So Crystal is in Australia and I'm not all that sure when she's actually getting to our place, but I know it's in the next couple of days. From random updates on various sites, I've pieced together that she seems to be having a good time in Sydney, despite the cold. My friend Baldwin, who was staying with me a couple of weeks ago, has returned and is currently occupying the guest room. He is very appreciative, as he was previously staying in a cheap hostel in Sydney with no heat. Our little space heaters keep the bedrooms nice and toasty warm through the night. His only complaint is that he doesn't want to get up in the morning because he's so cozy! Yesterday was a big day for markets: the young designers market, the lifestyle markets, the brunswick st markets, the go-between bridge market. I went to all of them as I toured Baldwin around Brisbane, but all I bought was corn on the cob on a stick (which reminds me of Tracee - I don't think I've have CC on a stick since you were here what seems like a very long time ago!) I returned home and he stuck around in town to meet a friend and see Toy Story 3. It's pretty funny - he's been in Australia/NZ for about 3 months now and he's constantly running into people he knows from hostels he stayed at all over the country. He has quite the social life. In fact, today he's meeting up with a girl he knows from Ottawa and they're having lunch together.

Tonight I have to babysit, but THEN I'm going to walk over the the famous Broadway Hotel for cheap steak and fun times! A couple of my speechie friends, Jules and Nicole, will be there along with Jules' "partner" Bruce. (I still think it's funny that Aussies often use the term partner instead of boyfriend/girlfriend). Jeremy, Sean and Baldwin are also going to come enjoy the steak-y goodness. I seriously don't think we've failed to bring any visitor to Broadway yet! I guess we might run into a problem if we had a vegetarian visitor, but we'll cross that bridge...

I guess up to this point, my holiday from uni has been fairly relaxing. I suppose that's what holidays are for, but I must say I am so looking forward to our Melbourne trip as well as spending a day or two in Byron Bay. Brisbane is wonderful, but there are only so many times you can work your way around the markets. A couple of days ago I went to Chermside, the biggest shopping centre in Brisbane and a fair trek to get there, and the only things I bought were a strainer and one of those old fashioned metal steamer thingys that you hook onto a pot to steam veggies (btw, in Australia it's spelled "vegies"...and tire is "tyre"...crazy mixed up spellings!)