Spending time with family

It's hard to describe the sense of relaxation that comes from spending time with family after being on the road for so long. Distance (ie Australia) has made that I have never spent much time with my Mum's side of the family but somehow it didn't seem to matter. It felt right and relaxing to be there.

I drove up to the Gold Coast to see the matriach of the family, a pretty sturdy 86 old and an absolutely amazing 98 old (I want to be like him when I get to that age). It's hard when you try and pile up 30 odd years of absence in one day ... and ultimately it has to disappoint somewhat. But the effort was made and that's what counts. What we lack in memories, we get in the comfort of doing the right thing.

It has especially been fun to spend time with my cousins. Due to the age difference it is the first time that age hasn't mattered and that I have been able to share a great deal with them from hanging out with friends to having conversations about how odd and beautiful our family is. Being an adult ain't half bad.

Time to move on. Early start tomorrow - flying from Brisbane to Sydney to Hong Kong.

Last leg.

Sydney - vibrant and kicking

After a few days of faffing about in Auckland, I finally arrived in Sydney. And excited, I was. A friend I had met on the Magic Bus in NZ picked me up from the airport and kindly hosted me for 3 days. It's funny how you can meet people, not really know them for a long time but really click.



I got introduced to what life could be like in Sydney (if i ever...). On the first night we went out for drinks and (amazing) Vietnamese food - here we were all huddled up around a small table, someone from Italy who'd lived in China, an Aussie from Chile, a few Spanish, French, Asian...everyone was represented. It was an exciting melting pot of ideas and experiences. It reminded me of London, a heterogenous buzzing society of people connected by their current location and thirst for new experiences.

I visited the sights, the opera house, the bridge, the Harbours, Bondi...and the weather was just stunning (which made for some pretty good photos!).



Highlights include the free ice cream (thank you Virgin), hanging out with B, seeing cute surfers in Bondi, ice cream, hanging out with an awesome group of people, the lime green bridesmaids (what not to do!) eating home made chicken pie and having tortilla (i know!) .



I could definitely live in Sydney. It's one of those places that seems to be right for so many people. Although I get the feeling of a you and us type of society where you have "foreigners" craving for some Aussie culture and interaction...and finding it hard to get.