G’day mates! How ya going?

We’ll be kicking off the new year in less than 24 hours, heading into the year two-thousand-and-heaven! « I think I made that up, not really sure, maybe I heard/read it from some place. I told this to Jason and we had a good giggle about it, or maybe he had a little snicker at me about it. Anyway, we’re looking forward to whatever the future has in store for us as everything seems to be coming together well.

The past year has been a magnificent adventure that has taken us from Toronto, Ontario, Canada and across the globe to Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. The following is but a brief glimpse at all the things we’ve accomplished and loved.

Where We Went

• Brisbane
• Gold Coast
• Sydney
• Alice Springs
• Cairns
• Port Douglas
• Tropical Far North Queensland (Daintree Rainforest)
• Personally, this is the most I’ve ever travelled!

What We Did

• Actually took the plunge and travelled across the globe
• Visited Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary (Fed and petted many kangaroos, hugged a koala – actually just held them by their bum, mine pooped on me but we’re cool now)
• Celebrated Queensland Day
• Watched our friend Nic kick ass in the Garra Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Championship Circuit 2010
• Chilled with Jordan at the Australia Zoo (Home of the Crocodile Hunter, Steve Irwin)
• Went on a boat for some Brisbane Whale Watching (kept hearing the song I’m on a Boat by The Lonely Island)
• Checked out the Abbey Tournament with our new Dutch friend Jasper (a truly immersive experience with the most friendliest folk to transport you to the past)
• Visited the Google Sydney Office (Jason was taking part of Google DevFest while I tagged along and explored the rest of Sydney but I did get to see their living wall garden)
• Visited the Sydney Aquarium (especially loved the tubular hallway so you can watch the sharks, turtles and other fish swim above your head)
• Went on a romantic dinner cruise with Magistic Cruises
• Visited the Sydney Opera House
• Shopped at Sydney’s Paddy’s Market
• Hiked to Uluru and Kata Tjuta, and camped in the bush (saw the most amazing stars in my life – actually saw the Milky Way) with Adventure Tours Australia.
• Visited the Dreamworld amusement park (absolutely thrilled that I survived and kinda-loved going on all the rides, even that truly scary one called the Giant Drop – the tallest, free-falling ride in the world, according to the Guinness Book of World records)
• Immersed ourselves in Oktoberfest shenanigans (Jason dressed as a lovely beer wench and I dressed up in lederhosen)
• Visited the Queensland Museum and Sciencentre
• Went on a romantic beach getaway in Cairns (built our first sand castle)
• Swam, snorkelled and scuba dove at the Great Barrier Reef (Love-love-loved it! By no means am I a great swimmer and after having a bit of a panic, I acclimated to the scuba gear and enjoyed the rest of the dive! It was a beautiful experience and I would do it again.)
• Visited the World Heritage Listed Daintree Rainforest (felt like I was in Jurassic Park, Jason’s leg was an open buffet to mosquitoes, ate exotic fruits, took an afternoon dip in the pristine rainforest stream, Emmagen Creek where there were fish swimming with you!)
• Celebrated Christmas with our families via Google video chat (though we’re far away, technology still has a way of bringing us close)

Of course, some of these adventures we’ve already shared with you and some have yet to be written but rest assured there will be much more in the future! Even though we will soon be returning to Canada, I hope we have many more travels to come – even if only to explore our own country!

What’s in your year-in-review? Have you traveled to some place exotic? Tried something new? Met someone special? Don’t forget, it’s never too late to do something inspired! May your new year be filled with more joy, adventure and love than you can shake a stick at!

As always, sprinkle hearts.