Last night in Hyde Park

Well this has been our last day at the Hyde Park hotel right in the heart of Sydney. It has been a great spot. It has taken this long for me to get my bearings. I can actually go shopping and find my way home. We have our favourite pub and eating spots. Tonight we once again had Japanese. For people who like to complain about the Asian invasion everywhere we go we sure do seem to like to dine with them. Funny thing though---our restaurant ran out of rice tonight ! It was only 5:00. Some customers walked out. Understandable, imagine a Japanese restaurant without rice. Kind of cut the menu in half.

So today we went down to Darling harbour once again. Much nicer in the sunshine. Today was about 26 degrees. It felt like a great summer day in Vancouver. We took a Harbour cruise today and then visited Paddy's Market. That was a bit of a disappointment. We expected a nice Irish market and what we got was a Chinese flea market. Spent the rest of the day just poking around. Back to our room by 7:30 for an early night. Hopefully we will get to Bondi beach tomorrow and then out to the airport for our last night. We don't fly out until 6:30 but we lose 2 hours and the flight is 3 and a half hours so we arrive in Christchurch at about 11:30. We are looking forward to exploring the south island.

I will post again when I have access and something to report. Ten-four rubber ducky.

Two days left in Sydney.

HOLD THE PRESSES!  CALL BACK THE JURY! We love Sydney!. To all of you who I complained to about Sydney, I take it back. Our first couple of days here it rained sideways. Buckets of the stuff. I know they needed it but really --did they need that much. Anyway, two days ago we thought that we should just get in the car and go find something to do.  So we did. Ian has been trying to find a cousin of his mother's (Jan and husband Mervyn) for quite a while now. Wrong people from their old address and no response to the old phone number. They were supposed to come to Canada a couple of years ago but had to cancel due to illness, so we thought that maybe one of them had passed away. Anyway Ian found their last known address and started knocking on doors in their complex. Sure enough he found her. When she answered the door and Ian asked if she was Jan Locke and she said yes he said well, I'm your cousin from Canada I thought she was going to faint. She was so excited. They went to Orkney 20 years ago to meet her father's family and they still keep in touch with Ian's auntie Ethel, but they have never met any of the Canadian side including Doris (Ian's mother). She remembers her mother corresponding with Doris but they had never actually met. So we had about an hours visit with them. (a nice cup of tea and Christmas cake) We may have inspired them to try again for a visit to Canada. They are lovely people.

Next stop was Botany Bay, where Captain Cook arrived. Took some pictures and then carried on to Manly Breach. Wow! What a beach. The beach was full of surfers and joggers. Fun to watch. Ian got excited because we actually passed one of the walkers but I had to point out that he stopped to tie his shoe so that shouldn't count. These Australians sure  do like to exercise. Anyway, the village of Manly is full of great little shops, cafes, hotels and pubs. Would be a great place to stay. Also, while there the sun had come full out. Yahoo!

Next stop was Watson's Bay where Doyle's restaurant is located. Doyle's restaurant alone is worth a trip to Sydney. The beach is stunningly beautiful and the restaurant patio is about 10 ft. from  the water's edge. We had a view of sand, sea. beautiful homes surrounding the bay, and a gorgeous sunset. And if that wasn't enough, the food was incredible. I'm not sure I've ever had better. I had the famous Queensland King Prawns and Ian had Yellowfin Tuna topped with scallops. I took pictures of both plates before we devoured them.

Yesterday we woke to beautiful sunshine, not a cloud in the sky, so we walked down to the harbour to see the opera house, the Sydney bridge (which was actually built in Sheffield England) and then took a walk around The Rocks ( where the convicts were eventually settled).  Temperature today is a comfortable 26 degrees. So we sure were lucky to come upon an Irish pub at just about lunch time.

On our way back to our hotel I found the most incredible book store (Drymmock's) It's 3 floors of books. I had a great time there. Ian was very patient but he did ask me if a senior citizen commited suicide in a children's book store, would anybody hear? I said probably not.

So to finish of our day we went to our new local ( the Edinburgh castle pub) for a couple happy hours and then found a Korean restaurant that were invited into. It was a new experience for us.  The food was very good but we were the only two white faces in there. And I don't think there was anyone over the age of 21 there. And they sure do talk a lot in a funny language. I hope it wasn't about us.

So today we thought we might take a harbour cruise and walk through Hyde Park which is just across the street from us. Maybe we'll take another look at Darling Harbour as well. Tonight is our last night in this hotel. Tomorrow night we will be at the airport hotel.

Hello to all. Hope Lorne and Georgina are okay. And I hope Karen Schick is doing alright with her packing. Talk soon.

Linda and Ian

First full day in Sydney

We arrived in Sydney yesterday at about 5:00.   Couldn't believe the traffic and the number of people on the streets. We felt like we had arrived in Tokyo or Hong Kong. Apparently the population in Sydney is over 4 million people. After we got registered in our hotel and found a nice pub ( that took about 5 minutes) and got our heart rates down to normal we were pleasantly surprised to find that the restaurant prices and gas prices were much more what we are used to. Had a nice Japanese meal, a quiet drink and then an early night. We woke up to a cloudy, pouring rainy day.  Two days ago we had 36 degrees and today was about 17-18 degrees and raining sideways. We took a walk down to Darling Harbour, took some pictures and poked around the shops. It was kind of hard to fill the day as it was so wet and gloomy. We did find a little bistro called Ruby and Rach's where we had a soup called Jewish penicillen. ( chicken broth, veggies and motza balls) It was very good.

The forecast for tomorrow isn't so good either but the following couple of days sounds much better. 26 degrees and sunshine once again. Hopefully we will get out on a harbour cruise. For some strange reason Ian feels it is very important to go to Manly beach.

Anyway, we hope to enjoy the rest of our stay in Sydney but we have decided that we really are not big city people and are really looking forward to getting back to New Zealand.

Take care everyone. Talk soon.

Linda and Ian

North Haven --One more sleep!

I finally saw a koala!! Too bad it was in a zoo. We stopped at the Billabong zoo outside of Port Macquarie. They are just as beautiful as I thought. The poor things were asleep but they wake them up for a presentation. We fed the little grey kangaroos and saw the snow leopards and the red pandas, as well as the Jurassic crocodile. I'm no fan of crocodiles but I couldn't help but feel sorry for him. We went to the zoo because I absolutely had to see a koala but we left feeling a bit depressed because zoos are not nice places for the animals. It seems that everything that they need to be happy is not supplied by the zoo environment. So, after we left the zoo we headed south to a really small place called North Haven (where we are spending the night) and actually saw a family of kangaroos in a grassy field--Mom, Dad and baby.  It was awesome!

Met a nice lady from Woolagong, which is about an hour south of Sydney. She  and her husband are in the motel room next to ours. We were lucky to get a room as there is a bowl's tournament in town and everything is booked up. She has given us a few good tips about what to see in the Sydney area.

We went to the Bowl's club for a drink when we first arrived and then on to a nice restaurant for a lovely dinner right across from the river. We watched a good lightning storm--- apparently we are going to get a much needed rainfall. The last significant rainfall was in June! The bowls clubs are incredible here. Every town seems to have one - cheap drinks and fabulous premises. We are hoping to try a game or two as we move along. The forecast for tomorrow is rain which is to extend into Sydney - the fires have been intense there so rain is very welcome. Tomorrow is a travel day for us - we will be at the Hyde Park hotel in Sydney for the next five nights. Then one day out towards the airport and then on the Christchurch, New Zealand. The scenery has improved drastically as we have made our way south - much greener and much more terrain.

P.S. Our motel room is MUCH better than the last one. Linda is a happy camper. Talk soon.

Motel Hell in Sawtell

We arrive in a little village called Sawtell yesterday afternoon. A really quaint little village with huge fig trees lining the streets and loads of little shops and restaurants. We were a little disappointed in the drive  down because we thought we would follow the ocean all the way. In fact you had to drive off the highway to the coast to see any water. Then you had to turn around and backtrack the same way to get back onto the highway. It wasted a lot of time. Anyway when we arrived here we took one look and knew that this was the place to stay. The problem is that there is only two motels in town. One is a four star (fully booked of course) and the other is maybe a two star. Reminds me of a place that we stayed in Ireland with Ruth and Vince. Ruth and I cleaned for the first two days. Needless to say I only take my shoes off to go to bed.

Apart from that we are enjoying Sawtell and it's citizens. Last night we went to a little Japanese restaurant for dinner. Great food - huge prawns - good wine. Then at about 7:30 a jazz group arrived. They were so good that we couldn't leave. During their breaks they came over to introduce themselves. Really friendly, helpful people. I got tips from every member of the band as well as some of the customers on when and where to find my elusive koalas.

So tomorrow we once again head south. Only one more sleep between here and Sydney. We are a little concerned about the fire situation. Even here we are getting a lot of smoke. I must say that at this point in time we like New Zealand better than Australia. Although the temperatures here are a lot warmer (26-32 degrees so far) we find the scenery better in New Zealand. But time will tell. Hopefully Sydney will be a treat.

Off for dinner again. Will post again soon. Could someone please let us know how Lorne is doing. We think of him and Georgina often.

We are in Ballina

Hi again! We lost contact while we were in Mooloolaba because they wanted $19.95 per day for the internet. Not going to happen. Anyway, we did have a good time there although the weather was not the best. The only rain we got came during the night but the days were mixed sun and cloud and howling winds. Didn't stop people from going in the water and sunbathing but I was not tempted. We had lunch at the surf club on the beach one day where we heard you could have a nice lunch for about $10.00. That must have been a million years ago because even a caesar salad was $16.50! So,  although Mooloolaba was beautiful to look at it was very expensive. On our last night we went to the Bowl's club and had a great time . We made some new friends again and had really cheap drinks. Too bad that it was our last night before we discovered that place. Bowls clubs are really big over here and they are great places. They are massive in size and have gambling for those that want it and the prices are really good.

Last night we arrived in Ballina and got a lovely motel right across from the R.S.L. club (returning servicemen). It too is an amazing building. It looks like a Las Vegas casino but with a huge dining room overlooking the Richmond River. Had our first drink there and then took a walk around the town which is beautiful and clean. Went for Japanese food for dinner. It's the first place we've been to where you can bring your own drinks. We weren't prepared but it's a great concept.

So today we will continue south towards Sydney. We are thinking of stopping for the night at Coff's Harbour or somewhere in the vicinity. Today will be a shorter drive and more relaxing. The scenery is a little nicer the further south we go. In Queensland the terrain is quite flat. Dry and scrubby as well. So far I have seen lots of signs warning about kangaroos and koalas on the road but have not spotted one yet. So Ian's mission for the day is to find a place to cash traveller's cheques and mine is to see a koala in the wild.

Hope all is well at home. Hopefully I can post later this evening.
P.S. Ian just got back from his walk and he found a bank that cashed his traveller's cheques. Yeah!

Last day in Auckland

Well, it is our last day in Auckland and it has been a good day. The wind has been howling but the sun is shining and the temperature is quite warm. We have spent the better part of the day driving into west Auckland where Ian tried to find his rich relative. Turns out they are not as rich as we had imagined. They live in a nice area but not as nice as Ian thought. We were so disappointed that we had to hang out with some of Linda's recent friends at the "oldest" yacht club in New Zealand. - not. In any event we had a fabulous time visiting at the welcoming Devenport Yacht Club with John and John. Characters and pictures to follow. Had dinner at the Portofino Restaurant - not Ian's choice but he did remark that the wine was GOOD. We spoke to Brenda and Basil today which was good. We plan to see their friends in Wellington at some point. Off to Australia in the morning. We arrive in Gold Coast at about 1:35 Australia time and it seems to be about a two hour drive to Mooloolaba which is a place that Dave and Christine recommended. They promised us that it was run by a couple of FAGS but it seems that a straight couple has now taken over. We will see. Hopefully things will be as good as when they were there. We said good bye to our new friend Hiromi, a very nice girl from Japan who we got to know a bit. People here seem to be a bit like how it was when we were kids - polite, respectful & concerned
Its freaking us out. Really missing the fingers, car horns and cutting you off when you try to line up.

Linda says to stop.

Bye.