hi everyone! hope you all had a great xmas and have a fab new year!

we are in sydney and really looking forward to tomorrow! we have a plan of action to get a good spot to see the fireworks and will be searching for games later to keep us entertained whilst we wait!

we had a great time in bali. it was such a relaxing, beautiful place it felt like we were on holiday! everything was so cheap.. has been tough getting used to the western prices here! we spent a few days in ubud, the cultural capital, where some of the highlights were a traditional dance show and a really interesting antonio blanco museum! boxing day was spa day where we were pampered beyond belief!

i loved sydney! it was raining on our first day which was depressing but thankfully it has been sunny since :) i went to the jewish museum yesterday and today (it was that good!). a holocaust survivor does a tour of the museum which really makes the visit. i havent been to a museum on the holocaust so i learnt lots! i missed the start of the tour yesterday so i decided i would go again today. it was interesting to hear two different people talk about the same events. the lady yesterday, helen, was really emotional whereas eddie, todays tour guide, was more angry. helen has gone back to auschwitz with her family whereas eddie has not and will not go to germany regardless of how many invites he receives (says he is constantly invited back with offers of hotel accommodation and first class flights paid for, along with spending money but they cannot buy his forgiveness). while they have different emotions about the past, they are both parents and grandparents, and are so grateful to be alive. i still cannot imagine properly what they went through but am so grateful they are able to tell the story to others. it was hard listening to them recall the events so i can only imagine how hard it must be to tell people every week. i left the museum feeling thankful and inspired. both eddie and helen have been able to live after what they went through, and while they will never be able to forget they have made the most of their lives as, like they both said, its a miracle they are alive. i asked the security guard why we are not allowed to take pictures (so much i wanted to capture: the childrens memorial, the structure of the building - shaped like the star of david) and was shocked by his response. Pictures were allowed until an american tourist posted pictures of the survivors on an anti-semitism website so the survivors could be targeted.

on a happier note, i go to melbourne next week and am really excited - fingers crossed i get to meet paul robinson!! :)