Settling in

Dangar Island, Hawkesbury river
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They say the four stages of grief are denial, anger, depression and acceptance. Well, the same could be said for unemployment. While Candice has been working for the last two weeks at That's Life!, one of the two real life magazines in Australia, Ed has taken on the role as house husband. (And if you're wondering, he's at stage four).

We have met others who have been in the same predicament - girl gets job before guy, guy's male pride is wounded - so Ed is enjoying a latent sense of shadenfraude. One of them is the editor of Time Out Sydney (who we met thanks to Anna's brother's girfriend's school friend - gotta love those connections). If he struggled, then Ed doesn't feel so bad about watching the Bold and the Beautiful.

We even found the nudey beach, where bathers are clearly immune to the government's suncream slogan 'slip slap slop'

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Having said that, Ed has had a few shifts at Channel 7, one of the TV stations, but will have to wait until November until work begins in earnest. Candice meanwhile has the option of a fulltime job - and sponsorship - from November, so decisions will soon have to be made.

But strewth, we're not here to work, with extra-curricalar activities in abundance. We've been to Hawkesbury River, an hour north of Sydney, to visit Greg and Nick, South African friends of Candice's. The area is a mini version of the Norwegian fjords, with several residents who may well have been extras in Deliverance. Despite the damp weather we walked along the beach and through the forests of Dangar Island, drove their boat across the river to buy oysters and ate like kings.

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And of course we've been visiting more of the city's beaches - Watsons Bay, Coogee, and Clovelly. We even found the nudey beach, where bathers are clearly immune to the government's suncream slogan 'slip slap slop'. We've also been back to Bondi, surfing and generally thinking we might move there soon. Despite resisting the path well-trodden by most Poms in Sydney, we are now seeing why Poms go there in the first place.

The weather remains an obsession, and a few weeks ago the bushfire season began. At the same time Christmas decs have appeared on the shelves at Coles, Australia's Tescos. As for culture, we've had plenty. The new series of Heroes has started on TV, Ed's been to see Russell Crowe's latest movie, and we've finally got round to watching Kath and Kim. And eating out is excellent, almost the same price as supermarket shopping. So far we've eaten Chinese, Japanese, Lebanese, Nepalese. Who said anything about a yoghurt pot.

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And to answer some readers questions, Ed only did yoga once in India. And his favourite Australian beer is Coopers (the green one), although he is partial to a Carlton, while Candice has tried Banrock Station and Jacobs Creek. We get the message. More yoga and less boozing, perhaps.