We're now in the middle of sorting out our stuff to return to the UK, so thought I should make some attempt to get this up to date before we leave Melbourne in a few weeks. It's pretty cold here now so we're hoping for some English summer sunshine when we get back! We've not done any major travelling since our Sydney/Brisbane trip but have been busy nonetheless. A quick summary below and photos to follow...
We were straight back into being sociable when we got back to Melbourne from Brisbane. We met up with a friend and her family to see her brother in a show called Scrabble Unscripted, which was part of the Melbourne International Comedy Festival. The general idea is that a couple of people play Scrabble at the side of the stage, and then others use words from the board to inspire their improv. Very funny stuff! The festival itself is (I think) the third largest in the world - it goes on for three weeks and there are more shows than you could possibly ever see. We managed to get to a few, including a night out with some other UK visitors.
The main focus for me in April was work, as I was very involved in organising a large event at Queen Victoria Market on 29th. The general idea was to recreate a Spanish/Latin American market within the market, with food, crafts, music and dancing. It all came together very well on the day which was a relief as we were a bit concerned that the rain would put people off. Fortunately it didn't, which I think is an indication of how popular cultural events are here.
Andrew has also been busy at work, and we have been spending a lot of time with friends here as well fitting in a weekend to Echuca in mid May. This is the town where Andrew grew up, about 3 hour drive away from where we are. He still has relatives from both sides of the family there, and so it was good to catch up with them. We also made the short trip across the New South Wales border to Deniliquin, my friend Kristie's hometown and also where Andrew's dad lived as a child. The town is famous for its Ute Muster (see http://www.deniutemuster.com.au/) which sounded so bizarre to me that I wasn't really sure it existed. But yes, it does!
The highlight of the following weekend was a trip to the MCG to see the Aussie Rules, North Melbourne (aka the Kangaroos, the team Andrew supports) againt Melbourne. I think I more or less got my head round the rules in the end and the Kangaroos won by one point, which is a very close game by AFL standards. I think I've got a long way to go before I'm converted but it was good to see it. Since then we have had a pretty quiet few weekends, the only major event being Andrew's colleague's wedding a few weeks ago.
So that brings us more or less up to date but there is another post to follow very soon, including some photos...
Wednesday, June 20, 2007
Sunday, June 03, 2007
Queensland - 31st March - 7th April
We left Sydney feeling like we could have easily spent several more days there, despite cramming lots in to the time we had. I had to laugh at the level of Sydney/Melbourne rivalry, which is especially clear in some of the museum exhibitions. And they really are proud of that bridge!
Anyway, our next stop was Brisbane - aka Brisneyland aka Brisvegas according to some of the marketing stuff you read. We have spent time in the area before as Andrew's dad lives nearby, but this time we decided to spend a few days in the city itself before heading out to see the family. There is much talk of Brisbane being a rapidly expanding city and a long way from the country town feel it used to have. This is probably true but coming from Melbourne then Sydney it did still feel very small!
We had a good wander through the city on day one, and found very good food in Chinatown. Unfortunately I wasn't feeling very well the next day so we didn't get to do some of the things we had planned. Of course we know that we'll be back in the area in the future so we weren't too worried. We then headed out to stay with Gary & Co, and has a relaxing few days there as well as spending some time on the Sunshine Coast. This is where Andrew's Grandad (Pa) and his wife Lil live, and it was really good to catch up with them again. Also, as you can see, Andrew and his dad made the most of the surf!
All in all it was a good break and also nice to have the rest of the Easter weekend to enjoy when we got back to Melbourne.
Cath testing out the can crusher
Three generations of Bickertons - Andrew, his Pa Laurie and Dad Gary
It's not called the Sunshine Coast for nothing!
Believe it or not Andrew and Gary are in these waves...
See, told you!
Owls at Gary & Helen's place
Anyway, our next stop was Brisbane - aka Brisneyland aka Brisvegas according to some of the marketing stuff you read. We have spent time in the area before as Andrew's dad lives nearby, but this time we decided to spend a few days in the city itself before heading out to see the family. There is much talk of Brisbane being a rapidly expanding city and a long way from the country town feel it used to have. This is probably true but coming from Melbourne then Sydney it did still feel very small!
We had a good wander through the city on day one, and found very good food in Chinatown. Unfortunately I wasn't feeling very well the next day so we didn't get to do some of the things we had planned. Of course we know that we'll be back in the area in the future so we weren't too worried. We then headed out to stay with Gary & Co, and has a relaxing few days there as well as spending some time on the Sunshine Coast. This is where Andrew's Grandad (Pa) and his wife Lil live, and it was really good to catch up with them again. Also, as you can see, Andrew and his dad made the most of the surf!
All in all it was a good break and also nice to have the rest of the Easter weekend to enjoy when we got back to Melbourne.
Cath testing out the can crusher
Three generations of Bickertons - Andrew, his Pa Laurie and Dad Gary
It's not called the Sunshine Coast for nothing!
Believe it or not Andrew and Gary are in these waves...
See, told you!
Owls at Gary & Helen's place
Sydney - Aquarium & Manly - 29/30th March
Not usually high on our list, but we really enjoyed our visit to the Sydney Aquarium, which is housed in the Darling Harbour area. Keeping with the worldwide theme of making the docklands look good, there has clearly been a lot of devlopment in that part of town. We also caught the ferry out to Manly (beach area) where we met up with Tania, the girl from London we have seen at various stages of our travels. I don't think any visit to Sydney would be complete without a trip on a ferry, and it was really good to be heading back into the harbour at sunset. The tour of the Opera House was another must see highlight.
One thing I did notice in Sydney is an amazing number of English accents and not just amongst the hoardes of tourists. Most people I know who have spent time in Australia have based themselves there - just as most Aussies go to London I suppose. We met up with one of of our former London housemates who is now living there, and loving the lifestyle espeically as she is very sporty and appreciates having a beach to run along every morning - a bit of a change from Tooting Bec Common! Our other catch up was with Maz and Chris, Sydneysider friends of Andrew's who were in London but have now headed home, so all in all it was quite a sociable few days.
One thing I did notice in Sydney is an amazing number of English accents and not just amongst the hoardes of tourists. Most people I know who have spent time in Australia have based themselves there - just as most Aussies go to London I suppose. We met up with one of of our former London housemates who is now living there, and loving the lifestyle espeically as she is very sporty and appreciates having a beach to run along every morning - a bit of a change from Tooting Bec Common! Our other catch up was with Maz and Chris, Sydneysider friends of Andrew's who were in London but have now headed home, so all in all it was quite a sociable few days.
Sydney - Gardens, Opera House & The Bridge - 28th March
Another crazily late update...
We finally went further afield again at the end of March, first stop Sydney. I had never been before so was keen to be a tourist. I don't think I would like to live there, but did really enjoy the visit and loved seeing the Opera House which seemed so familiar after seeing so many photos. We walked miles through the gardens, stopping at a few museums and spending time in the harbour area, and early on day two Andrew braved the Bridge Climb whilst I did some wandering around The Rocks area.
Here are some photos from the first few days of our trip...
Spider in the Botanical Gardens
The famous sights
Flying Foxes in the Botanical Gardens
Andrew after his climb to the top of the Sydney Harbour Bridge
We finally went further afield again at the end of March, first stop Sydney. I had never been before so was keen to be a tourist. I don't think I would like to live there, but did really enjoy the visit and loved seeing the Opera House which seemed so familiar after seeing so many photos. We walked miles through the gardens, stopping at a few museums and spending time in the harbour area, and early on day two Andrew braved the Bridge Climb whilst I did some wandering around The Rocks area.
Here are some photos from the first few days of our trip...
Spider in the Botanical Gardens
The famous sights
Flying Foxes in the Botanical Gardens
Andrew after his climb to the top of the Sydney Harbour Bridge
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