Some Christmas shots

The view from Manning Point cafe

Umina Beach, Lion Island, Barrenjoey Lighthouse in the distance

Boxing Day, looking at the dolphins

Christmas morning at the beach

I can't seem to get the captions quite lined up with the photos today, so hope you can work out which is which! They are almost all from around here except the one with the headlands in the photo, which was taken just north of Sydney. I've been really enjoying being back in New South Wales again. The water is lovely and cool and refreshing and the natives are just as friendly as they are everywhere else in the country. It just isn't quite as cool as Victoria (the southern state) or as warm & humid as Queensland (where the giant stick insect was found!)

Still no fairy sightings, although there have been emus, snakes, and dolphins in the last week. I didn't manage to get photos of any of those wonderful creatures, and haven't spotted a mermaid yet. There are lots of wonderful beach scenes, like the ones above on Christmas and Boxing Day. It's so great to have a nice relaxing Christmas in warm weather at the beach! Two years of snowy Canada in a row is enough for this refugee from the north.

I've started some more paintings in the last week or so and am looking forward to doing some more, leading into my week-long course in January. And right now, I'm charged with making a communal dinner in the beautiful house I'm staying at, owned by cousins and their friends, so I'd better get to the kitchen.