Surreal Christmas

We are having a very surreal Christmas down here, it’s dead weird seeing Santa hats and Christmas trees in 30 degree heat. Anyways, to get in the mood we’re heading off to some candlelit carols in a nearby park on Friday. And Emily has very kindly tracked down some brandy butter for Phil to put in his mince pies. Top notch!

On the work front, Phil has been offered a new contract at News Corp. We’ve just got to process the business visa then we’ll be able to stay here a bit longer before moving on.

On Christmas day, we’re heading to Bondi Beach to see the other backpackers, then back to our place for a party with some pommie friends. We’ll be in the flat at midnight (1pm London time) if you want to call us. On Boxing Day we’re going to the Blue Mountains with Nish. Then on New Year’s Eve we’ll be heading to a friends flat to watch the fireworks on the bridge.

We’ve uploaded some more photos and movies to this website, including an extremely well-produced movie of us sending a Christmas message home from Bondi Beach. If you watch the hi-res version, please try to ignore the topless woman walking past in the background. Both versions were done in a hurry, as everyone was staring at the crazy people wearing Santa hats. If you could please ignore our final flourishes to remove hats after we thought filming had stopped, that’ll be grand. Ta.

Comings and goings: Nish has been travelling down the East coast since the World Cup finished, and is due to arrive back in Sydney on Monday. Do Young Kim (Phil’s ex-colleague) has also been in town for a brief holiday, as has Katherine Morton (another of Phil’s ex-colleagues). Most London-based friends and ex-colleagues had beer consumed in their honour.

In other news: Atletico Manly (Phil’s football team) are not doing very well at all, having recorded only a couple of draws and one win. They’re third from bottom of the table. But they’ve been very, very unlucky….