We find ourselves here again all too quickly, the days are getting shorter and the weather is rapidly cooling. Every year winter seems to sneak up and take us by surprise.   

How can we embrace all that winter has to offer? These hibernation months allow us to cosy up and embrace the Danish concept of Hygge – the idealism of pleasure, luxury and appreciation of winter comforts.  

One way to enjoy a pleasant season is to break free of the SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder) and lean into what makes winter wonderful by staying busy and engaged.  

What activities can you do during winter?

With more time indoors away from the elements, interior friendly pursuits are preferable.  

With extra time on your hands, winter is the perfect time to take stock, regroup and tick some things off your to-do list. Or do something that brings you joy and welcome the warm and fuzzies this winter.  

Smiling girl playing a guitar at home

10 Winter friendly courses

1. Take care of your health and wellbeing, relax and stretch those muscles with yoga –   Yoga: Beginners & Continuing 

2. Use the time to take control of  your financial future – Introduction to Share Markets and Cryptocurrency 

3. Warm up and make a fun addition to the home that family and friends will enjoy for years to come –  How to Build a Traditional Wood Fired Oven 

4. Start nesting and learn to love your space again – Declutter and Get Organised  

5. Gain a new skill that will take you places – Learn a language 

6. The classic winter activity for the classic winter comfort food –  Introduction to Basic Bread Making 

7. Time for introspection and reflection, explore your rich personal history –  Life Writing Workshop 

8. Expand your mind without leaving home – Watch an online talk  

9. How lovely it would be to wile away the winter hours with the mindfulness activity that produces beautiful outcomes –  Drawing: Beginners 

10. Master your computer and discover just how efficient technology can work for you – Introduction to Personal Computers & the Internet 

Cooking Classes | CAE Short Courses

Winter Book Club

Have you considered starting a book club this winter? CAE Book Groups will have you covered.  

Book groups are the ultimate winter activity –  Stay social, snuggle up with a good book and keep your brain active. 

With thousands of titles to choose from in the Book Groups catalogue, with everything from the latest prize winners and bestselling contemporary fiction, to classics, biography, memoir, travel writing and art – there’s sure to be something you want to read! 

To get you started, here are the Book Groups suggestions for winter.  

CAE Book Groups is Australia's largest book club

5 what to read in winter recommendations

1. ‘The Odyssey’ By Homer [B0335] 

Odysseus’ long voyage home from the Trojan War takes him through the terrors of the Cyclops, the seductive Sirens, and the wandering islands, before he finally reaches Ithaca and his faithful Penelope. This early Greek epic has inspired writers and artists in later ages. 

2. Rebecca’ By Daphne du Maurier [B1137] 

Max de Winter’s second wife lives with him in a suffocating atmosphere of mystery and rising menace, as she becomes vested in the mystery of what became of his first wife, the dazzling Rebecca. A classic thriller and still a gripping story even if you know Hitchcock’s film version. 

3. ‘Cloudstreet’ By Tim Winton [B1269] 

Two families of ordinary people – battlers and losers – share a ramshackle old Perth house called Cloudstreet. Over twenty years, the ups and downs of their lives bring them and the house closer together in this sprawling, moving novel. 

4. ‘Miss Smilla’s Feeling for Snow’ By Peter Høeg [B1413] 

A small boy fell to his death from the roof of an apartment block. But was this really an accidental death? Smilla Jaspersen, descended from the Inuit people of Greenland, has a feeling for snow – and she thinks not. The action moves from Denmark to the Arctic icecap, and snow and ice, beauty and extremity are central to the world of this unusual thriller. 

5. ‘At Home’ By Bill Bryson [B2096] 

An entertaining, witty and illuminating look at how history shapes our everyday lives. From the history of hygiene that is brought to bear in the bathroom, to nutrition and the spice trade that are brought home to the kitchen. His great skill is making daily life simultaneously strange and familiar, helping us to recognise ourselves.