Deborah
We have all heard of the land “Down Under” right? They actually made a song about it, remember? Can you guess the artist? Men at Work, I totally forgot about this band. I can’t believe I had to look that up, especially since it was released the year after I graduated high school. Listen here for this snappy tune https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=onhN-VdH7ok. Ah.. such nostalgia..
Down Under more favorably known by the locals as “Australia” has always been on my bucket list. I had always heard how beautiful the beaches were and the kangaroos… well, come on they are just adorable and we Americans don’t have any. And of course I could just listen to them talk all day and all night. Remember Jax from General Hospital? Oh what a hot Aussie!! I think that is when my Australia fascination took hold.
Do you happen to know how it got the nickname “Down Under”? I obviously was not paying much attention in history class. Evidently it’s due to its location south of the equator. Early explorers thought the continent to be at the bottom of the world. Well I guess they were slowly proving their theory that the world was flat or not… lol Before they called it “The Land Down Under” earlier explorers referred to it as Terra Australia Incognito which means “Unknown South Land”. Australians themselves rarely refer to their country as Down Under. Maybe a more popular reference is The Australian Outback.
So, my lovely niece made my bucket list item come to fruition. She and her family moved their when she was a little “sheila”, an Aussie term for “girl”. The little “sheila” is now a full grown “stunner”! (I bet you can figure out what the American translation on that one is) She tied the knot on February 17, 2024. THE REASON I WENT TO AUSTRALIA!
Our stunning Carolyn with dual citizenship has returned to the states quite frequently over the years. I have a new appreciation for the duration of this trip. Honestly, I never imagined I could be so tired from sitting on a plane. I have flown quite a lot in my lifetime but never for more than a total of six hours. To get to Australia it seemed like it took an eternity. Maybe it was just because my entire family accompanied me, three children, significant others, one toddler, and one grandmother. TEN people. Think about that one…. quite the group, eh?
To make the trip a little more palatable we took a short stop in Hawaii on the way out. I had previously been to Hawaii but not the island of O’ahu. It was only for four days and two of those were travel days. But the beaches, golf course, luau and of course the Memorial were worth the stop even if it would have been nice to stay longer.
Our focus and goal was to attend the wedding of our beloved Carolyn and her incredibly warm fiance. They previously were kind enough to travel to the States in September for my daughter Alaina’s wedding. It was then, that we got to meet the dashing Scott Moran. Tall, modest, and handsome; he appeared to pass the test. I’m a hard sell so you know he was a keeper if I approve. I loved hosting them and looked forward to sharing in their day as soon as Scott popped the question. I know I am presumptuous but I was going regardless of the invitation! Of course Carolyn honored us all with invitations.
Our accommodations in Australia could not have been more perfect. An incredible home with the view of the ocean and a five minute walk to the beach. Everyone seemed quite content except for those of us who had to drive, which was on the wrong side of the road! Can someone please explain why this differs? Curious minds would like to know. Guess I’ll have to do some research on that one! I definitely did not sign up for that responsibility. Thank you, Chris and Graham.
We didn’t have a lot of time to explore too many places unfortunately. I would say for anyone putting this gorgeous location on their bucket list give it at least seven days not including travel time. Remember you lose a day due to time change. And if you have never experienced jet lag, let me tell you there is no way to even explain it. You have to experience it first hand. But as I said, our main focus was “the wedding” so anything we saw was a bonus.
My birthday happened to fall the day before the wedding and I can think of no better way to celebrate it but in Australia. I had one of the most memorable birthdays I will ever have. Carolyn was so thoughtful and had a cake for me during her Greeting Cocktail party. And when we returned to the house my wonderful family had gotten me another cake and we celebrated with party hats and sparklers. We ended the evening with the girls kicking the boys butts playing our family favorite “salad bowl”. What a special birthday.❤
My granddaughter, little Allie, was given the honor of being a flower girl along with two of Carolyn’s other cousins. This trio could not have been any cuter. The ages of Alice and Maya -under two made it a bit of a challenge. But do we really expect anything other than cuteness from them? Juliana, the old lady of the trio, at a whopping seven was in total control and looked like a pro. We even went so far as to have them dressed for the Greetings Cocktail Party to match the mother of the bride… The four of them rocked their coordinating dresses. Cuteness overload!
The church was magnificent. Yes, they did get married in a church! I was so proud of both of them for not being intimidated or ashamed of their commitment to GOD. Faith provides the foundation for a successful marriage and a family life. Oh… and did I mention they got married in the same church as Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban….lol. I was so honored to be part of their ceremony as they asked me to do a reading during the mass. My only concern was falling off of the step stool in my heels, a necessity so I could reach the mic…Being vertically challenged adds so much stress in many situations ya know. Or ya don’t!!! Wish I didn’t!
The reception was a beautiful venue called Manly Pavilion that overlooked the water. There was not a detail that was overlooked. Perfection on all counts. The bridal party introductions were quite entertaining. Every couple came out with there own choreographed dance. I have to say those Aussie’s put us Americans to shame in this arena. But considering us ten Americans were the minority of the group they made us feel most welcome, embracing our chanting “USA, USA” when we were identified during the speeches. Americans can be such show offs too.
Speaking of speeches. I don’t know if it is an Aussie tradition but the groom gave one. It should be something us Americans adopt. Never in my life have I heard such a heart felt speech. It only made me love Scott more.. Patti, the mother of the bride, could not have asked for a better son-in-law. My tears were as flowing as my heart was full listening to this wonderful man profess his love for our lovely Carolyn and her family. And I thought my son-in-laws were great…..bar was just raised Christopher and Evan….
To top that off their first dance was “I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing” by Aerosmith from my favorite all time movie Armageddon. It was so perfect.. the moment so magical… More tears.. not sure how I got a recording of the entire dance as I am the worst at phone technology… but I did manage.. see a short clip below.. It was too beautiful not to include.
What can I say, LOVE brought me to Australia. And I LOVE DOWN UNDER not only because of its beauty but because of my loved ones that live there. The trip was quite too short but well worth it. Next time I’ll know better what to expect travel wise. Next time it will be for a longer period of time. And Next time I’m hoping it will be to meet a new Moran.
Natalie
I have had very limited travel experience before this trip. In fact, this was only my second trip on an airplane. A three hour plane ride to Florida was pretty measly preparation for the collective near 40 hours of travel it would take to get half way around the world and back. Couldn’t be happier to report, all five flights of this trip went pretty much as smooth as possible. No lost luggage, no delays, nothing taken by TSA (at least not for me @Deb 😉). My anxieties concerning flying and airports are nearly squashed.
The ten day excursion started with a quick detour to Oahu.. Describing a visit to Hawaii as a “detour”: wild concept. It was warm, beautiful, vibrant… all of the things New England is not in February. I constantly thought to myself “this just exists, like this, all the time??”. To my delight it does.
We successfully packed as much Hawaii as possible into two full days. We visited the Pearl Harbor memorial, attended a luau, and concluded the last full day with pizza on the beach (Hawaiian pizza of course). My favorite moment of all ten days was probably swimming in the ocean at dusk after that picnic. Beauty is a notoriously subjective concept. But I think the Hawaiian sunrises and sunsets lay the groundwork that some things are just objectively beautiful and cannot be argued.
It was then time to make it to the other side of the world. Australia greeted us with comparable sunrises and even warmer weather. There were of course some differences in things like restaurant culture and a generally more pleasant disposition from the locals (however that difference is abundantly clearer in the Northern States versus other parts of the USA). I hypothesize the presence of sunshine just does that to people. Overall, I was surprised by how similar some parts felt to America.
Our time was spent in the Sydney Metropolitan Area so the kangaroos and koalas of the Outback will have to be saved for another trip and another post. I was excited to see the Opera House and Sydney Harbour Bridge from our ferry ride and trek through the city. I can never quite place the feeling of seeing something in person for the first time that you’ve seen 100 times in pictures. Something so well-known/monumental just in front of you. It makes me think of all the people, film sets, etc. that site has welcomed. Sydney and all of its suburbs appeared just generally more clean and more filled with greenery than most of our urban areas at home.
We did still have a fair share of Australian critters. A few different kinds of parrots, some other wonky birds, Chris got to see a pod of dolphins mid surf, and of course… the infamous Australian spiders… no exaggerations there. Thankfully those stayed outside.
The culmination of our trip of course took place on Saturday when our beautiful and gracious host and hostess, Scott and Carolyn, became Mr. & Mrs. Moran. The ceremony and reception were both a lovely reflection of the lovely bride and groom. I have only been to a few weddings as an adult and the amount of charm, enjoyment, and love that overflowed this day set the bar quite high.
The final full day in Australia was spent recovering, attempting to surf (emphasis on ATTEMPT), and sharing a final meal together down under. A relaxing conclusion to the whirl wind that was the past few days and that would be the next 24 hours of travel.
I don’t know if any amount of time could ever be enough to explore and enjoy Hawaii or Australia fully. I am so grateful for all that I was able to experience on this trip and all of the wonderful memories to be shared with people I love.
Outro
We hope our recap of our ten day adventure made you feel like you were along with us. To Hawaiians or Aussies who this blog has hopefully reached: thank you for having us; it was an unforgettable experience! Find some sunshine wherever you may be!
