Hello everyone!
i know it's been quite some time since i've updated on here. but in all honesty it would have been pretty boring! Since getting jobs, Marcy and i haven't been up to a whole lot of exciiting stuff.
I've gotten used to the two job deal and it has been working out nicely. I tend to have sundays off, as does marcy and our rommmate steve so we've adopted "Steve's Sunday Tours". He takes us somewhere new each sunday. It's generally not anywhere too far, but always something different. We've gone surfing at Dudley Beach, gone to a ocean pool, and went out to a place called Nelson Bay to a few beaches. The ocean pool is SO neat! There are both ocean pools and ocean baths here in Newcastle and they were made by the prisioners when australia first came into existance. The ocean pool is right along the ocean in the rock and it's somewhat a natural hole and part just carved out rock and is filled by ocean spray. It gets pretty warm, but it's just ocean water and the bottom is half seaweed and such. Yes, i have picutres, but i have sill been lazy in getting them on a CD to put them on the computer. It is a mission i have for myself for before christmas.
We also had a christmas party at the Bar Beach Bowling Club. Blowing Clubs are popular hang out places especially on Sunday afternoons for both oldies and younger people to have a few drinks and play "balls" (lawn bowling to us Canadians). Our other roommate Paul had handed out lots of invites and had been fishing for a few weeks to get the seafood for the party. There were about 60 or so people that turned up. Myself, Marcy and Paul's mom, Carmel, prepared all sorts of salads and such all day to go along with the feed of fish, prawns, and a selection of meats (of course won by paul at meat raffles). It was a late night and a good time.
This past weekend we were supposed to head to Port Macquarie to a music festival but due to having difficulty getting tickets and poor weather we ended up just having the weekend off around Newcastle. Originally we had the intension of going Christmas shopping, going to Hunter Valley to the Winerys, and going to Nelson Bay. Only one of those things happened but we still had a great time. We went out with Steve to see his friend DJ and had a really fun night. Jumpping in puddles while walking home at 5am to head to the beach to watch the sun rise. It was one of the best nights i've had since i got here. a lot of fun! We still plan on getting in the Hunter Valley before we go though!
We got tickets to see Matt Costa at a small theater in Sydney on January 2nd and it will be shortly after that, that we plan to leave Newcastle for Melbourne. The plan is to get a job at a vineyard since grapes are in season during that time. Preferably we'll find a place where they board us in return for picking grapes. that would be quite the experince! and perhaps we'll get some free wine out of it too...
Christmas is creeping up on us! Without cold weather, snow, exams and being close to family it just doesn't feel like christmas at all! We're not 100% sure on all plans for the holidays but we will be joining Steve and his family who have so very kindly invited us to be with them on christmas day. I guess the plans include a bbq on the beach, secret santa and dinner at his sister's house (she just had a baby who is SO cute!). But my thoughts will most definitly be of all of you and home.
I hope everyone is enjoying their hoidays and i will write again soon to tell you about how it all turns out. Hope to hear from all of you with how you have been doing, what you've been up to and how the hoidays are treating you.
love and miss you all. xoxoox
MERRY CHRISTMAS!!
