Racked Off

We Wish You an Aussie Christmas

Alright folks, let us catch you up on our lives. What an amazing year this has been. It is Christmas time and I am sitting outside in a singlet and shorts, sipping homemade sangria. It DOES NOT feel like Christmas! The days are warm and long. The nights are bright and vibrant. The kids are all out of school and no one is at work. Matt and I were both forced to take holiday for two weeks. I know. Why can’t it be like this everywhere? I wish I had this time off to be with friends and family, but as you know, we are a world away. So what do you do when you are so far away from home? You do the next best thing. Hang out with the Brits.
Our Liverpool-born roommates (also called Scouses) have been here for the holidays as well, so we collectively decided to spend Christmas with each other. Friends, meet Adam and Claire.

They are the cutest couple in the world and we get along great with them. We feel very lucky that we found such great roommates. A typical evening with Claire and Adam would be us watching “Friends”, drinking a few, and telling stories of where we are from. We love to imitate their accent and their cute sayings such as “Sasha, we are getting a new hoo-va! (vacuum)” or “Me and me lads get pissed every Christmas Eve”. Speaking of Christmas Eve, I do believe we did indeed lad it up and had a very merry Christmas Eve out with them. After Matt and I had a delicious Korean Dinner, we met up with the Scouses including Adam’s parents at a pub downtown. Two drinks down, we walked to another pub that had a band and plenty of libations to go with it. We danced, we laughed, we embraced. It was such a fun night. Not so much fun the next morning/day but was so incredibly worth it. Thank you Adam and Claire for showing us the ropes on Christmas Eve. It was a blast!
After some recovery from the night before, we slowly began to prepare for our Christmas dinner. Claire made her very first Christmas ham and parmesan chive potatoes while I made the roasted veg, choco chip cookies, and salad. I also made Samantha’s famous sangria recipe which was a big hit! It was a nice easy Christmas day and we were very happy to spend it with such great people. We also got to facetime with the family which of course was awesome.
In other holiday news, my sister Dani and her fiancé Justin came out to visit us over Thanksgiving! We had such a great time being silly with them and showing them around. We took a trip down the Great Ocean Road together where we saw wild koalas, kangaroos, cockatoos and more. It was so much fun having visitors…hint hint… who else wants to visit?
Well that’s all I got for you for now. Enjoy the pics and Samantha’s famous sangria recipe! Love you all XX
Sam’s Sangria
Ingredients:
2 bottles cheap red or white wine
1 cup brandy
1 cup triple sec
¼ to ½ cup sugar
1 cinnamon stick
Sprite
Any fresh fruit you like (I like apples, oranges, plums, grapes, etc)

Directions:
Dissolve sugar in brandy and triple sec
Add wine and cinnamon stick
Let sit for up to a day
Add fresh fruit and hour before serving
Pour sangria into glass ¾ full and top with sprite
Add some fruit garnish on top and enjoy!

Holy Thunder

This lightning you see is from last light in Melbourne. I now understand why the thunder was so violent in waking us up at 2am. I have never heard such loud thunder before. I was like a little kid hiding under the blankets because the noise was so startling. It sounded like Zues was going at it with a bowling ball. Sure I’m used to the thunder during monsoon season in Tucson, but this, was like, whoa intense. Apparently the lightning strike caused a power surge along the railway systems, started a house on fire, and disrupted many flights. Matt was 45 minutes late to work this morning! The weather now, however, seems to be fine, which brings me to my next point.

The weather here is radical. One morning it will be sunny and warm, hot even. Then before you know it, you find yourself freezing your butt off cursing yourself for not remembering to bring your jumper (that’s Aussie talk for sweater). Then it will rain, and again you’ll be cursing yourself for forgetting your umbrella. Only to find a few hours later, you are back in your sun dress and sandals, sipping a frosty beverage by the river. This damn city has a serious case of ADD. Maybe that’s why I like it so much?

On to other topics, Matt and I have moved to Richmond, a suburb east of the city. We live with another couple, Adam and Claire who are from the UK. They are super nice, and we get along with them really well. We are so happy to have found them. They are great!

So what else is happening? Well, I’m teaching A LOT these days which is great. What is NOT great is the fact that my body is starting to not tolerate what It used to. Ladies and Gentleman, the change is happening. I am now paying for the repercussions of my dancing days. My neck hurts, my heel hurts, my back hurts. I am not as agile as I once was, able to bounce to and fro across the room. I now opt for tennis shoes when going to the grocery store because flip flops just don’t offer the right support. Shouldn’t they ( and when I say “they” I mean some smart, doctor, scientist people) have invented something by now to keep our bodies from feeling such effects? It was always a myth to me when people would say “oh, just you wait!” when talking about getting older and feeling physical pain. And this is only the beginning! Take care of your bodies people!!

Well, it is time to go, but I am so happy you stopped by for the quick read! We love and miss you guys very much. Have a happy Sunday! It’s Monday here in case you care:)
Love,
Sasha and Matt

Aaaaand we live in a tent

Hello friends and family! Don’t worry, we only live in said tent for another week. We ended up booking a room through air bnb and I somehow failed to notice the “garden gazebo” is what I booked. It is actually really adorable on the inside with all the amenities that two might need. A tv, DVD player, heater, lights, double bed,robes, and seating. Plus there are really adorable cats that live here

We are in this place temporarily until our room opens up at an apartment in Richmond on October 16th. We will be living with another couple from Liverpool who are very nice and get along great with us. We originally wanted to get our own place but it really it too much of a hassle to come up with bond, sign a lease, bills, etc since our visa is up in Feb. We are very excited to have a “home” where we don’t have to pack up and go for quite some time. Plus, our future roomies LOVE to drink beer. Me thinks we will be just fine.

Things are really starting to pick up around here as far as work is concerned. Matt has his full time job out in Mitcham and I am getting ready to start teaching at three brand new fitness establishments that are all somehow managing to open at the same time. I am so excited to get back into the swing of things and start teaching again. Somehow I managed to agree to start teaching not one, not two, not three, but like 6 barre classes! My ARCH nemesis (no pun intended! Ha ha). Barre is of course the “it thing” out here at the moment and I coming from the States and having the ballet background keeps me in demand. For those that know me, you know my ATTITUDE (again, no pun intended! I’m cracking myself up over here!) towards barre, and I’m sure you can taste my excitement. BUT for a whopping $60 bucks a pop, I’m sure you could get me to teach just about anything. Maybe even wallyball ;-)

I will also be teaching a variety of other classes including Zumba, hiit, stretch/foam roller, and more! I’m so excited!

In other great news, it was mine at Matt’s third wedding anniversary last week. So far, we have taken turns each year on planning what we do. Our first anniversary, Matt planned a weekend to the Ritz Carlton. The second year, I brought him to Hacienda Del Sol for a romantic dinner. And this year, Matt arranged for us to ride the Colonial tram car which takes you all around Melbourne while you wine and dine. It was amazing. We had a great time! And trust me when I say, there was A LOT of wine!

And finally, speaking of great news and wine, my sister Dani is coming to visit next month! I can’t believe she will be here with me on the other side of the planet. I am beyond words. Now if I can just get the rest of my family to come out..hint hint, wink wink

Alright peeps, time to go do some jobs (errands). Love you guys! Xx

City Living

We are officially Melbournites! Well..sort of. I figure we have scored some points considering we use public transport, live in an apartment and dress like hipsters. (Pictures below)

We arrived in this beautiful city about two weeks ago after spending a lovely six months in Byron Bay, NSW. There was a fatal shark attack at our favorite beach when we decided ‘Alright. We’ve had enough’. We had actually made up our minds well before that, but the tragedy simply helped confirm our choice.

So what is Melbourne like? Let’s just say, it’s the opposite of Byron Bay. I actually have to get dressed in the morning to go get my morning cuppa (that means coffee) and I have to call and email people back in a timely manner. Since we have been here, I have slapped on high heels AND curled my hair. Two things I have not done since being in Australia. So it’s that kind of city. The kind of city that inspires your inner fashionista. I even got Matt wearing skinnyish pants and high tops. And he looks damn good too.

Besides fashion, the food here is UH-MAZE-ING. Every single restaurant simply can do no wrong, and there are A LOT of places to eat around here. Our favorite place to date is a little cafe called Neighbors. On the outside it looks grungy as all hell, but on the inside and particularly the outside courtyard, there are tons of happy Melbournites with their pooches. Anywhere where Matt and I can gawk at other peoples dogs will make us happy. Even if it creeps people out. The coffee of course is beautiful, and the whiskey cocktails are made with soul. They better be for $18 bucks a pop! It’s alright, everything here food and alcohol wise is double. We’re used to it.

Melbourne is artsy. And I love it! We went and saw an improv show last weekend that was part of The Melbourne Fringe Festival. The show was in an intimate space, and we were right up front. Four guys did an hour long improv set and it was fantastic! There is another show that I want to go see called 'Flying Bach’ where hip-hop meets ballet. Yes please.

Speaking of hip-hop, yours truly went to an intermediate hip-hop class last week. I’m talking America’s Next Best Dance Crew style. I popped. I locked. I dropped. I snaked. And then I cried. Actually, no, I did not, but i’m pretty sure my body did later that evening. I didn’t care. It was so worth it. I have also taken some belly dance and Zumba classes which have also been great.

Work. There is lots of work here. I have three jobs lined up teaching at new fitness studios. They all open next month, so I have a little time to get organized. Matt on the other hand, is working full time for Smash Enterprises out in Mitcham about an hour train ride away. He has a 6 month contract which is great. And we get lots of Tupperware as a bonus. (Smash designs Tupperware sold in Target).

Well, that’s most of the news for now. We move into a new place on the 16th of October sharing an apartment with a couple from Liverpool. They both seem very nice, and we couldn’t be happier. We will definitely keep you updated! Have a wonderful night and weekend! Ciao xoxo