Culinary Adventures, the First of Many

Since I've arrived, Wes and I have enjoyed a number of adventures in the way of foods. Some of them have been a great success (like the yum cha) and others have been a bit of a flub (like Thursday night's really hard and really overcooked enchiladas). Friday night, we had a home cooked (pre-made grocery store) meal of pork belly roast and apple sauce with veggies and garlic bread.

Wes also pointed out that thus far, this blog has very few photos and absolutely no photos of me. So. You get photos. Of me. And dinner, naturally.

Sneaking into the 'Gong

Monday, I had my first experience with Wes' old place in Wollongong. We drove down briefly after feeding his sister's fish to take out the trash, pick up his old toaster and drop off a present for his friend Sal.

I was still feeling a bit unwell, but we figured a bit of fresh air might do me some good, considering how nice the weather outside was.

What I Really Did On My Birthday

Now, I really expected yesterday to be a very simple, very boring sort of day. I spent the morning reflecting on the year past while Wes was at work and musing on what we'd do for the rest of the day. Little did I know that our plans would change along the way rather unexpectedly.

And even less did I know that there were a few twists waiting for me at the end of a nice evening out.

Happy Birthday Abroad

With everything that's been going on the last couple of days, I actually sort of forgot that today's my birthday. Only sort of, because people do keep reminding me. And technically because in terms of chronology and time differences, my birthday isn't for another twelve hours or something like that.

But yes. Only sort of, because people keep reminding me that I've grown older again. Like my parents. And Facebook friends.

And Wes.

Who is adamant that we celebrate somehow or another, in spite of my bout with Plane Plague and his family's absenteeism.

This lack of fanfare is actually sort of normal for me, though. I tend to forget my birthday, as generally there isn't much going on of note in terms of celebration. It's always very busy around my birthday and rarely because of my birthday. Last year was sort of an exception, with Wes visiting me for the occasion. Normally, it's just another day in the Life of Kate, so I tend to half-ignore it.

Some people may find that sort of behavior strange, but I'm perfectly okay with this (unintentional) tradition of treating my birthday like any other day. To be honest, I'm pretty damn lucky and receive what many would consider "special treatment" on regular days of the year from the people I love, so making a birthday "extra special" seems maybe just a bit greedy on my part. It's not like getting older is a huge accomplishment these days, after all. Especially not with all the advances in modern medicine. haha

All the same, this is my first birthday in Australia, so maybe it does deserve just a little bit of extra attention and reflection.

Leaving the Nest Part Two -- Chinese Food, a Concert and Drunken Train-goers

On Friday, I made my second (and technically more important) trip with Wes into the city to see Blind Guardian perform.  It was my big, bad planned "debut" of sorts, to meet his friends and test to see if I can handle Sydney at its loudest.

I passed. Mostly. And then I passed out.

Fighting Off Winged Flu -- a.k.a. Why I Hate Plane Plague

I have chamomile tea.

I have Lemsip.

I have a duvet.

I also have a respiratory flu, as contracted on the airplane on the way over.

Leaving the Nest for the City

Thursday was a pretty intense adventure as far as my daily dose of adrenaline goes.

There were train rides, car rides, exotic foods and foreign bands all crammed into the space of a short 8 hours. Somehow (somewhat miraculously and beyond my understanding), I survived. As did the car's carpeting.