These last four days have been quite nice.  Nothing like a four day weekend to really unwind for a bit.  For those that don’t know, Australians get Good Friday and Easter Monday off.  Crazy, I know.

Friday was a gorgeous day; sunny and 30C.  We took out the paddle boards and hit the bay first thing.  The wind was calm, and we had a great time.  It had been too long since we had been out.  Originally, we were going to hit up Torquay to surf, but the two hour drive after flying back from Sydney the previous night didn’t sound that fun.  In prep for the relay, Kobe and I put in a good run.

Saturday we had a Mexican fiesta party at our place.  Nothing says Easter like Mexican, right?  Of course, we all drank and ate way too much, but the weather was still nice out, but slightly more chilly.  We had the doors open all day and night.

Due to the partying on Saturday night, Sunday was pretty much a wash of a day.

And then today, Yow-Yow and I got out for another run, but wow was it tough.  The wind is blowing at 42km/h with gusts up to 54…directly in our faces on the way out.  Oh, did I mention it was drizzling too, and only 12C?!  What happened to our awesome Friday weather?  To top it all off, it “snowed” (aka hailed).  When they say you can get all the seasons in one day, they sure do mean it!

Feel free to admire the hail on our doormat out back.

Today, we went out for a bit of biking and boozing.  We have officially started exploring a bit outside of our normal area, which leads us to our first place: the mornington peninsula.  They brought us to the top of a lookout at the highest point, and then we biked to the beach, stopping at a few spots along the way.

• Arthur’s Seat
• Main Ridge Dairy
• Sunny Ridge Strawberry Farm
• Shoreham Beach

From there we visited a few pretty nice cellar rooms (winery tastings).  And no, we did not drink and ride.  However, from the look of my arm (not pictured) may have you beg to differ.

• Tuck’s Ridge
• Montalto
• Merrick’s General Store

Oh yeah, the movers just came and have deposited everything.  It’s a great Christmas that’s for sure.  It’s also fun unpacking everything and realizing how thorough the movers are, and the things we thought we got rid of before moving and repurchased here (like the Costco-sized cling wrap).

Yay!  Oh and the image below is just the main room of stuff.  The two bedrooms and laundry room are full of boxes too…

We finally have some new furniture!  Granted, this is for the upstairs patio off the master bedroom,a.k.a. our sanctuary.  Today was the first nice day that we were able to use it too.  We had a run this morning, and then all of us (Kobe too) took to the roof and had a nap.  It was glorious.

Now to get some more outdoor furniture we can actually share with others!

Now that the days are getting longer (and warmer) down here in the southern hemisphere, we’re really able to take advantage of the weather.  One of those is the beautiful sunsets over the western part of Port Phillip Bay.

This post will just keep getting additional pictures added to it, as I upload them to my CMS with the correct tags.  However, here are just a few we’ve taken so far from Adam’s balcony.

We (the Chicago group) were sitting outside on Adam’s porch, and all the sudden this very large spider crawled down the wall and across his patio.  While it was making its voyage, we were enthralled.  Travis threw his keys down to put the size into perspective, and then it crawled into one of the planters.  Hopefully it will help with Adam’s bug issue.

Went to sign up for the Qantas Frequent Flyer program on their website and saw that it would cost $82 to do so.  Uh, the whole point of a FF program is to reward the people that are already spending lots of money with you.

However, you can get around this fee if you sign up for the Woolworth’s Everyday Rewards card.  It’s free, as I’m sure they sell your information, but you also get a free Qantas membership with it.  Just swing by a Woolies, get the card and register it online to create  a free Qantas account.  Yay!

I had to call the US today because both of my major credit cards were flagged for fraud.  Turns out a large expense in foreign lands tends to do that.  Anyways, since I’m on pre-paid, I thought I’d have a look and see what the damage would be.

Turns out, it is actually cheaper for me to call the US than it is to call an Australian number.  Good job Vodaphone!  If I could find a forwarder that is less than $0.40/min, I could route all my calls through the US!

Calling within Australia.

Calling to the US.

AUS

US

Adam, Yow-Yow and I have been wanting to get out on the bay to try some stand-up paddle boarding for quite awhile now.  Ever since Yow-Yow and I did it in Hawaii during our trip, we’ve been wanting to get out on the water again.  However, each weekend we’ve had time the weather hasn’t cooperated.  What has been even more annoying is that the bay has been very calm during the weekday mornings and evenings.  And then yesterday morning happened.

I woke up stupid early, as the weather had been calling for a pretty nice day.  Not too warm (18C), but not a lot of wind.  To my surprise, when I looked out our window, I found balloons floating over the CBD in the early morning sun.  It was at that point I knew we had to get out on the bay.

We headed down to The Zu Boardsports to try out a few before making any purchases.  However, we arrived a bit early and they weren’t open yet.  We hung around and helped them open, and then took off on three boards, each of different sizes, to get a feel.  Adam had a 10’10″ as it was his first time, Yow-Yow had a 10′, and I had a 9’8″.  During our hour paddling around and getting used to it I think we each tried all the boards.

We had so much fun, and honestly, we knew we would, that we then proceeded to each purchase our own gear.  This will make is a lot easier as the bay seems to be the most calm before and after the shop is closed.  With that, I give you the line-up.

They are things of beauty.  At some point I want to get a better picture of it and make it a main-page image.  However, for right now, this is what you get.

For all those that haven’t tried SUP yet, I highly recommend you get out there and try.  It’s amazing how relaxing it can be, and when the water is clear you can see practically everything.

I can’t wait to take mine out again!

This is not the greatest show ever in America. In fact, it’s awful. Just saying.