Sydney!

Our little holiday in Sydney was really fun!  The main purpose for going there was because Joel wanted to go to a (music) festival.  I thought it was the perfect opportunity to finally see the city.  We got there on Friday morning, after a short flight (Only an hour!), checked into the Castlereagh Boutique Hotel (aka: The New South Wales Masonic Lodge!)  then met up with Michael Brunac.  Michael and I used to work at Chapters together in the music dept.  Good times!  He's been in Sydney for four years now and loving it.  It was great to see him again.  We met up and he showed us around the famous landmarks; the Harbour Bridge and the Opera House.  Then we went for a drink at Sweeney's, where our mutual friend Megan Wright used to work.  (It's really due to her inspiration that we are here in Oz. Bizarrely, she is in Yukon!)  The old switcheroo.  Joel and his friend Leon went off to the festival, leaving Michael and I to explore Vivid in the CBD.  Vivid is a festival of interactive light displays all around the harbour.  So many people were out and about enjoying the sights.  Then we walked all around Darling harbour, the nightclub district.  By the time I got back to the hotel, my feet were aching!!  The next day, we went out to Newtown.  There were a lot of cool little shops out that way.  At least we got a little sunshine that day!  Hilariously, Joel spotted a pub that was playing game #5, so we sat and had a beer, watching the Canucks barely win the game.  A little piece of Canada... Next we hopped on a bus to check out the Glebe market.  Lots of stuff to look at.  Joel and Leon went to the second night of their festival, and I hit the shopping district!  I walked everywhere, getting lost in the connected passageways.  Not much to see, all the shops were the same as Melbourne's.  I did love QVB and the Strand; gorgeous places.  The next day, we decided to venture out to Bondi, despite the weather.  It was close and easy to get to.  By the time we got there, it was windy and spitting.  After a few photos of the famous (and virtually empty) beach, the wind was howling and a storm burst over us!  The rain pelted down and we hightailed it back into the city.  We got off the train at King's cross and walked into the city via Oxford St. which was great!  Love the seedy, gritty, gay and sexy area of Sydney!  Glad to see it's not all glitzy and boring!  We met up with Leon and headed back to Newtown for a coffee and cake.  Later, Joel wanted to check out the last night of Vivid, so we headed to the harbour.  The weather was quite miserable, so we didn't stay long.  At least Joel got to see the amazing display at the Customs House.  There were loads of people out and about!  When we got back to the hotel, we began to get news of the volcanic delays... The next morning, we went to the internet cafe right away to check if our flight was still leaving.  It seemed to be alright.  So we had breakfast, then went to the Australia Museum.  Nice museum!  After that, it was back to the internet cafe.  All seemed well, so we headed off to the airport early.  After a bit of chaos concerning gate changes and 2 small delays, we miraculously got onboard.  Out of 82 cancelled Jetstar flights that day so far, ours mysteriously got into the air!  Lucky... Anway, Sydney was cool.  Though it reminded me of Vancouver.  What Vancouver wants to be when it grows up!)  We sadly had no food or coffee to brag about, that was a major miss.  I realise how spoiled we are here in Melbourne, and how much of a Melbourne girl I am!  Now I feel I have a right to be snobby about it, hee hee! Now, where to go next...

Living in Australia

 Well, it's just over half time here, and I would say things are going pretty well.  Let's take stock... We arrived here April 20, 2010.  We lived with Joel's parents in Greensborough until June 1st.  I got a full time job at Riot Art & Craft at Northlands.  Joel went back to school for accounting.  We got a place to live in Northcote on July 1st.  I got promoted to manager in November.  Richard and Jenn came to visit us in April.  And life is good!  I think we have explored pretty much most of the state of Victoria since we've been here.  I still can't believe it has been a year already.  I miss all of my friends dearly.  Australia really is at the end of the planet.  Some days, I really sense the incredible distance...  Still, living here is really quite good.  For the first time, I have a sizeable bank account despite how much I spend on art supplies at my own store!!  (Not to mention, Joel's growing record collection!)  This corner of the world is quite beautiful; every day I see something else that surprises me.  Birds, bugs, plants, buildings, landscapes and people.  Different but the same.  Hopefully I can keep up this blog this time, ha!

Hello from Melbourne!

Finally!  Here is the blog I meant to write when I first got here!  Better late than never!