Reunions in Portland

Tom and I planned a two-week trip to the US in August. I hadn’t been home in two years (since our wedding), and a lot has happened with family and friends in the meantime. We both felt it was time for a visit.

We left Melbourne at 11am on Saturday. As always, it was hard to say goodbye to the cats, but we left them in the very capable care of a housesitter. On our 14-hour flight across the Pacific, we lucked out with an empty seat next to Tom. Even so, neither of us got much sleep.

We landed in San Francisco at 8am, tired but excited. During our layover, I was quickly reminded of US tipping culture and portion sizes.

After a 1.5-hour flight north, we landed in Portland around noon. I was surprised by the airport’s renovation; it has historically been one of my favorite airports. We picked up our rental car and drove to Hillsboro, greeted by sunshine and lovely summer temperatures ranging from 60–80°F that week. Fortunately, we had just missed a stint of poor air quality from wildfires in central Oregon.

As we crossed the city, one of my first observations was how small and empty Portland felt. Where was everyone? I think I’ve gotten used to the scale of Melbourne, although I still prefer Portland’s size. I also couldn’t believe the gas prices—I don’t think I’ve ever seen $5/gallon before.

By the time we reached Tom’s parents’ house, we were both exhausted. But I needed some fresh air, so I went for a walk around the neighborhood and nearby trail network, and was immediately taken by Portland summer. I noticed everything: the delicious woody smell of tree bark, the towering pines instead of eucalyptus, and even the different bird songs. I spent five years living in Portland before we moved to Melbourne, so it will always feel like one of my homes.

 

After a shower and a nap, we had a lovely, home-cooked dinner with Tom's parents. That night, I was out like a light.

Sunday morning, I woke up early but took my time getting out of bed. The jet lag wasn't too bad this time. After some yoga and a walk, I spent a few hours working. This was our third overseas trip of the year, so Tom and I decided to work a few days.

That afternoon, we headed to northeast Portland to see our friends Kyle and Dani and their 14-month-old, Hazel. Afterward, we drove to the Marshall family property for dinner with all but one of Tom's siblings. Skyline is where we were married and one of my favorite places.

The week passed by in a flash, although the individual days felt long and leisurely. Tom worked in the city Monday–Wednesday at his company’s Portland office, while I usually spent some time outside before working from the deck. I also picked Tom up from the train station and squeezed in a few errands, like renewing my driver’s license and getting our wedding rings cleaned. Weekday traffic was heavy, but it wasn't as difficult as I thought it would be to switch back to driving on the right.

 

Our evenings were packed with social engagements. On Monday, we had dinner in the city with Tom’s high school running coach, Jen, and her husband, Jay, at Afuri, followed by drinks at Loyal Legion. It was interesting to see how Portland has changed since we left. A lot of my favorite vegan restaurants have closed, but the city seems to be bouncing back.

Tuesday, Tom’s mom and I went to lunch at McMenamins Cornelius Pass Roadhouse—the site of our wedding reception. That evening, we visited my friend Kyle in Beaverton, along with his wife, Kristen, and their two-year-old son, Landon.

On Wednesday, I drove to Vancouver to spend time with my Aunt Judy. 

That evening, we had another family dinner at the Marshall house, this time joined by Tom’s Uncle Mike, who had flown in from Colorado.

Thursday was another reunion, this time with my old pharmacy friends at a different McMenamins restaurant in Beaverton.

 

By Friday, we were feeling pretty tuckered. We had lunch with Tom’s mom at a favorite Mexican restaurant, and later headed into the city's Hawthorne Asylum food cart pod to meet Tom’s law school friends at the welcome party for Alina’s wedding.

 

On Saturday morning, I went for a 45-mile bike ride with my friend Kyle on the spectacular Banks-Vernonia State Trail—my fourth time, third with Kyle.

Interestingly, during our visit two years ago, I felt a real urgency to adventure—to get out to the mountains, coast, and everywhere in between. This time, though, I was working and our social calendar was so full that I gracefully took adventures off the table. Trying to squeeze them in would have felt like too much. Instead, I felt surprisingly balanced by simply getting outside every day, having some downtime, and enjoying the familiar places around Portland.

That evening, we celebrated Alina and Steph at their beautiful wedding at their home in Damascus. Despite feeling socially depleted, I had a great time.

 

And just like that, our Portland visit was over.

On Sunday afternoon, we flew to Denver for Schaller Camp—the next chapter of our US adventure!

Swing Patrol

Mid-winter in Melbourne is a mix of rainy, gray days with the occasional burst of pale sunshine. Most of the deciduous trees are bare, but I was surprised to see some still glowing bright yellow, almost like it's peak autumn rather than the middle of winter. Thanks to the mild climate, plenty of plants and flowers continue to bloom as well.

 

I've kept up my weekly morning ocean swims, even as the water temperature dropped to around 10°C (50°F). I'm proud that I've stuck with it through winter; it feels like I've made up for my struggles with the jellyfish last summer.

I've also picked up a new hobby: swing dancing! Tom and I have been joining group classes with Swing Patrol, and it's been so much fun. It started as something for us to do together, but I want to keep going even if he decides it's not for him.

We celebrated our second wedding anniversary this month. I surprised Tom with an Australian whisky masterclass at Whisky & Alement, which ended up being a fantastic experience. We learned a lot (and sampled some excellent whiskey along the way).

Unfortunately, we also decided to do Dry July this year. Great cause, but not the best timing when your anniversary falls in the same month! We'll probably stick to June or August next year instead.

 

Later that month, Tom and I had a fun date night seeing Pretty Woman: The Musical at Melbourne's beautiful Regent Theatre. It was a little strange at first seeing such a familiar movie turned into a musical with an entirely new soundtrack, but it was really fun to see the story brought to life on stage.

Before the show, we visited the new city location of one of my favorite vegan restaurants, Smith & Deli, which now serves wine and tapas in the evenings. I also recently tried a delicious Mexican spot, Maíz y Cacao, with my friend Nadia.

Now we're counting down the days until our trip back to the U.S. in August. We can't wait to see everyone!

Alba Thermal Springs

June 1 marked the official start of winter in Australia. After a week of rain and gale-force winds, the weather in Melbourne turned just in time for the holiday weekend.

 

Historically, I've planned most of the trips for Tom and me, which suits us both. But I was excited when he volunteered to organize something for the long weekend. Neither of us was feeling overly ambitious, so he booked a quiet trip down to the Mornington Peninsula.

  

One of the best things to do on the Peninsula in the winter is visit the hot springs. The mineral-rich waters originate over 2,000 ft below ground, and emerge naturally at temperatures between 93°F and 107°F. Alba Thermal Springs is a contemporary geothermal sanctuary nestled into the rugged coastal landscape. It sits just across the road from Peninsula Hot Springs, which I had the pleasure of visiting two years ago with my friend Amanda.

 

Tom and I arrived early on Saturday to enjoy the first hour in a private terrace pool. We spent the rest of the day leisurely hopping between pools. The weather was mild and partly sunny—perfect for soaking. Holiday weekends are about as busy as it gets there, but the whole day still felt calm and unhurried. We spent the evening in Rye and drove home the next morning.

The following weekend, I met my friend Kate at the Cabinet Bar in the city before we went to the Australian Ballet performance of Romeo and Juliet at the Regent Theatre. I hadn't read the play since high school, so I was a little rusty on the finer details of the story—and, of course, there’s no dialogue in a ballet. Fortunately, a program was circulated during the first interval, which helped fill in the gaps.

As the month went on, the days grew gradually colder and darker as we approached the winter solstice: sunrise at 7:35 am and sunset at 5:10 pm.  I purchased a pair of neoprene gloves and socks to help me brave the cold ocean swims, with the water temperature currently hovering around 55°F. I savor the calm, quiet mornings when the bay is still and the water is like glass.

An Advocacy Win

May brought a cool change to Melbourne, with the smell of dried leaves crunching underfoot. The city's deciduous trees (maples and plane trees) are steadily shedding their leaves, while native evergreens (eucalypts and bottlebrushes) remain green year-round. With winter approaching, I'm always delighted by the occasional run of mild, sunny days, even as daylight grows noticeably shorter and darkness arrives earlier each evening.

 

A couple of weekends ago, our friends Nadia and Ryan invited Tom and I on a double date at Paris Cat Jazz Club. This intimate, underground venue is the perfect place to enjoy live jazz in the city. I left with a feeling that I couldn't wait to return.

 

Last weekend, I joined my friend Clarissa at a cabaret show at Spiegel Haus. The Blanc de Blanc Encore performance was a blend of jaw-dropping acrobatics, sultry burlesque, and outrageous humor, all set to a pulsing soundtrack of vintage jazz and contemporary beats.

The ocean temperature has been hovering around 15°C (59°F). I've enjoyed some magical swims this month—calm and quiet, with water like glass—made even better by seal and dolphin sightings. There have also been some very cold and foggy mornings, when it's "warmer in than out." 

Underwater photos by Peter from the SwimWell quad

As I become more entrenched in the ocean swimming community, I'm constantly learning new things about the ocean. For example, every winter, the Australian Giant Spider Crabs march into the shallows of the bay for the largest known crab migration on the planet!

For a variety of reasons, I didn't make the most of the ocean this summer, so I find myself once again cautiously optimistic to swim through the winter. Winter ocean swimming is special, and the water quality is often better than in summer; the tradeoff for me is that I feel less free when I'm bundled up.

 

At work, we celebrated a recent win at Animal-Free Science Advocacy. For decades, the nonprofit has been advocating to phase out animal research in Australia in favor of modern non-animal technologies. In the year and a half I've worked there, I've made countless submissions to relevant government consultations to advocate for this. Historically, this has been met with silence as the status quo continues—despite progressive policy and funding changes in North America and Europe to advance non-animal research methods.

This changed with the release of the National Health and Medical Research Strategy 2026–2036, which proposes a National Collaborative Platform for Non-animal Technologies. This is the first time in Australian history that non-animal research methods have been recognized as a national priority. Of course, this is just a strategy that requires funding to be realized. However, it's a major win for advocates. Now we can point to our own national strategy that explicitly recognizes non-animal technologies as a priority, rather than relying on examples from overseas to make the case.

 

Since leaving behind a high-paying and respected profession to pursue advocacy work three years ago, I still sometimes feel insecure about my decision. Was this a good choice? Am I making a difference? Advocacy work is hard, but moments like these make it worth it. It's impossible to know exactly how much any one organization contributed to this outcome. What I do know is that I'm grateful to be part of a movement working toward a future I deeply believe in.

Golden April

When Tom and I returned to Melbourne after our South African holiday, autumn was in full swing—crisp mornings, pleasant afternoons, and golden trees. The magic lingered throughout April, with plenty of leaf peeping along the way.

 

Daylight saving ended while we were away, and I noticed the dramatic shift to earlier sunrises and sunsets when we returned. The cicadas lingered too, still perfectly in sync with sunset, though their chorus gradually softened from the intensity of summer.

We arrived home on my birthday weekend, which was low-key as we recovered from the trip and jet lag. Still, it was lovely to have a day free from work and screens. The weather was beautiful, so I went for a bike ride and later a sunset walk with Tom.

 

 

Later that week, I rejoined the open water squad for my first bay swim since my events in February. The water was colder than last April, and there were still a few lingering jellyfish, but I enjoyed three crisp, clear swims—the beginning of healing my relationship with the ocean after a complicated summer.