'Twas a very merry Christmas indeed...

 

 

I hope your Christmas Day was as pleasant as ours, with plenty of perfect Christmas weather (dependent on where you are, I suppose), copious amounts of yummy food, and fun times and laughter with family and friends.

 

It was a warm one for us: 37 degrees Celsius was the maximum at home, but thankfully it was a few degrees cooler at my parents' house 40km away, where we spent most of the day.

 

The daily temperatures are now expected to rise significantly over the next week. Now until the end of January tends to be the hottest time of the year for us, where temperatures can easily soar to the mid-40s and beyond. As the hottest year on record draws to a close, I'm hoping the BoM's predictions of a hotter than usual summer will be well off the mark!

 

So, here's to the closing of one year and the dawn of another. I hope 2014 will be splendid for you all.

 

xoxox

 

 

A Postcrossing Adventure: Weeks 5 & 6

Week 5

 

 

// outgoing:

 

 

As it seems to be taking a phenomenally long time for most of the postcards I've sent over the past few weeks to get to their destinations, I decided to reduce my outgoing this week to TWO cards.

 

Postcrossing only allows its members to have a certain number of cards "in transit" at any one time. Only when those cards have been registered by the recipient can the sender then send more cards. When it is taking up to a month for a card to reach its destination (or be registered, whichever it happens to be), it begins to impact upon the number of postcards I can send each week.

 

So, this week I sent an Australian dinosaur to Germany (AU-324792), and Alice not to Wonderland, but to Singapore (AU-325105). Both were sent from Sydney.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Week 6

 

 

// outgoing:

 

This week I sent out another TWO cards: A card of Irish humour, together with some tea and coins has gone out The Netherlands (AU-327281), whilst a fun Mail-a-Saurus (which makes me giggle every time I read it) went out to the Ukraine (AU-327285).

 

 

 

I received no Postcrossing cards this fortnight.

 

 

 

Postcrossing postcards sent to date: 16

All time: 72

 

 

Postcrossing postcards received to date: 13

All time: 75

Sydneyside

 

We've covered many miles these past few weeks! It has been both exciting and exhausting, though. I am now looking forward to some quiet time at home over the Christmas/New Year break.

 

Last weekend we were in Sydney for a few days. I was last there in autumn 2012, but it was Shane's first time to the harbourside city, so we spent most of our time doing a lot of touristy things and getting in all the major sites.

 

Being sub-tropical, Sydney has many grey skies at this time of year, but it wasn't the slightest bit cold. Both Shane and I enjoyed the slightly balmy (but not so balmy it was uncomfortable) weather, and the morning and evening rainstorms. It is certainly something we don't get to experience all too often in the arid Flinders Ranges!

 

If you are ever in Sydney yourself, I strongly recommend you try the amazing, authentic Thai food (which is available in abundance), take the ferry to Manly, and participate in The Rocks Ghost Tour.

 

 

(War Memorial & Hyde Park)

 

 

(Sydney Harbour & The Rocks)