Validating Stereotypes

If you thought Australia was some vast faraway land where people say “G’day Mate” and kangaroos lounge around on your front lawn, then you would be absolutely correct. My day is very often made by work colleagues who greet me by saying g’day, and as for the roos? If you drive down to Jervis Bay, there are literally hundreds of them that make themselves at home by grazing in your garden. And turns out these suburban kangaroos are quite tame, although I should point out that some of them are absolutely enormous and there is no way Jord would have gotten so close to one of those larger thugs!

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A Quintessential Aussie Weekend

I’ve been slowly working through my list of goals for 2015 – admittedly, my success rate has not been great (and it’s already nearly September). But there is still time for them to be realised. In the meantime, I am one step closer by spotting a wombat on a recent trip to the South Coast. We stopped by a spot they are known to frolic, and there he was, a lone wombat munching on the grass in broad daylight. He was very patient and posed for numerous photos.

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Never Far From A View

Living in Sydney, you are never really far from a spectacular view. A little while back, we travelled north of the city (akin to leaving the state when you live in the south) and stopped in Ku-ring-gai National Park to stretch our legs and introduce ourselves to this view. It was one of those rare days in Sydney where there was not a breath of wind and the water was so calm you could almost imagine yourself skating over it.

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The Hinterlands

An aspect of Australia that never fails to surprise me is how very green certain parts of the countryside can be – the eastern coast of New South Wales in particular. If you venture out just west of Byron Bay, you’ll find yourself in the lush green rolling hills of the Hinterlands. Where the grass is so green, you might almost mistake it for Irish countryside. Everybody is relaxed, mellow, friendly. Even the cows.

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Bumming Around In Bangalow

We stole off for a weekend away to Byron Bay about a month ago and it already feels like a lifetime ago. It was my first time so far north of New South Wales and I was once again taken aback at how much the landscape and temperature changes in Australia, without even having to leave the same state. True to form, we couldn’t stay in one place for too long and did a bit of exploring of the neighbouring towns. Bangalow was one such town. Filled with artists and beautiful little shops, it was the perfect place to spend a sleep morning. Island Luxe, we will meet again, hopefully when I have a few more dollars to spare.

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The Magnificent Valley

On a chilly, misty morning, we piled into the car and set off for a weekend of back-to-basics in my favourite area of New South Wales – Kangaroo Valley. We found a tiny cottage, nestled deep in the woods and totally surrounded by fields of enormous kangaroos (not to mention the wombats… who eluded me once again, even though I could hear them thumping around outside). The weather was foul, our first real taste of our second Aussie winter but we spent countless hours nestled around the wood burning fire, listening to the thrum of wildlife right outside the front door.

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Not Quite The Outback, But Close

City living in Sydney is nowhere near as cramped as our lives in London but move a few kms out of the edges of the suburbs and everything grows in size. Houses begin to sprawl, roads begin to widen and the cars get mightier and meaner-looking. It feels more vast, more Australian. You begin to grasp how very big this country really is. Little sleepy villages dot the landscape, filled with preserved buildings, fascinating history and seriously laid back locals.

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