Southern Highlands

We had a great long weekend in the Southern Highlands a couple months ago and we didn't post much about it. Here are a few pictures of our time there. We would definitely go back, essentially, it is very peaceful and full of nature. In addition, there are beautiful gardens all around. It reminded Tom and Ellen of the UK quite a bit, especially the gardens and a couple really charming pubs.

OK, well, this was in Sydney, not the Southern Highlands, but I ordered this champagne/rose drink that was just fabulous at the wine bar in Surry Hills. Lovely place and great drink.

This is the Southern Highlands and the view from our house, so peaceful.

 This is Dan and I at a really charming pub we found.

 Check out Tom and Dan on the side of the road--we passed this truck and had to have a pic.

 I was getting over something back then, so didn't go, but Tom, Ellen, and Dan went to the falls and got some fabulous pictures.

 This is one of the many pictures they got of the beautiful gardens.

We would definitely go back, lovely time.

Catching Up

Well, it's been awhile. Not sure what's changed, but we have been very busy lately. We decided we wanted to post some things and 'catch up' so to speak on some of our recent adventures, although most of you have probably heard of some of these things by now, so we are admittedly quite behind on the archive of our lives in Australia.

It seems like we have settled in to just living here. While we have some good trips planned, most days here are just like a regular day--go to work, make dinner, back to work...that kind of thing. Sometimes people think living in Australia would be like being on vacation all the time. You really just settle in. I think we are starting to take advantage of our location by planning some trips outside of Australia, so I am glad we are fulfilling that goal.

Last weekend, we went with some friends to Katoomba for the Winter Magic Festival, which celebrates the winter solstice. While we enjoyed the Blue Mountains, I'm not sure I'd go back to the festival again. We had a really fun time, nevertheless. It is about 90 kilometers away from Sydney, although with the slow speed limits and roads here, it still takes about 1.5 hours to drive there.

This is called the Three Sisters, one of the most famous vistas in the Blue Mountains.

They are called the Blue Mountains because of the blue-ish glow put off by all the Eucalyptus trees. It smeels really nice too.

 Here is Tom, Ellen, and Dan, and I.

 On Sunday, we shopped a little in a small town called, Leura. Ellen and I loved all the shops. I bought some jewelry. We found the perfect bench for Tom and Dan--see the sign : ) They weren't so thrilled with Leura and decided they would find a pub next time Ellen and I want to shop there.

We will try to post more often and may try to catch up on a few older trips. Off to more mundane tasks for the weekend...

New Zealand Part 3

On Sunday, our final "non-travel" day, we spent some time on the boat again. We started at Furneaux Lodge, a beautiful old lodge. The pictures below are taken there.

 This is where we had some tea at the lodge. Notice Dan and I in our silly hats and boatware. We had to ride in a little small boat to get there after getting out of Dave's boat and it had water in the bottom, so my jeans are rolled up.

 The water is so clear there - look at these rocks.

 We left the lodge and stopped to have a picnic in this cove. Look how beautiful the water is!

 This duck and his friends were our entertainment. They had a hard time eating crackers. They had to let them soak in the water and eat off tiny bits. It made for great entertainment!

 The morning before we left, we looked out the window to see the 2 black swans that swam by every day and Dan got a picture of them. Very majestic!

If you have the chance to go to New Zealand, you definitely should! We loved it!

New Zealand Part 2

After our boat ride on Day Friday, we went back to Chris and Dave's house. Here is the view from their driveway. Breathtaking!

 This is one of many pukekoes who visit their back garden. They feed them bread a couple of times a day. They are funny little birds, a little like chickens, very skittish. Look at how they eat with their funny "hands."

 Then, we went for a walk on Queen Charlotte trail, just down the road from their house. Dave chose to run it - we just hiked.

 View from one spot on the trail.

On the second day, we spent the day in the wine country of Marlborough. We went to several different wineries and had a lovely lunch in one of them. We went to the winery where Dave keeps the barrels for his wine and also went to Dave's vineyard. As you'll see from the pictures, it was beautiful.

 This is Dave and Dan looking at Dave's grapes.

 On the way home, we stopped to see an amazing view of the Sounds!

 This tree is filled with Shags, black and white birds that are very pretty, but destroy trees. Look at their nests below.

Looks like this will need to be a 3 part post. I'll post some more maybe even later today.

New Zealand Trip Part 1

We were lucky enough to have the opportunity to visit our friends, Dave and Chris, at their home in the Marlborough Sounds, New Zealand. They are near Havelock (where you get the green mussels - yum) and Blenheim, where the airport is. We traveled on New Zealand Air from Sydney to Christchurch and then on to Blenheim. We were on such a small plane and small airport that we could see Dave and Chris in the window of the airport as we were landing! We spent 5 days there (2 really being travel days) and are eager to go back again, and to see more of New Zealand. Chris and Dave were amazing hosts! They entertained us, kept us very well fed, and most importantly, shared great wine under Dave's label. Consider this our tripadvisor recommendation - we give them 5+ stars! Thanks Dave and Chris!

For family and friends who know me well, this is technically my second trip to New Zealand, having just had a business meeting in Queenstown for 1 day (!) the same week. It is also beautiful and I'd like to go back and take Dan there. I've had the chance now to see bits of Queenstown, the cities near Marlborough, Auckland, and Christchurch. Each city looked very different and was beautiful in its own way.

So, what you've all been waiting for - pictures! And, Nate, thanks for pestering me to put up a new post!

This is the view from Chris and Dave's back garden! Beautiful!

On our second day, Dave drove us out to Lochmara Lodge by boat. It is beautiful and we had a wonderful breakfast of eggs with smoked salmon from New Zealand.

Dan and I outside the Lodge.

This is in Picton, where we also went by boat. It was a cloudy day to start, but sure turned into a gorgeous day.

Dan and I in Picton - me being good by wearing a hat to avoid the super-strong sun.

Dan and Dave on the boat.

 This must have been a regatta or some kind of sailboat race we saw on the way home.

 These are some boat docks and small boats near their house.

 The neighbors' sheep!

We'll post some more later. We really enjoyed this trip!

Chinese Festival

It's been awhile since we've posted. We've had a buys couple of months. In January, we participated in the Chinese New Year Festival in several ways. First, we went to Chinatown and ate yum cha several times. Then, we went with Tom and Ellen to see the Chinese Friendship Gardens. They are very beautiful and were a gift from China to Sydney. They are in Darling Harbour, which is kind of a tourist area, but very beautiful too.

This is called Dinosaur rock.

 This is Darling Harbour.

We are headed to visit some friends in New Zealand later this week and will be sure to post some pictures!

Happy New Year!

We've not posted in awhile. It's amazing how busy you can be doing a lot of nothing. We've both enjoyed a nice break from work and job-hunting. We have spent some nice time with friends here over the holidays, everything from Christmas breakfast with friends to nights at our local pub with friends.

From Christmas through end of January (Australia day), things are pretty quiet here. I have said to my American friends, think about if Christmas were in June, that's kind of what this is like. Kids are out of school, everyone is going on vacation. I go back to work on Jan 3 and Dan resumes the job hunt. We decided to explore our local, Rozelle and Balmain, shops and restaurants this week. We certainly enjoyed a few pubs, especially, The London Hotel. Most of the shops were closed. I guess this is the time that most people take their vacations.

We are having some friends over on New Year's Day for Mexican food and jalapeno margaritas. I couldn't find any fresh jalapenos, so we are trying something new with the kind in the jar.

We ate here last night with friends Universal Restaurant. We had these amazing desserts, but the pictures did not turn out very well. Dan had one called Queen Bee, which had a scoop of ice cream with fairy frost on it, that's what they call cotton candy here. I had one called, Snap, Crackle, Pop, that looked like a bowl of cocoa crispies in milk with a slice of "bacon" on it, which was chocolate. For the third dessert, I have to first explain what ice cream treats are called here. Traditional ice cream treats here are called very different things. One of these treats is called golden gaytime. Our friend ordered gaytime with nuts as her dessert, which was basically a deconstructed version of the traditional ice cream. Very yummy, nuts, chocolate, ice cream! I have had one of the paddle pops too. It's like a fruit pop filled with jelly in the centre...way too sweet for me!

Finally, we booked our vacations to New Zealand and back home to the US (in Feb and March respectively). Can't wait to see everyone!

We're going to see fireworks tonight. I'll try to post some pics! Happy New Year!