At Christmas, I declared that I would like to start exploring a bit of Australia. After being here for nearly a year, we had not really left New South Wales (with the exception of Canberra but not sure if that counts!)
Flights were booked and I used one of my fastly growing Accor contacts to get a cheap room in Melbourne. First mistake was booking Easter weekend without realising it was Easter weekend. A quick 2 day break could have been a longer bank holiday weekend and Australia's "budget" airline Jetstar were going to charge over $500 to change the flights. So plan A remained as plan A.
I had heard lots of positive comments about Melbourne with nearly all our UK visitors preferring it to Sydney. The city did not disappoint.
The city centre is purpose built and unlike Sydney (& Newcastle) has nothing that could be called "natural beauty" but what it lacks in this area, it makes up for in others. The world's largest tram system brings life to the City. The new modern trams quickly move locals around the city whilst the old trams take tourists on the continual loop around the centre. Old British buildings meet modern new buildings and, unlike Sydney, seems to work well. And of course, the famous Lanes with the cafe's, bars and shops add to everything that makes Melbourne famous.
It is early Autumn and Melbourne felt like a nice Scottish summers day. It was warm in the sun and cool in the shade. It was nice not to have to worry about sun screen and getting too hot!
Of course we ate, we drank, we shopped, we explored and we even went to the Immigration Museum.
2 days were far too short though and I hope to get back to explore Melbourne again soon.
Photo's are here
Monday, 13 April 2009
Saturday, 14 March 2009
Road trips
Last weekend saw us taking a long overdue trip to Canberra. Our friends are down there and we have been meaning to do down to visit since they had their first baby.
I managed to tie the trip in with a couple of work meetings so we left Newcastle on Thursday evening heading for Sydney. We had a great night in the center of Sydney, dining on Darling Harbour and staying in a brand new Ibis hotel. Fridays early meeting was productive and then it was off to Wollongong, a couple of hours south of Sydney to do a presentation to some of Accor's sales staff and a look at another Ibis hotel.
That out the way, the road to Canberra beckoned. Driving down, memories of last years trip came back. Canberra is going through a prolonged dry period (probably drought) and the fields and scenery soon changed from green to browny green to dead. For miles and miles, what used to be prime farming land was just dust with the odd bush or tree adding colour. Lake George, just outside Canberra is still empty and this mass of flat land draws everyones attention to the water situation.
Mel & Ben had invited us to the naming ceremony for their baby Lily. It was held in a park on the banks of Lake Burley Griffin in Canberra. It was a beautiful day (although the 10degrees start to the day was a bit of a shock to the system and we found ourselves sitting under a heater when having breakfast). The ceremony and bbq were nice and it was great to catch up with them and meet new people.
The following day, we went round to their house to say our goodbye's and Lily was thrust into my arms to "have a cuddle". I am not sure who was more scared - me or her but after I set a few ground rules all was good (except the odd slaver)!
I managed to tie the trip in with a couple of work meetings so we left Newcastle on Thursday evening heading for Sydney. We had a great night in the center of Sydney, dining on Darling Harbour and staying in a brand new Ibis hotel. Fridays early meeting was productive and then it was off to Wollongong, a couple of hours south of Sydney to do a presentation to some of Accor's sales staff and a look at another Ibis hotel.
That out the way, the road to Canberra beckoned. Driving down, memories of last years trip came back. Canberra is going through a prolonged dry period (probably drought) and the fields and scenery soon changed from green to browny green to dead. For miles and miles, what used to be prime farming land was just dust with the odd bush or tree adding colour. Lake George, just outside Canberra is still empty and this mass of flat land draws everyones attention to the water situation.
Mel & Ben had invited us to the naming ceremony for their baby Lily. It was held in a park on the banks of Lake Burley Griffin in Canberra. It was a beautiful day (although the 10degrees start to the day was a bit of a shock to the system and we found ourselves sitting under a heater when having breakfast). The ceremony and bbq were nice and it was great to catch up with them and meet new people.
The following day, we went round to their house to say our goodbye's and Lily was thrust into my arms to "have a cuddle". I am not sure who was more scared - me or her but after I set a few ground rules all was good (except the odd slaver)!
Sunday, 22 February 2009
Bushfires
Today has been a national day of mourning in respect of the bushfires that ravaged areas of Victoria 2 weeks ago.
Black Saturday as it is now referred to has had a huge impact on the country. As you can imagine, we have had wall to wall coverage and every TV channel broadcast the memorial service that was held this morning. People congregated in all of the major cities to pay their respect. It was interesting to hear the Queen referred to as the "Queen of Australia" by Princess Anne who addressed the service on her behalf (see previous Blog about how much more prominent the Royal family seem to be in Australia than in the UK!).
It has been interesting to follow the BBC Blogs of the event.
Whilst the news has been dominated by the Victoria fires, we have also had a few a bit closer to home. The was a fire set by a "fire bug" between Newcastle and Sydney and there have been a few fires in the Hunter Valley. We can, on occastion, smell smoke and the horizon is hazy from smoke.
Black Saturday as it is now referred to has had a huge impact on the country. As you can imagine, we have had wall to wall coverage and every TV channel broadcast the memorial service that was held this morning. People congregated in all of the major cities to pay their respect. It was interesting to hear the Queen referred to as the "Queen of Australia" by Princess Anne who addressed the service on her behalf (see previous Blog about how much more prominent the Royal family seem to be in Australia than in the UK!).
It has been interesting to follow the BBC Blogs of the event.
Whilst the news has been dominated by the Victoria fires, we have also had a few a bit closer to home. The was a fire set by a "fire bug" between Newcastle and Sydney and there have been a few fires in the Hunter Valley. We can, on occastion, smell smoke and the horizon is hazy from smoke.
Friday, 20 February 2009
Monday, 9 February 2009
one year on
It's a year this week since we arrived in Australia. Weary from 5 months of travel and anxious about having no visa and no where to live.
6 months in Sydney which where I felt like a bit of a nobody. Until my visa was granted, I was just a tourist. But I was a tourist without any money and so the days were spent reading newspapers, drinking coffee and walking the city, exploring areas which are now very familiar. Then the visa was granted and the frustrating job search began. It ended 3 months after it began, not quite where we thought it would but by September we were up in Newcastle and I was starting another chapter of this adventure.
Since then, the time seems to have flown by. Getting back into the swing of things at work took little time. Learning to speak more Australia than Scottish has taken a lot longer and I still get lots of puzzled looks when I speak too quickly or too quietly.
I have seen every season in Australia. From the surprisingly cool winter to the very warm summer. The natural beauty of the country can still take my breath away as can the sheer vastness of this country.
These are the highlights of my year :-
- Having an amazingly special New Year dinner with Brad
- Climbing the Harbour Bridge with Mum on her birthday
- Walking from the Spit Bridge to Manly and realising the natural beauty of Sydney.
- Being able to show family and friends around the City like I am a local
- Swimming in the Pacific on New Years Day
- Getting a job that I really enjoy!
Brad is about to start Uni again so that will bring more change to our lives but this year promises to be even more exciting with a visit to the UK for Jenny's wedding in August.
6 months in Sydney which where I felt like a bit of a nobody. Until my visa was granted, I was just a tourist. But I was a tourist without any money and so the days were spent reading newspapers, drinking coffee and walking the city, exploring areas which are now very familiar. Then the visa was granted and the frustrating job search began. It ended 3 months after it began, not quite where we thought it would but by September we were up in Newcastle and I was starting another chapter of this adventure.
Since then, the time seems to have flown by. Getting back into the swing of things at work took little time. Learning to speak more Australia than Scottish has taken a lot longer and I still get lots of puzzled looks when I speak too quickly or too quietly.
I have seen every season in Australia. From the surprisingly cool winter to the very warm summer. The natural beauty of the country can still take my breath away as can the sheer vastness of this country.
These are the highlights of my year :-
- Having an amazingly special New Year dinner with Brad
- Climbing the Harbour Bridge with Mum on her birthday
- Walking from the Spit Bridge to Manly and realising the natural beauty of Sydney.
- Being able to show family and friends around the City like I am a local
- Swimming in the Pacific on New Years Day
- Getting a job that I really enjoy!
Brad is about to start Uni again so that will bring more change to our lives but this year promises to be even more exciting with a visit to the UK for Jenny's wedding in August.
Thursday, 5 February 2009
Tuesday, 13 January 2009
Harbour Bridge
Walking and driving over the Harbour Bridge has become just a part of everyday life. The first few times were pretty amazing and then, like everything, it becomes normal.
The "wow" factor came back last week. Mum & Dad are over on holiday and to celebrate Mum's birthday she decided that she wanted to climb the Harbour Bridge. Tickets were duly booked and Brad, Mum and I arrived at the duly appointed time ready for our climb. We were advised it takes over 3 hours (which I though was quite long) and a health check and breathalyser test would be required before we would be allowed to climb.
We were grouped into 12 and, after passing the said tests, we were provided with a "boiler suit" and told to remove everything (watches & jewellery included) and take of all clothes except underwear. We all looked fetching in the suits! We were then given harnesses, safety ropes, sun hats, 2 way radios, tie on handkerchiefs and practice training at climbing before starting the climb.
With the exception of steep ladder climbs, it was an easy walk. The views were stunning and Mum had Happy Birthday sang to her at the top of the bridge by our group and the groups round us. It was pretty special.
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