In the last few days, we've been treated to a series of Aussie specialities, from lovely Koalas and a Possum through to creepy spiders and crawly Iguanas.We sat watching a movie in the dark in our wood cabin in the forest and heard a scratching noise out on the deck. We had been told that Possums are common and were hoping for one as a visitor – and sure enough, here he was. We put a bit of banana on the fence and he came and took it, then we took a chance and put the deck light on. They have night vision so the ambient light didn't scare him away, and we were able to see it close up – they are such cute little creatures, almost like mini-kangaroos with a heavy back-end and sweet faces. But we had started a turf war, as one of the site owners explained when another possum started growling in the trees up above, a low and ominous sound that was telling our friend to get out of the other's space.
The following day we took a walk up the main lookout across Nelson Bay, a steep 20 minute climb that gave a fantastic view but was infested with huge spiders webs – and, of course, huge spiders... This one with yellow bits on his legs just scares the hell out of me. I know I am 1000 times his size, but nature obviously made him a bit more powerful than the average house-spider at home. This was just one of hundreds we saw,+crop.jpg)
lying in wait for flies, wasps and frightened Englishmen.Just before we had left the forest cabin, there was another wild Koala sitting in a tree. I just can't get enough of seeing these docile, fuzzy looking things. Their lack of motion is quite hypnotic and their faces seem to be wise, almost zen-like. What amazing luck to see it so near and out in the open.
We drove North along the gorgeous Pacific Coast Highway, the 3rd time we've driven up a road so-named – the first was in California and the second in New Zealand., Both of us have been really surprised at how lush the countryside is as we had expected a more arid landscape, but it has been green all the way. We imagine that the images we have in our minds of endless open dry land is more from the middle of Australia, and that the obvious reason the coast is so populated is the contrast with its inland life.
In the evening we stayed in Sawtell, a small village by the sea with a huge long bea
ch. As we ran along it the following morning, the sand that was so fine it squeaked like closely packed snow. I saw somebody talking on a mobile phone and found it odd, because at home a seaside-trip on a sunny day is a rarity. We would think “ok, off to the beach, switch off the phone, it's a day out!” But for an Australian in Sawtell, a wander up an almost deserted stretch of sand is a daily occurrence and real life goes on comfortably alongside the beach life. No wonder the Aussies are so laid back.Yesterday, we stopped at a strange little motorway stop, called the Little Italy services. Not only did they have a statue of David (clearly made in my image – though not in every respect...) but they also had an Italian museum and exhibition. As we had lunch sitting in front of a huge painting
of Florence, Nicki said “I think if we wander around here, we'll see kangaroos in the fields”. I have to admit, I thought it was just a sign of her eternal optimism – 'roos in Litle Italy,? Then we wandered around the back of the building and found half a dozen kangaroos...It is such a great feeling to see these unique animals close up. They look so different to anything I have seen in the wild before and to just chance upon them like this was incredibly good fortune.
We continued in scorching sunshine to Byron Bay and are staying in
a cabin in a caravan park next to a creek. After Nicki's predictive powers were shown earlier, I got nervous when she said “maybe we'll see crocodiles”. Luckily, her vision of the future was impaired a little this time, as we stepped out of the front door and saw an 80cm long Iguana on the step. He took a look at us and scampered off down the side between the car and the cabin – no doubt that won't be the last we see of him... 
