Six weeks of relaxation and indulgence come to an end ....

Ahhh, blue skies!

It seems a little surreal that I’m heading back to China now, I really did slip back into ‘normality’ very easily. It’s been an amazing six weeks, filled with lots of fun, plenty of sleep and heaps of things that I just can’t do in China. I have been incredibly lucky to have spent so much time with my wonderful family and friends. The blue skies, fresh air and uncrowded places have been a welcome escape from my new 'normal life in China. Rather than ramble on about my time, I thought I’d take advantage of my love of lists and share some of the highlights from my summer (well, winter really!) holiday.

Me and my mummy!

Top five things I’ve done:

1. Hanging out with my mum, whether it be at her apartment in Moonee Ponds, bunkering down during a tsunami warning in Broulee, or dodging Ned Kelly look-alikes in Beechworth.
2. Catching up with my lovely friends. The last six weeks seems to have been a blur of brunches, lunches, dinners, drinks, coffee and cakes! I really do feel lucky to have so many interesting and fun friends to spend time with. I look forward to keeping in touch with everyone and scheduling Christmas time catch ups!
3. Playing with our adorable dogs, Charlie and Lexie. I really do miss the dogs an awful lot, there is something comforting about coming home to a slobbering, excited four legged friend.
4. Finally getting to do some of the cultural things in Melbourne that I always say I’ll do but never seem to get around to (see next list!)
5. Eating and drinking all the naughty things that I shouldn’t be eating but I did because you can’t get them in China!

Dinner at Tom's place

Top five cultural events I’ve been to:

1. Salvador Dali exhibition – Weird and wonderful.
2. John Brack exhibition – Another interesting character whose paintings are slightly more conventional but just as fascinating.
3. 'A Day in Pompeii’ exhibition – A new historical and scientific learning experience.
4. An AFL game at the MCG – a must do Melbourne experience. Such an amazing game too, Geelong beat Hawthorn by 1 point after the siren.
5. ‘Ned Kelly Weekend’ – An out of the blue experience that was interesting but I can’t say I’ll visit Beechworth during that time again! I loved Beechworth though.

Hockey girls

Top five movies I’ve seen:

1. ‘A Year Without Sex’ – An Australian movie. It was good but nothing special.
2. ‘Beautiful Kate’ – Wow! A very confronting but extremely good movie. The scenery in the Flinders Ranges was stunning.
3. ‘Coco Avant Chanel’ – A gorgeous movie with the beautiful Audrey Tatou (spelling?!) I love French movies and will see any movie starring Tatou.
4. ‘The Class’ – Another French movie that won an award at the Cannes Film Festival. A good movie but it requires a lot of thinking!
5. 'Towel Head’ – Another confronting movie but fantastic movie. I think Toni Collette is a fantastic actress and I’d watch anything with her in it.

Parma and chips at the Avairy with Kate

Top five books I’ve read:

1. 'The Slap’ by Christos Ts (someone!) – Great book that looks at the dynamics between family and friends in Melbourne.
2. ‘Alice in Wonderland’ – I’m sure I will horrify many people when I admit that this is the first time I’ve read this! I adored it, I loved the language and the innocence. “Everyone has won and all shall receive prizes!” “Curiouser and curiouser” – beautiful.
3. ‘Handle with Care’ by Jodi Picoult – I’ve read all of Picoult’s books and really enjoy them but I’m starting to tire of her standard recipe of ethical dilemmas!
4. ‘Raising a Bilingual Child’ – No, I’m not planning on raising a bilingual child any time but the book really applies to the lives of many of the students at EtonHouse who are being raised in a bilingual environment.
5. A book about leadership in schools – A nerdy book about leading change in schools, which has given me some great ideas for my role at EtonHouse.

Hanging out with my puppy dogs

Despite feeling sad to be leaving home again, I’m also looking forward to going back to China. Top five things I’m looking forward to:

1. Living cheaply. My new name is ‘Thrifty Anna’ and I’m going to become a super saver during my last year in China.
2. Massages. No explanation needed!
3. Having visitors – Dad and his partner arrive in September, a girlfriend is arriving next April, Mum arrives in June, so plenty of visitors to look forward to.
4. More travel. It truly is addictive and I can’t wait to get out and see some different parts of China. The Yunnan province and Kazakstan are on the list this year!
5. A new year at school and learning more about leadership and EAL teaching.

Thank you to everyone who has made my holiday so memorable, I'm already looking forward to seeing everyone at Christmas time!