Eating in a box

I'm back in the US writing these final retrospective posts summarizing the highlights of my stay in Australia. Looking back at the photos, we managed to pack in some great memories and make some awesome friends. I'll confess there's a tug at the heart strings as I look at these pictures.  The above shot is a picture from our 8th floor swimming pool area. The park below is hyde park which I walk through to get to work daily. Here's another shot from a building we *almost* decided to live in. (I was advised it was a party house and not to bother, I'm happy with our final selection). One of the nice benefits of living right by Hyde Park was that it was often a staging area for a lot of parades. Above is the "Mardi Gras" parade which is actually the Pride parade. This was confusing as it wasn't anywhere near Mardi Gras but the costumes and signs gave a big hint. One of the many unusual animals that are part of city life in Sydney. This is...

I had to rename the post to things I'll miss about Australia especially since this title picture is a panorama of Newcastle beach.  We actually visited Newcastle quite a bit. First about the beaches, so most beaches have have a shallow protected area for children and usually a concrete lap pool that is fed by the ocean waters. The water is very blue and beautiful. We really enjoyed Newcastle since it's a smaller city that has upgraded itself from the industrial coal harbor to be a bit more tourist friendly. You can walk from the Harbor side to the ocean beach side within five blocks. It reminds me of Austin in the late 90s, meaning small and slower paced. While in Newcastle take a walk on the ANZAC memorial walk. Check out Habesha Ethiopian restaurant in the Newcastle CBD. I was surprised to find an Ethiopian restaurant in the middle of Newcastle. Back to Sydney. World Square off Liverpool is an area we spent a lot of time especially because they had a Din Tai...