The Great Land of Oz

It only seems fair that my next post lists what I am looking forward to once I arrive in Australia. Lately I have been laying in bed at night thinking of things I will be able to do, see, places our family can visit, tastes I will be able to experience again. Over the years I have forced myself to put these pleasures out of my mind since they were always out of my reach - but soon I will be able to indulge in them once again.

Things I look forward to:

• My family - being able to spend holidays and weekends surrounded by family and friends. Watching Oscar play with his little cousins and having a support network when we need it - this is our main reason for leaving Canada. 
• Sydney Botanical Gardens - spending sunny days there with a Sydney Morning Herald and a picnic while staring at the glistening harbour, gawking at the 1000's of bats and admiring the hundreds of tropical, indigenous and introduced plant species in the most serene and beautifully orchestrated setting.
• Passionfruit - a hard come by and expensive exotic fruit in Canada, often dry and bitter by the time it makes it's journey from (most likely) the Caribbean or Central America. I can't wait to drizzle it over my my fruit salads and flavour my frosting and desserts with it's sweet tang and trademark seeds.
• (Of course) The beach. Nothing beats the South Coast's clear turquoise waters and white powdery sand. I can't wait to be able to actually swim comfortably at the beach and not be freezing even on the hottest day of summer (no offense Atlantic Ocean - but you are one chilly mother). Those free gas outdoors barbeques are a bonus too - take note Canada!
• Australian meat - nothing like an Aussie Snag or a lamb roast. It will be so nice to go to an actual butcher again and not the supermarket for my meat. Hooray that chicken breast is so much cheaper in Australia too - a possible $5.00AUS a kilo instead of $20.00CAN.
• Taronga Zoo - so excited to take my hubby and son there!
• Road Trips - we are a family of roadies. Our favourite thing to do on weekends is to drive around with the wind in our face, coffee in hand, letting the road lead the way. We love the great conversations that evolve in the confines of the car and on many occasions we have found ourselves hours away from home when we only intended on getting a coffee down the street. We love exploring old and new places and Australia will bring us fresh road to travel on and new towns to discover in all directions.
• Higher wages - enough said.
• Not having to pay for oil and heating costs. It is very expensive to live in the northern hemisphere. Oil is not cheap and it costs $1000's per year to heat our furnace which supplies warm air and hot water year round. 

This list could go on and on, which is a good and comforting thing. I could include a whole grocery list of items I have missed like shapes, custard, devon and cherry ripes but these are just the cravings of an expat.

All in all there is much to look forward to, a smorgasbord of new activities and adventures lies ahead for us. For some moving or even visiting Australia is a dream come true, our family will be lucky enough to call both Canada and Australia home.