Mozzeenet

Can’t believe I wrote the last post on May 1. Time flies doesn’t it - it feels like one or two days ago.

Booked a flight through QANTAS on the weekend and was pleasantly surprised to see that they are now offering payment by BPAY online! If you pay by credit card, it costs $4.40 per person even if it’s on the same credit card which is outrageous. Anyway at least there’s another option now. I transferred the money by BPAY on Saturday then they sent me the itinerary on Tuesday. Yay!

Andrew and I had a fantastic overnight trip to Bendigo on Sat night - we stayed in a gorgeous cottage on Balgownie estate winery. They only have 2 rooms of accommo there and it overlooks the vineyards. We got there in the dark but looked out on the scenery the next day.

We went into Bendigo for an absolutely divine meal that night. I had chicken (no surprises there) with Moroccan slaw, sweet potato rosti and mango chutney. We also had a pear and caramelised walnut salad and I had a choc mousse for dessert. Andrew had skippy with some time of gremoulade.

Sunday we went to a Chinese museum and an old gold mine. We bought the tickets and the attendant said a tour was just starting so he rushed us over but then I realised that they were taking us 200 feet down a mine shaft. No way!!! I said ‘I’m not doing that’ and sent Andrew down without me. Hee hee! They refunded my money and I got to look around the ground level exhibitions which was interesting enough.

We also took a drive up Mt Macedon and got a great view of Melbourne. There’s a ginormous cross up there to commemorate the war - feels a bit weird but the surrounds are beautiful and the autumn leaves on the way up through the town were gorgeous.

One week this Saturday before Andrew goes to India for work training for 4 weeks. Can’t believe he’s going when I only went in December. He’ll be in Pune where Amit used to live. It’s a couple of hours from Mumbai. We looked at the weather there today and for May and June it averages max 38-39 degrees celcius and min 22 degrees. Hee hee! He’s now looking into medications for heat rash and heat exhaustion. I’ll miss him awfully while he’s away but know that it’s a wonderful opportunity and will be a great experience plus I want to compare notes on perspectives on India.

Just wanted to put a plug in for Heart Kids Victoria. Close friends of our have just lost their 2 week old baby to a heart condition called Hypoplastic left heart syndrome. The Better Health Channel explains what this is:

Hypoplastic left heart syndrome
The incidence of hypoplastic left heart syndrome in Victoria is around one in every 4,000 births. In this condition, the entire left side of the heart, including valves and blood vessels, is underdeveloped. Without prompt treatment, the baby is likely to die within days or weeks of birth. Symptoms include a grey complexion and severe breathing difficulties.

Better Health Channel - Birth defects - heart abnormalities

It’s an absolute tragedy but the positive aspect is the wonderful support Heart Kids Victoria have given to our friends - putting them in contact with families who have gone through the same thing, visiting and calling them regularly and providing them with ongoing support and information.

They also told us that the doctors and nurses at the Royal Children’s Hospital in Melbourne were absolutely wonderful and this was all through the public health system. We’re very lucky.