Actually I am counting the days until I can go home again - presently 15! This is probably a good thing, in the light of the airline chaos, I am hoping it will have cleared up by then. I keep hearing from my friends in Europe, who are either stuck somewhere, or paying exorbitant amounts to cross the English Channel. If you can get a Eurostar ticket, it is a minimum of 250 euros one way. There's also a few people in my hotel in Hobart who are stuck, as they should be taking planes home to Europe from Melbourne, but cannot until at least Monday.

But why count the days? Well, partly I am quite bored by what I am doing here, and partly I am homesick. I think Hobart is a very nice place for a couple of days of holiday and sightseeing, but five weeks of it is a big ask when home is Paris, or probably anywhere so far away. Today I wanted to buy some conditioner for my hair, I had run out - and I knew I certainly wouldn't be able to get what I had been using, which was Kiehl's, but I didn't think it would be so hard to get something that I would like. I spent an hour in the city centre and finally got some Greek Apivita from a rather exclusive-looking shop - the price was exclusive-looking as well. Hobart is like Nicosia as far as shops are concerned, I think, with many small expensive shops that I can't see how they make any money. Plus a selection of the usual chain stores. In fact, in my opinion, Hobart and Nicosia have a lot in common, although I am sure the respective citizens would be horrified to think this, so I won't say it aloud in front of any Tasmanians or Cypriots. And if my readers are either, well, reading is at your own risk.

What do I do here? Well, every morning, I wake up, have breakfast etc, and walk up a steep hill to be at work about 8:30am. I have meetings every day at 9am and 1pm, so at 12 noon, I walk down the hill to get lunch, then back up again, and then finally I walk down again at about 6 or 6:30pm, depending upon what I am doing. Then I walk down to get some dinner and back up again. At weekends I walk up and down many hills in order to explore a bit of the centre of Hobart - I've walked all over the centre, Battery Point (where I am staying) and Sandy Bay.

I have visited some nice shops, there is one called "A Stitch in Time" in Sandy Bay Road, a convenient half hour walk from my hotel. I was there last Saturday, and managed to buy some things on sale, a couple of magazines I didn't have, plus a Just Nan kit, also some things that were not on sale, some green "Stitches and Spice" linen, and the Just Nan winter humbug. There is also the Needlewoman shop in Liverpool St in the centre, which is more for patchwork, but has some nice things, and there is another patchwork shop, "Quilted Crow" further up the same street, and that is very nice, lovely wool felt for emboridery, as well as lots of nice fabrics that I can use for finishing.

But let's hope the skies clear up soon and it is safe for flying again - I'm not sure how our expenses people would take a trans-continental taxi ride!

Happily I have been allowed to have Friday and Monday off, but not Tuesday, which is also a holiday in Tasmania. At least this means I have got some rest, just not on Saturday motning, when they have a market around the corner, for which they start preparing noisily at 5:30am. I was lying in bed muttering about how in Paris markets could be set up quietly several days a week.... the market itself was fairly interesting, especially the food bits, although I thought the crafts were overhyped in general.

I've been going for walks each day, so feel fit and slimmer, at least with all these hills Tasmania should be good for losing some weight. So far I've walked all around the city centre and as far as Sandy Bay, where there is an embroidery shop, that of course was closed for Easter. At least now I know where it is, so I can go back next week. There is also one in the city centre, but it is mostly for patchwork, with some nice stuff, I may have to stock up on fabrics for backing and making things up. No decent knitting shops yet.

The whole place is quite picturesque, but very small - the others on the project tell me that business hours are short and it can get tedious at weekends, as only tourist places are open, and they can be expensive. So it sounds like a cooler version of Cyprus, in fact..... I am amazed at the prices. Yesterday I had breakfast at one of the cafes, and it was 25 dollars for toast, bacon, eggs, mushrooms, tomatoes, orange juice and coffee, and it wasn't that well made either, the eggs were square!

At work things seem very disorganised to me, and it's difficult to tell exactly what they want me to do. There are only a few other people from my company, and one of our partners, although they do include someone I knew very well about ten years ago, which is nice. And she lives across the road from me as well. I'm kind of hoping they don't need me for longer than a month, though, as I find I am homesick for Paris, and just Europe in general.

This is it, as finished in Bangkok Airport Royal Silk Lounge....... I'm not sure the colours show too well, they are quite rich in real life, but it is about 6am. I got wakened by the setting up of the Salamanca Market, at least that's what I presume it is, a lot of trucks and sounds like metal poles and so on down the road in Salamanca Place. Will check when it is light.

I've now started on the LHN Nashville Scissor Bed, only put a few stitches into it so far.