Stroppy teenagers and... um... stroppy thirty somethings

Well it's been a while since I last had a moan so it's about time I rectified that. Today we are all at logger heads!! Sam is being a stroppy 13 year old and won't help Will paint the fence (well he did eventually - but he was pretty grumpy about it because he wanted to watch the Brady Bunch of all things!). Will is a stroppy 29 year old and doesn't think that Sam pulls his weight (he's probably right) but he thinks that when he was 13 he did EVERYTHING his parents told him because he knew they were older and wiser than him... yeah right... I don't expect his parents remember it that way!!... and I guess I am a stroppy 34 year old because I'm sick of the two of them bickering and it's hot and I didn't sleep well because Will has the fan on full blast in the bedroom so it's like an icebox on a night...there... rant over!

On the positive side. One side of the fence is now built and stained and looks beeeeautiful - infact the neighbours keep saying how nice it is and one guy said 'it's the best fence in Corindi' (there you go Jeff and Linzi, you'll have tours coming around to see the famous fence). Whilst Will and Sam varnish the posts on the other side of the fence I have made chocolate brownies a la Jamie Oliver and for the first time ever I have made a desert that looks and tastes like it should. This is a real achievment, usually my cakes don't rise and my biscuits look like small dog poos... but the brownies look just like they should, all crisp on top and moist in the middle. I think having the right equipment to cook with has made the difference, trying to sift flour through a collander never did seem the right way to go about things to me.

Sam is now officially on Facebook - this is great because he has got to catch up with all his friends back in the UK and most of the kids he is meeting on his travels also have profiles so he can keep in touch with them all. I ummmd and aaaahd about whether to let him have a profile but came to the conclusion that I have to trust him and let him grow up and at least whilst we are here we can teach him how to use it sensibly. We are now thinking about schools again and trying to work out which school he will go to when we get back. Colstons would be the ideal as there is no room at Mangotsfield but I'm not sure we can afford it after a year off... private education is super expensive, still I'm sure we'll work something out.

Picture attached is of our Sunday Roast crew - the lovely Corindi neighbours.

Complete bravery...

Today Sam went to the skate park whilst all the other kids were in school to practice 'dropping in to the bowl' which basically means going off the lip of a skate board ramp down a really steep slope. The reason that I am writing about this is because it showed real character to do what Sam did today.

He was nervous about doing the drop whilst other kids were there so asked us to come to the park with him today. We also bought him arm, knee and elbow pads for the occasion. He stood at the top of the ramp, balanced on the edge and told us how nervous he was - we tried to encourage him and after a couple of minutes he had a go... and of course he fell off. He picked himself up and checked that everything was still in order and then went back to the slope and tried again. He repeated this about 5 times and each time we shouted further encouragement. 'I just need to remember that if I fall over it will hurt a bit, but that's all', he said, as he syked himself up to go again. 'Can I have a milkshake if I do it?' he asked, it seemed the least we could do in the presence of such bravery. 'My heart's beating really fast' he said...and then, he dropped down the slope and made it.

It reminded me of when I taught him to ride a bike, he kept riding down the hill and falling off at the bottom and then, suddenly, he just got it!! Well it was the same thing, as soon as he had gone down once there was no stopping him. He was dripping with sweat but really pleased with his achievement and rightly so. You can learn an awful lot in school but today was a real lesson for Sam in facing and overcoming his fears and what better reward than a milkshake.

This afternoon he played with his friends and they are coming over tomorrow night to watch a film and eat cake whilst we build and varnish the fence. So all is well in the world right now - especially for Sam.

Bellengen

This morning we got up and Scott left us to fly back to Bali. It has been really nice having him here as an additional member of the family (and one who can teach). I think he has also enjoyed being here, in the middle of arguments, with Sam wittering on in his ear and singing annoying songs, what's not to love? No seriously, I think he did enjoy being part of our family and being mothered (cooked for etc), so now we are back to three.

Yesterday we all drove to Bellengen but we didn't pick a very good day for it because it rained when we got there. We drove around a loop road called The Promised Land which ended up at Never Never Creek, honestly it sounds like something from a Peter Pan Story. The funniest thing was when Scott walked into the local garage to get directions and came upon a wise looking, sage like man behind the counter, 'Excuse me' he said, 'I'm looking for the Promised Land'. I'd like to say the the man, closed his eyes, took a long breath and, looking deep into Scotts eyes said,'you're already there my son, you're already there.' But instead he said, 'Turn right at the post office and just keep going'. Not quite so romantic.

The drive was quite nice but I'm sure that in the sun it would have been beautiful. We stopped for lunch in Bellengen at a little vegetarian restaurant. Bellengen is a bit like an Australian Glastonbury but not nearly so hippified, there are a few hippy types wandering around and the restaurants and cafes have that certain feel that only comes with a slightly spiritual place. It was actually a lovely little town and I would be really happy to go back and explore some more (on a sunny day) but as there is no surf within walking distance I feel my chances are limited. Wandering around the little shops is not Will's idea of fun! Bellengen also reminded me of Raglan in New Zealand, a gorgeous, old (ish) town with a relaxed vibe.

Now we are sat on the sofa eating a big brunch (not good for my expanding bottom) and then me and Sam are about to continue with our Physics (heating and radiation). Later we will go for a surf and then off to collect more varnish for the fence.

Fishing

This morning we got up and went fishing with Mark who lives across the road in his 'tinnie' (Aussie speak for a small boat). We had four fishing rods and a bag full of prawns for bait. I had the very nice job of handing prawns to the boys to bait their hooks. It was actually really nice to be out on the river, floating along in the sun, catching fish and looking at the mangroves.

Sam was the winning fisherman and caught two small bream - he had to throw them back though because they were under size.

After fishing we came back to the house and just chilled out sorting out paper work - we have now booked our flights to Perth for the 4th May and it will be fantastic to fly over and see Charlotte and Neil. Whilst we were booking the flights etc Sam headed off to the skate park with the local kids - he is now part of a gang of kids who skate around Corindi and all seem really nice. Corindi is such a small, safe place it's brilliant because he can just head off and say he will be back at a certain time and you don't have to worry. That's why travelling with a 13 year old is so much easier than travelling with a younger child. They are old enough to be sensible on the roads, know what time to come home and not go off with any strange men (although he did come home and say that he was going to look at someones puppy earlier!)

This evening we went to Red Rock Beach with Mark and Scott. This is the most gorgeous secluded beach and gets it's name from the red pigment in the rock, which is what the aborigines used to paint their bodies. Red Rock is also called 'Blood Rock'and apparently this is due to a massacre of aborigines which happened here many many years ago, but adds a slightly eerie feel to the area. We walked up to the headland and it was super windy, the waves were crashing in and the sun was going down, it was pretty spectacular... and then we went to the local bowling club for a chinese meal (cunningly named 'Red Wok!') After a huge feed we are all crashed out on the sofa.

Picture attached of Sam catching his fish

longboarding...

Last night I couldn't sleep because I woke up and thought 'Oh my god, we are in a house and everything has reverted back to normal - Sam is addicted to the TV, I am eating and eating and eating and doing not enough exercise and Will is working and stressed. Nothing has changed!!' So I decided the best thing to do would be to wake up Will and tell him my worries - and here's the thing, things have changed because Will got up and got me a drink and listened to me droning on at him about how I was worried that when we got back to the UK we would just slot back into the same old routine - and he said not to worry, things would be ok. Now 7 months ago, Will would have told me to shut up and go back to sleep.

It is scary though, to think that we will be home soon and then what? Will being home all the time be enough for us after our mad cap adventures, will we slot back into a routine as if nothing has changed? In the clear light of day I can see that we have a choice in this - that yes, things could go back to the way they were... or... we can choose to change them and to take the lessons we have learned with us. So this morning I got up with a different attitude. I had an apple for breakfast and when the boys went surfing, I took the long board out and had a fun session myself. If I want to stay fit and healthy and keep up with the routine we have established then it's up to me to keep on top of it.

Playing on the long board was loads of fun and I will definitely do it more often... after a session in the sea we had a Macdonalds and yes, I had the healthy option, and then we went and bought the National Geographic for Sams lessons... picture attached of me on the surfboard. Tonight we are going out for a meal with the neighbours.

Plans

So it's been a beautiful, hot day in Corindi. The fence posts are now firmly concreted in place, the ipod is on it's way to being repaired (well we have found a company who can do it) and Sam has finally introduced himself to the kids who live across the street... ahhh lovely.

Today we have worked on English and I have realised that we need to work a bit harder with the English to extend vocabulary. I am going to buy the National Geographic magazine from now on as this will help with the Science and also the English. After a frustrating lesson we went to the shops and had a gorgeous lunch in Woolgoolga, I had linguini with salmon and tomatoes in case your interested... and then we went to the beach but the waves were rubbish. It was nice for me though because there was a cool breeze so I did some yoga and had a little run. Now, the boys are doing yoga and I am about to make a potato and cauliflower curry and Sam is watching 'The Big Bang Theory.'

We have a few busy days ahead as Scott leaves us on Tuesday and we have quite a bit of sight seeing to do... Tomorrow we are going to the Big Banana, which I think is a fun park and then out for tea with the neighbours. On Saturday we are going to Bellingen which is a beautiful town near by and then on Sunday we are going to Red Rock which is another beach that we haven't been to, We also have to fit in the Surf Museum and the Aboriginal Centre... phew!!

I think the plan is for us to stay here for another week or so to complete the fence and then we will head to Byron for a few days followed by a return to the house and then back to Sydney, flying out to Perth at the start of May and then on to Bali on May 20th.

I also found a guy selling books near here and picked up three books for $5 - brilliant (am now reading the Dali Lama's book of wisdom).

Oh what a beautiful mooooorning.....

This morning I woke up to one of the best sights ever. Lying in a comfy bed, with the fan cooling the air overhead and the sun peeping through the blinds, in walks Sam with a red tray complete with a piece of toast with marmite, a cup of coffee with milk on the side and a tall glass of water. I sat up in bed, munching the toast and reading my book and realised how lucky I am... no work to go to, no pressure or stress to do anything...lovely.

The only thing that would have topped the morning off would have been my horse peering through the window rather than a kangaroo - but I guess you can't have everything. I was due to go riding yesterday but to be honest I can take it or leave it here. I miss horse riding, but more importantly i miss my horse and the great thing is that he is still well back in England and it won't be long before I get to see him.

Yesterday we made a roast for the Corindi neighbours and it was lovely. Rob and Margaret (who I have adopted as my Australian parents) made a delicious pudding (or Dessert as they call it here - when I said pudding Margaret was very confused and thought I meant a suet pudding or something) anyway, we all had lots of food, lots of wine and beers and a really nice evening. Sam had a great time too and the next step in our Corindi programme is to introduce him to the kid over the road.

This was going to be a longer post but a major crisis has just occurred - Will has stood on Sam's ipod and the screen is cracked - I have feeling we are about to enter crisis mode!!!!!!!!

Loving the van

Last night Sam went to his room early so he could watch a film in bed and Will and Scott sat in the front room watching videos whilst I lay in bed reading my book and suddenly I realised how great it was living in the van because for that short space of time we were all together and all sharing the same experiences... but really sharing them - not sat in separate rooms, having different experiences.

I realised that playing cards by the light of the torch before bed was a really cool thing to do and not having television meant that we had to make our own entertainment and get out there and do things... sometimes it's so easy to sit in front of the telly and miss the day, we talked a lot more when we were living in the van. It also makes me realise how quickly we could slip back into our old patterns if we aren't careful when we get back and lose the important lessons we have learned along the way.

I probably didn't fully appreciate the van fully until now, and the song, 'don't it always seem to go that you don't know what you got til it's gone' keeps running through my head as I write this. Thinking about it now, we really did pull together like a tight little unit in the van. All doing our own little jobs and making the adventure run as smoothly as possible. Not that I would like to go back to living in the van - but my point is that I also don't want to lose those lessons and I hope that Sam appreciates them too and also remembers how much fun it was.

But anyway - enough nostalgia - back to the here and now. The fence building has started, well that's not strictly true, the tree digging up has started. This involved Will climbing up rickety wooden ladders and sawing branches off the tree (almost hitting me I might add) and Scott pulling on the end of a rope attached to the branch so that it wouldn't fall on Will's head!! Sam was chief sawer upper and sawed the little branches of the fallen big branch so they could be removed... and all in the rain. I decided that it would be a good time to tidy the house, wash the clothes and clean the toilets (anything's better than standing in the rain avoiding falling branches). So now it's 7pm and I'm about to start tea, pasta tonight, and the boys are outside still digging.

Internet is very slow today so I'm afraid no picture!

Bits and bobs...

It's difficult to know where the days go, if someone told you, you have a year off to travel with no work, you might wonder, 'How on earth will I fill my days? Won't I get bored? Well let me tell you, both these thoughts crossed my mind but it's amazing how quickly the days whizz by.

Generally we are pretty motivated and none of us like to sit around all day watching telly (well that's a lie because Sam would, given the chance) so we tend to get up between 7 and 8, have breakfast and watch the news and then either do the school work or head off for a surf. Whilst the boys are in the sea I will either, read my book, watch Sam catch waves, do yoga or go in for a long board or body board (it's usually a mixture of all of the above). Then we will have lunch, normally back at the house, followed by school work/a food shop/tidy up/wander or read and then it's dinner time and before you know it the day is over.

Today we went to get prices on timber for a fence that we are going to build for Jeff and Linzi. They want a wooden fence and of course Will is in his element as he gets to dig holes and use power tools again. Sam thinks it's really cool as he will also get to help with the measuring, digging, ordering etc... I think we'll call it DT.

We went in to a town called Woolgoolga which is about 10 mins from Corindi and, after getting some prices, stopped in a cafe to have a snack, I had a coffee and the most gorgeous warm banana bread with maple syrup butter..mmmmmmm.... then we came home and Sam did his schooling. We have just finished Chemistry and he had a test on rocks and weathering in which he did pretty well and was achieving a level 7 (which is pretty good). So next week we start Physics (which looks pretty scary - not my strongest subject). Yesterday we watched Amelie for French, which was fun (until she started talking about counting Parisian orgasms at which point I wondered if it was a mistake to watch the film, but then, as Sam pointed out, it's ok because you can't see anyone's vaginas!!!!! I ask you!!!)

What else? We are having a roast on Sunday for a few of the neighbours which should be lovely (and hopefully not too stressful). We have also nearly been here for a month now and need to start thinking about heading to Perth (probably mid April) as the cost of flights are going up and up so we will try and book them over the next few days.

And that's about it for today - no cooking tonight - fish and chips for tea... hooray for food!!

Picture attached - Beautiful Piha sunset

Writers block...

Today I have a writers block, honestly, I don't know what to tell you, it's not like Central America where we were moving all the time from life threatening situation to life threatening situation, it just feels quite normal here, having a house.

I remember when we met our Japanese friend Jun (who by the way is safe in Japan at the moment) we met him in El Salvador and he said, 'the thing with travelling is that you are still you, still the same people, just in different homes' (actually I think he said it much more articulately than that but that's the gist of it). Well that's how it feels right now, like we are still the same people, living the same lives but just on the other side of the world, and possibly a bit wiser and more relaxed than when we were in England. In fact this feels like a place to assimilate what we have learned as we have traveled. I don't mean to sit down and analyse everything but just to let it settle.

This is probably the most relaxed we have all been since we set off and it's probably because for once we are not moving, and we don't have to move. We moved a lot in the first three months and although we slowed down for the second 3 months we were living in the van and in hindsight it was pretty cramped and living on campsites is hardly relaxing when you have been doing it day after day after day... so here we are, thanks to lovely friends we have a place to rest. Not only do we have a house but we also have lovely neighbours who we have had dinner with a couple of times and who we will be surfing with later today...like I said, it's home from home.

We are also starting to think about the return journey - I guess it's because we only have just over 4 months to go. This month has flown by (it's been the fastest month for me yet) and whilst it's brilliant that we still have quite a while left it's also exciting to think about getting back and seeing friends and family as well as re-building our lives when we get back and perhaps altering the bits that weren't so good and applying the lessons we have learned on our travels. People often ask if I would like to live in Oz or NZ now, but I wouldn't. It's really nice here and great to be in the sun and by the sea and to see all the amazing things we have seen but I miss England. I miss the dirty, grimy streets, the culture and the history. I miss the rainy days and the smell of spring, I miss the seasons and I miss my horse.

So there we go, I didn't have writers block after all! Picture attached of Sam digging a hole at Hot Water Beach in NZ.

Cookery and random people

It's brilliant to have a kitchen, after weeks, no... months, of living in the van and cooking on stoves which cut out half way through or don't heat up properly, and having only one pot to cook out of, it's a joy to be able to cook proper meals, from cookery books.

I'm creating culinary delights such as Sousaka (shepherds pie and mousaka combined) or Italian fusion delight (left over veg, with mozerella and some sort of mince type accompaniment). Dishes that take ages to prepare and I would never cook at home... so why now. We have narrowed it down to a few reasons:

1) we have use of a stunning kitchen here with great cookery utensils

2) we have use of a dishwasher, makes cooking all the more enjoyable

3) there is a pantry full of cookbooks

4) we have the time to spend preparing meals (rather than rushing home and throwing something together at the last minute)

It's all very lovely and homely. Scott is also enjoying the meals and I certainly don't mind cooking for him as he has taken over the lessons (woohoo) Sam finally has a proper teacher and the good news is that we haven't been doing a terrible job (in fact, I believe we have been doing quite well - and that's information from a proper deputy head!).

So today we had a random moment. Tired of watching surfing I found out that there is a riding school nearby. So we all jumped into the car and headed off up the road looking for the turn off. We turned off the highway and down a bumpy track, lined with tall silver trees, the track was red (the red mud that the aborigionies used to paint their faces). As we bumped along the track we passed various businesses, a nursery, a camp site but no trekking centre and eventually we reached the end of the road. As we started to turn around we noticed a 4 wheel drive which had been following us and the guy was motioning to us. We asked him if there was a trekking centre around and he told us that it had closed down but asked if we would like to see 'The most amazing part of Australia?' He opened some electric gates and so we followed him through. For about 5 minutes we wound our way up into a valley and eventually pulled up at the guys house. As he swayed out of his van we realised that he was perhaps a little drunk (the bottle of beer in his hand was a giveaway) anyway he invited us for a drink on his terrace.

Michael is about 60 and an old surfer. He has an amazing wooden house built at the top of a valley in about 120 acres of forest land. He has lived in the house for about 30 years... throwing open the doors he invited us to look around and take pictures. The house he proudly told us, was designed by himself having watched a Western on telly, he wanted a saloon type feel (and the massive wooden bar in the corner certainly created the right ambiance!) We sat on the terrace and drank our beer, overlooking the forest as Michael told us his surfing stories and hand fed his magpie named 'Baby!' As a true Aussie farmer his language was probably a bit bluer than Sam was used to and he quickly excused himself and went to play on his ipod. We stayed for about an hour and had a full tour of the house and a brief insight into his sexlife (or lack of it) seriously, don't ask!

Eventually we made our excuses and left, but as we drove away we all agreed that this is what travelling is all about, the random people that you meet. The wonderful, warm (if slightly inebriated) people who invite complete strangers into their homes and make them feel welcome. These are the people and the experiences that we will never forget and that make travelling worth while and as I have said many times before - for me this is the best part of travelling.

Delayed picture attached of us with Tom and Claire in NZ

David Attenborough eat your heart out

I'm sat here like David Attenborough, laying on the bed very still, whilst just outside the window, about 1 meter away, two Kangaroos are in the garden! They both know I am here, but don't mind so long as I don't make any sudden movements. One is so relaxed he has decided to have a little lay down and the other is watching a lorakeet who is sat on the fence behind. A lorakeet is a bird, like a parrot, all greens and reds and yellows, they are very noisy, sociable, cheeky birds.

Every so often the roo watching the fence will become alert and raise himself up like a meercat, long thin arms hanging loosely before him. The other is just grooming himself and scratching behind his ear with his big powerful hind legs. Their faces and ears are a bit like rabbits and I guess their bodies and colouring are a bit like deer. When they move slowly around, they place their front feet on the ground and then jump forward, like the final part of a sun salutation, they are masters of yoga! Unfortunately their tails are like huge rats tails (i think because they are so long). They also have huge black eyes with beautiful long eyelashes... now they are playing, i think they are both young, one swipes the other with his long arms and the other swats him away (I guess this is kangaroo boxing) and now they stand up on hind legs and bound away, jumping on powerful back legs, as if propelled by springs.

All is quiet in the house as the guys have gone surfing and I decided to stay at home, to go for a walk to the local beach and maybe read my book... peace, love and kangaroos!!

Oh god, literally peace, LOVE and kangaroos... they are back and the boy kangaroo has just jumped on the girl kangaroo and now I don't feel quite so David Attenborough but a bit more like sitting on the couch watching David Attenborough with parents... wow... kangaroos take ages to...ahem...mate... and interestingly the girl kangaroo looks really bored and is chewing grass...hmmm... infact she has just managed to kick him off... I think she has a headache!!!

Japan..

Firstly we hope that everyone's friends and family around Japan are ok... being in the area we really find out loads of information on the news etc about all the earthquakes, tsunamis and floods that are happening and it feels like there are an awful lot of them around at the moment. I'm not sure if this is because we are travelling, so more aware of the dangers and what is happening around us or if in fact there are more disasters happening at the moment.

What with the earthquake in Costa Rica, the earthquake in Christchurch and now the earthquake in Japan and the floods in Queensland it makes me feel like we are three little characters in a computer game, travelling innocently down the road as quakes happen before us, after us and all around us and yet fortunately we always seem to be stood on a solid bit of land (and long may this continue). It also makes me realise how volatile the world is and how lucky we are in the UK to not live with the threat of volcanic eruptions, quakes and tsunamis. Now we are in Australia we also deal with the creepy crawlies, the huntsmen, the red back spiders which are the size of your finger nail and can offer a nasty bite, the funnel webs, the brown snakes (if you see one you have to run) the red and black snakes (you also have to run, but not quite so fast) and the sharks. We also have a creepy spider outside the front door which has 4 legs showing and has spun a web with a big cross running through the middle, we looked it up and it's called the St George's cross spider... again it makes you appreciate safe little old England with it's harmless house spiders and little grass snakes!

But I guess that's what travelling's all about, testing your boundaries and facing your fears. It's what makes the adventure fun and exciting (and let's face it, it's way more exciting than sitting at a desk for 8 hours a day). But it also makes you appreciate how vulnerable we are to the earth and it's mood swings and puts a bit of perspective on things.

Picture attached of the little house we stayed at in Newcastle

The lesson of the day...

Yesterday Jeff and Linzi's friend Scott came to join us at the house in Corindi. He is also travelling for a year and is a deputy head from Jersey who has spent the last few months travelling in Bali.

Of course news of his arrival sparked my usual maternal ferocity - I really do have a problem, when someone else that I don't know is coming to share our space (or we are going to share their space). I have visions of drunken parties followed by copious amounts of swearing and vomiting, you know, worst case scenario kind of stuff and very extreme (and in reality pretty unlikely behavior in a deputy head).

So when Scott arrived I crouched before Sam emitting a low growl, teeth bared, ready to pounce should he make a sudden lunge at Sam and try and eat him for dinner... and then, about 20 seconds later, I realised that he was not in fact a child eating predator but just a jolly nice northern fellow and so offered him a cup of tea instead.

And so a nice evening followed. I cooked a vegetable Thai fusion curry (which is basically a Thai curry gone wrong, but tasted quite nice in the end). Scott being a good northerner is great because it basically means that he, like us, will eat pretty much anything. We ate food, drank beer/wine and made Scott talk shop all night as we discussed the benefits/hardships of home schooling and moaned to him about the UK schooling system. We rambled on about how brilliant Sam is and poor Scott probably sat thinking, 'Oh yes I see thousands of poor deluded parents like you, if only knew what he was really like!' But to be fair he didn't voice any such thoughts and the evening ended with us (Me, Will and Scott) prancing around the front room learning how to do a memory test!!!

So there we are, it all worked out well in the end and the lesson is that sometimes it's quite nice to try and see the positive in people rather than assuming that everyone is a crazed party animal who will have Sam smoking crack by the end of the night. I also accept that I will probably always feel a bit this way when we are sharing our space with someone that I don't know - but will try and remember the important lesson... that it only takes about 20 seconds before I invariably really like them and want to make them a cup of tea and give them a hug.

By the way that's Will on the wave above.

Simplicity is the beauty of life...

Today we had a great day, we got up to blue skies and went to the beach with the surfboards. We also borrowed Linzi's longboard. We headed to a beach about 10 mins away and had a super fun morning surfing the little waves, yes even me!! Then, as usual hunger got the better of us and so we headed to a little town nearby for lunch. There were a few shops in the village and one was a new age shop which was soon to close down and was filled with crystals and stones, by the desk were a stack of little cards with words of wisdom to take away and I picked one that said 'Simplicity is the beauty of life'.

I think this is a really nice sentiment, sometimes it's easy to over complicate life by thinking too much about what might happen and trying to put things in place to stop those potentially awful things from happening when in reality they probably wouldn't have happened in the first place... so I liked this little card - just keep things simple! It reminds me of something Sam said when we couldn't get into the house the other day - me and Will started to discuss the options and stress a bit about what we would do next when Small Swami Sam piped up with, ' hey don't worry guys, lets look on the positive side, we have a van to sleep in, we can stay here for the night and most importantly we have each other.' Well that shut us up and we shamefacedly had to acknowledge that he was right and stopped our gloomy predictions.

When we set off it was really difficult to know how to approach home schooling, unlike many countries, the UK doesn't insist you do a correspondence course, they just look at you with a slightly confused expression and say in a slightly sarcastic voice 'Ok then, off you go on your holiday, but don't expect any help from us!' So we set off somewhat in the dark, armed only with a little advice from the headmaster of the private school and a rucksack full of text books and revision guides.

At first I wondered how this was going to work, how long should we study for? What subjects should we study? What time of day do we study? and on and on and on... and then I remembered...'Simplicity is the beauty of life' and so we just let things happen organically, we began to look at one subject a day and did this without a clock so that we weren't putting time restraints on ourselves but just working until we either a) finished the topic or b) felt that Sam or us were getting too tired to continue. This means that we usually work for between 1 and 1/2 to 2 hours every day and this seems like a sufficient amount of time to get a grasp of the topic/section we are looking at. Sam also reads for 1/2 hr every night and occasionally updates his blog (www.thebiggesttripever.blogspot.com). He also unwittingly learns history and geography as we travel around the world, as well as planning skills and confidence which are by products of the travel, and of course he is fitter than he has ever been due to the walking, skating, surfing, paddling and lack of rubbish foods and chocolate.

Since we have been home schooling a few remarkable things have happened naturally, Sam has started to enjoy reading the books and no longer sees it as a chore and occasionally he will pick up a pencil and start to draw just for the fun of it, these are things that he would never have done back home, he has also started to ask literally thousands of questions... now it could be that he always asked these questions and we just never had the time to answer them but now they stream from him every day, infact it's quite difficult to shut him up which is why it's so nice to have separate rooms because at least we are getting a bit of peace on an evening once he has gone to bed.

So to all those who are thinking of travelling with kids but have no idea how to approach the schooling, don't worry, don't stress, do your research and then set off and let your own child dictate the nature of the learning process (with a few clearly defined boundaries) and I think you will find a healthy, happy learning environment. I wouldn't say that Sam relishes the lessons but he certainly doesn't moan about them and is engaged in the learning, and that's good enough. Of course the proof of the pudding will be when we get back and he hopefully slots seamlessly back into the education system but no point over complicating things and worrying about that until we get there.

Picture of Sam and his friend Will paddling out on the canoe with fishing rods to catch some food for the BBQ!

Corindi

We are now in Jeff and Linzi’s house in Australia having managed to track down the keys at the post office. Someone must definitely be smiling down on us as we have managed to find ourselves in a beautiful house complete with a pantry filled with cookery books, a huge flat screen TV showing endless surf competitions, a room for yoga, skateboards and a family of kangaroos that live in the garden. No kidding, they actually pretty much live in the garden. This morning me and Sam walked to the shop and came across three kangaroos (1 big, 2 small) stood across the path. We probably got about 2 meters from them when I decided that perhaps we should take the long route to the shops, they looked friendly enough... but then so does a bull before it charges you!

We walked (well Sam skated) the long way round and came across a family walking down the road ‘ Excuse me’ I said ‘Could I ask you a very English question? Is it safe to walk past a kangaroo which is stood 2 meters from you on the path?’ . The response, should you ever need it, is that you can walk past kangaroos which are pretty close to you, but be aware that they could kick you if they feel like it... A bit like the charging bull I guess. Anyway it was brilliant to see the kangaroos up close, they are such funny looking creatures, with their enormous feet and it’s very odd to see them bounding off down the road. They also have the same eyes as Archie!!

After we moved into the house we made a roast which as you can imagine we were all very much looking forward to and then, fat and happy, we lay on the sofas together and watched a film. At about 11:30 we went to our separate rooms to sleep.

When we moved in the neighbour Mark informed us that the guy who was here before us had come in to find a red and black snake in the bedroom (i assume this one is poisonous as all the Aussie creatures either, bite, sting or inflict some other godawful wound upon you) so we had checked the house for spiders and snakes already, but when you’re about to go to sleep suddenly images of huge spiders and snakes take up every corner of your mind and so it wasn’t long before we found Sam climbing into bed with us, and really who could blame him. So we all spent the night huddled up together (again). However when we woke up this morning there were no spiders or snakes so I think Sam will sleep in his own room tonight.

Speaking of waking up, the dawn chorus here is very bizarre. In England beautiful little sparrows wake you up singing, tweety tweety tweet tweet, in a relaxing Mary Poppins style. In Australia the dawn chorus sounds like someone raking their nails across an out of tune violin, the birds here don’t so much tweet as screech. It’s not the most relaxing alarm call that’s for sure.

Today we have done nothing, other than the walk and seeing the kangaroos which I admit is pretty cool we haven’t done a thing. It’s now 1:30 in the afternoon and Will hasn’t even left the house. This is because it is so nice to be able to stretch out on sofas and watch telly, cook bacon butties on a real hob and drink filter coffee. I am sat in a separate room to the boys. Sat on a real bed. Honestly it’s luxury. It’s amazing how little you need to make you happy when you have been living in the van – although I have to say that I did miss the van for a fleeting moment when we moved into the house and found it funny that we were all huddled together on the sofa, or all squashed into the same bed. I guess it takes a while to get used to having space again.

So I think this is a bit rambling but hopefully you get the picture that we are very happy to be in this house and feel very lucky to be here and Jeff and Linzi if you are reading this, thank you so much for lending the house to us, we really do appreciate it.

Oh the times they are a changing.....

Oooooh it's not very nice here at the moment because there is rain, rain and more rain and when you're all squished into a van as we all know things get a little fraught (still at least we aren't in the small NZ van).

We arrived in Corindi yesterday so we could stay in the house which our friends had kindly offered us. In true travelling style things were not however that simple. We went to the neighbours house to pick up the keys but unfortunately they weren't there so we hung around Corindi for a while waiting for them to come home. (Corindi would be gorgeous in the sun and it was quite nice in the rain - but there were 4 kangaroos all sat in the local square which was super cool and made us feel like we were truly in Oz).

About 6:30 we went back to try the neighbours and thank the lord, they were there... but they told us that the guy who had stayed before us had not left the key!!! (Our Australian plans were due to change yet again) so we drove to the local campsite, hooked up to the power, had a lovely Tereyaki stir fry and went to bed to read our books and wait for the next day to arrive to formulate a new plan... so here we are right now, cooking bacon butties in the van and still trying to formulate a plan... it's like the ending of neighbours, what will happen next? Will we stay in Corindi and get into the house? Will we head up the coast to Byron and stay in the rain? Will we go down the coast and avoid the rain... tune in next time to see what happens in the adventures of Ruth, Will and Sam!!!

NZ V Oz

Before going to NZ I assumed that it would not be to dissimilar to Australia – how wrong I was, comparing the two is a bit like comparing England to Italy – thinking they would be similar just because they are close to each other. Here are the main differences that I have seen so far. Firstly NZ is very small and has a tiny population (1/3 of all NZ live in and around Aukland and that is the same amount of people as live in Bristol, roughly). As a result you can drive for miles without hitting a town and when you do it’s invariably pretty small. In Australia you drive along the coastal road and come across small town after small town, with lots of houses and people. The roads themselves are also very different. Australia has the Pacific Highway, a straight motorway which leads up the coast and has off shoots to various white sandy beaches. In New Zealand the roads are windy, actually really really windy and also run along the coast, scattered with mainly black sand beaches.

In New Zealand we didn’t see any homeless people, no litter and very few police cars. The small population on an isolated island leads to a great deal of intimacy and trust between the people and as a result I guess they are better able to care for each other and the environment. Australia seems equally as proud of it’s environment but it’s probably harder to police with a larger population. Then of course there’s the wildlife. I believe that NZ had no mammals originally and the mammals that live there now have been introduced over the years. As a result there are nice animals like cows and sheep and dogs and cats... Australia however has its own animals and all of them seem to be bloody deadly, spiders, snakes, sharks, etc... I had a shower yesterday with a small cockroach climbing up my leg and didn't scream, just flicked it off!!

We spent the last couple of days in Port Maquarie, a small town by the sea and finally got used to our new van. The van is actually ok, it's bigger than the other one and we can stand up in it and of course it has the fridge and cooker etc which is luxury. The only problem is that because it's a 'budget' van it's a bit grubby. The catches on things are broken and the table doesn't connect peoperly, which are things that you can live with (but would rather not). But what I don't understand is why they don't clean the van!! The van has had a superficial wipe over but once you start opening the cupboards you realise they are a bit sticky and the whole thing is a bit greasy yeugh!! But we have armed ourselves with cleaning fluid and wipes, bought new pillows and sheets and it all feels a bit cleaner now.

We are now in Coughs Harbour and may head up to Jeff and Linzi's tomorrow, I say may because in true 'us' travelling style we forgot to get the address of the house oops...

A Sam update now, he has had his hair cut which is nice because you can actually see his eyes, he got stung by a wasp a few days ago, which has now gone down and is fine and he did his French schooling in McDonalds today. He actually did really well and his French is coming on a treat (I think!!)

So that's all for now, hi to you all and lots of love

Back on the road

Well we have now left the beautiful house on the lake and are making our way North up the Pacific Highway towards Corinidi. Our friends in Newcastle gave us some nice spots to stop at on the way and last night we spent our first night sleeping in the van at Seal Rocks.

The campsite is just across the road from a gorgeous beach with lovely blue ocean and white sand, idyllic. We set up the beds in the van which looked a bit manky but actually once they were up were pretty comfy, we had a decent nights sleep apart from the whiring of the fridge every 5 mins as it recharged it's battery.

This morning we got up and Sam and Will went for a surf on a secluded beach called Treachery!! All the surf spots around here have scary sounding names!! But the beach was lovely, not a soul on it and the only thing around were a pod of dolphins surfing the waves close to where Sammy was surfing.

There is no internet access in Australia (a bit like NZ) so it looks like we will be having a few Mcdonalds as we take advantage of the free wi-fi (that's where we are now)... so onwards and upwards - Can't believe it's March already, only 5 months to go!!