EFE the campervan, 'scenic' mountain hikes and sunshine on the Banks Peninsula...

At last! Our two month nomadic journey around the land of the long White cloud was upon us. We have been waiting for this part with eagerness for a long time, maybe even as far back as when we left university, some six or seven years ago now. Although we have literally had the time of our lives so far on this trip I think it was this, the idea of full independence intertwined with the potential of a country as majestic and inspiring as it is possible to get that we have been looking forward to the most.

Anyway, after leaving our brother and sister, Teeny and Rowan, we headed down to Brisbane airport with one of Rowan's friends Blakey, another awesome chap who had kindly offered to take us on the hour or so journey south as he was off to see his mum in Brisbane.

After saying our goodbyes we got through immigration and onto flight number one to Sydney with Qantas. Although only an hour and a half the plane was huge and full of business men and women. What was also great and totally unexpected was that they were trialling giving all passengers brand new Ipads to use for the in flight entertainment, absolutely awesome! We whiled away the short distance watching An Idiot Abroad and thinking how much, even to the fucking idiots, travelling can do to the soul.

After initially being refused to check in for our connecting flight we were rushed through and soon enough we were on our second flight of the day, finally over to Christchurch, our first stop on our NZ roadtrip.

Now as you may have heard, Christchurch has been hit by several deadly earthquakes over the past eighteen months so we were expecting some lasting damage and continuing repairs. It would be completely astonishing then to find the vast majority of the city, especially the CBD, completely in ruin. The city actually suffered from five devastating earthquakes which caused the critical damage and loss of life but over 10,000 aftershocks have been felt in the last year alone. We booked a guide to take us out the following day, a big Old typical Kiwi called Al who took us out in his van to show us his city. Although obviously an attractive city it is an unfortunate reality that it's most unique sight is it's sheer destruction, a continuous story of what was there before. Al was a good man and showed us everything we needed to see both in and around the city, including Littleton, a town on the other side of the hill where the original frontier men founded the city and it's surrounding towns in 1840. Although Littleton and it's surroundings were stunning the depressing reality was that Christchurch was essentially a ghost town. We have never known a city be so devoid of, well, people. Only the sound of the demolition vehicles gave any hint of any sort if civilisation. In fact it is this last point which provides so much disdain for the local population. Due to finicky and overly bureaucratic insurance companies buildings aren't allowed to be demolished in the traditional sense but taken down piece by piece, taking care to save all of the furnishings. It's crazy that although the quakes happened over a year ago, to look at it could have been last Tuesday.

Anyway, after a couple of nights in the worlds most comfortable room (shell fell in love with the bed), we were off to pick up our baby. The campervan that we would be living and travelling with for the next 56 nights. Her name, beautifully, is EFE. we love her.

After being shown the ropes by the excellent guys at the rental company we were on our way, first stop to the supermarket to fill our EFE up with bounty. It's a sad reality that of all the things we were looking forward to, doing our first campervan shop was high on the list. What horrifically sad people we have become. After stocking up on beautiful NZ wine and something called food we were on our way, on the road for two months. It didn't take long for Shell to get used to things. After a tearful start, which was probably due to not eating anything till 2pm more than anything, shell was flying around the roads between Christchurch and the Banks Peninsula, our first stop.

We opted for a small and rural campsite in a place called okains Bay. It had nothing but pine filled, unpowered pitches but it was bliss. So silent except for the lapping ocean which we had to ourselves, right on our campervan doorstep. We set off for a walk around the desolate beach before heading back to our campervan to cook our first campervan meal and to well, soak up the surroundings. What has taken us so long to do this kind of thing???? We are in our absolute element.

The next day we were up early and full of energy and excitement so we put on our walking gear and headed around the coast on a half eroded old wharf path that used to be used by whalers at the turn of the century. Although not too long it made for some heart pumping moments! On the way back we found the small campsite had installed a huge flying fox, basically a huge zipwire, so like the big children that we are proceeded to spend the rest of the morning in a fun-filled haze.

That afternoon we drove up and over the huge hill and down into Akaroa, a stunningly beautiful natural harbour with a town of the same name as it's focal point. We decided to stay at the campsite on the hill looking down on the town and the harbour. Apparently it's one of the best places to stay on the south island and they did not lie! Of all the places to wake up in the morning we cant think of anywhere more striking or beautiful, especially lately as the weather since we arrived in NZ has been awesome.

Anyway, today would be the day that would test our relationship the most. Akaroa harbour, the place we are staying, lies at the bottom of a steep valley, formed by two huge volcanoes millions of years ago. Thing is, these peaks that surround it are indescribably beautiful and the views from the top were supposed to be even better. I tried my hardest to get Shell excited for the trip up the mountain but the look of sheer dread was just too hard to shift. In all fairness, I don't think I've ever walked up something so steep. With most steep hikes you are most likely going to start somewhere approaching a quarter of the way up, we started, naturally, from ground zero. It was a momentous ask really, even for the keen rambler. Amazingly, Shell battled through the pain and leg breaking, constant climb until we reached the summit. We were actually supposed to betaking a track across the tops to finish in a big circle but got lost, somehow, down a very long and overgrown sheep track. Turns out these sheep are the luckiest around as they get to potter around with one of the most beautiful backdrops behind them. Feeling sheep like ourselves, we plonked down and fell to sleep among the mountain top grass (it was like a soft mattress) and all in the beautifully warming sun.

This place, already, has gripped us like a vice. No wonder people look at us with eyes of envy when we tell them we have two months here. Get in.

All for now, Shello and Tommo xxx

Home brew, beaches and new family on the not-so-Sunshine Coast...

So after our nine day road trip camping all the way from Canberra to Brisbane we finally arrived at Teeny and Rowan's house, in a small town called Mooloolah, around 80kms north of Brisbane.

This part of the world is called the Sunshine Coast and compared to the monstrosity further south, the Gold Coast, it seemed beautiful. We'd gone past the Gold Coast on our way back which surely lays claim to having the highest number of bogans per square mile than any other place on earth. 'Bogan' being the Aussie equivalent of chavvy, maybe more wide-reaching though. It is interesting to witness how such a term of insult can be used in so many different ways, especially in a country that claims to live above the old English class stereotype. Over here bogan encapsulates a whole section of people but most notably the singlet (vest) wearing, rugby league supporting blokes. The Sunshine Coast, it seems, has a lack of them.

We've been here about a week and a half now and have loved every minute. The weather has been slightly tempestuous but where hasn't in Australia! The area we are in, The Sunshine Coast, even made national headlines last Friday after flash foods hit the area after a few days of squalid rain. And boy did it rain.

Despite the rain in our first week here we managed to do and see a lot. We went sea fishing down on Caloundra beach, Caloundra being the nearest beachside town, where I managed to catch a huge crab that flatly refused to let go of the fishing rod. After much persuasion he gave me his entire claw instead, something we were told they can do, all before they grow a replacement!

We've also been lucky enough to borrow Rowan and Teeny's huge 4x4 and go out and explore some of the amazing countryside to the west. This is prime wine producing territory so we managed to have our first wine-tasting experience and due to the weather managed to have the whole place to ourselves. The lady who talked us through the process was actually English and due to the time of year and the weather, was clearly happy for the company. We tasted two whites, an unoaked Chardonnay, another that was a close relative of the Sauvignon blanc, a sweet and fruity Rose, my favourite a good punchy Shriraz and then to finish, a fortified wine that isn't allowed to be called Port. They were beautiful wines and clearly very different to the mass produced variety in the supermarket. We were actually supposed to pay a fee for the tasting but I think she took a bit of a shine to us! Before we left we bought a bottle of the unoaked Chardonnay which, after drinking it that night with the others, was unanimously confirmed as amazing.

I think, again, one of the weirdest things to get your head around are the distances. At home, when we say 'I'm just going down the road to pick up some milk', it literally means what it says. Here, down the road can mean anything upto twenty miles away. Put it like this. Mooloolah, the small town we are staying in is pretty much classed as Caloundra, on the Sunshine Coast, but then we are fifteen miles away from the coast. Look on a local map and it is so far you think they would need to take provisions with them, just in case, but then scale that back to a State map or even a national one and they merge into the same dizzying place. It will never ever cease to amaze me.

At the weekend we made the most of our last weekend in Australia. On the Saturday we drove about 45 minutes north to a local (hmmm) Market at a place called Eumundi. It was a beautiful place full of unique items and more importantly, gourmet food. We wandered around for a while before grabbing some food, shell went for paella, Rowan the tapas, I went for the Malaysian roti and lentil daal and Harry the savoury crepe. I wanted to tell you what we all had to get a sense of the variety on offer, it was beautiful stuff. We ended the morning in one of the local bookshops. As far as bookshops go this one was the best. The four of us were in there for well over an hour. It really was one of those places you could get lost in or choke on the mounds of dust collected in old books.

From there we hopped down to the beach to take in the last of the days sun before scrambling back home to get ready to drive down to Brisbane for a big night out. Unfortunately it would have been a big night out, if Shell and I had remembered our ID's! How stupid! Turns out, even if you are 55 and look 55 they would still ask you for ID. Bloody Australians. In the end we went back to Rowan and Teeny's friend's house, not far from the centre, where we entertained ourselves by making nuclear cocktails, both in look and potency.

The next day we explored Brisbane city. This would be our fourth major Australian city and in a way, one of the prettiest. Don't get me wrong, they all have their merits, but Brisbane seemed to retain that sense of a large town, even if it's skyline and obvious mining riches suggested otherwise. Although it was a Sunday it was so peaceful. We ventured around the Southbank, complete with 'Brisbane eye' and art gallery and fantastic Sunday markets. I may have said this before about other cities but the resemblance to London was simply staggering. The fact it is on a river and not a bay or harbour gives this even more levity, compared to other Aussie cities. Brisbane also has some fantastically old buildings that seem stuck there in limbo compared to the skyscrapers surrounding them, continually in battle to retain their former glories. It is a horrific reality that the Brisbane authorities, both past and present, seem intent on destroying everything that makes Brisbane great. It's almost as if Brisbane suffers from third city syndrome, where people continually prefer to move to Sydney or Melbourne in search of culture when in a way, they have everything and more right here.

Anyway, we leave for NZ tomorrow. Although the thought of spending 56 nights in a van might make us slightly worried and apprehensive, the adventure, I am sure, will be simply outstanding. A lot has happened over the past seven weeks, in a way we never really thought about what we were going to do in Australia as all we thought about, naturally, was how little we could afford to do! In the end, we have simply had the time of our lives. I don't think we could have seen more if we tried. We have seen the country's four biggest cities, swam in two Oceans and one Sea. We have eaten some incredible food from the four corners of the world in a country that is the world's most sparsely populated. We have made some exceptional new friends and more importantly cemented friends for life with people we already knew. The weather hasn't been amazing but then who cares, it's made things greener, more interesting and you know what, you find out more about a place when things aren't how they are supposed to be. It has problems, lots of them in fact. We know so many people who have made the move out here and I'm sure lots of people will continue to do in the future. If you come out here, you live in the cities, make only British friends and essentially live the life you did in the UK, why bother?? Just move to Milton Keynes.

So on we go, literally to the other side of the world. Time to get all Ray Mears, albeit with a DVD player and comfy shoes....

Much love, Tommo & Shello xxxxx