Tjukurla by James

We had a very long drive from Alice Springs to Tjukurla. At first we thought we might be the only kids at school that day. Luckily, five kids (six kids are in the school altogether) turned up in the end, so we had seven in total. That was enough for a bush trip. We went to some special flat rocks (the two boys dreaming) and each took a turn to lie down on them (including me and Tom). We had some lunch and then went home.

James getting some energy from the 'two brothers'.

Tom's turn!

Our new friends.

Back from the bush again!

Home to cold and dreary Melbourne again along with all of that washing which never seems to dry! James scored the captain's dessert on the plane home because the flight attendant was worried that the captain wouldn't fit behind the controls if he ate it! James also climbed a high gate to get Tom's hat at the soccer field in Alice Springs. Tom and James went to three schools this time, Warburton, Blackstone and Wingellina. They saw some old friends and made some new ones. Tom especially liked the dogs at Wingellina (it's a 'dog dreaming' place so there are lots of them). His favourite was called 'Grievous' who is a bit cheeky with the lady dogs!

Goodbye Scotland by James

I lost my tooth a few days ago and have a new smile. I also had a haircut. Tom and I have made lots of new friends in our street. We've walked around a lot (sometimes my legs have been very tired). We had a look around George Heriot's School which was the inspiration for Hogwart's. We are starting off for home tomorrow via London and Dubai and we're going to try for the First Class lounge this time!

Edinburgh by Tom

We're back in Edinburgh and we have been doing lots of WALKING (most people do here). There is a big playground quite close by (in a place called The Meadows) where we go sometimes but it's not quite as good as Coram's Fields. In Edinburgh you can buy disposable barbecues at the supermarket (basically a tin foil tray with a few coals) so there can be lots of smoke in The Meadows on warm days! We've climbed part of a hill called Arthur's Seat and walked around a nature reserve called The Braids. We caught a bus to Portobello beach which was fun, though the water was a bit cold. You can see lots from the top of a double decker bus.
Yesterday we caught the bus to The Royal Mile (don't worry, we WALKED home!) hoping to visit the
Palace of Holyroodhouse. Just as we were sitting outside a cafe waiting for our 'coronation chicken' (and wondering why there seemed to be several police people around at a loose end) who should drive by in a Rolls Royce - none other than the Queen herself! She looked me right in the eye and waved! (I expect she was taken with my hat just like all the other Edinburgh ladies...) Even though it meant the Palace was closed, it was all pretty exciting.

And, just so Pa doesn't feel left out, we took a photo of this guy...

Argyll by James

When the conference finished, we decided to head west to Argyll for a few days. We are staying in a small village called Lochgoilhead where at high tide the loch's water laps at our back fence. Today we visited Inverary Castle, the home of the Duke of Argyll. We saw a fake pig on a spit in the kitchen. Tom and I completed the quiz sheet and we both got a pencil for a prize. A man also gave Tom a pound for holding the door open for him (I found another one on our front doorstep). Maybe we should start opening the gate for people at Sacred Heart!  Yesterday we climbed a massive hill (mountains are called 'bens' here and lakes are called 'lochs') and saw some goats. I reached the top first! We had lunch at the pub afterwards. I had fish fingers with chips and baked beans. The lollies here are nicer than the ones we have in Australia.

And, Nanna, this photo is for you!!

London by Tom

Well, we arrived in London safely and on time!! The good news about our flight was that Mum talked our way into the business class lounge in Dubai but the bad news was that James was sick FOUR times on the second flight to London. Luckily the tube from Heathrow smells anyway! We dragged our luggage up lots of stairs to our hotel room (http://www.georgehotel.com/english/index.html), cleaned ourselves up and went to a great playground around the corner called Coram's Fields which is on the site of a Foundling Hospital built in the 1700s to educate children whose mothers were too poor to look after them (http://www.coramsfields.org/). I found some kids to play soccer with (they call it football here and I've also learned to say crisps!) and James especially liked the flying fox.

The next day we went to Hamley's Toyshop (no description necessary), the Charles Dickens Museum (there was a stuffed raven there and lots of old-fashioned clothes as well as books), Coram's Fields (again), the British Museum (the Roman artefacts were my favourite and a lady there let me touch some objects and taught me a Latin word) and... you guessed it... back to Coram's Fields for a quick game of soccer!

That's goodbye from me for now or, as they would have said in Ancient Rome, VALE!

Tom