Hello! G’day, Kia Ora, how ya goin’? It’s Luke here (Ash’s partner).
I know big, long Christmas messages have gone out of vogue a bit given in the age of social media we can very easily find out what family, friends and acquaintances are up to, but I reckon they have a bit of charm to them, so here goes. 2023 was a big year, and there’s a lot to reflect on and celebrate. There were plenty of highlights, and lots to be thankful for.
It was a difficult start to the year. In January, we said farewell to my grandmother on Dad’s side, my Dhadhi. She was 82. It has been a difficult adjustment to now only have one grandparent still alive, but I cherish the memories that I have with all of them, and the fact that my grandmother on Mum’s side is still here and is relatively healthy. 6 weeks later, we said goodbye to our family dog, Rusty. Rusty was the best family dog anyone could ask for. He was such a good companion to grow up with and was very much one of the family. We miss Dhadhi and Rusty, as well as Dhadha and Parpey, my two grandfathers, very much.
There have been a few other challenges this year. Ash has struggled on and off with her health, unfortunately meaning that she needed to leave her job at the end of October. I also had a few struggles with managing grief and my mental health. Thankfully, I got some help and I am doing a lot better. We also just recently got over covid, which was a bit annoying. I would really encourage everyone to put their own health first, even if it seems like the most trivial issue and even if you think others may be worse off than you.
Despite this, this year has been an exciting year for Ash and me. In March, we moved in together, and celebrated our first anniversary at the end of September. We visited Echuca in early April. It was great to take Ash up there and show her around all of the places that I loved to visit, including the historic Port of Echuca, the Barmah forest and the painted silos in central and northern Victoria.
We got to go across to Christchurch just before Anzac Day. This was the first time that Ash had been back to New Zealand since she had moved to Australia, and my first visit to New Zealand since January 2015. We met Ash’s mum and dad, as well as her grandma, aunt, some of her cousins and some of her closest friends. We also went to Willowbank Wildlife Sanctuary, explored Christchurch CBD, and went to the geothermal pools at Hanmer Springs. Ash’s family and friends were lovely and very welcoming. We’re really looking forward to going back to visit.
Ash and I have taken a few other trips together this year and have a trip down the Great Ocean Road planned after Christmas. We went to South Australia in July, where we stayed in Tanunda in the beautiful Barossa Valley. The trip, however, didn’t get off to the best of starts, as I forgot my wallet, from which I needed my ID. Luckily, an hour and a half out of home, I realised that I didn’t have it, and Mum and Dad were able to drive it up to us and the rest of the trip continued without a hitch. We visited Adelaide, toured the magnificent Adelaide Oval, went to the Adelaide Zoo, and explored the city and its beaches. A highlight was the amazing sunset at Largs Bay Beach. We sampled some of the best food and wine that the Barossa has to offer, including a magnificent feast at Maggie Beer’s Farm Shop eatery, chocolates from Barossa Valley Chocolates, cheese from Barossa Valley Cheese, and the magnificent Brown’s Barossa Donuts. We also saw a lot of wildlife, including a chance encounter with some Southern Hairy Nosed Wombats, who despite having a whole sanctuary to roam around in, showed up on the access road as we were leaving! We also caught some beautifully clear nights, where we were able to glimpse the Milky Way as it was meant to be seen in the River Murray International Dark Sky Reserve.
For our anniversary, Ash and I stayed at a farm stay in Drouin, in West Gippsland. The stay was in a tiny cottage on a working farm, complete with miniature goats, highland cows, chooks, sheep, and two very cute cats. The goats were very cheeky but very cute. We had dinner at Brandy Creek Estate, which was lovely. The cottage itself was a tiny, two room cottage with a beautiful view of the mountains to the north. A picturesque setting for our anniversary getaway.
We also took an overnight trip to Phillip Island to celebrate Ash’s birthday. We turned up at the San Remo foreshore hoping to see the pelican feeding and saw a stingray instead. On Phillip Island, we visited the koala sanctuary as well as the wildlife park. We went out to Cat Bay, near the Nobbies and the penguin parade, to watch the sunset and saw a magnificent thunder and lightning show from a storm brewing up just off the Mornington Peninsula. We also saw a lot of seagulls, terns, cape barren geese and even a couple of stray penguins! We also saw some swamp wallabies as we were driving back.
This year has been a big year for celebrations. We had a few wine and cheese nights with our close friends, and celebrated birthdays and anniversaries. We have eaten at a lot of different restaurants, cafes, and bars. Our favourite restaurants we’ve eaten at this year included:
Ombra, CBD
Bekka, Moonee Ponds
Noir, Richmond
Ludlow, Southbank
Okami, Niddrie
The cafes and brunch spots we loved included:
Convoy, Moonee Ponds
Cheeky Monkey, Richmond
Pint of Milk, Newport
Pillar of Salt, Richmond
North and Eight, Aberfeldie (one of our locals)
Other places we really loved:
Cheese toasties from Prahran Market
The food at Grazeland, Spotswood
Cannoli from Preston Market
Sandwiches from Hector’s Deli, Richmond
And some regular faves:
Hecho en Mexico, Moonee Ponds
Fonda Mexican, Richmond (and Collingwood)
Pizza Raphael, just across the road from our place
Many of our days were fuelled by coffees from Calmer Café, also just across the road from our place.
Other interesting and very random highlights this year tended to involve animals. One morning, while out walking, we noticed a young Staffy named Brodie whose family had left their front gate open, so we escorted him home (thankfully his address was on his collar). We also had a golden lab in our front yard on a few occasions. I thought I was seeing things while I was working, because I would look up for a second and saw a dog walking on our front lawn, only to look down and look up again to see an empty lawn. Another time, however, the dog ran into our front yard from across the road. I went outside to see if I could see the owner, who thankfully was across the road, and a lady standing at the bus stop escorted the dog back to its owner.
As well as the numerous dogs we have seen out and about, we have also seen many different types of birds. Despite living in this area my whole life, it never ceases to amaze me at the number of different species of birds that live around the area. As well as the very common birds seen in the suburbs such as crows, magpies, wattlebirds, sparrows, pigeons, Indian mynas and noisy miners, we have also seen different birds such as galahs, cockatoos, corellas, rainbow lorikeets, ibis, butcherbirds, currawongs, tawny frogmouths (a pair of tawnies have been roosting in a tree near my parents’ house the last three winters) and, more recently, some red-rumped parrots.
We’ve explored a lot of the parks around the area for wildlife as well. One of our favourite places is Woodlands Historic Park, where we have seen crimson rosellas, fairy wrens, finches, choughs, and honeyeaters. Woodlands also has lots of kangaroos, and we even saw an echidna.
In other news, I have continued to play cricket at PEGS. I joined the committee before the start of this season and hosted a trivia night up at the club in November. Two-day cricket is back, which is great because I get to bowl a lot of overs. Unfortunately, we have only managed two full two-day games due to quite a few washouts. My bowling has generally been good, however, in contrast to last season, when I posted my first club cricket fifty, I am going through a lean patch with the bat. I don’t know if this is because I’m playing in a higher division this year or if I’m genuinely struggling for form. Hopefully I come back better after Christmas.
There are lots of people I would like to say thank you to for their love and support this year. To Mum, Dad, and Michael, thank you for always being there for me. Thank you for all of your help and support, especially for everything that you have given Ash and I after we moved in together. I love you all very much. Thank you also to Grandma, Sue, Ben, Mac and Darcy. Thank you to my mates from school and uni – you know who you are. Thank you to the guys at PEGS CC for taking me into the committee. But most importantly, thank you to Ash. Despite the challenges she has faced, she continues to be my biggest support. I am so proud of her for putting her health first, setting up her own blog, creating content for social media, including YouTube videos, Canva designs and Instagram reels. She continues to take amazing photos, and I am excited to see her creating more and more. Ash, I love you so much.
We have had an amazing year. It has been a big year of change, love, loss, excitement, experience, and a year to remember. We hope that you have had an amazing year too. Wishing you all the joys of the festive season – a Merry and safe Christmas, and a Happy, Healthy and Prosperous New Year. If you are taking time off and travelling, we wish you a safe and relaxing holiday. 2024 certainly promises to be an exciting year!
All the best! Lots of love from Luke and Ash xoxo
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