New Years Eve

New Years Eve was a blast!  We took the train into the city center (Flinders Street, to be exact) and all the streets were closed off (to cars, I mean):

This is Federation Square, where they were having a concert:

We honestly didn't watch much of the concert, as we were mingling with the people around us.  Everyone is so friendly in Australia (at least in my experience).  Sure there are douche bags, just like the next place, but for the most part people are really decent and nice.  Even the customer service people are nice.  Back home, if I call customer service half the time I either can't understand what they're saying or they're super rude.  Here everyone is really fricken friendly (although I still can't understand what they're saying half the time) and it's weird, but so appreciated.  I can't even tell you what a relief it is to find a friendly face when you're frustrated or lost or have a million questions.  

Anyway, we were mingling, enjoying the beautiful weather and the excited atmosphere, waiting for the big show at midnight.  At one point we stepped into a 7-11 to get a snack and check out what I found:

Whoa!!!  That is intense!  Needless to say, I didn't buy any cheese slices that night.

We went to the bar across the street, where they had a live band and tons of people:

Then we made our way back out when it got dark to see the fireworks:

Okay, okay, you've waited long enough!  Firework time!

There was a building in front of us doing fireworks, but also a building behind us, so it was 360 degrees of fireworks!  I've never been surrounded like that before and it was awesome!

Our midnight kiss:

The square was packed:

We went back to the bar we were at before (except now they charged us $15 each!):

and danced the night away.  On the way home we stopped to get a bucket of KFC and passed both Australian McDonald's and Australian Burger King:

Strange, huh?  Not all McDonald's say Macca's on the sign, but that's what people call them here.

Overall, super fun New Years!  

As I've said before, 2015 has been the year that everything has been different.  Aaron and I have had the amazing opportunity to live out a dream we never even knew we had.  Through all the highs and lows, we both feel so blessed to be alive on this Earth that we have had the privilege of exploring.  The theme of 2016 is going to be all about coming home, rebuilding and starting over.  It's going to be an uphill battle, but I know we're up for a brand new adventure!

In other news, here's the rest of our week in pictures:

A few days before New Years, we went downtown to hit up a metal bar:

However, they wouldn't let me in with open-toed shoes.  Boo!  We found another bar that accepted me for what I am (a sandal-wearing hooligan):

Yay!

Food picture time!

Pineapple pepperoni pizza (remember no cheese!):

Meatballs in marinara:

Pork chops with apples and onions:

Veggie chili (but then I changed my mind and added gobs of sausage):

Breakfast potatoes:

Coconut chicken curry (yup, I made it from scratch!):

Burrito night:

Lemon-herb chicken with garlic Alfredo pasta:

And last but not least, we tried the 6-month old Christmas pudding our landlady, Anna, brought us.  It was gross.

It had a rum-raisin-ish taste and the texture was WEIRD, like it had raisins in it, but they weren't raisins.  I don't know what to make of this.  It wasn't terrible I guess, but it wasn't something I'd choose to eat...EVER again.

A really good indie movie we rented the other night:

Some parts were horrifying to watch, but it was extremely realistic and fantastically acted.

My book this week:

 Again, some parts are horrific and tragic to read, but it's so exquisitely written and flows so beautifully, I can barely put it down (even though it's over 700pgs).

Anyway, that's life!  We went to the zoo the other day, so look forward to that post next!