phd nerd is the new cool

Back from camping at Aratula, was much fun. Walked up a mountain (i totally forget the name of said mountain, but was near the dam out that way), sat around a huge campfire, talked a fair bit, the usual PhD camping stuff. AnkoNick and I went out for lunch yesterday to an absolutely gorgeous restaurant and had the best meal you've ever seen in your life, website here. The place did not let us down- the views and food were amazing. Nick had duck breast with some sort of vanilla sauce that was absolutely amazing, with a side of citrus salad. I had salmon with mushrooms and mushroom basil sauce, and a side of potatoes with mushroom and mustard sauce. These were both amazing dishes, but Nick's especially was just absolutely divine. For dessert Nick had baked pear with some sort of bread type batter, with a prune inside the pear and prune sauce with prune icecream- also amazing. I had lavender almond flan and this was awesome too... actually, I have a picture of this from my phone which I'll add in here... so wonderfully good!

Karen and Lee came along for a day, which was amazing given that Karen gave birth 12 days earlier to Jax... now this is the cutest newborn you've ever seen, and I held him for an hour or so and oh my gosh was so thrilled- he is absolutely tiny! Lee handed Jax over to Nick, who was rather freaked to be holding the newborn given he's never held a baby in his life, haha. Speaking of babies, we slept in the cabin (no electricity or bedroom door). Savannah and Charlotte (kathy's kids) also slept the cabin, and kath and simon were outside in the tent, so each morning we were awoken by Savannah's, 'Mellllllll, Nickkkk, I need to go to the bathroom!'. She's cute, so easily forgiven. Last night by the fire, she turned to us and said, 'you don't have a baby do you? when are you going to get one?'. Actually, I was just thinking of picking up one of those from the store! haha (totally joking, i promise).

So happy to come home and shower this morning; the shower at Aratula consisted of a bucket with a string that you pulled. There was another bigger bucket with a fire nearby that you used to heat up the water to transfer to the bucket above your head in the shower... interesting! ha.

We had the most awesome campfire happening, but alas my camera battery died, so I leave you instead with random snaps over the first day.