Sydney Part 1

*Photos to come*

Well I very nearly didn't make my flight to Auckland to start off with. I'd booked with Jetstar and despite having flown with them before and knowing their check in rules, this was the first time I received an email from them on the day of my flight with the first sentence saying 'you have selected auto check in'. After reading that my mind thought that I was already checked in, so when I finished work and left for the airport, I skipped the whole check in process and went straight through security. It was only when they started to board the flight I realised I had no boarding pass. Whoops. Luckily they bent the rules a bit and let me on.

After a night camping in the airport, I slept the whole way over to Sydney. When we landed I expected sunny skies and warm temperatures. Instead it was pouring down and 9 degrees. Brrr. I hadn't packed for that! Our plans for that first day ended up being perfect for the weather. We visited Auzzie World and the Aquarium, both at Darling Harbour and both indoors. Both were good opportunities to get up close to all the animals you think of when you think 'Australia'. Kangaroos, koalas, dugongs, salt water crocodile, sharks, snakes... I couldn't spot the platypus though.

We stayed the first couple of nights at the YHA near the railway station and on the same block as a wee cafe selling Colombian street style food. That was the first of many yum meals. I think I spent most of the holiday eating, suprise, suprise.

Of course as soon as I forked out for an umbrella the rain disappeared and Sydney put on a gorgeous afternoon. We headed to Circular Quay to see the Harbour Bridge and the Opera House - we took photos of each other in front of them of course, like proper tourists.

That evening we headed to Hyde Park for the Friday night noodle markets - part of the food festival. Oh my god, was that food good?! I haven't had much experience with Asian food so it was fun to a little something from several of the 50-odd stalls that were there. I tried peking duck pancakes, bbqed octopus, prawn on betel leaf, tapioca pudding, bbqed corn, dumplings, steamed pork and duck buns etc etc. I'm definitely a convert. There were chairs and tables set out and fairy lights/lanterns in the trees. I had a glass of wine (Katy had a sip of her's before the wind dumped the contents over the grass). It was a really awesome night out.

Wiped out, we headed to bed rather early. The next morning we headed out to Bondi Beach to do the Coastal walk to Coogee. I'd packed my togs but it was still windy and pretty cold so I skipped a dip in the waves. The walk was great - taking us along the cliffs past several small beaches, some with salt water swimming pools. All up I think it was about 6km - not a bad walk in jandals.

The afternoon we spent looking at some shops in the city and then it was time to head back to the hostel to get ready for dinner. We ate at Morena, a modern Peruvian restaurant. It was the reason I wanted to go to Sydney. My parents shouted us the degustation menu each (with matching wines for me) for my birthday present. I hit a quarter century next month. The photos don't do the food justice at all. I didn't want to use the flash as I thought it might disturb the other guests.

Sydney!

About to take a taxi to the airport to get a flight to Auckland and then onwards to Sydney tomorrow morning. So the next update should be exciting!

The last week, in pictures...



The knitting commission I've been working on - 2.5 days for a cardy and hat. I'm trying to
subsidise my yarn addiction by taking payment for baby knitting.



The knitting bag I picked up at KAN - never without it in my handbag.

Took a walk on my day off in between watching 3 films...

Stopped at Oriental Bay to read my book before being scared back inside by the wind

Dinner at work - Black Doris Plum cake with Plum and Creme Fraiche ice cream...mmm



Buquebus has picked up an annoying habit of tearing up cardboard boxes.




I spent an afternoon at the zoo with my favourite one year old. The lions were soaking
up the sun too.



My neglected mess of a vege patch - it's taking off with all this sunshine.

September knitting...

A few pictures of some knitting I've done this month...

 

 



ABs vs Pumas

I'm finally catching up on some posts from earlier in the month. My sister flew down for the night to come along to the Pumas vs All Blacks match. We had great seats tucked up under cover, out of the wind and rain. As it was the windiest day I can remember for a while, this was really welcome! My sister's plane had to circle a good 30 minutes before it could land - and it was apparently quite a bumpy landing.

 

I was so excited to see my favourite Puma playing. I've been a big fan of Juan Martin Hernandez since the 2007 World Cup. It was a great game - the Pumas put up a good fight - their defence was outstanding. Of course the ABs won in the end which was the result I was after (I am a Kiwi first and foremost, despite the blue and white facepaint).

 

While my sis was down we also went out for a yummy lunch at a Taiwanese restaurant. She's big on Asian food having travelled through China. I know pretty much nothing about Asian cuisine but I'm always up for trying something different! I had hot and sour soup and she, sweet and sour pork, and we shared dumplings and a hot of traditional tea. Tummies stuffed, we watched Moonrise Kingdom in the afternoon. And when I say watched, she watched, and I had a siesta having seen it already the night before and not having had to pay for my ticket.

 

It was a really fun weekend.

 

Just another day...

I forgot to bring my camera into work so still no holiday post...the wee hours of Friday morning it'll have to be (and I really need to get my lap top fixed).

I forgot today was the day I was closing at work and then opening the next morning (so 7 hours between shifts) so I got up early to do some exciting house cleaning, knitting, killing aphids in the garden, baking bread and making Sally Lunn. Luckily I have 24.5 hours (excited much?!) between the next shifts to catch up on some zzz.

This afternoon I had my friends' baby over for a couple of hours. All three of us flatmates happened to be home and it was a gorgeous day so we headed out to Lyall Bay beach to play on the playground and have coffee at the Maranui Surf Club.

Here's me and the little one rocking her hand knits. I mainly snuck this photo in to show off her hat again and to show off my hair - how long is it getting?! That's 17 months of growth now and it's almost down to my shoulders.

I've been making a conscience effort to get up and do something before work each day and it's doing wonders for my happiness levels. One morning this week I got in 2+ hours of knitting before a midday shift. My aim for this week is to work in daily exercise so it starts to become a habit. I was getting pretty darn chubby there earlier this year but thankfully 7kg of it has somehow melted away without me noticing so by making a conscious effort I'm sure the same again will come off without too much trouble. I even started wearing jeans again after a year of not wearing them due to fear of muffin top.

Right it's getting really really late so I'd better hit the hay. Apologies for the rambling post but my brain stopped functioning several hours ago.

P.S. Just realised it's 3 weeks and 1 day until I head off to Sydney and the Blue Mountains. Cannot wait!

Still here, still knitting...

Well I've tried to update quite a few times, with photos, over the past couple of weeks but haven't had much luck with the computer. Hopefully tonight will be different.

It's Sunday so I finished work nice and early at 7-ish so I was home in time for a great night in of TV viewing - Nothing Trivial followed by Offspring. I have a glass or three of bubbly and my flatmate cooked me curry so life is good.

Once this is typed up I'll be able to get into some knitting. I've got quite a bit done this week. I'm working on a whole lot of teddy clothes, mostly of my own design, for a couple of special little (and not so little) girls' birthday presents. They look rather hilarious, in a cute kind of way, and at least I'm using up all of the yarn scraps lying around the house.

Since I last posted I've finished a couple of other projects - an Aviatrix hat in newborn size which is so tiny and sweet, another pair of gansey booties in gorgeous alpaca, the black rib beanie for a Christmas gift (yay me, so organised!) and a dish cloth in the most tedious seed stitch that I never care to repeat (part of another Christmas gift). That doesn't look all that much written down but thatt was a fair amount of teddy knitting. I also spent a good number of hours (upwards of 10) trying to untangle the beautiful merino silk I bought off Jessicah of Spinning a Yarn at KAN so I can cast on a cowl. I can't believe how tangled I got it. That'll teach me to try ball up yarn on a bus. There must be a simpler technique but I haven't worked it out yet.

What else has been happening...? I got my wisdom tooth pulled which wasn't nearly as painful as expected but did cost me a couple of week's rent. My sister flew down to come along to the Pumas vs All Blacks game with us which was a lot of fun. I've babysat my favourite wee baby with another date with her this week - she's the most laid back and happy baby I've met in a long while. I put Buquebus on the scales to find he weighs a whopping 5 kilos - not a small bunny, that's for sure - I also bought him a dog harness to take him for walks but he hates it.

Of course I got up to lots while I was on leave but the photos are worth sharing so I'll make a point of using the computer at work after I finish in the wee hours of Wednesday morning to put them on here.

Right, time to get back to the knitting... :-)