Very Seattle

This one’s for some of our Aussie friends. Mark is in Seattle this week on business, I am joining him on Thursday for a week and a half then we’ll fly home together. He sent me this picture of Seattle and as I sat at my desk in Sydney gazing out at the sunny blue sky I could almost feel the cold winter day in the picture. It will be great to be back in the Pacific Northwest next week, but at the same time, I think the weather will quickly excite me to get back to my new home. - kel

Australia v Sth Africa - SCG

During my time in Sydney I’ve had many firsts, first Aussie Pub, fist real Aussie meat pie, first sighting of a kangaroo outside of a zoo… the list goes on and on. Yesterday however was a notable first, after picking Mark up from the Airport (see blogs below) we were off to the SCG (Sydney Cricket Grounds) for my first ever in person Cricket Game, Australia vs. South Africa in one day cricket.

My love, and yes I really do mean love, of cricket actually began last year when I was in South Africa for 4 weeks. In the middle of the afternoons, when the sun was just a bit too hot, I watched quite a bit of Cricket on TV. My love and understanding has grown immensely while being in Australia. Mark’s parents watch it all the time, while home sick for a week at the beginning of the year I watched for hours. I know the players names, I am learning the plays and some of the strategy and am slowly becoming a fan. This is a picture of Brett Lee, my favorite Aussie bowler and a South African batsman Graeme Smith.

The game was fantastic, Australia had 57-run victory over South Africa, the weather was beautiful (sunny about 85 F, slight breeze), and the fans were dressed up in Aussie pride like I’ve never seen in the US. Australia hit tons of great shots, for the first 2 hours (games usually are 8 hours long) Aussie fans were on their feet the entire time. Mark did get a slight sunburn, particularly funny since he came to work today with a sunburn after being in Korea in -19 degree C weather all week. The fans were a bit crazy, typically drunken revelry aside; it was the outfits and costumes I am talking about. It was like Halloween where the theme was Australia! Whole groups of people wearing all yellow matching outfits, hats of all kinds, faces painted, wigs, I even saw a group of girls wearing Australian flags as dresses. This is a pic of Mark and I in the stands taken with my camera phone (sorry for the closed eyes).

Mark’s parents were at the game with us, I learned more about the game, saw just how fast the bowlers throw the ball and experienced my first sold out stadium full of drunken Aussies. It was a blast and I can’t wait to go again! -kel

Asia Pt II: Korea

Wednesday 1st Feb (cont): Difinitely more comfortable arriving in Korea this time - hopped the limo bus to the city (13,000 KRW versus the 90,000+ I payed for the limo taxi my first time here). Given the limited choice (with a summer bias) of clothing that Kelly and I have while we wait for the right time to have our container unloaded it is hard to prepare for -12 degrees C. The half mile walk from the bus station to the hotel was no fun.

Thursday 2nd Feb: Happy Birthday Ruminson! Got my mum to call me for her birthday after Kel had given her a present this morning. Drove to an offsite meeting about 80 km's north east of Seoul with one of my MS Korea colleagues - he explained the etiquette of Korean drinking to me along the way. I knew I had a night ahead of me.

Being the only non-Korean in a meeting that is conducted in Korean is tough. All of the MS people speak partial English and a couple speak great English so I rely on them totally. Lunch was traditional Korean food, most of which I couldn't identify but it was good - plenty of vegies and very spicey. I was asked if I had ever eaten dog food (which I clarified to mean have I eaten dog meat), I immediately confirmed that unless the unidentified meal I had just consumed included dog (it didn't) I hadn't. Although most do not eat it regularly every male at the table had eaten dog meat. Dogs are specially bred and raised for eating (the same as cows and pigs), and it seems there is currently a shortage so in poorer areas the regular dog population has been on the decline. I told them about the crocodile pizza (see "An Aussie Christmas" blog December 2005) that Kelly and I had and they thought it was crazy - it's all about perspective.

Seoul was cold but the area northeast of the city where the Hotel Chereville, (http://www.cherevillehotel.com), is located was at least another 2 degrees colder... and I'm running around in a cotton business shirt and a light sweater. It was wicked.

The dinner was again traditional Korean and this time everybody sat crossed legged on the floor to eat - I lasted about 15 mins until my legs went numb. The hard part for me was that because of my inflexibility the mats that are provided are too small and I end up with my ankles crossed on the hard ground.

We were drinking soju (fermented potato and onion varieties) - it is about 20% proof. In Korea there are many ways to show respect and for bonding while drinking. One thing that can be done to build a relationship (it takes a bit of getting used to) is to give specific people the glass you have been drinking with and pour them a drink, they drink from your glass and then pour you a drink and return the glass. Everybody was really cool and as usual the more drinking that was done the less language presented a barrier. After dinner we continued a "casual" drinking session back in the hotel, which involved sitting cross legged on the floor again but this time the drinks were scotch (no single malt here) and beer. When the shoes were put back on at the end of the night some people's had definitely been replaced by wobbly boots. I slept well.

Friday 3rd Feb: Back to Seoul - lots of work to do.

Saturday 4th Feb: Caught the subway to Insa-dong - Seoul has a great subway system. Today was really, really cold - I brought a wool hat from a street stall to get me through. Insa-dong is great, lots of small shops selling tradional Korean handicrafts and antiques and a number of art galleries, both traditional and contemporary. I went to a great robot exhibition at one of the galleries. I spent about 4 hours all up in Insa-dong and if it wasn't for the cold I would have stayed longer. Riding the subway back (and having thawed out some) I decided to take a detour to Itaewon - it's where most of the westerners hang out in Seoul. I could have done without it - seemed pretty seedy in the day and there was stall after stall of fake brand name clothing. In all a fun day of exploring. I was ready to sleep all the way home on the plane.

Asia Pt I: Hong Kong

Tuesday 31st Jan: The long plane flights are getting easier, Sydney to Hong Kong passed in no time (actually 9 hrs). I read the paper, watched a horrible movie (The Transporter - so bad it was funny) and a few doco's and started speaking with the older lady in the window seat. I'm usually not a talker but she didn't have the strongest bladder, so she was up and down often and apologizing each time for making me move, so we got to talking. Anna is psychiatrist in Tel Aviv and has childeren & grand children in Sydney. What a story - born in the Netherlands, her family fled first to Potugal away from the Nazi's and then to Indonesia away from the threat of Franco, in Indonesia they were imprisoned for three years during the Japanese occupation. After the war they eventually moved to Spain, she married a Moroccan Jew, who was a lawyer but because of his dark skin found it hard to get work. They had family ties in Australia so moved here, started a family and lived here for 30 years. He died, her children were grown so she took the opportunity to move to Jerusalem to teach in the University, her apartment was damaged during a suicide bombing so she took the opportuntiy to move into private practice and to Tel Aviv. As Gwen Stefani says "the shit is bananas", it definitely helped pass the time but I was thinking at one stage that given all that has happened to her I am not too keen to be flying on the same plane let alone sit next to her.

The train into the city from HK airport is great - quick and easy. Jumped a cab to my motel (Le Meridien Cyberport - new & funky), I had to wait an hour for the room so they upgraded me to the suite - a waste, I was wishing Kel was there to enjoy it with me. Met my colleague Alan and his family for dinner and got to work at the MS offices.

Wednesday 1st Feb: I'm trying to lose a couple of pounds for the wedding and running out of time. It doesn't help when the comp breakfast at the hotel is a buffet that includes shrimp dumplings and pork sticky buns. On the way back to the Central we passed an awesome cemetary looking down to the sea, I wish I had time to stop and take photo's (next time). Checked my bag at the airport express train station then jumped a local loop train to Causeway Bay to have a look around in the 30 mins I had spare. Lots and lots of shops, nothing too appealing although I bought some DVD's at a very handy price (could they be pirated :) ). Back out to airport and guess what... there is Popeye's chicken at the HK airport ... a few legs and then on the plane to Incheon.

A Weekend Away in Mudgee

A Meat Tray Raffle, kangaroo’s in the wild, lots of wine, an adorable B&B, 36.5 C degree heat (97 degrees F) great food and lots of laughs. This weekend, our first weekend since arriving in Sydney 3 months ago, free of house hunting, house planning or house shopping! I planned our weekend get away to a central NSW country town called Mudgee most famous for it’s vineyards (think a mini-version of Napa).

At the not so crack of dawn on Saturday morning we headed out through the Western Suburbs of Sydney passing such notable towns as Kellyville and Pitt Town toward the Blue Mountains, crossed the Blue Mountains into Lithgow and across the NSW plains toward Mudgee. The drive was about 4 hours and the scenery was beautiful. This is a picture looking out on Wollemi National Park from Pearsons Lookout on the way to Mudgee. My excitement was growing as we drove closer and closer to Mudgee as I had been assured by my co-workers I was sure to see a Kangaroo in the wild. Other than a Kangaroo road kill (very sad) and a few great road sings there were none to be seen on Saturday.

Mark and I had a wonderful lunch at Elton’s in Mudgee, explored a few wineries (Farmer’s Daughter and Peterson’s were our favorite) bought some wine and generally checked out the tiny town of Mudgee where on a Saturday all of the business close at 1 PM. The main street in Mudgee is called Church Street. This is a picture of the beautiful St. Mary’s Cathloic Church.

After a nap and a cheese plate at our B&B it was off to the famous Henry Lawson’s pub. This was a traditional NSW pub, and the first real pub I had visited in Australia. When a man approached us with Raffle tickets I was thinking, oh how nice raising money for a local charity, but oh no I was wrong. Apparently I have come to learn, nightly, at pubs across Australia they hold a Meat Tray Raffle, where the winner of the raffle takes home a jumbo tray of meat. Of course Mark and I joined, this raffle was not just a Meat Tray Raffle, it was a Seafood Platter Raffle! 1st place was a Seafood Platter, 2nd place was a Meat Tray, 3rd place a bottle of wine. I was giggling away asking Mark if we win the Meat or the Seafood just exactly what do you think we will do with it? It’s over 90 degrees outside, we have no cooler and we are 4 hours from a refrigerator big enough to keep it. Other thoughts such as “smart Aussies who found a way to pacify angry house wives with trays of meat when their husbands have been at the pub all night” were running through our conversation. We bought 3 tickets and sat on the edge of our seats as the numbers were drawn, we missed the 2nd prize Meat Tray by one number, but won 3rd prize a bottle of wine. This was not just any bottle of wine either, it was a German bottle of wine that we have never heard of. There we were sitting in the middle of Australian wine country, and we had won a German bottle of wine!

Sunday morning we were up early, on some great advice from our B&B we went to the outskirts of town to look for some Kangaroos. After scanning the horizon repeatedly, I spotted two ears under a tree. We got out of the car and walked up a dirt road for a better look. Sure enough there were three Kangaroos chilling under a tree in the cool shade. They were as interested in us as we were in them, took a good look then hopped away after about 5 min. It was amazing to see them in the wild and to see them hopping along at such close proximity was definitely the highlight of my weekend.

We took our time checking out the lookouts and sights along the road on our drive back to Sydney on Sunday afternoon. All in all it was a great weekend min-break…it was fantastic to get out of Sydney and has sparked my travel bug to check out the rest of Australia! -kel

Jock-a-mo fee-no ai na-né

A slow start to the year on the blog front - sorry. So what have we been up to?

Yum Cha! What is Dim Sum in America is a big deal in Sydney. There are numerous 300 plus seater locations and they are usually packed on the weekend. Kel & I teamed up with a couple of my Yum Cha eating buddies from back in the day, Sam and Christie, and hit one of my favorite locations ... the formerly known "Silver Spring" which has sneakily rechristened itself as the "Zilver Spring". A few cosmetic changes but the fish tanks are still there, it still packs them in so get there before 11:30am and the food is still awesome ... pork sticky buns, prawn dumplings, BBQ octopus... After a morning of engaging conversation covering the gammit from the merits of Sin City (it is now on my "to see" DVD list) to jokes about babies who wail like Macaws, I waddled out of there all for just AU$20.

Kelly has really stepped it up as cruise director since the start of the year with the highlight so far our trip to Jazz in the Domain last Saturday night. Part of the month long Festival of Sydney the concert was free and featured some very fun performers on stage and some crazy dancing off it (check out the links to get more of an idea):

http://www.smh.com.au/news/arts/trad-greats-ask-for-help/2006/01/14/1137119008471.html

We met a whole bunch of new people (all through a girl that Kelly has become friends with), I drank a little(much), helped myself to lots of other people's food and enjoyed the music. We headed out a little early to miss some possible bad weather and wandered through a very diverse crowd that had two obvious things in common - booze and bad dancing - it was a cross between people feeling the spirit at a southern revival and those wobbly legged runners at the end of a marathon. A funny way to finish a great night.

Happy new year everyone.

- Mark

An Aussie Christmas

Christmas weekend was fantastic. Friday we kicked off the weekend with Mark’s birthday, an afternoon at the beach and good ole KFC for dinner! On your birthday in Mark’s family you get to choose what you want for dinner, Mark craving the US cooking opted for Fried Chicken from KFC! Although Mark did get some flack for being so old we had a great celebration with his family.

Saturday was a scorcher, it was over 100 degrees, no breeze and I was sweating just standing still. Mark and I went to Christmas Eve mass at the Catholic church a few blocks away from our new house. In a first for me, the mass was outdoors, we sat in the grass on our picnic blanket. Although much of the service seemed similar to Christmas Eve mass in Seattle, the entire service from start to finish (with about 400 people getting communion) lasted only 45 min. This was the church service of my childhood dreams! The beachy feel of our Northern Beaches community was apparent in the casual atmosphere of the church service and the flip flops and board shorts most people wore to church.

Sunday we exchanged gifts with each other and Marks family and headed up to the central coast to my future brother in-law (Clay) parent’s house. We were treated to a wonderful Christmas lunch, chatted and enjoyed the warm weather. Above is a picture of Mark’s mom and I at Tuggerah lakes on the central coast near Clay’s parents home.


Monday morning we were up early to call the US and wish everyone a Happy Chrissy (Aussie for Merry Christmas). We then took a hike to Barenjoey Lighthouse near Palm Beach. This is a picture of Mark and I at the top of the hike with the Pacific Ocean on the left and Pittwater Inlet on the right. The weather was great and we headed straight to the beach after our hike. Mark taught me some body bashing (Aussie for body surfing) techniques, I was officially the dorkiest girl on the beach in my bikini and swim goggles but I was also having the best time!

Tuesday we walked across the Harbor Bridge and took in all the beautiful sights of Sydney Harbor. We ate lunch at the historic Australian Hotel (Mark’s Great Uncle used to own the Hotel) where we had saltwater crocodile pizza (it wasn’t very good, the meat was super chewy but now I can say I’ve tried it) Here is a picture of Mark outside the Australian Hotel.

We had a wonderful Chrissy weekend filled with good food, family and friends. We miss everyone and wish you all Happy Holidays and all the best in the New Year. -kel

One for my baby and one more for the road ...

It is the season for many things and one of those things is “Top 10” lists. Getting toward the end of the year all the newspapers and TV news programs have them – the top 10 new authors of the year, the top 10 leading news stories of the year, the top 10 local Seattle music releases and The Stranger even had a top 10 places to meet “swingers” in their year end issue for 2004.

So in homage to the city of Seattle, which showed me such a good time and introduced me to many great friends in the years I was there I will introduce you to my top 10 things I miss about Seattle now that I have been gone for a quarter year. A caveat before I start, I miss all of my friends very much and equally and “missing friends” would definitely be #1 on the list – so aside from that here we go ….

1. (Three way tie) Midnight Cuban Sandwich @ Paseo, Blue Cheese and Bacon Burger @ Red Mill and the Dybwad @ Other Coast Café
4. Snowboarding – I know the PNW is having a great snow season and after the disaster of ‘04/’05 I am jealous of having such easy access to good snow
5. Pacifco cerveza – usually a 12 pack for $10 on special at Fred’s every other week. I’m almost ashamed to say it but my days of drinking heavy beers in quantity are behind me, Pacifico and a lime made me feel like I was on a sunny beach in Mexico even if I was actually sitting on the couch in a house with no heat in Wallingford. You can get Carona here but it is a gourmet beer and fifty-odd bucks for a 24 pack – no thanks. Australian beer is good, don’t get me wrong, but after experiencing my first chunder for five or six years just last Thursday I’m a little gun shy right now.
6. My stuff – I mean nearly everything I owned at 3618, clothes, coke bottles, pick axe, Arkie… everything – since it was packed the day before we left we haven’t seen a thing. The good news we received this week was that it has landed in Australia, the bad news was that customs have chosen to inspect every item because of suspicious items included on the packing list – could they have mistaken four boxes of “coke” as meaning something else?
7. Hatties – sometimes just for a beer at the counter and sometimes for chicken fried chicken (with garlic mash potatoes and sweet corn for the “two sides with main”). Some fun times there right through to the end when Kelly and I had a front row seat to see the Radio Nationals do an acoustic set and they used our table to rest their beers on.
8. Mojito’s at El Camino’s – the best cocktail in the city hands down.
9. Rainier on the drive to work – this time of year you don’t get to see it much but when I did I was never any less amazed at how awesome it looked and how crazy it is to be living in a big city with that as a backdrop. A similar feeling was driving home in winter when I was at Amazon in Beacon Hill coming down the hill and seeing the snow capped Olympics – Seattle is beautiful.
10. If this was a “what I most miss about the U.S.” list, #1 would be Popeyes Chicken. A major beef I have against the city of Seattle is that there are no Popeye’s, but I made the drive to Tacoma twice a year and often in winter to have my fill of Popeyes – can’t drive to T-town from here.

Just missing the list was living in a city where half the locals wear purple and puke around in winter (not) – although I’m sure this eyesore does not start until later in winter as U dub is now a basketball school. (We celebrated Apple Cup in the Kelly-Mark household this year so I didn’t miss that momentous event).

We do miss all of our friends and wish everybody a great time over the holidays and all the best for the new year. A year I am looking forward to very much.

Peace and love. - Mark

The Hoff…

I simply can not understand the attraction. David Hasselhoff (or the Hoff as known in Australia) is a huge hit with the Aussies. Here are the links to two recent articles about him and his singing career in the Sydney Morning Herald. This is no trash mag, it is a very serious newspaper that I read almost every day…One of the articles even references Kit – the talking car from his seriously ancient sitcom Night Rider! Anyone a secret fan of the Hoff, just let me know, I’ll try to snag his autograph for you… -kel

http://www.smh.com.au/news/music/hoff-revved-up-to-record-classic-song/2005/12/10/1134086845003.html

http://www.smh.com.au/news/entertainment/carols-with-the-hoff/2005/12/17/1134703647640.html

And then there was shelter...

It's official we've bought a house! It's a total fixer upper, just down the road from the beach (about 1/4 mile) on a quiet street with a great yard, space for a pool and a cabana. Over the next few months we will be re-modeling hoping to move in before June if possible! In March when everyone comes to visit for the wedding we will be hosting a brunch at our new house so many of you will get to see the work in progress first hand. Look for lot's of before and after photos coming soon as we take on our first renovators delight! -kel

Seoul, Korea Day 2

Today is my second and final day in Korea. We are on the red-eye back to Sydney tonight. Today I had my first Latte since I left Seattle, it was so yummy and it was from Starbucks. The team here in Seoul loves Starbucks, as a thank you for all of their help, I treated them to coffee at Starbucks this afternoon. It was totally crazy, outside, inside right down to the cups and napkins, it looked just like one of the 1000's of Starbucks in Seattle. Even the light fixtures were the same. Since I left Seattle 9 weeks ago, nothing has seemed more like home to me. I am not a big Starbucks person, and I usually prefer to frequent the smaller local coffee shops, but this was one Seattle icon that I just couldn't pass up.

Last night we went to dinner at a Korean BBQ restaurant, the food was excellent. I really have no idea (other than some of the beef) what we ate (to be honest I don't think I want to know either). All the food was cooked on a plate in front of us, the rice wine was being poured constantly and I woke up hang-over free.

Seoul has been fun, a quick trip with really no time to see much or do anything but work. One quick trip for coffee, dinner out and one 20 min. cab ride has pretty much been all I have seen and unfortunately all I will get to see on this trip. It is freezing cold here, -3 degrees, everyone is bundled up, there is snow on the ground and the Christmas decorations have made Seoul look like a winter wonderland.

I am looking forward to getting back to Sydney and even caught myself today saying I was looking forward to getting home... -kel

Seoul, Korea

Today is Day 1 in Seoul Korea. I am here on business at the Microsoft Korea office. Although I haven’t seen much other than the office, the hotel and the walk in between, it has been interesting. Those of you who remember my first trip to India a few years ago, will recall my many attempts to learn to flush the toilet in the office, again…here in Korea I met a toilet I had trouble flushing. The good news is the seats are heated, yes heated! It was the best toilet ever, totally clean, warm and full of fancy buttons, if I had a camera, I would have taken a picture! After pushing many buttons (when I say many I really mean every single one), slight panic began to set in when none of them were actually flushing, then I realized on the other side of the fancy buttons was a good old fashioned flusher just like at home. Disaster avoided and new found respect for Korean toilets still intact.

It’s very cold here, about 32 degrees, snow and ice on the ground. Mark and I have yet to receive our container from America, so I had to borrow a jacket from Mark’s sister so I didn’t freeze. The city is very crowded, it’s the 5th largest city in the world (10.3 million people living in 36sq KM), all of the people I have met have been very hospitable, warm and friendly. We have a very full schedule for the two days we are here, unfortunately I don’t think I will have much time to get out and see the city or do any shopping. Maybe on my next visit… -kel

Long Time Gone

“ Been a long time gone, no I ain't hoed a row since I don't know when”

I’ve never actually hoed a row or rode … (good time to stop that thought) – but I have been gone from this fair city for a good while. While I’m overjoyed to be back in Sydney town with Kel and the city has dolled itself up and put on a good smile for us it still has taken some retribution for my lack of attention to it over the past ten years.

Case in point #1:
Having packed all our worldly possessions in a 20 ft container and jumping a plane with a single suitcase I thought I had a slight reprieve because I still had some clothing here in Sydney. 10 years is a long time and you know you get a bit lazy, eat a few too many Dick’s Deluxes and those old pants and your favourite Speedo don’t hide as much as they used to. Just in case denial got the better of me Kelly has taken the initiative and cut up most of my old getups telling me that she is going to make a quilt out of them – which is a nice way for her to tell me that she would rather stay in and watch cricket on the tele than go out in public with me wearing those old clothes.

Case in point #2:
Not too many things are tougher on a bloke than the voice that wafts over from the passenger seat from your fiancée (sub: wife/girlfriend) telling you that you need to go this way or you are going the wrong way. When you grew up in a city and your S.O. has been here for all of two mins. taking those directions is even harder. So when Kelly tells me I am trying to cross the Harbour Bridge in a lane that is reserved for “electronic tag” holders I laughed her off knowing there was no such thing – WRONG and that will be $80 to the state govt. thank you. Sorry Kel.

Case in point #3:
No silly little stories to tell in illustrating this point – but if this is retribution for leaving I may never leave the County of Cumberland again for fear of what might happen. On one of our little jaunts around the city I went to show Kelly my favourite pub – The Harold Park Hotel – well it used to be Harold in any case, it’s now a vegetarian restaurant with a housing development above it. It was there for 100 odd years, I duck out for a couple of years and they do this - R.I.P. Harold.

We live in a land down under where women glow and men thunder.

Cheers.

Birthday Weekend

Although the mighty Huskies lost to the Cougs, last week was my Birthday weekend and I had a great time. The weather did not cooperate, it was a cold and rainy spring day here in Sydney, so I'll have to wait until next year for a warm weather birthday. Mark and I took the ferry into the city, did some shopping and exploring. Here are a few pictures from our trip, the Christmas decorations are up and Sydney looks beautiful. All and all it was a fabulous birthday weekend!

Apple Cup 2005

It was a tough day for the Dawgs…a sad defeat. All that being said, the Apple Cup spirit was running strong in Australia…Mark and I made a bet on the game, I will be cleaning the new car in my Bikini later this week (thank goodness I am in Australia and it’s actually warm outside). Upon arrival at work this morning my cube was decorate in Coug colors with streamers and balloons thanks to my cube-mate an Aussie who apparently has decided to become a Coug fan (as of today, I am working on changing this). One of the joys of Mark and I working in the same building on the same floor is that he got to see this sight in person and laugh out loud. The cube decorating didn’t stop there…my old rival in Seattle, Colin White, was treated to some good old fashioned Husky décor courtesy of yours truly all the way from Australia. Australians take their sport seriously, I might not understand all of the sports here (netball, rugby league, rugby union, aussie rules football, field hockey…the list goes on) but I am taking my sport seriously. – You’re never too far away to be a Husky Fan - kel

Aussie Lingo Lesson #4

Tablet – Pill
Heaps – Lots
Athletics – Track and Field
Canteen – Cafeteria
Lift – Elevator
Winging – Complaining
Tip – Garbage Dump
Water Closet – Room with just a toilet
Good on you – Good for you

I am starting to master the lingo, well maybe not, but I am starting to understand what the heck people are saying to me…they really do speak English here. -kel

Save the Date

Save the Date for
Mark and Kelly's Wedding
Thursday March 16 2006
Sydney Australia

Nordstrom is 7737 Miles Away

Today I got an email from Tiffany and here is what she said:
“today was a really tough day for me, i tried to rally my spirits, i tried to pray for some sunshine, i tried to dress cute and have nice hair (usually helps), i tried to forget about the little things in life, i tried to think happy songs, and hum 80's love songs, but no matter what i did, said, wore, thought, hummed, i just couldn't get past the thought..... there is a nordstrom sale & i don't get to shop it with kelly. it is a sad day... a sad day i tell ya sister. but have faith! it was only the half-yearly.”
There are some things that Sydney just can’t compete with. Shopping at the Nordstrom Sale with Mom and Tiff and going for drinks and gorgonzola fries after at Palomino. Today...for me...shop at the Nordstrom Sale (send pics of what you buy) have a cosmo and some very good cheesy fries! Cheers! -kel

Little Narrabeen

Mark and I took a walk along Little Narrabeen beach after work last week. The sun was setting and the beach was empty, other than a few surfers in the water we had the entire beach to ourselves. This is about 5 min. from Marks parent's house. -kel

Lord of the Flies

The Flies have come out strong this spring, they are everywhere. Apparently it's fly season in Sydney. On a recent beach walk, Mark and I were covered in flies. They look pretty freaky (see photo above) but they are harmless and didn't really bother you unless you tried to swat them away! Check out this article in the Sydney Morning Hearld about the flies...I am sure this makes you all want to come and visit! -kel
http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/wellkept-lawns-responsible-for-fly-plague/2005/10/27/1130400311105.html