Last year we took every opportunity to head to New Zealand. Every school holiday, other than the one where the kids & I went to the States, we went to NZ to visit family & friends. Between that, and our sports commitments on the weekends, we never seemed to get out of Sydney. Yes, we had a really busy and fun year, but it was embarrassing that after an entire year here we had only seen the Blue Mountains once and Shoal Bay once. That was it!
School here runs in 4 terms with two weeks of holiday in between each term. It’s a great system for allowing families to get away on holidays.
With our first school break upon us, I decided to take the kids on a road trip. I had heard great things about Byron Bay and had considered flying up there for a week. Yet, I thought it would be a good idea to see how the kids & I would handle hour upon hour in the car together since we are planning a big road trip around Australia next year.
Byron Bay is 10 hours away. (Daddy, I know you don’t think this is a big deal as I remember many a time waking at the crack of dawn and heading up to Canada to visit my brothers. You driving all the way. But I am not even half the person you are, so I decided to break up the trip and stop in Port Macquarie.) For one, it was half way there and also because I thought the kids would enjoy two of its main attractions: the Koala Zoo & the Sea Acres Rainforest.
The week before our trip, my friend Anna asked if she and her boys could tag along. One thing led to another and we were heading up to PM with three mums and six kids all staying together at a timeshare that Anna organized. Each ‘family’ has an older sibling (they were all in year 1 together and are all in the same class again this year:) and a younger sibling who will all be going to Kindergarten together next year. You couldn’t ask for a better set up.
Most of the fun we had involved playing at the house or on the beach. It wasn’t the sunniest weather, but a Portuguese-American, Irish-Canadian & Kiwi don’t REALLY ever expect sunshine all the time. It’s just not natural!
I was pretty useless with taking photos, but did manage a few. I particularly like this one for a few reasons. Nuno being cheeky (he’s trying to insert rabbit ears behind his sister’s head), but more than that, I love that Lana has made friends she feels so comfortable with.
Just look at her hanging off of her buddy. She has come a very long way in great part to the people we have met. (Yes, she would still get on a plane tomorrow to be with her family. She just told us that the other day.) But this is where we are right now. And I am thrilled that she is at home with her mates. Leaving ‘home’ was really tough on this little girl and seeing her happy and comfortable gives me great comfort that we didn’t do the wrong thing to come on this adventure.
The hike through the Sea Acres Rainforest was informative for the adults, but the kids were off playing soon after the tour started. No animals were spotted, but fair enough with 6 kids we weren’t exactly quiet.
We also visited the Koala Hospital. The only downside to our visit was that they only do tours once a day, so the guided tour was not that intimate which made it more difficult for the kids to hear and pay attention. Honestly, I was amazed at the crowd it drew in this very sleepy town. The Koala’s were all being rehabilitated in the hope that they could be released back into their natural habitat. My photos did not turn out so great, but I do have to tell you about one little guy who lost a leg. He has adapted so well that they are planning his release. I was very impressed with that little guy & also very impressed with the group of volunteers who keep this place going.
All in all, I have to say I didn’t fall in love with Pt. Macquarie but because of this crew I had one heck of a fantabulous time!
