Our preparation for this trip started when we sold our house (aug 08), we decided that our chance to fulfill our dream of traveling Australia, could wait no longer. So we decided to rent instead of buying another house, updating our caravan and making preparations to " leave the safety of the harbor". I requested 6 months long service leave at half pay, beginning at the start of March 2010. I had to fend off many comments and speculation on my intention to return to work, but as is still the case, I do not know what will happen in 2011.
On Friday 19 th Feb, we finally moved into the caravan full time at the EBDEN caravan park, on the Hume Dam outside Albury. For the next 9 days We adapted to caravan life, we tried out the annex (challenge to put up), tinkered with all the new gadgets.
The following Saturday night we were joined by our best friends, some visiting for the night and some staying over. We had a fantastic night, BBQ and drinks, and we were presented with lovely shirts with "La Dolce Vita" printed on them ( the name of our van), in English this means "The good life". A big thank you to Les and Judy and Col and Judy for the thoughtfullness.

Sunday morning we had the slowest and most painful pack up that I have ever experienced, however we finally got under way. We stopped at Holbrook for a coffee and a quick think about the previous night and what awaited us in the future. We got back under way and drove along quite subdued, we cheered up later in the day. We stayed in the Mittagong caravan park for our first night on the road, a little park but had a cosy feel to it. Cooked meal at camp BBQ in the rain. Off to bed early for an early rise and departure for trip through Sydney.

Up packed and off early, the car is badly organised and needs a good sort out, which will happen when we stay somewhere for a few days. Through Sydney no problems and up the coast to a reasonably new town called "Hallidays Point". This place I found particularly frustrating because of the new trend to build little bits of the place in little bits of cleared teatree. I think this must be a greenie thing. Makes finding things a bit of a nightmare for strangers like us. We spent ages finding the caravan park which was hidden behind a group of houses and poorly signposted.
This was a BIG FOUR Park, which we think are a bit too regulated, on their list of rules they should add "you are allowed to have fun". The park is located behind a sand dune along the beach, I d'ont know if it was the rain or the awful site they gave us, but I did not enjoy this park and could not wait to leave the next day.