My sister Bridget, who is currently attending graduate school for social work in Chicago, visited me during her winter break. This means that we got to enjoy a summer Christmas while still spending time with family. Those who are able to see a summer Christmas for how lovely it is, as opposed to viewing a hot Christmas as too strange to enjoy, might call this the best of both worlds. I, on the other hand, would call it the best of both hemispheres.
Christmas away from home was spent with friends, family, flora, and fauna.
In preparation for this blog post, I texted Bridget asking for a quote about her trip. Among other things, she said her favourite experiences were "backpacking in Wilson's Prom, discovering the wonderful creature that is the echidna, singing and giggling with Maggie, and, most importantly, the cricket." Allow me to elaborate.
A couple of days after my sister arrived in the country, she joined me, Linnea, and our friend Darby on a 4 day, 3 night backpacking trip on Wilson's Prom. This trip isn't anything like the relaxing time at the beach that you might imagine when picturing Christmas in Australia; while this trip involved a lot of walking in a national park, it was everything but a walk in the park. Each night was spent at a different campsite, and each day was full of hiking, including a 15 mile, 37,000 step day. While this isn't a typical way to spend Christmas, it is a lovely way to get away for a few days. The scenery in Wilson's Prom National Park is nothing short of stunning, which made the many kilometres worthwhile.
For whatever reason they hand out buckets to wear on your head as you enter the cricket grounds.
Bridget wasn't our only visitor over the holidays. After our Christmas backpacking trip, Linnea flew to Sydney to spend a week with her mom while Bridget and I welcomed our cousin Maggie to Melbourne. The first activity we had planned after Maggie's arrival, and the only one I was anxious about, was a day at the Ashes for the Boxing Day Test match. If you have no idea what that means, that's okay. All you need to know is that we planned to spend an entire day at the Melbourne Cricket Ground watching Australia play an important cricket match against England. When I say an entire day, I don't mean a baseball game amount of time. I mean an entire day. It starts at 10am and ends at 6pm. I mentioned previously that I was anxious about bringing Bridget and Maggie to a cricket match, and the fact that it lasts all day was the main reason for that anxiety. While I personally have taken a liking to cricket (even though the Australian cricket team is dealing with an embarrassing cheating scandal as I write this), a lot of people find it slow and boring. I was concerned that my guests would think the same thing.
Just a few hours into the day's cricket activities, Bridget and Maggie could've passed for regular Aussies. They were chanting along with the crowd, enjoying an adult beverage, and occasionally trying to figure out what was happening on the cricket pitch. They learned a few useful things about Australian culture, including what it means to skull (chug) a beverage and when it's okay to call someone a wanker. Not only was my anxiety about taking Bridget and Maggie to the cricket unfounded, they had a wonderful time. They had so much fun, in fact, that they let me listen to the rest of the Boxing Day Test match (yes, a Test match takes five days) on the radio in our rental car in Tasmania, which was our next destination.
A couple of wankers and their guide.
I've been to Tasmania a few times. I haven't gotten enough. I described it to Bridget and Maggie as a beautiful, inexpensive destination that's easily accessible from Melbourne and not crowded, and they were all in. We spent the New Year's Eve long weekend hiking Cape Raoul and Cape Hauy, eating and drinking our way through Hobart's Taste of Tasmania, and enjoying the hospitality of a friend's family who graciously hosted and entertained us for a couple of nights. Notably, we saw an echidna, one of Earth's only egg-laying mammals, in the wild, which lead Bridget and Maggie to become fascinated with the creatures, which lead to them composing an original song about them, which lead to the purchase of a small plush echidna that now sits above Bridget's fireplace.
We parted ways for the week after Tassie. I went home to Melbourne to work, Bridget and Maggie headed to Sydney for a few days. After that week, the three of us became five when Linnea and her mom joined us to spend the weekend driving the Great Ocean Road, a scenic coastal drive near Melbourne. This weekend marked the last activity before Bridget and Maggie had to fly back to the US, and I was sad to see them go. I look forward to seeing them soon at Maggie's sister's wedding, where I will be sure to call both of them a wanker.