Retracing our path on the way to Switzerland, we returned to Sydney via Singapore. This time we stayed longer to spend some time with friends and family who live there now. Karin and Timon hosted us in their fabulous apartment on Nassim Hill, near the Botanic Gardens. Ironically, they left Basel to move to Singapore shortly before we moved to Basel. The boys enjoyed playing with their sons, Niclas and baby Mathis, and running wild amongst the trees and extensive lawns of the gardens. We made good use of both the children’s splash pool and the larger swimming pool.

It’s a short walk from there to the western end of the renowned shopping strip of Orchard Road. With only five weeks until Christmas, we took the opportunity to attend the “Light Up” ceremony for the Orchard Road Christmas lights, which are spectacular. Intricate luminous traceries stretch along the street, block after block. To our surprise, we stumbled across Singapore’s version of falling snow: a machine that sprays droplets of white detergent into the warm evening air.

Karin also took us out to the Jurong Bird park, an ornithological extravaganza. Covering 50 acres, it takes most of a day just to walk around, and hosts over 4500 resident birds — more than any other bird park in the world. Penguins, parakeets, pelicans, pigeons and parrots, of every shape and colour, squawk and stare at you from the exhibits.

We spent some time too with Mark’s sister, Merry, and her husband, Fred, and baby daughter, Emilie, who moved to Singapore from South Africa in 2009. The grownups shared a sumptuous dinner at the Equinox restaurant on the 69th floor, looking out over the city lights of one of Asia’s jewels.

Then it was back to Sydney, where we stayed with “aunty” Amanda in Greenwich for a couple of days before heading off on a driving holiday to the north coast. Until our container arrived, there wasn’t much point moving into our own house with no furniture.

We spent a few rainy days at Port Macquarie, both on the way up north and on the way back south. Luckily there were a few breaks in the weather during which we could enjoy the beach, as seen below. Our principal destination was Wooyung though, where we stayed with Christine and Lutz for almost a week. In addition to enjoying uninterrupted miles of ocean beach, often all to ourselves, we also got to see their new house in the hills above Mooball. Here Wiki and Loxon discovered the ecstasy to be had from chasing chickens around on wet grass when you are five years old, at Kirra’s ninth birthday party.

Thus far, they seem to have forgotten their plans to breed chickens in the 45 square metre courtyard of our house in Balmain. Please don’t remind them.