A quick update

I can't believe it's been 3 months since we last wrote. Oops. So much has happened since then: we've been to Samoa & New Zealand; had shingles, the 'flu & various excercise injuries; and in the process have become the fittest we've ever been.

In the very first post I outlined a few things we'd need to do before the Camino, and we've made some great progress on some of those. As a summary:

• Get fit: we're averaging about 5kms every single day, and I'm putting in about an hour on the Wii Fit most mornings (if you ignore the trivial excercises, it's harder than it looks).
• Retire the car: for the most part, we've done this. A tank of petrol lasts a couple of weeks now. We're lucky enough to live within walking range of work & Fitzroy St.
• Learn Spanish: we did a 10 week beginner course with Tres Culturas Spanish, and we're half way through another 10 weeks of intermediate. If anyone is thinking of learning Spanish, I can highly recommend Luis!
• Research/buy the hiking gear: We got our lightweight backpacks and sleeping bags a few months ago, and still need to get the books and everything else. There's still quite a few months to go, but we'll make the boots a high priority.

Incase you're still reading, I'll put a few more stories in.

We were originally planning on doing the Camino when our lease expired in November. We've bumped it back by a few months and will now be heading over some time in April. There's a few reasons for this, but the main ones are that it'll save us from walking in mid-winter, and that we'll be able to save a few more dollars beforehand. Hopefully the Aussie dollar will be stronger by then too.

The first night that I had the Nintendo Wii, I played Wii Boxing for about half an hour. OMG! It was days before I could use my arm again! Hannah played it the following week, and ZOMFG I hope she never hits me! Those long arms can swing from a mile away, and her battle face is terrible to behold. After 10 minutes of frenzied mayhem, it was days before she could use her arm again. :D

We're absolutely loving living right next to Albert Park lake. We walk out the door, cross the road, and we're on the water. We're walking around it (~5kms) almost every day, and over the last month or two we've been watching the swans & ducks looking after their bambinos. They're soooo cute and fluffy, and they grow soooooo quickly.

I've named some of the ducks Red Curry and Twice Cooked. I'm yet to find a good recipe for the swans, but I've started feeding them spiced bread in the hope of having them pre-stuffed when we're ready to eat 'em.

Well, that's enough for now. We're off around the lake. Gotta spice the swans. :-)