Melbourne

We really liked Melbourne. Nobody could tell us what the 'big sights' were - and Federation Square, which was created to give a focus to the city that doesn't really have a centre, is an incredibly ugly bit of architecture. It looks like a sixth former's 'city of the future' art project, all big blocks of strange, angular buildings.

What we did find was a lot of beauty - it's very green - and a slower pace. More cafes, more relaxed, more warmth. We loved the Dandenong ranges; beautiful mountains just outside the city with the most amazing purple flowers everywhere.

More than anything we met some lovely people. Mike and Rochelle let us borrow their house for a week, Dave and Lisa looked after us, cooked us two fantastic barbecues and lent us their double buggy, and a nice lady got her street atlas out of the car and helped me find my way home when I got hopelessly lost out on a run.

We made it to the Open only to find that there were no British players left in the singles (I guess we shouldn't have been so surprised), but it was fun to wander around and we managed to see Andy Murray being very polite to the ball girls at a doubles match.

The car.. Well, it was the solid, reliable 5th member of the family that we needed on a trip like that. I love air conditioning.

Spider

So, we found this on our car just outside of Melbourne. It's dead now.

Soul Survivor Sighs

We arrived at Soul Survivor Melbourne and it felt as though we were letting out a huge sigh. It was relaxing, refreshing and most of all felt like home. We met old friends, made new ones and spent time chatting, praying and going along to meetings. Craig played guitar and got sore fingers, Evie made friends with everyone and Barney just kept grinning. Lovely.

Roadtrip

Well, I’ve a lot of news to cover. We’ve been away from internet access for far too long… We started out from Sydney for our drive to Melbourne on Monday last week. We were both a bit nervous about the idea of driving further than Scotland but the Holden triumphed and got us here without breaking a sweat. We stopped at a couple of places along the way, taking in the Princes Highway as we went. I’ll let the pictures tell the story but safe to say it is a long way…

A Post From Evie

We touched dolphins and fed them in Seaworld. We saw Shamu and they did a show but you couldn't touch them or feed them and we watched them and they splashed people and they whacked their tales on the water.



My animals have a message too: they say "my name is Giraffe and my name is spotty." These animals are Ethan's toys. He's my friend and we are living in his house for a few sleeps.

I saw some Koalas and kangaroos and a mara.

Hopey: I love you very much and I hope you are having a good time with Jessie.

Tigga: dogs are the last ones. I love you and hope you have a good time playing in England. The Borlase family send you this message.

Doggies are the very ended ones.

Betsy and Bonnie: I love you very much. Soon we are going to send you a card and a toy mouse. It will zoom all around. Two of them. Pretend mouse and rats.

Obi: I love you from the Borlase family. Spotty and stripey too.

That's good.

Goodbye from Evie

[PS These photos taken by Evie]

Surf's up

Well, it's been there in the back (and front) of my mind for a few weeks now. We have been praying for mum and hoping she and dad would be able to come out to visit in February, but I haven't really allowed myself to think they might... Yesterday we got the news that they can come. The oncologist is going to treat mum with hormone therapy and hopefully this will shrink the mass in her bowel. So, it's wonderful news. I could feel the relief in her voice, dad's voice and my own soul.

We went to Manly beach in the afternoon and met some friends, Giles and Susie, who live nearby. Giles took Craig and I out for the first time on his surf board. It was fantastic. I didn't stand up but managed to ride in on my stomach a couple of times and I even almost got caught in a rip (bit scary, but since I didn't know what it was, not as bad as it might have been..). Evie pottered about on the beach making sandcastles and finding 'treasure' to decorate it. Barney just enjoyed picking up handfuls of sand. There's something very awe-inspiring and satisfying about being by the sea. I'm just reminded of how small I am in the great scheme of things, and yet how I can be carried by a God who is so much more powerful than anything I can imagine.

After much thought I've decided to relegate the t-shirt to beachwear.

Modern Art

I've joined a gym in the centre of Sydney where I can practice my pilates. By London standards it's very cheap, but I think it's pretty high-end in Sydney. I know this because everyone is very attentive when I go in and there's free body wash and moisturiser in the showers.

Anyway, we decided that we should make the most of Sydney and go and do some cultured things after my classes, so Craig, Evie and Barney came to meet me and we went to the Museum of Contemporary Art. Now, I don't like to admit this, but the truth is, I just didn't get it. There were some round wooden objects hanging from string, some photos from 1920's Britain that had been framed and arranged by the artist (she didn't take them, just put each of them in a frame... I think she had made the frames herself though, to be fair....). There were also some photos of a man - one with his legs hanging out of a dustbin and, amongst others, one of him kneeling with a lemon in his mouth.

Evie laughed at most of the exhibits, whilst the curators watched her with Stalin-like attentiveness to ensure she didn't touch anything. I have to say, the more I think about it, the more her response seems the most appropriate... It was fun though.

Hotter

On Sunday it was over 44 degrees centigrade. So hot that it felt like it does when you stand behind a lorry with the full force of the exhaust blowing in your face. (Not something I'd recommend.) But it was hot, nonetheless.

The electric fan simply circulated the hot air, rather like leaving a hairdryer on in the corner of the room. We all lay around, doing and wearing as little as possible. Barney spent most of the day in the sink and of all of us probably made the best of the day.

I've been reading a book about a missionary working with the Masai in Tanzania. Their word for God is engai, the same word that they use for rain. On Monday morning when I woke to the sound of the rain drumming down on the roof, I suddenly felt that, in a small way, I could understand where they were coming from. I felt clear headed, reinvigorated and blessed.

It's 30 degrees today. No sweat. Well, not much.