Toronto around the Globe: New South Wales, Australia

It's not my mission to visit all of the Toronto's of the world but it was quite fun to visit Toronto, New South Wales on a recent trip up the east coast. This Toronto is pronounced a bit differently, is much smaller than its Ontario counterpart and has one main bar. Similarly though, it's situated on a lake and...well, that's where the similarities end. Here's a little look at Toronto in Australia.

Looking pretty good here

A Golden Christmas in Australia - Part 2

I had a lot of fun spending Christmas on the other side of the world. To be honest, Christmas in the summer didn't quite feel like Christmas but it was definitely an enjoyable experience. One memorable Christmas experience I had was the chance to see how two different cities light up for the holidays. Here's a look at how Sydney and Melbourne dress up for Christmas.

The Royal Arcade in Melbourne, all dressed up

Sculptures by the Sea

Sculptures by the Sea is an annual Sydney event where, as the name suggests, sculptures are created and displayed along a stretch of the coastline. Over a 100 sculptures are exhibited over a 2 kilometre stretch from Bondi to Tamarama Beach. The spectacular backdrop turns into an outdoor art gallery with contributions from many different parts of the world. Here's a look at some of the sculptures from the 2014 edition.

Snakes and Ladders

A Golden Christmas - Part 1

Most Aussies have never experienced a white Christmas. Whenever I described what it was like, I could tell they hoped to one day experience it for themselves. Some people told me that they dreamed of spending at least one Christmas in the cold, watching snow gently fall while enjoying a cozy indoor setting with a fireplace. After spending all my Christmases in the Northern hemisphere, all I dreamed of was the opposite – blazing sun, soft sand and the ocean nearby.  If you ever get a chance to experience that which is opposite for you, I highly recommend it. Here are my thoughts and observations of my first, let’s say, Golden Christmas.

The cutest Christmas decorations