Things We Do

You may recall the name Phil in some earlier posts when it comes to going riding somewhere - like Paris-Roubaix or just locally in Surrey.

Well, Phil will be involved in a "Spin-a-thon" at the NZ Embassy this friday, and as things would go, I've put my hand up to be involved... The simple deal is that, using stationery bikes the Team will attempt to ride the length of New Zealand in 24 hours to raise funds for Help for Heroes.

Here's the link for further reading: www.bmycharity.com/v2/NewZealandSPINATHON

Now, why do I mention this? Well, I'll also be taking part, and my shift will be 4am - 6am this Saturday morning. I won't get to see the likes of Sean Fitzpatrick (former All Black captain) who will be taking part on the friday, but he and a few others will be on TV.

The other reason I mention this is that there are "House Rules" for the event, and one of them is something that includes a little Aussie v NZ banter. I have the jersey you see here, and questioned Phil on whether I'd be let in if I wore it... The NZ comeback is that when the person wearing this jersey walks in, then all must sing the Australian National anthem. Funny. Even more so, that it will be a room full of Kiwi's singing it...

There's No Place Like Home (Pt. IV)

Well, it's mid morning on Saturday here in London and it's been a busy 24 hours... I've attempted to watch the sun rise over a north Sydney beach with Sheryl, breakfasted with my parents, had my 1 year old nephew climbing over me to reach Sheryl's necklace, driven over the Sydney Harbour Bridge, walked through a rainforest in Kuala Lumpur and ridden the Tube and a London double-decker bus... And that was my final 'day' for this trip to Australia. Three cities in nine and a half days... yep, we covered some ground.

We landed less than two weeks ago in Adelaide to a welcoming committee of 4 parents, who were all happy to see their children again. It may have been a late night landing on the last flight of the day, but that didn't stop a pleasant nightcap for the six of us.

The next evening of catching up with Sheryl's family was preceded by an afternoon visit with the famed "cherubs", Joel, Gloria and Frankie. All were excited to see their Aunt again, but were home with a babysitter during the evening while the rest of us enjoyed a fun filled curry night. Great to meet everyone over such a good meal.

The following afternoon saw us with my family and friends. The 'friends' are really the friends of my parents, who I grew up with and were very much aunts and uncles to both myself and my brother. It was an interesting afternoon/evening as not only did we catch up with them (as well as my actual aunts and uncles), but I (re)met a cousin I hadn't seen since we were about 5 years old. To top that off, I (re)met my great aunt, who I'd not seen for over 25 years. She's 95 years old and still living in the same unit from that last meeting. It was great to see everyone again, and made for quite a special afternoon.

Friday morning saw us having a casual breakfast by the sea in Brighton with one of Sheryl’s best friends. A perfect sunny morning for it, despite the cafe stuffing the order up.That afternoon saw us enjoying Yum Cha with Sheryl's parents and young 10month old nephew. It did feel slightly unnerving driving his pusher for what should be obvious reasons... Anyway, a very pleasant lunch, that afforded us some time to walk through the Adelaide Central Markets before our next “function”.
We continued from here to a fun night with a bunch of our combined friends at the Crown n Sceptre pub "just round the corner". We had some fun getting me a new shirt for the night in the nearby Trims store, that included both ironing it and getting an extra squirt of deodorant!
But I digress... A good fun night catching up with our respective friends while meeting each other's friends. Needless to say, we were somewhat worse for wear when we made it home in the wee hours of the morning. Now, this is not how to prepare for a 7.30am flight...
With about two hours sleep, we were woken by a knock on the door asking if we were ready to leave for the airport. We needed to leave in 10 minutes, so hangovers aside we dressed and packed as quickly as possible. We made our flight with time to spare, but I can't say that this must have left too good an impression with Sheryl's parents as I was in a really bad way with a stomach that just wouldn't quit.

We made Melbourne and had a nice coffee stop with Chris as he collected us from the airport and delivered us to Sheryl's cousin, Cathy. And her two kids, Emily and Thomas. Cathy was a God-send. Considering our "second-hand" state, her assistance meant that we actually made it to the wedding we were there to attend.
Held in the Williamstown Botanical Gardens, we watched Sime Brown (who we'd both known since school days) get married. Afterwards, (as they do) the reception kicked on well into the evening and night, so for the second night in a row we got in during the wee hours of the morning.

A quiet Sunday afternoon with the rest of Sheryl's relatives in Melbourne made for a relaxed and cruisey start to the day. The late afternoon, saw us catch up with a group of friends in the beer garden at the Belgian Beer Café before extending it into the evening and dinner at the same venue.

Monday gave us a day to ourselves, and saw us exploring the arcades and lanes that run from the Bourke Street Mall through to Flinders Street in the Melbourne CBD. Great to just poke around a bit, have lunch and a coffee together.
A bit later, after a ride on the SkyBus to the airport, we were in Sydney for the evening. I with my brother, Mark, his girlfriend, Jen, and their son, Oscar, while Sheryl caught up with some of her good friends. I joined them later in the night.

Tuesday had us having a very late breakfast in a groovy street café with a friend of Sheryl's who was up from Melbourne. We then spent the afternoon running about sorting some things before eventually enjoying the sunshine in a rooftop beer garden.

Wednesday afternoon and night was spent catching up with quite a group of Sheryl's friends, but before that, we had breakfast with Brendan & Danni, with young Madeline. We also spent some time in a shopping centre picking up a few items, as well as having lunch in the Strand Arcade in the city centre. A quick drink in the Marble Bar, and then it was down to the Opera Bar for the evening I've just mentioned. Fantastic watching the sun set and the harbour light up to make that certain giant coat hanger look quite impressive. We finished up with a late night feed in a nearby Chinese restaurant to round out the day... err... night.

Thursday had us lunching with my relatives, including my "little cousin" Klaer, who isn't that little any more as she is about to turn 8. Superb for Fraser to make the quick trip home from work for lunch too. From here we headed back to Mark and Jen's for Oscar's first birthday party. Meeting his other grandparents and uncle was a bonus too. It's funny what a 1 year old grandchild can do to your parents, and the things you suddenly see them do. Did they really do that with us when we were that young?? And as funny as it looks, I guess it works - if I may be so bold as to say that we turned out okay... perhaps.
Anyway, it's great how you can give a small child so much enjoyment on several levels with just one present - the paper alone provides such enjoyment, and that's long before they get the toy out of the box that was wrapped in it...

And that brings us to Friday again, which I mentioned at the beginning of this post, and that attempted sunrise (below)... So if you’re reading this and you were a part of this whirlwind trip, then “Cheers!” for making it a good one for us.