An Update On My Sydney Life

Firstly, THIS.

My brother has just joined Costco, bringing home huge amounts of food. Mum buys her weekly produce at the Sydney Flemington markets every Friday. When I went with her I was dazzled by the fruit and veggies. I feel like I've been deprived in London for too long. The fruit here is heavenly. Nothing beats that first whiff and taste of a ripe Kensington mango.

Basically I've been eating alot. Homemade guilt free meals are ramen noodle soup with shittake mushrooms, tofu and kale. Actually I'm not a fan of the kale but I bought a huge bunch at the market on impulse. I'm also making vietnamese spring rolls and soon, vegetarian banh cuon. Most other meals on the other hand have been somewhat of a binge.

I've started ballet and I love it even though I look ridiculous. The dance style is foreign to me so I tell myself to that my legs are like an artists' paintbrush and my feet are the bristles. In any case I get to pretend to be a ballerina so I'm happy.

I'm doing Zumba three times a week with Zumba4u. Look them up if you don't want to join a gym. Participants are mainly local mums. It's no Reebok Sports Club but the atmosphere is as upbeat and the music is more latin. I sweat buckets. I don't want the classes to end. This is me with two of the instructors (and her daughter).

I love driving but I avoid it when the sun is out. As I have no air con, I roast on a hot day. It got so hot I had to wait until 7pm to go on a bike ride. It still felt like an inferno because of the heat radiating from the ground and walls. After sunset, omg the bugs...so many bugs. They caught on my shirt, went down my top and even got in my ear. It's supposed to be 41 degrees tomorrow so I'm staying indoors. Wish we had those window shutters like I've seen in hot places in Europe. We need those now!

Overall things are great but I'm bored when I'm not riding or dancing. I'm looking for things to do that doesn't involve sweating (it's a "thing" I'm calling in this weather!). I pulled out this old fan which was broken so I took it apart and somehow made it work with electrical tape. Glad it's fixed because I remember the day I bought it. It was 18 years ago and my late father drove me to Newcastle from Port Macquarie as I was starting university. It was a rare thing for him to take a whole day off because he was working a restaurant business. After helping me unpack, buying me necessities like this fan, he gave me $500 and told me not to tell my mother. I said I didn't need it but he wanted to make sure I had it just in case. He drove home and I felt really sad to be leaving someone who supported me throughout my life. I never used that money. This fan is a reminder of what he did for me and I'll cherish it even if it's deteriorating.