Post #162 2 January 2018

Gentlefolk,

This post covers the period 23 - 30 December 2017, which includes the Christmas holiday.

We follow the European tradition and celebrate on Xmas Eve (24 December).  This year we all met up at my sister's place (Aniko and Peter Carey) where we exchanged gifts ("Berscherung"), sang Xmas carols, and then had a wonderful dinner.

In years long gone, when we were kids, after dinner we all went to Midnight Mass, but alas no more.  At about 11pm we all went our separate ways.

Our son, Andrew, visited from Sydney with his wife Caroline and their kids Fast Eddie (3.5 years) and Princess Jay (9 months).  They had Xmas Eve with us; on Xmas Day they flew down to Melbourne to join Caroline's sister/family and parents; then back to Canberra for a couple more days before heading home to Sydney.

This year our daughter and family went to a gathering of Tom's relatives in Melbourne. We will see them next week when they pass through Canberra on their way back to Brisbane.

Here are some photos of the last week or so.

Reading a book with Eddie.  He is 3.5 years of age and already knows his mind.

The Xmas Tree at Aniko's place with lots and lots of presents for everyone.  On Xmas Eve we first sang some carols, then exchanged gifts, before having dinner.

From left: Adrienne (Aniko's daughter), Tuey (Britt's son) and Eddie with Batman cape. Xmas is all about the kids, isn't it?  They loved the excitement.

The next morning, Xmas Day, Eddie and Jay were up early at our apartment and of course Santa had brought some more presents.

Eddie got a "Ninja Bike"for Xmas - very happy. After breakfast I took them to Canberra Airport for the flight to Melbourne, and more celebrations.

Xmas Day, 25 December 2017.  After dropping Andrew & co at the airport, Vera & I met Angie.  We walked around Lake Burley Griffin (5 km); had lunch at the Yacht Club; visited an elderly lady friend in a Nursing Home; visited the graves of our father and mother (above); and finally went to Britt's place for afternoon tea. 

Dr Jocelyn Chey was in Canberra and came around. She was my boss at the Embassy in Beijing 30 years ago. A real China expert, Jocelyn was the best boss ever, and Vera and I were delighted to see her again. We spent a most enjoyable couple of hours chatting about the "Good Old Days" and looking at photos.

I had a round of golf with old friends David Evans (in photo) and Paul Flint.  My golf is really inconsistent - for every good shot there are 2 or 3 bad shots - not surprising as I play so rarely. I'm determined to play more next year.

We picked Andrew & co up at the airport on their return from Melbourne. There is an interesting screen which shows animals from the zoo.

Vera feeding Jay-Jay.

With Eddie in front of the Xmas tree in our living room.

Getting down to work - me feeding Jay-Jay.  She is adorable. Just starting to crawl. 

Last night, New Years Eve, Vera & I went to the Canberra Old Time Dance Club.  Always a fun night and a good way to see in the New Year. 

Duncan and Gwen Souter celebrated their Golden Anniversary at the dance last night. A wonderful couple, they are stalwarts of the Old Time Dance Club.

...

2017 was another big and busy year. Our highlights of 2017:

March: birth of Jay Milton Olah in Hong Kong

June: Andrew & Caroline moved back to Sydney

Aug/Sept: visit to Bali & Java; home via Perth

Jen & Tom are doing well in Brisbane (Tom recently did the Kokoda Trail in PNG), as are Caroline & Andrew in Sydney. Our five grandkids are thriving.  Kurt turned 12 this year, Nate 10, Sid 8, Eddie 3, and Princess Jay was born in March.

After a hiatus of seven months, in February 2017 I reactivated my blog; did 46 posts in 2017. The blog is my online diary. 

Always lots happening around the world: President Trump continues to puzzle, an enigma (will he try to close Mueller down???); President Xi Jin Ping of China unsurprisingly got another 5 years; President Mugabe stepped down after 37 years running Zimbabwe, good riddance; North Korea remains defiant; drama in the Australian Parliament due to dual citizenship - but at least we got same sex marriage equality! 

Many disasters happened too: devastating hurricanes; Las Vegas shooting 59 dead, 441 injured (almost one mass shooting per day in the US this year); Grenfell Tower fire in London, and killer bushfires in California; Terrorist attacks continue viz Manchester in May 2017 22 dead, 119 injured, Egypt in November 311 dead, 128 injured. ISIS on its last legs, hopefully.

The most interesting book I read in 2017 was "A spy among friends - Philby and the Great Betrayal" by Ben Macintyre. Well researched and written - a true story, but reads like fiction.

So that's it for another year: goodbye 2017, welcome 2018.

Our best wishes to you all for a happy and healthy 2018.

Stay healthy and keep smiling.

Alex Olah & Vera Olah
Canberra, Australia
2 January 2018