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QueenslandIn the last 5 years, we've met a lot of expats from all over the world. Everyone moves overseas for various reasons including for the adventure, for money, for job advancement. And when it's all over, the discussion revolves around where we all head. Some people decide never to go home, making their home in a different part of the world. One thing we've found though is that Australians (and New Zealanders) almost always intend to go home eventually.
Below are some of the things we really love about Australia The ViewFresh air, countyside, open spaces
The BeachWhat's not to love? Look at these beaches...! We had a fabulous holiday in our favourite coastal spot. Mooloolaba is a great place to spend some time and it didn't disappoint this time around. Although we had quite a bit of overcast weather we still enjoyed every minute of it. The accommodation (Mantra Sirocco) was in such an amazing location, close to everything and right across the road from the beach. We managed to get great coffee, fabulous breakfasts, awesome burgers, prawns on the beach and LOTS of fish and chips. And, most of these were consumed while sitting on the balcony, watching the surf. Disappointingly, we discovered that we seem to have reached Peak Eggs Benedict... After a couple of nudges at the erstwhile favourite, we have realised that we might need to peruse the menu a little more in future... Shakshuka, here I come!
Learning to Surf As a Rosh Hashannah present from Nei Nei and us, the kids were given surfing lessons (XL Surfing Academy) We had them booked in for Mon - Wed, but after having 3 fun days, they decided to continue for the rest of the week. Thursday wasn't great and they both wanted to give up, but with a bit of, shall we say, gentle persuasion, they both fronted up on Friday and had a blast on their last day. What an awesome skill to learn, especially while the knees are still up to it!
Quintessential AustraliaChristmas Eve, or indeed any day of the week, is not complete without a mad dash to the Bottle-O. The White Bull Tavern in good ole Roma was doing a roaring trade and furnished me with the required beverages to last over the Christmas long weekend. Good times! We enjoyed the usual staple Aussie experiences while home this time, plus threw in a couple that we haven't done for a while. It's been quite some time since I've devoured a kg of prawns on the beach, 2 years since I pegged the washing out on the Hills Hoist from my childhood, 1 year since we made the trek from the coast to Roma (love that drive!), 1 year since we listened to the cricket on ABC radio, 1 year since we OD'ed on sugar-laden pav and a year since I attempted to eat my body weight in ham off the bone. Not to mention the obligatory farewell pie/saus roll at Sydney airport - a rather sterling effort this year from the little coffee shop opposite our boarding gate. And, a belated thanks to China Eastern airlines for being late in having us board, which gave us all time to eat said pastries without burning our mouths...
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