WARNING! It's a long one…….
Hi everyone - this is a bit of a combination email to talk about the last month or so in Australia and my trip to Hawaii with my sister. First of all, I hope this email finds all of you well and enjoying summer. I was spoiled by the perfect, warm weather in Hawaii and have had a bit of a shock to my system the last few weeks as Melbourne is well and truly in the middle of winter. So here goes…..
Maui - what I loved:
- LOVED the place! A & I stayed in a cute old town on the west coast, Lahaina, and enjoyed every minute of it. The weather was perfect, the people were laid back and friendly, and we had a great time exploring the island. I spent most of the time walking around in my bathing suit.
- I got to drive again! It was such a sense of freedom that I didn't realize I had missed over the past months without a car.
- Cheap cocktails - we definitely spent plenty of money on mai tais and other yummy cocktails, and had to take full advantage of $2 happy hours. I also came home with a bottle of Malibu pineapple rum and Captain Morgan spiced rum, neither of which are available in Australia.
- Snorkelling - we went lots, along the coast by ourselves and on an organized day trip in the ocean. Swam alongside sea turtles and the most beautiful little fishies.
- Haleakala - left at 2:45am one morning to drive to the top of this crater to see the sun rise up over the clouds. It was an amazing sight….and not surprisingly, amazingly cold! Not many people come to Hawaii prepared for 35 degree weather so the makeshift outfits people were wearing were quite amusing. (A was wearing a pair of socks on her hands!)
- Old Lahaina Luau - a true luau experience complete with a pig cooked underground, fresh leis, unlimited cocktails, and authentic Hawaiian performers. We really enjoyed this, and it was only a few minutes from our hotel. FYI - we had to book in 2 months in advance due to popularity, but it's the best luau on the island, so if you want to go - get in early!
- Some of our fav places to eat - Cheeseburger in Paradise, Maui Tacos, Kimo's, and Kula Lodge (at the bottom of Haleakala).
- Road to Hana - most amazing drive ever. Over 600 turns and 54 one-lane bridges. A true driving experience! We loved the quaint little, and some not so little, waterfalls on the side of the road. I especially loved the pools (some with fresh water from the volcano, some with salt water from the ocean), and taking a dip. Got some amazing photos. Stopped on the side of the road and bought fresh plumeria leis for $3 from a little girl. VERY Hawaii!
Honolulu - hmmm….
No offence, but I was not a fan of the big city. Too many people and not enough space. The shopping was ok, but it didn't make up for the lack of the "island feel" that we had in Maui. Waikiki Beach was beautiful but overcrowded.
We did enjoy Pearl Harbor and quite liked Duke's Canoe Club at the Outrigger Hotel.
Our favorite pastime in Honolulu was sitting by the pool at our hotel, drinking mai tais, and chatting with the locals. The hike to the top of Diamond Head was also a good adventure and rewarded us with the most beautiful views of Oahu and the surrounding waters.
It was frightening to me that a handful of people in Honolulu thought that I was Australian because of my "accent". Australians laugh at that, but I guess I sound different enough to the typical American that they assumed I was from down under. I can't say that I mind though. I quite enjoy the Aussie accent!
Now, let's move a bit further south to my favorite island, Australia…..
I'm still in love with this place, so I probably speak about it with a bit more adoration than other places. I feel at home here, but I guess I should after 2 years (yes, I celebrated my 2 year anniversary with Australia on July 2nd!). I'll get the chance to explore a bit more of this country when I head to Sydney for 10 weeks to work on a special project for my company. Although it's a long time away from home, I thought that I should take advantage of the opportunity to really get to know Sydney, and maybe take a few weekend trips to the east coast to sunnier, warmer places than Melbourne. I'll get to come home every 2-3 weeks, and will be up there with one of my best buddies from the office, so it should be a good experience.
For those of you who remember that I was taking belly dancing classes, I had my first official recital just after I got back from Hawaii in mid-June. It was really enjoyable for me, although I was a bit uncomfortable at first about bearing belly in front of a few friends. At least I was tan from the Hawaii trip though! I had my own costume and all. The next semester of classes starts up this week after a couple of weeks off. I have finally found something that I really enjoy, and it gives me a different form of exercise. I did try a sample Bollywood class that my dance school offered, but there was a bit too much hopping and bopping for me. Might have been handy though as the theme for the company Ball this year (in just over 2 weeks) is "Bollywood Ball". Hopefully my last ball will be a memorable one…..
I hosted the second big event for the Starlight Teams for Dreams initiative with my group at work - a Wine & Cheese Tasting evening. A company graciously offered up their time to host the event, which included 6 wines with matching cheeses, and a lesson to explain it all. It was a very enjoyable evening and we were able to raise money for our Starlight wish child in the process.
Another group project that we have going is the "Fun At Work" program. Our group was basically divided up into 6 teams of about 20. At each group meeting, we have activities and competitions, and we also have a budget to spend on whatever we like. It has been a great way to meet other members of the group whom I would normally not be exposed to. And our team won the last competition! Another aspect of this is getting assigned a "Secret Buddy". We filled out short questionnaires about ourselves and drew names to get our Secret Buddy. So after reviewing the questionnaire, I'm supposed to do little things for my buddy that relate to his hobbies, fav foods, etc. or just nice things in general. I love spoiling people, so am having a great time with this!
Now that I have officially been promoted to manager over here, I have already been invited to or have attended several Partner/Manager dinners. We had one a couple of weeks ago for all of audit, we have one this Friday night for my group only, and we have a welcome lunch for new managers within my group next week. It really is a different world, and it's a bit of a wake-up call for me, but I've enjoyed it so far. I'm sure I'll enjoy it even more when I get my first pay check this Friday with a manager's salary…….
I had heard about a restaurant here in Melbourne where you eat in the dark. The concept began with a blind man somewhere in Europe who wanted to prove that people form opinions about how things taste when they first see them. So he wanted to take away the ability to see so that people could enjoy the smell and taste of the food without regard to how it looked. So, a few of us ventured off to "The Dark Side" restaurant and had quite an adventure.
You start out in "The Light Side" by looking that the menus, ordering, then preparing yourself with a cute little bib. You then hold on to the waiter and form a chain to walk into the dark side. And let me tell you - it's pitch black! We thought that once our eyes adjusted we would be able to see at least a little, but we learned quickly that if there's no light at all, your eyes can't adjust. So, once we figured out where everyone was sitting, we managed to locate our place settings and order some drinks. When we got our food, the first thing I remember one of the guys saying was "I think I just put my beer in my chicken". Followed by, "I just stuck my fingers in the tomato sauce (ketchup)". It was nearly impossible to eat with a knife and fork, so most of us picked up our food and managed quite well eating with our fingers (although I think half of my potatoes ended up on the floor when I was trying to find my lamb). B was determined to eat with a knife and fork, and was actually quite successful, though very slow going. When we needed something from the waiter, we had to raise our hands. As they had night vision goggles on, they could see everything that was going on. Kind of a scary thought, but you didn't even really remember that they were there. The waiter asked if we were done with our meals and we said that we thought so, but asked if there was any more food on our plates. It was overall a very good experience. If anyone comes to Melbourne to visit me within the next 8 months, I'll take you if you want an adventure!
A couple of other quick tidbits of information:
- I had a mini 4th of July celebration with KG from Boston, M & L from NYC and B. It involved cheeseburgers, milkshakes, apple pie & Budweiser, and having fun with sparklers. It was a bit of a bummer that it was on a Monday, but we had a nice little party anyway!
- One of my friends, LR (the wife of a co-worker) from the Cayman Islands, had a little boy on the 5th of July. We haven't been to see him yet, but I'm sure that he will be a spoiled little one with all of us here at work who know KR & LR. Especially since they are away from home during KR's secondment with my company.
- I've seen Mr & Mrs Smith and War of the Worlds recently - didn't like either one all that much, but I'm still a huge advocate for assigned seating at the cinemas.
- B's footy team has now won 4 games this season. Looks like they'll get to stay in the same division next year. And they have their foreign beer night coming up where everyone pays an "entrance fee" with a six pack of foreign beer (I'll be taking Budweiser to support the good ole USA).
- I'm shocked at what is allowed on Australian television. Big Brother Uncut comes on at 9:30pm and shows full on nudity! I couldn’t believe the first time that I watched it. You definitely get to see a different side to the housemates then during the regular show. There is a lot of controversy about this show but it still manages to stay on TV in the meantime.
- I gave blood again last night but they would only take my plasma because I had been in Hawaii. Apparently they think that I may have some exotic island disease. Whatever…..
Ok - I think I've exhausted my typing ability for the moment. And I'm sure that all of you need a break from reading. So with that I'll say farewell for now, but not before I remind you that there are new photos on the website. Enjoy!
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