Well, I've finally come back to describe my time in Australia as promised long ago (well, back in February? seems like an eternity). Overall.... I LOVE Sydney. This probably comes as no surprise to people that know me well, but I could easily see myself living here for a while!

My time here has been filled with a huge amount of fun. After the plasterer Morgan left, I had a bit of a liver recovery period. Not for long though - wine tasting at an amazing wine bar with Peter persuaded me to get back into alcohol?!

Popped down to Melbourne to visit a few old (and not so old) chums. Stayed with Claire (a girl I met in Nam!). Then headed down to Torquay to meet up with Iris. Had a great couple of days on the beach getting burnt to a crisp whilst Iris was working (bought a lovely rip curl top with her discount though - thanks!!) and reliving the heady days of sharing a room with her in Vietnam. Went up to Flowerdale (bet you can't find it on a map!!) and had a great time catching up with Simon Williams and his family (he was the cheeky Aussie some of you met when he came to the UK to visit Faith and I way back in Uni days). His wife, Anita and his 3 lovely children have just moved out to an outdoor-ed camp in Victoria for him to start as director. So weird to see him again. He hasn't changed a bit (ok, Simon, I'm being kind - you look a little different!!).

On my return to Sydney, I filled my days with sightseeing, preparing for the wilds of South America and of course a little more sampling of the local tipple. Did a hilarious bus tour with Eszter where I'm positive the bus driver was aiming for the low hanging branches - not very nice for the passengers of an open top bus!!  Managed to win a game of barefoot bowls with Peter, Sarah and Simon (one of Sarah's many relations - this one married to Fliss) so I felt I regained a little dignity for England!  Funny thing was it was their "company team" practise and Sarah came a close 2nd to me so I'm afraid the boys need more practise!!  Spent some lovely lazy, and not so lazy, weekends walking along the coastal path to Bondi, lunching in Watsons Bay (Peter has promised to buy me a house here when he wins the lottery - you are all witnesses, fingers crossed, eh?!), dining with Ronia, watching Babel (hmmm!) and listening to various analogies about relationships....  How many of you have heard the one related to shoes?  Drop me a line and we'll have a little discussion about it :)  All in all, a fantastic time thanks to Peter, Sarah, Ronia and all of Sarah's family.  In the words of the immortal Schwarzenegger....I will, indeed, be back.

Anyway, must go and think outside of the box (or is it square?) for a while. Love to you all!