Pics coming soon…
What a great holiday! It had all the elements – sunshine, happy families, a bit of touring, outdoor activity, beautiful surroundings – to name a few.
Kurt, Vix, Trent and I travelled the arduous 24 hour journey together, which made it more tolerable. Having come through yet another dismal English summer, we were reminded in Brisbane what that shiny ball in the sky looks like! We stayed with our Jacobs parents in Brisbane. Lionel and Tarryn with our two gorgeous nephews were just down the road. It was a complete Jacobs family reunion. It was great to meet 4-month-old Joel for the first time – our gentle giant of a nephew. Hayden (now 5 and a half years) adored his Uncle Trent (deviously trying also to become known as Uncle Sexy) and Uncle Kurt because they did cool things like build Lego spaceships and provide Wii games like Monster Truck.
Our days included lots of relaxing and, of course, excessive eating on the ever-so-pleasant Jacobs patio. We enjoyed time outdoors cycling, playing golf, visiting beaches and going out on Lionel’s boat. Trent particularly enjoyed driving around in a man-car (landrover) as opposed to the girl-car (Ford KA) that we drive in England.
On the only Sunday we were there, true to Jacobs style, we entered a place and dominated. The place just happened to be Discovery Baptist church, the small relaxed congregation amongst which the Australia Jacobs are active members. The event was Joel’s dedication, and Trent and I were involved as godparents. The surprise element of the event was that all the Jacobs siblings and their spouses, and Hayden led the worship. Rather presumptuous, you may think, to walk into a church for the first time and take over the worship? We thought so too, but were persuaded that this was quite acceptable. It had the desired effect on Mom and Dad Jacobs – the tears of appreciation flowed, and the day was described as “one of the most special days in my life.” Thankfully, other church members seemed to be appreciative too!
Then, just for laughs, we traipsed off to Melbourne to have a look see. No more kangas and koalas in this contemporary city. These were replaced with trendy architecture dotted all over the place and cafes along a picturesque beach promenade. The sea front area was very reminiscent of Sea Point in Cape Town. Took a long drive along the Great Ocean Road stopping at seaside resort towns along the way, one of which was a mecca for surf shopping – a conglomeration of every surf shop imaginable! I thought I might have to pull out the Ritalin for Trent in the Quicksilver shop, as he attempted to convince me that, amongst other FANTASTIC gear, ski gear with purple and orange tic-tac-toe designs resembling pyjamas would be cool to buy.
With lots of great memories and thousands of photographs, we travelled the 28 hour journey back to England. But we’ll certainly be back to Oz again!