Fabulous article, Anastasia. Living in Europe is not for the faint of heart, especially in winter.

I grew up in Scotland and I will never forget going to school in the dark and coming our in the same dark. We accepted it then. But now that I am an Australian citizen I shake my head regarding the difficulty that such a climate imposes on people.

My cousin's son is married to a Danish girl, so they are often visiting in winter to ski.

It's not my kind of climate.

Still there's a magic about Europe. There's a quality about people and the way they live.

But like you, I do better with the sun on my back, and accept the winter coat the Canberra dictates for three months. Thereafter all is beautiful.