Christmas, New Year and more...
Trip Start
Mar 15, 2006
1
35
42
Trip End
May 30, 2007
Sydney,
Australia
Tuesday, January 2, 2007
Well its been an awful long time since I last wrote anything. I must say a special thanks to the guest editor of the last edition for his input, but its time I got back on the keyboard now. I've been off moving around again, had a couple of big celebrations, a new job, and had the family over, so there should be plenty of food for thought.
The day Tim left to head back to Blighty I also took a plane down to Melbourne, and while he passed my parents in the air somewhere over the Middle East, I made the most of the opportunity to explore another of Australia's great cities
A spot of golf overlooking Bondi
. It seems to me that Melbourne is a lot more European in feel, compared with Sydney's more American influence. Whether they'd like these comparisons I do not know but there we are. There also seems to be a bit more of a interesting 'artsy' vibe of fresh creativity going on and its a little more laid-back, but having said all this, it doesn't have the harbour, which is Sydney's crowning jewel and the source of its vibrancy I feel.Having met up with my parents for the first time in 9 months (and guess what...yes it did feel like I'd seen them almost the day before) we picked up a campervan and headed west on the Great Ocean Road. This is a fantastic drive and well worth stopping along the way to soak it up at night as well. On the first night I finally managed to happen across the one member of the Aussie wildlife I had been waiting 6 months to see. With the sun having gone down and there not being an awful lot to do in the campervan I decided to walk up a nearby hill in the dark to attempt to find some signal for my phone (oh, modern life). A short way into my journey I was suddenly aware of this strange shape ahead of me in the road. Initially I thought it was a dog or something and was just thinking about turning on my heels and avoiding a mauling, when I realised it was walking in a really strange way, wiggling its bottom from side to side as it moved closer, and as it emerged from the shadows I saw its thick grey fur and cute face
Awaiting the New Year
. Finally I have found a Koala!! A woman who'd also stopped her car and run into the local pub to tell other people then arrived, and even though she see's them every day, was as fascinated as me about this brave little one wandering down the road oblivious to us. Apparently this is a very unusual sight as they are usually quite shy and I was really lucky to see this for my first time.Once we reached the end of the Great Ocean Road we headed back towards Melbourne and then followed the coast for the next 5 or so days back round and up to Sydney, arriving back a couple of days before Christmas. Doing the whole camper thing was quite cool, it reminded me a lot of going caravanning as a kid. Only now I can drive and its a darn sight quicker to set up. I think we got it down to a fine art at 2 and a half minutes from arriving at the pitch to having hooked up and sitting out in the sun enjoying a beer. I think I must be turning into a Aussie with those sorts of determined skills!!
Since arriving back in Sydney its been one party after another. The day after arriving we all went to see a Pantomime at the Opera House. Having worked there a couple of times since starting my new job, it was cool to have the chance to actually go and watch something
Big Bang. I'm gonna try to find a better one 4 u!
. And how they got away with some of the content I do not know, very politically incorrect and close-to-home, making you unsure at times whether you should actually be laughing at all. But still it was very funny and a great evening.Christmas Eve was spent on the roof of the hostel with a BBQ for 50 people and 'Secret Santa'. Christmas Day meant going round to my brother's apartment for a big 3 family meal, followed by cricket in the park in the sun (not something I've done on any Christmas Day before). A few days later we went out for an amazing meal in Watson's Bay at a restaurant on the beach with a view back to the Sydney skyline and Opera House.
And now this brings us to New Year's Eve...
As a group of 40 or so, we boarded a ferry and headed over to the northern side of the harbour to invade one of the lookout points, Bradley's Head. This turned out to be such a good spot, with an unobscured view of the entire city skyline, Opera House and Harbour Bridge. Arriving at 2 pm in order to get a decent spot (and there was already hundreds of people there) meant a long day of drinking, talking and messing around (oh, and positive thinking the forecasted thunderstorm away) before the sky would darken and the 9 o'clock fireworks would light up the sky for the first time
Chester. The Christmas travelling mascot!
.Now, if this isn't a moment of, 'Stop boy! Look where you are, look at what you are watching, look at all these people you're with', then I don't know what is. Needless to say it did bring a bit of a tear to my eye.
The afternoon also had the added interest of my girlfriend's ex being there, who it seemed may hit me at any time. Perhaps that had something to do with the tear in the eye as well! So at least the memories of my first New Year here won't be boring. But the clock ticked on and the countdown for 2007 began, at the last moment we rushed down onto the beach to watch the full harbour view with not a person in front of us. The fireworks went on and on, with a number of barges all along the harbour setting them off independently, followed by the bridge and a new addition of the city buildings. Beautiful, huge, so many. What an entry to the new year.
I am not taking any of this for granted. I was supposed to be back home 3 months ago and here I am watching the fireworks over the famous Opera House.
On that note guys, I have a little more news..
Christmas Day
.It seems I can't drag myself away! That 6 month trip is being altered once again. Though I'm gutted that for the time being I am going to miss out on the planned Asia leg of my trip, I have decided that the opportunity I have to get a second year's visa here by doing 3 months of fruit-picking is just too great. The March return has been put back once again. But I have a commitment in June (Ele, I shall go to the ball!), so then I shall definitely have to break the travelbug...
...temporarily!!!
I wish you all the very best for the New Year, I love you and miss you.
