Hindsight.

Christ, we're halfway through december already. By now, 2006 is stumbling through the retirement home, hunched over a walking cane, harrassing the nurses and stealing pudding while everyone knows pudding gives him indigestion. 2007, however, is about to be born.

Time for an ultra-quick recap, with an interesting twist at the end (just like 2006 itself).

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This year, assuming I'll be able to finish Fforde's The Big Over Easy, I'll have read 21 books, which is four more than 2005, so not bad. Best book, for me, this year, was Carlos Ruiz Zafon's The Shadow Of The Wind. I've never been to Barcelona, but this book gave me the idea that I know the city intimately, and love it passionately.

A memorable mention to Orson Scott Card's sci-fi classic Ender's Game, which, hopefully, bodes well for the other books in the Ender Saga.

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A mediocre yet interesting year in film. Mediocre because there weren't all that many really good new films, and interesting because I decided to keep a list of the films I'd seen (interesting to me, at least).

So far, I've seen 183 films. Disappointingly enough, only 21 of those I saw at the cinema. Among these 21 were gems like Scorsese's The Departed and, surprisingly enough, Casino Royale (told you it wasn't all that good a year), but there was also some serious shit on offer, like X-men III and The DaVinci Code.

The best films seen this year is last year's favourite and this century's first classic King Kong and the amazingly depressing and brutally honest Requiem For A Dream.

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A good year in music, mainly because my precious iPod rekindled my waning interest in music, and filling its four gigs with the best music I could find became my personal mission.

Best song is easy - Damien Rice's 9 Crimes. Lisa Hannigan's pained vocals + a cello gently swaying in the background + Rice's raw voice + a crescendoeing end combining all three of these elements = a terribly, terribly good song.

Best album was slightly more difficult, with so much good music on offer. However, in hindsight, the honour (pshaw) goes to The Infadels with their blisteringly original yet paradoxically titled album We Are Not The Infadels. Give this a listen.

Memorable mentions:

- 9 by Damien Rice
- Eyes Open by Snow Patrol
- Sam's Town by The Killers

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For me, personally, it was a pretty damn good year. I'm a sucker for travelling, so this year, with a few days spent in London at the year's start, and several more spent in Paris halfway through the year, I'd say it was pretty decent.

It was my second trip to London, so no more sight-seeing - this time, culture with the British Museum and Tate Modern, and liquor, dancing but, alas, no fireworks, at the New Year's celebration.

Despite it being my fourth or fifth visit to Paris, I cannot not see the Eiffel Tower, which will never cease to amaze me with its grandeur and just all-round hugeness. The rest of the trip was spent either strolling through the Disney resort or strolling through the city itself.

Oh, and I graduated from University. Pretty damn nice, too, methinks.

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Speaking of travelling ...

As mentioned, last year I spent my New Years in London, which was a blast. This year, however, I'll spend slightly more time on a plane, because this year I will be counting down the last seconds of the year and partying and dancing with people I hardly know in ... (wait for it) ... Sydney, Australia.

Yay!

And that's only the beginning - starting december 28th, my girlfriend and I will be doing some serious backpacking through Oz for at least a six month period. New Years in Sydney, and after that, it's anyone's guess. We'll be buying a car, and head for the sunset.

2006 was good. 2007 will be awesome.

Cheers, mate.