Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year from Down Under!!

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Naz:

After an incredible and very eventful month in Asia, we flew into Sydney, Australia to celebrate Christmas and the New Year. When we arrived Tom (sporting his 4 quid Newcastle shirt that he got from Thailand) and Sam were there to greet us at the airport. We then went over to spend one night in a hostel in Coogee Beach before checking into a private room in the centre of Sydney over Christmas. On our first night, we went to visit Tammy, a girl we knew from home, in her apartment and also met up with Kirsty, who we also knew from home, and her boyfriend Will. After a few bevvys in the hoose, me and Ric went out on the town with Kirsty, Will, Tammy and a few other people we met. It was a really good night, no massive dramas to compete with the Asian dramas (except one bloke kissing a 'woman', not realising she/he was a bloke!!). The next night was Xmas Eve so we all decided to go and buy Xmas decorations and make the house a bit more 'christmassy'. We also bought each other presents and that night decided to open them at 12pm (after Santa had been and all that). Ric got some olive oil from Sam and Tom and he got a Garlic necklace from myself - we know him so well. I got some Nesquik milkshake from Tom and Sam and an Australia vest from Ric.

On christmas day we headed to Bondi Beach as we had tickets to a BBQ/party called Sunburnt that started at Midday. Apart from the fact that the BBQ consisted of one sausage, a bit of bread and a few leaves, it was amazing. The weather was gorgeous and there was loads of entertainment. Apart from a constant flow of famous Aussie DJ's, there was also wet t-shirt comps and a Miss Sunburnt bikini contest. It was pretty funny to see how much some girls will humiliate themselves just to win a few drinks lol, once one girl had decided that her top was making her uncomfortable and she just had to take it off, the rest followed... and to make it even funnier the audience had to decide the winner so you can imagine what one of the girls reaction was like when nobody cheered for her while she was standing there on stage revealing all.

On boxing day we decided to go to a friends apartment and make a christmas dinner. I say we, but while everyone else was cooking i just watched TOWIE allll day (yes they have The Only Way is Essex in Oz), i did offer to help out but apparently i would just be a hindrence rather than a help. The dinner turned out amazing, we had two whole chickens, stuffing, yorkshires, sproots, swede, carrots, roast tattys and mash.... mmmmmmm, makes a change from Maccy D's! We ended the evening with a glass of baileys and a christmas pud before heading back to our hotel to play cards on the rooftop terrace.

Between Christmas and New Year we decided we would try and see as many sites as we could in Sydney as we knew once New Year was over we would be leaving. We went to the Opera House, the Harbour Bridge, Darling Harbour, Bondi Beach, Coogee Beach, Bronte Beach and we also went to a wildlife reserve called Featherdale Park. Featherdale was awesome, they specialised in Aussie animals so had Kangaroos, Wallabees, Koalas, Dingos, Rockhopper Penguins, Echidnas and a crazy Tasmanian Devil. The Kanagaroos were hand-reared so were able to just walk around among the visitors without being any danger. We hugged Koalas and sat with Kangaroos which was all a bit surreal.

On New Years Eve we got up at 6am to prepare some lunch (and to mix some alcohol so we could sneak it in) and left for the Harbour at 9am. We were lucky enough to secure one of the best spots in Sydney to watch the fireworks and spent the day playing cards, listening to music and sunbathing in order to pass the 14 hours that we had to wait before the big countdown to 2012. At 9pm there was a mini display for the kids, who might not be able to stay up for the real thing. I say a mini display but it was 10 times better than any fireworks display i had previously seen. By the time 11.59 came, there was just under 2 million people on the harbour and we were right at the front. The countdown started from 90 seconds and everyone collectively counted down to the big moment. When it came, what happened was unbelievable, the sudden rush of adrenaline took over the whole crowd. The bangs of the fireworks coupled with cheers, screams and whistling made this moment truly unforgettable. I couldn't possibly do the display justice by describing it and even the video we made doesn't quite capture just how magical it was. People had come from all over the world to see the best New Year celebrations on earth and for the 15 minutes it went on for everyone was united in the joy and excitement of what they were witnessing.

We have both had an amazing time celebrating Christmas and New Year on the other side of the world in Sydney but it is time to move on... Home. Next stop is Newcastle.... Australia not England.

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