holidays

29 August 2012

Our (little) romantic getaway

During our holiday, Rick and I snuck away for one night to the beautiful Acacia House located in Milton, on the South Coast of NSW. We had been there for a weekend in 2006, and had loved it. It was a three and a half hour drive from Sydney, but it was totally worth it. Apart from the fact that I got to sleep (in peace) in the car, and Rick got to, well, drive his favourite toy, we literally had the guesthouse all to ourselves.

We stayed in ‘the cream room,’ which was as beautifully furnished as it was the last time. In fact, they’d added a television to the room, which was simply perfect as we arrived just in time to catch the season finale of Once Upon A Time (I’d been desperately hoping I wouldn’t miss it). The hostess even fed us delicious, rich fruit cake, which went down beautifully with hot mugs of Milo. After the television viewing, we indulged ourselves in long, hot showers and then slipped straight under those crisp linen sheets. My goodness, that bed was as comfortable as I remembered it to be! And the best part? We were under those warm covers for ten hours straight, which is unheard of in the land of little people.

The next morning, we enjoyed a sumptuous breakfast on this beautiful verandah which had the most spectacular views of the Budawang Mountains. The breakfast itself seemed never-ending: first there was cereal, then toast, then yoghurt, then juice, then the hot food – sausages, bacon, eggs, mushrooms and tomatoes – and then the host came out with our tea and coffee. Spoilt much?

It was indescribably wonderful to be able to sit down with Rick to the first meal of the day and be able to take as long as we want, without any interruptions or fights or either of us losing our patience because one of the boys were refusing to eat. It was just us, the crisp air, the sound of the birds in the trees, and the sweeping Australian land before us. How I savoured every moment of that hour, drinking in every second of every minute that passed.

After breakfast, we didn’t have long before we actually had to leave again. But before we did, we roamed the grounds like we did six years ago, revisiting the outdoor wood fire oven, the enormous tree in the front gardens, the horse and the emu (yes, you read right), the cows which had worried me the last time (again, you read right), and last but not least, the lone wooden bench that reminded me of the one in Notting Hill.

Even though it was only fourteen hours between our arrival and departure, our one night and morning at Acacia House left us significantly relaxed and energised. The hospitality of our hosts, the brightness of those stars at night, the beauty of our room, the warmth of our bed, the tranquility of the country, and the fresh rural air all combined to refresh and recharge us. I honestly hope we will be back again before another six years goes by. And maybe one day, we might even bring the boys. Maybe.

Acacia House
203 Evans Lane
Milton NSW 2538
Hosts: Peter and Chris
Phone: 02 4454 5652
Email: info@acaciahouse.com.au

Have you stayed anywhere wonderful recently?

(Linking up with Grace.)

41 Comments

21 September 2011

Rendezvous

Even though it was almost a month ago, I still remember our holiday with much fondness. In fact, I’m quite certain life has been that little bit better since our break.

I just loved lazing around with the boys and Rick. Doing nothing is not usually my forte to say the least, but I thought I did good during our week away in August. I don’t think I’d felt that calm or peaceful all year.

Rendezvous was the place where we stayed. It was absolutely beautiful. If you are ever visiting Sydney and fancy a short stay on the South Coast, I highly recommend this amazing house. Seriously, you will leave feeling like a different person!

Angus loved it so much that he still talks about “the different house” and asks us why we can’t live there. (Though the big screen television may have something to do with that.)

One thing I did manage to achieve during that week was to get to bed before eleven. And in the interest of re-creating that holiday feeling just for one night, I bid you farewell so that I may adjourn to my humble boudoir.

Nighty night.

16 Comments

07 September 2011

Secret garden

Amidst stretches of farmland in the Southern Highlands, we stumbled upon this little oasis during our week away: the Sturt Gardens in Mittagong. I’d found it via Google on my iPhone (what did people do before smartphones?), and the boys couldn’t be more pleased. Not only were they finally able to stretch their legs after a long day’s drive, but they had the most outrageous fun walking up and down the ramp next to the Sturt Cottage. I wish I could be as easily amused! The gardens were beautiful in a wild, rambling way, and I loved how they hid the cottage and the cafe from view from the road. I was very much reminded of The Secret Garden, one of my favourite books from my childhood…

(Linking up with 52 Photos Project today.)

17 Comments

02 September 2011

Inside or out?

Given a choice, Rick will always elect to sit outside at a cafe. And so we did. Every single time we visited the Sea Vista Cafe at Gerringong during our week away, we sat outside.

I wasn’t that happy about it the first time: being a wimp and all, I’m just not that big a fan of strong winds by the sea. Sad, I know, but true.

But by the time the weekend rolled around, I’d toughened up a bit (just a bit) and so when the waitress asked us whether we wanted to sit inside or outside, it was me who replied – of my own free will and accord – that we would sit outside, thank you. And would all the customers inside the cafe mind moving their chairs out of the way because our pram is just that big, yes it is.

It was a good brunch, that one. We munched on delicious seafood tapas, we avoided disturbing the other people outside (and by that I mean, none left upon seeing us and our big fat pram emerge on the patio), Jamie managed to fall asleep in his pram and Pete actually stayed sitting happily in the high chair. Talk about breakthroughs and milestones all round.

That’s Pete hiding behind the menu, playing peekaboo with Rick. Either that or he’s licking the menu. And it wouldn’t be the first time…

Sea Vista Cafe
Phone (02) 4234 0551
Shop 2, 1 Noble Street, Gerringong NSW 2534
Open 7 days, 8.30-5.00pm

27 Comments

20 August 2011

Leaving on a jet plane…

Well, not quite but we’re taking off for a holiday real soon and we’re a little beside ourselves with excitement.

Rick is looking forward to the drive (naturally) and I’m hoping to use the break to catch up on all those thirty minute walks I’ve been meaning to take this last month. The boys, meanwhile, are excited about watching Play School in a different location, as per our last holiday.

I’m also hoping fantasising that I might be able to just sit and do nothing, but let’s not get ahead of ourselves here. I guess we’ll see, eh?

Packing starts tomorrow – bring it on, I say!

15 Comments

08 June 2011

The wild, wild west

Sadly, brain still in holiday mode so once again point form it is:

1) No Target today.

2) Road trip instead.

3) We went out west.

4) Rick waved at the driver of a black Defender and gave him the thumbs up. I attempted to hide my face from view.

5) A car honked at me as I was taking photos near the RAAF (Royal Australian Air Force) base. Don’t be surprised if you see my photo on the national security’s wanted list.

6) James did a massive number 4 poo just ten minutes outside of Kurrajong. Massive. Three layers of clothes removed.

7) Angus had a meltdown in the car at about the same time.

8) This may or may not have pushed us over the edge.

9) Thankfully, a hot meal in a warm cafe at the Kurrajong village centre saved our sanity.

10) The boys got fed too. (Give us some credit.)

11) The cafe looked out onto the Great Dividing Range (I think). Very pretty.

12) We all got home intact.

13) Tomorrow – the zoo.

10 Comments

07 June 2011

Partying hard

We are officially on day 1 of a one week holiday. As such, my brain has also taken leave of me and I find myself unable to write anything remotely interesting.

So, my friends, these pretty pictures will have to do.

From top to bottom: View from outside Target; pretty branch ‘thingy’ at Target; green plant from Target (I’m still not sure whether it was real or fake); more blue sky and pretty clouds from standing outside Target.

p.s. That’s right, on the first day of our holidays, we went to Target. Over here at casa Mason, we know how to party hard.

p.p.s. Don’t let the blue sky deceive you – it was freezing cold today. Something like eleven degrees. According to my mum anyway. (Though she often does exaggerate just to get me to put more clothes on the boys. Apparently five layers is not enough.)

8 Comments

27 December 2010

What I learnt on holiday

So we’re back.

There are many things I could tell you about our summer holiday, but for now, let’s just say that it was educational. I learnt so many things. Things you would think that I should already know.

For example, did you know that a one week holiday only lasts for seven days? I thought that it would be longer than that. I thought it would last for at least ten days. Or maybe even a month. After all, we only waited a whole year for this holiday. But no. One week = seven days (no matter how hard your inner minds wills it to be longer). First lesson learnt. Sigh.

Second lesson learnt: A holiday with multiple kids simply means watching Play School in a different place (see photo above). I can’t tell you how many afternoons (basically, all seven of them) we spent sitting in our apartment, enjoying the beautiful views whilst listening to Karen and Jay sing, “We’re all going on a summer holiday…no more working for a week or two! Fun and laughter on a summer holiday, no more working for me or you… for a week or two.” It was almost like they were on holiday with us.

People whom we didn’t have with us were the grandparents. This was a rather big shock to our system, to say the least. We learnt quickly enough (ie. by the end of the one and a half hour flight) that we were in for a long, long week. Third lesson learnt: Need to smuggle at least one grandparent with us on our annual holidays.

Fourth lesson learnt: Doctors are good, and laziness is bad. Poor Pete developed a temperature on the third day and thereafter struggled to sleep at night. On the fifth day, we considered taking him to see the doctor. But due to plain laziness, we didn’t. This turned out to be a huge parenting fail on our part because upon our return, we were told by our local doctor that Pete in fact had tonsilitis. Had we started treatment earlier, it would’ve saved our little man several days of discomfort. As I said: Doctors are good. Parental laziness is bad.

I also learnt that I don’t mind vacuuming whilst on holiday. Enough said.

Sixth lesson learnt: If you are uncoordinated and you go into the pool, don’t expect your pedicure to remain intact. You will inevitably scrape your perfectly painted nails along the bottom of the pool, and you will spend the next seven days staring at your toes lamenting how uncoordinated you are and wishing that your own mother had taken you to Gymbaroo when you were little. That’s right, I am a flawed human being who tends to blame my poor mum for all things big and trivial.

Lastly, if you can’t get your two year old to eat a healthy breakfast, then just order them pancakes with maple syrup. At least they’re eating. Something. You just have to hope that no-one catches you on camera.

1 Comment

14 July 2010

Our Four Seasons adventure

When I was a little girl, I used to read Jackie Collins novels. I still remember the day I innocently picked up my first copy for fifty cents from a book stall at our annual high school charity day. So really, when you think about it, it’s the school’s fault that I caught the naughty Collins bug.

That first book was Lady Boss, and Lucky Santangelo became my hero. She was dark-haired, beautiful and smart, and she had guts and wit. But more importantly, she built hotels. Tall, glitzy five-star hotels.

So from the tender age of eleven or twelve, it became my dream and goal in life to build a hotel. As I told my friends back then, I wanted to walk into my hotel every morning, wave curtly at the people behind reception and have everyone bow and call me “Ms Chan” as I headed to my private elevator which would take me up to my penthouse office. Lucky wouldn’t have had it any other way.

All this to say that we checked into Four Seasons Sydney last Friday evening, checked out on Sunday at midday, and in between enjoyed one and a half days of pure relaxation, pampering and fun.

Seriously, what a tasteful hotel: luxurious, classic decor and not at all gaudy or pretentious. And the brilliant attention to detail – from the shower tap that allowed me to control the temperature (I mean, what is that?), to the dark mahogany box filled with not cigars but crisp, white stationery, to the awesome shoe drawers that I’d never seen anywhere else, to the classy green bag our Saturday morning paper was delivered in, to the soft, hushed tones with which all their spa ‘treatment specialists’ spoke. In fact, so hynoptised and relaxed was I during my facial, that I kept falling asleep, only to be woken up each time by my own abrupt snoring. It is a testament to the staff’s professionalism that my ‘specialist’ kept a completely straight face, even as she asked me afterwards, “So how did that feel?”

And just look at this amazing table setting – even though all we ordered were a small bowl of soup, a pudding and a large bowl of white rice (come on, we had to cut costs somewhere).

I like to think that if I had built my fake, fantasy hotel, the Lucky Santangelo in me would’ve thought of all these little touches.

My low point of the weekend came when I shoved my perfectly manicured hands under the warm, fluffy towel during the facial, only to discover afterwards that my nails hadn’t actually dried properly and so my nails ended up with a patterned finish. You should’ve seen the tears I shed over my own stupidity.

And to @FSSydney who saw my comment about the late room service breakfast on Twitter, we weren’t at all bothered by it. The 30th floor view of the Sydney Opera House more than made up for it.

(Yes, we fell for the room upgrade at reception. It’s like when they ask you if you want fries and a coke with your Big Mac. How on earth are you meant to say ‘no’?).

3 Comments

05 July 2010

Scary sleep and the whole holiday thing

My mind is so foggy from exhaustion at the moment that I can barely see the computer screen in front of me.

I’m meant to be paying bills and projecting our riveting household cash flow for the next month, but all I can do is sit here and shiver in this ridiculous cold and try not to drool on my desk.

The good news is that we are officially on day one of our holiday.

The bad news is that Rick and I are both so tired that we can hardly hold a coherent conversation with each other, much less do anything remotely interesting or romantic. (Yes, romantic. Married people can still be romantic, right? Right, Rick? Right!?).

We would love to go away with the boys but two things hold us back:

1) We desperately need to sleep for one whole night without infantile interruption.

2) We just don’t have the energy to pack up cots, high chairs, rockers, strollers, bath tubs, twenty kilos of nappies, ten thousand layers of clothes, etc. just so we can do the same things we do at home but in a different geographical location for a few days.

[click to continue…]

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