Hotel Review: VIBE North Sydney
The silly season is killing me. The drinking, the lack of sleep and the failure to eat anything larger than a 50c piece at parties means that I am turning from a normal human into a canape-eating zombie. The bags under my eyes need porters. It was an immense relief when I checked into VIBE [...]
Life + Stuff: End game
What will you regret on your death bed? I recently read this very moving post written by palliative care worker Bronnie Ware. Here’s what she found were the common regrets among her dying patients: 1. They wished they’d been true to themselves, instead of living their lives to please other people. 2. They wished that they hadn’t [...]
Life + Stuff: Competition
I am the least competitive person on earth. I have been known to walk off a netball court because I was bored. Admittedly I was five at the time but it accurately illustrates how much I care about winning (ie. I don’t). Life is not a race. I am not your opposition. Competition leads to some [...]
Life + Stuff: Body
I had a Hawaiian Ka Huna and lomi lomi massage today and it changed me. Sometimes it’s easy to forget how much our bodies affect our mood. It’s moronically obvious but I have been feeling dreadful all week. My neck and back have been killing me, I’m tired and I have a mysterious pain in my chest. [...]
Port Douglas + Mossman Gorge, Qld
Dear Tourism Queensland, You appear to lack actual queens so I am putting my hand up. Why me? I’ll tell you. I visited recently and it turns out I’m perfectly suited to the job. I love eating, drinking and lazing around a pool. I also like resorts, rainforests, palm-fringed beaches and cheap fresh produce. When I visited [...]
Life + stuff: Holiday time
No matter how much sleep I get, I am tired. No matter how much work I get done, I still seem to have an avalanche of emails, copywriting jobs and phone calls to make. My bank balance is alarming, my credit card is bleeding and I would happily stay in my pyjamas all day long. [...]
Medina Grand, Adelaide
Secret tunnels, hidden courtyards and private chambers give the Medina Grand Treasury a very appealing Downton Abbey-ishness. It’s easy to succumb to flights of fancy involving Lords, wicked corsetry and French silk frocks … but I digress. This elegant sandstone hotel is situated in the cultural heartland of downtown Radelaide for maximum convenience. Rundle Mall is [...]
Views with a room: Norfolk Island Accommodation Review
On my recent visit to Norfolk, I was lucky enough to get a behind-the-scenes peek at the accommodation options. The major highlight of nearly every place was the view from the rooms; verdant hills, pines and glistening blue water. The main trend on the island is toward self-catering options so the rooms come complete with [...]
Life and stuff: How to save time
I never thought mopping would inspire me to do anything but here I am, writing a story about a mop – or to be specific – the best mop in the world. I have been slopping away at my polished board floors for years with a straggly-ass thing that eventually snapped in half because the handle rusted [...]
Norfolk Island blues
Norfolk Island is the little known tax-haven where I spent the weekend with a bunch of travel agents. I expected it to be pretty. What I didn’t expect was that it would be fascinating. There is so much to know about this 8km x 5km island due east of Ballina on the NSW North Coast. [...]
