First of all, what a beautiful, unspoilt, lusciously green place. I feel embarrassed to say that I didn’t know anything about Tasmania at all before we came (except for the Tasmanian devil which I originally thought was just a cartoon not an actual animal…). We wouldn’t have to be asked twice to go back. We originally added it as a stop on our trip to visit an animal sanctuary and see some real life Tasmanian devils (which actually look nothing like the cartoon), but it has SO much more to offer than that. Endless greenery, vast landscapes, incredible bays and mountains to explore. We had 3 days here and oh how we wished we’d had longer…. it is definitely on our return list.

We only saw the capital city and so I can’t give a full description of the entire state, but I’ll do my best to give you a flavour of the wonder that is Hobart.

TOP recs:

Mount Wellington- we drove right to the top in Terry the snot-coloured Toyota ( see below) and could see absolutely nothing. It was hilarious as we saw masses of photos of what it SHOULD have looked like, but the fog was ridiculous. The viewing platform was pretty amazing though because we just felt like we were in the clouds. As we drove back down, the clouds cleared and the view over Hobart was beautiful, definitely worth the trek up there.

Salamanca Place- lots of charming shops, galleries and cafes in a quaint little square. There’s the famous Salamanca Market here too, but unfortunately it wasn’t on when we were here. Kelly’s Steps in Salamanca Place take you up to Battery Point- a lovely old neighbourhood with really pretty 19th century cottages- worth a stroll around.

St David’s Park- we spent a couple of hours relaxing here in the sunshine one afternoon. It was pretty near our hotel so it was our little slice of green in the city. There’s also the best coffee sold here in the mornings from a tiny cart. The girl running it was so lovely, chatting to us about Hobart and we also bought one of her delicious homemade raspberry dark choc brownies.

Royal Tasmanian Botanical Gardens- now if you’ve read any of my other travel posts, you’ll know we’re suckers for a Botanical Garden. This one didn’t disappoint. 100% would recommend. A stunningly beautiful, absolutely immaculate, green haven. Not the biggest, but free to go in and one of my favourites we have visited.

Bonorong Wildlife Sanctuary- this was about half an hour drive from Hobart and marked our first up close interaction with kangaroos. We absolutely loved it. It’s not huge, but definitely a must see. The rangers look after injured, orphaned and endangered animals and you could see how much they truly cared for them. There were huge boxes full of kangaroo food all over the sanctuary which were free to take from ( I literally emptied my handbag and filled it with food) and then you could just slowly walk over to a kangaroo, crouch down and let it feed right out of your hand. Sam virtually had to drag me out after, I just wanted to keep doing it! The babies were absolutely gorgeous, climbing in and out of their mum’s pouches, with such fluffy fur and fluttery eyelashes. We also saw a male kangaroo standing like a bouncer here which gave us a laugh (see below)

It was here we saw our first Tasmanian devil. Actually much cuter in the flesh and pretty small. We saw loooads of other animals here- a baby wombat, koalas, eastern quolls and bettongs…. to name a few!

MONA- this was one of our favourite things in Hobart. A huge, immersive art experience/gallery mostly underground. Firstly, the building is absolutely amazing, on an island of its own and the architecture will blow your mind. We felt as if we’d been in a weird dreamworld for a few hours when we came out. Films, paintings, sculptures, experiences, sounds, experiments…anything and everything goes at MONA. I feel like it’s extremely hard to describe, but just trust me on this one, don’t miss out. I’ll add some of our photos down below, but I don’t want to add too much and ruin the surprise!

TOP eats:

We went to NoHo (North Hobart) for 2 of the nights for dinner and I would say that’s the main foodie area.

Bar Wa Izakaya- Japanese cuisine. Double yum. We had the tastiest dumplings and crunchy, fresh Asian salad there and the ceiling was covered in fairy lights with sake bottles hanging down, a really cool spot.

Metropolitan Pizza- Sam found this pretty new restaurant modelled on the London underground with vintage train chairs and tables. The menu was set up like a metro map and we had the yummiest pizzas. Sam had one that genuinely tasted like a double cheese burger. Don’t knock it until you’ve tried it- a pure genius creation.

Retro Cafe- in Salamanca Place, a really sweet, popular cafe. Such friendly staff and lovely fresh bagels.

Picnic Cafe- tasty breaky, we had avo toasties and great coffee.

Scallop Pie- we shared one of these (wish we’d got our own) for lunch, bought from a little floating cafe in the harbour. Native to Tasmania and I couldn’t recommend them more. Fresh golden puff pastry full to the brim with curried scallops- wow. *Mouth is watering as I write this*

Hobart truly is a special place and totally different from mainland Australia. It was gorgeously unspoilt and peaceful, with super friendly people and some brilliant activities. We tried to cram as much in as we could, but we will definitely travel around it for longer next time! I hope this gives you a little glimpse into “Tassie”….thanks for reading. Xx

Terry the Toyota

A side street near Salamanca Place

Sam posing with Kelly’s Steps

The kangaroo ‘bouncer’….. geddit

Near the top of Mount Wellington- windy!!!

Google what this viewing platform is meant to look like! The top of Mount Wellington

MONA ….

This exhibit was like a ‘word waterfall’ – computer generated based on the most Googled words. Really amazing!

The ‘fat car’

This was a room of screens with people all singing Madonna songs on a loop a Capella! We stayed in here for ages.

Adelaide to Melbourne. What a journey.

Here’s our rundown of The Great Ocean Road and beyond: where to stop, where to eat, what to see. We loved every minute and I wanted to share our recommendations along the way!

* Adelaide in 48 hours *

We didn’t have a huge amount of time here, but what we saw of Adelaide, we loved. First of all, we discovered the yummiest burger place (Betty’s)… they have a few scattered around Australia and considering the burger fiends that we are, I’m surprised we didn’t find it sooner. They also have the most amazing thing called a ‘concrete’ which is basically frozen custard loaded with delicious toppings like cookie butter or marshmallow sauce. (Don’t go there looking for a light bite). We also ignited our love for Botanical Gardens here. It was so beautiful. I love how you can find a peaceful haven of greenery and colour in the middle of a city. Gorgeously kept and so many lovely areas, such as the Dahlia flower garden- so pretty. The sunset over the pier at Glenelg Beach was amazing on the first night. It was a little bit cloudy, so that made for the most beautiful orangey sky. We watched it from The Mosley Beach Club on beanbags, which I would definitely recommend. Also, really yummy jalapeño poppers at Beach Burrito on Jetty Street- it had a gorgeous mural on the outside wall too, which I loved.

Barossa Valley Wine Tasting….. On our second full day in Adelaide, we went on a wine tasting tour. We had the best day. We definitely took the average age down a few years, let me just say that.. but we had so much fun. 3 different tastings. Plus lunch and cheese. Anyone who knows me knows I luuurve cheese. I was potentially more excited by that than the wine. I’m also not really a red girl, but I honestly liked 90% of the wines I would say. The people were just so lovely everywhere we stopped, and each place was different. Our first stop was Tearo Estate, a family run winery. They gave us little wine postcards with the story behind each wine on them… I liked that touch. Our second was the Lambert Estate, where we also had a really tasty, fresh lunch. We found the most gorgeous rosé called ‘First Kiss’. Lastly, we went to Pindarie Estate, where they gave us aaall the cheese. Hello!! It had such a perfect, rustic setting, with great views across the valley and huge hay bales looking over the fields of vines.

From Adelaide after breaky at Luigi’s (10/10 would recommend the sharey board) we started our journey towards Melbourne via the Great Ocean Road in Hattie the Hyundai. We made a few stops along the way…

*1st stop- Victor Harbour*

A sweet town, with some cool surfy shops and cafes, not loads to see but perfect for a pit stop. We walked across to Granite Island and the crashing waves were completely mesmerising. We stood there for ages just watching them break over the rocks. I had my first bath in over a month here too… so for that, it holds a special place in my heart.

*2nd stop- Robe*

We didn’t have super high hopes for Robe, as we didn’t know much about it, but it was so charming! We had a little cottage, which I have to say, looked a little bit scary on the pictures…kind of ‘set of a horror film’ vibes…. but it was actually the sweetest thing. We felt like we had a little house there and we really settled in. The 2nd bedroom did have a creepy doll in it though… I did SO MUCH WASHING HERE. Just needed to note that. I was so happy. We turned the cottage into Widow Twankey’s Wash Shop, literally clothes, knickers, towels hanging from everything. We hung most of our stuff outside and found it all scattered across the garden in the morning, so we had to do a scavenger hunt for stray socks….. that was fun! Anyway, I’ve digressed ( no one wants to know about my washing Romy), it was a lovely beachy town with gorgeous blue water. I found my new favourite shop, Holiday- look at their dreamy Instagram. Aaaall the linen, sandals and dangly earrings. Sam tried to teach me chess here too, at the local ice cream shop (standard) and I managed to drop my entire cone onto the chess board (standard Romy). We loved it here.

*3rd stop- Port Fairy*

Someone in a shop in Robe told me that most people prefer Port Fairy to Robe. I think we preferred the town in Robe more, but Port Fairy’s beach and surroundings were prettier. A highlight was the walk over to Griffith Island. The most beautiful lighthouse, wallabies, unspoilt beaches and sparkling water. We had a great breaky here too, someone on Trip Advisor said it was the ‘best breakfast’ they had ever had- bold statement- at Bank St. & Co. I have to say, it was delicious. I had a fresh sourdough bruschetta with poachies, mozzarella, avo and chopped toms. Nothing wild, but it was really tasty. Sam had sweet potato avo toast.

After leaving Port Fairy, we joined the Great Ocean Road. It started with only a few flashes of ocean, then all of a sudden it was there in full force… amazing cliffs and wild waves. Luckily, we left in enough time to do all of the little stop offs, which I would definitely recommend. Bay of Islands, London Bridge, The Arch and The Grotto were some of our favourites. Once we arrived in Port Campbell, we made our way to the heliport for a tour of the 12 Apostles. We only booked a short trip, but when we arrived they upgraded us to a 25 minute tour with all the sights included! An incredible way to see the 12 Apostles… we felt very lucky. For any nervy flyers, it was much smoother than a tiny plane. I was worried beforehand but actually it was really smooth. After the flight, we thought we’d get some food in Port Campbell and decided to get some crispy prawns and scallops to share at a food shack…they gave us 1 prawn and 1 scallop. Oh we laughed… I mean I think you probably had to be there, but considering the expense, we thought there would be at least 5 of each to share… but no. Just 1. Trying to make 1 prawn and 1 scallop feed the two of you is a struggle, let me tell you. Turns out we had to specify that we wanted more than 1….

After that little giggle (hate the word giggle), we drove to Apollo Bay, for our final stop before Melbourne.

*4th stop- Apollo Bay*

So. The most gorgeous room. There was a big bath in the middle, which I completely relished. But in terms of much to see… nada. We strolled out in the evening as we were starving after the 1 prawn 1 scallop saga and there was honestly nowhere to eat. We ended up sharing a takeaway pizza and relaxing in the room with ‘Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt’ (watch it on Netflix- so funny).

I feel like I’ve maybe done Apollo Bay a disservice, but we realised that Lorne nearby had a lovely surfy, beachy feel with loads of little shops and cafes and we probably could have stayed there instead, but considering Apollo Bay was really just the gateway to the 12 Apostles for us, it was perfect. The next morning it did give us a pretty tasty breaky- we can’t remember the name… but we had asparagus, poachies and a great coffee and it was lovely.

We arrived in Melbourne a day early and we were staying with Sam’s cousin and his girlfriend…. we had the most amazing time. Melbourne- what a city. We absolutely loved it. I feel like I can’t write out absolutely everything we did and saw, because it will take this post from being long to snore-worthy… so I will try to keep it as brief as possible.

*Marvellous Melbourne*

WHERE TO EAT-

Yomg- totally filthy, delicious burgers…. complete with cheese injectors (yes you heard me correctly)- cheese you inject into your burger. Ps. We don’t just eat burgers.

Tommy Ruffs- amazing soft shell crab. Buzzy atmosphere, great superfood salads too. ( Am I redeeming myself for the cheese injector yet?)

Bodega Underground- delish, fresh and unusual Mexican, open really late. Amazing guac.

Main Street- super tasty breaky. We both had avocado eggs benedict and it was totally veggie and yummy.

Tulip- great iced coffee.

Hawker Hall- on Chapel Street. The best Asian food. Mmmmm… makes my mouth water now thinking of those mushroom and garlic dumplings…. Also amazing sangria.

All of the Laneways in Melbourne have amazing little restaurants and tiny cafes, definitely would recommend.

COOL AREAS-

Prahran- great foodie market, some great cafes and boutique shops. We met up with some friends there and we went to a really cool cafe called Hobba.

Parkdale- Sam’s cousin lives near there, so we went to the high street a few times. A really lovely area, some cool bars and unique spots to eat.

Southbank- this is in the city and we loved it. So pretty, yet in the middle of a bustling city. Right by the water, lots of restaurants and the coolest floating bar called Arbory.

Federation Square- when we were there, there was a Footlocker ‘House of Hoops’ basketball pop-up there, which we watched for a while… basically people shooting hoops to win trainers. It had a great atmosphere. Also, the area was so clean and modern, we loved it.

Brighton Beach- it has beach huts that are inspired by Brighton in the UK. I loved it! There were so many pretty designs and we kept walking along saying… ‘I’d have that one….actually that one….actually that one!’

Chapel Street- THE street to eat and drink on, famous for its foodie spots and groovy bars (…did I just say groovy?) That was where Hawker Hall was.

The Laneways- these are scattered all over the city, but the main one is probably Hosier Street. Really busy, packed with tourists, but definitely worth a look, famous for its street art.

St Kilda- great buzzy area for drinks. We watched the most beautiful pink sunset and I had a great pornstar martini at Captain Baxter.

OTHER THINGS WE LOVED-

The State Library of Victoria- okay book wormy me needed to mention this… it was complete heaven for me. So beautiful, so peaceful and sooo many books.

The Royal Botanical Gardens- another gorgeous garden, another tranquil break from the busy city. Definitely would recommend a stroll round here.

Cricket! – we went to see the Semi Final and Final of the Big Bash while we were in Melbourne and it was sooo much fun at the Marvel Stadium.

Clementine’s- this little gift shop was my fave. Not just because my middle name is Clementine.

The Peninsula- just an hour from Melbourne was the beautiful peninsula. There are loads of stop offs, but our faves were Arthur’s Seat lookout and Sorrento Back Beach- it had the clearest water with a turquoisey tinge and a natural ‘swimming pool’. Also had a great lobster roll in Sorrento at ‘The Boss’s Daughter’.

We absolutely loved Melbourne, its edgy, arty vibe and beautiful sights and were so grateful to Sam’s family for having us for such an amazing stay.

If you’re still here after this looong post, you deserve a gold star and a life supply of cheese injectors (….not sure that would be wise). Well done and thank you so much for reading, I genuinely appreciate it. xx

When planning our trip, we knew one thing. We wanted to explore the West of Australia as we didn’t know a great deal about it and people mostly talk about the East. Well, how we loved the West and all it had to offer. After our brilliant stay in Perth, we picked up Tina the Toyota (as mentioned in my previous post) and set off on our 8 day West coast road trip.

Stop 1- Cervantes

Has anyone seen The Sinner? Our motel looked just like the one from the first episode of Season 2… After we got over this minor detail, we set off to firstly find lunch (crucial) at the Lobster Shack- definitely worth a visit. After that we headed to the Pinnacles- what Cervantes is famous for. Pretty cool and we even had our first emu sighting!

Tip-

Eat in Jurien Bay nearby at night. Although there’s not much there, it has a few more options than Cervantes.

After we left Cervantes, we made a pit stop at Hangover Bay before driving to Kalbarri for 2 nights. That was 100% worth it. Potentially the bluest sea I have ever clapped eyes on, the whitest sand… and a pretty much deserted beach. We relaxed there for a while and soaked up the peace before heading further north. Couldn’t recommend this stop enough. Definitely would have spent longer there if we had had time.

Stop 2- Kalbarri

Such a sweet little town! We had 2 nights here and spent Australia Day here. It was also the place where we saw at least 25 kangaroos in the same place at once, during sunset where the sky was pink! Definitely sounds too good to be true… but it did happen I promise! We also had a delicious meal there at ‘Upstairs Restaurant’ (100 points if you can guess the location). The food was tapas style and we had the most delicious local prawn sliders… so good we ordered another portion. I also managed to knock over my full gin & tonic there- typical me! We explored the different surrounding beaches, from Chinaman’s to Jake’s and they were fab. Despite this, the wind was absolutely ridiculous. I have honestly never been somewhere so windy – I thought my sunbed was going to literally take off into the air and fly to the next town. On Australia Day, there was the sweetest little market in the town & in the evening we shared a pizza and sat on a hill overlooking the fireworks- we could have been the only two people there, it felt really special.

The main attraction in Kalbarri is the National Park, where Nature’s Window is. We went there the morning of Australia Day and did a few mini hikes to different lookout spots. Nature’s Window was super beautiful. The flies were releeeentless here though- Sam, usually the most laidback person in the world was waving his hands around as if he was doing a fast-forwarded, frantic ‘Tragedy’ routine. Another wonderful sight are the Pink Lakes near Port Gregory- so bright, beautiful and vast…. and smelly. Despite this, they really were amazing and our cameras just couldn’t pick up the colour, just take our word for it… they’re gorgeous.

Key spots:

Kalbarri National Park- Nature’s Window, Z-Bend

Pink Lakes

Jake’s Bay

The pelican feeding at Chinaman’s beach

Blue Holes beach

(Side note: the nectarines in the local shop were the best I’ve ever had)

Stop 3- Monkey Mia

Maybe our favourite stop on our road trip. From the moment we drove into the bay, we loved it. Walking to our room, we saw two dolphins swimming across the bay. Such a great resort, the only one in Monkey Mia and they have all types of accommodation from camping, to apartments. We had a beach view room and it was definitely worth it. The sand was like molten lava, but worth burning the soles of your feet for. We spent our two nights there in total awe of the wildlife. Monkey Mia on Shark Bay is known for the wild dolphins that swim and play in the sea really close to the shore. We virtually spent 2 days in the sea. Watching a group of 6 dolphins make their way towards you in the water just never got old. They have dolphin feeding early every morning run by volunteers, although the dolphins are wild. They only feed the mothers and only a very small amount, as they want them to stay as wild as possible. They also don’t touch them if they can help it.

The sunsets here were also incredible. We would definitely go back there, a completely unmissable destination.

Tips-

If you want to be chosen to feed a dolphin- grin like a lunatic- we were told they love a grinner… so that’s exactly what I did… and was picked! Or wear something bright.

Take a snorkel!! Loads of amazing fish as well as the dolphins.

Stop 4- Carnarvon

What to say about this town….it was pretty strange to say the least. There was a pretty lake, but other than that, I would say we saw a total of 10 people. Now, we actually quite like exploring really quiet, seemingly empty places.. but this honestly felt like a ghost town. There wasn’t really anywhere we could find for dinner, so we ended up sharing a hot deli chicken in the room that night… Although we wouldn’t go here again, it was just a stop off and for that… it was ideal. One place that was worth seeing though, was Quobba, where there were some amazing blow holes. Every time the water spouted out of the holes, a little rainbow appeared in the sky!

Stop 5- Exmouth on the Ningaloo Reef

This is a contender for our favourite place. So so cool. Emus walking around the garden areas of our hotel, drinking from the fountain. Amaaazing snorkelling where you can see turtles and whale sharks ( in season). A great local brewery with the hot jalapeño dip that I promise I will only mention one more time. We met the nicest couple snorkelling at Turquoise Bay, who said they would send the photos they took with their GoPro of the turtles we all saw together – still waiting for those Ken!! We forgot Sam’s GoPro and so we just had to enjoy the turtles in real life!!!!!! Shock horror!!! Also the most beautiful colourful fish and even sea cucumbers!

We stayed at Mantarays Ningaloo Beach and had potentially the best avo toast I’ve ever eaten – for anyone that follows me on Instagram- sorry to mention it again. It had goats cheese, delicious, soft but not toooo runny poached eggs, fresh chopped tomatoes, sourdough toast and a drizzle of balsamic. Wow. I’ll just leave that there.

Tips-

Make the drive to Turquoise Bay, it’s definitely worth it. Turtles!!!!!

Go to Froth Brewery to eat- fresh prawn & avo salad ( can you tell I like avocado) and of course the mother of all dips. ( Told you I wouldn’t directly mention it again)

After that, we flew back to Perth and spent another few lovely days with Sam’s family.

Top recs and tips of the West:

* Monkey Mia for the wild dolphins and epic sunsets

* Exmouth- Turquoise Bay for the turtles and beaaautiful beaches.

* Hangover Bay- great name and even greater beach.

* Raspberry maltesers- great road trip snack (if kept in the shade)

* Snorkels are a must everywhere- can’t believe I’m actually saying that as a fairly nervy sea swimmmer but they’re definitely a necessity.

* Set off early for any hikes- the sun takes no prisoners.

* The roads can be very long and very empty of both other cars and loos. Go when you get a chance!!!! And make sure you have a Spotify playlist that you and your travel buddy agree on- we have mostly different music taste, but we did agree on the Kisstory Old School Anthems playlist- bit of Nelly, bit of TLC, bit of Akon.. we’re both happy.

* Kalbarri National Park- go early because we were told it gets really busy.

* Quobba Blow Holes- bit of a drive out the way but definitely worth seeing.

* Watch out for kangaroos on the road, they literally just dart out in front of you!

* Buy a fly net- seriously.

Thanks for reading xx

Feb 5th – Alice Springs

I can’t quite believe we’re in Feb already. January came and went in a flash it seems… although, we were in Cornwall for NYE and that feels like months ago. Sam and I started our trip on January 15th and so far we have visited Dubai and Perth, and also done an 8 day road trip all up the Western side of Oz, up to Exmouth. We have just left for a camping trip at Uluru (Ayers Rock) for 3 days before heading to Adelaide. The neat freak in me thinks I should wait and write about the first month, rather than the first 3 weeks, but the long journey into the outback feels like a good time to write. We have had a great mix of desert, city, beach and outback so far and we have seen some amaaaazing wildlife. Also, as someone who has a bit of a sea-swimming phobia, I have conquered a fear of mine and properly swam in the sea for the first time in a very long time, and not just swam alone, but with wild dolphins and also turtles. For a while, I would just go to the beach and dip my toes in, or get in briefly and get out again, so this is a pretty big deal for me. I think it’s the unknown that frightens me, but this whole trip has been about the unknown, so I have just tried to embrace it. I would have massively missed out too if I hadn’t gone in the sea, so I feel pretty pleased that I did it.

I am going to do another post soon as a mini guide to Western Australia, not that I know half as much as some people, but just from the experience we’ve had. For this post, just wanted to document our progress and what we have loved so far.

Firstly, although Dubai is a unusual place, we loved it. It feels like a vibrant, lively and exciting city to be in. There’s also loads to do and see and we would definitely go back. We stayed with Sam’s family and we had such a great time, it really was a brilliant start to our trip. They really made sure we saw as much of Dubai as we could in the few days we had there. We did a desert safari that included quad biking, 4 wheel driving across the sand dunes and dinner at a camp with fire breathers and belly dancers. We also tried paddle boarding for the first time, and explored Dubai’s amazing malls and hotels. (I had to massively hold back in Sephora… I only bought a pair of eyelash curlers and a couple of eye masks, anyone that knows me would be very proud). Food is also a huge part of Dubai’s appeal, with some great restaurants and breaky spots.

After Dubai, we headed to Perth, again to stay with some other members of Sam’s family and wow did we love it. I’d never been to Australia before and Sam went when he was a lot younger, so it was such a breath of fresh air for both of us. I had wondered what Australia would be like for such a long time and Perth was a great place to start. With the gorgeous beaches of Scarborough and Trigg, the beautiful King’s Park that I would spend all day in and the buzzy city centre, we loved it. We actually stayed in Perth for a few days before our West Coast road trip and also for a few days when we got back before heading here. I can really see the appeal of Perth, although it could be considered isolated in some ways. As a drama and performance lover, the Perth Fringe was right up my street, and was on while we were there. I would go back to Perth just for that alone! We also went to see the Perth Glory football team play and also the Perth Scorchers cricket team too. I actually really enjoyed both- aided by vod, lime & soda. Some great beach days, bbqs and a look around the famous Fremantle jail too, we had a brilliant time and felt so welcome.

After our first visit to Perth, we picked up our car, Tina the Toyota and drove North, stopping at Cervantes, Kalbarri, Monkey Mia, Carnarvon and Exmouth on Ningaloo Reef. As I said, I’ll do another post on our best tips for a Western road trip soon. Highlights were: seeing an Emu family cross the road in front of our car, some incredible sunsets, Australia Day in Kalbarri and seeing about 25 kangaroos in one place, Hangover Bay- potentially the bluest sea I have ever seen, swimming with dolphins in Monkey Mia, feeding pelicans, the blow holes at Quobba and swimming with turtles in the Ningaloo Reef- oh and the best jalapeño dip ever… already mentioned on my Instagram, but definitely worth writing home about.

As I write this, we’re in the van with our group driving to Uluru and I probably won’t be able to post this until we fly to Adelaide, but we’re so excited to see Ayres Rock and hopefully not have too many encounters with spiders (me not Sam).

A few things we have learnt so far:

1. Aussie drivers like to give a little wave to each other on long, remote roads. Also, if you see somewhere to stop on one of those roads, do it… you never know when the next loo will appear.

2. Raspberry Maltesers are a great road trip snack.

3. Don’t eat before going 4×4 driving on the sand dunes, we didn’t and it was the best choice I ever made. #scrambledstomach

4. Kangaroos are amazing.

5. Flies are relentless.

6. The pink lakes are brighter in person than any photo I’ve seen. Our cameras just couldn’t pick up the intense colour!

7. Take a snorkel to every beach.

8. Dubai has loads of frozen yoghurt spots…one had birthday cake flavoured yog- a big yes from me.

9. Sand gets everywhere…

10. Dolphins like it if you wave at them.

Here’s some of our photos from Dubai and Perth, I’ll include the Western road trip pics in the separate blog post! Thanks for reading xx