Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo 2013 - NZ Army Band

It was a few years ago, away at a conference somewhere with nothing much to do before bed. Whilst surfing channels I came across this - groups and groups of military band performing. First 5 minutes, interesting, next 5... pretty boring.

Now the 7 minutes or so performance by the Kiwis are pretty cool - a Haka, Psy's signature piece and other classics together.

Internet Archives

http://archive.org/ is seriously cool. It takes snap shots from website, dating back to 1996 (yes, when most people were still using dial-up to connect.. at least for uploading anyway, I think I started using the satellite dish from ihug pretty soon after that..).

So, this photo is from the www.TheGiftRoom.co.nz Mark II. The banner is long gone and the space is now reserved for "council use" only. It's of historical importance because it shows my silver Mirage with the tinted back-lights. The Gift Room first went online in 1994, so the oldest version of the website is truly gone - not captured by the archive.

Banff and Lake Louise

Welcome to Calgary!

We've been here 2 weeks, just got everything settled - so far loving it.

Here is the cool picture of the very full Bow river from our apartment:

late evening today

Just before midnight

And of course, today is our 4th Wedding Ann. Ended up having a light dinner at home only as Dani wasn't too well, vomited again - first in few weeks. More baby shopping tomorrow!

The Auckland Unitary Plan - even the name has a ring of "togetherness" to it, is, as I understand it, the blueprint for how this city will develop over the next 30 or so years. The picture on the cover might just be how the streets of Auckland will look in 30 years time. Higher density, with a mix of people of all ages living together close to public transport.



I'm also particularly impressed by this video of the Western Ring Route:



All of this, of course, will not stop young people leaving to earn some hard cash..

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=10873867

Which is a shame really, having been back for nearly two months, I'm convinced the weather here is miles better than Melbourne.

May be because the majority of the people are just too comfortable to try that bit harder?

2013

It's 2013!! Our 3 years in Melbourne is coming to an end. Great things have happened during this time - too many to count. The coming 2 years are set to be even better. As for today, it was surely hot hot hot!

Christmas Lights – The Boulevard

I must declare my bias. I lived in and loved New Zealand and for Kiwis, Franklin Road in Ponsonby, Auckland, is the place to see the Christmas lights. Year after year the residents put on the most spectacular display of LEDs and all sort of models.

This is our 3rd Christmas in Melbourne and it was the first time we ventured out to The Boulevard to see the "Melbourne" version of Franklin Road. Judging by the number of houses that were decorated, the residents were probably less enthused compared to back home in Auckland.

Anyway, I'm all for a bit of festive atmosphere in this time of year. Yes, there won't be Christmas without Christ hence at the heart of it all, it is the Christian message that is important. Yet equally the message of love, joy and giving are so universal that everyone should be encouraged to reflect on.

Wedding... Gangnam style - Sunglass Hut Sydney

 Congrats to Dani's friend- a beautiful wedding on a fine Sydney day over the weekend. Walking onto the Sunglass Hut's floating platform in Darling Harbour was a bit random - not to say the DJ actually did put on Gangnam Style!! (photos removed for privacy reason!)

Coldplay, Sydney 2012





Thanks to Caroline and Sam, had a fantastic night out to see Coldplay in Sydney over the weekend. Simply spectactular. 



October

October is truly a "Family month" - mother-in-law visited, and hence the food photos about, followed by my mother's visit in the second half of the month. We are blessed indeed.