Monte Pio Hunter Valley Maitland

... having lots of fun with the kids. Emma has grown so tall, and Jessica has lovely long blonde hair and as for Matilda, she was almost unrecongnisable - seeing she was only 12 months old at our last visit. She is chatting away now, and giving me (Grandma) lots of cuddles. We will spend a few days at their home in Maitland and then will head off to Port Stephens (not ...

... storage).

First port of call Warners Bay (northern end of Lake Macquarie) to say farewell to our family there – Glenn’s mum Hannah, dad Jimmy, sister Lorna, broth-in-law Allan and cousin Ryan. After a very hectic month it was great to relax, enjoy the hospitality and put our stresses and anxieties to rest.

Thanks Lorna & Allan for giving us one last night in a "proper bed". Say hello to the girls for us they are a great lay! (chooks of course)

... can't have sausage every day, can you??); · Some of the interesting local history...in Port MacQuarrie the church we attended had been built by convicts in 1824, and they made the walls one metre thick. I guess being convicts they were used to thick walls...thankfully they decided to forego the bars over the stained glass windows of Jesus. That might not have looked so good; And before you think that our travels are all peaches and cream ...

... and the spending another six months somewhere else before finally running off. The way the economy is right now I don't think I'll get a chance to work in the UK or in Ireland. Europe seems to have crashed. My ribs hurt from surfing. Being battered against the board is ******* all body parts. Watching 13 year olds surf past me while I struggle not to drown is ******* my ego. I think that's about it. I'll try to keep updates coming more regularly. No promises though.

... easier from here. A big "**** you" out to those who said I would fall flat on my face. One more week at Will's Mom's place. The place is actually growing on me, spiders and all. I was going to move into my new place this Saturday, but I'm going to be at a concert in Sydney, so I'll be moving in Sunday. I'll need to find a bus route for the next few weeks until I can afford a car. I also want to try and pick up a cheap lap-top at some point.

... our itinery is looking like this; Saturday: Newcastle - Canberra Sunday: Canberra Monday: Canberra - Melbourne Tuesday: Melbourne Wednesday: Melbourne - Ballarat Thursdy: Ballarat - Warrnambool Friday: Warrnambool - Naracoorte Don't forget to reply! See you soon

... in Nelson Bay yesterday and was surrounded by them, that was fantastic!! Main reason for coming here was to take a trip to the Hunter valley for wine tasting. After 2 unsuccessful tries to get on a trip I am finally on one for tomorrow. I'm not planning to use a spittoon thats for sure. Nice wine tasing trip, I would recommend the 1999 Lindermans Hunter Valley Stevens Shiraz, nice !!!!

So the long journey up the coast begins, but the first drive is not a long one. We left sydney early afternoon and made our way North out of Sydney for an hour along the coast to Palm Beech, or better known as summer bay. Yes its here were the aussies film home and away!!!! The is stunning and of course looks just like the show, we chilled for about an hour before setting off in the car again up the coast. We made our way for a couple of hours past ...

... then made my way to the town centre, to the obelisk. Tyrell Avenue which leads to the obelisk, was cited as one of the most beautiful tree lined avenues in the world in one of my guide books, but as the road was blocked off for roadworks and it was full of builders and their vans, it's a bit hard to comment! There were good views from the obelisk, although it wasn't really high ...

... when the story gets interesting. ACT 2: The Second Night Trevor and Dana Enter Stage Left We decided to go to bed about midnight, and expected to be woke some time later by the partiers stumbling in to the dorm, (We aren't 18 anymore, but we do know how things work). The first group came in around 2:30am and the rest of the people showed up in short intervals till about 3:00am. Although they surely had a fun night out, they were all pretty good, quite quiet, and made ...