Happy New Year! It is very strange that it is already 2009 and i actually looked forward to and really really enjoyed new years eve, a first for a very long time...! After Christmas Jill and I went on the apartment and job hunt, about as much fun as pulling teeth. We decided that apartments came first so after some internet searching, some walking for about 7hours around the centre we had so far met. A grubby looking man, wearing a string vest and had a mouldy house, an old Chinese man who had turned his balcony into another room and a lady called Joy, who we were very unsure of! Well Joy seemed to have a really rather cool flat, shared with 6 others (A good size for the number, had a swimming pool and gym) all sounding great, we pay the deposit and then get the phone call! "Hi girls it's Joy, just so you know there will be people living and sleeping in the living room" our reply "Are you kidding, give us our money back" Best to say it didn't go well...

Next day Jobs, we have CVs, we have prepared our feet for the walking. I had already been into a little shop which had some gorgeous clothes and they had said come back with a Cv, so i did and thankfully after 2hours I get the call asking if I can come in the next day! So going to work for about a month in this clothes shop, dad thinks and i quote "It's like an alcoholic working in a brewery" but so far I have bought nothing from the shop, only high heels for Nine West which with my ankle i still can't wear! Anyway Jill is still on the hunt and we are both hoping for a place in a long stay flat to come up in the next few days! Fingers crossed!

New Years came around pretty fast! We had decided with some other friends that we would go to the botanical gardens to see the fireworks off the bridge, if you are in Sydney for New Years for the first time its got to be done! The night before Alex's parents and aunt and uncle had arrived so we had all gone out for drinks, an excellent night, Jill's friend Gemma from home was there, I had made contact with some family friends from the Uk so there was a big group. There was lots of drinking and we had to be up at 6.30am to get in line for the gardens, not so great!

We made it to the line at about 8am, which with the group we were in was amazing! We waited in the boiling sun for about 4hours and got in. Dan and his friend had pushed in at the front, in Belgium apparently queuing is not the done thing! So they went ahead and got us a spot on the end of Mrs Macquarie's Point, over looking the bridge and Opera house! Only 11 hours to go until the midnight! We managed to pass the time with reading the papers, talking and mainly drinking games! Will finish later!