adventures galore!

G'Day!
Well, its been a VERY busy last week and a bit....so here are the highlights....

1. Simbio Zoo... a hands on school kids zoo..where i pet a koala...and shook hands with a kangaroo...amazing!! it only took 6 months!

The weekend brought many adventures...Rin's 21st...a big deal birthday party..loads of fun..speechs and toasts and food and fun times... Sunday Ash's and i hopped on a chartered bus with a bunch of work mates to see...TOTO!!! it was increadible! they played all the classics....Rosanna...Hold the Line...Africa ... its doesnt get any better...if you have no idea who i am talking about..you really need to get on google and look them up. Totally classic rocker dads..the drum kit was insane....

This past week Ash and I flew down to Melbourne to spend a week with Jill.. So much fun!! Melbourne is a great city...really cold for aussie standards...it got as cold as 10 degrees!! We ate at fantastic resturants...shopped at the biggest markets i have ever seen...wandered the streets..melbourne is full of interesting alley ways with great resturants, shops, and tons of wall art (grafitti)....On our last day there we drove down the great ocean road..to Bell's beach...hugly famous beach..i stood in the exact spot that Keanu Reeves did in some movie i forget the name of....and headed further to the 12 Apostles...a truely breath taking natural wonder....pictures do nothing to describe them..it was beautiful....the overcast sky was amazing too...had a great trip...got up at 4:30 am to catch a plane back to the shire!Jill, Ash, Mel.....melbourne adventurers ....

the 12 Apostles..there are actually only really 5 and half ... they keep falling over...

so that bring us to Saturday.....Heading to the blue mountains tonight to stay in Leura for a couple of days....visit the leura lolly shop, do a little antiquing...go on the worlds steepest train...should be great..

so those were the high lights.....

lowlights include.....
only two weeks left!! i think i might cry........

i miss you all dearly and cant wait to catch up....
...talk to you soon...
mel

spray paint, bricks and newtown

HAPPY MOTHERS DAY!

Update time!
Well, I have spent the last week since being at the Whitsundays, hanging out in the Sutherland Shire, having some adventures. Its been a great week of mostly relaxing and doing nothing...which is AMAZING! havent really had time to do that ever in my life! So its been nice! Spent some time at Cronulla beach, watching movies, and catching up with people! This weekend had a Will and Grace evening at friend Rhys's place - Saturday headed into the city on a graffiti art search. In an area called Newtown there are tons of spots with increadible art work, great shops and cafe's its a cool spot.
This one is in Paddington - another area - On the side of some supply store like home depot - they sell wheel barrows. This wall was like a screen in Street Fighter - very cool - Ash is doing some Kung Fu - I think she might win
This one is is Paddy as well - There was this amazing wall with a bleeding heart and a typical pic of mary but it included so many colours and flowers and stuff - very cool. This is me trying to take a pic but getting distracted by all the people walking by... Birdie T!!!

This one is in Newtown - so colourful - note the cockroaches on the wall as well...i like the little post in front of it - it was covered in tons of finger marks - like the artist used it as a napkin.

After the great graffiti search- went to a farwell dinner for Susan Doyle - who heads back to Canada tommorow - so a big posse of people from work gathered to say goodbye. Then headed into the city for a night of dancing with the St.Lukes crowd. GREAT time! managed to get ourselves into a club that was having a private party - bumped into Australian Idol ... hillarious time!
Sunday brought Mothers Day - Had a great day with my Aussie family - Lunch with the Ash's family, aunt and uncle and fam, and both grannies and grandpa. It was great! They all tried on my wicked cool mood ring - it was the hit of the party.
SO things continue to be ever so exciting here in Oz - this week brings surf lessons and Pirates of the Caribean! Team canada meeting - and a great weekend ahead! With a 21st birthday party and a TOTO concert!
Hope the spring is a beaut (as the aussies say) and make sure its nice and warm for me when i come home!
lots of love
Melissa!

a week in the whits

Hi!
Just got back from a week in the Whisunday Islands and Airlie Beach. I flew to Queensland on Sunday and spent a day at Airlie Beach. It was an interesting experience staying a hostel by myself, the weather was terrible and so sitting on the beach wasnt exactly an option. On Thurs I headed to the harbour and started out on a 3 day sailing trip through the 72 Whitsunday islands. I was on the boat with 10 other people and a crew of 3. The sailing, snorkling and hanging out was great! but unfortuantly it rained the ENTIRE TIME!!!!! So here are some rather deppressing pics of me, having a good time in the rain!

This is me and Cheryl. She was my buddy on the boat. We are on Whithaven beach, one of the most famous white beaches in the world, except in the rain i guess! We are dressed ever so elegantly in our stinger suits, cause of the jelly fish..and no we havent been swimming yet...were soaked from the RAIN!

During one of the brief hours of no rain, (still no blue skies) we were really able to sail. Which was AMAZING! This is my feet. I am sitting on the deck of the boat..and we are heeling or hiking as some same..meaning that i thought i was going to fall straight down into the ocean!!! I think we were going like 12 knots or something...and i smoked my toe on a rock..ouch.

Here are some precious hermit crabs...can you see the one little guy poking out??? they were really cool...great shells and were pretty tiny...hmm facinating..

well yup..that was a little look at my trip.. i am back in sydney, hanging out doing laundry and hanging out with friends...gooood times!

lots of love

mel