Happy New Year.

Hello,

I hope this finds everyone in good spirits.

Last I left you was Thanksgiving. Well that Friday I took off to Cairns with Rob and Kat. That was the beginning of 3 days of being adventure girl.

Cairns Day 1:

Scuba Diving in the Great Barrier Reef. We went with Tusa Dive (http://www.tusadive.com). What an amazing experience. SCUBA diving for my very first time in the Great Barrier Reef. The day started early (as all 3 days in Cairns did), went on a large boat which took us 1 ½ off the main land. It was a really foggy morning so we did not see much on our ride out. They briefed us and took us on our first dive of the day. I cannot describe it and do it any justice at all. I can just say it was beautiful, the reef, the plants, the fish and the sea cucumbers. Then we had a bit of time before lunch to do a bit of snorkeling. It is quite different though equally as beautiful to see the top of what we dove through. My next new experience: I got seasick. I had never been seasick before. Guess there is a first time for everything. After lunch the fog cleared up, we moved to another part of the reef and went for another dive. This was a beautiful and exhausting day. Though it still was not complete. Next stop "Wildlife Mountain Safari". This started out to be the best possible night. We had were face to face with a Cassowary and even hold a baby flying fox (looks much like a bat). We had a beautiful candle light dinner in the rainforst. But then the night continued with a spotlight animal tour in a 4-wheel drive, after the SCUBA diving I was exhausted and slept during most of this tour. I sure it would have been wonderful.

Cairns Day 2:

I was on my own the next day; Rob and Kat were off to Melbourne. I took another rainforest tour from another company. It was a beautiful day. A 7 hour hike through a rainforest with a well informed tour guide and all too many leeches (and a week after the bull ants got me, my ankle were screaming!)

Cairns Day 3:

For my final day in Cairns I went whitewater rafting, the sun was shining for us the entire day.

That was the end of my adventure girl trip.

The beginning of December was rather uneventful. I worked long hours at work and kept myself entertained with a few Girl Guide Meetings. The Guide Unit is getting more and more skilled at planning activities. I think the next few months will be filled with fun activities.

As Christmas creeped up I quickly made plans for my few days off.

Holiday number (Christmas): go to the beach with my friend Sara (another American). So this is exactly what I did on Christmas day. We enjoyed the sun until the smoke rolled in. The bush fires surrounded the city.

Holiday number two (Boxing Day): go to Wollengong (a city about an 1.5 hours south of Sydney) I had a car starting driving to the "Gong" and I was stopped about halfway there because of the fires. So instead I just drove a bit around the city. I can now say that I am comfortable driving on the left-hand side of the road.

Holiday number three (New Year's Eve): go to the Lord Mayor's Picnic. The Lord Mayor's Picnic is a Sausage Sizzle held for disabled children and their families on New Year's Eve, this event is held in the Botantical Gardens and this allows these families to have one of the best possible views of Sydney's New Year's Eve fireworks. I volunteered with the Guides and served up sausages until 9:00PM when I watched the first set of fireworks. Then I headed off to a friends house, drank a little, danced on the dining room table and played 1980's Trivia Pursuit. I think it was the best New Year's Eve I have ever had.

Now I think I have caught everyone up to date. I am too tired to be bothered with vocabulary tonight. So I will have to make up for what is lacking in this update next update.

Take Care,
Tia