Cable Beach, Staircase to the Moon, and the local nightlife

Broome, Western Australia – Friday 10th July 2009
Up at 8am and off to forage for breakfast and provisions at the nearest supermarket, a 10 minute walk away. Our motel room floor had been very dirty and we soon found out why – red dirt everywhere and in everything (although you’d think housekeeping could have given [...]

Travelling to Broome, Western Australia

Australia – Thursday 9th July 2009
July, winter in New Zealand and it’s school holiday time again. Time to depart wet and dreary Wellington for a break away to somewhere warm and sunny. This year we picked Broome in Western Australia for our travel destination after watching a programme a few years ago about the [...]

Too tired to think – last day in Sydney

Sunday 21st June and I’m so tired! Didn’t sleep too well but room service arrived with breakfast at 7.15am so had to get up. We were sleepily up and dressed waiting for a bus by 10am.
Back to Ingleburn (or as we were now calling it, Inglewood), for an early lunch (fish and chips) and [...]

Travelling to Campbelltown

Saturday 20th June and a somewhat sleepless night, anxious that I wouldn’t
wake up by 7am after our long day. But up and dressed by 9.30am. We were able to store out luggage at no charge a the hotel.
We started off, got as far as the driveway and the rain dropped. Back we went inside to [...]

Sydney side – Rebecca’s 21st

Off to Sydney, Australia for a long weekend and to celebrate Rebecca’s 21st birthday. up at 3am after a sleepless 3 and a half hours sleep. Jewel, the cat, keeping us company during the night. Picked the boys up (Aaron and Jeremy) just before 5am and at the check-in at Wellington Airport by 5.20am. It [...]

A Grand Day Out at Auckland Zoo

I had been trying to visit the Auckland Zoo since January 2008 when we had been in Auckland visiting our friend Mara and her new baby Tarik. Alas, it rained the two days we were there, so opted to spend the time visiting friends and going to Kelly Tarltons instead.
In mid 2008 three tiger [...]

A tick list of animals

North American animals and birds spotted:

moose (Algonquin Park, Ontario & Toronto Zoo)
bald eagles (New Brunswick, Vancouver & Toronto Zoo)
skunk (dead – near Owen Sound, Ontario)
brown squirrels (St John, NB and Ontario)
grey squirrels (Toronto and Vancouver)
Woodpecker (Ontario)
deer (Gulf islands, BC)
chipmunk (St John & Ontario)
ground hog (St John & Ontario)
fox (near Owen Sound, Ontario)
grizzly bear (Grousse Mountain, [...]

Memories and observations

everything is big in Canada – even the milk comes in 4 litre bags
milk comes not only in bags, but at 1%, 2%, etc
the cheese is orange
the roads are long and fairly straight
the bugs in the Canadian woods are mean and relentlessly BITE
bald eagles appear when you least expect it
ground hogs are a novelty, except [...]

The return journey

Wednesday 16 July – our last day in Canada. Took a short walk to Granville Island markets across the bridge for a spot of shopping. This turned out to be a somewhat wary task for souvenir items and gifts for family. A  $3 ride on the small ferry back to the opposite bank and another [...]

On yer bike, again

Tuesday 15th July and our last full day in the northern hemisphere. We were up relatively early to check out the Pacific Coach schedule  that would connect us with the BC Ferry for the return trip to Vancouver.
First, a stop off at Pacific Editions Ltd – northwest Coast Indian Art Print publishers as it had [...]