Categories: uncategorized
Date: 11 December 2005 07:23:56
Pretty much sums up my fantastic, albeit rather hectic, weekend.
Saturday I and a friend drove down to the town of Berry, about two-and-a-half hours south of Sydney. Berry is known not only for it being a lovely town, but also having various arts and crafts, antiques and markets. We went down for the drive, as well as to visit the Garden Centre there, which is run by a previous boss of my friend. Unfortunately, as fate would have it, he was in Sydney that day! At least my friend got a number so she can call him and catch up.
We wandered through the various shops, including a wonderful lolly shop and a bakery that made huge, and I mean HUGE, Wagon Wheels. Not sure if Wagon Wheels are known of outside Australia: they are basically two circular biscuits, about the size of one's palm (or slightly smaller), covered in milk chocolate and cemented together with marshmallow. Mmmm. These were huge, however. But good. We also had a very nice lunch, followed by some delicious ice-cream. More mmmm.
Driving back, we took the scenic route, and very windy and narrow road, through Kangaroo Valley, Moss Vale, Bowral [once home of the cricketer Sir Donald Bradman] and Mittagong. We also stopped by the beautiful Fitzroy Falls.
It was then back to Sydney and I went off to the Taronga Zoo Function Centre for our work Christmas Party. Plenty of fun, plenty of food and plenty of dancing. In fact, while I was getting my dinner, the husband of someone from our other office came up and said, "I remember you from last year...you were the fellow dancing!" :yikes: I'm famous! I also won $250- cash in the raffle: there a number of different cash amounts a certain number of people can win. Thanks be to God: I was running a bit low this month.
Today after church we had the Church School children put on various St Nicholas plays and sing Christmas carols and some Orthodox hymns for the feast day of St Nicholas. As Mimi commented on that blog entry, there is a tradition of giving gold chocolate coins. St Nicholas, our priest's teenage son this year, gave out presents and gold chocolate coins after the play and the songs. We then had a very nice lunch in which I got to know one member of our parish in particular a great deal better, which is a blessing. Often you don't get the chance to speak to everyone, so it was a great blessing to spend the majority of the lunch with three people I don't often have long conversations with.
It was then to lunch (yes, greedy me...and during the Nativity season!) at Nilgiri's Indian Restaurant as two shipmates from Brisbane were down in Sydney. As well, I got to meet one shipmate I hadn't met before and see again one I have. A wonderful lunch, though I didn't eat very much, and it was a true joy and delight to meet three new people as well as see one I've met before again. Community and meeting people and sharing our lives with one another is a true blessing: thanks be to God.
I got home about 17:00 and my sister, brother-in-law and niece were over, so I had to play with my niece. She is standing more and more, though still falling onto her backside after a bit of wobbling. Very cute though.
It's now almost 18:25, and I'm looking forward to a nice, quiet and relaxing evening.