This was my first New Year out of the UK... and the first New Year in well over 10 years spent doing family things!!! I've never been a big fan of New Year at the best of times - too many over anticipated nights and too much over planning!!! Therefore, I normally spend new year with a few close friends and (generally) alot of wine!!! As last year proved- the nights you expect to be pants always turn out to be the best!!!
So this year, I put no expectations on it at all - and honestly, each day (especially when its all so damn hot and unseasonal... is it just me who associates cold and snow with Xmas / New Year?!?) just rolls into each other!!!
Which - I think - is how on New Year's Eve, I ended up in a big pool of water with several very large, very toothy sharks, several sting rays - each wider than my outstretched arm span, and several logger-head turtles... Now (if i'm honest) the whole event occured within the boundaries of an aquarium - theoretically pretty safe - I mean, it wouldn't look good if people were getting eaten left, right and centre... Right?!? Or so I told my doubting (and slightly piss-taking) family who were relieved to only be taking photos from the other side of a VERY THICK pane of glass / plastic!!! So, I didn't let myself get too nervous - until I spoke to one of the other divers - way more experienced than me, but convinced she was about to be on the wrong side of the dinner table... ARGHHHHHHHH!!!!
My mood was not improved by the divemaster, who (and I know he was just joking!!!) decided to tell me it wasn't the sharks I should be worried about - it was the logger-head turtles... Apparently these turtles have poor eyesight, therefore tend to work on 30second flash memory - and therefore tend to swim into things... but also (according to this very sympathetic chap, they feed on jellyfish - something which my blonde hair, when wet, might resemble!!!) I've always prided myself on spotting sarcasm and mis-formed wit, so I had a giggle and forgot about the turtles (yep - the same turtles that may take healthy chunks out of the back of my neck in an attempt to get the jellyfish floating around it... heehee!!!)
...Until of course, within 30 seconds of getting in the water, I glanced up to see a massive (metre wide honestly!!!) turtle - swimming (VERY FAST!!!) right at my head!!! Haha... it was probably a coincidence (although I have since found out that logger-head turtles REALLY DO feast on jellyfish!!!) but the look on my face is priceless (my sister caught the moment on video - followed by another look of possibly even more panic as a huge sting ray dives past my ear!!!)
It was a pretty awesome experience, even if I did live to tell the tale - and the sharks were huge!!! (Although obviously pretty well fed!!!)
That evening consisted of a night out in Northbridge - an area of Perth with lots of restaurants and bars... and come new years eve - a huge street party!!! All good!!! There were a few bands playing on a couple of stages that had been set up, and a really good atmosphere - it was a good crack actually - although admittedly I had no idea who ANY of the bands were!!! (Suprising?!?)
New Years Day was awesome aswell - we went to a wildlife park in Perth - pretty average you might think... and yeah, it was - appart from the Kangaroos!!!! (Luckily I don't know any Australians, because they'd probably think I was absolutely crazy for this response - after all, these creatures are probably about as common as a cow or rabbit back home - you know, something you see all the time, don't find particularly remarkable or unusual - and i'm also pretty sure you could get the opportunity to pet / feed them all ver the place aswell!!!) But to me - they were awesome - so cute - especially the little Joeys - one of which was so spindly he kept falling over his own feet, and pulling the most gorgeous expressions!!! Then the bigger kangaroos - all desperate to get food out of your hand - at one point I had three of them fighting over me - jumping up to beg for food!!! Heehee - I may be easily pleased but it was great fun!!!
Anyway, off down the west coast south of perth for a few days so will update soon!!!
