I’d been here in Australia for almost two years, and barring a couple of weekend trips down the Fleurieu Peninsula, I had not yet had a proper holiday. Granted, I didn’t quite need one while I was waiting for my resident’s visa, but then I had a very busy Christmas, and cleared a week off with my boss.

I chose Melbourne, not because it is the closest state capital from Adelaide, but because of a radio ad I’d heard offering discounted rail tickets on The Overland – the only passenger rail service between the two cities. Because of it’s location, Adelaide is actually a bit of a rail hub for Australia, with the main east-west and north-south lines passing through the city.

So, I booked myself a ticket there, four nights in a hotel in the Melbourne CBD, and a plane ticket back. I didn’t have a real plan, just that I wanted to see as much of the city as possible and get some photographs. I can always go back for special events and shows down there in the future.

New Year’s Resolutions haven’t really ever been my thing – I tend to just review and set new objectives whenever I feel like a stretch or a change of direction.

And, in all honesty, these aren’t really new year’s resolutions again – that’s mostly just a coincidence. The timing is more down to the fact that I’ve had most of a month for some reflection.

So, I have some new goals in life:

Lose weight

My more recent attempts to lose weight have been somewhat less enthusiastic than half-hearted, meaning that I’ve been settled at 120-125kg for a while now.

My aim is to make it all the way down to 90kg as soon as possible. Thankfully, my family are all joining in on losing weight (although, they don’t have as far to go). We’re actually putting into a kitty, and the person who loses the most in a month gets the kitty.

Part of losing weight is diet – which I’ve got planned and sorted. And part of it is activity – so rejoining the gym, and getting up and using it is another goal.

Take more photos and publish them more often

There is something going on somewhere all the time – and my aim is to get my camera out to these events and take pictures as much as possible – and then publish them here on the website.

See more of the country

Obviously, this will help me take more photos, and give me more to write about.

I already have a trip to Melbourne being planned for the end February – I’m going to take the train down there, and fly back. Eventually, I’d like to take the train from Adelaide out in all directions (Melbourne, Perth, Darwin, Sydney) – just to say I’ve done it.

Get a car

And this will help me see more of South Australia – I have no idea what I want, and I keep swinging between a VW Camper (mobile kitchen and bedroom), a station wagon (better roadhandling – plus enough room to sleep in it), or a Mini Cooper (just as a style thing).

I’ll probably end up getting some ten-year old station.

So, that’s what I’ve set myself as goals for the next few months – I’m looking forward to it.