Merry Christmas, and Happy New Year!  I resolve to write more blogs for the website this year. And make them fun reads.  Not today though.  We're off to the blue mountains, and won't be back until late. I know that Casey and I have been very light on the blogs since we took off in October, but we're going to do our best to update everyone a bit more often now that we're getting into the flow of backpacker life.

Even without the blogs, we are doing out best to create lifetime memories on this trip.  Australia is a difficult country to explain.  It's not really friendly to a backpacker budget when things are 20-30% more expensive than back home, and you're trying to spend three months there. We want to do everything, but we also don't want to sacrifice any other parts of our trip because we overspent in Australia. So yes, the budget watch has been on, and has caused some stress as we skipped over things we both want to do. This meant having to say no to Fraser Island, as well as tall ship adventures in Airlie Beach.

As for what we have done in Australia so far, it includes the great barrier reef (twice--Cairns and Whitsundays), Magnetic Island (saw Rock Wallabies and Koalas in their natural habitats), spent time in Brisbane (went to the Nutcracker), learned to surf in Byron Bay, went to Hunter Valley for wine tasting, and the Harbour Bridge Climb in Sydney, where we've been since the Dec 23rd.  We've been busy, to say the least, but doing whatever we can to relax and enjoy the moments that make us smile.  Like taking the railroad.  It's definitely been refreshing to do this country by rail and not a bus like New Zealand.  We make our own plans, and come and go from each stopover as we feel. 

Like I said earlier, we're off to the Blue Mountains today, and then head to Victoria to visit Melbourne for a while, and then continue our way westward!

Happy New Year!