Final Post from Oz

Our time here in Australia is ending soon.  We both finished work on January 15th and have stayed busy seeing the surrounding sights.  We fly to Melbourne next week to drive the Great Ocean Road and will come back to Sydney for 3 days before flying out on February 2nd.  The next 9 days are planned down to the minute!  As our internet is cut off tomorrow, we thought we would make one final post and answer a few frequently asked questions.

FAQ's

When do you arrive back in the States?  Monday, February 2nd

How long is the trip?  Total travel time is 40 hours

Where are you flying to?  Denver where Damon's parents will pick us up and take us back to Casper, WY

Where will you go after that?  After 10 days in WY, we will travel to Tulsa via Lincoln, NE.  

Where will you go after that?  We will be in Tulsa 3 days and then will fly to CA to visit Amy's Grandma and the Huddleston's too.

Where will you go after that?  Wow, you're persistent aren't you.  Back to Tulsa to live with Amy's parents until we find jobs or they kick us out.  There is also a trip in there sometime to Texas to see Amy's other Grandma and for Amy to be the Matron of Honor in her wedding.  

Where are you looking for jobs?  Damon has applied for jobs all over the US.  Considering the current economic condition, we don't feel like we can be too picky.   

What does Damon want to do?  He wants to work with refugees resettling to the States.

Has he applied for any jobs?  Yes, 11 so far.

What will Amy do in the meantime?  She will probably work a temp job in Tulsa or eat bon bons.  

When are you coming to OKC?  We will try to come the last weekend in February.

Are you sad to leave Sydney?  Yes, we are.  Of course, we have mixed emotions.  We had a rough start but have grown to love Sydney.  This is a beautiful city and country and we feel blessed to have had the opportunity to live here.  

Are you excited to see your friends and family?  Of course!

How can we help?  Please pray that God provides us with jobs the we love in a timely fashion.  You can also let us sleep on your couch :)  

I think that about covers it for now.  We are looking forward to seeing each and every one of you.  Until then......

Blue Mountains and Bush Walking

I am behind on blogging but here is a quick update of what we have been doing.  A couple of weeks ago my friend and coworker, Antonia, took us to the Blue Mountains.  

Three Sisters

Here we are getting ready to ride the world's steepest railway.  It was at a 52 degree angle.

Antonio and I in with the Three Sisters in the background.  

We also recently went on a 10 kilometer bush walk in he Royal National Park with our friends Danie and Marcelle, friends from church who have recently moved here from South Africa.  

Just starting out on the walk.  

Marcelle and I

After walking through the bush an extra 45 minutes we were rewarded with this view when we rounded the corner--it was worth the wait.  

Our picnic lunch.

Damon and I on Marley Beach.  

We had such a great time.  

Happy New Year

We decided to spend New Years Eve at Mrs. Macquarie's Point in Sydney Harbour.  So did 19, 998 other people.  I decided to arrive at noon for the midnight show thinking that there would be no problem for me to get in.  

This is the queue that I stood in for 5 hours:

Damon was very dedicated(thank goodness) and arrived at 6:30 AM!  and after waiting in line 4 hours for them to open the gates he secured us a spot with this view:

When we were finally reunited at 5pm I had come armed with the esky/igloo and we settled into our comfy lawn chairs for the next 7 hours:

All of the lines and the long wait were worth it though for this view:

When the 12 minute show was over Damon asked me if I thought it was worth it.  Well, 17.5 hours of waiting for Damon and 12 hours of waiting for me- hmmmmm...yes, it was an incredible experience and I am SO glad that we were there but once is enough.  So, I think next year I will sit on my couch, in an unknown location at this time, and just look at the pics from last year and call it good.  Hope you had a wonderful evening as well!