learning to breathe

Hey Guys
Well ive shaped myself and got myself to Canberra. I thought i was doing really really well. On Tuesday i search the internet for the cheapest way around oz, and i thought id got myself a really good deal. How naive! I bought 2 greyhound bus passes, one for western oz to take me between Darwin and Perth and the other for Eastern between Melbourne and Cairns. I rung the helpline to make sure i was booking the right thing over the internet and i was told the passes allowed unlimited travel between the two places. I wasnt told about the catch...theres always a catch! So I booked myself on the 12.30 bus to Canberra for Thursday morning. All great, got here about 4ish, of course i slept most of the way etc. Really nice city and found YHA no worries. Im even one of those people with a YHA card!
Yesterday i did a hop on-hop off tour from the YHA, took me to the Australian War Memorial, Lake Burley Griffen, Parliament house (old & new) and the National Museum of Australia. A really really good took. The war memorial was really good, Uncle Jim said it was worth a visit and he wasnt wrong. It was like some untold story, i know it isnt but we were only ever taught the English side of the story and even though i realised Australia were involved i never realised how much or the war which was happening over in the Far East. There was so much happening leading up to the bombs in Japan which i just was never aware of. From there we werent for a quick stop next to the lake to see Capitin Cooks memorial water jet on Lake Burley Griffen. Truely beautiful. Then it was back on the bus to Parliament house, John our bus driver explained how the old building was only meant to be there 50 years and has stood there since in opened in 1927. And who ever is in parliment now have decided the building holds too much of Australias history to pull it down so will stand as a symbol of where the county came from. the new building was built behind it in the hill side. Anyone symbol and originally the people of Australia were able to walk over the building as a symbol of them having control over parliment not the other way round. (get me learning) The drive way up to the house to truely beautiful too. That the every end just before im not sure if its the old house or the new but theres a present from New Zealand. On each side of the road is a weaved basket handle and its meant to symbolise Australia and New Zealand teaming together to share the load. It relates back to the war and the ANZAC (Australia and New Zealand Army Corps). Anyway we had a lovely tour around the new parliment house by a guy called Jim. Then we headed to the rather...unique National museum of Australia. What a weird building and a weirder museum. Its only been there just over 5 years and the 3 floors all relate to different things, past, present and the future. I got to design my own house of the future... it was pink and purple! Yes it was for kids...there was me and 3 5 year olds designing our future houses or cars!
Today i have had another stressfull morning. Ive decided if i wasnt so stubborn and determined this travelling things would really start to get to me. I went down to the greyhound office to book my bus to Melbourne and then back up to Sydney and lady told me that my pass only allowed me to go one way. And as it wasnt an adult pass i wasnt meant to be allowed to travel backwards on them. I kicked off and told her i id spoken to someone when booking my ticket who told me if was unlimited travel and i was about to get on and off whenever i wanted. Now i dont know whether or not i assumed this or not but i thought that meant i could travel back on myself as much as i liked. Apprently not. Anyway this lady told me i needed to ring the main call centre and ask to speak to someone as she didnt have the power to do anything for me. So i went to calm myself and got a coffee, then rung them. This girl on the phone...i could have poked her in the eye! She was really cocky and unhelpful and wouldnt get me her manager. Not matter how much i tried to explain she just didnt seem to care just told me the ticket was for travel one direction and was unrefundable! To say i wasnt happy was an understatement! I just had to hang up on her in the end and had a rant at Gaz! Anyway i think ive worked out a loop hole in the pass and hopefully it wont back fire on me, and if needs must ill pay the difference for an adult ticket with does allow me to back track. I need the pass to get me to Ad in Bryon, up to Brisbane after Ad goes home and back to Sydney for when Gaz arrives. and the pass allows for 4000km to be travelled. So i got my post-it notes out and a pen when to sit next to Lake Burley Griffen and sat with my map the lady in the greyhound office gave me and worked out what milage i needed to do when and what i was allowed. The Water skiing on the Lake was really nice and relaxing and allowed me to calm down before going back to the office. Cut a long story short, im now going back to Sydney Monday, instead of heading down to Melbourne for a couple of days. Im going to speak to the Syndey office and see whether or not my plan will be possible etc which means i should be able to do Bryon and Brisbane, get me back to Sydney and all going well down to Melbourne after Gaz leaves for a couple of weeks before i do the flight i was always going to do over to Perth. It would just mean me having to sort out how to get back from Cairns. Ill be flying into Cairns anyway from Darwin... i just need to find a cheap way back. Lifes a challenge!
Anyway it'll all work out, im sure it will. Think i might just go and chill out next to the pool before heading out later for some food. Planned to go to the zoo tomorrow to see this Tigon, LP tells me its a cross breed of a Tiger and a Lion which must be worth a look!

Speak to you guys soon

Love You xxx

Australia Day/Birthday weekend

What a weekend...so tired. I can honestly say I have experienced the pain of Australia Day celebrations! Cant remember the last time i was so so hungover.

Me and Amy put on our pretty dress and heels and jumped on the train to...The Cabana. Really nice bar on the way into the city next to where Amy used to work. We meet Tate and her boyfriend Tim and his mates and had a couple of beers...and a couple of bottles of champers. They were both really really night, Tim's living just next to Bryon Bay and kindly offered to pick me up from the airport etc if i want to fly up and see Ad. And Tate was really lovely and said i had to go visit them when she moves up to Queensland end of March I think it was. Really nice people. Toby rang Amy at about 8.30 so we'd been over 3hours or so (and no we hadnt eaten, as Kath told us we should have dont before we left the house we just assumed we'd get something at the BBQ The Cabana was putting on, but that closed at 6 so we missed out) we headed to an offy and jumped into a taxi. Apprently we were on top form when we arrived. I apprently got out the car said you must be Nathan im Rachael, Bromers is just paying with paper not real money, which ways the kitchen.

Anyway it was a really good night and we have some great stories (now Toby's filled us in on some missing bits) we walked home at 12ish and just raided the fridge...apprently i was worst that when i was in Prague with the amount i ate! Saturday morning... when i finally got up i just didnt move from the sofa next to Amy. We must have watched 4 or 5 films. And thank you boys...you lot singing happy birthday to be at fully blast from the pub Friday night was...something my head didnt need but the idea was lovely so thank you.

Sunday morning I woke up to at least 8 text messages from people who were clearly out on a Saturday night and realised it was my birthday in Oz time. Thats for my early morning wake up call (sorry ill stop moaning) it really was nice reading all your messages. I had a very entertaining phone call off Mum and Dad. They were in Scotland for the weekend and they'd just got home. Dad wasnt very well so Mum was "forced" to drink a whole bottle of wine very quickly so as you can imagine she was away with the fairies. Very entertaining though. Me and Amy headed up to St Ives shopping centre for Breakfast before hitting the shops in Hornsby i think its called. Really nice place, guess it was like an Ozzie Trafford Centre, got to gorgeous dresses for 10 dollars each with is about 4 pounds! Bargin and so pretty, also got some gorgeous underwear with the money Alex gave me. Really nice day. We went back to St Ives to look at bikinis for me and while i was waiting for Amy, guess who walks past me, clocks me and sits down next to me. He was on the phone so i just smiled but no Nathan came and sat down next to me. I kept looking at him thinking to myself ok so it was your house party and your a twin and your name is... he knew mine which was embrassing. And we chatted about Friday night etc, so funny.

Ozzie people are so so lovely though, i remember last time i was here how much i lovely being greeted with a kiss and its just the same here. When you meet someone or leave you always get a kiss...why doesnt that happen in the UK?!

After me and Amy went for a coffee with Toby, we went to drop his car off and i got to meet his gorgeous parents. Really lovely people and we were chatting about my travels and Toby and Amy coming over to Europe and they were asking for tips for Sam whos hoping to go to Thailand in June i think. Anyway when we got back Dave had arrived and we had a gorgeous family BBQ with no smoke, sunshine and everything, not like most family BBQs! It was really nice catching up etc, Dave was saying how much fun he'd had with Alex and Paul but was so glad they'd gone home and they even went to see Ad! Me and Kath stayed up talking after everyone had gone to bed, telling me stories about Grandad, coz it was 17 years since he'd died, telling me how much of a fantastic people he was and how many peoples lives hes had touched through the church and all the charity work he did. Kath really should write down all the stories she has to make sure we dont loose them Kelly stories. I even found out how Grandad and Grandma met, they were pen pals?! So weird but i love those stories.

Today ive had quite a quiet day. Sorted out with Gaz our plans while hes here, we're going to fly up to Alice Spring and do a 5 day tour up there and see true Australia. Then i sat in the spar and worked out what i was going to do with the rest of my time and when, ill sort out maybe flights or bus passes tomorrow morning, but it was quite nice but very weird at in the spar reading lonely planet! So gorgeous just being able to lie out in the sun, might do it again tomorrow! hehe its a hard life!

Love you xxx