Adelaide

We booked into a campsite a few kms outside Adelaide which was a lot cheaper than staying in the city. Our main aim whilst we were here was to find work. Chris got offered a job as a milk man and I got offered a job at Adelaide University. We both didn't think the jobs were right for us and thought we would get something better so carried on looking.

Whilst we were in Adelaide the weather was boiling, it was unbearable sleeping in the car so we had to put up the tent for the first time. At least it meant we got to spread out a bit as sleeping on a single mattress in the back of a car gets a bit too much after awhile.

We got to meet up with Clem and Maeva in Adelaide which was great for a catch up. Chris lived with Clem for a while in Melbourne and they are a right laugh. They had a worse time than us with their car and crashed it after owning it for 2 days and completely destroyed the thing and had to hitch hike.

We managed to fit in a bit of sight seeing whilst job hunting. The central market was really good and wasn't full of the usual tat that most the markets have here.

We spent a few hours at the SA museum which was interesting.

SA Museum

We booked to go on the Coopers Brewery tour which was great and they let you try every product they sell. It was crazy hot in the brewery though and I almost passed out.

Coopers Tour

We went to quite a few pubs and bars in Adelaide. The Belgium Beer Cafe was great, I loved the different flavour beers but its rather pricey. The Fringe Festival was on whilst we were there and they had loads of street performers. The Laneway Bar was really cool and had a stage set up and singers and comedians performed whilst we drank Martinis.

We look like alcoholics

Laneway Bar

At The Exeter

For Chris's birthday we had a BBQ at the campsite and just relaxed in the sunshine.

Birthday BBQ

So after not having much luck with finding a job in Adelaide we headed towards Alice Springs thinking we might have more luck there. I'd had a call about a job in Cooper Pedy but after driving there we drove straight out. That was not a place I wanted to stay!!

South Australia - Southend, Beachport, Robe

Southend is a tiny coastal town on a beautiful stretch of coast. The sea here is really calm and crystal clear. Its really roughed in parts and we loved it. Really different from anywhere else we'd been.

Southend

There's a place in Beachport called the Pool of Siloam which is 7 times saltier than the sea. We had a dip and floated around for a while :)

Siloam

Siloam

Things started to go wrong when we went further into Beachport conservation park. We went down a 4 wheel drive track and we didn't realise it lead to the beach. We didn't think it was a big deal because we had a 4x4 but when we couldn't turn around we got in trouble and burnt out the clutch. To cut a long story short we got rescued but with the recovery fee and fixing the car cost us a small fortune. We stayed in Robe for a few days whilst it was fixed, which is a really nice beach town and then headed to Adelaide to try and get some work.

Beachport Conservation Park

Robe



Grampians

The Grampians are in North East Victoria and we stopped here on our way to South Australia. We visited Manja Rock Art site which, was a little disappointing, I can imagine we'll see better rock art elsewhere in Australia. We turned off at Mount Zero to go to one of the many olive plantations in the Grampians.

Next we went to Gulgurn Manja shelter and Ngamadjidj shelter which has art work of human figures and hands. Its amazing how these pictures have lasted hundreds of years considering they just mixed rocks, eggs and water.

So we've been to a lot of waterfalls recently but Mckenzie falls is definitely the best one.

McKenzie Falls

The balconies were pretty spectacular. You could see for miles from Reids lookout.

The Balconies

Just before we got to Halls Gap, the biggest town in the Grampians, we stopped at Boroka lookout.







Great Ocean Road & Otoway National Park

Australia's most famous road! Loads of viewpoints and places to stop off. We did the drive in 3 days. After spending the evening in the Great Otoway National Park we stopped off at Erskine Falls and Teddy's lookout and saw my first Koala.

Erskine Falls

Erskine Falls

Koala

We decided to go for a walk and headed to Little Aire Falls and Triplet Falls which took us about 2 hours. Next we stopped off at Hopetoun falls which is definitely the best one, although a very steep walk back to the top.

Triplet Falls

Hopetoun Falls

We stayed at Johanna campsite which is next to the beach about 30kms west of Apollo Bay. The sea here is crazy and there are signs warning not to go in. Some guy nearly drowned when we was there. He was very lucky.

Johanna Beach

Johanna Beach

The last day on the Great Ocean Road is probably the most touristy and where the 12 Apostles are.





Sydney

We had free flights from Melbourne to Sydney courtesy of Jetstar for my 17 hour delay in Thailand. We stayed at a backpackers hostel in Kings Cross and spent the first day at Paddys Market, Chinatown and Darling Harbour. The weather was rubbish but we made the most of it. We headed to Circular Quay and the Harbour Bridge and Opera House. Its a beautiful view!

The Rocks is really cool, especially the Lowenbrau Bar which serves its beers in 1 litre glasses!

We spent the evening having drinks at the Opera Bar and enjoying the watched the Opera House and Bridge light up at night. Probably one of the best experiences I've had in Oz so far.

We spent the next day looking around the town and the huge Queen Victoria building and St Marys Cathedral. We visited the fish market and had a massive tasting platter.

We had a night out in Kings Cross at World Bar and drank a cocktail from a teapot. How cute :) Chris said he knew a great Irish bar so he took me there. They had bands on, free pizza and a topless waitress. Chris said he had no idea....LOL.

For Chris's birthday present we did the Harbour Bridge Climb. It was well worth the money and the view from the top. Sydney is a good looking city!

Afterwards we headed to The Rocks Market and back to the German Beer Bar to meet up with Míchéal and Francis! It was great to see them again and have a catch up!

For our last night in Sydney we booked a really posh hotel and enjoyed the spa and sauna. For our last morning here we went to Darling Harbour for lunch and watched the dragon boat tournament followed by a climb up the Towers of the Harbour Bridge.