Hello Australia!

We have arrived and we are alive! Sorry for the delay in posting everyone, but we've just been having too much fun in Australia, even if we are having decidedly English weather! We're now feeling a bit more over the jet lag, which really hits you!

We spent a few days with my uncle Tony, aunt Glenys and cousin Trystan in Normanhurst, just north of Sydney; and now we're staying in Coogee in the Eastern suburbs with Ania's cousin Lucy and her boyfriend Peter. We've been enjoying some of what Sydney has to offer, but haven't really scratched the surface... yet!

In the Botanic Gardens with a lovely view of those two icons in the background!

The view from our ferry as we headed to Taronga Zoo:

A couple of days ago we went to Taronga zoo, an incredible place where you can see animals that we're used to seeing in zoos back home, like big cats and elephants, etc. - but also kangaroos, koalas and wallabies! I went there five years ago with my family, but it was new to Ania and we both had a great day there. There were a few new things including the Skycar, a cable car that takes you to the top of the zoo, giving you spectacular views of Sydney Harbour and all of the animals below you. Here are some photos from our visit - we mainly seem to have zoo pictures from Australia so far, but they are good!

Koalas and kangaroos in Taronga:

Getting mobbed for our lunch by rainbow lorakeets in Taronga:

Taronga's newest addition, a baby girl elephant calf. She was born at around the time we landed in the country, so we felt very lucky to see her!

See how the Stu Bear compares to the world's tallest and shortest bears:

The bird show at Taronga. Taronga is an Aboriginal word meaning 'beautiful view'. I think you can see why! That's an eagle soaring over the Harbour. Nice.

We've also been into the Botanic Gardens in Sydney, which again is just minutes away from the Harbour. We also met up with my second cousin (we're a little sketchy on this one - she's my mum's cousin!), Helen and her husband Bill. It was really good to see them and so typical that you meet up with a relative you haven't seen for years on the other side of the world!

Last night Peter came and picked us up from Normanhurst on his way back from work and drove us back to Coogee, before the four of us went out for a nice meal and a couple of drinks in a bar. As I mentioned above it's been raining here, but we're British damn it, so we're going to not let it stop us having fun! We might go for a walk and/or have a BBQ later!

On Monday Ania and I pick up our camper van and drive to Cairns in Queensland (the North/East of Australia). Tony, Glenys and Trystan have set us up beautifully for our road trip, lending us DVDs and a guitar (!); and kindly giving us bottles of wine, pasta and some tea bags. Thanks guys. At least we won't starve for the first few days!

Ania with Eddie, Trystan's dog:

We're loving it here in Oz. The people are so friendly and it's great to have our anonymity back after being in India for six weeks. The views from the Harbour still take my breath away and I think most of the photos we've taken are of the killer-combination that is the Bridge and the Opera House (and the zoo of course!). It seems crazy to think we're leaving here in a day or two, but then we are back for a few weeks over Christmas and New Year!