Dec 25-27 - A merry time in Metung!

Similar to our Christmas routine back home, Christmas morning was a mad combination of presents, breakfast, playing and packing. We had to check out by 10:00am and were trying to get to Metung to join our friends the Davies and their family for Christmas lunch/dinner. Things went smoothly as the boys opened Santa's stockings and we enjoyed coffee, briefly, watching them revel in the moment. But then we were back whipping things into a frenzy and cramming our beautiful blue car with what seemed like even more stuff! A brief "eggs Benny" buffet breakfast and we were off rolling down the highway toward Metung.

The journey was longish, about 4 hours plus of driving, but uneventful and it was interesting to travel down a road we knew from our trip to Sydney. There were no goannas to be hit or breakfasts thrown up and we rolled into the lovely Davies property around 3:00. They had already started and mostly finished dinner which was what we had hoped (we hadn't wanted them to wait for us!) and we joined them for a late plate of turkey and ham. We were welcomed with a very generous amount of warmth and interest and the visit was such a wonderful combination of food, family and fun that it took the sting out of missing family back home.

The boys fell into a comfortable routine of play with all of the grandchild girls in the family and they did a very good job of working with the pink and the princess outfits. The senior Davies were very generous to us with thoughtful gifts for the boys and ourselves. We also had great fun meeting Simon's sister and her husband and getting to know Simon's brother and his family better. This was all done over cricket games on the lawn, bocce ball, scooter rides around the deck, tractor rides around the property, boat rides to town and the beach, and a long table filled with wonderful food and drink. The pace was certainly our speed and felt very much like a weekend at the (Clear) lake.

One of the highlights of the visit was when Simon took us across the lake to a trail that led to 90 mile beach. After beaching the boat and walking for 10 minutes, we climbed over a dune to see one of the most beautiful beaches I have ever laid eyes on. 90 mile beach is apparently the second longest uninterrupted stretch of sand in the world and I felt like we were in that scene from Plant of the Apes with the Statue of Liberty poking out of the sand...we could have been the last people on Earth. The water was warm enough for a swim and Colin had a few good runs on his boogie board while others body surfed. We sat and ate cookies staring at the incredible scenery while the kids made castles in the sand. Soon it was time to return home but we would remember this beach and its solitude for some time.

Another memorable moment was our Boxing Day dinner. With most of the kids in bed, Alex served up an amazing lamb salad and with several great bottles of wine to accompany it we settled into comfortable conversations and relaxed laughter. A few more bottles later and suddenly Simon's mom, Jan, had us all in outrageous masks and wigs vamping, posing and giving our best impressions of George Bush or Osama bin Laden! What a great, weird moment. I thought, isn't it great when family and friends of different generations can let their hair down, let go of decorum and inhibition, and have a good ol' healthy belly laugh. After the craziness of 2008, it felt okay to try to laugh it all away.

Other highlights of the visit included watching test cricket on Boxing Day, an Aussie tradition; trips to the Metung bakery by boat and by car; watching the pelicans being fed and a close encounter with a large black swan. But the best moments by far were simply the opportunities to live, for a few moments, with people -Australians, and to share, compare, exchange and talk about life and all of the similarities and differences we share. Linton and I both remarked that in this visit we had suddenly and finally felt like we were no longer just visiting Australia, but had in fact begun to simply live here.

Dec 23-25 Cape Schanck for Christmas!

A few months ago we decided we needed to do something very different for Christmas, something very Australian. As opposed to hunkering down in our little house in Melbourne, doing basically what we do every day, we decided to head out to a beach and celebrate Christmas with a wiggle of our toes in the sand. Linton's expert research quickly discovered a gem of a place called Cape Schanck on the Mornington Peninsula a mere 1.5 hours from Melbourne. And thus we were decided - it would be a Cape Schanck Christmas!

We booked ourselves into the Cape Schanck Resort which judging by the pictures and price was a notch or two above our usual accommodations. Oh well, we thought, this would be a little indulgence to make up for...something. After wrestling a rental car out of the very busy local Europcar office, I proudly parked in front of 254 Macpherson in a very bright, almost neon blue, Jeep Patriot. An interesting choice for our adventures given the fact we had all of Christmas, four big bags, fruit and wine for 17 and a very small Christmas tree to try and cram into the space the size of a large bathtub! After cursing a bit and thinking that a bag or maybe a kid might have to be left at home, we were off on our Christmas adventure, with Colin and Alex practically sitting on top of each other and Linton with her knees by her chin.

Trying new routes is always an interest area of mine and despite Linton's initial misgivings we successfully negotiated our way down to the resort area in no more than 90 minutes. It is amazing how quickly you can get out of Melbourne and into the countryside. Not like in Toronto where you can be driving east or west for an hour and still feel like there are suburbs looming just behind the concrete sound barriers. The Mornington Peninsula is surrounded by ocean with rolling hills, wineries, golf courses and resorts and we immediately took a liking to what we saw flying by our windows.

The Cape Schanck resort is owned and run by the Royal Automobile Club of Victoria and if one is a member there is a considerable discount on rooms and amenities like golf...so we became a member. Our condo was a two bedroom, three bathroom, three flatscreen tv affair that we agreed could easily be our home. We did not have an ocean view (boo-hoo!) but were on the eighth hole of the golf course. After prying our luggage and the children out of the car and playing with the condo for awhile, we drove over to the rec centre for a little ping pong and a play in the very cool pool. Realizing there were more presents than time, we allowed the boys to open some presents before dinner and then settled in to our very own family Christmas dinner complete with crackers and carols on the i-pod.

Being a golf resort and with the opportunity practically slapping me in the face, I booked the first tee time for Christmas Eve morning. With Colin by my side and a set of clubs I could never afford to own back home, I was in heaven as I sent my opening drive 220 yards (almost straight) down the first fairway. I had just paid the equivalent of $60 Cdn. for 7 balls, a bag of tees, clubs, a pull cart and green fees! This was the way golf should be! With the course to ourselves Colin played all the par threes and several of the fours and played very well. He has a natural swing and if he doesn't try to kill it like his old man, he could be a very good golfer. We had a lot of fun, a few pars and even a birdie, and got back to the Condo in time to see Allie still in his jammies. Perfect.

The afternoon was one of our Australian sightseeing highlights as we explored the area of the Cape Schanck lighthouse. This is the very southernmost tip of Australia and the actual cape is something to behold. Linton and I felt it rivalled Africa's Cape of Good Hope we had been fortunate enough to see in '98. An incredible boardwalk takes you several hundred metres down to the ocean and everywhere is a picture postcard view. We tested the capacity of our digital memory stick snapping merrily away at every turn. But for a few surfers and a gaggle of other tourists the place was virtually deserted and I wondered that if this was in Canada - like a Peggy's Cove - there would be tour buses as far as the eye could see.

Then we were off to the bay side of the peninsula where again we serendipidously found paradise in a beach, laying out our smoked salmon sandwiches and bag of Doritos while the kids played in the gorgeous blue water. This was what he had come for. A hot, sunny beach on Christmas Eve. Knowing a little about the 40 plus cm of snow Toronto was receiving we once again felt fortunate to be here - but strangely thinking of home.

After maxing out on the sun (was it possible?) we were back at the condo opening more presents - actually most of our presents - prior to having dinner at the resort. Dinner was quiet in a semi-deserted dining room and I think we were all eager to head back to get in our jammies and hang our stockings. With cookies and carrots in place for Santa and the reindeer we all went to bed with visions of more memories to be made dancing in our heads.

Dec 23 - Super tourists at it again!

I wanted to get in one more quick entry before we leave Melbourne for a few days. When we come back there will be tonnes to blog about around Christmas and our travels and I wanted to get caught up with all of the things we have done before the big day.

The kids finished school on the 19th and we exchanged some nice pleasantries with several families we have gotten to know. Promises of calls for play dates and getting together over the break made us feel good about our growing acceptance within the school community. We received a very nice invitation for afternoon "tea" for the coming Sunday and went home packed with books, bags, artwork and everything else you could possibly imagine two boys might create over two terms of school. Before heading for home however we hit the Carlton Baths Pool Party for a romp in the pool on the giant, inflatable jumping castle and a little face painting. This was a great way to cool off and celebrate the end of the school year.

The boys report cards, that we had received earlier in the week, were very good though the Australian grading system is quite different from the Canadian one and we were a bit shocked to see both boys with mostly "Cs". Apparently that is the norm and both teachers assured us they were doing well and should move on. We are actually having them do the second part of the year they were in so that they stay level with their grades back home - we haven't quite figured out how to break it to Allie that he's not going on to grade two.

Anyway, that's an issue for another day. On Saturday I had been invited into Melbourne to watch a week-old hockey game by the husband of a couple we met a few months ago. It seems there are a few underground hockey fan clubs in the city who gather every week in a pub somewhere downtown, don their old hockey jerseys, and watch and talk hockey. So I walked downtown and met the guys at the Charles Dickens Tavern where we watched the Leafs beat the Sabres 2-1. It was fun to be out and talking hockey and I met a couple of good guys that I would gladly grab pints with again.

While I was out carousing, Lint and the boys made their way down to the Docklands area of the city. We had decided to check out the grand opening of the Southern Star - the third highest ferris wheel in the world and modelled after London's Eye. Apparently, thi ferris wheel has been six years in the making and was originally scheduled to open when Melbourne hosted the Commonwealth games in 2006. Obviously a tad overdue, we just happened to know it was opening on this particular day through a fluky check of their website. Suddenly we had a plan for the day!

After saying goodbye to the boys at the pub, I wandered over to the docklands and met up with Lint and the kids. Had I known it would take me 40 minutes to walk there I might have taken a cab, but nevertheless it was a gorgeous day and I wanted to see a new part of the city. Before the stuff hit the fan with this ugly economy the docklands was an enormous development mega-project where developers were turning an area equiavalent to the size of Toronto's own waterfront/docklands into condos, stores, restaurants and more. The Southern Star is supposed to be the magnet that draws the tourists in.

After meeting up we managed to stumble upon a cool tramp/trapeze thing that the kids just had to try. Mom and dad did not. We then settled for a simply awful and greasy dinner courtesy of the Red Rooster. Brutal! We ran screaming from the meal back to the Southern Star having decided that if we could, we would ride the thing mere hours after its grand opening! We giggled to ourselves as we bought our tickets and waited to board. Leave it to us to beat the majority of Australia to the next big attraction. The press had barely exited the pods and we were clambering back on, eager for a peak and to see what all the hub-bub was about.

It was a great ride - primarily for the fact that the kids were thrilled. It is a very cool feat of engineering and though we've been higher and faster - the sense of climbing 120 metres (about 40 stories) slowly in this glass fishbowl the size of a decent kitchen is still quite thrilling. Of course I was thinking that we were going to plunge to our deaths at any minute having blindly boarded the thing like the dutiful guinea pigs we were. I spent most of the 30 minute trip glued to the bench in the middle of the pod trying to fend off the vertigo that so wanted to mess with my brain. The kids on the other hand were glued to the glass as if we were mere feet from terra firma - oh, the bravado and bravery of youth!

Having survived the oh-so-close brush with death, we managed to avoid buying the picture taken at the top and anything else in the gift shop. That, in itself, is a miraculous feat. We then spent the next hour waiting for the fireworks that were scheduled to celebrate and punctuate the grand opening. We had fun watching the buskers and dancers hired to entertain the crowds and the kids waited wonderfully for the big show to start. Despite a lame light show the fireworks did not disappoint and were a fitting salute to the end of a big day, big week, big month and big term. Once we found a taxi, it was a blissful and very quiet ride home.

Dec 22 - It's Beginning to Feel Not A Lot Like Christmas

As I begin to put fingers to keyboard for this latest blog entry, my mind is humming with just how much Christmas will be different this year. With reports of huge snowstorms back home, pile ups on the 400, and the world economy tanking, we certainly have a lot to be thankful for in our year "away". As I look out to our back deck, Linton is sunning herself and reading in shorts and a t-shirt and 25 degree glory. Colin and I played tennis this morning and then I went for a run in a Melbourne that already seems vacant for the holidays. In two days we will be loading up a rental car and heading for "the beach" which we hope will be 5 days of sun and sand. Christmas - seems very distant both in its message and the material that makes it real in our minds.

As we have been "jonesing" just a little for a familiar something in the absence of snow and hockey, we have come to notice a few things about an Aussie Christmas that stand out. On tv there are few specials dedicated to Christmas and the ones that are there tend to be of a B grade variety - like Shrek the Halls showing on Christmas Eve and Christmas Vacation 2 with Randy Quaid - Uggh! No Chevy Chase? - Not even worth considering. I had to get my Grinch fix on CBC radio the other day and Barbara Budd is no Boris Karloff! We also took notice that Victoria's Secret has a lingerie show on Christmas Eve as well. There is Christmas - but it also seems like it is a bit of an afterthought - at least on TV.

Certainly the retailers are trying to get into the spirit with window displays and department store santas and the other day I put some change in the bucket of a guy on a street corner ringing the bell for the Sally Ann. Even so, Christmas has an element to it - whether it be the snow, or the whole babe-in-a-manger thing, or simply a good turkey with stuffing that our life in Australia can't quite recreate. I am aware that this is our first Christmas in Australia and I can't possibly have seen all the ways to do it. But whereas back home we would look forward to reclining by the fire with a book, hot toddy and a few carols - maybe out of sheer necessity - the weather simply dictates otherwise here in Oz. There's no need for a fire and the temperature is more suited to a cold beer and a few shrimps on the barbie. And that's certainly what many Australians do - pack up the cooler and head for the beach with plenty of seafood at hand.

If it were not for the lingering English influence in Australia, where even there snow seems to be a common theme at Christmas, I think Australians might give up on the whole thing altogether. While in Canada we look forward to the opportunity and excuse to celebrate with family (indoors) the fact that we all survived another year, the celebrating down under seems to be as much around the end of the school year, the start of summer, or the next test cricket match as it is around Christmas. Indeed, I read an editorial in a newspaper the other day that made a similar tongue in cheek claim - that Australia just wasn't suited to Christmas as they do it in the northern hemisphere. I might tend to agree, though if I was to acknowledge the Christmas Story a little more in my own celebrations I would realize there wasn't any snow falling in Bethlehem that night either. And why should only snow-burdened societies be allowed to stake their claim on knowing the real spirit of Christmas?

Nevertheless, it is a bit weird to walk around a store and see all of these ornaments and decorations with pictures of snow piled deep and crisp and even. Surprisingly though, and I think due to another lingering English influence, there are many real Christmas or Yule trees as they call them. Colin and I slowed down in front of a drive thru flower shop the other day so that we could actually smell the pine needles. As with all smells it was a very instant and powerful memory of home. Trying to build on the pine needle memory, I dialed up a few podcasts of the Vinyl Cafe to see if the adventures of Dave and Morley and the Christmas turkey might make things feel more festive and in fact, the dulcet tones of Stewart Maclean actually helped, a bit. Building on that, Colin and I attended a carol sing on Sunday night at our local Anglican church. It was quaint and very folksy and we had fun singing Silent Night and many others. Still, with the warm sun burning through the stained glass windows and everyone there in shorts and flip flops it wasn't quite Christmas.

None of this is intended to be a complaint but more the observations of an outsider struggling to find Christmas buried beneath all this darn sun! I really shouldn't complain- after all, if snow at Christmas was that important to me I should have applied to the University of Stockholm! What brought this point home even more for me was a brief journey down - literally - into the underground world of the ex-pat ice hockey fan. The other day I had a chance to enjoy a few pints with some new acquaintances watching a taped, week old Leaf- Sabre game in a divey pub in downtown Melbourne. It was great to be out - but I didn't really need the grainy stale game that was balring away on the big screen. The comaraderie and convo was key and I could have happily watched the -gulp!-test cricket. A good reminder that I wasn't really here for the hockey and I didn't really need to try and re-create Canada in the middle of Melbourne. Maybe it should be the same way with Christmas...

In place of snow and ice, we are actually enjoying some new and different traditions. We have already had a very pleasant and boozy Christmas tea (actually champagne) with new friends, we are realizing the benefits of no snow in terms of immediately going outside to play with your new toy, and we are looking forward to spending Boxing Day with friends and their family in Metung where we will undoubtedly learn another thing or two about what makes an Aussie Christmas special.

Interestingly though, when all of the trimmings and trappings of Christmas are not as readily available, you inevitably re-create or crave the things that are most important to you. In that regard we do miss friends and family and the social life that comes with them. A snowball or two might also be nice. A crackling fire. The smell of turkey. Pine needles. Mom's cranberry loaf. A really good game of shinny or at least a live Habs game on TV. Little things. Silly things. But the things that we continue to discover make us who we truly are.

Dec 18 - The Mom and Dad Show

For the past couple of weeks, I have helped to walk Alex’s class the few blocks from school to the local Y for swimming lessons. My help has been needed most in the way of crowd control in the change room as 6-8 year old boys can have a little “trouble” getting on with things. The hijinks tend to include everything from standing in the middle of the room and doing nothing (a la Alex) to pointing and screaming about the fact that you just saw someone’s “wee wee” or “Sponge Bob” underpants. I believe that if a parent were not there they would all eventually extricate themselves from the room somewhat safely and successfully with only a few wearing underwear back to front or leaving a sopping wet towel on the floor. I believe they would. Regardless, I have tried to be there every day and as such have not really tested that theory. And even though I am a teacher and work with young people as a career, the “bloom” of being with my child while at the same time refereeing a bunch of wet and screaming young boys has begun to fade from the rose ever so slightly.

But we remain, as parents, dedicated to helping out. The other day Linton and I made a cheese tray for Colin’s class party, attended a volunteer thank you tea, attended another picnic in the park for Alex’s class and delivered thank you/Christmas presents to the boys’ teachers. It was a busy day. In fact many days over the past few months have been busy with respect to our involvement in the boys’ school lives. That is certainly what we had hoped would be the case this year and I think we have come to be known within the school yard as those “keen Canadians”. So be it. We are proud and fortunate to be so involved.

And yet, you might say we are about to enter uncharted “involvement” waters. In just two more days Linton, Colin, Alex and I will all be free of any work or school responsibilities for six whole weeks! This has never happened before in our family. I would suggest that it rarely happens in any family! The idea that mom and dad could be home with the kids all day every day for six straight weeks seems at first to be both a miracle and a blessing. After all, this was what this year was going to allow us to do – just be with the kids and be a family. This amount of time with our kids would have made us drool even two years ago.

Linton and I have certainly warmed to the idea of not working, and I haven’t even been in school for a whole month with at least another six weeks to go in that regard. We have both adopted a comfortable but fulfilling life of leisure. And now we are ratcheting up the equation by throwing the boys into the mix. There will no longer be a need for early alarms, rushed showers, packed lunches, homework, backpacks, walks to school, walks back from school and all that other school related stuff. It is a situation that should bring us nothing but sheer joy - so why are we so nervous?

One of the things that is becoming apparent to both of us is what work offers in the way of an adult diversion. It is quite logical that we are only figuring this out now. Going abroad for a year has created a rather cyclical pattern to our attitude for change and it seems that at the six month mark the cycle is returning to the “home” position. At first we were keen to rid ourselves of the pace, politics, and stress that comes with a full time job. Then we were content to immerse ourselves in the time we now had to explore new things and this wonderful new place. After that we moved to missing little bits about the people, connections and intellectual challenge that work supplies us with. And now, finally, staring down the gun of a long hot summer in Melbourne with children – suddenly and a little bit surprisingly, work is looking pretty good.

Bizarre – I know. About as strange as the thought that we are actually going to miss the cold and snow at Christmas. And even though I know deep down we are some of the luckiest people and parents on earth to be doing this kind of thing with our kids – the simple fact of the matter is that from time to time – we all need a little space. I have never felt closer to my children and I am positive that this collective experience is shaping their soul and psyches for the better. However, our family without plans is a recipe for disaster. Combine that with the fact that we have an extremely small social circle, no car, a strict budget, and 40 degree heat looming in the distance and the summer has the potential to be "interesting".

Now, don’t get me wrong. There will be a lot of games in the park and craft projects at home with trips to the local pool and library. But those can only go so far and the kids get tired of them, too! We have been unable to find any kind of program for the guys though not due to a lack of trying. We have looked at soccer clinics, tennis lessons, swimming classes, art classes – the list goes on – but nothing has seemed to work. We are travelling for about three weeks of the break, so that will offer its own diversions but it will still be “the mom and dad show”. Just rhyming it all off makes me start to feel sorry for the boys!

So this humble blogger’s perspective is this. We rail and wail against work for many reasons. We wish we didn’t have to work so that we could do the important things – like hang out with our loved ones. And yet, as I come to the end of almost six months of fairly intense parenting and family interaction, I have a better appreciation for what a healthy work-life balance can offer. I know I will change my tune the second week back at school and I know the worst day as a parent can still be better than the best day at work. However, I am also now of the opinion that a parent who has been able to go out and use another part of their brain, contribute to the success of a different group of people, essentially breathing and living at a different pace – is a parent who has created an opportunity to see their family in a new and fresh way upon returning home at the end of the day. At the same time, my appreciation for the work and mental stability of stay at home moms (and dads) has risen tenfold. And though I feel a subtle longing for personal accomplishment that goes beyond a well read bedtime story, I will still look forward to my walk to the pool tomorrow.

PS - The picture of Alex was taken at his class picnic where he lost his second tooth!

Dec 14 - Catching Up

After wading through several blogs worth of trip details I thought I would spend a moment or two catching up with a few smaller events that have occurred in the meantime.

Colin at a Robotics Fair

The day before we left for our last trip I volunteered to accompany Colin's class to a robotic competition hosted by the Melbourne Grammar School. It was a fun day and great to see Colin so focused on the various tasks and challenges. I was also proud to see he tried to steer clear of the distractions that some of his other male classmates were unable to resist. The way home was a gong show of trams and trains but it was another great opportunity I never get when I'm working.

Colin's Muscial Soiree

I spent another evening at Col's school watching his choir perform for parents at the end of year soiree. One of the very few boys in the choir he did his whole musical family proud singing at the front and even doing a wonderful job with a solo. You can't really compare the choir here in Melbourne with Maurice Cody and its many amazing choirs but we are happy that Colin still loves to sing and continues to do so down under.

Trimming the Tree

On December 1, after mailing our Christmas Lists to Santa (I hope he hasn't run out of single malt!)we spent $29.99 at the local discount grocer for a beautifully fake plastic tree. It's not bad actually and having purchased a few cheap ornaments at the Christmas Cave a few weeks prior we spent the evening setting up our tree and trying to create some Christmas spirit. A few carols on the i-pod, cards on the mantel and prezzies under the tree have all helped but it continues to be difficult to imagine Christmas when it's 25 degrees under the palm trees.

The Boys at Adventure Playground

While Lint was away, I needed a diversion so the boys and I trammed our way down deep into Melbourne to check out a very cool playground. Free of charge and run as a community supported co-op, the park was full of very cool and imaginative play structures designed and made by the locals. It was a breath of fresh air and I loved the chance to make a cup of coffee in the communal kitchen and then wander outside to see the boys laughing and running and playing. After two hours of fun we went off to check out Luna Park and play in the gentle surf at St Kilda beach.

The Blair Family for Dinner

Though I continue to keep a Facebook account off my resume, I must admit it has its advantages. Case in point was the connection that Linton made with old friends from high school and university - the Blair family. They and their kids are on an incredible tour of Asia and the Pacific and just happened to be in Melbourne where we hosted them for a home cooked meal and a little Canadian convo. Their boys and our boys got along famously and the adults enjoyed the chance to reacquaint or get to know each other over red wine and lamb sausage. They were off to their next great destination the following day but it was great to have a momentary connection with Canadians and to share our observations about living life abroad.

So that's a little more of what we've been up to in amidst the tours of Uluru and the hills and high rises of Hong Kong!

Dec 3-8 Linton goes to Hong Kong!

Because we are lucky enough to be living in the southern hemisphere for a year, our proximity to Asia made it a logical place for us to try and visit this year. We had originally hoped to meet my first cousin, Sheila and her family in Thailand during Christmas break but recent news events and high holiday prices ruled this plan out. We then decided it made sense for me (Linton) to go alone to visit with Sheila and her family who have lived in Hong Kong for the last 13 years. With the help of our fantastic travel agent, Emma, I managed to get a decent price on an airline ticket with Cathay Pacific direct. I left very early in the morning on December 3rd and I have to admit felt quite guilty about leaving James and the boys. The flight was overbooked and I was offered $300 AUD, $100 US, access to the Cathay lounge and $100 in Cathay plane spending money to take the later flight that day. It was very tempting but I forged on. I have always heard Cathay Pacific is a good airline and it did live up to its reputation in my eyes. The woman beside me had never flown before so I was her guide to airline protocol and procedures and assisted her as she felt unwell during most of the flight. This was not exactly how I wanted to spend my nine plus hours on the flight!

Upon arriving in Hong Kong, things got better quickly. I was very impressed with the layout of the airport and the processing of our arrival. After retrieving my bag, I boarded the extremely efficient and painless Airport Express train that took me right into Central station in Hong Kong. Sheila was meeting me there. After a happy and teary reunion (we have not seen each other in a year) we drove back to Sheila’s apartment in their brand new van. Sheila, her husband Andrew and their two beautiful kids live in a great location (Wan Chai) and their apartment is quite spacious for Hong Kong with 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms and living quarters with a toilet for their helper. Once at the apartment, Sheila and I quickly changed and headed downtown to have a drink at a couple of the high profile hotel bars in Hong Kong. The highlight of the night was crossing over to Kowloon on the Star Ferry and having a kir royale at the bar at the top of the Peninsula Hotel watching the harbour light show on all the city’s skyscrapers. What a skyline! I was extremely impressed. Sheila then took me to her favourite noodle restaurant and we ate some authentic Chinese cuisine – yum – and then to bed for the night. It was a long day for me as Hong Kong is three hours behind Melbourne.

Sheila had suggested an itinerary for me for the day on Thursday and with her helper, Jovie’s assistance, I made my way up The Peak on the bus from their apartment. The Peak is a spot at the top of the mountain overlooking Hong Kong that has a cable car running up to it, a lookout and a tourist walk around the mountain with spectacular views. It was a beautiful day and I enjoyed some spectacular views of downtown Hong Kong and the valleys around the Peak. I then rode the cable car back down to Central and caught the bus to Stanley Market. Central Hong Kong is such a busy thriving place it is hard to describe. If you ever want to shop, all the brands are here. Too bad I wasn’t in the market for Hermes or Louis Vuitton. The bus ride to Stanley was equally as picturesque as my morning at the Peak and I was busy taking pictures as we drove through Repulse Bay and up the coastal roads. You really have to be comfortable with heights and winding roads living here. My stomach was getting a workout! Stanley is a beautiful bay that has a very touristy ex-pat market. I did manage to do a bit of bartering and bought some shoes, glasses, a blouse and some little toys for the boys for Christmas. Sheila then generously picked me up after she was done school and we returned to her apartment quickly to get ready for her aerobics class at the local cricket club. The class was led by her fit and gorgeous friend Sandy and was quite the workout but I think I managed to keep up respectably. We all had a glass of wine to celebrate our class participation afterwards. After a quick change back at Sheila’s apartment, we were out for our first of four nights out on the town. We met four of her amazing girlfriends at a cute restaurant (Jaspa’s in Happy Valley) and continued with the wine drinking at dinner. Then it was time to go to Happy Foot for a foot massage (Sheila had booked a private room for all of us) and a post-massage Cosmo martini ended the night. Phew! And that was only day 1.

Although Sheila had suggested a morning itinerary for me while she was at work on Friday, I decided to have a lazy morning and sleep in as I was due to go to Sheila’s school on Friday afternoon to meet her co-workers and her class. Sheila teaches at an International School that is within walking distance from their apartment with amazing facilities and faculty from all over the world. I was treated as though as I was a celebrity by her adorable Year 3 students. They all sat quietly, asked me questions about myself and presented me with amazing cards that they had made. After school was dismissed, I walked home with Jovie, and my niece and nephew back to the apartment to get ready to go their club for drinks and to meet up with some of Sheila’s friends. From there, Sheila and I were going on to the restaurant/nightlife district, Lan Kwai Fung. I have to say the ex-pat lifestyle is quite enjoyable. I was very impressed with the facilities and family-friendliness of Sheila’s club, The Hong Kong Football Club. The kids had dinner and we enjoyed some drinks while hanging out with some more of Sheila and Andrew’s friends. Then on to Lan Kwai Fung to a restaurant called Zest where we met four more of Sheila’s friends who were equally as friendly and interesting from South Africa, Canada and England. On the way there, we stopped at a Russian vodka bar that is literally in the freezer (hence the fur coats) for a photo-op. After a great dinner, we hit the bars and this is the point in the evening where I have no idea what the name of the bars/clubs were but all I can say is FUN! Loud music, Chinese and ex-pat people together and everyone having a good time. I think we got home around 3am.

Saturday morning we all got up and drove up to another teacher friend of Sheila’s who lives in a beach house with her husband and kids at Big Wave Beach. Another windy coastal road with spectacular vistas and apartment building/ houses built right on the side of the mountain. Big Wave Beach turned out to be a beautiful bay and surfer beach so I was in heaven. It wasn’t quite warm enough to go swimming or sunbathe but when Sheila’s new van got a flat (not happy!), I was happy to stay and hang with Sheila and her kids on the beach. After the tire was changed, we went back to the apartment to decorate their Christmas tree and get ready for another night on the town. For my last night in Hong Kong, we were going out for dinner with some more of Sheila’s teacher friends. We had a fun dinner with an amazing couple, Chris & Chris and were later joined for awhile by a stag party of some more of their colleagues. From here we were off to more clubs and bars with Sheila’s colleagues and it suddenly became a very late night. By the end of the evening, I truly felt like I had made some great friends.

When I awoke exhausted and a bit fragile the next morning, I then understood what had kept Sheila and her family here for all these years (besides the 15% income tax), it was the amazing people and the exciting lifestyle that I don’t know if you can duplicate anywhere else. After an amazing all-you-can-eat brunch back at their club, Sheila and I were off to Central to check my luggage and hang out until I was due to go out to airport. We had a very teary goodbye as I was so grateful to her for such an amazing visit and we agreed that we were made closer by this visit. Back to reality as I made my way back to Melbourne on the red-eye flight. I arrived without incident on Monday morning and was very happy to get back to James and the boys (and climb into my own bed!)

THANK YOU SHEILA AND ANDREW!