New Zealand Odyssey: Week 39, Australia

Our last big trip of our time down under was a 10-day excursion to Australia. We weren't sure about being able to make the trip until March, but we had traded our Fairmont condo for one in Sawtell, New South Wales back in September. So seven of nine nights were already paid for, and in a really nice place no less. In the end, things came together, and we felt like we couldn't pass up the opportunity.

We flew into Brisbane (only three hours direct from Dunedin), rented a car and spent the night in a downtown Brisbane hostel. It was a party hostel, with an in-house bar and plenty of early-twenties guys and gals whooping it up late into the night. Not the best choice on my part, for Jen and Ellie in particular, but we were exhausted and so conked out immediately.

Kangaroo feeding.

The next day we hit the 'Koala Bear Sanctuary', which is a great zoo containing many animals unique to Australia (platypus, koala, kangaroo, dingo, snakes, crocs, wombats, emu,..., the list goes on). From the zoo, we made the five hour drive south to our condo in Sawtell.

Ellie shows off the condo pool.

Once at the condo, we didn't venture far. Alex and I surfed every day (sometimes twice) at Sawtell beach five minutes away, and we hung out, ate, watched cable, and swam in the pool. The condo was very nice, the weather was perfect, and the location was ideal. We didn't see much, but had a very relaxing time. I could have used another week, quite honestly, and I think everyone else felt the same. Ellie, in particular, loved the pace of our condo week.

Jen at Sawtell beach.

On the way back north, we stopped at Wild Waters, had a ball, and then crashed at our nasty hostel another night. I was particularly un-popular this second night, as our room had a balcony overlooking the noisy bar. But we all survived the night, and left early the next morning for the airport and our return flight home.

It was a great trip and made me realize that I can enjoy these kind of lazy, beach holidays a great deal if there's good surfing to be had. So hopefully Hawaii and Southern California will be seeing visits from us in the not-too-distant future. A life without at least a little surfing has become hard for me to imagine.

Alex surfing Sawtell. What a great shot Jen!

Me surfing Sawtell.