As I mentioned yesterday, we spent a lovely week recently in Byron Bay, which is in northern New South Wales, about 1600 kilometres from Melbourne. Near to the Queensland border, it is a world away from Melbourne, and at times it's hard to believe that we're really in the same country.
The weather is entirely tropical, with humid conditions, bright sunshine and blue skies every day. We found an excellent vegetarian cafe which kept us sated (Manna Haven if you're ever in the area - http://www.mannahaven.com.au/), walked on the wide beaches and collected pebbles and shells and went for some really nice drives in the surrounding forests, which are really so very different from Victoria. In short, we did not too much at all and it was great.
Hot weather is not really my thing and - of course - I did get sunburnt (do I ever learn?) but it was also amazing to be reminded of just how big Australia is and how different one area can be from another.
My one complaint would be that the op-shops up there are not a patch on ours (I know, I know - I was thrifting while surrounded by a tropical paradise)!
