The Grand Adventures of Justin: Australia, Part One

Okay, so this is a long post, so if you want to be rude and just jump to the pictures here is a summary:

First week in Oz
There for Caroline and Davids wedding which was fantastic.
It was nice seeing everyone again, especially Ben, my godson, who had grown up so much.
I think I spent most of the week eating.

I was a little nervous heading back to Australia. I had not been back since moving to the UK, so I guess I was just wondering what had changed (if anything) and whether or not I would be able to slip back into the old routine.

The flight over was long, but uneventful - as an aside, I can recommend Singapore Airlines, but they really need to work on their food, it was absolutely awful! Anyway, I flew into Brisbane and then jumped on a connecting flight to Canberra. As I was waiting at the train station in Brisbane to go to the domestic terminal, the platform people announced that the rail drivers had called a snap strike! Luckily they put us all in taxis to head across.

Kate met me at the airport and we went to Caroline and David's place (where I was staying), after a quick shower we all headed over to Kurt and Chris' place for lunch. It was fantastic. Chrissy cooked an amazing meal, and it was nice seeing everyone again. Their children Ruby and Ben (my godson as well) had grown a lot. It was quite a shock! Unfortunately I flaked early, so we headed back to Caroline and David's place (hereafter called The Freckers) and sat in the air conditioning (it was 33 degrees!) before heading to bed.

On Monday I drove Caroline to work (so I could use her car) and headed into Civic to look around. It has not changed a bit. I got charity mugged (chugged) a couple of times, it was like being back home. One thing that did amaze me was how empty it was. It is usually always heaving in the Southampton mall, but in Civic it was barren.

I picked Caroline up for lunch and she helped me pick out a classy (and cheap) Versace suit and funky shirt and tie for her wedding (one of the reasons I was back in Oz) before we headed to Sizzle Bento for Sushi Train! After dropping her back at work I headed back to Chrissy's place and went for a walk with her and Ben which was good! I hit the wall after picking up Caroline from work, so after dinner (which was lovely) I headed to bed.

After dropping Caroline at work Tuesday I headed to the physio (for my shoulder). He seemed a little surprised at my lack of treatment in the UK, and gave me some exercises to do. I then went and had lunch with Pat and Caroline and Mecca Bah (which was delicious) and then headed to Kate's place (she was not feeling well and at home) for the afternoon. After picking Caroline up we all headed into Debarcle for a catchup with the old DEST graduate crowd - it was really cool seeing everyone again. The night went too quick though, so I did not get to see everyone I wanted...

After dropping Caroline off at work I met up with Angie (a friend of mine) for a coffee. It was good seeing her - she was quite pregnant and glowing as well! Which was good. After that I headed out to Kingston to have lunch with the old AGS crowd. It was nice seeing them - although from their stories it seems not much has changed there. After picking Caroline up from work I headed out to Manuka to meet up with Nick and his wife Zoë (workmate of mine from AGS). They were thinking of moving to the UK and wanted all the info that I could provide - in exchange they filled me with food, so it seemed like a good exchange for me!

Thursday morning David, Caroline and I headed to Watson for breakfast, Caroline had the day off work, so we pottered around. I met up with Kurt for lunch and generally took it easy (it was nice). I went to Kurt and Chris's place for dinner which was great. I spent time with Ruby and Ben, played Singstar (and lost!) and chatted with Kurt and Chris. It was really nice. I was staying at Kate's that night, so she kindly came and picked me up which was nice.

Kate had Friday off work so we headed out to Lanyon which was a great place. It was a pity I left my National Trust card at home, otherwise I would have been able to look around. We settled for lunch which was lovely. That night we met up with Lainie and a friend of hers for a couple of drinks and dinner, which was lovely.

Saturday morning Kate and I headed to Tilley's for breakfast and I met up with Kearns and Claire. I would be seeing Kearns in Wollongong, but Claire was heading to Melbourne for work, so it was nice to catch up with her. Kate then dropped me off at Kurt and Chrissy's place where we all got ready for the wedding! We caught a maxi taxi out to Poachers Pantry and met up with the rest of the guests.

The wedding was fantastic. The ceremony was nice and simple, held outside under a lovely old tree. The best man had left the rings in the car, but that just added to the informal nature of the ceremony. David was as keen as mustard and Caroline was glowing - it was just lovely. Dinner was delicious and the speeches were all good (Pat did a fantastic job as MC). The night seemed to go really quick unfortunately, before I knew it, we had to get back on the bus and go home.

Sunday was a nice relaxing day. Chrissy made us some lovely Eggs Benedict (I have never had any better) and we all just recovered. We all headed over to The Freckers where Caroline and David were recovering. I said goodbye, they were about to head off on their honeymoon, and I was heading to Sydney to visit Jonathan. Kurt and Chris (and Ben!) ran me to the airport, where they had to pick up Ruby. It was sad to say goodbye to everyone there, but I had a fantastic time. It was really good to see everyone again.