Pulling wallabies out of traps proved to be a bit of a challenge. Surprisingly they don't like being in the traps and then getting dragged out by their tail and shoved into a bag head first isn't popular either. As a result everyone ended up with a few (and in some case - a lot of) scratches and for the boys the inability to produce children. All in a night's work I say!! Adam spent a lot of time trapping and I spent a lot of time releasing the little guys into various places at Scotia. The experiences we had are some of the best of our lives and once in a lifetime. We were hands on all the time and got to handle lots of the animals. The best part was releasing them. They emerge out of the bag like pouch babies and are happy to sit there while you pull their little front paws out to encourage them to venture out into their new world. Some needed more encouragement than others and some didn't make it which was a little heart breaking. Generally though we had a very high success rate. We also got to help with joeys that had been kicked out of the pouch as well as helping to put them back in. I also had the pleasure of sexing and measuring the pouch young in the lab which was amazing. On more than one occasion Adam and I had little joeys stuffed down our jumpers to keep them warm. It was an exhausting four nights and some tempers ran high at various times but apart from that it was fantastic. Plenty of personality clashes and some interesting stories to tell. . . . for another time perhaps. Anyway, we have attached some photos of our four nights - we hope they're not too boring.

Our time at Scotia is drawing to a close and we are looking at leaving on the 1st of November - and it will be with heavy hearts because we have really enjoyed our time here. We still have some fencing and so forth to do so we are going to be busy until the day we drive out of here. We are looking forward to a few days in Broken Hill with Peta, Brett and Annie which will be awesome.

Love to everyone

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We feel like we have been around the world a couple of times or maybe more after leaving Melbourne. We spent a lovely three days with Viv and her girls, Jessica and Olivia. It was an action packed few days one of which we had the girls for the whole day. Exhausting affair even with Olivia napping twice and Jessica almost able to amuse herself with her favourite toy (a trampoline spring in an ice-cream container called Captain Hook). Anyway, we had a lovely time chatting and catching up and marveling at how much the girls had grown.

After Puckapunyal it was off to Bec and Aly's new pad for the Grand Final. We stayed for six days re-acquainting ourselves with Canberra and more importantly the new Canberra Centre - awesome, love a big shopping centre. We had a great time hanging out with Bec and Aly and the cats. We even headed to RMC for old times sake.

After Canberra we had a night in Wagga with Peta and Bwett. We had a fantastic dinner avec magheuritas at Montezumas and then we 'got ourselves a convoy' to the Scotia turn off for the next day. After having a good chat to Peta and Bwett about our impending employment and the possibility of using scary power tools we felt much better about the job in general.

Our arrival at Scotia was hassle free as we set up our relatively luxurious accommodation. We have a whole corner of one of the buildings complete with massive kitchen / living area, bedroom, bathroom, sunroom and verandah. Fantastic!! Our first few days we spent cruising around with Tony who has worked here for a couple of years. We learnt a lot and realised that there were plenty of fences, compounds and gates and that we would get lost consistently over the next two days. The parts of Scotia that we are working in are called stage one and stage two. Stage one and two have been declared free of feral animals which was an enormous job. In these areas there are a number of endangered species being managed for release or for insurance. It is pretty cool. On our first few days here we went out with the ecologist and helped with bagging, checking and releasing woylies (a cute little hopping mammal) into stage two. We have also bee entrusted with feeding the bilbys and the bridled nailtail wallabies. The wallabies all wait around for feed time and they are just lovely. We have taken some good snaps of these little guys. Our main job over the last four days has been building pens for the wallabies - a few of them are getting relocated and the pens are for any potentially sick ones that get trapped. Hopefully they won't have to use our work of art at all!! The pens are almost finished but there has been dramas and blood, sweat and tears already. Adam did bang in a star picket upside down which is quite a big effort. Ian, who is sort of supervising us, really only comes up to laugh which is fine by us!

We did manage to get a trip into Mildura - or the Big Smoke as we now call it - to pick up a vehicle and some other stuff. Very exciting trip which also included ten minutes in Coles for a power shop.

So we have been pretty busy here working up to ten hours a day. At least we won't get bored! We also have four days off starting tomorrow which we will hopefully spend with Peta and Brett in Broken Hill. We will most definitely need a resupply of interesting food. The day our cashews ran out was a sad day indeed!!!!

Anyway, that's all from us for now. We are both well and still loving it up here!!

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It was ace.

It began the day we left Marrakech, we had read that you can walk out of the Medina and catch a local bus to Imlil, in the mountains. By all accounts it was going to take about 20 mins to walk to the bus terminal and cost very little to catch the bus. On the way we noticed a guy walking in front of us with a pack on and we decided that he must know where he is going so we followed him. After about half an hour we caught up to him at a cross road and we chatted, he also thought that it would take 20 mins and having now been walking for more than 30 we decided that he didn't know where he was going afterall and that we had better start paying attention. His name was Frank.

We kept walking for another half hour or so to eventually find the station. Where we were immediately offered the kind assistance of a 6ft tall 100 kg local guy with an attitude. He ever so nicely helped us load our bags onto the roof of a waiting bus and negotiated a price with the driver.

We got on and took our seats and waited for our immediate departure. Which didn't happen. Our new best friend (Not Frank the other guy) got on the bus as started demanding a tip for baggage handling and a commission for the sale of the bus ticket. This turned into a heated exchange where we were getting yelled at and stood over by this huge guy while everyone else on the bus looked on with amusement. Initially we stood our ground and decided that this just would not do. We are Australian and not only do we not tip we hate getting ripped off!

Earlier we had agreed to living life by a series of principles and one of them is to not give money to arseholes any more than once a day and this guy was low on the list that day, so we were prepared to stand fast.

We didn't though, fear of violence and a respectful sense of self preservation resulted in us paying our rather inflated (Ten times the price) fare. Poor Frank, who witnessed these exchanges quietly in the back must have been wondering what he had got himself into, it was his second day in Morocco.

We arrived at Imlil and set about doing the first three essential tasks:

1. Find somewhere to sleep
2. Research a walk up the hill (Mt Toubkal - second highest in Africa)
3. Find Frank another friend (By this time we had a reasonable appreciation of our own time and how much he detracted from it).

All of which we had done by the end of the night.

So the next day we started our walk up the hill.

Our loyal readers may remember that earlier on this year we had attempted another climb with a similar lack of preparation in Greece with Josh and Jess.

Well this one was a little bigger but we did take longer to do it. We were a little sceptical of the advice given by a well known (LP) guide book after a bad experience in Turkey with the Lycian Way maps, so we did talk with the Mountain guide association before the climb. It was incredible.

En route to the refuge at Base Camp

Base camp.
While it is possible to do this climb in one day - some people actually run up from Imlil and back in a day - our memories of the trip with Joss and Jess made us a little more cautious - we didn't want to miss out on the summit this time. And besides what an awesome place to camp and acclimatise to the altitude.

The next day we got up early and made our way up towards the summit.

The last push to the summit was a real challenge, altitude has a sly way of creeping up on you and pushing all of the air out of your lungs, so it was pretty slow going, but the views from the top were indescribable.

So, after a short lunch break of a couple of Stewart Diver chocolate bars, we headed on back down... and down... and down...

We eventually collapsed into a really nice hotel in the heart of the Imlil Valley (some 800 m short of where we wanted to get to though) had by far the best Tagine meal ever and passed out.

And that pretty much rounded off our mad month in Morocco. We headed back into Marrakech and patiently outlasted a couple of cases of Berber Belly and started our journey home.

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Watersports aside though this town is full of appeal. We spent a few days camped here before pushing inland and back to Marrakech.

The last night camp was at a roadside hotel that was probably 50 years past it's hey day. But we camped in the herb garden and ate on the roof. An incredible backdrop of the Atlas mountains made even more spectacular by the lunar eclipse that happened right before our eyes just after sunset. It was incredible.

Arriving back in Marrakech we all felt that we had really seen a good part of the country, it is a big country and while it is possible to travel completely by public transport or tours, hiring a car was by far the best way to go.

We had a few days in Marrakech with our Dutch friends before bidding them a fond farewell. Not sure when we would all be in the same country again but surer again that we would be.

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The town itself was great but we were on a surf trip so we headed off in search of a beach. We found an incredible beach about 10 km North of town, that was actually used in a well known Pro Surfing tour and decided to camp. This beach is well known by the locals as a free camping site, as such there was very little impact of tourism.

It was Mariannes birthday so we befriended some local guys and had a party.

Our generous host at the beach invited us home to meet the family and eat lunch. It was awesome.

Now we have noticed something about the impact of tourism that deserves comment. Most new age hippy wanna be backpackers are in search of an authentic off the beaten track adventure, this means they are predisposed to poo poo the idea of tourism. I can understand that, if you've been to the Gold Coast in Australia you can see what tourism can do to a place, but... there are some positive effects too. Specifically I am referring to environmental advocacy. I don't want to spoil the images of this awesome place, but the lack of planning for effective waste disposal leaves a bad taste (and smell).

Among other things thrown into the water at high tide are some heavy metals.

This once secret place is still used by big name surfing tours and hopefully, in the future the increase of tourists will improve the environmental policies in the area.

Ok. I am off my soap box now, it is folded up under the bed for another day....

Now back to the story...

After Safi we headed further South to the capital of wind sports in North Western Africa.

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Then we were on our way to Casablanca

When Humphrey Bogart was here in the classic film Casablanca, everything was black and white and filled with Middle Eastern African scenes of life. Nothing has changed, except of course for a really, really big Mosque. Casablanca is

We didn't stay long at Casablanca though, having smelt the sea air and felt the sea breeze we headed South along the coast in search of the perfect wave and some summer tans.

We expected a coastal drive following the path of wayward surfers and windsurfers cutting their way down an under developed surfcoast towards Western Africa. Well it was windy and there was some surf. but it was also well and truly discovered. It got better the further South we went though.

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The drive was amazing and reminded Meaghan and I of home quite a lot.
We stayed a night in Midelt, at a tourist centre with a pool and beer - very very expensive beer. But it was worth it.

Then on to Fez, a city built around a huge maze of souks.

Fez was amazing and lived up to our expectations. The city is old and navigation through the souks is a real challenge but well worth the hours spent trying to find your way back to your hotel. There are many tours available to help you navigate through the important sights - most of which are inside the walled Medina. You can do it yourself though, with some good shoes and a but of courage...

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After Ait Ben Hadou we continued through the heat and sand into the Erg Chebbi desert. This patch of sand 160 km long and 40 km wide escaped the Sahara proper and is making it's way West to the coast. It is hot and very very sandy.

We even had a sandstorm.

We stayed at a Riad and camped in tents (Brave but silly in the heat). The next morning we got up early and sat on a dune in the Saharan sand and caught one of the most amazing sites we have ever seen on camera sunrise and a camel caravan in the Sahara.

This is one of the best highlights of all our travels.

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After a quick familiarisation session navigating our way out of the city, we were soon on the road headed South to a great spot called Ait Ben Hadou the site made famous by Lawrence of Arabia, Gladiator and other big budget films. On the way we crossed the High Atlas mountains - and they were... really high.

We stayed a night in both the Dades Valley and the Todra Gorge, both within easy reach if you have a car and well worth the visit.

Camping proved to be really cheap in Morocco and we felt safe in most of the places we stayed.

We camped up on the roof. It was great, we watched the sunset over the desert and really started feeling that we were in the heart of the country and at the beginning of a true adventure.

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Djma El Fnaa is the main square in Marrakech and it may yet prove to be impossible for me to properly describe it here.

If you can imagine a large open square filled with the hustle and bustle of market sellers, smoke rising from BBQ stalls, swirling around the crowd as cars and motorbikes part the throng like Moses and the sea. It really feels old world and so full of senses that it it feels like a punch in the face. Only, in the nose, ears, eyes and skin as well. It is overpowering and it really does give the immediate impression that it will consume you without a thought.

Now that all probably sounds a little trite and wanna be poetic, but let me tell you straight – we had never seen anything like it and it excited us and scared the shit out of us at the same time. It was incredible.

We stayed at a Riad, just off the square and settled into getting to know the area immediately surrounding the main square and getting ready to meet Louwrens and Marianne.

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Every street corner we had delightful people offering us assistance in this endeavour. “My brother owns the best hotel “Special price for you” Hello Aussie you want a good room” and our favourite “I'm not a guide”.

Eventually we found a great room with a balcony overlooking a square in one of the souk areas of old Tangier. We spend (or lost) 3 days in Tangiers before catching the overnight train down to Marrakech to meet our good friends Louwrens and Marianne from Holland...

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The ferry trip to Tangier proved to be somewhat of a challenge. We had bought a ferry ticket from a guy in a booth at the port town. Only to discover that by the time we arrived at the ferry terminal (about a 5 minute walk) that the ferry was full and we would have to wait another 2 hours for the next one. So we waited... and waited... eventually our superfast ferry arrived and we boarded.

I reckon it must have taken about 30 minutes, just as we drew alongside the Rock of Gibralter, and things started to go bad. The port rests in a sheltered bay and as soon as we hit the swell outside thej bay, things started to change. Initially, the hundreds of kids on board got a little restless. The percentage of the population that are under the age of 15, in many developing countries is high, in Morocco it is really high. So we had kids running around shouting, spilling food and drinks and generally being pains in the but for about half an hour – which wouldn't have been a problem if

1.Our superfast ferry was superfast
2.They had continues to be peppy and up beat

Instead, they turned various shades of blue/green and crashed into nausea and vomiting, causing their parents to do the same. Within another hour we were on the set of some low budget hollywood sicko film about disease epidemics. It was truly gruesome.

Now, the distance between Spain and Morocco is small and superfast ferries can cover it in about 2 hours. I have told you that it took half an hour to leave the harbour, half an hour of yelling and screaming, and one more hour of chuck fest 2008. Here is where the story gets really fun.

We sat on the ferry for another 3 hours in rolling swell dry retching our way to the port of Tangier.
Superfast my arse!!

As we were leaving the ship of sick, we overheard a rather distressed woman concerned about the theft of her passport whilst on board – checking and rechecking our passports as we left the ferry, we braced ourselves for the shock of Tangier.

Tangiers from the beach

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Arriving in Malaga we started sweating and didn't stop for 3 days. Malaga is in Southern Spain and if not for anything else it should be known for its heat and its bullring. The ring is right in town, edged between the lookout hill (With an ace castle on it) and the beach. We watched the last stages of the Tour De France (Though proving himself yet again to be one of the gutsiest performers in the ride, Cadel Evans again was left wanting just a little more from the race, coming in Second this time).

After a couple of days resting in Malaga we caught a bus down to the southern tip of Spain, a place called Aljeceras.
Here we caught the "Super fast ferry" to Morocco - the Kingdom of our dreams.. and the home of Louwrens of Arabia...

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First stop on our trans Grecian odessy was a small Island off the coast of Turkey called Samos.

Samos was ok as far as Greek Islands go, but, having tasted the unspoiled nature of Samothraki, on the Northern Turkish border, it proved a little disappointing. So we stayed a night in a cheap (50 Euro – cheap hey?) and decided to make tracks. The beach was ok – rocky bottom so the water was crystal clear.

Samos did have a couple of small towns that really have retain some of the old world charm.

Beach at Samos

Before leaving Samos we were advised (By the guy who arranged our Cheap (50 Euro) hotel that we could indeed travel Samos – Mikonos – Naxos, in one day. This proved to be almost right... almost – except for the bit about being able to get to Naxos from Mikonos on the same day.

We arrived in Mikonos at “the new port” and were immediately advised that the ferry to Naxos leaves from the “Old port”... some 30 mins walk away. Having only 10 minutes to get there we set off at a trot. About 9 and a half minutes after we left the new port area, we turned to see a large super fast ferry leaving... it turns out, that it was headed to Naxos and we had in fact missed it... by minutes and about half a km.

So we headed into Mikonos town – which although being accurately described as beautiful, scenic, picturesque – had a serious lack of Ethnic Charm. It seems that every inch of Mikonos township has been bought, rented, traded or otherwise owner occupied by England... with more money than manners.

Naxos, however, was a real treat. We quickly left the main port area and found a campsite 200m walk from the beach – and when I say beach (Australians) I actually mean beach – we found one... a real one. Naxos was a compromise between the unspoilt nature of Samothraki and the heart throbbing, made up, heavily accented, new money Mikonos. And it was affordable. We camped for 13 Euro a day and spent most of our time on the beach. We did have a small run in with the guy that rented us 2 bikes which turned out to be somewhat less than mechanically sound, but overall Naxos gets the big thumbs up!

Athens

Following our time on Naxos we headed up to Athens for the last few days in Greece.
Athens is amazing. It has a bit of a Melbourne feel to it and is in no way as intimidating as we were expecting. It is quite possible to walk around the major sites in a couple of days.

Our last hours in Greece were spent at Athens airport – we had decided to get to the airport early to avoid the need to pay for the final night accommodation. This proved to be quite an adventure. We set up camp pretty much immediately by rolling out our mattresses and getting into our sleeping bags – this takes us about 30 seconds. Shortly afterwards, we noticed that there was a growing number of travel buddies starting to do the same thing. Not really thinking anything of it, we got some quick ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZs. At about 5 am we were woken up by a rude security manager telling everyone that they were not allowed to sleep and that they were to get up immediately. Looking around we had started a sleep in that John and Yoko would have appreciated. The upstairs area that we had found now looked like a refugee camp, with travellers from all over the world rugged up like homeless people waiting for the soup kitchen. Appreciating the early wake up call we packed up our gear (30seconds) and headed off to check in.

The flight from Athens was uneventful and soon we were in Malaga.

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After Fetıye we went to Selcuk to vısıt the Efes Ruıns. It was named after our favourıte beer ın Turkey (could have been the other way round actually!) so ıt seemed approprıate. It was my second vısıt and ıt was every bıt as ımpressıve as the fırst tıme I vısıted. After two nıghts ın Selcuk we headed to Kuşadası to stay a nıght and catch the ferry to Greece. It ıs a very tourısty town but there ıs a great campıng ground ın the centre of town whıch ıs cheap and has a pool. We are leavıng tomorrow to head to Samos.

Efes

Kusadasi

Just found out that Cadel Evans ıs wearıng the yellow jersey - awesome, wısh we were there to see ıt!!

We are comıng home at the end of August after a Moroccan epıc wıth our Dutch frıends Marıanne and Louwrens. We can't waıt to catch up wıth them.

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The next part of the journey was the begınnıng of our Lycıan Way adventure and ındısputably the hıghlıght of our travels ın Turkey. The Lycıan Way ıs a 500km walkıng route ın southern Turkey basıcally along the coast from Antalya to Fetıye. We dıdn't have enough tıme to walk all of ıt but we managed to put together eıght good days trekkıng. We bought the only guıde book readıly avaılable whıch proved to be barely adequate but better than nothıng. It was wrıtten by an Englısh lady who was the drıvıng force behınd waymarkıng the traıl and gettıng ıt recognısed around the world. Her traıl notes read lıke a whımsıcal stroll through hıstory mıssıng out vıtal pıeces of ınformatıon such as a map scale, dıstances and relıable water sources - really awesome when you are walkıng ın the mıddle of Summer. The worst part about ıt all was that Lonely Planet endorsed her as a trekkıng specıalıst. . . shame on you Lonely Planet!!! Kate Clow, the trekkıng specıalıst, saıd thıngs lıke 'the cıcadas wıll herald your arrıval to thıs ruın' or 'the wet grass wıll sparkle ın the mornıng sunlıght'. I dıdn't see any wet grass and there was no heraldıng - ıt was just bloody hot.

All of thıs asıde we saw the Olympos ruıns whıch were spectacular, we vısıted the mythıcal chımaera whıch ıs natural flames comıng out of rocks, we swam on deserted beaches, we were hosted for tea and watermelon by generous locals and we would go hours upon hours wıthout seeıng a sıngle soul. Some of the towns we walked ınto were lovely. We even dıd a sea kayakıng tour over a sunken cıty and met some really cool cats. Every tıme we stopped we would say 'What does Kate have to say about thıs place?' and then we would spend the next ten mınutes pıssıng ourselves laughıng about ıt. We saw so many ruıns and Lycıan tombs ın the mıddle of nowhere. It truly was fantastıc.

Because we dıdn't do the traıl end to end we had to catch buses, hıtch and get lıfts ın tractors to get to the begınnıng of each of our walks. It was hılarıous and frustratıng and added much tıme and kms to our already bıg day of walkıng. On one partıcular day, we caught a mınıbus to Kumluca and got dropped off at the Bus Statıon. We we tryıng to head west but were thrown on the wrong bus even after questıons of clarıfıcatıon by us because the sıgn on the bus saıd ıt was goıng the wrong way. We were promptly drıven fıve kms out of town ın the wrong dırectıon when we stopped the drıver. He just left us there on the sıde of the road. Ladıes and gents, I pulled my fırst fınger at the bus drıver as he drove off and ıt felt quıte lıberatıng. That was not the last fınger I pulled on thıs part of the trıp! Luckıly a rubbısh truck pulled up and drove us back ınto town. As we were headıng towards the bus statıon I poınted ıt out, he nodded and just kept on drıvıng. He dropped us off at a random ıntersectıon where we caught a random mınıbus to our destınatıon. All very amusıng.

Our last day was a hılly up and down 15km ınto Ovacık. It was a lıttle punıshıng but we had plenty of water. We fınıshed the trek ın a lıttle market replenıshıng our bodıes wıth food and drınk lıke real athletes - Fanta and Cheese Supreme Dorıtos - nothıng lıke ıt, don't be surprısed ıf you see the Aussıe Olympıc team and Cadel Evans doıng the same. After the beautıful serenıty (how's the serenıty?) of trekkıng, Ovacık was an assault on the senses. It was full of Englısh tourısts, Englısh pubs and Englısh prıces to boot. We spent fıve mınutes drıvıng past on our way to Fetıye glad that we dıdn't stop. Fetıye was quıte a nıce harbour cıty and ıt felt real. There was plenty of tourıst actıon but cheap accommodatıon and Turkısh fare was easy to fınd.

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Attaturks Tomb

We left the natıon's capıtal after one nıght and headed to Goreme whıch ıs ın the heart of Cappadocıa. Goreme proved to be an absolute gem complete wıth good accommodatıon and beers on the terrace wıth great vıews. The landscape ın Cappadocıa ıs very strange. I can't begın to explaın ıt - check out the photos ın the album ıf we ever post them!! We decıded over beers that we would rent mountaın bıkes the next day and do some of our own explorıng. After some hassle wıth the bıkes we headed up an unnecessary hıll (thıs one was courtesy of Adam's mısplaced confıdence ın path fındıng), rode back down the unnecessary hıll (much more fun the other way) and then headed towards Rose Valley. After about fıve mınutes off the maın road we found ourselves amongst the beautıful faıry chımneys and aprıcot orchards all on our own. It was breathtakıng. The mountaın bıkıng was a lıttle challengıng (especıally ıf you rıde lıke me) but ıt was great fun. We vısıted lıttle cave churches, got run off the road by a donkey and cart, vısıted the Open Aır Museum and got a lıttle sunburnt and extremely dusty. As ıt goes wıth cheap rentals, the bıke seats were completely punıshıng but the day was worth every flınch and grımace!! Our day really fınıshed wıth more beers on the terrace and dıscussıon on our pendıng adventures the next day. We decıded that the two wheeled adventures must contınue but wıth a motor thıs tıme. We wanted to do the ever popular Green Tour but we decıded to do ıt on lıttle whıte Yamaha scooters.

The scarıest thıng I dıd all day was tell the guy I had rıdden before and then rıde off from the shop - I had a perfect take off thank god. After a few lappıes of town we headed out of town on what turned out to be an absolute epıc. My speedo dıdn't work, the fuel gauge was broken, the paıntwork was sratched up and I could barely go faster than one of those gerıatrıc scooter wıth a flag on the back . . . but I was stıll the coolest kıd on the block!! We had a great day of rıdıng - we saw amazıng scenery, an underground cıty, plenty of open spaces. Due to maps wıthout scales though we ended up travellıng about 230km on our lıttle whıte flashes. Nothıng quıte lıke the wınd ın your helmet!!

Around Goreme

The next day we headed to Malatya so we could vısıt Mt Nemrut Dagı. It has some beautıful, eery statues and a false peak of rocks. Very strange ındeed!! Due to tıme constraınts we ended up takıng a tour. We met some lıke mınded antıpodeans and had a great tıme watchıng the sun set, the sun rıse and makıng fun of the prıson hotel we were stayıng ın. After the trıp we thought that a nıce relaxıng traın trıp to Adana mıght be ın order. Twenty twenty hındsıght ıs a beautıful thıng really. The trıp was supposed to be eıght hours, was more lıke twelve hours and was extremely hot and ınfurıatıng. Thıs was really the begınnıng of our super hot weather. Our seat buddıes ranged from teachers who wanted to know how much money we earnt as teachers, a famıly who gave us a set of prayer beads and an embroıdered headscarf, some random old guy and soldıers goıng to a weddıng. By the tıme we arrıved ın Adana we were dıshevelled and bloody tıred.

Nemrut Dagi

We travelled from Adana to Antalya whıch was really nıce. The beach was beautıful apart from all the rubbısh and the accommodatıon ın the old part of town was great and very pıcturesque.

There are more pics in our album

Way our East where the raın dont fall remains copyright of the author adamandmeg, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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The journey started with a seven hour bus trip to Alexandropolis. It all went smoothly except that Jess wore socks and sandals at the border crossing - we were lucky to get through! After getting dropped off at three in the morning, we headed to the ferry terminal to do some serious sleeping on park benches. It was the beginning and definitely not the end of our days as hobos. After napping and wandering we boarded the ferry at 10am for the two hour trip to Samothraki. After arriving in the port city of Kamiaritissa we ate a much anticipated pork souvlaki, drank the first of many beers and headed to Hora which is the main town on the Island. It was a relatively easy 6km hike through beautiful hot dry countryside best for growing olives and farming goats. Hora was a beautiful little sleepy town with classic blue and white houses. There were no tourists and we felt really special. We ended up rolling out the sleeping bags in a town square of sorts to sleep - of course with ocean views!!

The angel at Kamarıotıssa

Hora

The next day we walked to the town of Therma. It was about 14km but an easy downhill / flat walk with some fantastic sights along the way. The first was the Greek ruins at Paleopolis. Really amazing ruins that we shared with no-one. It is at this site that 'The Winged Nike' was found and is now displayed in the Louvre in Paris. We wandered around undisturbed and exactly at our leisure. The view of the ruins, the ocean and the mountains was really spectacular and I'm sure the photos will not do it justice. After this we headed along the coast surrounded by flowers, buzzy insects, lizards and miles and miles of sky and ocean. On the way to our campsite we had a swim in the clear Aegean Sea and soaked up the peace and quiet. Such a contrast to Istanbul with its beeping horns and people everywhere. The campsite near Therma was perfect. . . .free, empty and right on the water. Herds of sheep and goats grazed in there every other day which was very rustic - I loved it!! And so I am up to the Mountain Assault . . . . .

On the road to Therma

Paleopolıs

Adam and I wanted to climb Mount Fegari which, for the record, is bloody enormous. We thought we would do it in one day which apparently is quite an original approach. Unfortunately for us the information that we had said it was a four hour walk. It is a 1600m peak and we were starting at sea level which should have rung alram bells but anyway . . . . Josh and Jess decided to come as well. After a breakfast of champions (BLTs without the the L) we set out from our campsite at 10am and began the 7km slog uphill. And what a slog it was!! I really enjoyed the walk but it was extremely tough - the views were worth it though.

Images from Mt Fegarı

A couple of quıck vıdeos to gıve you some ıdea of how bloody bıg thıs Mountaın ıs.

The campsıte at Therma was actually a Munıcıapalıty Campsıte that was closed for the shoulder season - so they just open the gate and let you camp for free. It ıs great. It even had runnıng showers and toılets. Rıght on the beach.

From Therma we hıked out to Fonıas - a great waterfall just down the road. It was stınkıng hot so we had a swım ın the freezıng cold water and started the hıke back. No sooner had we gıven up on the ıdea of a lıft when a camıra full of gırls stopped and pıcked us up. Josh and I lıked ıt.

After Therma we hıtche dınto Kamarıotıssa - Kıds do not try thıs at home - we are all fully grown responsıble adults - just lackıng some approprıate supervısıon.

From Kamarıotıssa we bade a brıef farewell to Josh and Jess who were easyrıdıng for a couple of days on pee wee 50s they had rented from a dodgy bloke at the port. Megs and I hıtched a rıde wıth a Greek Cheese Maker - fancy that - and were dropped off ın the mıddle of an olıve grove... somewhere ınland on the ısland.

We made our way to Lakkoma beach for sunset and pork fest 2008.

A note here on pork fest 2008 - thıs ıs not an R rated story - rather an overındulgence ın Gods Meat. Thats rıght - those of you who know Megs and I know that we have healthy appetıtes and we lıke pork all of ıt... bacon... ham.. and on thıs partıcular occasıon... pork sausages. Wıth no fıdge and no way of keepıng them fresh we had to eat our entıre supply (8) of delıcıous pork sausages.

The mornıng brought wıth ıt a low moon on the horızon...

and a walk wıth the locals ınto town...

Then a hıke out to Pacchıa Amos beach where we bumped ınto Peter Fonda and Dennıs Hopper waıtıng for us. Megs and I borrowed one of the Harleys and dınked back to town to get our packs... slow goıng.

After a pleasant nıght out on the beach Megs and I agaın hıtched back to Kamarıotıssa and had our fınal lunch on the ısland wıth Josh and Jess before headıng back to Istanbul.

Samothrakı ıs an untouched ısland wıth a charm unlıke anyplace we have seen ın Europe.

Greek Wine and a three day growth remains copyright of the author adamandmeg, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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The link below takes you to the page for voting. Our photos are:

The Boat - on Lake Baikal,

The Metro Station in Moscow, and

The Kadikoy Tram in snow

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http://www.travellerspoint.com/photo_vote.cfm

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Adam

Our Sexiest Pictures??? remains copyright of the author adamandmeg, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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While they were only here for a short time, 10 days in all, they packed every day full of walking tours of the suburbs on both the Asian and European sides of the Bosphoros.

Travelling out to pick them up Meaghan and I had the opportunity of sightseeing some of the real back waters of Istanbul, for a solid 2 and a half hour tour. It appears that the E10 Bus, traveling between Kadikoy and Sabiha Gokcen Airport, picks its path through some of the less scenic streets. We arrived just in time to see Dad getting escorted through the Immigration and Customs area looking for an ATM.

Travellers tip for Istanbul Number 1: Always arrive with 20 USD in your pocket for the payment of the tourist visa on arrival.

The return trip on the E10 was a little less scenic and a whole lot quicker.

While they were here we got the olds off to the usual tourist sights in SultanAhmet, it was really nice to be the tour guide again, we have only slightly improved our tried and tested walking tour of SultanAhmet, including the Basilica Cistern, The Covered Bazaar and a sunset cruise across to Kadikoy – well. We tried for a sunset and got absolutely drenched instead. With a few modifications and a bit more time we were able to make sure they got out along the Bosphoros Cruise as well.

A well-earned rest

Tha Kadikoy Goose

On one of our day trips over to SultanAhmet, we stumbled on a tea and nargile garden and ventured inside ofr a break from walking. We found ourselves sitting in a place that time forgot, surrounded by flying carpets and hawkers flogging their wares, we sat down next to an old bloke who eventually struck up a conversation with Dad. He kept calling Dad his older brother which was pretty cool.

Mum and Dad outside the Covered Bazaar

Mum and Dad were also lucky enough to experience on the the true spectacles of Kadikoy - a protest. In the past people have been hurt at these things so we were fortunate that it was a peace protest calling for an end to the Iraq war.

A Peaceful Protest...

We also had a few days off from work so Meaghan and I were able to go with them down to Canakkale and the Gallipoli Peninsula.

That was awesome. Turkiye celebrates the war efforts on March the 18th. A month before ANZAC Day and the date that commemorates the launch of the Naval battle that began the Allied Campaign in earnest.

Meaghan and Dad demonstrated how terribly sad the war effort must have been by throwing a pine cone across from one trench to the other a few times. The trenches were so close that the opposing forces would do the same thing with a hand grenade before the inevitable bad ending. The incredible stories of friendships forged throughout the 240 day campaign become so much more understandable when you realise just how close the opposing forces were.

After the Gallipoli Peninsula, we returned to Istanbul and Mum and Dad continued to fill their days with trips across the river to the Blue Mosque and Topkapi Palace.

Having the in Istanbul was fantastic but the time went so quickly, before we knew it they were gone.

Mum and Dad and Jenny... remains copyright of the author adamandmeg, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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We had a great covering of snow everywhere and as Australians we were suitably excited. Everything in Istanbul ground to a halt except for taxis and a few gutsy (or crazy?) delivery drivers. We spent the better part of the morning hanging out our window laying bets on whether or not the crazy people out driving would make it all the way to the top of our street. Most cars had to make the slide of shame back to the bottom which was very amusing. Due to said weather all of our meetings and classes were cancelled so Adam and I had our first official ‘Snow Day’. And for the record, I am a convert! We started the day with a walk to take some photos and enjoy the silence which is rare in Istanbul.

Then, after breakfast we went out with our flatmates and had snowball fights, went sledding, did snow angels and made a snowman. Yep . . just like the movies. . . .it was awesome. . . we finished off with a beautiful walk home then toasted sandwiches and wine for lunch. You can drink wine any time of the day on Snow Days . . . true story.

Walking in a Winter Wonderland remains copyright of the author adamandmeg, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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New Years Eve in Istanbul saw us in our own flat, with flatmates we chose, in a quiet part of town called Moda. Right in the thick of the coolest part of the Asian side of Istanbul. We had a party to attend down the road in Kadikoy, with some other Ex Patriot Teachers. All of a sudden the Istanbul that we had left behind a month earlier was relegated to the depths of an unsavoury memory and we were away. The new year brings a new wealth of opportunities and with it, renewed motivation to get out into this city and get to know the inhabitants. One of the oldest and most complex places on Earth, Istanbul is full of surprises and never rests for too long.

Our new apartment is only a few minutes stroll from the shore of the Marmara Sea, a walk away from downtown Kadikoy – the throbbing heart of the Asian side and a relaxing 30 min ferry ride from Sultanahmet or Taksim – Europe.

Through the huge wall to wall windows in our front room I can see snow falling, it has been doing so for about 30 hours, there is snow on the ground throughout much of the city and we are doing our best not to freeze. So too are the hundreds of birds of every type, flying about the place from balcony to balcony, I am amazed that there is so much birdlife in a city that is so polluted.

İ am also amazed at the weather. İt has snowed here a couple of times since we came back. İt is freezing cold.

The snow from our loungeroom window...

We have had a couple of visits since we moved in. We will put some pics online soon...

So life is good for the Bevans we are both working enough to save som e money and have enough time off to contemplate this amazing city.

A Happy New Year in Istanbul remains copyright of the author adamandmeg, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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İ know we have been slack with the photos but İ promıse we will upload a heap soon.

We wish you a Merry Christmas.

The flight back was uneventful except for a burning desire (satisfied) to by Megs a new laptop in Dubai. We were picked up at the airport by Annie and taken straight to The Basin, for our date with Bacon, lots of Bacon. Breakfast over, we went our separate ways for a week.

I can’t explain how strange it was to be away from Meaghan, my best mate, for a week, after having spent every day, every night for nearly a year, away from home together. I missed her before we had even left the front driveway. Whenever we are apart even for a day İ am constantly reminded why she is my best mate. İ feel like İ should be explaining some huge secret or some overwhelming sense of connection but it is actually something very plain. Her constant companionship and consideration is what İ miss when she is not around.

It was so good to be back home though, we realised that it is actually easy to be away. The novelty doesn’t really wear off, on the road you are always meeting new people, in new places with new beer. Sure we had missed home but we had also been very busy. It wasn’t until we were home, doing nothing, just hanging out at home, that we realised just how much we miss it.

First date on the social calendar was a wedding of two of our best friends, Kate and Ossie. In 50 words or less this wedding went like this: Pole dancing on the Hens, Ferry sinks on the Bucks, A lovely ceremony (Adam starred as the Usher), beautiful reception (Megs starred as MC) and kicked out of the bridal suite at 330 am by Matron of Honour. A great night was had by all.

Then we spent a really relaxing few days in Tasmania with Megs parents which was really nice. Then Christmas week at home. For me it was the first home Christmas for years and it was great.

Then, all too soon, we were on the plane back to Istanbul, and our new jobs (uncomfirmed), new apartment (unconfirmed) and new suburb (unconfirmed).

We Wish You a Merry Christmas remains copyright of the author adamandmeg, a member of the travel community Travellerspoint.

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