It’s been a couple of months since I updated the blog. Partly due to a lack of anything to report, but also due to my now dislike of Meta and the block they’ve put on this blog! The block still exists, so if you’ve made your way here, well done and thanks! Please click the follow button below and this blog will be delivered directly to your inbox.

Life in Meladrama land has been pretty good. I’ve been busy with work: study days, recruitment and grad expos. Life out of work has been similarly busy, but in a good way; lots of birthdays to celebrate (Rod, Pip, Dad, Lydia), catching up with Jess & Ben in Melbourne (saw Chicago with them), helped prepare Hamish for his Outdoor Ed camp to Mt Stirling and of course, taking advantage of the perfect autumn weather to ride bikes on our days off.

I am writing this in Oncology and am mid way through treatment number 9. This means I have 4 to go which is pretty exciting! I have continued to remain well, except for a bout of gastritis (not gastro…) which started a few months ago. I will likely get a gastroscope for my troubles, just to rule out any ulcers (or whatever else they look for clearly not my area of expertise).

Whilst this could be immunotherapy related, my Oncologist tells me the gastritis would be getting worse and there would be no relief. So it sounds like the immunotherapy is a bit of a red herring – thus the scope. Strangely I do get a flare up of gastritis about every 5 years, so I am due.

Plans for our Europe/Asia trip continue and I love love love the planning and problem solving involved. Trying to get to Rome from Athens for less than $750 (2 hour flight) is currently on my agenda, but without taking a bus/train/ferry/walking over a couple of days, I am not sure there is any way out of this.

The last 3 weeks of our trip will be spent getting from Phuket to KL and having a bit of a holiday in the warmth – lots of swimming, walking on beaches, the odd margarita and amazing food. We are heading back to Kata Beach (where we holidayed last year) but staying in a self-contained apartment. Hamish and I have already decided the first thing we will eat in 2025 will be mango and sticky rice!

This blog will soon be superseded by our more lighthearted (but no less dramatic) http://111daysineurope.com one we started way back when we had our first lengthy overseas jaunt in 2015. Hard to imagine we were brave enough to take our slightly temperamental 4 year old overseas for 3 months! Hamish turned 5 in Italy then and this trip he will turn 14 in Crete (and then will fly to Athens where we will take him out for his birthday). He is definitely living his best life – the perks of having older parents!

Anyway, just a quick blog this month. I’ll update next month.

Love to all,

Bel