Relaxing with family
Trip Start
Jan 23, 2012
1
34
49
Trip End
Jun 09, 2012
Jimboomba, Queensland, Australia
Sunday, April 22, 2012
We spent that afternoon and night generally catching up, and enjoyed a lovely home-cooked meal of spaghetti bolognaise and met their adorable dog, Mia, who just loves playing catch!
The following day, both Diana and Tom had to work and so left us to roam free for the day. And boy did we enjoy the time just to kick back, relax and play some catch with Mia! We've spent the last 85-or-so days moving on from place to place, so it was lovely to spend a day kicking back and not doing much at all!
That evening, Diana cooked us a stunning turkey roast dinner (which Neill had been craving since Christmas!), and introduced us to a fantastic new game - Rummikub, which we've both quickly become addicted to!
The following day, we woke up to a BBQ breakfast courtesy of Tom. Now, having lived in the UK all of our lives, this was really something special, tasted amazing, and something Neill will be recreating on a return to British soil in June - for anyone who's interested! We then popped out to the local car boot sale to experience a bit of local life and shopping. After which, Diana and Tom and the two of us drove to the Tambourine Mountains which is great spot 1 hour from their home. Diana was organising a womens retreat up on the Tambourine mountains for the following weekend, so we got to meet some of Diana and Toms friends and have the pleasure of meeting the local spiders and get rid of the spider webs in the hall! After lunch, we headed to the Gallery Walk - a street full of shops and cafes similar to that you would find in the New Forest or any national park in the UK. It was also home to a local cheese factory and brewery, so we had the unfortunate pleasure of trying the best Brie ever and four of the ales brewed on the mountains - yum! Before leaving the mountains, we all sat on the mountain with hot chocolate and coffees to watch the beautiful sunset over the Great Dividing Range and the big open space in between. Absolute bliss.
The next day we had the honour to see Tom in action as the Pasteur of their local church, which was a lovely passionate service in Flagstone. Sophie also had her first chance to partake in Communion, which she was really grateful for. We spent the afternoon relaxing with Tom and Diana, drinking coffee (well Neill), watching a bit of TV and oh course honing our Rummikub skills! Watch out we will be inviting people to join us in games of Rummibub in the near future. That evening we heading out to experience the Australian cuisine at a place known as Hogs Breath, where we all chowed down to some great Aussie steak!
The following morning came all too fast. It's fair to say the last few days were an absolute pleasure, and we've slept the best night's sleeps here since leaving the UK. After saying an emotional goodbye to Tom, the three of us headed into Beenleigh for a spot of lunch, and some AMAZING ice cream from cold rock. Google it, buy some plane tickets, and try it!
After lunch, we said an emotional farewell, knowing we'll be back! Diana and Tom, all we can really say is a HUGE thank you!
