On the weekend I went to the Bunya Mountains and enjoyed a relaxing and exercise filled weekend thanks to a very kind invitation from one of my training partners and his wife. We stayed at their beautiful home “Characters”.

On Saturday my friend and I did 8.6km kilometres of hill and rainforest running.
There were wallabies everywhere plus we also feed some parrots!

We also went on a Clydesdale carriage ride into the rainforest and had the yummiest damper and billy tea and sampled roasted bunya nuts. The horses can get up to quite a fast pace, it was very exciting! Please contact Allan Govan on 4668 3115 if you are interest in the horse and carriage ride, you won’t be disappointed.

That evening we enjoyed a delicious 3 course meal at local restaurant Puzzles at Rice’s Log Cabin, ph: 4668 3133. We started with bunya nut bread then I had pumpkin, sweet potato & zucchini soup, chicken for my main, followed by five different desserts on the one plate. The food was absolutely scrumptious and the service friendly and prompt! 

Sunday it was off for a 17km hike through the rainforest to the Wescott Picnic area and back, followed by a huge BBQ lunch back at our gorgeous 3 story accommodation.

We warmly welcome you to our mountain paradise, peacefully nestled adjacent to 1,700ha of subtropical rainforest National Park, where we offer you eco-tourism accommodation and function facilities with the magical Bunya Mountain difference Experience the Bunya Mountains where…Time stops and Paradise begins

To find out more on accommodation at the Bunya Mountains please click here. 

The Bunya’s are the most beautiful place, I had the experience of a life time and I can’t wait to go back!

Yesterday I set off with some mates to map out the route for a trail run across Fraser Island to be hosted later in the year (click here to subscribe for info on the event). I hiked / jogged 25km from Kingfisher Bay Resort to Eurong Resort the width of Fraser Island. We ran though bush, soft sand and beautiful rain forest. The 25km part of the trek took 5:45mins with a few breaks.

After lunch & a recharge break at Eurong the boys headed on further completing another 23km’s going up the beach to Lake Wabby, tackling a huge sand dune and came back around to meet us at the 4wd.

We were all thoroughly exhausted at the end of the day. I enjoyed a huge steak before we got the 8.30pm barge home last night.

It was an AWESOME ADVENTURE but I’m very stiff today!

Blast from the past for my readers, some info on my experience in the 2001 Darwin Beer Can Regatta:

Though I did WIN:
2001 -Winner Darwin Beer Can Regatta; Best Beer Can Boat (A trophy)
2001 – Winner Darwin Beer Can Regatta; Best Beach Attire (A cheque) 

 I had the initiative to contact XXXX head office in Brisbane and asked them if they would sponsor my boat and supply me 3,000 sealed cans.

They were happy to do this and freighted the cans in two large boxes to me in Darwin plus supplied some mens XXXX t-shirts, a flag and stickers.
All I had to do then was enclose the cans in chicken fence wire to make my 6 seater catamaran as the cans were sealed.
There were no gluing cans together so I saved heaps of time and knew I would float! (Quite ingenious really!!!) 

I and my team of friends had an Absolute ball!!!

THE TEN CAN-MANDMENTS

1. Thou shalt enter the event in the right spirit

2. Thou shalt build the craft of cans.

3. The craft shall float by cans alone.

4. Thou shalt not drown.

5. Thou shalt not take the name of the craft in vain. Any craft bearing signs or lettering that may be offensive will be barred.

6. Thou shalt not drift from the straight and narrow and end up at Mandorah.

7. Thou shalt not protest too much.

8. Thou shall honor thy Committee.

9. Thou shalt not commit adultery – nothing really to do with the Regatta, but it gives us an air of responsibility and respect.

10. Thou shalt go back and read the first can-mandment again.

Yesterday it was off to destination unknown with our local Hervey Bay Beachfit Trainers & Commando! We left by bus at 7am and were home just before 4pm. 

Our first destination being Mt Walsh at Biggenden which we climbed taking 01:16mins to complete. It was extremely steep, slippery and quite scary in some places and you could certainly feel the burn in your calves on the way up and quads on the way down! 

Rangers Warning; only experienced walkers should attempt the 2·5 hour hike to the summit of Mt Walsh. 

Next we were dropped at a gate near Lenthalls Dam and instructed to run to the Boat Ramp. This turned out being over 5km on a dirt road in the very hot sun! We then had to blow up our inflatable kayaks and do 6 laps per team around the lilly pads in the middle of the dam. On completion we undertook an orientation course with several amusing tasks including, swinging out over a river, making a balloon doll, jogging with our legs tied together. All tasks had to be photographed to prove we had completed what was required. This took us 01:46mins. 

By the time we had our delicious healthy lunch we were thoroughly exhausted! 

The team I was in team WON in the end by ONE point! 96 to 95 …. What an extremely well planned course to achieve such a close result! 

I thoroughly enjoyed a low carb beer on the way home thanks to Emma! What an AWESOME day, can’t wait for the next one!

Activity 4 (Sunday) 

Mt Coolum

Mount Coolum is an isolated volcanic dome, 208 metres in height, roughly circular in outline, covering a plan area of approximately 1 square kilometre. Geologically, it is principally composed of sodium and potassium rich rhyolite with some sandstone surrounds. Potassium-argon dating gives and age of between 25 and 26 million years. One of the most notable features of the mountain geology is the striking columnar / crystal jointing patterns clearly visible both on the main cliffs and the faces of the disused quarry….. click here to learn more.

Activity 3 (Saturday)

Chenrezig Institute is a centre for Buddhist study, meditation, retreat, and practice nestled in the foothills of the Sunshine Coast Hinterland in Queensland, Australia.

Established in 1974 Chenrezig Institute was the first Tibetan Buddhist centre in the Western World and remains one of the largest.

Today, the Institute is home to a Tibetan Geshe (Lama), a large community of ordained Sangha (nuns and monks), students, residents, volunteers, retreatants, and guests. 

Apart from the formal study programmes, Chenrezig Institute is a peaceful, calm and relaxing place to spend a few hours, days or weeks. Stroll along the bush paths, wander in the formal garden, sip espresso in the café, have a vegetarian meal, drop in for a meditation class or teaching, or just sit and listen to life.

CI’s mission is to transmit the Tibetan Buddhist tradition as the path to ultimate happiness and freedom from suffering.

Activity 2 (Saturday)

I ran a PB time of 01:01:01, I’m still yet to crack the hour. Unfortunately I found the km signs along the track confusing for the 10km and half marathon and I was about 7mins off track for some reason…. if I had of realised I was really only one minute off cracking the hour not 7 I could have pushed harder; very disappointing, oh well next time!

I kept to tradition and enjoyed a huge bacon, eggs & coffee after my run followed by some W’SUP (Satand Up Paddle Boarding) in Twin Waters Canel.

On Thursday I went to Twin Waters, with a few casual clothes with the intent of running 10km in the Mooloolaba Half Marathon…. this is what I ended up doing!

Activity 1 (Friday)

The charity function was awesome; I even had my photo taken with Mark Beretta from Sunrise (Channel 7) who was our host at the event.

Sunday it was up early for the Viridian Noosa Half Marathon 10km run.

My friend Emma & I had a perfect day with over 2,000 competitors taking part on a totally flat course along the scenic Noosa Sound & Gympie Terrace. The organisation, registration & race kit systems, volunteers and overall event was extremely professional and well run.

The only negative for me was the race started at 8.05am so it was after 9am by the time I finished making it pretty hot for me to be running in the sun at this hour of the day.

Other than that we had a fantastic run and fun time in Noosa. I had the best meal ever the night before at Krung Thep a Thai restaurant overlooking the Noosa River where I enjoyed delicious Satay Chicken washed down with Crown Lager!

I took 6.06 mins off my best time completing the course in 01:01:27mins though at the 9km mark I was really debating why I was running this far!

We thoroughly enjoyed and deserved our beer and spa after the race. (One must have balance it their life!)

Not sure when I’ll do my next 10km run as it certainly takes it out of you, especially backing up with Bootcamp at zero five three zero hours the following morning!

On Saturday it was off to Noosa for the Noosa Half Marathon. As it has been awhile since I visited we decided to pull in and check out the Eumundi Markets.

The markets have grown considerably since my last visit a few years ago and the quality of the food, stalls and entertainment is still the best I’ve ever come across.

I met a lovely bloke from ERD (Educational Reptile Displays) who was not quite able to fully help me develop a liking for snakes on this particular visit anyway! Next trip I might have the courage to hold it on my own!

A visit to the markets is definitely a pleasant way to spend a few hours on a Saturday!!!

Talk about the experience of a life time!

The Sigatoka River Safari tour is described as “Simply Unforgettable” and two days later my heart still lies in the Village of Vunaqoru with my new friends, especially Aggie.

The day started from our resort in Denarau with a scenic bus trip through the countryside to the Coral Coast town of Sigatoka where we ventured further through the Sigatoka Valley enjoying spectacular scenery of the Fijian country side.

We then began our safari Jet Boat ride with Captain “Jack Sparrow” (Josh) learning about the cannibal history in Fiji. Christianity was introduced to Fiji which put an end to cannibalism but not after a missionary Thomas Baker was eaten for touching a comb in the chiefs hair which the then Fijians felt brought them years of hardship in their villages… click here to find out more. We also discussed the operations of the river and history of the valley.

Upon arriving at our village we were met by a lovely local lady named Aggie and were guided a further 500m into the Fijian highlands. After the protocol was explained including the wearing of a sarong (ladies must be covered past the knees) and the removal of hats & shoes due to respect for traditional culture we proceeded to meet the Village Chief and elders participating in a traditional kava ceremony.

We then walked throughout the village viewing the simplicity of their lifestyle and learning about their day activities. Aggie told us they have no electricity and their next village project is to bring a cable across the river which would cost $11,000 then $300 for each home to be connected to the electricity. They are nearly finished rebuilding their church that was destroyed with the floods in January due to the help of a $5,000 donation from an Australian business man who also fell in love with the villagers on his visit. The villagers use a generator to operate two televisions, have running water from a spring, pay $60 per acre to hire a tractor and sell the numerous vegetables they grow to create an income. The process in Fiji seems to be to raise a little funds, do a little more work to your project, taking time and numerous stages to complete a project which could be seen in the construction of a house and the church.
You will soon notice in Fiji everything is done on Fiji Time – No Hurry, No Worry!

Aggie explained to me they have early nights without electricity, not much TV makes lots of babies, we both couldn’t stop giggling again.

200 people live in the village with the children crossing the river each morning and walking 2km to go to school. Aggie goes to the town once a week on the bus, after crossing the river to buy supplies and said she thoroughly enjoys her day out but it is hard work to get everything back across the river.

The villagers gave us an amazing home cooked lunch and then sang songs and kindly invited us to dance. I couldn’t stop laughing at some of our new groovy moves and had an absolute ball leading my first ever Fijian Congo line through the villagers in the Community Hall.
Upon leaving, I felt terrible for not asking the Chief if he may enjoy a dance!

I asked Aggie if the Chief would mind if I took a photo with him. She said she would ask and couldn’t stop giggled saying “You Single, Chief Single!!” I then also couldn’t stop laughing ,specifying just a photo would be more that generous!

I had so much fun dancing, Aggie offered I could stay with her overnight any time I liked and we could dance all night with breaks to catch our breath. What a kind offer and something I would be delighted to do one day.

As we left in the jet boat it was lucky I had on my sunnies as I felt such sadness and a tear in my eye, thinking how blessed I was to be part of such a special day with such friendly special people and couldn’t stop waving to Aggie till I could no longer see her.

On the return trip we did a few donuts / 360 degree burnouts with Captain Sparrow, squealing with laughter and getting quite drenched.

What a once in a lifetime experience!
I would recommend this tour if you have the privilege of visiting Fiji, get away from the tourism and become a part of the real heart of the Fiji, the people! Your life will be touched by the experience…

10% of your ticket cost is donated to the villages plus you are able to make a personal donation on your visit if you chose to do so.
There are 12 villages in this exciting project with this soon to be 14.

Sigatoka River Safari
Feb 2008 - Awarded Fiji’s Best Adventure Tour at the Annual AON Tourism Awards
Feb 2009 - Awarded the Best Fiji Experience at the annual AON Tourism Awards

Friday night my friend Naomi & I booked into Jupiter’s Casino to watch Lady Salsa!!! What a sensational, electric & high energy performance. We thoroughly enjoyed the show and even went up on stage and did some Salsa! The show is a must see!

Shake your maracas and shimmy on down for the sauciest stage show in Jupiters’ history.
Hit the steamy streets of Havana and take a dip in the red hot world of Rumba, Mambo and Salsa for the dancing revolution that changed the world.
Lady Salsa is a stunning dance spectacular that charts Cuba’s vibrant and amazing history through the music and rhythm of this intoxicating island.
This whirling kaleidoscope of dazzling colour and seductive glamour features the red-hot rumba, mambo, cha-cha-cha and the sensational salsa. Gorgeous dancers in an incredible array of glittering, sexy costumes and an impossibly funky band, transport you to the steamy streets of Havana and the world of Salsa, rum and revolutions.

Saturday it was off to DouDouLe Latin Dance Camp 2009 for a full day of dance workshops plus a party and some amazing performances!!! This camp is organized by Jean-Luc Lambs whom I met and found to be an extremely pleasant, professional and helpful person. The thank you speech at the end of the night seemed to sum up his personality with the comment, “Heart of Gold!” What Jean-Luc is doing for the Australian Latin Dance Community is sensational and even with all the pressure of organising such a huge event he displayed no signs of stress. The 368 Latin enthusiasts in attendance had the choice of over 20 different Latin workshops in a range of levels throughout the day, followed by a huge party with the Sauciest & Hottest Latin Dancing I have ever come across.

The Party included performances from some of Australia’s most famous and talented Latin Dancers. It was an amazing experience to be part of such a huge Latin dance event and to feel the electric energy run through your body. I can’t wait for next year’s camp!!! 

Saturday Nights Performers: 
1.     Jaime Jesus & Mary (Jaime organises the Sydney Salsa Congress)
2.    Latin Motion Rising stars
3.    Kevin & Chelsea
4.    Carlos & Elli (Australian Salsa Cabaret Champions)
5.    Csaba & Val
6.    Kadu & Larissa (who made Zouk famous in Australia)
7.    CDA Samba
8.    Modus Vivendi
9.     Oliver Pineda & Luda Kroitor  (the current 5 times World Salsa Champions from ‘Dancing With The Stars’) 

Right on the beautiful beaches of the Gold Coast….DouDouLe Latin Dance Camp was founded in 2008 by Jean-Luc Lambs , who is also the Organiser for Brisbane Number 1 Latin Club “Casablanca Sunday Salsa Seduction”. Jean-Luc is also the Official MC to many Latin Parties, Festivals , Congresses and Concerts around Australia and has built himself a reputation for being partly involved in bringing the Latin Community together in his home town Brisbane.

DouDouLe Latin Dance Camp is designed to bring all Latin Dancers from different schools and cities under 1 roof, in a different setting and environment to your Dance Halls. A relaxed, Holiday environment makes this Latin Event one of its kind and it’s right on the Beaches of the Famous Gold Coast. His ideas of everyone together under 1 roof is to bring Unity and Love and also bring Dancers closer together by sharing more personal time together and the Passion that everybody brings with them , which is Latin Dance. For more information please click here .

 [Info via Jupiters Casino & DouDouLe Latin Dance Camp]

Oh My Gosh (OMG) I’m exhausted from so much partying!!!!
Now this is the cruise to go on, 7 days with 3 stops to Vanuatu.
If you want to have fun with a mixture of people all ages; Take the Shorter Cruises!

I met a nice lady, Debbie in the boarding queue who was also travelling solo and was married to one of the  bar managers and has been on 16 cruises!!! We got along famously, so we hung out most of the trip and I learned all the tips and secret’s of cruising and some of the funniest stories ever!

I had a cabin to myself this time which was fabulous and even better for relaxation once the engine crew gave me some ear plugs.
The sail away party was huge with all decks full and there were people actually in the nightclub this trip!!
We had two formal nights, a Hawaiian deck party, cowboy and rock and roll theme nights.
The staff were sensational again and most remembered me from last trip including my name and cruise number.

My favourite cocktail on the trip was – Beverley Hills Iced Tea (42 Below Vodka, South Gin, 1800 Tequila, Bundaberg Rum, Cointreau, Sweet & Sour, Sparkling Wine. $13.50).
Two of these were more than enough to keep you on the dance floor all night; the ships officers thought I was the funniest thing they had partied with in a long time and didn’t know where I got my energy from (Beverley Hills Iced Tea Boys)!!!
One of the bar officers took a liking to me and told his staff that I was to drink his stock for free and to put my drinks on his account. (This lasted two nights till he realised how much I can thrown down the hatch!). My cocktails were prepared by a barman named Superman (this is his real name) and his service and bar skills were also super-natural, he even made me a white rose from a surviette!

I also met our Captain Peter Philpott and visited the bridge where the boat is driven from, which was extremely interesting and informative. Plus caught up with Cruise Director David Pepper again who is one funny man!

Noumea, New Caledonia; This town was not that exciting I just walked around for a couple of hours. The city was abit dirty and expensive. The locals spoke French so I couldn’t really spark up a conversation.

Lifou, New Caledonia: This Island was absolutely gorgeous.
I checked out the two churches, a secret cave with a waterhole deep inside, and the snorkelling reef plus had a swim in the crystal waters.
A big thank you to Warren a security officer from the ship for showing me around and taking some fantastic photo’s on his SLR Camera (below).

 Vila, Vanuatu: Now this was the spot for shopping including souvenirs and duty free.
You are allowed to bring 2.250L back in the country duty free, so I purchased some Malibu 1L, 40% Black Label Jim Beam 700ml and Johnny Walker Scotch 500ml.

Oh well, back to reality today….. though I can’t wait to research and book my next cruise!!!!

OK I’m officially back onboard the Pacific Sun on route to Vanuatu and have had a couple of beers and enjoyed the send off party. Now for the safety drill, a shower, the BUFFET, then time to party! The crowd on this trip is heaps younger and much more FUN already. All the staff remember me (GOSH)!

Shall keep you updated!

Breakdown of my first ever P & O cruising experience.

OH MY GOSH 80 – 90% of the passengers are over 60 years old!
Later on I found out the average age on board was 67 – 82 years old!
What the ….! 

Tell you what, by day 14 I was getting over being in slow queues and trying not to trip on walking sticks, wheelie walkers and wheel chairs….I felt like I had been confined to a nursing home not a cruise with fun, active, healthy, young – middle aged people as depicted in P & O’s advertising images.  

I was extremely disappointed, as on the first night not only was I the youngest in the night club but I was the only person in the night club!

My initial thoughts, ‘OMG HOW WILL I SURVIVE 14 DAYS!’ 

P & O’s nightclub advertising image…     My image | photograph taken….

The first four days I was I was pretty crook and took awhile to adjust to the constant swaying. After speaking to a couple of staff they advised it was probably not wise to drink the tap water. Once I stopped this and started drinking bottled water I felt fine and no longer took any travel sickness pills for the remainder of the cruise.

The Food…
was sensational, delicious and extremely abundant!
It felt like the buffet was never ending!
(Several people mentioned it was unpleasant observing the majority of the passengers who were obese and a high percentage morbidly obese overusing the buffet facilities.)

I visited the onboard gym quite a few times and took several dance classes (Salsa, Swing, Rhumba, Cha Cha, Merengue, Waltz, Irish (River Dance) & Beginners Jazz) for exercise plus used the onboard stairs at every opportunity.

The service and food in the a la carte restaurants for dinner was nothing short of excellent and extremely professional. The staff were amazing. I have never experienced such extraordinary service, helpfulness and friendly people! This applied to all the staff on board in all the areas. The Captain mentioned there were over 680 staff from 30 nationalities and said, “If they can work together and get on so well, why can’t the rest of the world?” I AGREE!

General unknown info being a first time cruiser
I felt the cost of the internet was far too high, the best deal on offer was ($100 for 250mins), especially as I am a graphic and website designer with my own business and need to work onboard daily using the internet.

Unless you advise otherwise on the first day of boarding $7.50 is deducted from your credit card daily for a staff tip charge (I was advised of this from other passengers). It may be more discreet if this was included in the ticket price or the staff paid adequately for the excellent job they do.
From several sources it seems the majority work 12 – 16 hour days making $1600-$2300 a month which doesn’t seem to equate to a very high hourly rate? (though staff don’t pay any tax being in international waters). I tipped the staff that looked after me personally as they were sensational. The money that is deducted daily also goes to all the people behind the scenes you don’t see doing a great job such as the laundry and kitchen staff.

Many passengers mentioned they found the fluctuating prices unfair, as in the cost they paid for their cruise in comparison to others, there were variances of thousands of dollars, especially with last minute bookings receiving huge discounts. (Of course how many in the room and what sort of room effects these costs also.)

Many commented the photographs were extremely overpriced. If you hold off till the last couple of days they are discounted. Even discounted they are still pricey and if not brought, I was told thrown in the bin…would you not just sell them for $5 or $10 dollars?

Ear plugs are essential for a good nights sleep!

The onboard activities and entertainment were excellent and around the clock, there was a large range of variety to suit all ages and no room to be bored or not entertained!

The Tours & New Zealand
The tours were extremely well organised, had variety, were reasonably priced and well supervised. The sights and the country was absolutely beautiful.
The disembarkment from the boat was a slow process due to the numerous elderly and overweight passengers and particularly when getting on and off buses at the various stops throughout the day. Being a woman that is always on the go, I had to practice my patience skills and try to slow down a fraction for my sanity!

Cruising through Milford Sound was spectacular, amazing and very chilly.

Dunedin was fun with a tour of the city including Olveston House, the Museum and the Botanical Gardens. Then some NZ beers with locals and an amusing impromptu karaoke session including songs such a Waltzing Matilda, Tie Me Kangaroo Down Sport, I come from the Land Down Under, Up there Cazaly and A Pub with no Beer!

Christchurch it was off on a tram around the city, a punt ride then up the gondola (skylift)

Wellington, firstly it was off to Parliament House, which was extremely interesting. Then the Botanical Gardens, Museum and Tram / Gondola ride.

Tauranga, was a look around town then a helicopter ride followed by Hawaiian party night (Pictured here with Ugly Dave Gray).

Auckland it was off around town on the Explorer bus, up to Mount Eden then a quiet dinner with my friend Lee’s sister, Elisha.

I’ve heard the shorter cruises have more variety in passenger ages so let’s see how my Vanuatu trip for 7 days turns out on the 21^st of this month… who knows they may party too hard for me (not likely)!

P & O; now this is how to holiday! (this is one of their advertising slogans)

Well I’m not actually sure of that as this is my first ever cruise, so I will fill you in on my experience on my return. Though I am pretty sure I will have a ball.

I’m sitting in a Brisbane Cafe waiting to board the Pacific Sun for a 14 day cruise around New Zealand. As my flight to Brisbane was early this morning I was the second person to check in for the cruise.
How absolutely wonderful to actually have a holiday (annual leave)!

I can’t wait to check out the onboard gym, casino, dance classes, performances and much more. I also have my travel sickness tablets ready just in case.

I have already met a June and Terry from Mount Perry. June thought I worked on the cruise and was a gym instructor! Ha ha must be my addidas shorts and joggers that threw her!

I’m still waiting for my friend that used to work with me in Darwin, I  havn’t seen this lady for about eight years. Let’s hope we are fun roomies!
She is bringing me a lai and skirt for our Hawiian night an I have a Cowboy hat and shirt for our Western night!!

Hhhhmmmm not seeing any HOT single middle aged men around!

Not sure when my next story will be……..stay tunned.

Today started off with a trip on the mono rail to check out Paddy’s Market’s then a walk and lunch in the Chinese Garden of Friendship which is located in the heart of the city in Sydney.

The Gardens are so tranquil and relaxing, I enjoy a visit to them every time I come to Sydney with their beautiful sheltered pavillions, graceful bridges and enchanting landscapes. This trip I decided to get right in mood and was dressed up as a very sexy geisha!!! (pictured here practising my geisha lips) I even had a Japanese tourist take my photo thinking I was employed by the Chinese Gardens! How funny!

There was also a beautiful family of ducklings as I fed the carp some bread. They were not afraid to swim above the carp that were quite considerably larger!

Wish I had my fishing line!

After lunch it was off to check out the Powerhouse Museum and the Zero Gravity Space Lab. This is a fun interactive that created the illusion of being in a weightless environment, where I found out what it is like to live and work in space. You stood in a chamber while the outside moved creating a feeling of weightlessness (I got abit dizzy!).

I also found this beautiful image of Princess Diana at the museum.

Tonight it’s off for some Salsa dancing at Vivas on the Rocks! 
Oh My Gosh, I had the time of my life. 
We met up with some friends from a Sydney dance club called Salsa Live and the fun begun.

I’ve never been swung around like a rag doll by so many hot men in my entire life! What a treat to actually dance with professionally trained dancers, with excellent technique and for once I wasn’t trying to lead!

The live band had your hips swinging and the whole atmosphere was absolutely electric and extremely saucy!

It was nice to be in a licenced venue where the people were not rude and drunk but fun, friendly, could hold a conversation and move on the dance floor!

I didn’t know I was so flexible!

Yesterday I flew into Sydney with a girlfriend for a working holiday.

Upon checking in to our 2 bedroom apartment we were advised we were on level P?
As there was no explanation as to what P meant on the lift buttons we decided to confer with others in the lift and came up with, pretty foxy level, princess’s level, but on a trip in a different lift it clearly stated Penthouse. I like this booking through wotif, I never know what sort of surprise accommodation I’ll be staying in! Very prestigious!

This morning we were up early to do a Sydney Harbour Bridge Climb. The systems in place with the climb were meticulously thought out and made for a smooth climb and an extremely successful business due to this obviously in depth strategic planning. The view was sensational!!!! I was pleased to find out I’m not scared of heights.

I did find a few negatives on my experience:

1. I should have worn gloves as the air was cold and I know how cold my fingers get on my motorbike! But I was unassertive and didn’t ask for gloves though I felt the guides may have offered them as it was very cold and the hand rails were freezing.

2. The trip was way too long, 3hrs without a toilet break! OMG after two and a half hours, I spoke to the guide and my friend and I were unleashed from the group, shuffled into an emergency lift, escorted through walkways and chambers of a pylon to find a secret restroom. The strapping male tour guide was extremely professional and swift in undoing al our equipment and suits. We found this very amusing!

3. There was also alot of stopping for no reason and long delays without commentary which I found unnecessary. Without this the climb would have been at least half an hour shorter and maybe just doable without feeling like having an embarrassing accident.

4. I noticed our tour guide had a nice sun protective hat on. I wish I had this option! Even though I had applied suncream before the climb I still ended up with wind and sun burn to my face. I was surprised sun cream was not on the list of what to bring or supplied as we all know the high dangers of sun cancer in Australia.

I’m glad I did the climb but I would not do it again. I was alittle disappointed as I expected to feel some sort of exuberance / accomplishment and as if I’d faced a fear when at the top but all I felt was irritation with the delays and my face getting sunburnt!

After lunch we decided to check out the Museum of Contemporary Art and view Sydney’s international festival of contemporary art the “2008 Biennale of Sydney” exhibition. This was very interesting though we were alittle worn out from the climb.

The high light of the exhibition was an exhibit by Helio Oiticica who was born in 1937 in Rio De Janeiro in Brazil.  The room was full of coloured hammocks with pictures of Jimmy Hendrix projected on all the walls plus his music playing quite loudly. We relaxed in the hammocks for a few minutes and decided to get out before we dozed off!

Oiticica believed in liberating the viewer and saw his installations of sound, mattresses, live animals, rubber and sand as spaces of emancipation.

This evening we attended the Phantom at of the Opera at the Lyric Theatre at Star City Casino.
This was the high light of the day!!!
Ana Marina played Christine and Roy Weissensteiner was the Phantom. Their voices and performances were amazing, the orchestra was dramatic, the costumes were elaborate, the props beautiful and quite creative. The whole combination was magnificent and absolutely spectacular!! 

Now this experience I would definitely recommend!