1998

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Thursday 1 January 1998

Kim was very ill, spent all day (until early evening) throwing up. Aaron (aka Shaz) cooked me a very nice pasta dish, but didn't drink any alcohol. Girlies (minus Kim) went to the pub, played Phase 10 with the boys (and won!).

Crashed out on a sofa bed in the lounge around 2am.

Friday 2 January 1998

Drove back to Sydney in the afternoon, had a nap and slobbed out in front of the TV.

Saturday 3 January 1998

Went round to Robert's place to show his parents Kim's photos. They ended up having a big nostalgia trip over some school video Robert found while Kim was away.

Was very tired due to early rise and Kim keeping me awake all day (no afternoon nap).

Sunday 4 - Tuesday 6 January 1998

Wednesday 7 January 1998

Went to the beach to have a quick look when we first arrived, before having a BBQ for dinner.

Thursday 8 January 1998

Afternoon nap, Kim went for a walk with Jill, but I couldn't be bothered. Bed quiet early after a very nice lasagne.

Friday 9 January 1998

Went to the beach for a swim, then out for Chinese food. Had the banquet for 5, load of good food, was a BYO (bring your own alcohol) restaurant so was a bargain.

Saturday 10 January 1998

Sunday 11 January 1998

Went to the beach again (surprisingly) and spent most of the day there. Had very nice Tai food cooked by Jill for dinner.

Went out for a few beers with Chris (old friend of Kim's who lives by Emerald beach). The pub shut at 10pm so didn't get much drinking in. We were just about the only people left by then anyhow!

Monday 12 January 1998

Tuesday 13 January 1998

Wednesday 14 January 1998

Not much sun, and very windy so went to the beach and tried to fly my parafoil stunt kite. Was too windy, and one of the lines snapped.

Thursday 15 January 1998

Yvette was staying with her olds on their farm. Dad is a bit of a hoarded (doesn't believe in throwing stuff away) so the place was strewn with bits and pieces. Not just small stuff either - cars (loads of them), vans, trucks, cranes, a bulldozer, etc., etc. Also the usual farm stuff, goats, sheep, cattle, ducks, geese, a couple of dogs and the like.

Here I am after just kicking a weed out of the ground in Yvette's Tea Tree plantation. I think that'll do for the farm work for now

Wondered around the farm for a bit in the afternoon, then went to Yamba and for a swim in the Blue Pool. This is a natural spring (so fresh water) which comes up through rocks right by the coast to form a natural swimming pool.

While on this trek around the farm, Kim came across the outer skin (or whatever the correct insect term is) of a seccarda that had shed it. Here she is explaining what it is, and how we should handle the delicate object with care...

... before squashing to a pulp. Interesting? Well, at least you could admire her hat!

Picked up some fish and chips and ate them on a cliff by a lighthouse while the sun set. Then home for a few beers and birthday cake.

Here's the scene during the beer and cake frenzy... er... formal dinner that was my birthday celebration.

Friday 16 January 1998

Here's the imaginatively named Rooey. A tame kangaroo (or is she a swamp wallaby?) brought up by Yvette's family after one of their friends shot it's mother and found poor old Rooey in the pouch.

See, Rooey is so tame even I can get close.

Then out to Yamba again for a bit of nosh. Was very deserted but managed to find a restaurant which was open (a bit tricky as we went out quiet late) and scoffed a huge steak.

Saturday 17 January 1998

Drove back to Chris and Jill's and went out for curry in Woolgoolga. For such a small town, the restaurant was massive, but very quiet. Food was surprisingly good!

Sunday 18 January 1998

Monday 19 January 1998

Tuesday 20 January 1998

Get used to it, there's a whole lot of beach to see in Aus (woohoo!!!).

Wondered down to the Surf Club to find a bit of filming going on. They appeared to be filming a scene to do with a surf carnival or sort of race. Saw a few stars (Travis, Rebecca, Tiegan, Alf & Lachie). Loads of groupies hanging around, etc.

Here's the cast and crew from Home and Away doing the business... I think they're all out on the water in a boat at this stage.

Got home to find we were locked out so sat in the garage as it began to rain. Absolutely torrential rain followed, so the planned BBQ got cooked in the garage and eaten inside.

Wednesday 21 January 1998

Thursday 22 January 1998

After arranging all this, went over to see John and Denise in Dee Why. Went to the beach for an hour or so, then back to their place for pizza and a few drinks (for Kim, I drove). John and Kim celebrated her upcoming birthday with a short Port session. I almost cracked the Ned Kelly puzzle, but Kim took it off me for being too anti-social.

Friday 23 January 1998

We went home and slept some more before going to the beach. Spent most of the afternoon there (on Whale beach, just round the corner from Palm). Some big surf, and had fun trying to catch the waves. Got a couple, and was badly dumped a few times - all good fun though.

That evening went over to Simon's to meet and warm up before heading over to Epping Hotel. Was quiet a nice place, apart from the Karaoke singing they had on for some reason. Still, after a few beers, cocktails, spirits, etc. this didn't even seem that bad.

Yvette forgot she came to see us, she got talking to some guy, and seemed to quiet like him, if you know what I mean

When they kicked us out at 2am we spent a while deciding whether to go to Tracks (dodgy night club round the corner) but thankfully gave it a miss and got a cab home. Were dropped off at one end of the road and walked the wall!

For those who don't know, this means walking along the top of the 'wall' between Goliath Ave. and the dual carriage way that runs parallel with it. Don't worry, isn't as dangerous as it sounds, as the 'wall' is about 10 feet wide with slopes both sides. Hardest part was getting through the undergrowth half way along - I found diving into it with reckless abandon the best way!

Saturday 24 January 1998

Sunday 25 January 1998

However, day brightened up so ended up staying most of the afternoon/evening. Played cricket in the back yard, drunk beer, ate, etc. etc. Pretty good day in the end.

Monday 26 January 1998

Took the train to Circular Quay and wondered round to just above the opera house to watch some tall ships sail by. Back to Circular Quay to meet Will, Nic & a mate of his (name eludes me), Yvette, Fiona & Adam. Wondered up to Hyde Park food and wine festival via vintage car show.

Here's the view of the Opera House from the back, just at the end of Macquarie Street. Like, as if you want to see yet another shot from the front or side? This is where we watched the ships go by for a while.

One of the tall ships out for the Australia Day celebrations passing under the Harbour Bridge.

Another ship passing on it's way out to sea, spot the nutters in the crew up on the masts...

Kim, Will, Nic, unknown and I decided to head back down to the harbour to watch some aerobatics display (which turned out to be very poor) before walking back to Hyde park again.

Felt a bit iffy, and was getting very hot and not really enjoying the crowds by now, so Kim and I left for home.

Tuesday 27 - Friday 30 January 1998

Saturday 31 January 1998

Sunday 1 February 1998

Monday 2 February 1998

Tuesday 3 - Thursday 5 February 1998

Friday 6 February 1998

Went to Fatz - a pasta cafe come restaurant just off Oxford St to celebrate Rachael's birthday. Loads of her workmates there and the usual gang. Ate garlic bread, muscles and a few pasta dishes - very nice. Got pretty drunk on not too many beers, due to earlier sport.

Wondered for what seemed like miles to get to another bar, but thought better of having anything to drink. Not feeling too well, made our excuses and did a runner. Fell into the nearest available cab for the trip home.

Saturday 7 February 1998

Very nice calm water due to not being directly on the coast. Other plus points include no weed, and because of the calm water no surfing. This is good as there are no flags to swim between - you can swim the entire length of the beach without fear of being run over. The sea wall also provides good shade later in the day. Despite this I managed to get sunburnt though - doh! Sat around and read the paper, sent some email, swam, etc. etc.

Didn't feel much like doing much at night, so ordered some pizza. The meal deal turned up and was far too big for Kim and I (2 large pizzas, garlic bread, coke and tub of ice cream for $22). Ate this and watched TV most of the night.

Sunday 8 February 1998

Monday 9 - Thursday 12 February 1998

Squash at Mosman on Thursday, had a good game with a guy who ended up being in the same comp. team as we (to commence week 2 March).

Friday 13 February 1998

Was all a bit of a laugh. Had a freezer bag full or ice and beer, and a load of nibbles (nachos, dips, chips, etc., etc.). The quiz was all in aid of charity, so the quiz master could be easily bribed. Musical questions were a particular money spinner. Team A guess the next few words. If they're wrong, teams bid for the chance to challenge the answer given. The more people drank, the more convinced they got their (wrong) answers were right.

Saturday 14 February 1998

After all the strain (not) had a lazy night with take out curry for dinner and vegging out in front of TV. Pretty sad effort for Saturday though eh?

Sunday 15 February 1998

Madness prevailed in the evening and I went to the round robin at Mosman. This is just a turn up and play anyone and everyone (if there's enough time and few enough people) at Powerhouse. Had a couple of tough, and a couple not so tough games. All good fun, but was absolutely knackered afterwards so crashed out and watched the usual Sunday night stuff (a few good comedy shows and a movie) on TV.

Monday 16 February 1998

Anyhow, ate a pile of great picnic food (roast chicken, pasta salad, chips and dips, etc., etc.) and had a couple of beers. Very relaxing for me as they hadn't seem each other for a long time so I could just lay back and listen to the girls waffle on.

Tuesday 17 February 1998

The birds were a bit active today, here's one trying to bite my finger off as it can't tell the difference between that and a grape.

How tame are these two? ... venturing into the flat in search of more food.

Here's Kim on the balcony with some of the (not so) wildlife.

Got home feeling hyper for some reason, and wanted to go skating as it was a nice evening (as always). Kim had other ideas though so we went for a drive over to Woolwich to see her dad, who always sails over there Tuesday nights (during the racing season anyhow - which would be coming to a close in a few weeks).

Wondered along the shore for a bit as we missed the start, then had a quick beer when they came in and loaded the yacht onto it's trailer. This is the maximum size you're allowed to tow apparently (which he does with a Range Rover) and looks a lot bigger out of the water.

Wednesday 18 February 1998

Thursday 19 February 1998

Just a few (yep... there were more) of the birds I managed to capture on film this morning.

Went over to Castle Hill RSL for a few drinks to celebrate Greg's big 24(?) with Karen, Kim, Pete and the young lad himself. Drinks were very cheap here (as at all RSLs apparently). Greg and Pete ended up playing the pokies as usual as the place emptied. We soon followed, leaving by midnight.

Friday 20 February 1998

Saturday 21 February 1998

Went back home then on to meet Flea and Alex on Narrabeen beach. Really wild surf, was a really struggle to get out of the water.

In the evening we caught a cab over to the Pyrmont Bridge Hotel to meet a load of people. Greg and Karen showed up, along with the rest of the gang, and a load of Karen's old school friends (or were they workmates?). A few of us wondered round the corner to Star City to check that out. Most impressive thing there is the two story circular fish tank they have on the gaming floor. Load of pokie machines (one arm bandit things to those in the UK) and a few blackjack and roulette tables.

Downstairs there are a number of theme bars, so we ended up in an Irish one with some dodgy live music on. Drank a bit more, then left not long after Greg poured beer on Kim! Passed the hotel again to say hello to Karen who was still sat there with her friends (it was 2:30am by now) and caught a cab back home.

Sunday 22 February 1998

Struggled out of bed and decided to go to a beach. Headed for Balmoral but then decided to go to Freshwater to make the effort of getting out of bed worthwhile. Was very busy and the surf not really good for catching waves (to many dumpers) so just laid under the umbrella and slept.

Thought about visiting friends in Manly on the way home, but seemed like to much of an effort so just went home and crashed out while watching TV.

Had a bit of a laugh at the birds as we lounged around. For some reason a couple of them decided they wanted to take a nap on the balcony (yes, they are only playing here, not dead!).

Monday 23 - Friday 27 February 1998

On Friday night Kim came up to Berry Street Tavern to have a few drinks with my workmates and I. Played pool for a while before people started to disappear (this was meant to be a quiet after work drink up). We ended up leaving around 9:30 I think, just as the place started to get a few night time drinkers in (it's open 'til 4:30am at the weekend).

Saturday 28 February 1998

We don't actually have a machine in the flat, but there is a shared laundry in the block. This is cool, as it's pretty cheap ($1.20 a load) and when no-one else is using it (like too early on a Saturday morning) you can do three loads at once.

Later on we went over to Circular Quay on the ferry on route to the Opera House. I bought some tickets to a David Helfgott concert earlier in the month from someone at work who would no longer be able to make it. Took in a few tunes from the Symphony Orchestra, before hearing a few from Helfgott himself.

In case you don't know, Helfgott is the guy who's featured in the film 'Shine'. He played the piece which was also featured (Rachmaninov's piano concerto #3) and was supposed to have driven him nutty in the first place.

And I can tell you - he still looks to have a few screws loose! Although he can also play the piano pretty well (obviously). The SMH critic didn't really like the performance, but I thought it was OK - although I think we could have done without the occasional singing along ('Laaaa, la, laa' came out a few times) - I told you he was a nutter!

After the concert we wondered over the ANA hotel to visit Horizons cocktail lounge. This is on the 36th floor of the hotel and apparently has great views. I say apparently, as it was a bit busy so we weren't let in to check it out ourselves. As we'd been to the concert, we were a little over dressed for your average bar down in The Rocks, so went home and ordered a very nice Malaysian take out instead.

Sunday 1 March 1998

Monday 2 - Thursday 5 March 1998

Was very humid all day Wednesday, which brought shower upon us (work players) when playing soccer that evening.. Very nice and cooling - shame it stopped so soon to leave me to get hot and sweaty again before going home.

Friday 6 March 1998

Had a good game, very long, but pissed off to loose (3 - 2). There was obviously little communication between the home side (who supply food) as two plates of chicken arrived, plus some nachos. Ate this with the teams before leaving around midnight.

Could not turn off the car alarm when I tried to leave, so had to call the NRMA out to start the car. The guy took an hour to show up (looking very pissed off) and bypassed the alarm. Trouble is he couldn't be bothered to disable it totally, so I had to drive home with the hazard warning lights going. Lucky it was 1am by now and there wasn't much on the roads.

Saturday 7 March 1998

Went to Roddy and Richard's in Manly for drinks that evening. Watched some of his dodgy (sorry Roddy) home movies and rambled on for a while. Kim stayed sober and drove home (thanks!).

Sunday 8 March 1998

Drove over to Watson's Bay, and walked around headland. Was very windy so the sea was pretty rough, and was an impressive sight breaking against the cliffs, etc. There is also a pretty impressive view toward the harbour and city from some points. The Gap, as one part of this headland is known is famed for people committing suicide by throwing themselves off, Kim cheerily told me.

There is also a nudist beach on the headland, but was full of the usual dirty old men, not the sexy young women one would hope for.

Another tourist draw for the area is Doyles famous fish and chip restaurant (and take out) on the bay, but because the weather wasn't really up to much we didn't fancy lunch here in the open air.

Went home and watched the GP (very disappointing really) while Kim did some study for work and some letter writing.

Monday 9 - Thursday 12 March 1998

Friday 13 March 1998

And it's Friday, just gone 5pm. Sat on the balcony drinking ice cold beer in 28C heat (with a nice gentle breeze). ... [Various obscene comments to Sean Removed] ... it's a hard life!! Out of interest, he replied saying it felt about -20 in the UK, and he had the whole day of work ahead, with a cracking hangover to contend with. Ha, ha, ha!

Kim brought Sylvia (friend from work) home with her and we all headed out to Newtown to meet a load of her other work mates for dinner. The public transport (train) took ages and we turned up almost an hour late in the middle of the garlic bread course (this being an Italian restaurant). Still, no-one had ordered yet so it was all OK.

Pretty good food, and the BYO booze slipped down easily. I found a copy of TNT (the traveller's mag.) in the bottle shop when buying this, and just as well as for some reason we took the train home again, rather than the sensible hop in a cab option. At least we had something to read on the way though!

Saturday 14 March 1998

This was supposed to be a come as 'your fantasy' party but no one could really be bothered, with the exception of Tarzan & Jane and some guy in red fury boots and a cape (was he meant to be Dr. Lurve or something?). Was quiet a hot and humid night, so I just wore beach gear and claimed I was a beach bum (because we'd all like to just doss on the beach constantly without work wouldn't we?) and Kim turned up as Kasia herself (as she's a rather posh girlie that Kim wants to be like - either that or she was taking the piss!).

I did plan to stay sort of sober(ish), but this went out the window as we sat on our balcony drinking Baileys before we set off for the main event. Not far away, but the lift from Thao (arranged at the dinner the night before) was much appreciated.

Of the party though... glug, glug, glug... complain about the music... mingle, glug, glug, mingle... glug, glug. That's about it!

Left around 2am and staggered home in the drizzle (minus the now empty cold bag left by mistake). Was warm though, so didn't matter, not that there were many senses functioning by then anyhow.

Sunday 15 March 1998

Monday 16 March 1998

Tuesday 17 March 1998

After a whole day of this though, decided it wouldn't be such a bad idea. Shame Kim couldn't join me as she had already decided to go sailing with her dad, so I took the ferry over to the Rocks to meet some of the guys from work in The Mercantile. Easier said then done though, I wonder up the street to find a 100m long tent come marquee filling the road outside, and a huge crush to get into the bar - not a hope of finding anyone. Still, had a couple of drinks while I waited in vain before taking the ferry home again.

Turns out they arrived at about the same time as me, but had similar thoughts about the chances of meeting anyone, so wondered off to a quieter (relatively) bar down the road. Thanks!

Wednesday 18 March 1998

Thursday 19 March 1998

Friday 20 March 1998

	Here's the view South from the flat, of our rather small balcony to be precise. That's Milsons Park in the foreground.
	Another shot off the balcony, this time towards the harbour overlooking Careening Cove.
	Here are the previous two stuck together to form a panoramic view.
	The view South to the City from the top (35th floor) of the Optus Tower. That tower block on the very right of the frame is Blues Point Tower - the place I mentioned last month had picture postcard views. That was from 17th floor looking East, do you see why now?
	From the top of the tower again, this time looking East. If you knew where to look, you'd see our flat. On the top floor of the brown building, on the left about one third of the way down from the top.
	North Sydney from the bedroom window. The Optus Tower is that big brown building on the left by the way... you know, the tallest one with a spike on the roof.

Another Friday round of the Squash comp. (although thankfully the last, so they are now both out of the way), this time at Elanora. Very hot night, I but played first again, and managed my first win (wow!).

Had an absolute nightmare of a game to referee. Far to many lets being asked for, no-one happy with whatever decision I made. Made even worst by the apparent difference in rules between the UK and Aus. (or is that just the difference in my play and the couple moaning down on the court?).

Either way, our team also scored it's first victory and it was all forgotten at the after game nosh. Got home 12:15 (as Elanora is a fair way North) and looked out the window to see 26C registering on the thermometer - told you it was a hot night!

Saturday 21 March 1998

In the evening Greg, Karen, Simon & Jenny came over and had a few drinks before we headed out. They had all been up drinking 'til 6am that morning apparently so didn't fancy a big night. Because of this we stayed in North Sydney and ended up having dinner at the Black Stump Char-Grill, mainly because there isn't much in the area that's open at the weekend. Of all the places in Aus. tried so far, this was the one most like a British pub! Had a huge lump of steak there so I was happy.

Things were looking a bit more happening when we left after dinner, seems midnight is the best time to go out around here, but the group couldn't stay and make the most of it due to the previous night. Some of us were rather amused (and some shocked) by a couple in a park on the way home. Seems they may have come from the close by house party but were having a pretty good time all on their own, if you know what I mean.

Sunday 22 March 1998

Monday 23 March 1998

Tuesday 24 March 1998

Wednesday 25 March 1998

Thursday 26 March 1998

Got a ride there and back with Alex (no. 2) so appreciated the free beer (and pizza) laid on. Got home at 12:30 as is becoming the norm with away events.

Friday 27 March 1998

The strain of the week had proved too much though, and I found Kim asleep when I got in at 8:30! The weather forecast for the weekend was good though, so I decided on a quiet night in to prepare for a busy weekend.

Saturday 28 March 1998

Got home around 4ish and feeling revived from the lazy day wondered over to Powerhouse for the open house thing. Played five, quarter of an hour sessions with a few breaks and returned home knackered.

After a quick shower and change went to dinner at Flea & Alex's in Drumoyne, just down the road from the yacht club (see Tuesday) as it happens. Very nice place, great Thai curry and Toblerone cheesecake - thanks guys.

Sunday 29 March 1998

Got up again at 1pm feeling much better! Travelled to the Macquarie Centre for some shopping, then Lane Cove National Park for a bit of a stroll and more relaxation.

Went over to Kim's dads for dinner to celebrate his BD (on Monday) with Tod, Brad and their respective partners. Found an aerial postcard of London on the fridge and got mightily confused trying to find Broadgate (my old place of work) to show them. Was it the beer or the length of time away that caused this confusion? Got there in the end though.

Monday 30 March 1998

Concocted a great salsa sauce from tomato ketchup and chilli sauce to dip our nachos in while watching TV and partaking of a few drinks.

Tuesday 31 March 1998

Wednesday 1 April 1998

Thursday 2 April 1998

Friday 3 April 1998

Anyhow, good job I was in pretty early so could skive off early (2pm), rush home to change and dash over to the Sydney Regent. There in plenty of time as it happens so had to hang around (groan - get the pun?) before doing the jump off the roof. What a view from up there (on the roof, 36 floors up), and a weird experience to float past the guests windows, shame the only thing to see through them was a couple of bemused kids waving, you know what I mean?

See what the SMH had to say about the whole thing, it's a shame the picture on their web site isn't the same as that which made page three of the printed edition, still you can read about it at: "Sydney Morning Herald - Daily News - Thrill-seekers take the plunge to raise money for charity".

Here I am, taking the plunge and admiring the view (when I turn round that is) of the Opera House and Circular Quay in the background. And no, I'm not worried, the sun in my eyes - honest!

Feeling pretty good I wondered off to meet Kim in Balmain for her leaving drinks. Only had the one though as I had kindly volunteered to drive her car home (took the ferry there). Shocked her friends with my abseil gear, luck I brought something to change into. Had a great steak in The Royal Oak, was a pity I wasn't more hungry (had snacked on MD's a bit earlier) as the as much as you can eat salad bar looked pretty tempting too.

Saturday 4 April 1998

Went to Roddy and Richard's late house warming come celebration of being paid party in Manly. Drunk lots, ate far too many nibbles such as party pies, sausage rolls, pizza slices, crisps, etc., etc. Luckily Kim returned the favour of the previous night and stayed sober to drive home.

Sunday 5 April 1998

Monday 6 - Thursday 9 April 1998

On Thursday had a few quiet drinks after work at the now becoming regular Berry Street Tavern. Forgot Kim had no keys (as Greg was going to stay at our place over the weekend and had hers) and locked her out. Luckily I arrived home not long after her (having to walk home in the rain) as she'd been to Balmain after work.

Stayed home and packed for...

Friday 10 April 1998

Seemed very weird to have no passport control after landing and picking up the luggage, and for there to be a group of people waiting for friends at the gate. Had a bit of hassle when picking up the car as they thought I'd only paid for three, rather than four days, soon sorted them out though and headed North in the now upgraded Commodore (3.8l V6 - grin). Traffic was a little heavy out of Brisbane, but this was the morning (about 10am by now) of the Easter weekend so what do you expect?

Took the scenic ocean road and arrived at Noosa early afternoon. Checked in at the Noosa International and inspected the place. For some reason we ended up with a massive suite in this very quiet hotel come apartment complex (we had two sofas and dinner seating for eight in the open plan lounge). Also had a huge wraparound balcony with views into the treetops of the palms and whatever growing round the place.

Didn't bother to unpack now (and I never did) and left for Sunshine Beach just down the road. Sydney beaches aren't bad, but they just don't have the mile after mile sand of Queensland, so was very happy to be there.

Couldn't decide what to eat for dinner, so unfortunately ended up taking a KFC meal deal back home to eat on the balcony. Went for a few drinks in the very quiet resort bar (which was sunken in the middle of the pool BTW). Great cocktails, but not very alcoholic so stuck to the beer after the half price intro. Just sat around and was entertained (?) by the barman, who I'm sure thought he was Tom Cruise from Cocktail or something.

It started to rain a bit which put us off walking down to the high street and other bars. Never mind, good excuse to crash out pretty early due to the very early start.

Saturday 11 April 1998

Went to Boreen Point on Lake Cootharaba then on to Kin Kin.

Here's a quaint old outback hotel as seen at Boreen Point. They make it clear don't they?

We were planning on driving up the Cooloolah way to Rainbow Beach, about 25kms of dirt road which was passable in 2WD vehicles, but not after any rain. Given the night before we decided to give that a miss as it was very sandy. Besides that, we didn't have a very good map and the road forked just a few hundred meters into it's length with no indication of which way to go.

Took an alternate main road route, which was still not sealed but at least not as sandy and bumpy as the Cooloolah way. Rainbow beach was pretty busy... well, as busy as things get round here which means there were at least 20 people to be seen on a beach 20kms long. Sat and sunbathed for a while before wondering off to the pie shop for some refreshment (pies, sausage rolls, coke and milkshakes).

This is the 'alternate main road route' to Rainbow beach, very red dirt road. Straight as a die for miles (although you don't quiet see this as we filmed a bit going uphill - doh!).

After being there some time I realised that this really was a busy beach, not for the usual surfers and bathers though, for driving on. All the time we were there, there was an almost constant line of 4WD vehicles driving onto the beach some was down from us and travelling South to look at the Coloured Sands of Teewah. Made me wish I'd hired a 4WD myself so we could check it out, and drive on Fraser Island for that matter.

After most of the afternoon here, we headed back to Noosa to have dinner at Raging Bull restaurant, which was part of the resort complex before crashing early again.

Sunday 12 April 1998

	Here's Castaways Beach... very nice!
	We do like to show you the wildlife don't we? here's Kim with a tiny crab found on the beach. You have to be quick before the speedy little suckers run down their holes.
	And a close up him (or is it her?).

Monday 13 April 1998

First stop was Maroochydore, then on to Mooloolaba (I'm not making these names up - honestly!) where we visited Underwater World. Big aquarium type place with underwater tunnels and the like. Very much a typical tourist attraction being built on a wharf with the usual shops, arcades and attractions. Wondered down to the beach and ate lunch (great fish and chips) while watching the world go by.

Instead of the main highway back to Brisbane took a slightly more scenic route through the Glasshouse Mountains and Beerburrum. Drove to a lookout point and admired the strange landscape (these 'mountains' being volcanic mounds in an otherwise flat landscape).

	A couple of the Glasshouse Mountains, not very mountainous really.
	How artistic, got a rainbow in the shot and everything.
	Some more wildlife, this time it's a ?? bird sitting on a Blackboy.

Arrived in Brisbane too early so tried to call Yvette, but she was down in NSW. Went to Deception Bay and took a long walk on the beach and sea front before showing up at the airport an hour or two too early. Shame there's no duty free shopping on the internal stuff, eh?

Tuesday 14 - Thursday 16 April 1998

Friday 17 April 1998

Some guys at EDS arranged a pub crawl round North Sydney. Not that much of a crawl though as they only had five (I think) bars on their well planned route. This went straight out the window in the start though (Berry Street Tavern at 5) as it was raining outside and we didn't fancy getting too wet.

Ended up staying quiet some time and doing a few cocktails (bad move, but happy hour, so what can you do?) in Berry Street Tavern. Then down to the Victoria Cross at around 7:30 for more beer and cocktails. Drank some Cranberry Juice concoction and instructed the barmaid on how to mix Lynchburg Lemonade, more beer, etc. Kim showed up at around 8ish, and I think we left around 9 for...

... all a bit hazy from now on in, but I think Burger King for food was next, followed by The Greenwood and then back to BST just before 11. Some guy kept insisting on buying Jo and I drinks and that we play pool with him, nutter! Didn't really mind though as I was a bit too knackered to 'Cut Some Rug' (local phrase for dance) by then, although Kim was being a Solid Gold (some TOTP type show) dancer on the speakers on the side of the dance floor at this stage. Ended up leaving at 3am for the short stroll home.

Saturday 18 April 1998

Sunday 19 April 1998

Later afternoon Kim and I went to Kirribilli pub for lunch/dinner but found they were in the gap between the two and not serving. We stayed for a few drinks before deciding to go home and eat rather than wait for them to open up again.

Picked up a roast chicken and some veggies from the Spit Roast shop next door and took them home to scoff.

Monday 20 - Friday 24 April 1998

Parisha's (Kenan bod) last day at Optus so went to VC to meet up with her and pals when I finally dragged myself away from everyone at BST. Decided not to go for dinner with them though, as I didn't really like the sound of Japanese food during a drinking session.

Returned to BST when we parted company only to find everyone else had already left, so went home and found some Rugby on the TV which entertained me until Kim came home (she was doing her usual Balmain drinks).

Saturday 25 April 1998

As luck would have it, Flea was driving so we went to another bar in Balmain, name and location unknown as I wasn't paying that much attention. Went back and crashed out on Scott's excellent futon sofa - better than our real bed any day (as your feet don't dangle off the end!).

Sunday 26 April 1998

Decided to go down to Pyrmont and visit the fish market. Had a quick look round at all the weird stuff on offer before trying some. Well, Kim did at least (baby octopus & chips), the rest of us had more usual dishes, if you can call a fish and chip takeout that serves salmon steaks as normal.

Sunday's adventure over, and Scott and Rachel dropped back at home Kim and I spent the rest of Sunday afternoon/evening lazing at home as usual.

Monday 27 - Tuesday 28 April 1998

Wednesday 29 April 1998

BST as usual before James (was it him?) decides he wants to go to Planet Hollywood for a meal. Although I would never step into such a tourist trap in London, being here, and a being a tourist (albeit working one) seems to be a good enough excuse.

Took the train over to Town Hall (James, two girlies from UK who are dossing at his place for a while, Scott and I) to meet up with Rachel in P.H. Had a couple of cool cocktails (never seen so much crushed ice pilled high above the rim of the glass), some more beers, etc., etc. before settling down for a bit of Mexican grub.

Huge portions, and a mammoth piece of cake with candles for the birthday boy (who was forced to stand on his chair with said cake held aloft while the whole restaurant sang to him).

See how gentile birthday boy James is in his consumption of the cake.

The food was good, so jokingly asked for a doggy bag for Scott's leftovers, which were actually brought back all wrapped up.

The mob on George Street. See how proudly I hold my trophy (Planet Hollywood carrier bag with the remains inside) - what a plonker!

Train home alone at midnight as the rest either took the ferry to Manly, or a cab over to Balmain.

Thursday 30 April 1998

This they did, and we ended up at a quiet busy Black Stump Chargrill (seeing as we all had buy one, get one free shop-a-dockets). Chicken pastry thing was good for me, and the rest ate steak (as is their speciality). Back home for a few swigs of beer before sending the guests on their way and falling into bed.

Friday 1 May 1998

The weather was pretty dodgy in Sydney (dull and raining), but as it was all arranged and everyone's bags packed we jumped into John's Commodore and headed West, hoping for better. Unfortunately this was not to be and we arrived a couple of hours later in Katoomba which was up in the cloud base by now, and had that drizzle, come water floating in the air feeling.

Decided to have a pizza and think about what to do. The decision to return home came quickly, as did the hot chocolate, followed closely by our snack. Ate this while listening to an girl duo (with acoustic guitar) who were performing in the cafe.

On the way home went past Echo Point. This is where the most famous view of the mountains can be seen. I'm standing on this overhanging ledge less than a hundred metres from the Three Sisters, the ledge is over a 300 metre shear drop, and there is bush land out ahead as far as the eye can see. There's even a plaque here to commemorate the QE II's visit to this spot in 1954 - it's that famous!

And what do I see? The amber glow of spotlights (which are supposed to light the sisters) a few meters below the ledge as their glare is dispersed by the cloud and drizzle!

Mega-disappointed we head home via an alternate route only to find the road blocked by an accident and have to turn back and retrace the last hour of driving, finding ourselves back in Katoomba almost two hours after we left for home! John is knackered by now, so I took over the driving duties and got home around 1:30am.

At least John and Sylvia got to camp out in our lounge when we finally went to bed.

Saturday 2 May 1998

Ate our camping supplies (bacon, sausages and spuds) for dinner, expertly prepared by Kim and Sylvia before John decided it was time for home.

	Kim and Sylvia showing us some of their expert meal preparation skills.
	Some strange behaviour by the sink.

Tried to convince Sylvia and Kim to come over to Manly to James' drink up (in order to celebrate his birthday a second time) but neither of them were feeling up to it. We decided I should go alone and that way (anticipating my hangover that would follow) they could get up bright and early and go and do girlie Sunday activities (shopping I think).

So I showed up at James' place, around 8ish I think with readily prepared sleeping bag and therm-a-rest.... oh, and half a case of beer. Threw a few beers down before going to the pub. The pub in this case being The Steyne.

Stayed at The Steyne until they threw out (3am). Got a whip going so much quick drinking followed (why spoil the pace set at James' place). A few stupid photos, a bit of dancing (not bad music, but limited collection - like they played a few tracks three times!) and a lot more beer later we were set to leave.

One of the many stupid photos taken in the Steyne this night

Wondered home via a great pie shop (pie & sausage roll for me - yum!). Wendy got the obligatory ride home in a shopping trolley, which we parked in the bat cave (aka. behind some bushes) at James' place. I think the name came about because of mine - can't get away from this Batman & Robin thing anywhere!

Got back inside and for some unknown reason thought it would be a good idea to crack open another coldie. Eventually crashed out on the lounge floor at 5am.

Sunday 3 May 1998

After all the phone calls and a bit more sleep I eventually struggled out of my sleeping bag at 1sh. Played with James' Playstation for a while before the others got up too. Thought about getting the ferry or bus home, but this would have been a very bad idea. Tried a few more games before eventually taking a cab home around four o'clock.

Kim was already home watching TV and I was beginning to feel better so went down to the Spit Roast shop for a bit of takeout Sunday lunch. Did nothing much after this though.

Monday 4 - Friday 8 May 1998

Usual Friday night drinks at BST. Stayed a bit too long and ended up with room spin (first time in years!).

Saturday 9 May 1998

Watched highlights of a crazy Aussie spectacle on TV. Some iron man (triathlon) race: 2.5km (I think, 45 minutes worth anyhow) swim, 180km bike ride then run a full marathon (40kms). After over eight hours the leaders (two guys who've been together all day) come into the closing straight side by side. 50m from the line one of them sprints off and the other just looks in disbelief and almost stops. How annoying would that be? And the last official finisher? 1003rd or something and took over 15 hours!

Had arranged to meet Pete, James and Scott in the Rocks (Orient Hotel) then go over to Darling Harbour for the Big Boys Toys exhibition. Kim still not feeling to good so did the show with the guys. A bit of a disappointment really - not enough toys (gadgets) and too much home cinema and car hi-fi gear. There was also a lack of the anticipated promotional staff - if you know what I mean.

Called Kim as we left and persuaded her to meet us in One World Sport (bar in Darling Harbour). She, Rachel and Leigh showed up and we moved on to Bridie O'Reilly's in the City. Irish bar that actually served pints, and had Stella on draught. Had some drinks and dinner (pie and chips) here before taking the train over to Milsons Point and home.

Sunday 10 May 1998

Aussie TV is basically nothing but sport on the weekend so I managed to find a selection of motor sport to watch. UK touring cars, Safari of Kenya Rally, and some crazy Aussie formula that sees the most diverse range of cars imaginable line up on the grid. For example, this had the likes of the Suzuki Swift racing your standard Falcons and Commodores, through MR2s, Supras and BWM M3, right up to a Ferrari 355, Lotus Elise, Dodge Viper and a few Porsche 911s thrown in for good measure. How bizarre - guess they like the moving chicane concept here!

Did nothing much else all day, even ended it watching the Spanish GP. Very dull season this one, but at least I didn't have to stay up late to wait for the result as I rang Sean to break the monotony and discovered the race broadcast was delayed by an hour here. Being really live in the UK I found the result out half way through the broadcast and saw no point watching the rest.

Monday 11 May 1998

Tuesday 12 - Wednesday 13 May 1998

Thursday 14 May 1998

Went home and watched Ab. Fab. before we retired (well, Kim and I did anyhow).

Friday 15 May 1998

Wendy and Robert came home with Kim after work and we went to the Imax at Darling Harbour to see. "Amazon" which was pretty cool on the huge screen. Went to the Rainforest Cafe just round the corner afterwards. Can't say I'd recommend this to anyone as it' was pretty mediocre grub, and the theme really could have been implemented a whole lot better.

Saturday 16 May 1998

By the time the game started Greg was nicely on his way and missed the lot, preferring to hang around outside and talk about Aussie sports with Steve and his son. Kim and Karen just sat quietly laughing at Greg (and the rest of us shouting at the TV).

Went home around 2:30 and sat around trying to wake up the neighbours (lucky I left the real stereo in the UK) and drinking until 4ish.

Sunday 17 May 1998

Monday 18 - Tuesday 19 May 1998

Wednesday 20 May 1998

Thursday 21 May 1998

Went to Metropolis after work for a communal leaving drink up. We had a room with loads of pool tables booked, music, nibbles, etc. Was a pretty good effort for a work related thing. Kim showed up later on and stayed an hour or so before going home.

Friday 22 May 1998

Went out for drinks at the BST as usual, but only for, "a quick few". Some time later I got a call from Kim who had met up with Rachel in Balmain, so they came over to our place to meet Scott and I. Had some more drinks there and a curry while watching the State of Origin rugby (great game for a couple of Aussie sides!).

Scott and I proceeded to have a (now drunken) battle of skill (and not much judgement) on the Playstation, got to bed pretty late as a result.

Saturday 23 May 1998

Kim wanted to go shopping on the way home, but I didn't see much point and went home. Just as well as Chris (from Woolgoolga) had arrived for his visit (was staying the night and flying out to the UK Sunday) a bit early.

Had a few beers at home with him before going to Bridie O'Reilly's in the City to meet with Greg, Karen, Simon, Pete (his birthday booze up today), etc, etc. They showed up only an hour late, giving us time to sample the pub grub in peace.

This could have been a very messy affair, but luckily Chris' flight the next gave us an excuse to leave early and avoid the impending mayhem this group would surely cause.

Sunday 24 May 1998

Monday 25 - Wednesday 27 May 1998

Thursday 28 May 1998

Friday 29 May 1998

Saturday 30 May 1998

Had to take the train (and a bus for the first stop - as they weren't running over the bridge) to Wendy's to pick up Kim's car. Went home via Balmain to pick up Scott before taking the ferry over to Circular Quay.

Not a bad night, but we must learn to pace ourselves more. Jackson's on George (ended up there after meeting at the Orient and a quick visit to the Observer) was still lively at 2am when we left, hardly surprising as this is a 24 hour bar, but a pitiful display really for an 8pm start.

Sunday 31 May 1998

Monday 1 -Thursday 4 June 1998

Friday 5 June 1998

Saturday 6 June 1998

I'd say Titanic is a surprisingly good film, given all the awards (usually a sure sign it's going to be crap). Although there are a few obvious turns in the plot (and no, I don't mean the part where the ship sinks!) I enjoyed it. I can't say the same of the Hoyts experience though, not very impressed with the theatre at all which had dodgy squashed seating and sound that echoed around the place far too noticeably.

Sunday 7 June 1998

Monday 8 June 1998

Tuesday 9 - Friday 12 June 1998

Saturday 13 June 1998

After not going to the movies for months (all my time in Aus, and then some) took in another one for the second weekend running. This time was As Good As It Gets at the Walker Street Cinema. Weird but entertaining, and a much better (albeit smaller) theatre.

Sunday 14 June 1998

	Just to give you an idea of scale, here's Kim on the Harbour bridge.
	Here's a few of the hotels down in the Rocks. The Australian Hotel in the foreground has been there a little longer than (from right to left) The Sydney Regent, some office block, Quay West and The ANA.
	Wondering further you find yourself in the Rocks markets. There were a couple of musical acts going on down here. The usual tourist trinkets for sale, as well as some genuine Aussie memorabilia.
	Erm... sorry to include this one - me taking it easy in the Botanical Gardens.

Walked back over the bridge and stopped off at the Kirribilli Hotel for a couple of drinks on the way home. After a few there, decided to buy a case of it from the bottle shop next door for some reason. Lugged that home then cooked up some Mexican grub (burritos) for dinner.

Monday 15 June 1998

Tuesday 16 - Thursday 18 June 1998

Thought I'd include this artistic (hmmmmm...) shot of a rainbow over the city. If you can't guess, it did rain a bit this week.

Friday 19 June 1998

5:00pm, Berry Street Tavern (next to work, on Berry Street surprisingly). Still remembering the pace of the last crawl decided to stick to the beer at this early stage and all began well. Took a cab over to the city for...

7:15pm, The Marble Bar (underneath the Hilton, George Street). Pretty cool place, cocktail happy hour, no beer in here.

8:00pm, Henry IX (next door). A bit of a dodgy looking joint in a sort of shopping arcade. Kim showed up here to join the fun, shame about the couple of old fogies playing ancient tunes, they soon saw us out of this place.

8:45pm, Forbes (corner of York and King Street). This was a bit more like it, better music, and even a small dance floor upstairs. Thought someone had stolen my coat and left the bar without it. Was convinced to go back and look for it, still no joy. Luckily Kim remembered I'd been upstairs where it was found. Coat was stashed in Scott's bag for safe keeping.

??:?? - Some Irish bar near Forbes (or did we do this before, can't quiet tell). Had a quick drink in here while asking for directions to MD's and the next venue.

10:30pm, McDonalds (George Street). It didn't help that I was drinking the remains of the Cold from the place before when I walked in. Was asked politely to take it outside, so sculled it and dropped the bottle in the bin. The security guard obviously had it in for us then, and asked me to leave just because I squashed an (empty, so where's the harm in this?) fries container on Scott's head. Kim returned from the bathroom to find me being escorted to the door with the rest of the party in fits of laughter.

10:45pm, City Hotel (347 Kent Street) Bouncer says, "Sorry mate, private party". Bouncer means, "You lot look a bit too unstable to come in 'ere."

11:00, Club Retro, Bristol Arms Hotel (Sussex Street). Having lost half of the group between bars (turns out they were let into the City Hotel) sent a scout off round Retro looking for them. Sat around and moaned about the state of origin result (NSW loss) before everyone else showed up. Was a bit too quiet in here, so moved on...

??:??, The Slip Inn. Far better, a much more lively place. Stayed here for some time, got rather lost and ended up walking right round the place a couple of times in search of relief (if you know what I mean), was pretty impressed with it really. Somehow everyone managed to slip off one by one until just Kim, some Spanish guy and I were left. Called it a night at 3ish and took a cab home.

4:30am, Spanish Club (Liverpool Street). Where we were supposed to end up to watch the football (and where the Spanish guy claimed to be headed). Far better off in bed I think.

Saturday 20 June 1998

Kim had organised to meet friends for drinks in the Hyatt in the rocks, so gave her a lift over there and went round to Scott's to watch the soccer (Japan v Croatia). Was expecting to be summoned for a life home, but the call didn't come so went home and was settling down to the second game of the night when Kim arrive (having got a lift with a friend).

Sunday 21 June 1998

Monday 22 - Tuesday 23 June 1998

Wednesday 24 June 1998

Hurrah, revenge is sweet (see April 1), although I have a feeling I'm going to pay for this...

Thursday 25 - Friday 26 June 1998

Saturday 27 June 1998

Drove over to Wendy's, then off to the Koala Park. Not a very large place, but saw some pretty tame (as in domesticated, not in the derogatory sense) Aussie wildlife.

	Me by the sign... just so you know where the rest of these shots are taken.
	Kim thought the birds were pretty docile, and liked being petted...
	... turns out she was wrong. Ha, ha, ha. This is one for a home video show I think!
	Me traumatising a Koala...
	... and a kangaroo.
	They're just not very obedient animals. Heel I tell you, heel!!
	This Cockatoo was a bit inquisitive. He (or she?) stuck a foot through the cage and grabbed a strap on my rucksack. Wondering what it was finding of interest we opened the pocket... looking for food perhaps? You'll find nothing but squash balls, a spare contact lens and my shades in there though.
	For all you folks back in the UK who listened to Kim rave on about wombats, and how they look like huge hamsters, here's one to judge for yourself. Well, it sort of is... this one is about 2 feet long by the way.

Sunday 28 June 1998

Monday 29 - Tuesday 30 June 1998

Wednesday 1 July 1998

That evening, played the second knockout round of squash at Willoughby against Forest. Revenge again as I beat their number one 3-2 (from 2-0 down) who I lost to in the first match of the season. The team went on to win 3-1 and we're in the finals!

Thursday 2 July 1998

Friday 3 July 1998

Saturday 4 July 1998

Impressed with all these venues (apart from the fact The Monkey Bar close at midnight) - Balmain is a good place to have a few drinks. Turns out I've been to the Lime Bar before (the unknown bar from 25 April) as it's the only place for miles that's open late (well, was still packed at 1:30 when we left).

Got home in time to catch the second half of a World Cup match (Holland v Argentina) and had a few beers (err... forgot to mention I'd been driving round all night). Kim had a phone frenzy, calling a few people in the UK. I made a some calls too, and watched some music show before considering the second match of the night... and then thinking better of it.

Sunday 5 July 1998

The circle of palms in Milsons Park, seeing as the park is coming up for it's centenary... you'd guess they'd been there for the best part of a century.

Tried the Shenhai's Bombay Beef. for dinner, as recommended in the Sun Herald the previous week. Apparently this is a favourite of the Aussie PM's (who lives down the road in Kirribilli House and orders from there too). Not bad... but I prefer the Butter Chicken.

Monday 6 -Tuesday 7 July 1998

Wednesday 8 July 1998

The Mosman Powerhouse C12 team - runners up in the Autumn Pennant 1998. From left to right: Richard, Rob, Alex, Darren and Don Weir. And no, I didn't play in jeans, I just got changed before anyone else.

Thursday 9 July 1998

	Hello girls!!!
	And for those of you who don't think I fit in here...

Kurt had to get back to North Sydney to meet his girlie, so a few of us grabbed a cab there and ended up in the BST. More drinks and a few games of pool later decided it was time to stagger on home.

Friday 10 July 1998

Saturday 11 July 1998

Sunday 12 July 1998

Started an exercise in sleep depravation by watching the British GP (good job it turned out to be a decent race) and...

Monday 13 July 1998

Tuesday 14 - Thursday 16 July 1998

Friday 17 July 1998

Saturday 18 July 1998

Sunday 19 July 1998

Monday 20 July 1998

Tuesday 21 July 1998

I found the 'roo didn't have as strong a flavour as more usual steaks (beef), perhaps why it was marinated (well, looked like it had been) before cooking. The fibres of the flesh seamed to be more tightly packed, which some people think can make it tough. I liked the texture though, and found it easier to palate than beef, you might even say it almost melted in the mouth.

Erm, yes... bloody good tucker as usual from The Royal Oak!

Wednesday 22 - Thursday 23 July 1998

Friday 24 July 1998

Saturday 25 July 1998

Sunday 26 July 1998

Monday 27 July 1998

Tuesday 28 July 1998

Wednesday 29 - Thursday 30 July 1998

Friday 31 July 1998

Saturday 1 August 1998

Sunday 2 August 1998

	Here I am at the (thinks about it...) North end of Manly beach.
	From the North end of Manly beach again... that's Kim on the bench in the foreground.
	Kim enjoying a huge Danish role down at Manly beach.

Went home and rested for a while before a game of squash.

Monday 3 - Tuesday 4 August 1998

Wednesday 5 August 1998

Thursday 6 August 1998

It only takes a moment before you realise where Sketchy's (in the basement of the Hotel Inter-Continental) got it's name - the walls are covered with framed caricatures of the famous and not so. The food was excellent too - line up, pick your size bowl size (peckish, hungry or famished), make your choice of pasta and sauce ingredients and they're cooked up right then and there.

Off course I was famished, and I can tell you, there's no need to add a visit to the salad bar to your order! Evening over, Kim and took a ferry home in the rain.

Friday 7 August 1998

Saturday 8 August 1998

Sunday 9 August 1998

Monday 10 - Wednesday 12 August 1998

Thursday 13 August 1998

After the show a few of us headed back to North Sydney at around midnight and ended up in the Greenwood. Can't quiet explain what I was still doing there a few hours later... a bit of pool, a few drinks, etc. etc. Got home at 4am... oops!

Friday 14 August 1998

Saturday 15 - Sunday 16 August 1998

Monday 17 - Tuesday 18 August 1998

Wednesday 19 August 1998

Thursday 20 August 1998

Friday 21 August 1998

Saturday 22 August 1998

The flight to Christcurch was uneventful, as was the airport there, and the short (45 minute) hop to the final destination - Queenstown (although the NZ scenery on the way was quiet interesting). When we turned up at the Avis reception in the tiny Queenstown airport to collect our car, someone (OK - me... duh!!!) had forgotten their driving license - guess this means Kim has to play chauffeur all week.

The whole place was very quiet, probably as everyone was off skiing (this was 4pm) as we drove into the town centre to pick up skis from Sports World before checking into the Novotel. Very nice place with a really big apartment and an ample kitchen area which was later christened with a pasta creation of mine (after picking up the supplies of course). After that we'd just about had it for the day... so crashed out early.

Sunday 23 August 1998

Arranged to meet Leigh and James in the Pig & Whistle (Queenstown's 'traditional' English pub) for drinks, and stayed for an unplanned dinner (nice pies... shame about the size of the steak).

Monday 24 August 1998

Right from the point we turned off the main highway (6) up to the resort the road was basically just a single lane mud and gravel track, add to this the fresh snow (with more falling), lack of roadside barriers for your reassurance and lack of grip... yes - the trip up there was an experience in itself! We did stop half way up to put on our snow chains which made things a lot better, even so it was almost 11 before we were taking on the first slope of the day.

Thankfully, once up on the piste the fresh snow was great and the day turned out to be pretty good, there were even some sunny spells in places, made the struggle up seem well worth it. And although there were only a couple of lifts running The Remarks were able to keep us entertained for a good few hours. The fresh snow made up for lack of marked runs, as it seemed you could take and route you cared from top to bottom.

There was time for just a quick run after our brief lunch break before the weather turned for the worse and we thought it best to leave for home, as the snow began to fall again and the wind picking up. As it happened it was quiet a pleasant day down in the valley but as there was only half an hour or so left before the lifts were due to close I wasn't too bothered about leaving.

Chauffeur Kim waiting patiently while I get a shot of the car and all it's ski attachments (before it gets too filthy).

Back home we'd felt like that was it for the day and simply crashed out, had a few drinks and watched an in house movie.

Tuesday 25 August 1998

There were a few of these Kea birds scavenging at The Remarks (we saw some later at Treble Cone too). They are apparently a great menace as they like to remove the rubber windscreen surrounds and wiper blades from parked cars!

Kim and I were happy to Ski until the last lift (at 4pm) before heading home for drinks, relaxation and another pasta delight.

Wednesday 26 August 1998

Drove home via Arrowtown - a small mining (gold rush) town and sampled pies and a desert from the local baker. Put our skis in for waxing and went home for some rest.

Having had enough of that (the resting), took a ride on the Shotover Jet - you know, where some loony in a black beanie drives you in a jet boat inches from either side of a canyon, does 360' turns, almost runs it aground (actually, we were a bit late in taking our ride, because one of the boats earlier today had run aground - very reassuring!), etc, etc. Excellent fun!

	One of the Shotover jets beginning a 360 degree spin near it's jetty.
	Me looking forward to a wet and wild ride!
	Kim having just had one.
	Just checking what's left of my hair is still there.
	The good old Route Master gets everywhere... think he took a wrong turn on Bow Road?

A bit cold and damp from the ride went home for a Sauna to warm up and more relaxation (yep... when on holiday it turns out you really can't have enough of this)..

Thursday 27 August 1998

Once there (at Cardrona) the skiing was the best so far, with loads of fresh snow and a bigger area to explore. Spent all day (5 hours of it anyhow) skiing the Captain's Basin which had many official routes from top to bottom, although by the end of the day all tracks were merged and top to bottom skiing by any route you fancied was the order - great!

Here I am taking a well earned break after one of our the many runs in the basin.

Afterwards, the pleasant drive onwards to Wanaka was a great improvement on the morning trip. Drove straight up to the lake to sample to the amazing view upon our arrival. A picture postcard view of the mirror smooth lake Wanaka, with snow capped mountains behind was our welcome.

On the shores of Lake Wanaka at dusk.

Tried to check into our accommodation, and the fun started (hmmm...). No record of a booking, so the owner rings round some other places in the area to no avail. In the end he tried to get us housed in a sub standard hotel round the corner. We had a look at this but were not impressed, went back to the original place and rang the Aussie travel agent we booked through. In the end they arranged accommodation at the Edgewater Resort which was much better (and a handy upgrade - I should think so too, as all this messing around kept us from checking in before 7pm).

Went to the Edgewater's bar for few drinks and a snack before turning in for the night.

Friday 28 August 1998

Treble Cone itself was a pretty decent area, and had few queues at the lifts all day. Amazing views down to Lake Wanaka when the clouds lifted and soaked us in sun all day. Here lay the problem... too much sun at too low an altitude which made for an enjoyable morning, but an ice and slush mix on the slopes by 3ish. Not that much fun to ski on so headed home to relax in the sun on our balcony and have a quiet walk round by the lake.

The panorama from close to half way up Treble Cone (just above the Moro six man chair). That's Lake Wanaka below and you can see the road we came up on (the only one here!) snaking around in the bottom left corner.
	Me trying to explain what a great view it is (when I'm not there anyhow).
	Another view from the shores of Lake Wanaka, close to the Edgewater Resort. You can see the shore is covered in rocks and pebbles... great place for skimming stones.
	Some of the wildlife to be seen here on lake Wanaka.

Stopped off at the bar on the way back home (how handy) and sat in the sun until it went down behind the mountains. Went shopping for some more drinks and snacks and had fish and chips on the way home.

Saturday 29 August 1998

Spent the day wondering round Wanaka (a tiny place, so this didn't take long) resting and watching TV (thank god for hotel movie channels). Had dinner in the bar again while watching the build up to the last Bledisloe cup game... the rowdy Kiwi crowd were to be disappointed though (ha, ha!). Didn't stay for the game though as we wanted to be up and away early.

Sunday 30 August 1998

Had a brief morning stop for a warming hot chocolate and met up for lunch with James and Leigh in the Mezz bar. These were our only breaks before finishing up at 3:45 as the weather turned colder and the Captain's Basin lift closed - a very satisfying last day.

Had dinner at the Wankai Cafe on the lake front which served strange (I had honey chilli chicken kebab, and Kim had a sort of nutty veggie dish) food, which was filling and tasty.

Monday 31 August 1998

Caught this great view of the sun setting behind the Harbour Bridge on the ferry home.

Tuesday 1 September 1998

Wednesday 2 September 1998

Thursday 3 September 1998

Friday 4 September 1998

Had a snack at BK later and went to a very dead Metropolis for a few drinks and played a bit of pool. The Canterbury supporters piked quiet early though - you'd have thought they should have been celebrating, followed closely by the rest.

Saturday 5 September 1998

Sunday 6 September 1998

The evening event was a BBQ at Arthur's place (as it was Aussie father's day) at which I didn't see the cooking device once. At this very civilised event the food was cooked outside by the host and brought to the dining table for public consumption. Very bizarre... but I think this is the norm here as we've done it before.

Monday 7 September 1998

Tuesday 8 September 1998

Wednesday 9 September 1998

Not your average night at the pictures, free snacks for all and champagne at Planet Hollywood (over the road) afterwards. Was pretty interesting to see what the producer (Bille August) had to say when he gave a quick introduction before the screening. For those who are interested:

Apparently, they were originally going to make this film with Gerard Depardieu and Roman Polanski, who wanted to record it in French, but no-one would finance a French language production, so that idea was canned. Bille went on for some time about this story, and how they eventually ended up with Liam Neeson and Geoffrey Rush as the male leads, and how it was probably a better product in the end because of this. Funnily, he very quickly skipped over the story behind the female leads with something like, "...oh, and then we got Uma (Thurman) and Clare (Danes) to join us... hope you enjoy it anyhow..."

I thought it was a pretty good movie anyhow, and no, the cast never once broke into song (shame the musical version of this story is the most famous, eh?). Some might find it a little slow, but in the words of Bille August, "...the pace is subtle, rather than fast", whatever that's supposed to mean?

Later, after the quick drink (only the one -damn) at Planet Hollywood decided to eat there too and ended up getting home pretty late.

Thursday 10 September 1998

Not that I didn't want to, was feeling pretty good from all the activity earlier this week so went along and have a great (felt very energetic, and couldn't do much wrong) 3-0 victory. Just as well as we ended up drawing in matches and games, and only won this round by six points.

Friday 11 September 1998

5pm, The Berry St Tavern (Level 1/77 Berry St). Obviously we made this one - you can't go far wrong walking out of the office to the building next door.

6:30, Legends (Sheraton Wentworth Hotel, Elizabeth St). Almost on time, we took the train to Town Hall and followed the crowd to Legends (I had no idea where I was going). This is a pretty cool place which played good music and was pretty busy, unfortunately it turned out to be a bit too good, drawing everyone to the dance floor and causing us to overstayed this visit.

8:30, Paragon Hotel (1 Macquarie Place). Yeah, right... more like 10pm! I was meant to meet Kim in here at the planned time of 8:30 though so ended up running between Legends and the Paragon a couple of times before I convinced everyone to join us here. Things in full swing by now the whole crowd pilled on to the dance floor to some dodgy displays of movement.

10:00, dinner is served, McDonalds next door to the Paragon. Well, actually we did visited MD's, but about 20 minutes before going into the Paragon. Eating's cheating, but as everyone did I suppose we'll forget about it. Actually met Kim milling around here at 9:30 - about 20 minutes after she got to the Paragon, good jobs she knows our timekeeping by now.

11:00, Brooklyn Hotel (225 George St). Tried to get in here at something approaching midnight but was foiled by the lack of a collar on someone's shirt (even though the bouncer wasn't wearing one - figure that out!).

12:00am, Riva or CBD. Turned out to be CBD at 12:15ish (after the walk down from the Rocks). Another cool, but rather up market looking bar opposite The Forbes. Were disappointed to find the top (?) floor closed (which apparently houses the dance floor - but I was told later by a bouncer that this didn't exist) so sat around in the almost relaxing atmosphere for a few. Also bumped into Rod (again!) before leaving at around 2.

1.00pm, City Hotel. This venue was scrapped, not suprisingly, given the late arrival at CDB and the amount of grooving that had already gone on.

Saturday 12 September 1998

In the evening, went to Phil and Jono's to laze around and watch the AFL (Aussie rules football) grand final.

Sunday 13 September 1998

After a brief rest went to the Mosman round robin practice session for quiet a long time and returned home exhausted.

Monday 14 - Thursday 17 September 1998

On Wednesday, went for a swim after work at the Olympic pool on Milsons point. The weather is getting better (and was beautiful all week), and must be a sign of what's to come as the bubble over the pool (put up in winter to keep us all a bit warmer) was scheduled to be removed at the end of the week.

Thursday saw a friendly game of squash with Darren at Australian Squash Club up the road from work.

Friday 18 September 1998

For some reason (no mystery really) I couldn't manage to find my home through the maze of streets between Military Road and North Sydney High Street, so ended up falling into a cab after wondering round for longer than I care to admit. Given this afternoon session, nothing much happened that night.

Saturday 19 September 1998

That night went to the Northpoint Tavern to see Bellchopper (John Bracks' band) play their last ever gig. Apart from the dodgy surroundings (the Tavern is a less than impressive venue),the music was very impressive. As Kim commented, sort of a cross between Pearl Jam and The Red Hot Chilli Peppers.

Sunday 20 - Wednesday 23 September 1998

I was just vegging out after getting home from work when I noticed the sky was looking a little pink and got this shot. Another amazing Sydney sunset... over the offices of Milsons Point and North Sydney.

Thursday 24 September 1998

Now there we were, complaining that given it's Thursday night there's practically no one in the place when in strolled a huge party of girls (70 of 'em out on a hen night). This soon livened the place up and we ended up staying long after they'd gone, eventually getting home for 1am.

Friday 25 September 1998

Saturday 26 September 1998

Sunday 27 September 1998

Had a brief rest before Robert (fresh from an outback rally escapade) showed up with Scott and Rachel who he bumped into downstairs. Thanks here to Scott who had a go at him for parking behind our space and blocking Kim's car in... and thus learning he was coming to see us too.

Balmoral beach beckoned as this was turning out to be the best day of spring so far and took a swim (albeit brief) in the ocean for the first time since April 12! We all enjoyed fish & chips for lunch and lazed around most of the afternoon to complete a truly excellent day.

Monday 28 September 1998

Tuesday 29 September 1998

After work, Kim and I met Dave, Mark, Darren, Suzy and Louise for drinks and dinner in the Kirribilli. Not a very late night, but even so, a few cocktails and shooters appeared... the calm before the storm you might say!

Wednesday 30 September 1998

Next it was on to a very empty Observer with a loan guitar player doing his thing (and getting the crowd to sing along remarkably well) before ending this leg of the night in the Paragon, but not before subjecting the place to an exhibition of the Bognor shuffle, and almost getting expelled for letting Louise ride round the bar on Darren's back!

Was gutted to hear the next day at work that they were giving away booze, pint glasses (hard to come by in Australia) and other mechanise in Bridie O'Reilly's down the road.

Caught a cab back to The Duxton, went up to Dave and Louise's room, 'just to check out the view', and ended up playing some stupid drinking games with Smirnoff Blue Label. Here's my tip for the night - don't mix 50/50 blue label and coke for yourself in such an event, always make the other contestant's drinks twice as strong as your own. Unfortunately I didn't heed this advice and ended up wishing I had after loosing terribly in this event - not a pretty sight.

Thursday 1 October 1998

Friday 2 October 1998

Went to the Greenwood as planned and sat outside on this very nice evening. Didn't stay too late having just a few beers and an excellent donor kebab from the pie and snack counter for the bargain price of $3.50.

Saturday 3 October 1998

Dave and Louise in the back of the Tarago, a case of beauty and the beast I'm sure!

Made the first night stop at around 320Kms up the coast at Forster in a pretty decent camp site (as recommended by Lonely Planet) and had fun (sort of) putting the tents up. Dave and Louise emerged as clear winners in the race of the Pyramid tents (the two identical rented ones).

	The triumphant Mr. Wilson after winning the tent erecting competition...
	... meanwhile, Suzy was still struggling - well, that's women for you!
	Palm trees at sunset, from the camp site at Forster.
	Another amazing Aussie sunset... taken just a few minutes later that the first. Again from the camp site at Forster.

Ordered pizza for dinner and sat around talking rubbish and such innovative drinking games as, Pass the Schnapps (to the person on your left until it's all gone), spin the bottle and make the unlucky chosen one do something ridiculous, like performing commando raids between the neighbouring tents and vans, a routine from the Full Monty (with applause from the other campers - that wasn't supposed to happen) and other equally stupid stunts (and some a lot worse - as I'm sure those who know the participants can guess).

Fell four bottles short of polishing off two cases of beer and a special mention to Louise, who took a huge glug of Blue Label and swished it round her mouth like it was breath freshener - how (or why) I'll never know!

Sunday 4 October 1998

The view from a lookout South of the town of Nambucca Heads. Here we can see where the place got it's name - Nambucca apparently means, "many bends".

Put up the tents in an ideally located camp site just yards from the beach which was very quiet and relaxing (and even had a pair of Kookaburras in residence). Shame the rest of the town wasn't so peaceful, due to the Aboriginal football tournament being held here, which also meant by the time we went shopping for food and drink there was no steak to be found and only canned VB (yerch!). Here, my previous thoughts on VB were confirmed by the others who found it the most revolting of the Aussie beers.

Hung around on the beach for a bit, but didn't do any swimming as there was a bit too much weed to make this enjoyable really, which was a shame as the weather was pretty good that arvo.

	Another great Aussie beach... This was just a few metres walk through the bush from the campsite we stayed at in Nambucca Heads.
	Me looking exceptionally cool (not!) on the beach at Nambucca Heads.

Having found no food we headed off to find somewhere to eat around 7pm to find the RSL closed (what!) and wound up in one of the local chinese restaurants. This wasn't to be though as they had no vegetarian dishes and couldn't be bothered to get creative in the kitchen for Louise. After leaving in disgust we eventually ended up in a very nice Thai place (the Nirvana, just off the Pacific Highway) which was better all round.

Monday 5 October 1998

At Byron, found a camp site next to the beach and town centre and had a quick bite to eat before hitting the beach for rest of day at around 1:30. The weather and beach were very nice (and at last I got thanks for dragging everyone up at 6:30am) but the sea had loads of tiny bits of seaweed (or maybe sponge?) floating in it so gave swimming a miss.

Mark demonstrates how not to put on factor 15+ sunscreen (on Byron Bay beach).

Played some beach cricket with The Slasher (a dodgy second had bat we picket up at a roadside rest are for $8) and generally dossed around all afternoon.

	A supposed action (pah!) shot of us playing beach cricket at Byron Bay.
	Most of the shots this month are from a week away with this mob... pictured here on Byron Beach. Suzy, Mark, Del (aka Darren), Louise, Dave and Rob (me!)

Ate good Aussie food, aka. huge lumps of steak at the Hogsbreath Cafe then went on to the Great Northern Hotel for drinks followed by Cocomanga's (a sort of club recommended by the Hogsbreath waitress). The gang home at 12:30 but not feeling sleepy, I dragged Mark back to Cocomanga's (and the dance floor) for another 2 hours and we eventually got home at 2:30.

Tuesday 6 October 1998

Up early to a very windy day, so had more rest in the cabin while Dave, Mark and Del played golf for what turned out to be most of the day.

	Some of the fierce surf to been seen on this very windy day in Byron Bay.
	The only sole to be seen on the water at Byron Bay - some crazy trying to windsurf in the huge swell!
	I thought I'd include this shot of the lighthouse at Byron Bay. There must be something special about it as it seems to make it's way onto many postcards... although I guess I should be closer, and a nicer day might make for a better photo.

Had an excellent meal in the very well presented Orient restaurant followed by a quick trip to the Beach Hotel but everyone felt the strain from the previous night and binned it early.

Wednesday 7 October 1998

After a bit more sleep, got up at a more reasonable hour and drove up a rather dodgy dirt road to Nightcap National Park to see the beautiful sub-tropical rainforest and spectacular Protester's Falls.

	The group stop and pose, crossing a stream on the way through Nightcap National Park to Protester's Falls.
	Inside Nightcap National Park, one of the large (but not the largest you'll see) buttress rooted trees to be seen on the path to Protester's Falls.
	First view of the spectacular Protester's Falls as you enter the clearing which in which it is located.
	The spectacular Protester's Falls, located in Nightcap National Park.
	The spectacular Protester's Falls, located in Nightcap National Park.
	Me at Protester's Falls sporting a very (stupid) cheesy grin.
	Sitting and admiring Protester's Falls, on the huge boulders that lie on the rim of the pool at their base.
	Some more of the amazing vegetation to be found inside Nightcap National Park.
	Giant ferns inside Nightcap National Park.
	We found this pretty well camouflaged Goanna wondering around in the car park near Protester's Falls.

This park (and a few others in the area) form the rim of a huge crater (the largest in the southern hemisphere) with Mt Warning standing in the centre on what was the main vent of a huge volcano (known as the Mt Warning shield volcano). You can see how large this must have been at points on the drive there, and from some of the higher spots in Lismore, which we drove through on our way to Yamba.

Drove up to Angourie beach (in the national park) as we entered Yamba as this is an excellent deserted place (were only a few other surfers there) and hung around for a while before moving on to find a camp site.

	Taking time out to just stand and stare at the sea... Angouire beach, in the national park of the same name - just along (5 Kms) the coast from Yamba.
	The deserted Angourie beach. It's a shame you can't see the patterns carved on the rocks at the back of the beach by years of wind, sand and see erosion.
	Just had to include this typical tourist shot of a (football) field full of 'roos.
	Another 'roo... this one's on the move.

Stayed at the East's Calypso park, who claim to be the best positioned on the NSW north coast. Well, I must say it wasn't bad as we camped right next to a small inlet with resident pelicans and only a couple of minutes walk from the beach and town centre.

The view of the setting sun from the camp site at Yamba.

Had a pretty quiet night in with a few beers at the site, followed by a meal the Spice Rack Indian (which has apparently just opened where The Upper Room used to be) with your host Mick Hundal who provided great food and friendly service.

Thursday 8 October 1998

	Yamba Lighthouse taken from the beach right next to the site where we camped in.
	Dave and Louise actually took the time to walk up to the lighthouse here at Yamba... they're the two minuscule figures to the right of it's base.

Had a few Ks to kill so left there at midday and ended up in Port Macquarie for the night, stopping briefly for some great value fish and chips on Sawtell. Can't say I'd recommend Port Macquarie, a large town, but didn't seem to have anything going for it to justify the size.

Friday 9 October 1998

Saturday 10 October 1998

The rather nice veranda of the cottage in which we stayed in Leura, a welcome break after the last week of camping.

	Blackheath Falls (the highest of the many Blue Mountains waterfalls), as viewed from Govett's Leap.
	The amazing view from Govett's Leap.
	It's apparently a pretty rare find in NSW to come across it's state flower, the Waratah. I'm guessing this one is so pink (they are usually a much darker red in colour) due to the early springtime we found it.
	Kim explains all about the Waratah... NSW state flower, member of Protia family, etc., etc.
	A Crimson Rosella as spotted in the bush at the Blue Mountains.

Amazing views all day, particularly when standing only inches from death on the various precipices our tour guide Kim took us to.

	Here we (Kim & I) stood in the middle of no-where on the edge of a cliff... spectacular! And when I say a cliff edge, one step backwards would have been a few hundred feet down.
	Suzy and Mark on the same cliff/rocky outcrop. Not a bad effort as Mark is supposedly petrified of heights (perhaps this is why he's putting such a brave face on it?).
	The Three Sisters as viewed from a lookout along Cliff Drive.

Can't be bothered to go outside on a wet afternoon in the Blue Mountains? Try playing with the kid's building blocks instead!

Sunday 11 October 1998

	Leura Cascades - some of the smaller falls seen on the short path to the main fall here.
	Leura Cascades - the main drop for the water here on it's way down to the valley floor, as viewed from directly above (you don't say!).

Thankfully you could actually see the three sisters from Echo Point today, more than I managed the last time I was there and with the sunshine trying to break we took a walk down the 980 step giant staircase, along the valley floor, and catch the Scenic Railway (which is the steepest in the world at 52 degree incline at one point) back to the top.

	No album of pictures from the Blue Mountains would be complete without a shot of the famous Three Sisters. Taken from Echo Point.
	Ruined Castle as seen from Echo Point.
	A Gallah feeding just outside the visitor's centre at Echo Point.
	Kim and Mark stop for a rest after the (sort of) tiring trek down the Giant Staircase from Echo Point and the Three Sisters.
	A bizarre looking tree found on the path from the giant stairway to Scenic Railway.
	The Katoomba Scenic Railway, as viewed from the bottom station. The sign claims, "The steepest incline railway in the world" and gives the following statistics: Length of Incline... 450m, Vertical Drop... 250m, Steepest Incline... 52 degrees.
	The Scenic Railway is more like an old amusement ride than a railway... which I supposed it's meant to be.
	Like many tourist attractions, the Scenic Railway has a flock or birds hanging around, waiting for titbits. Luckily these King Parrots (and the single Rosella) are a bit cuter, and not half as annoying as the pigeons we get back home.

Unfortunately it was now time for home, so met everyone back in North Sydney, relaxed a while, and headed over to the Shenhai curry house for dinner.

Monday 12 October 1998

Tuesday 13 October 1998

Got home to an empty flat at just gone 10, quick shower and change then out to The Paragon to meet up with Kim, Mark and Del who I found loitering by the pool tables. Kicked on to the Pyrmont Bridge Hotel and Star City Casino.

Wednesday 14 October 1998

Went across the road to the pretty empty Metropolis (well... this was Wednesday night), drank, played pool, etc. and eventually got home about 1am.

Thursday 15 October 1998

Friday 16 October 1998

Saturday 17 October 1998

Sunday 18 October 1998

Monday 19 October 1998

Tuesday 20 October 1998

Got home to find an insomniac Penny trying to sleep on the lounge floor, having landed from the UK a few hours earlier. Had a brief chat before leaving her to try and doze some more (good luck!).

Wednesday 21 October 1998

Thursday 22 October 1998

Friday 23 October 1998

Took a cab over to Legends, who earned a decent tip by ignoring our ramblings about swiping his bridge toll tag, or on second thoughts, his whole cab! Ridiculously was not allowed entry to Legends for not wearing a collar - had a heated conversation with the bouncer about this which ended:

Him: They're the rules... you're not coming in so just be quiet until your friends come back (Scott had gone to find some people we were meant to be meeting here), or I'll have to escort you off the premises (Legends is in the basement of the Sheraton Wentworth).

Me: Go on then!

So he did! Still, their loss, after this and last Thursday night this place is rapidly going to the bottom of my list of recommended bars! Moved on the much more accommodating CBD (who again complained that I wasn't dressed correctly, but at least managed to bend the rules slightly) and played some pool with a far too serious crowd on the first floor.

Went on to the City Hotel and tried to meet a few people in the Slip Inn - but refusing to queue to gain entry we returned to the City Hotel and played some more pool until it was time to leave (1 or 2am? who knows!).

Saturday 24 October 1998

Sunday 25 October 1998

Monday 26 October 1998

Tuesday 27 October 1998

Consequently only three matches were played, and all won by us (woohoo!), my victory being a very annoying 3-1 (should have been 3-0 really, never mind though).

Wednesday 28 October 1998

Thursday 29 October 1998

Friday 30 October 1998

After the match, took a cab over to circular Quay to meet up with Kim, Anne (and flatmate) and maybe the tenth floor (where all the big cheeses hang out) pub crawl which was due there around 10. Although Kim and co were there (and well ahead of the game on the grog front) the crawlers failed to materialise, but still we ended up staying here until well gone 2.

Left the bar and went to Macca's (downstairs) for a bit to eat and made the amazing discovery (well - it felt like that at the time) that mayonnaise was available for consumption (you know, for dipping your fries and nuggets in) here if only you ask!

Eventually ended up at home at 3am thanks to timing our leaving with the incredibly annoying cab shift changeover (see my thoughts on this

Saturday 31 October 1998

Sunday 1 November 1998

Monday 2 November 1998

Tuesday 3 November 1998

Wednesday 4 November 1998

Thursday 5 November 1998

Friday 6 November 1998

Although the Berry Street Tavern was on the official plan, a splinter group formed (of which I was part) and went straight to The Commodore for the kick off. Pretty cool place on Blues Point Road which would have been excellent in the sun as it has a nice outside seating area, still at least the rain that had been falling most of the day had gone and the weather was now only a little overcast.

After a relaxing few bevies here, caught the ferry to Balmain from Blues Point, jumped on the waiting bus to take us to the Monkey Bar.

EDS PC IV delegates... at the Milsons Point wharf.

Had a food break before entering the Monkey bar at somewhere other than Macca's (wow - another PC first!) and sampled the excellent burgers at Fundamental Food (yum!). Kim showed up to join the crawl here, before we moved on to the Exchange and then Lime bar.

In the Lime Bar, another drunken photo opportunity.

Now... by this point in the proceedings (2am) most people begin to wonder off and the plan usually falls apart - not tonight though, or at least for the determined few. Steve, Winston and I were the last survivors making it all the way to La Campana (Latin American/Spanish type of club in the city) after the other's dropped by the wayside and Kim ended up staggering off home to stay at Scott and Rachel's.

It was a little unfortunate that we didn't actually stay here that long, but it was good to complete the course for once.

Saturday 7 November 1998

Sunday 8 November 1998

Monday 9 November 1998

Tuesday 10 - Thursday 12 November 1998

Friday 13 November 1998

We sat outside and watched lightning strike to the west (unusual as it was still daylight, but this looked pretty cool against the blue sky behind) as we ate. Luckily the rain didn't get as far as North Sydney and we didn't need to cover we were seated under. Can't say I was that impressed with the grub here though as we ate from the banquet menu, and although it was tasty enough I don't think there was really the quantity we deserved.

Wondered back to the Berry with John (Egan) to meet up with a couple of his pals (and take in more drinks) before moving to the City. Made a b-line for the CBD, and then moved on to the Slip Inn. A bit disappointed not to find anyone else (who, it turns out were having a really good time in Legends) finished up around midnight and headed home. Just as well really, as by then the mixture of beer, cocktails, bourbon, beer, wine, bourbon and more beer was beginning to make itself felt.

Saturday 14 November 1998

Did a bit of shopping, played squash and then had a leisurely evening at home to rest up for Sunday's activities.

Sunday 15 November 1998

The competition was meant to be between five sides, but luckily (lucky, as I think one more game would have been the end of all concerned) only four ended up playing in the round robin phase. The end of this saw the Optus Account team floundering in third place, despite the two wins and only one loss. If only we'd realised the female rule - include a girlie in your side and receive a one goal adjustment to your score. Pah... and hence we're third.

Without the female rule we'd have been playing the number one team for outright honours, but as things stood the final match was between third and fourth, for the wooden spoon. Obviously not too bothered about this we took it easy (or was this due to the total exhaustion of the previous games - all played in a full size pitch, albeit for just 20 minutes a side?) and left the field triumphant winners of the spoon!

Very tired so got a ride home then went over to the park and relaxed in the sun for a while before crashing out early due to all the exertion.

Monday 16 - Thursday 19 November 1998

	At last... the weather in Sydney started to improve. The sight from our unit over to Milsons Park was very nice, due to all the Jacaranda trees blooming down there. This shot of them was taken from down in the park as I walked to work (don't normally go this way, but seemed like a nice detour to take).
	Another shot taken in Milsons Park at this colourful time of year.

Did absolutely nothing this week, however when Thursday came round it was time for another game of squash...

C10 quarter finals at Totem Squash, against Riverview again. We took a commanding lead to leave me (playing last as usual, and starting around 11pm) requiring just one game to go through to the next round. It was all over after I won the first, but finished the match to take a 3-1 victory. Feels good, but the shame is I shall be away for the next two weeks so will miss the semi and grand final.

Friday 20 November 1998

Damn... having decided that there was no more drinking to be had tonight, found myself in the 3am zone (no cabs to be found - shift changeover) and having to walk home - again! Lucky it was a nice night at it only takes half an hour tops.

Saturday 21 November 1998

Didn't do much in the evening though, as rest for the upcoming trip was required, and the relaxing afternoon had sort of lulled us into a sleepy mood.

Sunday 22 November 1998

Well, it was a pretty standard machine really, but bigger than I'm used to driving. This was a very basic model Toyota Landcruiser, but not many Ks on the clock and Britz (the rental agency) were willing to let us take it anywhere. Strange as it may seem this was pretty hard to find as most firms would not let you take their 4WD vehicles to Fraser Island, onto beaches, or off road. This begs the question, what the hell do they think you were hiring one for!?

We could tell the Palace was going to be a bit wild when first entering the bar at 5pm. Lured initially by the for $5 BBQ, but also the cheap beer it was hard not to be put off by the smell of chunder lingering from the previous night. Those in the know though, realise this means a wild night ahead (like, bars with this smell are rarely quiet, are they?)! Had some beers with our BBQ then wondered round town for a while visiting Gilhooly's, Her Majesty's (where we arranged to meet Yvette, but was actually closed), O'Mally's (yet another Irish bar where we did meet Yvette in the end), the Treasury Casino and The Victory (very cool place, with a pretty decedent band playing to boot).

The pubs came thick and fast on our whistle stop tour, but in we had to draw the drinking to a close (for now) after being refused entry to the Adrenaline Bar & PJ's. What? They thought we looked too much like backpackers or something! Still, Yvette was undeterred and took us on a midnight driving tour of her fair city - up to the lookout, past the XXXX brewery, through The Valley (Brisbane's red light zone) and past her place.

After all this it was back to the hostel and the dodgy chunder bar where things were getting a bit lively, well, until 2am when they closed and we got thrown out anyhow.

Monday 23 November 1998

Being a bit sluggish from the previous night we took quiet a while to get organised. The information desk in the Palace was very useful and booked us up some accommodation on Fraser Island, was also handy to find that the government place to get permits to drive there was just across the road. Picked that up and took in some of the sights of Brisbane while on the way to collect the car from it's overnight parking location.

	Brisbane Town Hall, in George Square. A very pleasant place and was even pretty quiet in the Monday morning rush hour (rush? what rush?) at around 9am when this shot was taken.
	Some of the bronze (I think ) figures found in George Square, Brisbane. I don't quiet know the significance of these (the mix of human and animals) but that doesn't matter - very decorative anyhow.
	A small church is another of the older buildings dwarfed by the modern office blocks that surround George Square in central Brisbane.

Everything sorted we headed off to Rainbow beach. After asking advice at another very friendly information desk we decided not to drive on the beach here (save that for Fraser) so had time to take in a relaxing lunch at Archie's Cafe. After lunch took a short (600m) walk through the bush to check out the Carlo Sandblow.

This huge swath of sand appears to be slowly eating the coastal bush. Stepping out of the shade onto it was like suddenly being thrust into the middle of a desert. On the end near the beach this was very windy, which is maybe why this is apparently a top place for gliding from.

	Rainbow Beach and Tin Can bay, as seen from the Carlo Sandblow. Looking North we can also see Fraser Island in the distance.
	Looking out to sea from the bottom of the Carlo Sandblow (well... you could go further down towards the beach, but you'd need mountaineering equipment!). We see Wide Bay from here, the point in distance being Double Island Point, just south of which the wreck of the Cherry Venture lies.

Next stop was the ferry crossing to Fraser Island from Inskip Point. Had an excellent time driving up the beach and then on some inland roads to visit Lake Boomanjin.

	Driving along Seventy Five mile beach, Fraser Island. Lonely Planet describes this as, '...a lawless eight lane highway...', which isn't far from the truth as you can drive just about wherever you like, at whatever speed you fancy - just look out for those streams running down to the sea. The middle section of this beach, near Eurong is also used as an airstrip!
	Lake Boomanjin is the worlds largest perched lake. Some spiel from the information sheet: Perched lakes get their name by being perched above the water table. This is possible as they have a 'hard pan' of organic debris, sand and peat which forms a depression between dunes in which water collects.

The lake was pretty shallow - we waded out a 100 metres or so and still only had water up to the thighs. Apparently this is because these lakes (the perched ones) rely on tropical storms that come through every few years to be filled, and such a storm has not passed by for a while.

	Me looking rugged (well, that's how one very charitable person described this look) sat on the bull bar of the 4WD. Shame about all those Britz stickers (and the sun being in my eyes).
	Me again, taking a walk on Seventy Five Mile Beach, Fraser Island. Shame is, you can't swim here due to strong currents and sharks (apparently).

Back on the coastal beach we drove a little further to the Eurong Beach Resort. Comfortable triple room was a bargain, right next to the beach and not far from the Resort bars and pools (two of each). Had some nice seafood here for dinner followed by a few drinks in the very quiet bar.

The whole place shut down at 11pm (huh!), and I mean totally shut down - they turned off the generator which powered the whole place! Was great to be able to sit on the beach in the middle of the night though, and check out the celestial view. Miles from the lights of any big city this was an outstanding sight on this very clear night.

Tuesday 24 November 1998

We decided to drive north along the beach before heading inland to check out lake Garawongera which was very pleasant with clear, shallow waters and a few reed beds (but not half as nice as what was to come).

	Lake Garawongera (who thinks of these names?), another of Fraser Island's excellent inland lakes. Very clear water and soft white sand on the shores... ah... Oh, but that blot on the landscape is Iain (sorry mate).
	Here's an example of the sort of track you'll find on Fraser Island. Like they say, you won't get far in a conventional vehicle here (there is actually nothing stopping you trying to drive on the island in one), just miles of tracks in this soft white sand mean a 4WD is the only way to go.

More inland driving brought us back to Happy Valley where we took a short break and I had a much required Weiss bar (frozen fruit bar - yum), it being very hot by now.

We then took to the beach once more, driving past the wreck of the Maheno, The Pinnacles (coloured sand formation) and more of Cathedral beach.

	The wreck of the Maheno. This passenger ship was grounded in a cyclone in 1935 while being taken to Japan to be scrapped. Quiet ironic really.
	The Pinnacles are one of the larger examples of coloured sand dunes that this part of Fraser Island (Cathedral Beach) is famous for.

It's a pity the map we had, which was quiet detailed omitted one important piece of info - you can only drive up to Indian Head (where we wanted to see the basalt rock formations) two hours either side of low tide, which was another few hours away - doh!

Drove back to Lake Wabby (another beautiful inland lake), but decided the 45 minute walk down was a bit too long. Very lazy really, as we could see people lazing in the lake and by it's shore and this looked to be a great place to relax. Still, time was not on our side so we decided to move on to the apparently more popular Lake McKenzie.

Lake Wabby is slowly being engulfed by a huge sandblow. To give an idea of scale, this was taken from above (a 45 minute walk away), and those specks down there in the sand are people sunbathing, just a couple of them anyhow.

So glad we did this too, as Lake McKenzie was absolutely perfect -surrounded by totally white sane and with crystal clear waters, you can see why so many people rave about the place. There were quiet a few tour groups here too, the most people we'd seen in one place since on Fraser Island.

No photo can really do justice to the sight that greets you when first emerging from the bush, onto the soft white sand by Lake McKenzie. There's no wonder this is also known as the Window Lake (due to the water's amazing clarity).

After baking in the sun and swimming at Lake McKenzie we continued to drive west and on to the Kingfisher Bay Resort. Very nice place, but not exactly within the average backpacker's budget (no - this is most defiantly not a backpacker's resort). Had a quick jog round the resort and out to the jetty followed by a dip in one of the excellent pools, before dining in The Sand Bar. This was supposedly one of the more lively bars here, but was actually very empty - I think we were the only people there except a single tour group and a few staff on their night off. I stayed for a few more drinks and played pool with the staff as Iain and Adrian piked early.

Wednesday 25 November 1998

How driving times go on Fraser - it took 40 minutes to drive the main (if you can call it that) 18km west - east track back to 75 mile beach, then only another half an hour or so to do the 35k (ish) blast down the beach to Hook Point. In total we travelled 271kms on Fraser and used a full tank (90 litres) of diesel - not the most efficient driving terrain, but defiantly great fun.

	Another example of a 'road' on Fraser Island. This one is the main thoroughfare travelling through thick rainforest between Kingfisher Bay and Eurong.
	Walk just a short distance off the road in Fraser Island you'll see how thick the rainforest is here.

The stupid part of all this was that heading north we passed the turnoff to Hervy Bay (were the Kingfisher Bay Ferry would have taken us) around 1pm - all that extra trouble for a saving of half an hour or so.

Couldn't decided where to stay as we headed north to Rockhampton, but decided on Yeppoon as it would be close enough to take a trip to Great Keppel island in the morning if we chose.

Erm... strange lot up here. Rear window stickers spotted in Rockhampton.

There was no sightseeing today but killed many Ks. Stayed in the basic, but very friendly Barrier Reef Backpackers hostel. Also had an excellent meal at Ayutthaya Thai as recommended by the hostel owners, which was also very friendly.

Went back to the hostel and partook in a few (erm... half a case) of beers and played some pool with the other hostel guests until around 1:30.

Thursday 26 November 1998

Around 100km inland, at end of 35km dirt road, 2km walk and 240 steps the patient traveller is rewarded by the amazingly beautiful sight of Rainbow Falls, which cascade down to the gorge floor through lush rainforest. This looks like a pretty good place to have a swim, but didn't really have time, which was a shame and is a reoccurring problem on this trip.

	Above the main Rainbow Falls, there are several smaller cascades, and a number of swimming holes - just like this one.
	Rainbow falls nestles is a gorge on the Blackdown Tableland, surrounded by tropical plant and wildlife it's a beautiful natural setting.
	Walk further down into the gorge here at Rainbow Falls and the scene just gets better and better.

We were told by a local there were other walks which were better even than this, particularly the Stony Creek trail. These must really be something. There was also a wonderful view over the plane below from just off road, the official lookout (Horseshoe Lookout) was unfortunately closed, undergoing work, but just about anywhere on the plateau would do I'm sure.

Pull off the road on the way up to the Blackdown Tableland and take in this awesome view over the plane, some 600m below.

Made good time on drive down the Fitzroy Developmental Road (an inland road of single and twin lane mix with a couple of flooded crossings) to Airlie beach, but still arrived a bit later for most places and booked into Magnums (Whitsunday Village Resort). This place has a mad reputation and is very basic - but is cheap and does the job.

Had dinner at Beaches but (shocking as it in Airlie) went to bed early (around midnight) as a boat trip the next day was a must and this had to be sorted out early.

Friday 27 November 1998

Sit back and relax as we cruise with Reef Express through the Whitsundays.

After a couple of relaxing hours and some lunch at Whitehaven we left for Mantaray Bay at the north end of Hook Island. Pretty cool place to visit with some good snorkelling (well - not that I'd know as this as the first time for me, but I was quiet impressed) and friendly fish. Actually, I got a bit of a shock when one of the Maori Wrasse first brushed past me. I soon got used to the fish, especially when the cruise hostess threw a load of bread at me as I was in the water preparing to board the boat and was suddenly surrounded by hundreds of 'em (Blue Fusiliers?), a great experience.

	Me on Whitehaven Beach, Whitsunday Island. With perfect silica sand and azure blue waters this is quiet rightly one of the most famous Queensland beaches.
	Shute Harbour, the gateway to the Whitsundays is apparently the busiest port on Australia's East coast (by number of vessels or something like that).

We returned to the shore after this impressive trip around 4:30 and headed straight for the bar, 'just for a quick one' to quench the thirst we'd built up on this oh, so stressful (not!) day. Hmmm... nice plan, but poorly executed and turned into a 13 hour session, taking in drinks at Magnums, some nice food in the imaginatively named Airlie Thai, then more drinks in Magnums before strolling between the main two cubs here (Tricks and Stingers) several times.

After eventually settling at Stingers which seamed to be more popular, ended up leaving at 5:30am - damn, missed the sunrise which is apparently quiet nice here!

Saturday 28 November 1998

Stayed at the excellent Scotty's Beachhouse and had a great meal from the attached bistro. Absolutely dead from the previous night I had to go to bed early, but this proved a bad move, and got up again for an hour or so around 2am, unable to sleep. Still, not too bad a place to do this as sitting by the pool and chatting to some of the other residents was good.

Sunday 29 November 1998

Scotty's Beachhouse in Mission Beach. Very cool and laid back joint, definitely worth a visit for those on the backpacker's trail.

Took the easy route up the coast with only a slight detour to Josephene Falls. This is an excellent place with some nice falls, but the main attractions are the swimming holes, and the natural slide that falls into one - great fun and a good spot to take a cooling break from the hot and humid weather. Spotted a snake like thing (it had some tiny legs, but who know around here?) in the water, but kept it to myself as Iain and Adrian are easily freaked out by such sightings.

	The main swimming hole at Josephine Falls. On a hot and humid day this is well worth a dip in, and we see a natural slide down the smooth rocks to the left - great fun.
	I have several shots of myself coming down this natural slide, but stuck with this one for aesthetic reasons (well - you try and look good while bouncing down a waterfall!).
	Further up from the main pool at Josephine Falls is a smaller one, that the main torrent spills into. Swimming here is not recommended (and is illegal) as it would be easy to get caught in the current generated as all this water passes through a narrow channel and over jagged rocks down to lower pool.

Arriving in Cairns, we checked into the Up Top Down Under hostel on Spence Street (as recommended at the last place). Very nice with good facilities and a decent size pool, which we made immediate use of.

Took the courtesy bus (which run regularly throughout the day and night) into town and wondered around trying to orientate ourselves. Not too hard - Cairns city centre isn't exactly huge, with most things within a few minutes walk of the Esplanade (sea front - but no beach here, which is basically a mud flat!).

Had drinks at Rattle and Hum, and then ate in a close by seafood restaurant (Kini's). Iain and Adrian had an outrageous meal of local delicacies (bugs - big shrimp like things, and crocodile) followed by one and a half lobsters between them, while I stuck with a very nice reef and beef dish.

Although small, the nightlife in Cairns is pretty good (well, for a visitor of a few nights anyhow). Went to the slightly disappointing foam party at Beaches (should have known better really), then visited the Woolshed where we used our free meal vouchers to negotiate entry (apparently most hostels here supply vouchers for free food at the Woolshed). Finding this place actually played decent music (shock! first time this trip) made the most of it and danced around like maniacs. Very much like the bar at Backpackers Palace in Brisbane, but busier, very busy in fact with people dancing all over the bench tables. Didn't partake in this, sticking to the designated dance floor until leaving 3am, with the place still jumping.

Monday 30 November 1998

Doesn't take a genius to work out why (OK - for those who can't, seems her room mate and mine wanted to be alone), and I think I can safely say that this was far better anyhow, as she was a jolly nice lass, supplied some nice cold drinks (lifesaver!) and was very apologetic about the whole situation. Can't think why - like, she thinks I'd prefer some paddy bloke snoring away next to me!

Feeling a bit fragile, took it easy and paid a visit to Palm Cove just half an hour or so north. Really nice place, and very quiet - maybe because we're slightly out of season and the weather was a bit overcast. This was probably for the best though as there was only a tiny bit of the water protected by the stinger net that we would all have had to squeeze into to cool down.

Back in Cairns for dinner, having braved the 'rush' hour drive back (erm... well, it was 5pm, but I can't say I noticed any real change in the traffic) we met up with Richard, Tony and friend in The Underdog for drinks. Wasn't a late night though as first day of my dive course beckoned in the morning.

Tuesday 1 December 1998

Once at the Divers Den site, the morning was an easy introduction session, with quiet a bit of paperwork (and the dive medical) to get out of the way. The afternoon being spent getting our hands on the equipment and doing exercises in the pool. The whole day wasn't exactly taxing, but you don't want to have to think too hard on a holiday such as this, do you?

Went out for dinner to the Firkin Pub (was it the Fox and Firkin?) where I had a huge Mexican dish as everyone else looked on, as they were planning to eat somewhere a bit more posh later on. Stayed here for a while then moved on for drinks at the Woolshed, but I went home early again (well - you have to remember that early on this holiday is midnight) as I was pretty tired and had to contend with the pool again the next morning.

Wednesday 2 December 1998

After the course went down to the town centre to get some postcards (to send home to everyone and wish them a merry Xmas - how weird?), and is just as well this is all I was after as everything seems to close at 5pm on the dot here.

Went to the Reef Teach talk conducted by some mad Irish guy. Shame I don't remember his name, as he was a very good entertainer, as well as being a marine biologist and dive instructor. Some will find his style a bit over the top - it's very much in the Billy Connelly vein. However, if you've got to put on a bit of a show to educate people about the Great Barrier Reef (the creatures out there, how we can protect it and what can be done to save it's environment) then this was the guy to do it.

After the show, I did think about staying home but did the dumb thing and ended up drinking in The Woolshed until 2am.... hmm.....

Thursday 3 December 1998

As we got to Norman Reef (a section named Playground) and took the first open water dive all was cured. The instructors were complaining that the visibility was about as bad as it gets (although I'm sure it was better than the 3m Alex estimated), apparently due to the high winds and tidal currents that we were experiencing (ah... that also explains the bad boat ride out here). This didn't really matter though, as just doing the exercises on the sea bed was pretty cool for one who's not done this sort of thing before.

After lunch did a spot of snorkelling, then transferred to the Ocean Quest which was to be home for the next two nights. Did the second dive of the day and saw more of the reef this time (first meeting with a giant clam and few huge fish). Lazed on the sundeck for a short time before dinner - very nice!

Reef Quest leaving Ocean Quest on her way back to Cairns, with the class of divers who started the course just a couple of days ago - on Saturday this will be me. Reef Quest is the fast transfer vessel (max speed is 24 knots) used to ferry people to and from the outer reef.

After dinner the class took their final dive exam, modesty prevents me from telling who was the only student to get 100% and win a beer (particularly satisfying seeing the Scottish dive instructor dig deep for this). Yeah, right - it was me of course! Was my only one of the night though as diving, not drinking was my mission out here.

Friday 4 December 1998

The 10:45 dive was our last before qualifying, so that was it - certified and allowed to roam free on the from now on. This last dive was filmed by the resident underwater cameraman, who had us doing all sorts of strange stuff on the bottom, like wearing sunnies and Santa hats, and I also chewed his plastic jaws model to show we've no fear of sharks! After all this underwater fun we did the traditional group and individual jumps off the first deck, face pulling, etc... all for the camera you understand.

Had a nice relaxing afternoon of sitting on the sundeck, baking and eating the nice salad buffet lunch while the boat moved to yet another location (Ralph's Rocks). Had a pretty short (half hour) first dive with just my buddy and I at 3:30. We had planned to follow a few other newly qualified people, but seemed to loose them quiet easily, and also managed to get quiet disorientated. Good job all you have to do to get your bearings is surface, find the boat and then float back down again - at least we only had to do this once.

My diving group's first dive without the instructor (as certified divers) was at Ralph's Rocks, Norman Reef. Here's the very artistic map of the area, as drawn by the crew (I don't know which one, as these maps magically appeared each morning as we ate breakfast). The dive master gives an informative and pretty light hearted talk about the area before each dive, pointing possible places of interest, etc.

Sunset on the Great Barrier Reef. As I took this I was asking some of the guys on the boat what that large island in the distance is. How stupid was this? It's Australia, of course!

The final dive of the day came after dinner at 7:30. This is really cool! We followed Alex around the reef in a huge convoy. I think not being able to see anything much (only where you shine your torch) adds to the sensation of weightlessness and flight. The sight of all the other diver's torch beams cutting through the blackness is reminiscent of some space flight movie or something - all very cool.

	A newly certified diver (me!) getting ready for the night dive (around 7:30pm).
	No, don't even think about taking up scuba diving if you're in any way worried about looking stupid in all the gear!

Saturday 5 December 1998

Sunrise on the Great Barrier Reef (5:36am). As the sun rose out to sea, there was still a full moon visible behind me over Australia, very nice.

Had another dive in the Ralph's Rocks area at 6:30, taking an underwater camera we'd hired for the day. Although most of the shots were pretty dodgy, a few turned out OK:

	Give the OK signal and let's take a photo! Rob under the waves on the Great Barrier Reef.
	Some of the aquatic life we saw on this dive - this turtle didn't seem to be even slightly bothered by our presence.
	Scuba diving is great fun... there's plenty of time for fooling around as this shot demonstrates.
	You've probably seen far better pictures of the coral on the Great Barrier Reef before, but I like this one, 'cos I took it!

Another hearty breakfast, and not much more of a break (only 1:20 surface time) and it was time to dive once more. We were now on an area known as Troppo (still Norman reef) where the final two dives of the day would take place.

This was an excellent location, by far the best dive site yet with a huge coral wall from a couple of metres under the surface to over 30 meters deep. At a depth of around 10 meters we could really get that sensation of flight, being able to see the whole depth of the wall from surface to sea bed. We also met Wally, the huge and friendly Maori Wrasse and came across some large shoals of Parrot Fish flying through the water. The whole experience was utterly amazing.

Made good use of this setting to take a couple of pretty long dives, as by now my buddy's air supply was beginning to last a lot longer. We managed to stay down almost 45 minutes each dive, even so, I still had 40% of my air supply left after each one for some reason.

It was with a bit of a deflated feeling I climbed the steps out of the sea for the last time. This is very much like the feeling I get when reaching the bottom of the last ski run of a holiday. Damn! Still... at least there's lots of sun here and a great deck on which to lounge around. This I did for a few hours, listening to music, chatting with the buddies and writing a few postcards until Reef Quest returned to ferry us back to Cairns.

	A few of the group we did our training with decided to stay on board Ocean Quest for another night (and to take the advanced divers course). This was taken from Reef Quest as we left them and started the trip to shore.
	Ocean Quest - the vessel that has been home for the last two nights. This is actually a converted fishing trawler, not that'd you guess when on board. Whoever did the conversion must have had some mighty powerful air freshener!
	Almost back on dry land - the view of Cairns marina as we near the end of the trip.

That evening we hung out at the Cock and Bull (apparently a well known dive joint) and joined up with a couple of other dive groups who had recently completed courses at Diver's Den. Also had a great laugh at one group of Japanese guys who were apparently due to take their final exams the next morning. Rather them than me... especially after the round after round of strange mixes they were on. Of course, we were having some fun and games too - taking in a few schooners though the snorkel (specially modified with a funnel at the top), and followed them with a few more.

Sunday 6 December 1998

Not much else to say today... cab to airport... flight home to Sydney... rest and recuperate for the coming week.

Monday 7 - Thursday 10 December 1998

Didn't do much sociably this week, but on Monday Suzy and Danish pals came over and we had dinner at the local curry spot (Shenhai) which was very nice as always.

Friday 11 December 1998

Now that's what I like to see! Winson, Steve and I wonder which part of the bar to get stuck into first.

The party was spread across a couple of the huge halls in the Exhibition Centre, and had a beach party/fairground theme, with dodgems, shooting galleries, etc. Also basketball and volleyball courts, dinning and a huge dance are. Made good use of the free bar (but not so the buffet), the dodgems (but not the shooting gallery) and the dance floor briefly, but was a bit disappointed with the music and lack of people on there. Although a few of the guys I was with played basketball (and had a go in the hula comp!) I steered clear of the ball sports courts which were proving to be quiet popular - I'm sure there were about 50 people on each side of the volleyball net by the end of the night.).

We all wondered over to the Pontoon Bar in Cocklebay Warf (yes, very cheesy name), Darling Harbour afterwards danced around until 3am. For some stupid reason Kurt and I then decided to take a swim in Darling Harbour, albeit a brief one. I'm sure it was all his idea, but I think he'd say the same about me. Either way, this was pretty dumb, but we climbed out laughing so it can't have been that bad.

Realising we were in the 3am (no taxi) zone, thought having more drinks would be a good move. Ended up in Jackson's where the door man didn't even notice my jeans were soaking (Kurt had a change of clothes) and we stayed until 5am. Managed to find a cab by this time and got home to see the sun starting to rise over the harbour.

Saturday 12 December 1998

Sunday 13 December 1998

Having done a few hours of the dreaded, went over to the rocks to meet up with James, Wendy, the Fishes, Scott, etc for drinks in The Orient. Spent a few hours sitting outside during the very nice early evening session.

Monday 14 - Wednesday 16 December 1998

The bands playing were The Wetsuits, which consisted of members of some apparently famous Aussie bands: Jon from Paul Kelly and the Coloured Girls, Clyde from the Hoodoo Gurus and Bones from the Missing Links. Well, I shall just take their word for it, as I didn't recognise the names or the faces performing, but the act was pretty good, so this all may be true!

The other headline band were The Del Emma's, which were described to me as, "The Ramones in drag". Well, all girl band (four piece) but they were really girls (not drag queens) so I don't know where that came from, again pretty decent, so who cares?

Everyone got big group syndrome after the cruise and couldn't decide on where to carry on drinking. We ended up in The Orient, then for some reason went to the Club Bar at The Sydney Regent - extortionately priced cocktails, but they were very nice. The night then drew to a close as one of our party (and no, it wasn't me) was refused entry to Jackson's on George, probably a blessing in disguise by this point (1:30am) so it was time for home.

Thursday 17 December 1998

Friday 18 December 1998

The Sydney city skyline (and part of Darling Harbour) as seen from the Novotel terrace.

Saturday 19 December 1998

The TLU party (well, pub crawl and dinner really) was on tonight - this was Kim's work function. Met at the Paragon at 6:30 then had dinner at Sketchies pasta bar. As usual, I ate far too much here, and shouldn't really have asked to have such a spicy dish (it was very hot!) as this called for lots of beer to cool me down in the process (damn shame!).

We had planned a bit of a crawl, but there were some of the party that weren't really up to this. We stopped off at Bridie O'Reily's on the way to the Forbes, but again my plans were wrecked and we were forced to walk straight by (this was a great shame as he place was really buzzing by the look of the second floor). Eventually the group decided to check out the newly opened (a couple of weeks earlier) Shark Bar, which is not 'just a couple of minutes' (someone's quote) from the Forbes/CBD area, more like a 20 minute trek.

Still, the Shark Bar did seem a pretty cool place, very big, with a huge fish tank in the centre of the place (although I'm not sure just how the reef sharks in there were handling the music). Played some pool (miraculously winning the table on the first attempt) then danced around for a while before leaving about 2am. Took a walk back down George St in search of a cab, and almost got stuck in the 3am zone once more before managing to catch a one that stopped right next to us, and I jumped into before the cabbie could complain.

Sunday 20 December 1998

Went home after a few hours here, and were straight out again to attend the Alex's BBQ. Spent a very nice arvo in his BBQ area with Alex, Richard, Don and our respective women, enjoying loads of BBQ tucker (steak, snags, salad, etc) and a few beers while just relaxing in this excellent location (we were sat right on the harbour's edge, directly opposite Circular Quay).

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	Me, about to slap a few steaks on the barbie.
	Richard and I trying to look busy and performing our master chefs act.
	Kim sat by the harbour after a nice BBQ lunch.
	We just sat and watched the world go by after eating our fill from the BBQ. Here we see Norwegian Star getting underway on the start of another voyage.
	Kim thinks she's pretty funny, as she toots back at the Norwegian Star (with her beer bottle) as it leaves the harbour.

Got home by 6pm and collapsed in front of the TV, absolutely knackered after the previous night and the day's events (I never do get much sleep on the beach, I wonder why I still keep trying).

Monday 21 December 1998

Most people left, but Kurt, John (Egan), his girlie and I ended up next door in Giovanni's for dinner. A nice enough place I guess, but I wouldn't recommend it over some of the North Sydney's other eateries. Still, we were a bit short of options on a Monday night, and the place served it's purpose well enough.

Tuesday 22 December 1998

Wednesday 23 December 1998

Amusing fact of the night... The Shenhai is a BYO, a term which Con and Ilia took to new heights. Their choice of beverage for the evening was a bottle of scotch (Grants) and two litres of Coke! They did pretty well, and I helped them finish the last of it when we'd finished eating - good call guys!

Thursday 24 December 1998

I know we shouldn't really feed the Lorikeets sugar, but this one seems to know where it's kept. It flys in and starts pecking around the sugar bowl until someone opens it (and if that doesn't happen, anything else that looks slightly edible will do). I was once even woken up by the bowl being overturned, as the bird had flow in and was hopping around the thing on our worktop, very excited (or maybe frustrated)!

Went over to Wendy's early afternoon to so we could stay the night and spend xmas day there, and lazed around in the garden for a while. In the evening, went to a party (well, backyard dink up) with Greg and Kazza, at a friend's place. We didn't stay long, and just as well as Greg and I ran out of beers having miscalculated the drinking rate. I was pretty impressed with the food laid on, which included loads of fresh prawns. I can't really handle too many of these though, they were just a bit too fishy, perhaps some BBQ'd baby octopus would have gone down better?

Friday 25 December 1998

Santa's Kim's jobs for the day being done, here she is taking a well earned break in the garden.

The day did have a bit of an Aussie twist to it, as although we had a roast lunch, it was eaten in the sun room, then afterwards we had a huge water fight in the back garden. Suzy and Joegen had come over earlier (11am) to join us, so there were a few of us running around with water pistols, then there was the occasional illegal use of the garden hose to cool things down. Being so hot, we all ended up just sat around in the sun, shooting each other just to keep cool.

	Greg about to get it in the head with a jet of water, while Tashia (the dog) looks on from her shady retreat under the table. Don't you think Greg bears a passing resemblance to a pretty famous F1 driver? You know who I mean, drop me a line and confirm this so there's more evidence on the matter.
	A rather wet Rob after the old Xmas day water fight.
	Apparantly, one of Kim's favourite things to do on Xmas day is to go around and trash all the festive decorations - well, the balloons anyhow. Here she is, going about her task.

Suzy and Joegen left late afternoon as Kim and I wondered off to her dad's place for yet more food and drink. Not that I dislike this sort of social activity, but as I'm sure everyone is aware, a Christmas day marathon like this can be a bit overwhelming. Anyway, we managed to survive this second assault on the waistline and returned to Wendy's to collapse in front of the box for a while before going to bed.

Erm, except that it's not all over yet, got up in the middle of the night to call home and wish everyone in the UK a very merry xmas. Then, it was back to bed for some serious zees.

Saturday 26 December 1998

I did manage to don my set of in-line skates early afternoon and do a few laps of the block, but that was it for action and adventure on boxing day I'm afraid.

Sunday 27 December 1998

Took a trip to Freshwater beach and soaked up the rays, was a bit disappointed that the surf was too wild (loads of big dumpers) to catch any waves so had to be content with floating around past the breakers between sessions of being grilled in the sun.

The body's batteries always seem to be recharged after such a day at the beach, so felt a bit of squash late afternoon would go down well. Went to the rather deserted round robin session at Powerhouse and found just a couple of people to play and practice with.

There was just time for a quick shower and change before meeting with Jakub (diving buddy type chap) in the Paragon as he was in town for a short time. We were joined later by the Fishes and Wendy, but this little drinking session was brought to an end due to the bar closing at 10:30! Very strange, but we though this wasn't really a problem as everyone seemed to still be recovering from the festivities, and it was off back home.

Monday 28 December 1998

	Looking north up Bilgola beach, one of Sydney's not so famous northern beaches (it's two down from Palm Beach, Whale being in between). Just as nice to hang out on though, but late in the afternoon it does end up in the shade given the steep rise inland.
	Looking south down Bilgola beach.
	On the trip up to Palm and Whale beach you will pass Pittwater on the left hand side of the road. This is a pretty calm stretch of water, by virtue of the narrow channel out to the sea at its northern end, apparently very popular with Sydney boat owners on day trips. But unless you bring your boat on a trailer (or of course moor here - as you can see many people do), to get here it's a short (maybe 20km) run out of the main harbour heads and north up to Pittwater's entrance.
	Looking from the road to Palm Beach, west over Pittwater to the opposite shore, which forms part of Ku-Ring-Gai National Park.

Headed for home around 6:30 as the sun was getting low in the sky. Not wanting to strain ourselves, had to order a curry delivery for dinner which we ate vegged out in front of the TV.

Tuesday 29 December 1998

Took great pleasure in seeing England win the fourth ashes test (our only concellation this series as it turned out) on the in house TV. Got home and thought it appropriate to call a few friends in the UK to spread the sporting news, because they'd have missed this by being at work, and to rub in what sort of a hard day we'd just had.

Wednesday 30 December 1998

For the evening activity, it was down to Shelly Beach (next one south from Manly) for a BBQ organised by Fish, Wendy and their big group of pommie girlie friends. Unfortunately, Kim, Scott (on his own, Rachel being ill, and without suitable attire having spent the day at work, so ended up wearing a pair of Kim's shorts and one of my tee shirts) and I were ill prepared and had to dash off to the local fish and chip shop for our supper. Turned out to be a very nice evening spent lounging around on the beach eating, drinking, etc.

	Kim and Scott relaxing under the trees by Shelly beach. The section they are in isn't actually sand - it's the BBQ area which is grassed over.
	Zoom out from the previous shot and we see the trees which make this BBQ area a very pleasant place to be. Nice and shady, yet right on the beach - just right.

Thursday 31 December 1998

First to arrive was Wendy, then Robert... and a couple of beers were had. Then came the girls (Fish, Wendy and flatmate), Suzy and Joegen. Had some nibbles then wondered down to watch the 9pm fireworks from what we thought would be the ideal location - right outside Luna Park. Shame was that although this gave us a front row for the bridge effects, the north bridge pylon totally obscured our view of the others to the east. As the works went on for quit some time we had time to walk round to see a few of those too before the finale on the bridge. Back home, Wendy (who stayed home to avoid the crowds) told us she had a beaut view off our balcony... doh!

The face of Luna Park by night - only open for this (new year's eve) and other special occasion, as the local residents complain about the noise the park generates. The whole future of Luna Park is a bit unclear at the momment, but as it's been around for quite some time (since 1938 I think, which is a bit deal over here) I think it will stay in some for of the other for some years to come.

A few more drinks at home (well, a couple of beers and a load of Baileys, em) before we wondered down to The Walder for Trisha's BBQ. The Walder is a pretty posh place ideally located right by the wharf in Kirribilli, which has a nice grassed area right on the harbour's edge. We also couldn't help noticing that it was just a quick hop over a small gap into the neighbouring garden contained a pool. Being such a warm night, and not really worrying too much about what people thought at this point it was over to their place for a dip in the pool. Ah... very nice!

As we sat and cooled down Kim heard a phone ring and wondered over to an unconscious body (asleep right on the edge of the harbour), unclipped the phone from it's belt and started to chat away! The sleeper did groan a couple of times so we didn't worry too much, but he didn't wake up even when Kim finished the call and replaced his phone. As this incident showed, even people that swim in total strangers pools, uninvited, are not the worst behaved on a new year in Sydney.

We watched the midnight fireworks from this Kirribilli vantage point too, then took another dip before staggering home and drinking some more, before eventually hitting the sack around 3am? Who knows? Something like that anyhow.