No wonder there are no animals here... they probably all drowned. The rain hasn't let up for an instant. Mitsy leaked in the night, so all our bedding is wet.

New Zealand.....I had high expectations for New Zealand and so far these appear to have been well-founded. We find we are saying "Wow" a lot: such a range of magnificent landscapes, always something to go "wow" about in just about any direction.
We're getting about in Mitsy Beastie the Mitshubishi campervan: a little older than your average campervan on the road, she splutters black fumes, crawls up the slightest gradients and consumes a rather alarming rate of fuel - this causes me occasional financial and environmental distress. However, it is great fun and very snug.

Some news from a few weeks ago is that Rob passed his nasty physics exams he wrote at the end of August, so that was cause for some celebration. Then night before last, at the foot of Aoraki Mount Cook (highest peak in Southern Alps) he had a job interview for a post in Pietermaritzburg. We weren't quite sure when to expect the call, so we were ready from 7pm (8 am South African time) and it came through at 11pm - in the last throws of a rather epic game of scrabble. He did really well, answering questions from a panel, sitting in our little capmervan under battery-operated lights.

Tonight we're in Milford Sound Fjord, and the rain is bucketing down. It rains most of the time here. Mitsy is parked next to a roaring river, across from which is some rainforest, with a sheer cliff backdrop hewn by glaciers, now with many waterfalls cascading down.... We will be watching the water level cautiously!

There are hardly any insects here, which is quite refreshing - not one in the long-drops, even! A great change from Aus, where we went camping and had to take it in turn to eat because the other was in charge of waving away the flies - we were blanketed by them! Anyway, the lack of insects means that most of New Zealands flowers are white: they have to rely on moths of pollenation, and moths come out at night, and they see white flowers better in the dark! Also not many animals in general (apart from sheep, of course). Camping in Aus, apart from the flies, we also had wallabies hopping around our tent. In NZ the only known native land-dwelling mammal is the bat!

Interesting facts, but my airtime is up.....

A day in Sydney where folk get to work or to their important meetings by boat! Beats the underground, somehow. A very hussly-bussly, cosmopolitan city compared to Perth (which reminded me of Port Elizabeth). Also lots of beach and water. We took the ferry to Watson's bay, which is very pretty, but we felt a little overdressed - lots of nudists. No photos of that, I'm afraid, but here are some others:

Bridge snorkeling off Rottnest island:

The turquoise waters of Western Aus beaches:

Rob and Ian about to hunt some abalone:

Fun in Sydney:

Trying out the new fad for enormous sunglasses:

Being Mrs Mcquarrie on Mrs Mcquarrie's chair, Botanical gardens, Sydney:

Sydney Opera House - John and Nat: This one's for you!

Just arrived in Sydney from Uluru. This morning witnessed the bizarre 5:30 a.m. rush hour to go and see the big rock at sunrise. So also feeling a little jaded.
We're staying with Rob's friends Jenni and Tessa from Bristol days. They have a whole lot of plans so we are in good hands once again.

Hi and thanks to all who commented on our first entry!

We have spent the past 10 days or so exploring Perth and the area south of Perth (Denmark, Pemberton, and the Margaret River area).

Our tour guide this time has been a native of England, Ian, who is semi-local, with assistance from Olivia, who is a real local. Perth seems a laid-back out-doorsy city. Highlights for me were cycling and snorkeling around Rottnest Island; visiting the zoo with old school friend Charlotte (and her two little ones) and seeing koala bears; and the crystal clear waters of the beaches in the south. They really are superb beaches. Rob also especially enjoyed fishing for his supper (luckily Olivia is an expert fisherwoman who caught all 6 of our fish); going around Perth's waterways with Ian in his boat; and driving Ian’s diesel-guzzling tank down south. We also were wowed by all the wildlife: kangaroos, parrots, kookaburras, dolphins, whales (just 1), and a deadly snake!
We're on a dial-up internet connection so no more photo's this time, but we have a couple of beauts for next time.....
Tomorrow we head to Uluru (Ayres Rock) and then on to New South Wales.