The Outback Expat

  • HOME
  • About Me
  • How to Follow Me

Easter 2019

May 5, 2019 by Vicky Leave a Comment

For Easter this year the Aussie and I spent a few days in a town called Canungra which is located in the beautiful Lamington National Park. The Aussie had visited Lamington at the end of 2018 and had gone on some hikes and we planned to do the same.

The forecast before we left was optimistically for rain. This of course was an understatement as it poured down pretty much on and off from just after we left Brisbane until well after we got back!

We stayed in an AirBnB homestay which means you have a room in a house owned by the host. We didn’t know what to expect as we have booked a few AirBnB trips but always an apartment so we had it to ourselves. We arrived and were greeted by the host who was absolutely lovely and quite the character. He had come from a law enforcement background so once we got chatting we had lots of in common stories! He did though wisely say that he didn’t think we would be going for a walk and he was right about that.

We travelled down mid morning on Good Friday and surprisingly we avoided the expected traffic jams. We drove through beautiful rolling countryside and into the National Park.

After arriving and unpacking the rain came down hard so we pottered around for the rest of the afternoon before popping out for dinner at the local sushi bar called Ginja Ninja Sushi Cafe. The Aussie has visited Japan and said the set up was very like a few of the Japanese Bars and restaurants that he visited there. I thought the food was really tasty as well.

On Saturday morning we got up and headed to O’Reilly’s Rainforest Resort with the intention / hope that we could go for a walk as a lot of the walks in the area run from the resort.

The journey there was interesting, being windy roads all the way there. There were lots of parts where only one car could go down the road as well as some traffic lights. When I plugged it into the Satnav it said the trip would take 50 plus minutes but it was only 35km away so I thought the Satnav was having a funny five minutes but it was very accurate!

We stopped of for a coffee in the restaurant which was nice and we watched the pouring rain come down whilst admiring the view from the balcony.

We then decided to take a walk along the Treetop Walk , stopping off to feed the birds en route, and of course the rain came down even harder and my coat which I thought was waterproof quickly demonstrated that it was not! The walk itself was really lovely and I would go back again on a less rainy day to check it out at a slower pace. We also stopped of in the Botanic Gardens which was quite lovely as well.

We decided to head back into Canungra and stopped off for another coffee and watched the world go by for a little while before heading back to our AirBnB.

We had a lazy afternoon and I even had a nanna nap which was very much needed and enjoyed before dinner and bed time!

Sunday we headed back to Brisbane via the town of Boonah. Again the Aussie had visited and stayed here last year with his friend so he wanted to take me there to check it out.

The town is a very Aussie town with old hotel / pubs and the people were so friendly and welcoming it was lovely. After a quick pitstop to eat lunch we drove back home and did our unpacking and trying and failing to get our washing dry!

Monday was Easter Monday and I popped over to Naomi’s house where we headed out on an almost 10km walk. It was wonderful to get out and stretch our legs (and there was no rain!) and catch up with Naomi. We put the world right and made plans for the coming weeks and months.

Our Easter weekend was not as intended but it actually really didn’t matter at all because it was just what we wanted and needed. We were both quite tired from the last few weeks and needed the rest.

How did you spend your Easter break?

Happy Easter

April 17, 2019 by Vicky Leave a Comment

The long weekend for Easter starts on Friday. We are heading off for a couple of nights in Lamington National Park which is near the Gold Coast.

The Aussie has visited Lamington before with one of his friends to go for some hikes and we plan on doing the same. I want to get into hiking and have purchased some walking poles because I get pretty nervous when walking off track that I am going to slip or fall and this was recommended to me.

I am really looking forward to seeing what is at Lamington and then sharing our adventures when we get back.

I hope that you have a lovely Easter, however you celebrate or spend the time.

Fitness Goals for 2019

January 20, 2019 by Vicky Leave a Comment

As we hit the end of January 2019 I have been reflecting on my fitness goals for 2019. I think it is really important to reassess your goals when you are on a “fitness journey” as it keeps you motivated and on track.

2018 was a big year for me health and fitness wise. I started working with Felicity Neale in April, initially focusing on diet but progressing to my exercise regime as well and I saw massive changes in my health and fitness.

Towards the end of 2018 our focus moved to building strength and saw the introduction of more regular weight lifting days which I have to admit I was surprised about, but I loved. Previously to that I had focused on cardio quite a lot and was a bit afraid to branch out into the weights section on my own.

This year I really want to keep focusing on strength and weight lifting because I really see the benefits of strength training and it has so much more of an impact on the development of my body and I love the way my muscles are developing.

I am also working towards having surgery to remove the excess skin I have on my stomach, back, arms and legs this year. I haven’t really talked about this much on the blog but it is a big focus. When I started working out I always insisted I would never have the surgery but I am now at the stage where I can see that the excess skin I have is not going to shrink much at all and I don’t want to live with it for the rest of my life when I can do something about it (I know plenty of people do happily).

I am sussing out the costs and timeframe for having the surgery but it is high on my agenda.

Before the surgery I want to get to my strongest so that this will help with my recovery after the surgery. Felicity and I feel like I need to get my arms and legs as strong as possible because frankly it is going to really hurt if I try using my core to move myself around post surgery.

I also want to keep participating in the various running and walking events which are being held around the Brisbane / Gold Coast / Sunshine Coast areas. I am still not really a runner and half heartedly give running a go from time to time, but the events I want to do are usually still welcoming to walkers and so definitely inclusive for me. I am lucky that Naomi and the Aussie indulge me on this aim and will come along for the ride!

I have been a bit hit and miss with Park Run the last few months. This is mainly because I am just not someone who can walk / run in the heat and its been pretty hot even at 7am in the morning. The Aussie and I did a Park Run in the UK (and I got a PB knocking 3 minutes off my time) and this takes me up to 23 Park Runs so far. When you have completed 50 Park Runs you receive a 50 shirt and I am quite focused on completing the 50 this year!

Finally I want to get braver! The Aussie and I did a couple of walks in the UK and I was terrified of falling over. Now after 30 odd years of tripping over I know what it feels like to fall over and I am lucky that this seems to have reduced considerably with my weight loss (touch wood). I am also always worried that if I injure myself I won’t be able to work out and I really don’t like the risk.

I will admit that on one of our walks I was like a baby deer taking tiny steps because it was muddy, hilly and there were lots of rocks to slip on. I want to get over this because I really enjoy hiking and walking.

I think I need to buy some walking poles because from talking to various people this has helped them enormously with building confidence on this kind of walk. Then when it cools down a bit in Autumn and Winter I hope that the Aussie and I can get out there and start building my confidence!

About Me!

My name is Vicky and I am a Lawyer from the UK who upped sticks and moved to the Northern Territory in Australia in August 2013!

  • Bloglovin
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • StumbleUpon
  • Tumblr
  • Twitter
Load More…Follow on Instagram

Follow me on Twitter

Tweets by @Outback_expat

Blogs & Websites I Love

Here are a selection of blogs and websites I follow and love.

Emerald and Jade Lifestyle

IntheNT 

Rhyme & Ribbons

Sailing with Emma Ward

Webme

Recent Posts

  • Six by Four
  • Easter 2019
  • What I have been Eating – Part 1
  • My March Faves & Things I have loved in March 2019
  • Happy Easter

Search

Categories

  • 101 Goals in 1001 Days
  • 40 Before 40
  • ABC of the Seasons
  • Aussie life
  • Blogmas
  • Brisbane Park Run Tour
  • Currently
  • England and Australia
  • Events
  • Exploring Brisbane
  • Getting Fit and Healthy
  • Goodread Reading Challenge
  • Grateful Heart Monday
  • Monthly Faves
  • Northern Territory Travels
  • Outback Cookery Experimentation's
  • Silent Sunday
  • Studying and Exams
  • Things I have Loved
  • Throwback Travel Thursday
  • Travel Blog Tribe
  • Visa

Recent Posts

  • Six by Four
  • Easter 2019
  • What I have been Eating – Part 1
  • My March Faves & Things I have loved in March 2019
  • Happy Easter

Meta

  • Log in
  • Entries RSS
  • Comments RSS
  • WordPress.org

Supported and Maintained by Webme.     Contact us for your next web project

This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish.Accept Reject Read More
Privacy & Cookies Policy