… We were in Christchurch and took a train trip to Greymouth and back which took all day. It was thru some beautiful areas but the weather was bleak at best . This was a trip said to be one of the 6 greatest train rides so I hope the top 5 are a great deal better and hate to think about number 7! It was expensive, offered only counter snacks, was noisy and uncomfortable. There was very little dialogue and those that provided it appeared very unenthusiastic! The train made many stops in small towns and some had no terminal…just a stop for a taxi to gather the passengers. We had only one opportunity to get off the train at the town of Greymouth for a brief 40 minutes, and the only place to go was a big discount store and on Christmas Eve day; you can only imagine! Our saving grace was in meeting some folks, and their wonderful teenage son, Greg. We chattered with them for most of the return trip hearing about roses, their family and Greg's prospects for the future. Greg has promised to write us about his life in New Zealand, and as soon as we hear from him it will appear at Kids Travel Fun.

Christmas Day. 12/25

On Christmas, we got up about 8 am and Lynn cooked breakfast for the four of us. This area does much less than the US with Christmas decorating so it seemed quite strange. Lynn, being the crazy guy he is, brought an inflatable Christmas tree and had it hidden in his luggage until Christmas morning. He blew it up and decorated it. I put Christmas CD's on the lap top…I have to tell you though, listening to "Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire" and "Frosty the Snowman" in the summertime is weird for those of us from the Northern Hemisphere!

It was a real gas!!! We had breakfast outside. The folks here do little decorating so they were having fun watching us. We had brought a bunch of US Flag pins so I attached them to our Traveling Scene business card and everyone who came by got a present!

During early afternoon, we took a drive into town for a look around. Christchurch is a very enchanting city with many old buildings and a very relaxed pace.

After speaking to folks in town over the past few days about how few restaurants were open and how difficult it is to get a reservation, Christine and I decided that we would have our meal at the caravan park for just the four of us which was a Christmas cookout on the barbie….doesn't everyone? With all of the great NZ wine we had accumulated it was quite memorable.

After dinner, we had plenty to do to work off the big meal. We had to pack our luggage for our journey to Australia the next morning. That was a fiasco since although we tried to pack light we didn't do too well in planning for the souvenirs. Oh well..the solution was to buy another piece of folding luggage then pray that all items are small enough to cram in.

The first thing I want to point out is that we had 21 days in Australia. That is like 21 days to tour the United States! That means, depending on the time you have available, you will need to plan the area you want to see. We centered our travel activities in the Southeast corner of Australia and attempted to cover as much territory as we could.

Wednesday 12/26

We landed amidst the smoke from the fires that started on Christmas Eve. By a sheer stroke of luck after what may have been a real error in planning, we found the Travelodge Phillip Street in Sydney.

We had booked at a hotel, the Noah Lodge which was stated to be a brand new property and located right at the Sydney City Centre. We had been told that this facility had accommodations for lap top computers and that local calls were free. As it turned out, the hotel was new in name but in a very old building. We were told that when we wanted to leave the hotel at any time, that we were expected to leave our hotel keys in the box at the front desk and NOT to take them with us! The desk manager said that since we had several pieces of luggage that we could store anything we did not need in the secured area. When we asked to look at the rooms, we found no room for a single piece of luggage which explained the offer to store luggage! We also found that local calls were 50 cents for 3 minutes so the idea of getting online would be quite costly!

This is a point for you…make sure that the details you are given are not vague…it may be tough but it is important. Ask the pertinent questions about anything especially important.

We notified the owner/management that this was not acceptable nor as we had been informed. We told them that we would not be checking in and left that hotel. She became irate despite folks in the lobby. Since this writing, we have noted that we were billed on our credit cards for one night!

We found the Travelodge and now proclaim it to be a prime destination for staying in Sydney! It is in a very nice part of town. The rooms are immaculate and well appointed. They have 50 cents per call unlimited time local call access, restaurants, super accommodating staff, and are convenient to everything we wanted including Circular Quay, the Opera House and many of the popular Sydney attractions

We ventured to the Sydney Towers Restaurant for dinner. The faire was a buffet that offered a variety of things new to us including camel and emu! Also offered was kangaroo, beef, ham, and lamb. It was incredibly sad to see the smoke from the raging bush fires around Sydney from such an otherwise beautiful vantage point. We did learn that fires in Australia are more common than we would like to think and recently-gained knowledge about wildland fire acknowledges fire is natural and needed for certain types of plant and animal communities to survive. Plant species extinction is certain unless there is fire. Knowing this didn't ease the anger when we learned that much of the destruction was caused by arson!

Thursday 12/27

There is so much to see in Sydney that 4 days was not enough but that was all the time we had and we made use of every moment. Be sure to stop at the Sydney Visitor Centre at The Rocks for information and a fantastic exhibit on the history. The Rocks is a must. This is an area of downtown where Sydney first began. There is a lot of history and now offers many choices of accommodations, restaurants, museums, shops, street performers and sights. In the same general area is the famous Sydney Opera House and the Harbour Bridge, also know as the Coathanger. The Bridgeclimb offers an opportunity to climb and cross the bridge; not for those fearful of heights or water! Darling Harbor has a gorgeous waterfront and beautiful harbor, a wide array of restaurants, the IMax Theatre, the National Maritime Museum and the Sydney Aquarium that is one of the most spectacular in the world.

Friday 12/28

Since much of the smoke had begun to dissipate, we took a Dinner boat cruise on Sydney Harbor, the most beautiful harbor in the world aboard Matilda Cruises that as they say, captures the true Essence of Sydney Harbor. Guests may board at both Darling Harbour or Circular Quay. Dinners are contemporary Australia cuisine that are prepared to order and include Entrée (appetizer), main course and dessert. Our dinner was superb and afterwards we had drinks out on the deck as the captain raised the sails. It was very romantic!

Saturday 12/29

Wonderland Sydney. Our tour guide was Renee Ferenc and what a bundle of knowledge she is! Wonderland Sydney is divided into several themed areas. The Wildlife Park was our first choice! There are animals! Koalas, kangaroos, wallabies, wombats, echidnas, lizards, gators and birds….lots of birds. There is so much at this one park that I might have stayed for days until Renee suggested lunch.

We later saw the Woolshed! What a production with lights and sound effects and lots of laughs. We found that the shearers are not performers but instead are called in from various farms….these guys have to be performers…don't they? They were hysterical!

Wonderland Sydney also has the largest water park I have ever seen and if we had just a bit more time, we would have been in the water. This is a fantastic place for families and to allow kids to wear off lots of steam.

Sunday 12/30