31 days: five

Manly has oodles of places to eat, drink and generally have a good time but one of my favourites is Il Gondoliere on Whistler Street. Authentic, tiny, always bustling, with red checked plastic table cloths, BYO and the best fettuccine amatriciana I've ever had, this little spot is a local gem. Pete and I had a fab night of catching up, movie watching and getting our italian on. Definitely the highlight of the day.

31 days: four

Catching up with old friends has got to be one of the top feel good things to do. Bavarian Bier Cafe in Manly. Two good friends. Huge tankards of beer and good food (goulash - amazing). Great conversations. Brilliant night full of giggles and distracting the lovely waitress Monica from her work (in a nice way, she laughed with...at...us).

31 Days: Three

I have something to confess. My thirty-one days are not in order. Life is pretty hectic right now and I'm doing my best to get snaptastic* and blog each day - but with wrapping up at work, catching up with friends, organising furniture sales and shipping, it's proving difficult to post in chronological order. So I'm going to skip forward a few days, which makes it look like I'm on a permanent weekend. Sadly, I'm not.

On Saturday I arrived at the Sydney Convention & Exhibition Centre in Darling Harbour for my last photography assignment for the Reed Gift Fair. It's usually 9 busy hours of running around several exhibition halls packed with hundreds of wholesalers exhibiting gorgeous homewares, interiors, lighting and giftware, all merchandised beautifully, shooting to my heart's content. Needless to say, I adore my time here and it really is a joy, as tiring as it can be. I've been the official photographer for the event for the past few years and I've loved every minute. The team are all just fantastic - some of the loveliest people you'll ever meet and, man, are they good at what they do. Taking me with them to shoot events in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane, I've always felt like a part of the team and I will miss these catch ups.

*this word belongs in the 'Kate & Em dictionary' that we have been cultivating for the past few years. It's descriptive, its totally made up and it works!

31 days: two

To prove it to you, this really is what day two looks like. A Sunday. A walk to Angel in Queenscliff (my favourite local cafe). A catch up with 6 of my friends. Lots of poached eggs, avocado and coffee. Delicious.

It's not always sunny and sparkling in Sydney. I'll let you into a secret - I actually adore days like this - overcast, drizzly, a bit chilly. I love them because it means you can walk on the beach and hardly see a soul. Stroll down to the village and feel like a proper local, devoid of tourists wriggling into bikinis and boardies off for a surf. And best of all, you can snuggle down with a book and a cup of tea without feeling guilty for not being active and athletic outside, making the most of the sunshine.