There's No Place Like Oz

This is the 3rd post in the No Macaron Left Behind challenge series and 4th in the “my waist line is expanding while my bank account is decreasing” series. The last time I brought some macaron magic into your life, I had just sampled 22 flavors from Adriano Zumbo’s Balmain location. Add this to the […]

Sydney New Years fireworks I can’t remember the first December 31 where I watched a mid-morning recap of New Years celebrations around the world — but when I saw the fireworks over Sydney Harbour Bridge, I knew I wanted to be there one day. Perhaps I should have known Australia was in my future when […]

Christmas is less than one week away. It’s THIS weekend. No matter how many times I listen to Elvis’ Christmas album on the iPod or look at the cards and packages I’ve received in the last few days, it just doesn’t feel like the holidays. — American for “holiday”: Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Years, Valentine’s Day, […]

Recently two unexpected things made me laugh: — A friend declared that I am an “Americaussie” (New entry for Urban Dictionary? I think so! Google only has a few mentions.) — A customer asked if I was Australian. This was after she’d heard me speak. My accent is still very North American*. I’m a citizen […]

Welcome to the second guest post on There’s No Place Like Oz! My parents came for a week-long visit last month, and below my dad shares some of his favorite moments from the trip. It started out innocently enough. “Dad, I found this great trip to Ireland in Budget Travel Magazine. It’s affordable and includes […]

For the last 6 months I’ve been living my big dream of traveling and living in Australia long-term. Whether I’ve been on the road, working, hosting visitors, or going it solo, I have so much to be thankful for in my experiences thus far. This Thursday is Thanksgiving in the USA, and for the first […]

This is the 2nd post in the No Macaron Left Behind challenge series and 3rd in the “my waist line is expanding while my bank account is decreasing” series. Some people aren’t big into birthdays, but I am! I love recognizing and celebrating them and all the better if there’s a theme attached. When my […]

Welcome to the first guest post on There’s No Place Like Oz! It is written by one of my best friends who recently came to visit me in Sydney for two weeks. We met in the summer of 2007 when she moved to Virginia to start a job in my office. Though she returned to […]

If you know me, or even if you’ve met me briefly, chances are you know that I’m equally torn between a love of eating healthfully and satisfying a strong sweet tooth. Case in point: When I started job searching in Sydney, I was immediately offered trials at two locations…one an organic food store and the […]

Q: What do you get when you combine Sydney, festivals, and food? (Hint: this is *not* a trick question) A: A very happy Heather. I haven’t mentioned “City Heather” before, but I kind of like her. When I’m “City Heather”, I’m one of the best versions of myself. I walk with a confident spring in […]