Steve & Xim first met in July 2015 in Gilgandra, NSW.

At the time, a mutual friend was walking from the northern most tip of Australia, to the bottom of Tasmania to raise funds and awareness of the fallen Australian Soldiers KIA, PTSD and any other post service needs. Steve was one of the ex soldiers that had joined the support crew (just for 3 days) north of Townsville, but by the time Xim met him, he’d decided to complete the entire trip down south.

Xim had taken the trip from Sydney to be part of the support crew for the weekend as the group moved through Dubbo, one of her former stomping grounds! She arrived in Gilgandra on Thursday 17th July and saw a busy bee with a sense of purpose and very serious look on his face! That evening the team, including the Governor of NSW and his wife, ate pizza and drank red wine from paper cups in the local caravan park while we planned the following day in which the tour would hit Downtown Dubbo.

The local RSL in Dubbo had arranged for ex veterans to walk with the crew as they came into town, the local radio station was covering the arrival at Victoria Park later in the day and that evening there was a celebration planned at the Garden Hotel, which was also owned by an ex soldier. Steve and Xim were tasked to “go ahead” to Dubbo to set up marquees, and be the feet at the finish line to handle the building number of people in the park to welcome the entourage.

Xim arrived first (because Steve needed to stop for coffee) and we got underway setting up what we needed to. But then with a few hours to kill, we decided we’d go on what we consider our “first date” to the local bakery for breakfast. Steve proudly showed me pics of his then 8 year old daughter, Tarsha and we shared pieces of our respective stories and how we both ended up in a bakery in Dubbo!

Fast forward around a couple more visits by Xim to that trip via Wagga and then to Tassie (on her birthday), and we both knew we’d see each other beyond this adventure….

Our next adventure together was completing the Kokoda Track, then going to Mount Everest Base Camp, New Zealand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Singapore (Tarsha’s first overseas trip), and then America. It was during this last trip that we made the decision we’d both had enough of the long distance Brisbane / Sydney romance and one of us would have to move.

Xim & Steve bought their 5 acre “Block” just out of Samford, together in June 2019 and Xim completed her relocation from Sydney in August the same year. Therein ends their travels together, with a focus now on building a house. After living in a little “goondie” with an outside toilet, progressing to a single room in a shed, (still with the outside toilet) and then into a 1 bedroom flat in the shed (finally with an internal bathroom), they moved into the house which was “completed” (although not sure it ever will be) in October 2023.

We both now feel the time is right to take the next step in our journey together. We are looking forward to our wedding and reiterating our love of travel by taking a honeymoon afterwards…..