A very green christmas

As most of you know i spent my Christmas holidays in Perth, West Australia. I'm going to give you a little map so you know where it is...

Melbourne to Perth, 4 hr flight

Xmas eve was spent here in Melbourne. I made a nice veggie meal for Paul and myself with accompanied with wine, of course. It was strange having a quiet one, since i'm used to always spending christmas eve with my second family and friends.

Christmas day; after packing our shit at a turtles pace and tidying up my place, we made our way through the quiet city for the airport. I was really excited, even just for the long(ish) flight to Perth. As soon as we checked in we celebrated our official holiday with a terminal drink. The plane ride was quite fun. After my "special requested" veggie plane meal ( which i love and get very excited for ) we asked for the drinks list, to which our stewardess ducked down as if to tell us a secret and let us know that drinks were free and we should " stock up". Well! That's all i need to hear. Needless to say, i got a bit tipsy on our flight.

In the terminal finally on vacation!

When we landed, Pauls oldest sister Naomi picked us up. She appologized for Allie and thats when i realised that she brought the puppy ( really 2 years old ) and i spent the 20 minute ride home cuddling and kissing and petting her in the backseat. This is my first real full-on dog contact in almost a year. I was in heaven. *Naomi has a 12 year old daughter, Zoe, who has mild Ausburgers and Allie is her special needs dog.
We stayed up and chat a bit before going to bed in our guest room. Ouuu.

Boxing day; had a wee bit of a sleep in and spent the morning watching the cricket ( its no ice hockey ). After a short while Naomi returned from the beach and soon Zoe's dad dropped her off. It was really sweet, it takes Zoe a bit of time to remember who you are, but soon she remembered her Uncle Pauly with a bit of help from "si senor", a phrase Paul taught her and she always associates with him. A big grin appeared on her face and she was soon showing him her christmas gifts and the many,many books she's read/reading.

Zoe and uncle Pauly

We cleaned up a bit and packed some treats for lunch, packed us all in the car, including Allie, who despite being a working dog full sized lab, thinks she's a lap dog - like i minded. We were heading to the Manuel, paul's mum side of the family, xmas lunch/picnic. It was a beautiful sunny day, not too hot.

Zoe playing with her boat and scaring the ducks away

Pauls sister Naomi and Zoe

Zoe, Naomi, and Allie!

Lots of presents were given, i received some unexpected gifts too that were absolutely lovely. After our meals and the gifts were given out, paul, sam ( pauls other sister emma's boyfriend), and i went down to the "lake"(puddle to canadians) with Zoe to take her remote control boat out for a spin. It was really fun and i think i may ask for one next year.
When we were all finished with the picnic, paul and i went back with naomi to her place and we played some scrabble. Em and Sam came over shortly after, we shared far to much pizza and kicked on. Played another game of scrabble and decided to get crazy and play Wii. Paul was really skeptical about the console, BUT as soon as he swung that tennis racket...he was in. I cant remember how many hours we all played for. I had a serious baseball series with Sam, where im confident i pulled some muscles. I got a little over-confident and challenged Paul to boxing and i looked like a spastic while wheezing and sweating my ass off, BUT i won. After that exhausting match, 3 am, we were KOed and slept.

Needless to say, we all looked and felt like hell the next morning.

I look dead. Zoe woke Paul up early while i slept in and out of spite he annoyed me with the camera flash...that or he thought it was funny

I had definite Wii-injuries, so bad that i could barely lift my arms above shoulder level without winging. Em and Sam drove us to get coffee and then dropped us at Paul's dad's, Colin, house to go for lunch. We were given a nice tour of the house, so much character in it, and then i was face with it; the Wii! The source of my wiijuries. I couldnt resist it, after setting it up i played a couple games of Tennis.
Worked up an appetite and drove to the coast to have lunch, another beautiful sunny day, how annoying! I decided, after months of consideration, to order the Fish of the Day. It was barramundi cod fish, grilled with the skin on top of Parmesan polenta with a nice salad. I really enjoyed it and now my insane fish craving is gone.
Over lunch Colin told us that about a man that was attacked my a shark and his body hasn't been found, well that shark has been spot in many of the beaches in perth. Scaarrry.
So anyways, after lunch we went to the beach. I was too scared to go in and to top it off the waves were 40ft high. I caught some sun rays, a bit of a tan too. Mm very nice.

shark! not really

im rockin a bit of a tan here

We caught a lift to pauls mates from high school at their place, with a really nice backyard and this big day bed type couch lounge thing with far too many pillows ( in a good way ). I couldnt fight my fatigue and ended up passing out on the couch snuggled up to the many pillows.
That night we cabbed to Em's place to stay the night.

pauls mates place, couldnt get a good shot...i was being eaten by "mossies" and about to crash

The next day was Sunday and we had a quiet morning of cricket, coffee, and crumpets. Again, a sunny day. Except this time, in the mid thirties and i was already feeling my canadian intolerance to heat.
This was the Aschcroft, pauls dads side of the family, christmas lunch. I felt the most festive at this lunch. A big old victorian house, heaps of adults and children weaving in and out of the crowd, lots and lots of food and drink. I was introduced to many people, most of which i cant remember their names but it was good. Santa gave the presents to the children, food was served, and we waited the appropriate 30 minutes before getting into the salty pool. It was so refreshing and nice, but after a while i lounged on the steps half-in-half-out and sipped my corono. As you would assume, i had a bit of a tan/burn going on when i checked the mirror next.

i felt too awkward to bust out my camera and i was mostly in the pool - heres the boys b ballin'

After a long day in the sun, Naomi gave us a lift to the Little Creatures Brewery in Freemantle where we met up with some friends - ironically from Melbourne. Little Creatures is this big beautiful brewery, makes delicious beer that i wish you could all taste, and they have a restaurant/bar there sitting right on the harbour. Its beautiful. Although, it was getting a bit crowded so we went to the loft, a bar next door and had a couple drinkies and that was the night!


big beer thingies
on the padio looking at the brewery
on the deck looking out on the harbooourr
im looking for chips to put with my aioli
scotty and alex
really dark pic of paul
sunsetwaiting for our cab, i look really intense

Monday morning was really hard, we went to the store with zoe for some much needed coffee and did a nice walk of the beach. Pauls mum, jenny, picked us up for lunch and we went to another beach - Perths most beautiful apparently.


Again, we had lunch on with a view of the beach on a nice beautiful sunny, hot hot day. We ate at this lovely italian restaurant where we shared heaps of starters and i had a salad with stinky cheese. Mmm...

italian restaurant with xmas tree and sun outside

With our full bellies we went to the beach again. This time pauls mum was nice enough to watch our stuff as we swam. It was nice having Paul there cause i really have no idea what to do in the sea. I really felt the undertow pushing and pulling me, but i was excited. The waves were crashing near shore and so many people were hesitant to go in further (shark!!!) there was even a helicopter on sharkie patrol above. I was alright with jumping with the waves, but Paul taught me when to dive into the waves and how/when to swim with the waves, i really struggled with that one. I couldn't stop laughing it was so fun!


We were brainstorming what i should see on my last night, and Jenny and Paul were trying to fit Perth city in there but not exactly cause apparently its dull as. Jenny came up with a brilliant idea to watch the sunset at Kings Park overlooking the city/bay/ocean. We picked up a bottle of red, snacks, and a carpet and found our spot on the mountain. It was quite romantic and really fun.


When the streetlights came on, we took a tour through the city and met up with pauls other mate Ben. I thought it was going to be a bit of a boys club and catching up yadda-yadda-yaddda, instead it turned out to be a really good time where i found myself laughing a lot.
We got back to Naomi's and had a cheeky drink on the balcony, the stars were out and it was still very warm outside.



Our last day in perth, Tuesday. I hadn't seen Freemantle during the day and i had been told how beautiful and old the city was. We took a short train ride into the city to have breakfast. We chose this great restaurant by judging peoples foods whilst window shopping. It took a long while for our food to come but in the mean while i figured out the nine letter word, affiliate, and was chuffed. I ordered poached eggs with Mediterranean grilled veggies on toast, it was divine. The eggs were done perfectly, no one likes drippy poached eggs.
Our desert was walking through the city and doing a bit of shopping.

uncoperative paul. this is where we had brekky

After grabbing our gear from Naomis and saying our goodbyes. Colin met us at the train station where we went for tea and he gave us a lift to the airport.

I picked up some very intellectual reading material full of current world issues, Cosmopolitan. The inflight film sucked so im glad i did. I was served my main meal and took advantage of the complimentary drinks once again. This flight was just as great and i snapped some great shots landing in melbourne. I was sad when we landed though, and it was a weather shock - going from 37 to 21 is not pretty.
We picked up a bottle of Shiraz and went back to my place to end our holiday with the dark knight, brilliant.

Melbourne city at sunset from our plane window

plane rides make me think of lost?

New years eve night was nothing huge and ive never really been a huge NYE person. I had a relaxing day around the house and then paul came over after work and we had a night in watching Peep Show and watching the city fireworks through the trees and the backyard fireworks sporadically going off in the distance. Very nice.

ps. i appologize for the lack of pictures, im lazy

sunny sydney lovely vaca

Getting there

The flight had been booked weeks in advance, but paul and i just kept forgetting to figure out where we were staying. He has heaps of friends in Sydney(Paul is an actor, he went to Western Australian Acadamy of Performing Arts, his class of 20 or so were very close and still remain great friends no matter how much time they spend apart, im quite envious) so we both just relied on one of them donating a couch to us at the last minute. We waited until two days before the trip, and our first person fell through - which worked out for the best. Paul rang his friend Simon(waapa), it turned out he was going to be in melbourne the same time we would be in sydney, so hey why not just swap houses for the week. And let's just say, Simon got the shit end of the deal...i'll talk about why later.
I was getting so giddy on the way to the airport, and fearful because the last time i flew i was seriously nauseous and sick during take off and landing; coldsweats, trembling, getting sick in the flimsy paper bag.
I had a window seat and a tv in front to take my mind off things, so no - i didnt puke on paul. Instead i lived it up with a glass of red wine, flight of the concords, and some cheese and crackers. I know, who do i think i am?
Flying into Sydney we could see the harbour and opera house from the window. It was surreal.

yeah - i took out my camera in-flight, touuur
i did actually take this picture

I tried not to act like an overexcited tourist as the taxi wove through the large spread-out city between the many grassy parks, much reminding me of toronto.
We arrived in Paddington ( about a 30 minute walk from the CBD ) where we would be living for the next few days. You could immediatly tell this place was ritzy, with the lack of cigarette butts and tidy front yards - and about 3 different locks on the front doors.
Simons place was beautiful. Wood floors. Old creeking shallow stairs. Skylights. A sexy kitchen. And an almost erotic bathroom. I felt like i was staying in a hotel. But we were greeted with a very sweet note from Sarah ( the roomate ) and fresh towels that smelt of lilac...mmm.
Anxiously i searched the upstairs for our room. With two floor to ceiling french doors leading out to our private balcony. A queen bed overflowing with pillows and an excessive duvet.

livin' room


kitchen and skylight

sexy sexy bathtub
hotel like shower
birds!
backyardshot through the fence on our balcony

paul probably snooping through simons stuff

After finding and gorging on a very large pub meal, we hopped bars and pubs for the remainder of the night with easy conversation. We cabbed to Surrey Hills to meet up with Alex, Scottys girlfriend, who had just finished a show - which we saw later in the week and i'll get back to that too. She was lovely,radiant and dominated the conversation.Sydney bars seem to close early, even on saturdays! So we went to a couple places for last drinks until me and Alex stood outside lecturing the boys about hospitality work until a cab pulled up and i was whisked away.

Hello harbour!

We woke up to a overcast morning and had breakfast on oxford street, which we were living parallel to. Had a quick meet and greet with Sarah in her room and flagged down a bus to circular quay. I was so lame and nerdy about seeing the opera house, when i finally saw it, it was exactly how i imagined it and magnificent.
We sat on the grass in the harbour and watched a funny contortionist lady get into a this raised glass box, taking quick glimpses at the harbour. I was just laid back and relaxed, but Paul was busy on the phone organizing plans and getting people together. If we were in entourage, i would be vinny and he would be e. Mmhmm.

if you click on this picture youll be able to see the hundreds of jelly fish in the water, its for sio

paul has great directing skills!
i think im artsy

We got lost in the rocks, which was nice because we wound through the notorious markets ( even though i was getting tired and cranky that paul wouldnt just ask someone where the cafe was ) finally ending up at the The Australian Hotel, or something that specialized in pizza and beer. One by one his friends arrived and we sat at a table outside in the sun drinking beer and swallowing bowls of wedges.

me looking cute while scotty
john, sarah, paul, scotty, tim

Tim, before he ate the napkin and spit it

After we grew tired of that place, and the sun began to set, we went to another place with a rooftop bar to which i discovered overlooked the bridge and opera house. I whipped out my geeky, big camera and snapped shakey shots. Torquel from Hell's Gates ( the feature film Paul did ) and his girlfriend Jo, joined us. Drinks went well into the night, until, like the way it started, one by one everyone left. We took a romantic stroll through the city and caught a cab halfway home.

view from the rocks
paul directing me to eat the opera house
love love love this photo of scotty, looks like an album cover - i reckon

i could put this above my bed?

alex, scotty, tim

"We should have asked someone!"

The first night, the one we spent with Scotty and Alex, they recommended we walk from Bronte to Bondi - there wasnt much detail on where we were going, talk of coogie and not enough time and ask someone. We took a quick bus there, and had breakfast in bronte. We had the overcast morning again, which turned into a beautiful sunny day. We stood on the beach and assumed the way we were to walk was to the right - we didn't ask anyone. And of course, we were supposed to go to our left. We went the wrong way but we still got to see many beaches and bays, but unfortunately we didnt bring our bathers and it would have been lovely to take a dip in one of the many beaches.
Paul and I hadnt realized we had gone in the wrong direction until we walked 2 and a half hours, where our 'path' ( that started and stopped many times ) ended and we asked a gentleman outside that told us we had gone in the wrong direction. Sweaty and tired we caught the nearest bus to the city and back to the harbour. Where we snuck a starbucks ( its so embarrassing to be caught with a starbucks and having someone hear my accent, they think its all north americans drink ). But i didnt feel so bad, since it was the second time i'd had it in OZ.

beach in bronte, where i text all of you
ohhh yeahhh
all the old people were doing laps in the pool thing
these rocks look fake in real life too

i know, they look huge
weird cemetery
another beach


i was totally snooping and taking photos of this couple and their happy dog

Anyway - we caught a ferrie to Manly and i frantically snapped away as sydney got farther and smaller. Manly was touristy, rich, and reminded me of st kilda. But had a beautiful beach and nice restaurants lining the boardwalk, where we sat and had dinner. I popped into a surf shop and picked up this bathing suit that fit like a glove, which is rare with my proportions, and that i had to have.
Our ferrie was being a pain in the ass and late, so they loaded us onto this jet ferrie and we arrived in half the time - which saved our butts because we had to be at Paul's friend, Tim's (waapa) play in 15 minutes from when we docked.
It was anatomy titus fall of rome, it was very very bloody ( of course ) and actually quite funny - which i think it needed with a set drenched in blood. Tim was great, he played Aaron. And best of all, the play was in the opera house!

view from ferrie


manly beach


inside the ferrie waiting area
right before we went into the opera house

After it finished, Paul and I grabbed a seat outside at the opera bar and a bottle of wine as we waited for Tim to wash all the blood off of him and join us. We got through some more wine, and surprisingly, it went straight to all of our heads - we couldnt figure it out. So Paul and I quickly caught the next bus home and i crawled in bed while i was telling Paul how drunk i was. It was pretty horrid.

this is the view from where we were sitting at the bar. I kept taking peaks between talking to paul and tim at everything

Tequila takes you down

The next morning i felt shockingly well and we got up early ( like 10 ) and put on our bathers, this time, preparing for a nice time in the world famous Bondi beach. So touristy, everyone there had an accent of some sort. We walked along the beach, passing the surfer section, to the designated topless tanning area [ not really, it just seemed that they all grouped in the same area] to the family area where you could swim between the flags - paul scared me and told me that i could get pulled under and people die in bondi. I dont know why he scares me. There were four thousand lifegaurds.
We parked ourselves in a nice sandy spot away from obnoxious surfer dudes and backpackers. It was a beautiful day, not too hot with a little wind. After getting a bit sweaty i went into the pacific ocean, eee! The waves were a bit intimidating, and everyone seemed to know exactly how to handle them. I think the biggest waves i've experienced were at Wasaga - at their peak. And these were bigger. I just looked around and copied what other people were doing and tried not to drown. I timed a dive under a wave perfectly and was really impressed with myself, then i tried doing it again and my bathing suit fell down and when the wave passed i was caught choking on sea water and pulling up my breasts...i wasnt even in the topless area!
Hoping that no one saw my failure of a dive, my breasts, or my subtle chokes on sea water, i tried to make my way back towards the sand as cool as possible. I was only in the water for a bit catching the waves, but i already felt so exhausted. I played it cool, again, when i got back to paul and he went in for his turn. Being a Perth boy, and experiencing killer waves, he did all this fancy shit. Hopefully i'll learn from him when we go for christmas.
We dried off and had a cheeky drink at a beach side bar, where i caught quick glimpses of some NHL clips which took me back. Ahh canada. And people watched.

bondi beach!
paul waking into the water
my new bathing suit, im in love with it - wearing pauls hat

little cat nap

After showering the sand off and getting dressed, saying a quick hello to Simon ( who just returned from melbourne ) and tidying the house. We walked to Kings Cross( the sketchy prostitution, drugs, and overall fun place) and checked out the area, took some photos, and then made our way to Surrey Hills where we had a tea at a cafe and relaxed after walking all day. My feet were so sore because i brought one pair of shoes, that were new and unforgiving. And im a moron and only packed my left runner. So i was forced to bandage my foot and suffer the pain.

After tea we head towards the theatre where Alex was performing that night, A View of Concrete. We met some more of Pauls friends, and after getting tight-ass-tuesday tickets, we ate another huge pub meal and raced our way to the theatre, just catching the door before it closed.
I really enjoyed it, it was a black comedy. Had another one of pauls friend in it. But alex was great - she had this scene where she was freaking out and ranting after taking speed and it was absolutely hilarious.
We waited in the lounge afterwards and torquel and scotty arrived, and alex came out. We searched around for a bar open on a tuesday in surrey hills, which was proving to be difficult. Finally found one that was pretty grungy and famous for its all night service. Simon joined us and the drinks kept going later and later, until it was getting too late for some and simon paul and i took a cab back home. I thought the night was over until Simon busted out tequila, we started with the good stuff. And switched to the cheap tequila i had my first drunk on, mom, dad, sue, im sure you remember that. Ahh...
Things got ridiculous and i went to bed before it got too out of hand.

umm... it was hot-badass-cop-grabs-fellon type adyeah, we were really drunk - tequila!

A hot & sticky return

The previous day we spoke of waking up early and going to darling habour, but when we snoozed two hours past our alarm clock, that option was out of the question. Instead we tidied, did breakfast, and packed in slow motion.
I was fearful on the way to the airport for the plane ride, i already get quite queasy and i was hungover. I stuffed my face with subway and prayed for the best. It seemed like it was going to be a really bad flight, with the threatening-to-cry toddler behind me and aisle seat ( i need to be able to look out a window when im in a moving object ). I focused all my attention on the tv infront of me and did really well. After that everything was fine.
Melbourne was 33 degrees when we landed. Paul and i were exhausted, hot, and hungover and spent the night in bed eating icecubes and watching Ten Empty (aussie film, not great) and lars and the real girl ( which i thought was great ).

I woke up this morning at 9 and it was already 28 out. Im too canadian for this weather!
I have a few days to rest and find a job so i can start saving for perth and other little trips to make.

So that was my trip to sydney! I had a really great time, but its never fun coming back from a vacation but atleast i still have a few days off - compared to paul being thrown back in to work again today, Muahaha.