Anzac Day

 Anzac Day is a national day of remembrance in Australia and New Zealand that broadly commemorates all Australians and New Zealanders who served and died in all wars, conflicts, and peacekeeping operations.  Originally April 25th honored the members of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) who fought at Gallipoli in the Ottoman Empire during World War 1.

Nick and I observed this day while relaxing on the beach at Agnes Water.

We had the beach to ourselves!

Surfin' A U S

Nick and I met some of his work friends (Alex, Keith and Rachel) at Agnes Water this weekend and tried out surfing!  We had the option to get a lesson but since Alex had surfed before we decided instead to rent a board and get the basics from Alex.  It costs $25 to rent a surf board for 4 hours which I thought was a great deal and something we will try and take advantage of more often.

The overall surfing experience was fun but extremely challenging.  I was amazed how powerful the waves were and these waves were relatively small in comparison to waves we had seen before.  I felt like a rag doll every time I fell into the water and I fell into the water every time.  I was able to get to my knees by the end of the experience and Nick was able to get to a squat position.  We can't wait to "have another go"!

Driving to a more private beach to practice our surfing

Flying surf boards were a common sight

Alex catching a wave

Keith catching a wave

Boing Boing Boing

Rachel taking in the view at 1770

The Great Blogging Drought

I want to apologize to all of our loyal blog followers for the lack of post for the last two months but would you believe me when I said that the great blogging drought was due to the wet season?  It has been a very rainy two months and Nick and I have spent a lot of time inside watching movies. 

Now, on to the good stuff!  We just got back from Miller Family Vacation 2013: New Zealand and Sydney and we could not have had a better time.  We started our trip in New Zealand and made our way around the South island and then traveled to Sydney.  Greg and Joan were able to stop in Gladstone for a few days before making their way on to Bora Bora.

We had such a great time and we are so lucky to be able to break up the time we live abroad with visits from family.  Here are a few photos from our trip:

Lake Tekapo

Tasman Glacier

Queenstown

View from Bob's Peak, Queenstown

Queenstown

Milford Sound

Our ride around New Zealand

One of the many waterfalls at Milford Sound

Nugget Point

Train station in Dunedin

View of Hyde Park from out hotel in Sydney

Jenna's buddy on the Catlins Coast

Manly Beach in Sydney

Sydney Harbor Bridge

Pool at Bondi Beach