up from our hotel 2 days straight! We have really enjoyed their company and they are a very friendly couple. So glad to have met you guys! We've enjoyed several of Sydney's amazing beaches including Bondi Beach and Manly Beach which are very popular with the locals. Today, we met up with Bennett's ex-nanny Wendy, her husband Andrew and their Daughter Charlotte who live around Manly Beach. Bennett was exuberant when he first spied Wendy and immediately rushed over to her and planted a wet kiss on her cheek. After spending some time with Wendy at the beach, a kids park and her abode, we took the ferry from Manly Beach back to Circular Quay (essentially downtown Sydney). The ferry ride allowed us a "poor man's" view of the Sydney skyline from the water including the Opera house and the Sydney Harbour Bridge. Tomorrow, we will be picking up our camper-van and heading towards Melbourne along the South-Eastern coastline. No more hotels for us for a while! Eventually, we will end up in Perth, but not for about a month.
Tricia: I love Sydney...It's hot, the beaches are amazing, we have been having the best time! We have been lucky to have had some fantastic company as Bart mentioned. We met my friend Sam who I lived with in Vancouver about 17 years ago along with a house full of others! We also met Sam's wife Hannah who could not be nicer! They showed us around the city and were excellent hosts...Bennett has LOVED the beaches and it is hard to pull him away. He truly is a beach babe. It is amazing to see little tiny kids younger than Bennett already in surf school! Today we met up with Wendy, Andrew and their baby Charlotte, we spent the day at the beach Charlotte is the CUTEST baby ever...We loved seeing them and Bennett instantly connected with Wendy again. It was so strange, when she last saw him, he wasn't even talking. But he was so comfortable with her it was as if no time had passed. Tomorrow we pick up the camper van (God help me)...
Tricia: I love Sydney...It's hot, the beaches are amazing, we have been having the best time! We have been lucky to have had some fantastic company as Bart mentioned. We met my friend Sam who I lived with in Vancouver about 17 years ago along with a house full of others! We also met Sam's wife Hannah who could not be nicer! They showed us around the city and were excellent hosts...Bennett has LOVED the beaches and it is hard to pull him away. He truly is a beach babe. It is amazing to see little tiny kids younger than Bennett already in surf school! Today we met up with Wendy, Andrew and their baby Charlotte, we spent the day at the beach Charlotte is the CUTEST baby ever...We loved seeing them and Bennett instantly connected with Wendy again. It was so strange, when she last saw him, he wasn't even talking. But he was so comfortable with her it was as if no time had passed. Tomorrow we pick up the camper van (God help me)...
November 22, 2013.
In Sydney, Australia. G'Day Mate! Why don't we put sumo'r shrrrrrimp on the barbie! It's a gruelling trip to get here from North America. Our flight left from LAX at 9:00pm on November, 20 and by the time we made it to our Hotel in Sydney, it was 12:30pm on November 22 (which includes the large time zone change). The night time flight probably made it easier as we were able to more easily grab some sleep. We flew with Air New Zealand on one of their big new planes which was fantastic! There was a 13 hour flight to Auckland where we transferred to a different plane (a 3 hour flight) to Sydney. As I write this log (at around 6pm Sydney time), Tricia is passed out in bed and Bennett is happily watching the telly. We are staying in a Hotel in the downtown Sydney area of Surry Hills for 3 nights. After checking in to the hotel, we walked around the area a little (Bennett acted like a cracked out vampire, kind of like Rob Ford - probably due to lack of sleep) to get some lunch and check things out. The weather is mild (mid 20's C, but raining). We have arranged to meet up with Bennett's old Nanny, Wendy, who lives here in Sydney with her husband and new little Daughter (we can't wait to see you guys!). I've also signed up for a pre-paid mobile phone plan. My Australia phone number is 0403 266936 if anyone is interested! Now that I've got a data plan, I can now use view my email and use Skype and Whatsapp from my Smartphone to connect with friends and family back home. For those in Toronto, there is a +16 hour time difference to Sydney, so keep that in mind! We are so excited to now be in Australia! Our time here will include a 26 day camper-van trip across the southern shores of Australia all the way to Perth. We expect to stay in Perth for a couple of weeks before going up to South East Asia (this trip is still in the planning phase). Just want to say good luck to my brother Geoff as he makes his first attempt at running for political office in one of the Federal ridings in Toronto. Stay tuned for our adventures down under! Tricia will update her log later on once she's caught up on some sleep (I'm sure I'll be crashing soon myself!).
Tricia: We made it! Holy crap that was a long journey!!! I was REALLY stressed over the plane ride as I don't love flying in the first place and I was worried how Bennett would be. But it was way better than I thought...Adavan really does help too! Bennett slept for almost 10 hours and the rest of the time was very mellow (I swear I didn't drug him!). We got to the hotel and I was disappointed! We booked off hotwire and it said it was a 41/2 star...when something seems too good to be true, it usually is. BOO. It's ok but looks like a dorm room and is old and worn. I fell asleep around 6pm and got up around 4:30 but I feel SO much better. I thought i was going to drop dead by about 3pm yesterday...we were all in need of a good rest. This morning we were up early and booked our trip out of Australia...we are headed to Kuala Lampor for New Years. We decided that 2 weeks in Perth would be too much time (and too expensive!), so we are headed to Malaysia for 2014!!! Today we are going out with my friend Sam and his wife Hannah...can't wait!
Tricia: We made it! Holy crap that was a long journey!!! I was REALLY stressed over the plane ride as I don't love flying in the first place and I was worried how Bennett would be. But it was way better than I thought...Adavan really does help too! Bennett slept for almost 10 hours and the rest of the time was very mellow (I swear I didn't drug him!). We got to the hotel and I was disappointed! We booked off hotwire and it said it was a 41/2 star...when something seems too good to be true, it usually is. BOO. It's ok but looks like a dorm room and is old and worn. I fell asleep around 6pm and got up around 4:30 but I feel SO much better. I thought i was going to drop dead by about 3pm yesterday...we were all in need of a good rest. This morning we were up early and booked our trip out of Australia...we are headed to Kuala Lampor for New Years. We decided that 2 weeks in Perth would be too much time (and too expensive!), so we are headed to Malaysia for 2014!!! Today we are going out with my friend Sam and his wife Hannah...can't wait!