Woo! YEAH! First time Snowboarding! AWESOME!
It was the annual Sony ski trip and I managed to get a last minute ride with the group after one person decided to cancel and sell his seat.

We went up to Mammoth Mountain by bus, about 6 hours drive north of LA in the Sierras.

We got a sweet condo overlooking the mountain and the ski resort which also included an outdoor hot tub.

It hasn’t been snowing at Mammoth for a while so the snow was running a bit low, but nevertheless more than enough to satisfy a beginner.

On Saturday, I went over to the resort to buy a beginner’s package which included board and boot rental, lift tickets, and a snow boarding lesson.

After the three hour lesson, I felt like a pro, and was already taking the lift and conquering the basic slopes. I fell on my butt a few times and was pretty sore by the end of the day. I loved it though, I was having the time of my life.

The next day, I planned to take a gondola lift to the top of the mountain to take some pictures, but when I woke up and open the windows, I was ecstatic to see that it was actually snowing outside! I was so happy as I hadn’t seen snow fall in years.

It must have been snowing for a while too! This is the before and after shot from the window of the condo:

I took some shots of snow on the trees and icicles. Click on any of the pictures to view the gallery.

Before we had to pack up and head to the bus, me and Keith decided to go nuts and jump in the outdoor hot tub for a while. It was still snowing

It’s been a month since the last post, but it’s not because I haven’t been up to much, but rather I was just too lazy to write anything. In fact this month has been pretty full on as I went home to Australia for the Christmas and New Years break to catch up with family and friends.

I had 2 weeks off but unfortunately it wasn’t enough to get around to most of my friends. So for those that I missed, I’m sorry, and there is always next time!

I spent most of the time in my home town (if there is such a thing in my case) of Newcastle.

It’s funny how much can change in a year. You meet up with friends who have gained weight, lost weight, had kids, got married, etc. etc. I think a lot of people were surprised that I hadn’t changed much at all. You would think 1 year in crazy LA would surely change a person right?

Yasser will always be Yasser. I’m as constant as the Number 1.

I have been to the Sydney New Years eve fireworks show quite a few times now but I had always wondered what it would be like to actually attend the NYE Gala Concert inside the Opera House. I never went cause the ticket prices were always so hefty, but this year I decided to fork out the extra buck and go!

They held 2 orchestra sets in the Opera House with a break in-between for the 9pm fireworks, and finishing just before the midnight show.
With such a VIP view of the fireworks and without a gazillion people pushing you out of the way, it was worth every penny.

Click the images below to view the gallery:

I arrived back in LA yesterday morning, and I hope the new year will also bring along some more adventures here in the USA.

Happy New Year everyone.