Happy New Year!

Happy New Year Everyone--

New Year's Eve Fireworks

I'll keep this relatively short, as I didn't plan on sending another one so quickly after my last entry.  But we were so moved by the fireworks in Sydney last night, that I just had to share.  I'm attaching a video...this is the last few minutes of the fireworks, and I'll apologize upfront for the shakiness of the camera.  It's not because my condition was impeded...I know that comes as a shocker to many of you!  There was so much going on that I was trying to move it around to catch what I could.

This is how the day unfolded.  We met a group of Americans (mostly) at the train station in our town at 2:00 and arrived at Milson's Point at about 2:30 (Milson's point is just before you cross the Harbour Bridge over to Sydney).  From there, we walked to the park that's located just under the bridge, and set out our blankets, coolers, etc.  Along with thousands of others...and that was just at 2:30!  As the day progressed, every inch...and I'm not exaggerating here....every inch was filled with a body.  It got to the point, where you just couldn't leave you spot or you'd lose it.  And after about 8:00 pm, going to the bathroom just wasn't an option unless you were prepared to maneuver your way in between the myriad of blankets, tents and people and then wait in line at least 30 minutes.  Our large group had two spots--one sunny spot just to one side of the bridge, and one shady spot directly under the bridge.  It was nice to go between the two, as it was in the 80s and the sun is so intense.  The kids--mostly boys--played soccer, cricket and rugby under the bridge.  The parents munched on a variety of lunch meats, dips, cheeses, fruit, etc.  And drank some Aussie beer.  Somehow, it didn't seem like we were there for 6+ hours when the family fireworks started at 9:00.  They are shot from multiple locations across the Harbour.  And they were quite impressive.  But the midnight ones, of course, were the biggies.  Not only were there massive ones being shot at multiple locations across the Harbour, but the main ones came shooting off the Harbour Bridge--vertically, horizontally, and then pouring down like a waterful from the bottom of the bridge.  And fireworks were shot from boats in the harbour.  And even some were shooting up from the buildings across the bay in the city, which you can see if you hang in there on the video.

Now, I've never paid too much attention when they showed the Sydney fireworks on the news or on the Today show back in the states.  But these are a big deal.  I got goosebumps watching them last night and again when I watched them from my computer.  It really was spectacular, and I hope you get some sense of that from my video.  I know I will look at them differently when I see them on the news in a couple of years and be so grateful that we had this opportunity to see them in person! 

We wish you all a safe New Year's Eve and much happiness and good health in 2008!