Fun in Caloundra

Here's a roundup of pics from the fun in the sun at Caloundra where I spent most of my time in Queensland. We had an awesome time hanging out with Auntie & Uncle (as Ashwin calls Taryn & Lukey) & it was great for Ashwin to meet little Josie (from the UK). The surf was wonderful & the best in the world - from what I have seen anyway! And the relaxing time, well it can live on by breathing & meditation - aaaah could I still be there??!!

Nice shoes Ashwin!

Ashwin is checking out DVDs while wearing his cousins high heel shoes - they are just gorgeous with some maribou feathers decorating the toes. Looks just lovely with the green ensemble as well. The other shoe is in his hand, mmm no wonder he couldn't walk too well with both shoes they are fairly high for a toddler!!

Eureka - Melbourne!

Here is the newest Melbourne icon - Eureka tower, man it is huge 91 floors high. Something I didn't realise is that this is a residential building, accoring to the source Wikipedia. Oh you can also check out the observation deck (Skydeck 88) & see the views from 88 floors high, with a cube that extends out from the building 300 metres above the ground - eeek! Apart from seeing this building complete Melbourne is still it's beautiful self & we love it ;)

Boxing day posse!

Boxing day being a day of relaxing & catching up with pals, we did just that! Here is a crew of folks who hadn't seen each other for a very long time - up to five years for my friends Cory (taking photo) , Catherine & Josie from UK. It was so good to catch up with other friends too - Shane, Gen & Lily (Sunshine Coast) & Miss Rach (all the way from Mildura!)

Kite flying - yay!

Here's James & Ashwin with Lukey out for a kite flying demo at Currimundi - it was a day just before a massive storm was about to hit the coast! The winds were fierce - Whew & what a great day to learn the finer points of kite flying :)

Freeesh pancakes!

How is this for a yummy breakfast - fresh fruit, pancakes & maple syrup (all the way from Canada). This was to christen the Jamie Oliver frypan my sister scored for a Christmas presso. They went down a treat and afterwards we went down to the beach for a kite flying demo!

happy xmas!

sunset & moonset

Here we are in beautiful Caloundra on Xmas Eve - James is looking a bit jetlagged & Ashwin & I are getting read to eat some fish & chips for dinner. That same evening Lukey spotted this beautiful moon set over the water - stunning!

Maleny lunchin'

Up in the hills of Maleny is just so lush. We went up there for a Sunday drive in the pouring rain which was quite muggy especially as we were in Queensland. We enjoyed some lunch & checked out the main hippy drag which was great.

Zoo family

Here is the zoo crew when we all headed up to Alma Park Zoo for a fix of Australian animals. Again it was another hot day so we ended the day early after checking out the koalas & kangas & took off to the beach for a sunset swim - aaah the life!

Rainforest stroll

After such a yummy lunch on a hot summers day we went for a stroll through the rainforest up in Buderim. Man it was just beautiful there with all the rainforest plants and some water flowing through to a river (eventually)? Ashwin was a bit tired as you may see in this pic & needed some sleep so we had to do a U-turn & head on back home.

Nothing like a pub meal!

Check out this place! Man it was so good it was at the Buderim Tavern up in the hinterland of the Sunshine Coast. This is a covered open deck overlooking the beautiful coast & the food was just scrumptios - Ashwins favourite were the beer battered chips, mmmm!

A real Lemon Lime Bitters - yum!

What a refreshing drink on a hot summers day! After my last experience with this drink here in the US I had to have a proper one when I hit the shores down under. Man this is how it is made, not with a full shot of bitters - yuck! At least we make it at home ourselves now & don't trust the dodgy bartenders down in Monterey :)

Fish & Chips Aussie style!

I get so hungry for chips checking out this pic of Fish & Chips - they were deee-licious! The chips were ultra fresh & well done & the fish, mmm from New Zealand. Still it was so tasty & I got my fill in for real fish & chips before coming back to the USA.

BMX Bandit!

Here is Ashwin testing out his new wheels with his Grandad & Great Uncle around the back yard! He was having an awesome time cruising around the place with his feet not even touching the pedals. One day he'll get to ride that BMX & it will be ultra-retro by then!