Easter, road trips and things making me happy about long lazy weekends by Amy Andrews

Firstly - Happy Easter from me!

I'm on a road trip this weekend to visit my daughter who's moved almost 1000kms from home to mid western NSW - that's about 5 hours west of Sydney. It's a long drive but hey, I spent most of it in Scotland (well France, actually) with Jaime and Clare and other times I've just marvelled at my beautiful country. It made me feel happy and very very lucky!

I love the way the light falls on the land during different stages of the day in the vastness of the outback.

From early morning light -

To the bright light of full day.

I love windmills.

And grain silos. And road signs.

My hubby loves to snack on road trips while I try not to.... It took me 4 days to succumb to the bright napalm orange of the humble Twistie. But it didn't really feel like a road trip until I had been seduced by the intoxicating carbohydratic (yes, not a word) goodness.

We visited the zoo. These monkeys made me happy.

And this Galapogus tortoise made the romance writer in me thrill. Looks like we all love a little bit of petting, right?

And if that wasn't enough, this was my lunch view yesterday, lazing around under lovely shady trees listening to the drowsy hum of bees, eating cheese and drinking wine.

And my two travelling companions always make me happy. Tink and Wonder Woman - the soft and the hard of me.

How did you spend your Easter weekend? Was it lazy and indulgent like mine or was it a busy family affair?

Got anything making you happy at the moment?

My holiday by Michelle Douglas

I’m channelling my primary school years in the above title. Did you have to do that—write a story about what you did in the summer holidays?

This year Mr Douglas and I road-tripped to Melbourne (from Newcastle in NSW) for Christmas, and I’ve found myself meditating on a multitude of miscellaneous musings ever since. In no particular order…

#1: According to Google Maps, to get from my suburb in Newcastle to North Croydon in Melbourne the distance is 1,012kms and takes 10 h 23 mins. This started me wondering what the equivalent would be in other parts of the world? In England, Dover to Inverness (in Scotland) is 1054km and takes 10 h 52 mins. The trip from Paris to Florence is 1,152km and would take 11 h 9 mins. New York City to Chicago is 1270km and would take 11 h 52 mins.

Road trip anyone? :-)

We had a kilometre after kilometre of this…

…and in case you ever need to know. A large round hay bale like one of these will cost you roughly $85 (in Yarra Glen in December).

#2: We had an overnight stop at the tiny town of Glenrowan. This is Ned Kelly country. Ned Kelly being, of course, Australia’s most celebrated bushranger. We checked out the sites of Ned’s last stand and then ambled to the pub for dinner. However, Tuesdays happens to be “10 Dishes For $10” night. This basically meant we met all of Glenrowan. :) What I really loved about the town, though, was that the corner shop had a notice from the Fire Brigade asking that those who wanted a Santa visit on Christmas Eve to jot their address down on the form below. How cute is that?

# 3: Christmas Day, and the days leading up to it, were HOT in Melbourne. The nights, however, were cold. When we jumped in the car on Christmas afternoon at about 4 pm, the temp was 38.5'C (ugh!). The next morning when we jumped in the car at about 10am it was 13.5'C! So that’s what they mean when they say Melbourne gets three different seasons in a day, huh?

#4: Little children featured in our Christmas. I thought they were 10, 4 and 2. When we arrived I discovered they were 8, 3 and 1 (oops). I was worried about how I might entertain them. The eight year old ignored me completely—Lego, apparently, is far more interesting than an adult. I spent over an hour with the three-year-old counting her brand new glittery hair clips as she placed them in her brand new ballerina jewel box, and then tipping them out and starting over. And it’s amazing how much fun a one-year-old can have when you throw a blanket over their head, and then catch them as they run. It’s also amazing how long they can keep it up! ;-)

 # 5: Staying in a quirky hotel is an excellent experience. We were upgraded to the Windsor Suite because, well, Christmas. :-)

We had a spa bath as big as a pool! I could very easily make a Christmas night spa an annual event. ;-)

So tell me, do you like venturing forth on a road trip or is it your idea of hell? Maybe you have a fun holiday story or two to share with us? Whatever you did over the Christmas break, I hope it was fun and fabulous.