HAPPY NEW YEAR FOLKS!!!

We've finally arrived in the city that everybody else visits first! We are in Sydney and it is a little early to be passing any sort of judgement but it seems like a nice city!

Christmas was spent in gorgeous sunny weather in Wirinna, near Adelaide. Loads of kangaroos could be seen bouncing around and boxing each other. We both have to confess that we ate way too much but that's what Christmas is all about! It was certainly memorable and we wish to thank everybody for their hospitality in getting us there, looking after us and getting us back to Adelaide!

On the 29th, we got the train to Melbourne and on the 30th, we flew to Sydney. Stephen is getting no better at flying, and this seems to be rubbing off on Leah, unfortunately! Still, we landed in one piece right in to the capable hands of another one of Leah's aunties - Irene (not to be confused with Stephen's mother of the same name)!

Hogmanay (we'll never call it New Years Eve) was spent at the Opera House. We got to a good vantage point at about noon (yes, noon) and were ordered to take down a shade that Irene had lent us due to the fact that it apparently was a tent! That's like calling Dundee Utd, Caley Thistle! A truly pathetic piece of crowd stewarding that was made even worse by the fact that a four man tent had been erected in view of us. So, we were forced to sit in the baking sun during the hottest part of the day with no shade. And this from the country with the highest incidence of skin cancer... go figure!

At 5pm, after having endured the 30-35 degrees heat of the afternoon, we were requested to move by security as we were blocking an exit! This information would have been priceless 5 hours before, but the stewards seemed to be having fun.

So after finding an inferior spot due to 5 hours worth of people choosing locations ahead of us, we did actually settle down for the evening and even put up our "tent" again with not even a hint of any security member talking to us.

Now, I will say this. The fireworks were excelllent, in fact spectacular. I'm not sure it was worth the 12 hour wait but it was impressive. Overall, in fact, I would call the experience a positive one, which is surprising after those first five hours!

We got home at 2.15am in a train doing a fantastic impression of a sardine tin and today, we have frankly done nothing. We are exhausted!

Let us know your Christmas and New Year stories.

Bye,

Stephen and Leah