Yes, we have an outhouse!

The outhouse...

Yes, we have an outhouse!

From what I hear, it is not uncommon for houses around here to have these. I guess, back in the day, these were the outhouses for the house, which would make sense, but when modern plumbing came along, they added a bathroom to the house and plumbed the outhouse too! I refer to this as Aaron's room, I told him he could decorate it however he wanted. He has always said the bathroom is his favorite room in the house...now he has his very own, just right outside the kitchen door and across the patio...totally separate from the rest of the house!

The sink in the outhouse...

The inside of the outhouse...

It is actually a very nice bathroom...it is just....weird! But hey, if the bathroom inside the house is occupied, at least we have a backup!

Our dryer (below)...it is very economical! Our back yard is terraced (because we are on a mountain), and the clothes line is on the second level and this picture is taken from my back door. The building you see right beneath is a storage unit for all our yard things...okay, so maybe it is empty right now, but that is okay, I am sure we will get yard things! People here hardly have dryers, they use clothes lines. I really haven't minded it very much. My clothes smell wonderful and it is economical. It is a bummer when it rains, but we have an indoor "clothes horse" that we use for rainy days. Now, if I was gone 9 hours a day at work, I think it would be really hard to get your laundry done!

Our back yard, a few steps up from the patio.... this is the second level. The clothes line is to the right, that black thing is a compost bin.

The backyard is a great area for a barbeque...and Aussies take their "barbies" very seriously. they are social occasions where people visit and enjoy each other. I still think of a "Texas Style Barbeque" when I here I am invited to a barbie, but then I remember that that just means they are grilling it outside!

I have a fabulous camera, however, I have been really frustrated to find that my American Sony camera doesn't work with Aussie batteries. It just needs AA batteries, but they do not work in my camera. I was lucky enough to find a stash of American AA batteries in my laptop bag for my mouse, so I have been able to take some better pictures than just with my iphone. I will try to go around town and take some more pictures while these batteries last. Luckily, my prof is in the states and stopped at a Walgreens and got me some more batteries! Yea for world travellers!

S0... more pictures and adventures to come. Tonight I am going with my girlfriends out to a restaurant where you take off your shoes and sit on the floor. I am not sure what kind of restaurant it is, but who cares? It is a girls night of fun and frivolity!

Wishing you all a very happy Wednesday! Mine is coming to an end and in the US, it is just beginning!

Cheers!