Uk Travels

To all my dear friends and family!

I hope you are all well.I'm off overseas again. I have been very busy since iwas last on holidays in Europe. I apologise to allthose I have been unable to see since i returned andwill not be able to see before I depart again.

Also tothose that this is the first time you have heard thenews in this email - don't worry, there are a lot ofyou, it hasn't been selective or on purpose! :)When I returned end of July 2004, I jumped straightback into 4 months of audit busy season working longsilly hours. :) However it was worth it, as after thatbefore Christmas I was offered a secondment to the UK. I accepted and depart Brisbane Monday 31 January 2005for brilliant Birmingham (in the midlands inEngland about 1-2 hour train ride north from London,south of Manchester).

I will be working in the BDO Birmingham office (partof BDO Stoy Hayward) for 12 weeks/3 months doing thesame work (auditing) but obviously for differentclientele and with different people.I will be staying with the secondee (Jo - female) fromBirmingham that was here in our offices July-October2004.

We have a sort of exchange program where we swapstaff for the periods when our respective offices arebusiest - fortunately they are at different times ofthe year.So I will start work there the day after I arriveuntil end of April. I return to Brisbane first week ofMay. I have a few days to rest before i fly home.

Further to that I will work in Brisbane for 2 weeksafter i return and I have already planned a 2 weekholiday in LA (potential side trip to Edmonton tovisit my cousins there).After that i am grounded (as far as internationaltravel is concerned) in Brisbane for another 6 monthswhile I work through another busy season.

I am hopingto hop down to Melbourne on one of the long weekendsin June if i can manage it. :) Otherwise it may not beuntil November before i visit - sorry!After that... who knows?! :)So that's the plan for the next 12 months.I should briefly fill you in on what has happened thelast few months that has assisted in my lack ofcorrespondence.

1. My sister became engaged end of August 2004.Wedding date set soon after that to be 29 January 2005(in 2 days time, 2 days before i leave). :) So thehouse has been abuzz with activity.

2. Hen's night for my sister last Saturday. Twas grandand awesome. She had a great time (so she tells me, soi'm content). NO strippers. But plenty of bellydancers. Apparently she had potential and it's quitegood for pregnant women (she's not pregnant - yet. :))

3. Rhys took up a contract project assignment inSingapore at the beginning of December (04). He isstill there and arrives back Saturday morning. Just intime for the wedding. He will also be heading over toBirmigham with me for 1 month before returning in timefor the start of his last semester of his Masters(IT).I managed to visit him between Christmas and New Years to spend 5 days shopping (as it was monsoon season andraining everyday). Needless to say I bought & spent too much. :) I find Singapore quite agreeable, the peopleare quite courteous and the place is as clean as theirreputation.

4. Salsa dancing. I have spend a considerable amountof time dancing the past few months. It's beenawesome. I was fortunate enough to travel to Sydney inthe first week of January 2005 (4 days after I landedfrom Singapore) for the Sydney Salsa Congress. Firstannual international congress in Australia. It was amazing with the international stars everyone and so friendly!
3 days/nights of dancing. It was absolutelyamazing.So I'm hooked more than ever onto Salsa (I have a DVDof the footage I took of it) and am expecting toattend one of the international congresses in Europewhile I am working there (well on one of theweekends).

Also my trip to LA is to attend the mostfamous and biggest annual Salsa congresses - Westcoast salsa congress. It's been going for a while nowbut I have never been.So I have done a lot of travelling (for me) recentlywith more to come.

While I am working in Birmingham I expect to have most weekends free. I intend to spend a few in London andParis to visit friends there (and of couse Bristol -hello Andy & Nee!). The others I hope to spend inScotland, Ireland, around England (Blackpool, Lakes,Straford Upon Avon, Oxford ... just ideas), Prague,Rome (Salsa congress). Not sure just ideas at themoment.So for my European friends I hope to see you soon. Letme know when you are free (or if there are some datesthat i should not visit).I think that will do for now. I shall email again whenI arrive.