So, it has been a while since we have updated any narrative on the blog and it would seem there is a lot to catch up on!! It has been close to a month so this will be more of a bullet format as this is as much a diary for us as it is an update for you. Thank you for your patience!
Right so the run up to my event in late Feb was really busy and I pulled in some pretty late nights! As a treat though Daire took me out for dinner the Thursday before I left for Melbourne, we went to Tomislav a newly opened restaurant that overlooks Kings cross and the ‘Coca cola’ sign. It was a complete surprise and we had a fabulous meal in the tiny restaurant whose head chef was trained by Heston Blumenthal. We started with rice crisps, followed by quail and then I had duck and Daire had steak – it was all delicious. The highlight was definitely the rice crisps which were homemade and sprinkled with salt and came on a slate with a little spray bottle of oil. Turned out it was vinegar and we could spray the crisp to our down level of taste!!! Sounds kinda geeky now but we had a fun spraying and eating!
I left on Friday 26th Feb for Melbourne and spend the weekend setting up the event – most notable thing was a fab dinner at Nobu on Saturday. Meanwhile back in Sydney, Daire was busy with meetings and playing his first game of AFL before flying off to Vanuatu for a few days of R&R on a remote little island (that’s what he says anyway!!) So Melbourne was kicking off....each day getting busier as more people arrived so whilst I was focused on work Daire was busy taking boats and buses to find a watering hole that would serve the local brew/dirt water in Vanuatu called Kava. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kava Turns out he found some guy in the street who took him to the back garden of a house (a Nakamal) where they grind the root of the Kava plant and boil it – it is meant to be hallucinogenic!! So sharing 3 bowls of dirt water with a stranger and having a curry on the street before heading home was technically a recipe for gut wrenching disaster - and didn’t surprise!! Alas, when he turned up in Melbourne on Wednesday afternoon he was in a little discomfort and a little sleep deprived having spent the day travelling.
The event finally over we were mean to go to a big team meal, however we were all over speaking and seriously tired AND had been offered free George Michael tickets at the Etihad Stadium in central Melbourne. One of his lasts shows of the last 3 years of touring George was on top form and gave a great show – it was such a treat to end the whole few days in Melbourne.
Reunited with my crook boyfriend we planned to stay a few days in Victoria and spent Thursday and Friday morning in Melbourne, enjoying a lush brunch Cumulis and dinner at Rockpool bar and grill. I was pretty shattered so we weren’t too active. Friday we made our way to St Kilda and met Daire’s GAA mate, Diarmuid before driving to Mount Martha in the Mornington Peninsular to meet his fiancé Magdalena who had been busy cooking a delicious dinner of tomato soup, flat head and potatoes and am amazing Key Lime Pie....yum yum yum!! 5 bottles of wine later and we were all tucked up by 11pm....ready for our early morning rise on Saturday. Unbeknown to me, Daire had been organising with the guys to go swimming with dolphins and seals in Port Philip bay in the morning!!! EXCITED!!!!! We did the seals and they were so beautiful under the water, however only one little dolphin could be found and was not in the mood to play. L Back for a quick change and we headed out to a winery for lunch and wine tasting at Darling Park Winery then headed across the road to Kooyong and Port Phillip Estate to try some more. Pinot Noir perfection. A relaxed few days in great company with D&M and her folks all in all and we travelled back to Sydney on Sunday evening.
Since then I have been looking for a job – I have 4 weeks left with Reed Travel Exhibitions so thought I would try and capitalise on that and try and get something in the bag early doors so we can chill. Otherwise we have been doing lots of debriefing and winning awards in the office and making plans to come home in July for Flavs wedding. We’ve also been making use of the weekends, a couple of weeks ago we went to the start of the Super 14’s season on a Friday night watching the Waratahs beat the Lions 76- 16 followed but Yum Cha on the way home. That Saturday I got up and went Kayaking with Lucy and Chez, had a girlie lunch at home and had planned to play lawn bowl but the heavens opened so we decided to go to the pub instead. Daire was one leap ahead of us with a full blown social with his AFL team and I found him passed out at home on the lounge with front door open!! Sunday we went swimming and then met Ken and Rebecca in Hyde Park in the CBD to go to a NSW wine tasting evening called NWS cellar door – basically is show cased a number of wines from each wine region in New South Wales. We tasted around 7 different places – if you look through the pictures you’ll see the boys posing by each winery!!
Last Tuesday I took the day off as I had two interviews, one was over in Leichardt – the Italian quarter. Daire came over and took me for lunch in an Italian Piazza, before I headed off to the next interview by Watsons Bay. I also had a half day on Friday as we were doing our official full event debrief and got let out early and for the first time in a good few months we chilled out on Bronte beach and swam in the waves – was fab. That night Daire cooked up a storm in the kitchen, making a recipe he’d seen in magazine come to life: mahi-mahi fish curry, and we had it with a nice verdelho that we had bought in the Hunter when we went up with Stuart, Gail and the children. Saturday I had a second interview and Daire persuaded me, actually dragged me for a run in the burning heat over to Redleaf pool in a neighbouring bay for a swim and run back. Quick change and I was heading to The Golden Sheaf to meet Lucy, Chez, Alex, Millie and Karen (plus 2 two year olds) for an afternoon of boozing and fun times...I left in good time to meet Daire who had been doing the same but with the boys in an Irish pub somewhere . Another group we have come to know had invited us to a cocktail evening so we took Ken and no cocktail related booze to the party....where I suck into the cocktails and the wheels fell off around 2ish...I think...Daire had to take me home (stuck to the beers)!!
Sunday Daire bravely got up and went to help at an AFL game (he had a neck injury so was out of play) whilst I felt sorry for myself on the couch despite an initially perky start to the day! Head in the toilet by 2pm I was showered and at the Winery ready to meet Daire, Jose and Lucy and drinking shandies by 4pm!!! After a snack and a full catch up of Jose’s ‘busy’ life we took s stroll up Crown Street through Surrey Hills for a quick lemonade before hitting Pizza e Birra where Grappa was the pre dinner order over our June plans to watch what feels like will be every Ireland rugby game!! We were all pretty shattered though and the guys had been flying around Sydney all weekend so early dinner and bed was the order of the day. Perfect. All fresh for Monday too!
So this week just passed I accepted and signed the contract on a permanent Event Producer position based over at Nielsen Park – it’s a popular wedding venue but have some exciting projects coming up and have most recently done the re-launch of the Hermes Scarf so excited to bringing what knowledge I have and learning to tap into my creative side! It will also mean that we can have sponsorship and stay in Oz if we want to pursue it so that is great too. Also Maria, Daire’s cousin is over from New Zealand and stayed with us from Tuesday to Friday. We had a night in, then dinner with her sister Donna at the all-you-can eat Churrasco restaurant, after recommendations to M&D from Daire’s parents from their visit. The weekend was pretty chilled though so that was good – Friday we went for dinner in Paddington with Millie and Mark to the ‘Four in Hand’ it was so nice and they are real foodies so loved it too! Saturday Daire had an AFL game way out west so amused myself with running swimming and enjoying the sunshine. The boys won so Daire was chuffed and despite having neck and ankle injuries he came back without scratch so even happier!! Sunday I was up early to meet Cheryl for breakfast in Coogee before settling on the beach and Lucy joining us shortly after. Daire went boxing with Ken in the morning then on to a beach BBQ at the other end of Coogee to celebrate the arrival of Carly, Damo and Steph’s new baby girl. Kangaroo kebab’s at home finished off the weekend.
