The Christmas Countdown

So it's 5 days until Christmas! And as I write this post sat up on the balcony overlooking the Christmas carol concert on Coogee beach I can't help but feel nostalgic for the English Christmas festiveness. I always knew it would happen. I love this time of year. Its natural to miss home quite often but it seems to be all I can think about lately, to the point where it gets quite uncomfortable as obviously this is when I spend so much quality time together with my family and friends. I really wish I could be with them. This will be the first Christmas I've spent without them and it's not going to feel much like Christmas at all. Add to this the fact that over here, the decorations are very reserved and unnoticeable, the atmosphere and spirit seems artificial, the carols aren't convincing, the Christmas tv show's are non existent and the food is just doesn't cut it compared to all that festive food back home. Why? It has to be the weather and the climate. As the Australian summer peaks in late December the Aussies have put their own down under stamp on it all. It's probably because I'm not a beach bum but I don't get much enjoyment out of their version of it. It really doesn't feel like Christmas at all here. And for those of you who know me well you'll realise this is a living hell for me hah.

To many Christmas will always be a cold, snowy, dark and frosty but enjoyable holiday; its just what we're used to. Tradition here for many is Christmas on the beach, a bbq, socialising, some music and a trolley of booze. Not to say that this cant be enjoyed still. But what I mean is you can do that any day of the year over here. It has no menaing.

Only one day a year at home can you make a great Christmas dinner, watch Christmas films and eat sweets with the family, go for a winter walk and enjoy watching each other open their presents in the warmth and comfort of your decorated house, all in one single day. That is why most of us look forward to it. Over here I ask Aussies what they are doing for Chrissy and they never sound excited or bothered. Its just another day off work for them. 

It's actually not uncommon to hear of Australians and lots of expats having their 'Christmas Dinner' on the 25th of July, because its presumably more convincing as its a great deal colder and wetter.

Maybe it's just me refusing to get older and start loathing Christmas? But then I think age has nothing to do with it though. You can never be too old, too 'bah humbug' or too busy to enjoy the spirit and happiness of Christmas. Anyone has the choice to embrace and make the most of it. Yes I'm talking directly to all the Scrooges reading this thinking he's gone Christmas mad.!

"I really like Christmas. It's sentimental I know, but I just really like it"

- Tim Minchin, White Wine in the Sun

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=9U-OdJIgZu0

So what else has been happening these past couple of weeks you may wonder. Well...we've just signed a contract for a room in a flat we can live in over Christmas (will post more about that later), Tom's been working his butt off (4am starts), I bagged a 3 course lunch aboard a Sydney harbour boat cruise for free! And my watch came, which I'm really pleased with. Will be a nice early Christmas present for myself! 

Still no surfing though, haven't had much free time at all and when one of us does, the other is always working. I feel like I haven't seen or spoke to Tom for ages most days. Our routines are really out of touch at the moment! But we're doing fine.

Here's a round up of pictures from the last few days:

Reliving memories watching the Santa Claus at our friends' place!

Beautiful Coogee Beach literally on our doorstep. There was a mini heat wave today that peaked at 37 degrees I think it was! Sweating just from walking down the drive to the road!

Best fish and chips I've had in Aus so far! At "chish and fips" cafe by the beach. Mmm

This is start of the Coastal path walk which takes you from Coogee to Bondi. Need to start jogging this route (in cooler weather of course) and visiting the beaches in between more often!

Coogee beach from the top of the coastal path. This was my view while sunbathing on a day off. I don't mind the sitting on the beach but I prefer to go somewhere with a great view, lil bit quiter and away from the crowds. With a much welcomed cool sea breeze on the cliffs too!

Great sunbathing spot here. Love the landscaping around coogee. Always well kept and maintained. Respected by the public too. No litter or graffiti whatsoever. 

So these are a few snaps from the harbour cruise I mentioned before. Basically, I had made my way into the city, armed with my camera and some food for lunch. I had planned to take a ferry to fort dennison - a small fort-turned-museum-and-restaurant in the middle of the harbour - and was wondering round circular quay trying to figure out which dock to go to when a gentlement comes up to me and asks if I wanted a free ticket to a lunch on board a captain cook cruiser. He was in a group of workmates who had booked ahead but a couple of them hadn't been able to make it. I immediately said yes, shook his hand, thanked him for hos generoisty and that was that! So I spent the afternoon enjoying some fine food on board a luxury boat cruising round the harbour for 3 hours. What a way to see the sights! Talk about being in the right place at the right time. 

Here you can just about see some of the grid work on the harbour bridge for the New Years firework celebrations. Really excited for that! Can't believe how quick its come round. Should be an amazing end to 2013.

You can often see big cruise ships in the international terminal of circular quay, the scale of them is really dramatic against everything else. This was one of the smaller ones!

Business cards! I used one of my days off to pester a few architectural and design studios in the city. Of course, I wasn't expecting anything but it was good to talk to a few people and make some contacts. You never know where something might lead, hey.

One Central Park building - by Jean Nouvel. Sydney's latest flagship building for sustainable, symbiotic green architecture. It is green living utterly redefined and a remarkable example of how nature can thrive in the dense urban landscape. 

Kudos to the city of Sydney for pioneering and integrating so many green-wall system techniques. I love this look with the solar shaded glass. This is an indication of what the future of most sustainable cities will and rightfully should look like.

This particular building comprises a shopping centre at ground level, commercial use on upper level then apartment and studio units above, overlooking a centrally elevated communal area. Whats special about this building is that its the first of its kind in Australia in the sense that it uses a heliostat (set of plane mirrors to reflect sunlight) providing maximim light infiltration and solar energy management, as well as controlled solar shading.

And finally... this stunning Christmas light installation is amazing but is about the only decent piece of decoration in the Westfield centre at Bondi. There are no Christmas lights in the streets here either so you don't get that Christmassy feel when going back home after work in the warm muggy darkness of the night.