Post from James A

I thought I might share with you all some moments that were captured but not posted onto this amazing blog. Here are some of my favourites....





Honey,

Thanks for making the last 2 1/2 weeks the most memorable for me down here... I look forward to capturing more moments with Coral and yourself in days to come....


See you in Jan!

Jx

Air NewZealand

Last entry


We have begun our journey home and it was incredibly difficult to say goodbye. After a 5 hour lay over in Auckland its on to LA.... Cannot thank James enough for an amazing trip!! See you in 2 months honey <3 Molly & Coral <3

Christmas, lightning, sailing......

Our second to last day was an early Christmas celebration. We put up the tree, decorated, and cooked a traditional American turkey dinner. It was about 100 degrees outside so it was a great day for baking! James’s Mum and Dad Russell and Liddy joined us as well as a thunder storm just as we were sitting down to dinner. So cozy! And Coral and I were introduced to popping Bonbon’s which is a festive English holiday tradition. The dinner wine and company made for a wonderful evening.

Our last day was spent sailing off of the Sunshine Coast. Thanks again Jackie’O and Mike!! We has such a nice day! And the burgers were fantastic!!!!

Bindi & Sydney

Australia Zoo
Friday was spent visiting the "Australia Zoo" It was a really nice drive out and we had the added bonus of passing the Glass House Mountains. We had a great time and it was nice... well.... bitter sweet to see all of the memorabilia of Steve Irwin with his family. I think my favorite part of the zoo experience was petting the kangaroos! I think they must keep them all pumped full of xanax.












We left very early Saturday morning to catch a flight to Sydney. What a beautiful city! We spent the day sightseeing.... Sydney Harbor Bridge, Opera House, fish and chips, a few local neighborhoods (including the one James is moving into next January), and the famous Manly ferry. Manly is a beach town which everyone from the city visits via ferry on the weekends. We experienced Aboriginals playing the didgeridoo and rhythm sticks and cyclists commuting on the freeway.... in the bike lane....






After a full day of being tourists James' (work)"mates" had us over for a BBQ (no shrimp) :) Great company and food.... Coral loved the water slide in the pool.... (go figure?) and even made a few new friends who thought her accent was the greatest thing ever! LOL! So cute!!


Sunday we were able to sleep in late at the local hotel and then head out for a relaxing day at Bondi. If you are not familiar this is Australia's most famous yet dangerous beach. In the 2 hours we were there we watched as the lifeguards plucked swimmer after swimmer from the water.











The water is turquoise and clear against white sand and majestic cliffs on either side. And I finally had a burger with beet on it! Yummmmm!!! We finished off the day at the gorgeous Centennial Park in the center of the city. We sat at one of the higher points of the park watching the kites and sharing a bottle of wine and some macadamia nut brittle while the keen cyclists & joggers passed by. I think my favorite people watching moment was the guy jogging through with his dauchsund...

Wet N Wild Vegemite.....

Needless to say... we were quite tired after our trip to Melbourne so we spent Monday and Tuesday relaxing and enjoying Brisbane. We went back to South Bank and did some sight-seeing on foot. The Goodwill Bridge and Botanical Gardens are two more features of downtown which we really enjoyed. We also visited the art and science museums. Downtown Brisbane is a beautiful city and I hope to spend a little more time there.....

Yesterday we made our way to Wet N Wild...... a surprise for Coral with over 5 acres of rides - unfortunately we only saw 2. After Coral spotted the odd looking Pirate bucket dumper in the kiddie area she decided she was afraid of the entire park. The entrance fees for us three totaled only about $200.00............. so no biggie. On the way home we hit Yatala Pies again.... because why would you not? So delish! And then we washed the day down with about two bottles of red wine! Anyway......

Today James had yet another surprise planned for us! He drove us up to Mt. Tambourine. We had a picnic complete with basket, hiked to a gorgeous waterfall in a deep ravine, and walked through a tropical rainforest of Palms and towering Eucalyptus. I have to say that today and the Puffing Billy experience are my faves so far!













BTW..... finally tried Vegemite.... Once was enough.

Tomorrow we plan to visit Bindi at her zoo!!! Steve Irwin was from this area so this is a big deal around these parts! Thinking we will have more success there than at Wet N Wild..... Fingers crossed :)