Santa comes to Melbourne

Josie and Tilly were thrilled with all that Santa provided - Karen would like Santa to provide Christmas in Australia every year!

Kylie at Christmas

What a great concert with Kylie Minogue - her final concert in Melbourne, her home town and we managed to celebrate in style with lots of dancing and singing. Thanks to Jo and Charlie for a great and very memorable Christmas present and for a fantastic, foodie, champagne Christmas.

Christmas in Melbourne

After Brisbane I needed a nap on the plane to recover as nightclubbing and dancing was to be soon replaced by cycling and chasing toddlers around the pool. Managed to squeeze in a visit to The Ardoch Foundation which is dedicated to education for young people and met with Kylie Paine to find out more about their approach. Hitching a ride on the tram is so convenient and Christmas shopping in the sunshine makes a change!
Cycling around the City on Christmas Eve really is a great way to see Melbourne and the added bonus is it's so flat! The whole family (minus Stuart in the UK) managed almost a 20 mile ride and Wendy and I realised that it is actually much easier on a tandem!

Getting hotter down under in Brisbane

After useful conversations with charities 'Big Brothers, Big Sisters' and 'The Red Cross' my work here is over for a time...as I drive further up the coast it gets hotter - temperature approaching 27 degrees...how will I cope back in the UK?!
Magical Christmas in Brisbane with the whole place lit up with lights, music, acrobatic shows...met up with Charlie from Sydney who is staying with his family in Brisbane and after another 5 hour road trip explored Noosa...fantastic beaches...followed by great nightclubs and restaurants in Brisbane.

On the road again

Next stop Brisbane...2.5 hours in baking heat...more soon....

Byron Bay - bohemian bliss by the sea...

I think the pictures say it all!

Next stop Brisbane...

Port Stephens - Peppers Anchorage

Stayed at Peppers Anchorage, Port Stephens for much needed relaxation with massage, facial and walk on the beach and laze by the pool....bliss again... fabulous food, hospitality and room....then back on the road for a 4 hour drive to Coffs Harbour, to the Aqualuna Beach apartments on Pacific Highway Sappphire right on the beach.
There I was treated like a VIP and upgraded to an enormous apartment because of my status as a Winston Churchill Fellow - the waitress was scared silly so I had to calm her down and reassure her I am just a normal person like her!
Left then for the highlight of the trip Byron Bay...

On the Road - Thelma without Louise

Set out on the road all alone for the HunterValley - soon got into the swing of things - especially when I arrived at the Blue Tongue Brewery - blue tongue is a disease in the UK - here it is a beer! Relaxing by the pool after a bit of wine tasting was just what I needed after Sydney....

Jolly good Winston Churchill Fellows say goodbye to Sydney

It was great to say goodbye to the friends I had met in Sydney who helped me so much - left to right - Vanessa Shahani, Southampton City Council, UK, Cath Lawrence, Motion Consulting, Ian Krimmer, NSW Fire Service, and Matt Jones from Social Alchemy. Later Antony Sprange helped me celebrate the last night in Sydney in monsoon weather - more like Singapore than Sydney!

Bondi just like Brighton

Thanks Sabrina - had a lovely walk around Bondi with you - even though it was typical British weather!

BBQ with Ian Krimmer

Thanks to Ian Krimmer and his wife Megan who invited me to a BBQ with a group of their friends from their Church group and we had such a lot of fun. The fire car got me there and back in double quick time!

A truly Inspiring day

The next stop on the next day was Inspire - and wow! Do these guys live up to their name! what an engaging and empowering place to work - if work is the right word these guys probably dont see it that way. Thanks Matt O'Connor and Atari Metcalf - two of the smartest young people I have met in a long time and their programs Act Now and Reach Out are truly inspiring.

After that a contrast - a more formal environment at the University of Sydney but equally fascinating and Joe Kabalan has achieved huge things with recruiting and managing volunteers for big events like the Olympics - for World Youth Day among other things. Joe was a star and helped bring these events to life for me. Thanks Joe.

More exciting things followed but no time to update you on that yet - but it involves fire cars and flashing lights....

The Red Cross to the rescue

Just to grab your attention - I actually just met with Danny Croucher at The Red Cross who was very helpful in answering every single question I had prepared in my research! Thanks Danny and sorry I forgot to take your photo!

Kathleen Vella from the Youth Mentoring Network also was incredibly helpful and introduced me to Caron Rooks who runs an e-mentoring program for The Smith Family which has showed higher levels of satisfaction amongst young people in the last year's survey than other programs that include face to face mentoring.

I also had time to fit in another quick bike tour round the city and went on to meet Julie Easy from Mission Australia who runs a coaching program called Elevate, linking young people who need help with employability and leadership skills with corporate coaches. A fellow Brit - we had plenty to talk about over a bite to eat - this project is not good for the wasitline!

Monday Morning - Igniting Community Spirit

The Centre for Volunteering - what a team!

I met with Lynne Dalton, CEO and Kristin Romanis, Communication Manager and Maia Giordano, Youth Volunteer Program Manager. Lynne is known as one of the most authoritative figures in the volunteer world. Her organisation set up and sponsors the volunteer conference to celebrate the successes and achievements of the volunteers in corporate, youth and over 60 sectors. I attended this event on my arrival last week at Parliament House and it was certainly successful in 'igniting community spirit' - the slogan for The Centre for Volunteering. Lane Beachley won the ambassador award and many other special people were honoured. Last year there were 170 entries, this year 445 - next year who knows?!

The team gave generously of their time and knowledge so that I will have plenty to populate my report at the end of the project. This will be published on http://www.wcmt.org/ for organisations that need information on how to recruit, retain, recognise and reward volunteers and mentors for young people.

After this meeting I met with a Winston Churchill Fellow from 1992 who again was very generous with his time, kindness, enthusiasm and help - a very BIG THANK YOU to the Superintendent Ian Krimmer of the New South Wales Fire Brigade pictured above. Ian has already been extraordinarily kind and shared his experiences of his Fellowship which investigated fire setting by young people in the US and UK and was highly significant in making changes to the way this problem was tackled.

Morning after the night before....

Oh dear that evening ended on Sunday morning at 3.30am and I really experienced Sydney nightlife to the full at the Bavarian bar...ouch...then met the in laws Wendy and Gerry at lunchtime in Darling Harbour with a sore head...followed by a real Aussie barbie in the burbs in an amazing spot overlooking the harbour called Castle Crags.

Cath Lawrence, originally from the Uk was my host with her lovely partner Greg. We had great fun and I was introduced to the tame flying pet water dragon called Oscar. He was accompanied by several friends (she strangely knew them as a result of an introduction I made for her when she set out for Australia 7 years ago. ) Above from right to left is Joss, Katrina, Pete, Cath and then Greg. Pete, a fantastic Real Estate agent, requested I hypnotise him to be...well, that's between me and Pete and the water dragon...;-)

Then back to Darling Harbour for MORE food and drinks with Charlie and a downpour of stair rod rain and an early night as next day real work was looming....

Bikes and boats to Manly

Saturday means it's time for fun and Charlie (above right) has invited me on a bike tour via ferry to Manly beach with Bonza Bike Tours and they sure are Bonza tours. We saw all of Sydney harbour as we left - on arrival Lash the tour guide (above left) showed us the nicest parts of the beach (Shelly beach though the tourists have taken all the shells so it's a misnomer!) I haven't included a pic as it will make all the Brits back home incredibly jealous and I know some of you are a slight shade of green already.

We headed up a big hill to the highest point called North Head (I had to get off and push not having the lovely luxury of Stuart pulling me on the tandem!) After an exhilarating ride down we later went out to a fantastic restaurant below the Harbour Bridge and overlooking a huge cruiseliner called Celebrity X and the Opera House - someone was celebrating as we were treated to an enormous firework display - the perfect setting for the meal!

Non Stop Sydney

Arrived in good shape after an interesting 7 hour chat with a cyclist from Camborne - interesting as my partner is also a cyclist from Camborne, Cornwall! Flying over Australian desert for 3 hours makes you realise the enormmous size and scope of the country.

First stop was an awards ceremony at the Parliament House - well best to start at the top! The event was to celebrate National Volunteers Day and there were some amazing people to meet there that completed an amazing number of charitable tasks - quite humbling to see. Ranged from a 90+ year old woman who started volunteering in 1941 with the Red Cross (she didnt even win!) to the only young woman in Australia who flies helicopters and rescues people in dangerous circumstances - she didnt win either!

Met another British Winston Churchill Fellow who was engaged in a similar project and was useful to pick up some tips from her, thanks Vanessa Shahani! Also talked to the Minister about my project.

After that explored Sydney - the usual stops - Opera House, Circular Quay, Darling Harbour and Botanic Gardens and restaurants, oyster bar and other interesting spots. Lots more planned...

and many invitations already that I am having to pick and choose who I see ..like dances at a waltz!

Singapore Sling

Arrived in Singapore bleary eyed after 13 hour flight on floor 13 room 1318 but no misfortunes apart from unable to source a Singapore Sling at unusual hours...ate in hotel and got a dicky tummy but managed to avoid throwing up in a park (the penalties are strict for spitting and littering so was worried what I would be penalised for if I left something worse behind!)

The heat and humidity was immense...the food spicy...people very reserved but disciplined and polite...service impeccable. Went to Raffles to the Long Bar and had a tiffin and banana slice...next stop Sydney and then non stop in the city ....

The trouble with Thailand...

So best laid plans go awry...the Thai PAD party has closed the airports in Bangkok and I have been back and forwards rescheduling flights, rooms and destinations.

I am now leaving on Monday for Singapore instead - so no elephants, sunbathing and bamboo rafting after all - but sure that shopping in Singapore and arriving a day earlier in Sydney will more than make up for it! Gaynor at Trailfinders Oxford has been brilliant in reorganising everything for me and luckily the insurance from the Winston Churchill Memorial Trust covers me for all the extra costs.

I am remarkably calm about it all - almost had been expecting some disruptions to the plans and at least I am lucky not to be travelling to Mumbai.... the friends in Thailand are expecting the airport to be stormed today and not sure if it will reopen as it will depend on the amount of damage caused. Let's hope there will not be too many lives lost or injuries...

One week to go!

I have never been away for a month before on my own. How will I cope without distractions and work and friends and family, it will be strange to be away so long.

I am really pleased that my mentee Abdulwali Marufkheil was a regional finalist at The Prince's Trust 'Celebrate Success' awards last week for the Young Achiever of the Year. It shows that volunteering does work - he couldn't speak a word of English 2 years ago and now is an award winner! Fantastically rewarding to see him progress so well. Why don't more people volunteer? One of the questions I hope to answer through the research in Australia....

How you can get involved

The Winston Churchill Memorial Trust have given me this opportunity of a lifetime to travel and broaden my experience and at the same time to work on a project that will benefit the UK. Any British citizen can apply and enter one of the categories and it's such a simple process.

Visit http://www.wcmt.org.uk/ and see what categories you could enter. Create a short proposal - only a paragraph required - and get 2 references. If you get shortlisted you attend a panel interview and if selected - Bob's your Uncle (or Auntie!) you are on your way.

You can travel for up to 3 months or a minimum of 4 weeks and there is a very generous grant available. It really is so simple - so many people seem to think they cannot possibly do it when all it takes is an idea - and you can enter and get the chance to travel anywhere in the world. Just log on and get started!

One month and counting....

Well just over a month to go before the trip...so far I have meetings arranged with the Centre for Volunteering, The Red Cross, the Youth Mentoring Network and The Ardoch Foundation.

Also arranged to see friends in Sydney, Byron Bay, Brisbane and Melbourne and already one BBQ is planned with Cath from Motion Consulting who is helping to plan a networking event for all the other contacts I have made in a bar by the waterfront.

Will be meeting elephants at close quarters in Thailand, and going bamboo rafting which is less scary than white water rafting. Who knows what else is planned?

All the advice I have had says its best to be flexible so not planning too much - though will be setting up SatNav with Ozzie maps on my BlackBerry to find my way around when I drive up the coast. Should be like a Thelma and Louise trip ..but with no Louise ...

The main activity now is briefing and planning all the work activities for while I am away - I expect a mountain of post and emails to deal with when I get back....but sure it will be worth it.

My mentee Abdul has been nominated as a Regional Finalist in The Princes Trust Young Achiever of the Year awards so that will be great if he gets to go through to the finals and something else to look forward to when I get back.

Preparing for Oz trip

Well it's only six weeks to go. Over 35 new people to see in 4 weeks and also need to fit in time to explore the amazing sights in Oz and sample the culture.

That bit is ok - I have already planned to stay in overnight at a vineyard (that may stop me in my tracks somewhat) and see Kylie Minogue in concert so what else is there?

BBQs, beer, sunshine and having a good time! All things that we Brits seem to be struggling with at the moment...

It's amazing that a simple idea of taking 20 minutes to fill in a form and sending it off to 'The Winston Churchill Memorial Trust' has led to this amazing opportunity of a lifetime and me off to Australia for a month researching volunteer work with charities - and without me paying a penny!