HAPPI NU YEER

Broadwater - Gold Coast

Today was scorching hot!!! This is the Broadwater on the Gold Coast. Its the playground of the rich Ozzies. only problem is that they have HUGE boats which create massive wakes - our boat didn't cope well at all - in fcat we were thrown around like a cork in a bath. we survived but were a bit shaken with the whole thing - the boat is obvioulsy built to hit waves like these head on but we thought the thing was going to snap in two!!!

This beach is on the ocean side of South Stradbroke island. The sand was like powder and pure white - whats more - it stretched for miles. Even better - we had every mile to ourselves - not another living soul here................






This campsite can only be reached via boat - there's nothing here except nature - we're planning a trip here later this year.

Makin Mellow Man

A beautiful day out on the boat - just relaxin you know................

We are on Pumistone Passage between Bribie Island and the Queensland Coastline - just fantastic

Ray's first flying experience

This was a birthday present from Neil but as we've been so busy - we haven't been able to do it until now.

This is actually a glider (sort of) and when they get to altitude, they switch the engine off and it glides up in the thermals - at that point Ray took the controls and flew for about half an hour - fantastic!!

Champagne & Caviar on the boat darlings - what bliss!!!

Actually so far its been far from bliss. We went to Somerst Lake which is a freshwater lake where you can ski etc. Well half an hour into the day - we ran out of fuel!!! The meter is not that accurate as we found out - Neil had to swim ashore - get in the car soaking wet and go find a jerry can and some petrol - then had to swim out to the boat and fill her up!! Not the best day out.

Second day on the lake - when taking the boat out of the water - the winch snapped - we only had the boat half on the trailer - we had to drive home at snails pace to the frustration of the convoy of people behind us.

We now have the winch fixed and we're looking forward to a stress free (!!!!) couple of days out over the Christmas break which hopefully don't include the words F*ck off or I want a divorce!!!!

PUPPIES

OK - house is now officially a wreck - all shoes have been chewed to bits - neighbours are furious with all the noise - but we're having great time with them.

They had their second injections on Thursday so we should be able to take them for walks next week - we really can't wait as they are getting realy bored and they have LOADS of energy which is really wearing us out.

We're trying to get them used to the pool so that they can find their way out but its not easy - they are still a bit too small to pull themselves out so we can't leave them unsupervised - the pool is protected with a fence. Hamish can't fit through the bars now but Morag can still sqeeze through and we can't risk leaving them until we know they will be OK.

We've Arrived!!!!!!!

Yep at long last we took the pluge and bought a boat. We took our skippers exams a few weeks ago. We love the boat but its all a bit scary right now as we're still learning - there is a hell of a lot to learn!!!














































































This is Tangalooma on Moreton Island. It takes about an hour to get there. It is absolutley gorgeous and we had a spectacular day. Only thing is that the tide changed and wind whipped up and it took us 2.5 hours to get back - we were crapping it as the waves were coming over the boat!!! We got back safe and fine although a little shaken!! We will get better at judging the weather and tides - as we said - we're still learning!!!

Welcome Hamish and Morag

We finally got our new puppies - we've been hoping to get some for over a year and we decided the time was right now.

Hamish is male (sandy coloured) and Morag is female (black and white). They are brother and sister.

As you can expect - house has been torn to bits and there is puppy wee everywhere!!!

Brisbane storm worst in 25 years

We're all Ok but this storm was massive. It really kicked off here last night - we thought the sky was going to collapse!! At one point we were in middle of house with lights off hoping it would subside. Some houses to the noth got hit and were blown to bits!!!

Here's the story from BBC website:-



http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7732696.stm

http://news.ninemsn.com.au/slideshow_ajax.aspx?sectionid=9016&sectionname=slideshowajax&subsectionid=148184&subsectionname=storm_qld&rss=yes

Cyclone-style storms have ripped through parts of Queensland on Australia's east coast.

They killed one man, destroyed homes and left more than 200,000 properties without power.

The storms hit the state capital Brisbane and the popular tourist areas of the Sunshine Coast and Gold Coast.

This was the worst storm to hit Brisbane in a quarter of a century, unleashing hail, torrential rain and strong winds.

Residents in one of its most badly-hit suburbs have said their streets resemble a war zone.

Most of the trees over 10m (33 feet) tall have simply been snapped in half.

"It looks like as if a bomb, a great big bomb, [has] gone off in all the street," said Davina Thomas.

"We can't get out of our street, just walking down to the corner, there are power lines down, there are trees across the road, all we hear is ambulances or sirens I'm not sure which.

"It's terrible. My daughter's had a roof blown off, it's in the pool!" Ms Thomas said.

A 20-year-old man was swept away in flash flooding and drowned, as he was sucked down a drain.

At the height of the storms more than 200,000 homes and businesses lost power.

Another Murder Mystery


We had a great time (Thanks Sonya). Only thing is - we forgot to take house keyes and we had to break into our own house when we came back - not great when you're sloshed and complely covered in graese paint!!!