Day 16 - Christmas Day!!!

First stop Christmas Day, McDonald's! Clarkey had promised to skype traditional Christmas Eve dinner in Needingworth. She wasn't the only one, there must have been half a dozen other Europeans at McDonald's at 8.30am on Christmas Day, skyping or face timing home.
Second stop. Gather the troops, Holly, Gilly and Glen and head down to a quieter bit of beach towards Brighton. Gilly's morning run (!!) had identified a good spot to park their camper in order to utilise their kitchen facilities. So there it was, breakfast on the beach out of the back of a camper van on Christmas Day. It started off a little over cast but after we'd eaten and chilled out for a bit the sun came out and so did the frisbee. This apparently meant a dip in the sea in order to get the best out of the game. I can't say that the sea was quite as warm as up north but we all still braved it and after a rusty first ten minutes got pretty good at frisbee.
After we had tired of running after wayward passes and started to get pangs of hunger we headed back to the apartment to try out the roof top BBQ. As we parked up we could hear some Christmas tunes being played at full blast on the roof, the St George's cross hanging from the roof, suggested some other Brits had the same idea.
After a quick shower and combining all our supplies, we hit the roof, which had since been vacated by the other group. After a few failed attempts we finally got the BBQ lit and food cooking. Glen at this point took over the hard work, so us ladies could crack open a second bottle of bubbly. What a gent! Grub was up and hit the spot perfectly, such a change from the usual turkey and roast potatoes.
As the day rolled on it seemed to get hotter and hotter and at around 4pm we couldn't take much more of the sun. After changing into some more suitable clothes we decided to catch a tram into the city as Gill was yet to experience this joy! On Christmas Day all the trams ran for free,which was perfect. What it did mean though was every other sodding beach goer had decided to go home at exactly the same time, meaning rush hour and crowded trams. Shoulder to shoulder and bum to bum, more and more people squeezed on, but Holly gracefully managed to hold her ground and preserve some much needed personal space, with Clarkey under her wing.
We jumped off at Bourke St as we all needed fresh air after a rather sweaty journey. We wander passed Mayers again which had much fewer queues, so we could get a better glimpse at the windows. We made our way to Federations Square and searched for a shaded bar for a much needed beverage. Holly and Clarkey shared a rather refreshing pitcher of cocktail and the worlds most expensive chips at £7.00 a bowl.
After a quick skype to the Clarkes we departed for a wander around Fed Square. Gilly and Glen wanted to wander further afield so went off leaving H and C to rest their weary feet whilst Shrek the Third was played on the big screen.
Once Gilly and Glen returned we took the tram back to St Kilda, absorbing our last night in the city before getting our next camper.
As soon as we got back packing was on the agenda and Clarkey's plan was "it all comes and, and then goes back in". We'll give her credit, it seemed to work! Bags packed we said goodnight to Gilly and Glen and hit the hay, watching cheesy Christmas movies before drifting off...