CHRISTMAS IN THE BLUE MOUNTAINS

Beach or mountains for Christmas? Well the beach was the obvious choice for an Australian Christmas but then again we've had our fare share of beach recently and are in need of a little seclusion which is not so easily sought at the beach, specially not in the holidays. 

The mountains are stunning. We park up perched on the very edge of a gigantic canyon (second only to the Grand Canyon) and we set up just in time as blue skies quickly turn grey and the rain sets in.

The rain and heavy storms don't stop for three days, not quite the Christmas in Australia we had envisioned. Far better! Locked away, just us, thick mist rolling through the canyon valley, nothing to be seen but dense white mist, an alternative white Christmas! Luckily the awning we knocked together stands up to the elements well and provides extra sheltered space, enough to get a barbecue going and cook us a sword fish dinner. Dramatic, mysterious, romantic and strangely homely. Damn near perfect Christmas. 

SYDNEY

Well.. the bridge is pretty impressive. More than I can say for the nicotine stained, bathroom tile, 70's mistake they call an opera house. That's a little harsh, it's not all that bad, just a little underwhelming.Our experience of Sydney is that of an opera house, a bridge and a botanical gardens clinging desperately to the edge of a very narrow harbour struggling to maintain their footing against the ferocious bustle of the business district which seems to bulge toward the harbour like a loud and looming, faceless black tar. Okay so we don't even scratch the surface of the city but then I think I'd rather keep my nails clean. 

Luckily some friends we made at the Eclipse festival live in a suburb out of the city and offer to put us up for a few days, give us a chance to explore at our own pace. Bondi Beach. Infamous Sydney highlight, I don't have the slightest idea why. We're happy to have a place to regroup, wash and make use of house facilities but the place itself is not your usual beach-side community, I guess it's proximity to the city accounts for that. But it's less quicksilver girl and more quicky-for-some-silver girl, a place with too many muscles and too few brain cells. Still, awesome to see the guys from eclipse and only an hour and half from the Blue Mountains.

JIMMY BEACH

We we're aiming for Newcastle as a stop off on the way to Sydey but we this seemed like a good enough sign for a stop. 

Jaimie concreting her claim on the beach and taking a dip at sunset. 

BYRON BAY

Byron bay, the kind of place you want to hate before you even arrive due to the sheer amount of people who have told you “Ow your going to love it!”, every backpacker has been here, is on their way here, or can't leave here. And to be honest.. we liked it, a lot! The beach is the towns obvious appeal, a seemingly endless stretch of golden sand, shimmering mountains sitting on the horizon behind a vale of sea mist carried by a steady, cool breeze. And lots of surf, for everyone, even us. “lessons?! We don't need lessons, Jaimie grew up next to the ocean, I've lived in Cornwall, course we know how to surf!!” And we do, we just haven't done any in long enough to forget that the ocean WILL punish the unprepared. And we we're definitely unprepared, running in a frolic skip to the ocean like lambs to the water. Only to be regurgitated like bad mutton. However, we we're determined and with a brisk change of strategy (stop trying to surf with the pro's, swallow your pride and get in with the beginners) and a regained (after a solid beating) respect for the power of the ocean we eventually catch some waves.

We're lucky. We arrive just before the tourist hoards swarm upon town. It's busy whilst we're there but we manage to dodge the traps by bumping into a friend from Melbourne, Leroy. Like me Leroy was somewhat disillusioned by the management team where we we're working in Melbourne, so grabbed a van and headed for the coast and lucky for us, has just set up as the bar manager of a bizarre Mexican joint and needs guinea pigs to sample his new cocktail menu, well we're happy to help a friend in need! 

Meeting Leroy is great as we get an off-the-beaten-track taste of Byron and spend an evening jamming a didgeridoo through a loop station in a carpark (Leroys home for evening), trollied on his latest sangria concoction and infused tequilas. Helps to have friends in strange places.

MEREDITH

Awesome time, the festivals nothing special, however.. the location is phenomenal and a breath of fresh air from cities, tough places in a campervan. Soooo nice to catch up with the guys and we set up a campsite to be envied, good preparation for new year! A festival the way it should be, unforgiving madness, beautiful friends, beautiful chaos. Lots of love and laughter! Shame Vanny can't be with us but she's resting up, ready to get us back down the coast over the next few weeks
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BRISBANE

A minor navigational error finds us driving round in the centre of Brisbane in rush-hour trying desperately to score some drugs. Avonex, such a specialist drug it has to be ordered a day in advance from a central holding lock-up in the city and delivered cold via courier (I like to imagine this is a man on a motorcycle dressed head-to-toe in black and most probably armed..) before we're contacted the following day when the package is ready for pick-up.
Our friend Brendan has coaxed his folks into leaving a grubby looking Vanny on their drive whilst we jet back to Melbourne for Meredith festival. We manage to make it into Brisbane briefly for a Wednesday wander. Its a city.. and it's hot so we opt for the Imax and watch Bond. It's Bondy. Excited to see Melbourne peeps!!