An Extra Long Weekend In Sydney

Friendship is one of life's greatest treasures. Friends that are loyal are always there to make you laugh when you are down, they are not afraid to help you avoid mistakes and they look out for your best interest. This kind of friend can be hard to find, but they offer a friendship that will last a lifetime.  

So when we received an email to say our German friends were coming to Sydney ... We didn't think twice about booking our flights and meeting them there.  

Meeting whilst staying in the same resort twelve years ago in Rarotonga ... We have managed to catch up in Germany x2, Portugal, New Zealand x2 and this weekend in Sydney.  

Toasting marriage, friendship and deciding when and where in the world we will all meet next.

  

After a morning of shopping we took in a musical at the Theatre Royal, introducing Merrin to her first ever musical/theatre.  I have promised to go to a Rugby game in return!

Walking almost a half marathon in a day of ticking off all the tourist spots and Opera House photo, it had to be done

After a busy full day previously we soaked up the chance of a two hour train trip to the Blue Mountains, taking in the magical breathtaking sights and riding the worlds steepest train.

Friends who've seen and done so much together ... Travelling through Europe: cruises n campervans (where she first met our German friends), Love, divorce, births (she was my birth partner when I had Miss P) and deaths, we've done it together.  

Life is too short for serious and when the two of us are together - serious is not even an option - my sister from another mother.

The Ultimate Betrayal .. .. .. Sydney

Waking late, slowly, struggling to shed the layers of sleep ~ 3 time zones in 9 days ...

Sitting propped up in bed with the 'good' coffee my Mr B had earlier gone in search for my thoughts drifted ... 

I had wanted to run the 1/2 marathon over the Auckland Harbour Bridge so badly and had hung on so tightly that in the weeks, months leading up to us going away, I was trying my absolute best, working my hardest, but yet crying myself to sleep, or lying awake, clenching my teeth, drifting through days.  My determination focused so intensely on my goal. And then eventually, somewhere, just a bit further beyond almost insane, a voice in my head said: '_Really_ Is it such a big deal? Is it so important? Is it the be all and end all?'  ...  At which point I dug my heels in a little further, failing to acknowledge my efforts were actually totally disproportionate to what I hoped to achieve and my energy expenditure was way off balance, and actually I was neglecting the really important things, like the people who love me and the professionals who were trying to look after me: mind and body ...

Some may say (and did) I was stubborn, and resolute, and impatient, or more politely put ... determined.  

I didn't see any other options/goals around me, other opportunities for different, possibly better adventures, or even just alternative routes to the place I had been so intent on going .. .. .. 

Thankfully my Mr B (thinking with his head rather than his heart) listened to the professionals and came up with alternative goals ...  

Hello cycling around Mandurah, Alice Spring and Sydney including over the Sydney Harbour Bridge  *wow* AND *squee* a Harley Ride around Sydney also including the Harbour Bridge ~ according to my Mr B I was to commit the ultimate in motor bike betrayal by going on the back of a Harley, but he booked it anyway ...

So another valuable lesson for me, continue to learn to let go, trust, breathe, surrender,  accept life in all its rich possibility and #suckitupprincess ...

Online messages from a friend back in NZ interrupted my thought process, so soon I was wide awake and firing my inquisitive neurons again.  

Sydney needed to be explored by bicycle and Harley ...

PHOTOS: taken in Australia on our childfree holiday

It Was A Day Of Contrasts ...

In the morning I rode a camel named Wally across the Australian Outback 

I watched the sunrise up above Uluru (Ayres Rock)

In the evening I wore a black dress and heels

I attended Matilda at the Lyric in Sydney

It was a day of contrasts 

I flew from the remote vast desert to crowded busy city life

I rode on a bus, a camel, in a plane and on a train 

I had a panic attack amidst turbulence 

I was happy to helped

I was sad about an ending, and glad about a beginning.

Goals Dreams and Wishes came true

I was reminded of the last time I was in this city

I forgot to reply to a text received the previous day.

I continued to be unwell due to limited dietary choices

I missed someone who I knew would be able to assist

I was given advice 

I laughed with my friend over facebook messenger

I looked at photos of my children on facebook

I was grateful for technology

I cried over a thoughtful message

I spoke words of happiness, joy, fear, sorrow, regret and difficulties

I wished on the moon.

I thanked my lucky stars.

I lived another day of my life ...

PHOTOS: taken in Australia on our childfree holiday 

A Rambling Of Words ... Ayres Rock/Uluru

No words can truly describe my experience of seeing Uluru for the first time.  It didn't quite sink in, I was actually there, it all seemed a bit surreal. 

I was overwhelmed by its incredible size, presence and spirituality.

Pictures really don't convey how much it dominates this vast landscape.

Just Magical

As we sat at the foot of Uluru watching the sun set amongst other travellers we listened in awe to a star gazer as we looked up amazed . . . I saw more stars than I've ever seen, the milk way from one horizon to another, the rings around Saturn and a shooting star.
Emotions . . . Raw and very Real

When does the night end, and a new day begin?
When travellers from opposite ends of the world, share a drink and a meal and realise they have been drinking and eating under the same stars and sharing the same sky and the same dreams .. .. .. That's when the night ends ...

Watching Uluru change colour as the sun sets on the endless outback desert and lights up the sacred rock.  

It's a sight I never tired of seeing, an experience I'll never forget.

I had the most amazing time in Uluru.  It was everything I imagined and then some.

Hold fast to your dreams .. .. ..

PHOTOS: taken in Australia on our childfree holiday 

What Do I Want .. .. .. Alice Springs

I want to greet each morning with smiling enthusiasm, to have the courage to follow my heart wherever it leads me, whatever it takes 

I want a life full of passion and purpose, to make each day a bit better for someone somewhere,

I want champagne to tickle my tongue

I want to laugh till it hurts and to sparkle and shine brightly,

I want to listen to my children giggling. and to kiss their salty tears.

I want to have armfuls of hugs and listening ears for those who need them,

I want to ride with the wind and spot kangaroos in the desert

I want memories infused with fresh coffee

I want to recall precious moments; watching the sunrise, sharing dreams,

I want to feel excitement running through my veins like pulsing electricity,

And be still in quiet moments of gratitude to feel the peace within me.

I want to explore the earth, in sacred places and interesting faces

Amidst deserts and cities and wherever I see the human spirit

I want spontaneous midnight swims and rambling conversations,

I want to look back at the end of my life and not wish I’d lived it any differently,

I want to dare greatly, love bravely, forgive quickly, kiss deeply, and laugh insanely;

And I want to share these adventures with the people who love me xxx

PHOTOS: taken in Australia on our childfree holiday last week

Senses Of My Soul . . . Alice Springs

It was like the moment we arrived at Alice we were in a different space - timelessness - I felt the spirit of the land, sensed its rhythm, the breathing of the land, its people - slow, ancient and steady.

The Outback touched my senses

Touch

Smell

Taste

Sight 

Hearing

But deeper still the Australian Outback touched the senses of my soul

Intuition

Peace

Foresight

Trust

Empathy

The Australian Outback gave me a great appreciation of how tough life is and about the indomitable spirit the Aboriginal people have always possessed.

PHOTOS: taken in Australia on our childfree holiday last week

Courage and Freemantle Convict Prison

Courage was required to step back in history

Courage was required ...

To grab life with both hands,

To yell ‘what the hell’,

To jump right in,

And just deal with potential consequences.

Courage was required ...

To travel, leaving my children behind

To step out of my comfort zone

And ... The days leading up to us going away ...

Courage was required simply just to get out of bed.

Courage was required ...

To admit my fears,

To address my failings,

To become comfortable with myself,

And let other people see who I really am.

Courage was and is required ...

To trust and believe

Courage was required ...

To dream this dream

To chase this dream,

To hang in there, when the going got tough,

And quite simply
Courage was and is required to just never give up!

Courage was required ...

To listen to how the convicts were treated 

Courage was required ...

To see how prisoners were treated in my life time

Haunting Enchanting Courage
I am the descendant of Irish and British convicts

PHOTOS: Freemantle AUSTRALIA taken on our childfree holiday last week

Breathing .. .. .. The Wedding

Taking a moment to notice my breath,

How it happens without me trying.

Breathing in the natural beauty which surrounds me,

Western Australia wild flowers ... simply beautiful 

Breathing in gratitude, for the life I am living,

Breathing out disappointments, letting them all go.

Breathing out forgiveness, for everything.

Friends .. .. .. the family we choose for ourselves

Friends who call NZ home, travelling from around New Zealand and Western Australian mining towns,

Together to celebrate this day with this beautiful couple

Breathing out the responsibility of parenting, for a short time . . . 

Breathing in love abounding,

Breathing in the familiar scent of Hangi .. .. .. home, in Western Australia 

Oh yes, just keep breathing!

PHOTOS: taken in Australia on our childfree holiday last week

Life Is Never Static . . . A childfree holiday

After seven hours flying my lower body is tightly held in a spasm which radiates downwards into my leg, restricting movement, and seizing painfully each moment I forget. 

Accumulated tension expressed in a protective hold prevents me from moving on several levels, my injury resurfacing serves as a reminder of what I’ve already endured. 

I’m aware of the emotional element the previous weeks have seen, inflicted partly due to this injury, and experience has taught me this is just a moment in time, a temporary reminder to caution me. #suckitupprincess  

I cling onto wisdom borne out of experience as my silver-lining and seek out a bike hire age place for the following morning, knowing this would be recommended.

Besides, it is such a beautiful afternoon, a gorgeous gift of summer holiday warmth; and a cheerful reminder of the 10 childfree days ahead of us.  

A glorious sunny start awaits us the following morning, with endless blue skies stretching to eternity, and pools of light spilling through the windows, gleaming with hope as they sprawl across the sofa and slip onto the floor.  After 10 hours of solid sleep the world is a kinder softer less dizzy place.

Mr B goes for his morning swim in the ocean and I in the resort pool before we search out coffee and ibuprofen.  Returning back to our unit with our coffees, I sit and let my feet bask on the warm sunny deck as I smile at my thoughts wandering through landscapes I’ve travelled often before. Whilst I tour through familiar territory, I notice a new perspective, aspects of myself previously ignored. 

Who would've thought 'they' were right, .. .. .. a day cycling and I'm relatively mobile and pain free again.  There is that just let go, trust and believe again.

Ahhh the roller coaster of life.

Sometimes it seems we focus so much on the things and people around us, we don’t always notice the changes within us, which are those subtle shifts in our beliefs and understanding. I'm learning slowly,  but yet some things persist, beyond my control and endless fathoming, things I'd dismiss if my head ruled my heart ... Mine doesn’t !!! ... Clearly 

We talk and talk - uninterrupted, (you can do that with no children around)

I cry, I smile, We laugh, We enjoy 'us' ... this time ... 

Life is never static, gradually evolving, waiting for us to notice it after all!

PHOTOS: taken in Australia on our childfree holiday last week