Jimi and Mazzy Adventures

Today the waterfalls we’ve seen and the rivers we admired was all so beautiful and it was 1 small element of a very big scene of nature. This was a very nice and relaxing day on the blue mountains walking track, enjoy the post 😃.

While I was still sleeping, Dad was making a coffe with his very disturbing and fairly loud coffe maker! and I was trying to sleep after I only got to sleep at about 10:30 last night (when I fell asleep) because the bed had a big lump on the top of it so it was hurting my back. Soon I fell asleep after I snuggled my hed to the bottom of the bed and then my feet were on my pilloow at the other end 🙄😑. Soon Dad had woken me up at the sound of his coffe maker and I got dressed had breakkie and we soon decided on what we were gonna do today after a big of argumenting . decided to go and do some walking today in the blue mountains national park walking tracks.

We arrived on the other side of the road to the walking paths (next to the caravan park lol 😋🤣🤣) Then we found just the right walk for us, it was only a short one to start off with because we would be coming back later and doing much longer 2 -3 walks that were atleast 2k’s or 4k’s long. We did a very short walk about only 100m each way which is 200m in total, we saw lot’s of beautiful waterfalls and many AMAZING AMAZING AMAZING lookouts that were so nice and such beautiful veiws stood infront of the lookouts.

We soon headed back to the ytiniest caravan park ever (maybe not tho . We soon packed all of our stuff that we needed for the long walks and then we headed off to the walking tracks.

The walking Track was soooooooo nice and we walked to many nice veiws on the way to the end.

I soon god cranky and then we headed back as everyone was so pooped (mostly me lol 😆😆😆) I soon plopped into bed and slept for AGES and AGES and AGES.

I loved this day today and if you liked this post you most certainly like reading our other blog posts on this website, Kepp scrolling down for more blog posts like this but maybe better. Keppp a lookout for the next few posts

Today we had alot of fun seeing the biggest blowhole in Australia and catching up with family we haven’t seen in 6 or 7yrs!

First in the morning we got dressed and did all of our jobs then we drove off to the Kiama Big Blowhole! It was sooo big and high that Dad got sprayed a couple of times! It was like this big massive chunk of rock with a hole in the middle, and on the other side of the rock was a big channel where the big ocean waves come through and spout up in the hole.

Then we drove to Wollongong and met Inka and Ville who we haven’t seen for ages. We did a big walk along the beach and up to the Lighthouse. We stopped at the Lighthouse for a quick look out and rest. We then decided to head back and found a very nice restaurant for lunch. I had rigatoni with butter and parmesan and it was sooooooooo yummy! Then we had a nice iceblock. I had a Bubble o’Bill. Then Inka and Ville took us back to their house. They live on the top floor of an apartment. They have a pet bunny called Kaapo (he’s named after a Finnish ice hockey player). It was really nice to see them and their bunny was really cute.

Sadly we said bye and drove a looooooooong way. We kept driving and driving and went a long way. It took us much longer than we thought it would to get to Katoomba in the Blue Mountains. We arrived at night and we all went to bed as we were very tired.

This was our day, I really enjoyed it. If you want to see more posts like this check out the rest of our blog.

Today was a very fun day! We went to see my Mums Crazy Cousin Mandy and I had a swim in the pool, splash in the water park and a dip in the fridge water pool (it was so cold it felt like water that was frozen in the freezer and then it defrosted!)

We started the day by having Breakkie in the van. anyway that doesn’t matter, the good part is I got to had a swim in the pool! It was actually the perfect temprature water it was kind of a hot and a cool at the same time. We soon had lunch and then after that we went to see Mandy! At about 3:30 we aslo met her dog Frankie! He was sooooooooooo cute and he wouldn’t stop following me and wating cuddles, pats and hugs from me, He loved me and I loved him as well. we went for a massive beach walk after that and it took us about hmm.. probably I’d say hm.. 1h to walk the whole beach and then walking back took about 1h and 45m because we already used up all of our energy while walking there, me and Frankie ran for ages and it took me and Frankie about 1h and 30m to get back to the car because every time we ran too far we had o go back but Frankie kept running away so I had to get him and catch up with him allllllllllllll the time.

After The Walk

After we finished our walk we drove back to her house in her car and we showed her our van! She loved it so much that she named it Kev (short for Kevin) Soon we left her house and I slumped into bed and fell asleep VERY fast. We also headed down the main street of Kiama before bed and had Pizza for tea! (I had subway though)

That was our day today and if you want to see other posts like this one check out our blog.

Cuddles with frankie!

Family with Mandy!

Good evening people!

Week one of our trip has come to an end already, and it has been an eventful, fun filled blast.

It has been a bit more work than it said on the tin, but its all been worth it.

The van has kind of been ok, although we have been given permission to replace the toaster after it has twice tripped the power, and two of the four main power sockets (240v) are not working. With no expense spared we can spend up to $25 on said toaster.

We are trying to coordinate electrical repairs but we’ll see how that plays out.

To be fair, the van has held up well to qute a lot of travel, including roads we should have not have gone down (more of that in tomorow’s post) and it cruises surprisngly well at 95 or so k’s per hour. Its not so good at cornering at speed, funnily enough, and speed bumps are also a bit of a disaster.

So in summary:-

1600 k’s travelled, Swan Hill, Wagga Wagga, Kiama.

Day 1 – Adelaide to Swan Hill completed (506 km’s). Included travelling via the National Highway, Mallee Highway and across to Swan Hill via Chinkapook in the latter stages. It was a lot of driving in a very noisy van, but the kids did really well. The majority of the land travelled was noticeably farmland, especially in the Mallee area, so it was fairly characterless with minimal amounts of nature. Chinkapook was interesting, as it felt fairly remote, and roads constantly split into one lane then two, which you definitely don’t see much of in Adelaide.

We did see a couple of dust storms around the Mallee area too, which was interesting, and probably a sad reminder of drought-based conditions in areas that are people are trying to farm.

Day 2 – Swan Hill to Wagga Wagga

Noticeable for a lot more natural habit and more nature as a result.

Jimi was navigating for this leg and did a great job, also doubling up as official tour photographer with a speciality for creek-crossings and overhead nature shots (loads of Eagles flying round the place).

Similar to Swan Hill, but we checked in fairly late in the day, but to another great campsite.

Day 3 – Wagga Wagga to Canberra

Ok. So the common theme so far is cold nights. Another one encountered in Wagga and now we are off to Canberra, where it looks like we are heading into zero degrees. Maybe we understimated these temperatures a bit!

The trip from Wagga Wagga to Canberra was good, and very noticeable for the green-up in the scener and much less farmland. Very picturesque indeed. This time we covered around 250 K’s, but we did stop a couple of times.

The first stop was for the iconic (allegedly) Tuckerbox Dog thingy. Well, whatever the relevance, it was a chance to stretch the legs and have a quick feed.

We did encounter some quirky cafe service at this stop, when we ordered an egg and bacon roll (Mazzy), only to be reminded breakfast was no longer being served (despite massive flashing logo’s advertising it). We then switched to pumpkin soup, to be told ‘sorry – no Pumpkin Soup’. So we then switched to Minestrone. Guess what …. no minestrone either!

We were then reminded all soups were sold out. Noting that this was about 12:30 only. Good luck to those hungry souls in the queue behind us.

Anyhow, we quickly polished off whatever morsels were in stock and headed back on the road coz Steppenwolf was ready to go!

Destination Alivio Caravan Park, which was a bit of a super-luxurious Caravan Park, includng an onsite restaurant and bar and not a bogun in sight.

Days 4 5 and 6 – also Canberra.

Canberra was a lot of fun (see other posts), and it also incuded having to stop for thermals and an extra quilt. And gloves and beanies ….. and a lot of that was for sleeping in.

The temperatures inside our van were showing as between five and six degrees celcius which definitely caught us by surprise, but since we are heading into the Blue Mountains we had to prepare for a longer spell of cold weather, of which there were no shortage of outdoorsy type shops.

The Canberra summary reads like:-

Museum (twice – kids loved it)

War Memorial

Parliament House (old and new)

Kids meet TV star from RTN

Questacon

Picnic in the library carpark

Tidbinbilla.

The War Memorial was extra interesting as it explained how closely the Aussies fought alongside the Brits. So Grandad would have doubtless fought alongside, and made good friends with Aussies who were engaged with the battles around Ypres.

This image is from the Ypres section at the War museum.

It’s also worth noting that Tidbinbilla was the surprise package in all this, as it was very impressive, and also accessed through some of Canberra’s pristine countryside.

Day 7 – Canberra to Kiama

Canberra was great, and we were sad to see it go, but we were all looking forward to a couple of days of a warmer climate as well as catching up with Mand (not necessarily in that order Mand!)

On the way to Kiama, we went via Kangaroo Vally and Fitzroy Falls, both of which were eventful and a bit on the hair raising side of things.

End of day 7, that’s one week in, roughly 1600 K’s under our belt. Warmer clothes and van-life well and truly embraced.

Keep reading the blog for more details on each days adventures.

Actually, it was the road out of Kangaroo Valley, and the realisation that road signs should be observed. Especially ones that say ‘no large vehicles and caravans’!

So day eight saw us leave Canberra and set off on our way to see Mandy at Kiama.

We had decided that Kangaroo Valley would be a great idea coz lots of other internet reviews said so, and the internet is never wrong, or misses out bits of important of information, especially Pauline from Sydney or that bloke from Turkey who also gave it five stars.

We made pretty good time and dropped in through Fitzroy Falls, across oldeworldy Hampden Bridge and stopped for lunch in Kangaroo Valley itself. The usual dietary requirements (veggie and gluten free) were asking a bit much so we opted for another lunch by the side of the road.

Which is kind of what the van is intended for.

Fitzroy Falls took us completely by surprise and were pretty spectacular.

If we were aware of it in advance we could have allowed time to do some of the walks that were on offer, but for the time being its another one of those places that we will flag for a follow-up (may have to start a list!).

And no small-town scouting expedition is complete without locating the traditional lollie shop:-

Well, so far so good and it was now time to leave this Valley place, and catch up with Mandy at Kiama.

This is where things got interesting.

We followed the road out of Kangaroo Valley unaware of the twisty surprise that was lying in wait. Funnily enough, as the road narrowed and every corner seemed to be speed rated at 35 and even 25 Belinda recalled having half seen a road sign advising that it was not suitable for large vehicles and caravans. Or did she? It was all a bit subtle, and didn’t really stand out. And are we really supposed to pay attention to these things anyhow? As we know now, that would be a Yes and a Yes.

So those of us thinking that such an an important sign would be in massive letters? Wrong! The road was indeed not suitable but it was too late to turn back, and there no way of turning round.

For the next few hours of our soon-to-end lives (seemed like it) we navigated insane hairpin bends, disappeared into an extreme concentric cirlce vortex (eccv), had to use the wrong side of the road on multiple occassions, and put up with the not insignificant top heavy wobble of the van.

The good news for locals is that we have now committed  to funding a new road sign which will stand out  (think flashing lights, loud-hailers, circus midgets etc).

The brakes were also joining in the fun by emitting quite a strong burning smell, which was fortunately soon overpowered by the smell of fear.

Finally the Valley bottomed out, the smell went away (both of them) and we managed to arrive at Kiama a few minutes later. Everything was in tact, but we might keep a closer eye on road signs in future.

There is a video attached which shows a section of the road but maybe does not catch the worse part. Anyhow …. have a look and see what you think.

Today we packed up early left ,our caravan park and Headed for Kiama! 🙂

We started driving, it was about 2h until we reached Fitzroy falls! it was a waterfall thatwas so long going down! later we arrived in Kangaroo Valley and walked across the street there wer sooo many bakerys and cafe’s and everything! But soon I spotted the… LOLLIE SHOP! Lollie shops are Litterally HEAVEN for me. We soon ate lunch in the van as a change of plans and ater that left to the LOLLIE SHOP! me and Jimi each got a a lollie packet each and an ice cream! Jimi had chocoloate in a cup and I had Hokey Pokey in a cone! Hokey Pokey has: Honey, Vanilla ice cream, caramel and chocolate sauce on it! It was sooo good!

Soon we kept DRVING and DRVING and DrIvInG and dRiViNg until we finally came to our stop! Kiama! then we drove for about 10min more and reached our MASSIVE MASSIVE HUGE Cravan park Called: Easts Beach Big4 Caravan park which is roughly 2h South of Sydney.
It wasso big! It has: 2 basketba courts, a mini mart, games room, arcade, cafe, 1 pool, spa and a bouncy pillow!

We had so much fun exploring the park and looking around our new spot for 2 days! This was our day today and you can look for more posts on the rest our blog.

Today we are having our last day in Canberra! it was soooo much fun!


Today we are going to go to Questacon! (if you don’t know what Questacon is I will tell you soon) Another experience we did was Me and Mum went to the National Library of Australia! (while the boys were at Questacon) Now I will explain what Questacon is. (listen up)
So Questacon is an interactive fun trail! Let me see if I can remember the rooms there were.(there were 6 rooms in total) okay so R1 (R1 means ROOM 1) was an intergalactic space adventure! R2 was an experiment and science fun room! R3 was a umm.. hmm can’t remembe- wait! I know, it was a workshop and force room, with lots of force eperiments! including: ball throwing and metal wight drawings! R4 was a hmm… not in the foggiest. R5 was a… hmm. workshop I think? I’m not quite sure, but I;m pretty sure it was.

If you listened closely just like I said, in R3 there was a metal weight drawing, and you might be wondering… Hmmm.. what does that mean? well it is where, 4 poles are stadning up and they connect the top to a wide plnk of wood, then 4 chains hang from the wooden plank and the chains hold onto a big concrete slab then the staff push the concrete slab and put metal weights on the slab. They then get a clip and and ink tibe thingy majjigy the ink tube gets clipped to the top of the wide wooden slab then hangs down and drips onto the paper to made a 3D drawing! (if you don’t understand try making some drawings of it to undertsnad more) Oh wait! I forgot to tell you about the last room! R6 it was a… drumroll please…
(you don’t have to drumroll lol) MASSIVE Mars Balloon thing.

Soon me and Mum finished up and we went to the shop at the end of Questacon.
I bought some rocks made of chocolate (they were suprisingly tasty!) to prank the boys with.(and eat them. Lol) Before Questacon we also had lunch, I had left over SUSHI! But idk how this happened… it was… SPICY! I hated it! )except for every other part of the susi)

That was our day today!

NASA’s Deep Space Network has a facility located just outside Canberra in Tidbinbilla, where the CSIRO run the Deep Space Communication Network. It is a radio telescope that listens to radio signals further than 1000 kilometres above the Earth – both manmade and potential messages from other lifeforms! It is currently receving signals and messages from Perserverance the Mars Rover, as well as Juno the mission to Jupiter, and lots of other space craft.

We spent a morning there so here are some photos:

Today we went to the Australian War Memorial, it was very interesting although Mazzy got bored towards the end. We could see Parliment House in the distance from the Memorial. Before went to the War Memorial we went to the Australian National Museum which we had been to yesterday to look at the Endeavour exhibition however today we had lunch there and looked at the First Australians Gallery.

Here are some photos of our trip to the War Memorial.

Today we had alot of fun finishing off at the Museum and War Museum!

we first started off the day as having breakkie, getting changed and setting off to to the National Museum of Australia to finish off what we didn’t have time to do last time. We saw the Aboriginal clothing and life section. It was very amazing of what they did to survive and eat!

We soon left there and headed off to the War Memorial Museum.
There were soooooooooooooooooooooo many things to look at I didn’t know where to start looking at! there were, boots, hats, shirts, clothes, pants, sticks, guns, string, boats, torches, chests, desks, swords, bullets, mini guns, food, pockets, toothbrushes, more boats, flags, videos, sculptures, cannons, pictures, bombs and everythig you could imagine! SOO much stuff! there was world war 1 and world war 2! even more to look at then….

that was our VERY interesting day today, if you want to see more posts liek this scroll down on the blog to find out more.