Coming back to Adelaide feels like coming home, it's definitely the place I feel most comfortable and happy and is one of just a few places we've found here we would consider settling.
 
Matt's mum had sent a birthday parcel for him full of treats, so he enjoyed opening that as it made his birthday last even longer! It was so lovely to now be able to shower properly again and try to get rid of our fat ankles as they had swollen up from being on the train for so long and not being able to lay down . For the first couple of days, we took the opportunity to relax after our long and tiring train journey and to get lots of little jobs done. After speaking to Derek, James and Danny Ward in Perth about potential job opportunities, we needed to get ourselves prepared so we could start work immediately. This involved going to the bank and opening an Australian bank account, applying for our Tax File Numbers and, for Matt, completing an online health and safety course for his construction site white card. So, as you can imagine it all took a little while to complete!
 
Also on the 'to do' list was helping Simon in the garden as he and Chantell had bought a puppy and were fetching him on Sunday! With the help of Adam and his friend Jason, they had pulled up some of the patio slabs in the centre and were about to fill it with top soil and turf the area. It all looked very funny to watch as the 4 of them pottered about the garden with nothing really getting done very quickly as there was lots of joking around and several beer breaks . They also had to put up some lattice work in front of the palms as a fence to stop the puppy eating them as they can be poisonous to dogs! This took longer than the grass as it actually involved them thinking a bit and working out the right lengths and making everything exactly level, but to give them their dues after a lots of head scratching, beer breaks and sawing, it all ended up looking lovely. Finally, the whole outside area needed puppy proofing as there were quite a few little gaps in the fences and at the side of the gates that a puppy could squeeze through! Apart from a few patches of grass that looked rather brown and didn't look like they were going to survive, the end result looked excellent and the boys had all worked really hard!
 
It wasn't all hard work though as, in between the grafting and on the one rainy day that meant they had to down tools, we managed to watch 16 episodes of a new TV show called Arrow and the film Zero Dark Thirty! Not bad hey! 
 
Since we were last here, Simon has been tempted back to playing cricket despite repeatedly saying he hated it and was quitting . He's decided to play for Flinders University despite saying he would never go back after he had quite a big fall out with other senior players in the A grade team when he was captain. He now plays for the C grade as his friend Rusty is the captain and they play 1 day cricket instead of 2 day which he prefers and being an A grade quality player it means he can relax and enjoy playing and the social side more as it is a less serious team. That said, the C team are actually having a really good season and are currently 3rd from top in their league! This wasn't always the case as they were actually having a terrible season and were nearly bottom but Rusty had talked Simon and a few others out of retirement and they were now on a winning run and climbing the league table. They train on a Thursday night but play on a Saturday and Simon was concerned as they were going to be short of players this weekend. He was so desperate he actually suggested Matt should play for them?!?! Having not played cricket since leaving high school (14 years ago!) and having not done any proper exercise for about 7 months, Matt felt it might be a good idea for him to go to the training session, have a run out and refresh the rules and skills! Thankfully for him, by the time the training session came round, more of the usual players had become available so he was off the hook but he still went to the training session as Ads and Metson play as well so they all went and he actually really enjoyed himself, hitting a few big shots much to his surprise! While the boys were at cricket, Chantell and I went to a nearby pet shop to buy supplies for the puppy and then went to meet them after training at The Tonsley pub who sponsor their team! After a burger and a pint (the diet of athletes!) we made our way home and watched a very confusing but enjoyable film called Looper! Matt decided that was possibly the best training session he's ever had as he basically stood round and chatted for and hour and a half whilst people took turns batting then went for beer and burgers after, all with out feeling tired or having any aches or pains! Nothing like his usual basketball sessions!
 
We spent the next morning researching things to see and do in Adelaide and put together a day trip for Sunday then we headed out to have a wander round Glenelg and see the harbour and beach again . Matt had also made up his mind he really wanted to get some time in a gym while we were here as its been so long since we did any proper exercise and we are both feeling rather out of shape! We walked up to the Genesis gym at the very top end of Jetty Road and popped in to see what they could offer. One of the girls, Hayley, gave us a tour and it was amazing! They had 3 rooms for classes: one for yoga & Pilates, one for Aerobic type classes and one full of bikes for Spinning (or RPM as they call it), a huge area with treadmills, bikes, rowers, cross trainers and step machines, another area full of resistance machines, floor space for stretching and kettle bells plus a free weights corner. It was all very modern and even the changing rooms had steam rooms in them! I'm not normally one to get excited by gyms but this was spectacular! It actually made me want to train!!!! We sat down at one of the many 'chill' areas with Hayley and then the bad news came, the price! We were expecting it to a be a bit as it was so lovely and of course because we are in Australia but the fees seemed crazy! They wanted $125 signing up fee, $75 admin fee and then $26 .95 per week! As we were only planning on using the gym for about 2 weeks this would cost us over $250 each!!! No way! After a bit of sweet talking and some serious negotiating from Matt (he basically just told her he wasn't going to pay that!) Hayley said she could offer us a free 10 day pass to start us off, figuring that was better than nothing we said yes to that! These 10 days should start from the day you get the card but knowing we wouldn't come over the weekend and thinking we might go to Kangaroo Island at the start of the week, Hayley agreed to put the end date as the 17th March which actually gave us 17 days rather than 10! Bonus! Well done Matt! That evening, Chantell's parents, Michael & Shirley, came over for dinner and we had a lovely evening catching up with them and getting to know them better!
 
As we reached our first weekend back here, this gave us our first chance to go and watch Simon play cricket. It turns out his team are called the FUCCs as its the Flinders University Cricket Club (of course!) with Matt luckily still off the hook from playing we knew we could relax, enjoy and try to learn the rules a bit more and it was a beautiful sunny day as well . As it is one day cricket, each team gets to bat for 40 overs so this can still take around 5 hours, with this in mind we decided to make sure we saw the batting and then go for a drive whilst they were bowling as Chantell and I were going to struggle to not get bored watching it all. Luckily the FUCCs got to bat first and with Simon the opening batsman he was straight in. Matt had promised him a crate of beer if he scored 100 runs so the pressure was on. He quickly hit over 40 runs with Matt even catching one of his 6s but unfortunately he was then caught out so Matt's money was safe for a week. Even though he got out, they still went on to win very comfortably despite Metson only getting about 14 runs and dropping 2 very easy catches so he was now getting a lot of stick from everyone. Whilst the game was still going Matt, Chantell and I went for a quick look around the Westfield shopping mall. We had a look around some shops, grabbed some food then headed back to the cricket before they finished. After winning convincingly against the team which were top of the league, the team all sang their victory song of " Oh when the FUCCs come marching in!" Luckily there were no small kids around!! While we headed back home, Simon had a quick victory drink and then joined us at home as he and Chantell had an early start in the morning .
 
Chantell & Simon got up at 5am as they had a 6 hour round trip to go and fetch their newest member of the family: Westie! Westie being short for Westin, aptly named after the West Coast Eagles (Simon's favourite Aussie Rules team) making him a West Coast Beagle!! While they were away, Matt and I decided to go sightseeing around Adelaide and the nearby areas. First, we drove up to the top of Mount Lofty and walked the final part up to the peak where there is a monument and an excellent look out over the whole area and the city. Then we made our way to Hahndorf, a quaint little German town with lots of lovely shops and restaurants, where Matt treated himself to a big stein beer glass. From there, Matt made me an offer I couldn't refuse when he said he would drive us to Jacob's Creek winery in the Barossa Valley to go wine tasting!! The winery itself is on a huge estate and you drive past thousands of vines as you approach the main building. Inside, there is a beautiful display detailing the history of Jacob's Creek and outlining how the wines are produced . After learning all about the wines it was time to taste them! We worked our way through the list of whites - I still can't believe that you get given free wine!!!! Matt then went on to make me a second offer I couldn't refuse... To drive me around more wineries so I could have more free wine!!!! Except, amazingly I did refuse! And the reason... Westie!!!! I was so desperate to go back and meet him that I turned down free wine!!!! Haha! The rest of the afternoon and evening were spent playing, cuddling and being nibbled by the most gorgeous little Beagle puppy!! Now we miss Izzy more than ever!!
 
On Monday, Matt was keen to get to the gym so he went off for his first session while I stayed home and had a go on Chantell's exercise bike - I wasn't quite ready to try the gym yet! When he got back and had freshened up, he and Simon went off to get the documents needed for his White Card application certified and signed by a Justice of the Peace at the local library while I entertained Westie. We got those documents sent off then Matt and I walked down to Coles to get some shopping including ingredients for dinner . We had offered to cook for Chantell and Simon so set about making a stir fry and a bit later on, Chantell's friend, Branka, popped over to meet Westie so we had a bit of a catch up with her over dinner.
 
The next couple of days were spent going to the gym, including me attempting a Body Pump class which was great fun at the time but nearly killed me afterwards!, and puppy sitting whenever Simon got called into work. Matt was absolutely loving the feeling of working out again and if I'm honest I was enjoying it too despite feeling very achy and sore!
 
On Thursday, we attempted to go into Adelaide City centre and have a look around the shops so we caught a tram in hopping off at Rundle Mall (the main shopping street). Our shopping spree only lasted a couple of hours before we slowed down dramatically and the aches and pains from the gym really kicked in! I was finding it hard to lift my arms and couldn't straighten them while my legs felt like jelly and my knees kept giving way so I looked crazy! Matt kept teasing me saying I was walking like Robocop! Matt too was sore but somehow he was coping with it quite well! In the end, we gave in and caught the tram back to Glenelg, where a surprise was waiting for us, the parcel my parents had sent had arrived! Yay! After opening it and revealing lots of goodies, including new shorts, a dress, sweets and Easter treats, I collapsed on the sofa with a Creme Egg! We had planned on going to an RPM class that evening but I could barely walk let alone cycle so Chantell went with Matt instead while I kept Westie company!
 
By Friday, after 4 consecutive days of exercise, Matt's aches had kicked in too so we had a chilled day watching TV, writing the blog and sorting our finances! If it wasn't so hot outside, it could almost be classed as a duvet day, especially as the evening was spent watching Django Unchained again as we loved it so much in the cinema .
 
Saturday meant it was time for cricket again! Matt & I went along with Simon as Chantell was going to a wedding reception so couldn't make the game. Again we waited for the toss to find out who was batting first and when it was announced Simon's team were fielding first we headed off to the shopping centre to buy Chantell's birthday present. After an hour or so we made our way back to the cricket, just in time to see the last few overs of the opposition batting and then see Simon open the batting for his team. This was a big game because if they didn't lose they would be in the finals. Unfortunately, it wasn't Simon's day and he was quickly caught out without scoring any runs! Oops!! We stayed to watch the rest of the game which fortunately they won! Despite losing their top 4 batsmen very quickly but the others stepped up and scored all the runs. Then we left Simon there to celebrate and watch the B team's game while we came home. By now, Chantell had left to go to the wedding so we were in charge of dog sitting! We had a nice chilled evening until Matt went to fetch Simon and ended up going AWOL for a couple of hours whilst he joined in the beer drinking down the pub!!!
 
On Sunday morning, Juliane & Jeremy (Simon's sister and brother in law) came round with his nieces Caitlin & Lucy, to drop off a new microwave and brought with them a letter which had been in the post box for a while saying Simon had received a $1000 fine for not renewing his car registration! Oops! As it was a lovely day, Matt, Chantell and I decided to go down to the beach for a bit of sunbathing and then Chantell took us up to Simon's old apartment at Liberty Towers where there is the most amazing view of the seafront! Matt & I fell in love with it instantly and could definitely picture ourselves living somewhere like that one day, although we would need extremely good jobs to afford it as the rent is around $700 per week!! Later in the afternoon, Chantell's nana and poppa came over to give Chantell her birthday present and then, after a busy day, we decided to watch 'Get him to the Greek' before I slipped away to phone Mum as it was Mother's Day back home!
 
Monday was a very exciting day as, not only was it Chantell's birthday, it was Adelaide Cup day! This is Adelaide's biggest horse racing event, everyone actually gets the day off for it!, and I had bought Matt and I tickets as his birthday present! Ryan (Simon's younger brother) came over to look after Westie and Riarna & Mel picked us up at about 11am; it was a tight squeeze as all 4 of us had to fit in the back of the car! The races are held at Morphettvale Racecourse and we had tickets for the Nova tent which meant we had wristbands entitling us to 6 free drinks and a meal! It was very sunny and reached about 38 degrees so everyone was struggling with the heat a bit but it was a brilliant day! We kept putting small bets on and we had a few wins but as usual most of them didn't win . Matt even won a raffle so he won a couple of cocktails! We had lots of fun and it seemed like we all drank quite a lot but we didn't pay for a single drink. We even all had a little dance to the Spice Girls at the end as we all grew more immature from the drinking. On the way home, we came across a giant bicycle along Jetty Road so, of course, Matt had to climb up on it but he was having trouble as his trousers were too tight! He eventually got up but quickly fell off! Unfortunately the cameras just missed him falling off so he got lucky. Once home, we weren't ready to stop the partying so we started playing drinking card games which was hilarious and then for some reason decided it would be a good idea to try some acrobatics!!! All of this left me feeling pretty sick so I had to bail out of going out for drinks in town or going on a food run! Matt, Chantell & Simon decided to go anyway but they weren't long out of the house before they changed their minds about the drinks and just had food before coming back home!
 
On Tuesday, I was very excited as Gareth was flying into Adelaide for a couple of nights before heading West . I was busy making a 'Welcome' sign to hold up in Arrivals when Andrea and Pete (Simon's mum & her friend) popped over to meet Westie and to say hello as we hadn't seen them yet! Gareth's flight landed 12:40pm and Matt and I were there to pick him up, complete with embarrassing sign! Once Gareth and his bags were packed into the car we decided to take him up the scenic drive to the top of Mount Lofty before heading home as we had really enjoyed the view from there when we visited and knew Gareth would too! He took lots of photos and we had a good look in the Visitor Centre before heading back down and towards Glenelg. We made a quick stop at Coles to pick up food for the next few days including ingredients for a Chilli con Carne for dinner which we cooked as soon as we got home as, at 7pm Matt was going to basketball training with the Flinders University team. While Matt was out, Gareth and I caught up on all our adventures over the last couple of months. It felt really strange though as it definitely didn't seem like 2 months since we had seen him onto his flight in Melbourne despite all the amazing things he has seen and done in that time! I'm so happy to have him back!! Matt was very excited about playing basketball again and was hoping to make some connections with a team so he could try and play a few games with them . Obviously he hasn't played for several months but when he got back it turned out he'd done well still except being very unfit. He now sported a huge blister on each of his feet which look very painful but he was being brave.
 
Simon had to go to work on Wednesday morning so we were in charge of puppy sitting which gave us an opportunity to discuss our plans for the next few weeks! Gareth had ruled out his trip to the West as there were cyclone warnings being given for that area and he still hadn't heard back from the company he was planning on travelling to the Red Centre and up to Darwin with so he was beginning to give up on doing those trips much to his disappointment. Matt and I were planning on driving to the Red Centre for a few days and then coming back to Adelaide so suggested he came with us, as although that wouldn't be the entire trip he had been hoping to do, he would at least get to see Ayers Rock and visit the centre of Australia! He was really keen to do that so we started to plan our next road trip as a trio! When Simon got back from work, we decided to take a break from planning and pop to the shopping centre at Marion where we were able to activate our bank account, post Matt's parcel to his dad and buy a couple of big boxes to send our souvenirs home! Matt also had a look for some basketball and running shoes and we had a general look around the shops before heading home to organise the huge pile of souvenirs we had collected and pack them into the boxes ready to send home . Matt & Simon popped to Coles to buy some of the delicious peppered steak they do and when Chantell arrived home we all ate that and watched Die Hard 2. I am being made to watch all the Die Hard films as I've never seen any of them and there is a new one now coming out soon so I had to catch up!!!
 
The next day was a very busy one which seemed to pass in a bit of a blur! Matt shopped around online to find a good deal for the car rental while Gareth and I came up with an itinerary and made sure all our washing was done! We were planning on picking up the car on Friday evening and leaving on Saturday morning but the more we tried to organise what we wanted to see, the more we realised we really needed an extra day and as we have tickets to the Aussie Rules game in Adelaide next Friday we can't add days on that end so we would have to leave earlier, i.e. in the morning!!!!! Matt made a quick call to Europcar to change the booking and we quickly set about packing what we needed to take with us and storing the rest out of the way in our bedroom! At about 4:30pm, Matt and I set off on the tram to the city to collect the car . We were told that the car we wanted wasn't available so we'd been given a free upgrade, this was excellent as we now had a lovely Subaru Outback which was bigger and faster, it was lovely. It only took 30mins to get there but took nearly an hour to get back as we hit rush hour traffic!! When we arrived back at the house, Adam & Jas were there so we were able to say goodbye to them which we didn't think we would be able to do as they head back to the UK on Monday! Matt and Gareth nipped to KFC to pick us up a much needed treat for dinner and then we all walked down to Coles to pick up supplies for our road trip. When we say supplies it was quite a sorry sight as we had no Esky and no cooking facilities so we were fully aware that we were going to be living on crisp and cheese slice sandwiches, super noodles and baked beans, with lots of biscuits to soften the blow. Just as we walked back through the door, Chantell and her friend Branka arrived home, closely followed by Simon! We packed our bags into the car so we would have less to do in the morning and made our way upstairs for an early(ish) night as we had a very early start the next day!!