A couple of evenings later it was my friend Kate's birthday and I had the chance to see her, her husband Simon and a different group of friends (some overlapping) and catch up more at an Indian restaurant. The poor restaurant just didn't know quite how to cope with us all. They only had one waitress on for the evening and there were more than 40 of us there. In the end, we grabbed and distributed plates and cutlery ourselves, and organised to order drinks in batches to help them cope. It is very typical of I think Australians, or perhaps just my group of friends, that our reaction to the lack of serving staff was not being upset or offended, but to offer to do what we can to lighten the load.  

Then I got to enjoy a wedding. It is always lovely to see people I like get married, and in this case, while I only met the groom on the day, I thoroughly approve.  The wedding itself was on Mount Ainslie, and the reception out at a farm in Womboin. I am kicking myself that I didn't have my camera at the wedding, however a friend lent me theirs so hopefully I will have some pretty shots from that to share with you.  Mount Ainslie looks out over Canberra, so I got to see how the city has spread over the years. Much of it stays the same, but there is definitely a lot of growth that has happened around the edges. It is also still looking dry; worryingly so considering that summer is not yet upon us.

Wamboin is a sort of farming area on the outside edge of Canberra; about 45 minutes drive. The bride and groom have a small farm, and asked guests to bring a dish rather than a gift. Cate and I made up a salad of fresh asparagus and snowpeas. The treat of the meal for me though was the roast pork – apparently the farmer just across the way slaughters on a Friday, so they just bought the meat directly from him, and it was totally delicious.

Being out on the farm was great – getting to hear the sounds of the frogs in the dam once the sun had set and smelling the distinct gum tree – scent on the air really made me feel at home. Cate was able to identify 6 different species of frog, which impressed me. I just knew that one of them goes “Bonk. Bonk. Bonk” - and that is the name I know it by – the bonk frog. I snatched a few photos of the sunset over the bush.  What a special country Australia is.. the sunsets there just are so spectacular, and this one, accompanied by the music of nature was totally magic.

28 October

On my actual birthday I had a training course, which was interesting, but what a pity to travel all the way to Australia and have one of the only days where I had to work being my birthday!

Two days later, disaster struck. I was walking in the back door of my parent's house and the screen door was swinging closed behind me. To stop it slamming into my back, I put my foot up, and the door closed and sliced open the side of my foot. My dad drove me to the medical centre where I had 5 stitches put into my foot and there ended any ideas of me swimming every day throughout my holiday! (for those of gruesome bent, there is a photo of my foot here) The next few days were of necessity quiet, spending a lot of time on the couch with my foot up trying to rest and take it easy. At least my parent's house has the advantage of having lots of wonderful birds visit outside the window that I could watch and photograph.   The bird bath and feeder attract a wide range of birds, including parrots and native pigeons.

24 October

The timing of my arrival in Australia, coincided with my birthday, so my parents hosted a bit of a combined welcome home and birthday party for me. I didn't think too much about it beforehand, being on the way to Australia at the time, and I guess a little nervous how many of my friendships would have survived the four years I have been away. The day came for the party.

Discussion with my mum had decided us that a simple barbecue was the way to go, that way we could just cook and then eat lunch and continue to graze on birthday cake and other goodies throughout the afternoon. I was delighted to discover that all my friends were keen to see me and to catch up, and was very touched by having so many of them come to the party. In the end the celebration continued on into the evening.

I have to admit I came close to crying when making a short speech after I cut the birthday cake!   A special surprise for me was the presence of my godmother, who I got to spend time with and get to know. What a fabulous woman she is. Strong and intelligent and empathic and a great inspiration. I wish she had lived in the same city as me as I grew up.

22 October

Time for a bit of a reconnection with Australian gastronomy. A trip to the Poachers Pantry with my sister turned into a post-interview foursome, joined by katrina. For those not in the know, the Poachers Pantry started as a smokehouse and now has a restaurant and vineyard. Smoked meats, smoked semi-dried tomatoes (which are incredibly incredibly good) and other goodies are transformed into scrummy meals on this quite typical Australian country property. We opened a bottle of champagne and tucked into a delicious lunch on the verandah. I did a review on my foodblog if you are interested.

I had sort of forgotten just how bright the light is in Australia. Glowing blue skies reflecting the short-lived green of spring grass. The rusted corrugated iron of the roof of the wood walled shearing shed presents a very special dilapidated beauty.

Some small children played on the lawn while we ate lunch - incredibly cute in their bright coloured sun hats.