Saturday 12th of Feb 2011

I finally got to New Zealand and what a beautiful country it is. I wish I had more money to stay here even longer. Christchurch was my first stop. Its a really nice city quite small as cities go. It suffered another massive earthquake its very sad to watch the aftermath. I started my Stray bus tour there. To be honest if I could start all over again I wouldn’t use Stray they are really rubbish. They’re always late not well organised and its hard to book buses because their always full or the brutal online booking system messes up your booking and God help you if you end up on Oscar’s bus he doesn’t know his arse and his elbow. But having said that some of the other guides are good and helpful. Our first stop was in Kaikoura. This is a gorgeous little town which I loved because you can go whale watching there. It was amazing!! We saw three sperm whales and hundreds of crazy dolphins that love to show off.

Then we went to Picton. This is a tiny town who’s biggest attraction is the ferry to Wellington. The next day we headed to Marahau home of the Abel Tasman National Park. There are some fantastic walks to be done here. Unfortunately after my three hour hike I got very sick (possible stomach bug) and spent the rest of the day in bed and couldn't go hand gliding the next morning much to my disappointment. Our next stop was Barrytown population 40!! No joke its tiny the only thing we saw was the pub. I did get to do some jade carving here though that brought out my artistic side (not)!! We headed to Frans Josef from here to the Glaciers. There some amazing hikes to be done here with lots and lots of ice.

Next we were heading for Queenstown but had an overnight stop at Makerora. We went jet boating here but it wasn't really worth the money I’ve been on more exciting roller coasters. The scenery though, as with all of New Zealand, was picture perfect. Also on the way to Queenstown we decided to go to Lake Wanaka where I finally got up the courage to do a 12,000ft Skydive!! It was the most amazing thing I’ve ever done  although I have never been so terrified in all my life. Just waiting to get on the plane was the worst part, I felt strangely calm once we were in the air right up until I was being pushed out of the plane and that’s when I thought “Why am I doing this?” The free fall only lasts 45 second but the feeling was indescribable. Once the parachute comes out, thanks to the trusty expert attached to my back, its a nice glide to the ground. I wanted to go straight back up. The buzz from it lasted for days. That night when we finally arrived in Queenstown Emer and myself had our survival party which lasted into the early hours of the next day. I finally got to hand glide in Queenstown too. This was in some ways even scarier then the Skydive because you have to run off the side of a cliff at 2’000ft. The glide to the ground is a lot faster so the landing was a bit scary. I also did a Lord of the Rings tour here but it was drastically over priced.

After a few days in Queenstown we headed to Milford Sound. Another pretty spot with hundreds of waterfalls. It lashed rain but apparently thats when you get the best waterfalls. We headed south and spent a night in Invercargill. If your going here don’t bother there’s literally nothing here of interest but there are a few shops if you must do something!! Supposedly its been referred to by Mick Jagger as “the arse hole of the world”. We also took a trip to Dunedin which boasts the steepest street in the world. The bottom of it was good enough for me though. We also did the Cadbury’s factory tour here. That was lots of fun with lots of free samples, expect one floor smelled like the strawberry roses that they used to make years ago that turned my stomach because I always hated those ones especially the smell.

Then we went to Mount Cook and luckily we got a really clear sunny day because the mountain is only visible one out of every three days. Its a breathtaking sight though as are the icebergs in the  lake below it, that break off from the Tasmin Glacier. Next we had a long drive past the Tekapo Lake to get back to Christchurch concluding my loop of the South Island. My next trip will start here and head north. The top half has a lot to live up to!!

Wednesday 26th of Jan 2011

Well it my last day in Australia! Everybody say aaahhh! Melbourne was great fun especially the Neighbours night. That was hilarious & I got to meet Dr. Karl Kennedy and Steph Scully. Also we met someone called Sky but I don't know who she is.

From Melbourne I took a trip up the Great Ocean Road which wasn't so great because it was lashing rain the whole  time. The Twelve Apostles were miserable. The Otway National Park was cool though and it was enhanced by the rain because its a rain forest. We stayed in Port Campbell a nice spot but the rain kept us inside. The next day more rainy Great Ocean Road. It stop when we got to the Grampians though but the damaged was done and some of the roads were closed. I can’t believe the floods followed me here too!!

The next day we headed for Adelaide. Lots of people had told me that it was kind of boring here but I liked it. It was like a city sized country town. I loved the zoo here because they have pandas and sun bears (the sun bear in Sydney were invisible). Unfortunately I was a few days too early for Lance Armstrong who did a charity cycle there  after I left. The following day we headed to Quorn and spent a couple of days here hiking in the Flinders Range. The best part was the BBQ (sorry to any veggies reading this). We had Camel, Kangaroo and Buffalo. Then we headed to the under ground town of Cooper Pedy. Its famous for the mining of Opal but it was too hot for the miners to live here so they built their houses under ground. We stayed in an “underground hostel” but really it was built into the side of a big hill. Then finally I got to Uluru or Ayers Rock. It is just a rock and I can’t say I saw it change colour at sunrise or sunset but I’m still glad I saw it and now I can tick it off the list. It was crazy hot though up in the 40’s. The next day we did a four day hike of King’s Canyon in the crazy heat. It was worth it though for the amazing views. Finally our tour ended in Alice Springs. Alice is a hole of a town I wouldn't recommend it. If you have to go don't stay too long. It looks like Canberra except really dirty and there’s lots of dodgy people hanging around day and night. From here I flew as soon as I could to Melbourne for a one night stop over then flew on to Tasmania. I really didn't have a enough time here. I stayed in Hobart which is lovely it kind of reminded me of Wexford town. The climate here is a bit more manageable too. I took a trip to Port Arthur and took in some of the historical sights of the old prison station. I loved the Tasmanian Devil Conservation centre here too. We got to see the devils at feeding time. They are savages and look nothing like the Looney Tune version. Sadly then the next day I had to fly back to Sydney.

Its been an amazing couple of months and if I could do it all over again the only thing I’d change is I’d bring more money :)

But now its time for my New Zealand adventure to begin!!! Watch this space…

Friday 7th of Jan 2011

I cant believe its been nearly a month since I updated this but what a month its been! Well Darwin was Darwin not totally unlike Dublin City on a messy Saturday night. Can’t say I liked it that much the torrential rain put me off leaving the room during the day and the police sirens put me off leaving at night. If you ever go here try not go in the wet season.

I then flew to Cairns. Now that was a different kettle of fish it did rain but not a much and it was glorious during the day. The town itself is nice. It was full of tourists but in a good way it had los of Australian holiday makers so you know its a good spot. I took a two day boat trip out to see the great barrier reef. That was amazing. Snorkelling still scares the shit of me but it was fine when I had a guide with me.

Also in Cairns I started a two week tour down the east coast with the craziest bunch I’ve ever met, tour guide included, but in the best possible way. The bus parts were like something out of Glee, everyday was Karaoke. I was supposed to finish the tour at Byron Bay but I couldn’t say goodbye so I stayed all the way to Sydney. Our first stop was Magnetic Island. A beautiful spot & also the place I spotted my first wild Koala. We stayed in the base hostel that was great fun. It was lady’s night and you’d be amazed what a man will do for a free drink in that place!!!  Next we made our way to Airlie Beach and headed out to Whitsundays on a sailing boat. It had a engine but we sailed a bit. This time I was able to snorkel much better all on my lonesome! (well I had a buddy) We spent two nights out at sea which was great fun but the only way to sleep was to drink because it was way too hot. We stayed a night at Airlie Beach as well which resulted in me buying a didgeridoo and one of  my travel buddy’s (who shall remain nameless) getting a $100 fine for peeing in the street. It’s all good now though she paid it a few days ago didn’t you  Debbie? :) We were supposed to go to Carnarvon Gorge but it was flooded so we spent an extra day and night at Kroombit cattle station. This was my favourite part of Australia so far. We got to be real cowboys for a few days hats and all. If you wore a cowboy hat and bandana you got cheaper beer or else you had to pay city slicker prices. There was horse riding where we rounded up the cattle. There was shooting, whip cracking and even quad biking. Not being the best driver I decided to stand in the back of the 4x4 yute with a few others and follow the quads. This turned out to be the business since our crazy guide likes to drive off road a lot. We spent one night sleeping under the stars in swags but unfortunately the next day was our last day. We were all sad to leave but we were so lucky we did because the place was flooded a few hours later. The east coast are having one of the worse floods the country has ever seen and we missed it by a day. We went to Rainbow Beach the next day which I wouldn’t bother with unless your going to Fraser Island, which we did.  We didn’t slum it in tents with dingoes instead we stayed in a nice resort there. Fraser is lovely well worth the visit. We spent Christmas morning playing Frisbee on the beach then headed back to rainbow for our BBQ Christmas dinner. Its too hot here to realise its Christmas. There was loads of decorations but it still didn’t register. Next we headed to Brisbane for a short visit before heading to Byron Bay. I FINALLY found Grace here and we had a great night out in Cheeky Monkeys. If anyone tells you they are closed on a Sunday they’re lying. The next day we went to the elusive Spot X. Its supposed to be this amazing secret surf spot but by the amount of people that were there I don’t think its a secret anymore. I suck at surfing!! FACT! But after the initial frustration of trying to get on the board I really started to enjoy it. I only managed to get one leg upright but its a start and I’d definitely try it again. It wears you out though and we had achy muscles for two days after. Finally then we landed in Sydney. What a place! I loved it. Granted its another big city but once you see the Opera House and Harbour Bridge you get goose bumps and being there at new years was brilliant. There was a fantastic buzz about the place. On new years eve we had to start queuing from 10am for a good spot in the Botanical Gardens to see the Bridge so it was a long day but well worth it and we smuggled in some vodka so that took the edge off the long wait. I’d love to do it all again but this time I’m going to book my accommodation well in advance (Sorry Katy & Rich xxx). I hung out in Sydney for a week even managed to catch a show at the Opera House. I loved the aquarium there too the walk-under tank was amazing.

After all the excitement of Sydney I decide to spend a few days chilling in Canberra. Its the capital city although you wouldn’t think it as its quite small and quiet for a capital. Then I spent ten hours travelling by bus to Melbourne which brings me up to date. So far so good!!