2002-2005 (c) GetJealous.com, All rights reserved. http://www.getjealous.com/fotherda/rss.xml http://www.getjealous.com/fotherda http://www.getjealous.com/getjealous.php?action=showdiaryentry&diary_id=234726&go=fotherda I'm heading home now having left Sydney I'm spending a week in Singapore with my old friend Baz, Natasha his wife and Jared and Thalia his two lovely kids. Baz has got a fantastic appartment on Mt Faber near the centre of Singapore and he and Natasha have been amazing hosts. Natasha's parents were here for the first couple of days and we went out with the kids on various outings to beaches and stu... http://www.getjealous.com/getjealous.php?action=showdiaryentry&diary_id=234726&go=fotherda Wed, 13 Dec 2006 12:00:00 GMT http://www.getjealous.com/getjealous.php?action=showdiaryentry&diary_id=230133&go=fotherda I flew up from Brisbane to Cairns for my dive trip to find out I'd got there a day early which I felt pretty stupid about, although as the woman at the dive company said I'd have looked a lot more stupid turning up a day late. Spent a really nice day in Cairns including seeing Borat's film which is unbelieveably offensive to everyone but extremely funny. Also went to a lecture on the Reef given my... http://www.getjealous.com/getjealous.php?action=showdiaryentry&diary_id=230133&go=fotherda Mon, 4 Dec 2006 12:00:00 GMT http://www.getjealous.com/getjealous.php?action=showdiaryentry&diary_id=224535&go=fotherda So I'm now driving up the coast from Sydney to Brisbane. Its basically one gorgeous golden beach after another infact I don't even stop to take photos anymore its too repetitive but there is the alternative of heading inland to some great rainforests and more stunning scenery. I found a new adventure sport to do - quad biking on sand dunes. There's some massive dunes on Port Stephens and a fir... http://www.getjealous.com/getjealous.php?action=showdiaryentry&diary_id=224535&go=fotherda Thu, 23 Nov 2006 12:00:00 GMT http://www.getjealous.com/getjealous.php?action=showdiaryentry&diary_id=221244&go=fotherda Arrived in Hobart - quaint little town which I would soon discover was the sprawling metropolis of the whole Island. Best thing in Hobart is eating great fresh fish and chips down on the docks which I did more than once. Also went up Mt Wellington which has amazing views overlooking the city and its surrounds - pics look great. First day out I drove down to the SE bit of the island where there's l... http://www.getjealous.com/getjealous.php?action=showdiaryentry&diary_id=221244&go=fotherda Thu, 16 Nov 2006 12:00:00 GMT http://www.getjealous.com/getjealous.php?action=showdiaryentry&diary_id=220927&go=fotherda So I've arrived in Oz and despite the media over here I've arrived in the middle of the wettest drought in history, there hasn't been a day in 2 weeks when it hasn't rained at least a little bit - typical whingeing Aussies, there's nothing wrong with their water supplies, they're just playing for sympathy. Anyway as one of only 2 countries in the world not to ratify Kyoto they're not getting any s... http://www.getjealous.com/getjealous.php?action=showdiaryentry&diary_id=220927&go=fotherda Tue, 7 Nov 2006 12:00:00 GMT http://www.getjealous.com/getjealous.php?action=showdiaryentry&diary_id=219672&go=fotherda So I reached Auckland at the end of my Kiwi adventure. Its actually quite nice despite all the disparaging comments I got from all the Kiwis I know. I spent a bit of time doing touristy stuff - visiting a few of the 49 volcanoes that litter the city and surrounds and also quite a bit of admin for the rest of my trip. I did do one more day of adventure sports though - Canyoning is basically getting... http://www.getjealous.com/getjealous.php?action=showdiaryentry&diary_id=219672&go=fotherda Wed, 1 Nov 2006 12:00:00 GMT http://www.getjealous.com/getjealous.php?action=showdiaryentry&diary_id=211869&go=fotherda Next stop was the far northern province of NZ - I've stayed in a town called Whangarei for 4 days. Its pretty remote up here which is fine by me. The main attraction for me is the diving. There's a group of rocky isslands a few miles off shore called the Poor Knights which reputedly have the best sub-tropical diving in the world. Jacques Cousteau said they were one of the top ten dive sites in the... http://www.getjealous.com/getjealous.php?action=showdiaryentry&diary_id=211869&go=fotherda Wed, 25 Oct 2006 12:00:00 GMT http://www.getjealous.com/getjealous.php?action=showdiaryentry&diary_id=210557&go=fotherda Had to skip the Waitomo Caves entry 'cause I've lost all my photos and I know you're only interested in the pictures. White Island is an active volcanoe crater 40 km out to sea which I did a couple of SCUBA dives on. Its an amazing place as you can see from the photos and the diving wasn't bad either. The highlight was getting to see to adult seals up close underwater - this turned out to be ... http://www.getjealous.com/getjealous.php?action=showdiaryentry&diary_id=210557&go=fotherda Sun, 22 Oct 2006 12:00:00 GMT http://www.getjealous.com/getjealous.php?action=showdiaryentry&diary_id=209075&go=fotherda So I've moved over to the central plateau region in the middle of the North Island and a town called Taupo. There's some nice river walks around here and some great thermal activity from the faultline that runs straight through the middle of the North Island. You can see some photos from the "Craters of the Moon" thermal region which is covered in craters, fumeroles, boiling mud pools, steam vents... http://www.getjealous.com/getjealous.php?action=showdiaryentry&diary_id=209075&go=fotherda Wed, 18 Oct 2006 12:00:00 GMT http://www.getjealous.com/getjealous.php?action=showdiaryentry&diary_id=207912&go=fotherda So I moved up to Napier on the East Coast. Its a beautiful seaside town famous for being full of Art Deco buildings. They had an earthquake here in 1931 which flattened the town and then they rebuilt in the prevalent style of the time - Art Deco. Its a great place to wander around and admire the architecture. Needless to say that wasn't enough for me so I went didving in the aquarium here and fed ... http://www.getjealous.com/getjealous.php?action=showdiaryentry&diary_id=207912&go=fotherda Mon, 16 Oct 2006 12:00:00 GMT