Friends, Cheese, Wine and Dirty Laundry!

Having left the Trek crew and thrown out into the ‘wilderness’ that is Washington DC on our own, we decided to take advantage of the facilities at Cherry Hill campground and catch up on some much needed sleep.... in the cafe/library/recreation area. 6 hrs and 1 exploded shampoo bottle in my bag later, we headed out of town on the train crossing 3 states to meet Kristin. Maryland to Washington DC to Virginia all in 1.5 hrs! You can’t even fly across Queensland in that time.

It was sooo good to see Kristin, Heidi's childhood girlfriend whom I grew up with since the age of 8 and someone from our side of the world with the good ol’ Aussie accent. We headed back to her apartment and met her Fiance, Vanja and plonked ourselves on the living room floor for the next 3 days! To have a real bed to sleep in was heaven – even a fold out couch bed! And man, did we do some washing!!! That poor machine went for days. Even the sleeping bag didn’t escape although it had to be rescue by Vanja when, after pulling it out of the machine it was twisted up more than a Chicken Twisty. Should have read the label stating, ‘Do not Machine Wash’. Hmmmmmm.....

The next couple of days were so lovely and relaxed. Poor Vanja headed out to work each day at 7am whilst we caught up with the Sandman. Heading out at our own leisure, we had the pleasure of Kristin’s company each day as she managed to get some time off work. We saw the beautiful countryside that is Virginia, visited the township of Leesburg – we went into a cafe there which had a ‘Take a book, Leave a book’ area and Serena, seeing a book she REALLY wanted to read, did as the sign said. Well the first part anyway.

Kristin, Serena and Heidi enjoying a coffee in Leesburg - the infamous book taking shop

Taking the ‘scenic route’ home one afternoon via Middleburg, we got to see a bit more of the countryside than anticipated but it was worth it as we meandered down little country lanes and even saw a deer. We made our way to Sunrise Hills winery one afternoon for wine tasting in an old barn that had been done up beautifully by the Mormans many years ago.

The old barn style Winery
A beautiful afternoon out in the Vineyards of Virginia

Having left my ipod in our Trek Van, I enlisted the help of Trek Leader, Brian, to somehow get it back down to Washington from where he was... New York!!! So one afternoon we headed into DC to meet up with another Trek Leader who had met up with Brian the night before to be given the Ipod to bring it down to Washington to meet up with me to hand it over! Phew! We took advantage of our time in town and visited the Holocaust Museum. I have been to this museum 3 times now in my life and each time it has such a great effect on me how one event, although over many years, affected the world in such a way. It is a definite MUST DO on your list of things to do in DC if you ever go.

The greatest thing about travel has to be the people you meet. I make a point of keeping in contact with friends I’ve met along the way because you never know when.... you are going to need a floor to crash on! Apart from catching up again time and time again! My friend Andy from Ohio is one of these people that I met whilst travelling 11 years ago in France and someone whom I’ve constantly kept in touch with (wish I could say he kept in touch as much – just kidding Andy!) over the years. We met up again 6 years ago on my travels around the States and here we were again, in Washington DC. Andy and his girlfriend Dana met up with Kristin, Serena and myself for a lovely Ethopian dinner. Yes that’s exactly what we thought; ‘do they eat in Ethopia?’ The food is amazing. Poor Dana, Kristin and Serena had to put up with a couple of hours of Andy and myself reminiscing about ‘old times’ but it was a fun night and interesting to hear what the both of them are up to these days.

On our last night we made the trip to Wegmans to get dinner.... oh but this is no ordinary shop. This was heaven in Ashburn. Wegmans was a massive gourmet food extravaganza. From ready made salads, cold meats and cheeses, wine, condiments and oh so much more. We stocked up on the necessities – bread, cheese, wine, dips and meat and headed home for our feast. And as if that wasn’t enough but later that night we headed into town for Gelato. Now, when I mentioned to Kristin that we were coming to visit months ago, she said back then that she was going to take us to the most amazing Gelato place she had been to, and by hook or by crook she was determined. It was worth the wait. I will be back one day Kristin for more Mojito Gelato mmmmmm mmmmmmm.

The best dinner in the world... all from WEGMANS!

And thus ended our journey in Washington DC/ Virginia.

H and S

Capitols and Capitals....

On the road again – Willy Nelson's song soon became our theme song for the next few days. Man! Did we do some miles?! Through Louisianna we passed through Mississippi, then Alabama (most of it whilst we were asleep), Georgia, Tennessee and finally into Virginia. Braving the ‘wild’ the daring trio of Rachel, Heidi and Serena slept outside on our mats each night – who could be bothered putting up a tent especially when it was so hot and such wonderful weather outdoors?! One day in Virginia, whilst staying in a camp ground the finally reminded us of camping in the woods rather than in an RV park as all our other campgrounds were, it got so hot that we decided to go down to the lake for a swim. However once entering the water, we found that it was hotter in the lake than out of the lake! Yuck! A few days down the track, Heidi and fellow Trekker Alison decided a clean up/organisation of the van Trailer was in order... pity it was 4 days before the end of the Trek! But we did it and man, did that Trailer look organised! But feeling hot afterwards was an understatement.

When camping, things that seem so menial in every day life become such mammoth tasks. For example, doing washing at home on a Saturday is a simple task of sorting, throwing it in the machine and coming back when it’s done. When on the road and trekking/camping it is considered quite an ordeal. Firstly you have to find the time. No point in getting into a campsite late and then needing a good 3 hrs to wash and dry. You then need to find out where the laundry is, which is usually a mile down the road so lugging it all there is fun fun fun. Once there, getting an available machine is the hardest part especially as most campgrounds accommodate at least 4 Trek America groups of 12 people each night. When you do find a free machine, you throw all in at once , none of this coloureds and whites sorting – no time and not enough machines for that. Then you suddenly realise you need washing powder and quarters to run the machine. You take your $1 notes to the change machine, get your quarters (put in a $5 note and you feel like you won in Vegas!!) and purchase your washing powder. Head back to the machine, put in your quarters and powder. 45 mins later you return having done the 1 mile hike BACK, to find your washing dumped on top of the machine so that someone else can use it next. You then have to go through a similar rigmarole process for finding a dryer. Putting in yet more quarters, working out how the machine actually works as every single one seems to be different, hiking back to camp the 1 mile to return 45 mins later when the machine is finished and pulling out your clothing to find that all is still fairly damp but because of the queue of people wanting to use the machine you just have to settle with taking it back the 1 mile hike to your camp ground and throwing it in your tent hoping it will be dry by the time you have to pack. Phew!!!! And don’t get me started on the washing up of the dinner dishes at night when there is no tap in sight!

And thus, due to this fact, Serena and I decided to skip the white water rafting trip early one morning (how could it simply compare to that of the Tully River?) and do all our washing, packing, leg shaving, hair washing and appliance charging. What a great feeling it was when it was all done and the group returned all wet, smelly, hairy legged and having 5 mins to shower AND eat lunch before making our way to our final destination on the Trek, Washington DC.

Rolling into Cherry Hill campground in Washington DC (well Maryland technically) was a very welcome sight at the end of a long afternoon in the van. The rain, however was not. Rain meant tents had to be put up and no sleeping outdoors - :( yes very unhappy face. But once we’d set up camp, prepared our hot dog dinner that went down a treat, the clouds had parted and it was time to head into DC for our illumination tour of all the famous monuments. We walked past the Vietnam Memorial wall, through the Korean Garden Memorial which was so eerie as there are statues of men in raincoats dotted throughout and lit up from below all seeming so real. We then wondered up to the Lincoln Memorial, made famous by Forrest Gump when he went to make a speech about the Vietnam war and Jenny comes running through the water... oh and some guy named Martin Luther King Jr made some sort of a speech there too... (cough cough, tongue in cheek). We went up to see Mr Lincoln sitting in his chair and looked back at the beautiful Washington Memorial Obelisk and then wondered down to the fairly recently constructed World War 2 water fountain memorial. By this stage we were in serious need of a toilet so we made our way back to the van, got out the trusty GPS and got terribly lost! Just in time before a couple of Trekkers exploded we found the public toilet we liked to call MacDonald’s. What would travellers do for toilets if it wasn’t for MacDonalds?!!!

Hanging out by the Washington Memorial

Serena takes in the beautiful view from Lincoln Memorial down the 'Forrest Gump/Jenny' Lake

Reflections at night in DC

The (Black and) White house at night... I think Obama was trying to sleep which could explain why he didn't come out to meet us when we called him!

President Lincoln sits happily in his chair

The back of the White House... no we didn't try to get in - this time!

World War II Memorial Fountain

The next day was dedicated to Museums. The greatest thing about Washington is that it is ALL FREE! Why wouldn't more backpackers hang out in this area?!!! They have the World’s best museums that make up the Smithsonian Institute of Research. The choices are: Museum of Natural History (animals etc), Museum of African-American History, Museum of National History (Presidents, Civil and Confederate Wars), Air and Space Museum, Museum of Art and Literature, The Holocaust Museum, not to mentional all the political buildings such as The Capitol Building, the White House (you can’t go in there - think they knew we were coming?), all the monuments from the night before and so much more. We spent approx 4 hrs in each one we visited and then spent a couple of hours on the lawn outside trying to take it all in - whilst scoring the joggers going by on their ‘talent’ of course! What a fantastic place of knowledge. Later that afternoon with all of us so much wiser from all that we had learnt we headed out for the final supper... our last dinner in China town.

Our last night of the Trek was a momentus night. Serena, Brian our tour leader and I, all spent some quality time together.... counting knives, forks, spoons, bowls, plates, lanterns, pots and scrubbing down the eskies for the next Trek group. Early the next morning we were all up and packing the final bits and pieces into the trailor and said our farewells to the group. We decided to ditch them all as they headed up to New York and we had decided to spend more time in Washington visiting friends. And so ended our Southern Sun Trek - well at least we thought it had. I remembered hours later that I had left my Ipod in the van, so with some tricky manoeuvering on Brian's part we got it back days later via another tour group! Our plans of heading into town to further our education came to a screaming holt when we both decided that we were smart enough already and just hung out in the Camping Ground all day catching up on some much needed sleep time and looking forward to the beginnings of the next legs of our adventure.....

H and S

N'awlins and the Deep South

The American’s claim that Texas is a HUGE State... but they haven’t been to Queensland or Western Australia! However... having said that, crossing that State in a van full of people did take a bloody long time! A full day and a half in the van later, (with a visit to Lafeyette hospital for one of the girls who had an overnight tummy bug – thank goodness for Ziplock bags!) lots and lots of desert, scrub and oil drillers later we crossed into Louisianna and into the Bayou (swamplands). What a dramatic change from one State to the next. The dry, arid countryside morphed into a wet mishmash of greenery and rivers. Late in the afternoon, we pulled up and were greeted by Cajun Jack. Cajun Jack is a local of the area, born and raised and a little bit crazy! He and his ‘brothers/cousins’ grew up in the Bayou fishing for crawfish and catfish. He led us through myriad of river mazes into the Bayou in search of Alligators and an Alligator we did find. We think he was more curious about us though than we were about him. Feeling rather steamy and bitten to death by swamp midgies we headed back to the van for the final part of the trek towards New Orleans.

Cruising the Bayou

Enjoying the ride even if we were almost carried away by the midgies!!

Captain Cajun Jack gives us the low down on his cousins and growing up in the Bayou


Mutiny on board - Serena and Heidi take control of the Swamp Ship!

Our friend the Alligator - well he was our friend as long as he stayed over there!


Stepping out of the van in N’awlins (New Orleans in the local tongue) was like stepping into a swimming pool... welcome to humidville. The Aussies were in their element, the Brits searched for the closest door to go into the aircon! The next 2 nights were a treat... we got to sleep in a bed!!!! Yes the French Quarter Suites and Inn became our haven for 2 days. What a gorgeous looking hotel. It is 130 years old and sits nicely located in the French Quarter area of New Orleans which was walking distance to all the best parts of the city. And walk we did. For the next 2 days we wondered up Royal Street, down Bourbon Street and every street in between. This area was hardly affected by hurricane Katrina so kept its old world charm and Spanish/French influences in the building and architecture.

The first night in Nawlins was spent travelling up the Mississippi on an old Steam Wheeler boat, eating Cajun food, listening to Dixie Jazz and doing the chicken dance... the chicken dance? Yep there was a conference group on board for Verizon Phones and so when Serena and I were asked to dance, at least this was one dance we knew!!! We chatted to them for hours, before heading into Bourbon street to dance the rest of the night away (non chicken dance style). We couldn't remember their names so each time we ran into them in town, they became Mr Verizon! And thank you to Mr Verizon for the many drinks purchased on the company account!!

The Dixie Jazz band onboard

Enjoying the Cajun food onboard the Queen Mississippi Steam Wheeler Boat

Hanging around on Street corners... Bourbon and Orleans Street, New Orleans


No trip to New Orleans is complete without a visit to Cafe Du Monde for the BEST donuts in the world... or in our case about 5 or 6 visits to Cafe du Monde in 2 days! This was my favourite place to be so each time we passed a mandatory stop was in order. I was in donut heaven! The photos say it all.

One of several trips down to Cafe Du Monde for a few of their delicious donuts!

It's a messy business but someone has to do it and who better than Brian and Heidi!


A few of us headed into town for lunch at Pat O’Briens for Crawfish bisque, Jumbalaya and the one and only famous Hurricane drink that went down a little too quickly for us both! Cajun food is the best part (and only one of many great parts) of the South East corner of the States closely followed by the Jazz music. The next night we stopped in at Maison Club for some amazing Jazz music. Wondering through the streets, you can hear the sounds of the Saxophone coming from one direction and the trumpet from another. Just pick your bar, grab a drink and enjoy the atmosphere. On the corner of the famous Bourbon Street we stopped to listen to one man singing Satchmo (Louis Armstrong) songs just like the real thing! It is a very special part of this country that all must experience at least once in your life.

Serena takes in the atmosphere of the French Quarter with it's Spanish influences

Not one to break with tradition, Serena samples one of the famous, Pat O'Brien's Hurricanes.

And not to be outdone, Heidi follows suit....

The best Jumbalaya in town... mmmm mmmmm!

The fantastic Jazz band at Club Maison, Frenchman Street, New Orleans

Don't Mess with Texas!

Yee haw! Welcome to the Texas two step y’all!!!! What a night we had in Austin. After driving, driving and more driving we just about covered half the state of Texas , where, if it’s in Texas, it’s bigger! EVERYTHING! We decided to hit the town on a very hot night so where does one go when in the State Capital? Well the Broken Spoke Pub of course! Every Friday and Saturday nights they teach the Texas two step for an hour and then it’s a free for all. Dancing in time to step step, pausssse..... paussssse and trying to avoid each other’s feet and the couple beside you, the place was set in an old Western barn style with REAL cowboys wearing their cowboy hats, jeans and flannelette shirts but thankfully leaving their spurs at home.

Serena had the great opportunity to be asked to dance with multiple locals.... all happened to be over the age of 75 though so no luck for her finding a cowboy boyfriend but boy could they all dance! The tour leader Brian did his round with each ‘lady’ on the Trek and considering he is 6’5 and the rest of us are all between 5’1 – 5’7 it was quite a funny sight! By the end of the night, we were all pros and ready to take on any Texas local who asked us to dance, all we needed now was our pink cowgirl hats! The bar boasts having hosted such celebrities as Bill Clinton, Dolly Parton, Clint Eastwood and a frequent visitor and performer the legendary Willy Nelson. It was a great night and our favourite so far on the trip.

Serena reaches for the sky to dance with Brian

Heidi and Brian master the Texas 2 step

The Gang get's their 'Cotton Eyed Joe' on! Yee haw

The Band Plays at the Broken Spoke in Austin - Yeehawwww!


With the heat making our sleep very restless during the night camped out, we got up early and headed into San Antonio to educate ourselves on a little American history and headed into the Alamo. Apart from learning about the Texans taking on the entire Mexican army 200+ years ago, we enjoyed the comfort of the modern invention know as airconditioning. Heading down along the riverwalk we enjoyed the local atmosphere and the smells rising from all the restaurants selling good ol’ Tex Mex food. It was then onto the town of Gruene – no no no it’s not said Gru-en! It’s pronounced Green of course! Gruene (Green) is a quaint little town in old country and western style. The most popular place in town had to be the Gruene Hall where there was a live band playing country music in a room filled with .... well I think the only way to honestly say it is, hicks. It was great! Lots of dancing and drinking beer which was like liquid gold considering there was no aircon in this hall and it was approx 40+ degrees and stiii-cky. The only cure for the heat was a trip to the campsite pool and to hang out in the airconditioned toilets, voted the best toilets of any on the trip so far. That night dinner was at Satl Lick, a BBQ steak house.... outdoor style. Serena and Heidi dined on 12 BBQ flavoured ribs, Coleslaw, potato mash and pickles. Yummo! Like we said, Don't Mess With Texas!

Serena and Heidi chill in the shade down by the Riverwalk in San Antonio

The brightly coloured umbrellas of the Tex Mex restaurants on the Riverwalk

Chowing down on some Texas style ribs and Coleslaw.


So as for tomorrow, its further East we head where the temperatures are hotter and so is the food. Bring on Louisianna and Nawlins!

H and S

Desert Canyons, Monumental Mesas, Spanish Cities, Bat Caves, Alien Landings and a whole lota heat!

What a week for the Adventurous Duo!!! From hiking into the Grand Canyon, to Jeep riding with the Navajo in Monument Valley, to Salsa dancing in the streets of Santa Fe, walking into one of the biggest Caverns in America and avoiding skunks in Texas, it has been a fun fuelled week!

So from where we left off.... Grand Canyon day 2 saw Serena heading into the Canyon down the Bright Angel trail. Heidi opted for the more ‘cultured’ option of wondering the South Rim into the Visitor Centres and Observation Viewing points having done the hike a few years earlier... and feeling rather lazy after the big hike in Zion! Luckily for us the sun was shining making the Canyon look absolutely stunning.



Heidi and Rachel complete the South Rim walk of the Grand Canyon

The mighty Grand Canyon - a camera simply can't capture the enormity of it!


Later that evening the group decided to participate in an ancient Traditional American custom called Ten Pin Bowling. The battle between the tour leader Brian and Heidi commenced immediately but due to her generous nature, she decided to give her pride away and make the 6’5 giant, the winner. How embarrassing to be beaten by a 5 foot nothing girl! Such thoughtfulness indeed.

Serena 'strikes' a pose in anticipation for some big scores

Heidi lines up the ball to strike those pins - but the lane is in the other direction!!!

Showing off the latest fashion trends of American Ten Pin Bowling Foot attire.

The next day we travelled the highways of Utah and Nevada via a stop at Lake Powell with a massive Dam starting at the beginning of the Grand Canyon and ended our day at Easton's Ranch. An ex Trek Leader, Easton started a camp ground for Trek American groups and offered horse rides into the desert. Like true pros, we all jumped on the back of a horse and trotted off for a 2 hour trip across creeks, through brushland and over sandy dunes. That night we were offered a treat of a home cooked meal by Easton's partner of Steak and Veges followed by Chocolate Brownies - yummo! However the next morning we were all walking a little too much like cowboys!!!

The enormity of Lake Powell and it's dam

Serena and Sina get aquainted for the long trail ahead

Heidi and 'Jerry' can't work out who's backside is bigger!!!

Just cruising the desert like true Cowboys

It was back in the van again the next morning and off to one of the most beautiful parts of the States – Monument Valley. This is the area made famous by being featured in the film Forrest Gump. It is the long straight road into the desert where he decides to finish his long run and decides to go home. No photos can fully capture the beauty of this area. We headed into the desert with our Navajo guide Richard (traditional name? Maybe not!) who was very knowledgeable but not just in all things ‘Native American’ but very much in the area of AC/DC and Vegemite! After roaming around the floor of the Valley and visiting all the beautiful natural monuments with their changing colours in the dying light at sunset, we were treated to a taco dinner and story telling/dance evening. The evening included a dance/marriage ceremony so mum, I am now legally married in a Navajo tradition to Brian, my fellow Korean Trekker and Serena had her nuptials with Tour Leader Brian. Makes it easier for us to remember their names! Don’t worry though as we had it annulled shortly after as Serena wants to get married in Vegas by Elvis! It was such a great evening and later headed back to our campsite to sleep out under the stars amongst the tarantulas.

Displaying the 'Mits' of the Mighty Mesas

The Trek Group gather in the Desert

Lying on the Rock to get a few of the 'Eagle's Face' Rock formation

Crossing the trecherous mud of the flooded desert plains - and trying not to get our shoes wet!

Heidi taking in the spectacular view from the Valley Floor

The perfect reflection

Serena has her finger right on the spot!

Sunset in Monument Valley - our shirts match the colour of the desert sand!

Enjoying the delicious Taco dinner laid out for us by the Navajo people

Richard performs a traditional Navajo dance for the group

Sunrise the next morning saw us already up and into the valley to check out the spectacular colours again changing behind each monument as the sun rose. Heading out to the ‘Forest Gump’ Road and taking a myriad of running photos we were soon on the road for our longest day in the van yet.

Sunrise over the Mesas

Serena was thrilled to get up before sunrise.... in the cold desert.... No really, she was!

Reaching for the skies along the road to Monument Valley

Run Forest! Run!

Heidi crashes out... the ONLY way to sleep comfortably (enough) in the middle front seat

Serena gets cozy in her corner of the Van

8 hrs, 4 toilet stops and one lunch break later we rolled into Santa Fe. Interesting fact:
Santa Fe is the oldest capital city of any town in the US. Founded in 1610 by the Spaniards, the town still remains as it did all those years ago with the city posing strict building restrictions to maintain the heritage look of the town. A person wishing to build a building in the town centre has a choice of 1 of 23 shades of brown to choose from!

After our MASSIVE fill of Mexican food costing a total of $5 per person, we headed into town. Playing out on the lawn on the Plaza was a Latino band singing Jazz/Salsa music with people just dancing around the park which was filled with fairy lights and colourful flower pots. It seemed like a scene out of a movie. As the sun set at 9pm (loving the summer twilight over here!) we wondered around the streets, into the old cowboy style buildings.

We then headed home for another night out under the stars, tarantula free. However at 2am we were hit with a rather large lightening, thunder and worst of all.... RAIN storm. 12 bodies scuttled under the only shelter out there which was a large metal tin shed. It might have seemed the worst place to be in a lightning storm, under a big sheet of metal but thank goodness for the rubber mats we were all sleeping on. We scrambled onto, around and under the park benches and tables in the hope of staying dry but woke in the morning to sleeping bags full of puddles, travel pillows soaked through and mats red with the mixture of the desert sand and the rain. Noice! Gave the Poms in the group a real feel of the outdoor camping experience!

Live Latino music in the fairy lit Plaza in Santa Fe

Tour leader Brian finds his inner cowboy with this hat in a Santa Fe shop

The Van shines in the light of the rainbow AFTER the rain storm washout the night before

So wet and a little miserable, deciding to skip breakfast and just have bagels in the van, the motley crew piled into the van for another long day in the van. After a few hours of bobbing heads falling all over the place in deep slumber, we rolled into Roswell, New Mexico. It was easy to find. We just followed the spinning disc shaped object hovering in front of us! After passing loads of tacky gift shops selling all things extraterrestrial, we headed into the Roswell Museum of Extraterrestrial stuff. Getting our fill of history, we soon learnt that sighting of UFO’s increased in the area shortly after the US Government had finished testing the explosion of the atom bombs in the region. Hmmmm, coincidence? Fully convinced that we could not find any signs of extraterrestrial beings we headed into Walmart to stock up on supplies for the next couple of days and BINGO! We hit the goldmine. Now we are certain that all staff employed at Roswell Walmart cannot be from this planet as they are all 4.5’ tall with beards and cross eyed – and that’s just the women!

So with our blow up Alien dolls, Alien shot glasses, postcards, frisbees, lollipops and other strange paraphernalia purchased, we roll back out of town just as fast as we had cruised in. Another 4 hours of head bobbing later we turned up in Carlsbad. The only thing to report about Carlsbad is that they had a very nice grassy patch for a campsite which was quite welcome compared to the stony ground we had previously been sleeping on! Oh and they had an indoor pool and in 37 degree dry heat it was very welcome! Our team leader Brian decided he needed to get in touch with his childhood and jumped on the swing and proceeded to swing so high we thought he was trying to catch one of the UFO’s on its way to Roswell. Now, considering the guy is 6’5, he isn’t the average weight of a 6 yr old child and within minutes the entire group was rolling around on the ground with laughter as the swing came down with the full weight of a fully grown man and the seat snapped in 2 sending Brian rolling through the dirt. We now have to create an intervention each time with come into view of a children’s playground as we do not want to leave the children of America swing free as we make our way across the entirety of the country!

That night was Barbie time! After all, being this far south and so close to Texas we needed some meat! The only problem being that the flies were quite rife in the area. As we all sat down to chow down on our feast of hamburgers, sausages and barbied salmon, the swarms came in. Our poor little pommy friends went running for cover and as Heidi and Serena sat there slowly doing the Aussie wave and swatting occasionally, we realised that we were suddenly on our own. Yet another harsh reality of camping thrown in the face of our English friends. At this rate, they would have them being fully blown Aussie campers in no time. It was then off to the Drive In. Yep that’s what I said! We packed up our sleeping bags, got into our PJ’s, bought an icecream and sat out on the dirt watching a movie under the stars! Absolutely loved it! However the following morning when we woke up, our poor English cousins were covered in welts from the mozzie bites. Not a mark on us Aussies though! Think they probably saw our crocodile tough skin and buzzed over to the nice soft, sweet skin of the English. Let’s just say that we have been through half a bottle of Tea Tree Oil and half a tube of Stop Itch having lined them all up and administered the medication to them all.

Yesterday we ventured down the 700 ft deep Caverns of Carlsbad which meant Guano! Yep bat poop. Apparently 300 000+ bats live in the cave and all come out at sunset each night. The caves are so large that we didn’t even see the bats (smelled them though!) as they roosted in different areas of the cave. It was the most beautifully decorated caves all lit up the full 2kms of the trail that we followed. Being 13 degrees it was a nice cool change from the 38 degree desert heat outside.

Serena goes underground

Was this the male part of the cave?

Was this the female part of the cave?


We then made like Willy Nelson said, and were On The Road Again. Opting out of our usual salad and ham wrap healthy lunches, we pulled into a servo for a toilet break and filled up on hot dogs, chips, M&M’s and soft drink! Love that healthy kick but it gave us all the sugar rush we needed to get through the next 3 hours in the van, mostly head bobbing again! And then.... we crossed the border into TEXAS!! Where their slogan is ‘Don’t Mess with Texas’.

Brian, the tour leader, and I discussed going shopping to get him some cowboy boots being the country boy that he is. I then suggested that we get him ones with turquoise rhinestones, matching Cowboy hat and belt, buttless chaps and spurs for his boots and possibly even a stockman’s whip. He didn’t look impressed for some reason??? Mid afternoon we headed into the big smoke town of Fort Stockton. ‘Where?’ I hear you ask. Exactly. The middle of nowhere. I taught our English friends the meaning of Woop Woop which as inspired by Fort Stockton. We did have a great swimming pool though so spent the afternoon cooling down and then heating back up whilst sunbaking in the 6pm heat! Heidi was on dinner duty so cooked up a nice Savoury Mince and mum’s famous Noodle rice dish which was well received. Later that night, a local skunk made an appearance, and Heidi, realising the other’s non-realisation of the consequences of a experiencing a skunk’s full force sent the friendly fellow very quickly on his way.

So once again we find ourselves in the home away from home, ‘The Van’ today on our way to Austin Texas (please say with broad Southern State of America Accent) where people are so much more friendly! We will get more fill of culture – dad I might just come back cultured! But don’t count on it. We are off to the Alamo, the scene of a big fight between the Yanks and the Beaners for unfertile, virtually inhospitable land. Why? Don’t think they really know either. Until then, we hope you’ve had fun reading our latest update.

H and S