Yoga on his parents verandah at Lawson and shooting hoops on a disused outdoor basketball court at Linden is a far cry from Italy in the grip of the coronavirus pandemic.
But Angus Brandt couldn't be happier. It's an opportunity to spend valuable time with family he's barely seen since leaving Springwood at 18 for a basketball scholarship at Oregon State University in the United States.
"It really has been the silver lining with everything that's happened to spend time with family," the 30 year old said.
The 2.08 metre tall centre was 65 per cent of the way through the season playing for Pistoia Basket in the Italian professional men's basketball league when the country suddenly went into lockdown.
His first priority was to get his fiance Megan Miller, a soccer player he met while at university in the US, out of Italy. She made it to London to stay with his brother Louis for a few weeks, then went on to Washington, to her family.
The plan had been for Brandt to follow suit.
But it took three weeks for the basketball season to be cancelled.
"I was in my apartment, locked down. You were just allowed out to get groceries and to go to the pharmacy," Brandt said.
Everyone was wearing face masks, but in small city of Pistoia, in the Tuscany region, Brandt felt sheltered from the worst hit Milan, some three hours' drive away.
"I never felt like I was close to it. They were locking towns off," he said.
To maintain his strength and flexibility during the apartment lockdown, he signed up to a yoga app and has never looked back.
"I do it every day now and it's great," Brandt said.
"It's been one of those things I tried in the past and it never caught on ... I'm really enjoying it now and can see the value in it for my career. Even when the gyms open I will keep doing it."
When the season was officially cancelled, Brandt boarded a train to Rome and managed to get a flight to Australia, after deciding that joining his fiance wasn't the best idea in a country whose healthcare system was really struggling to cope with the number of COVID-19 cases.
"I was worried I wouldn't be able to get home," Brandt said.
"It was quite stressful. In Italy I didn't notice it, I was just dealing with it day to day. In Italy when I was boarding the flight, a big weight lifted off my shoulders."
After a fortnight's hotel isolation in Sydney, Brandt was overjoyed to see his parents Lorraine and John, and make the most of the space in the Mountains.
"You can take the dog for a walk and the coffee shops are open and without trying to you're doing social distancing," the former Blaxland High student said.
He's been helping his parents with home renovations; sanding back the verandah in preparation for painting, but when he first started the job he wasn't wearing a mask.
The next day his throat was on fire, so he thought he better get tested for coronavirus. Staff at the Katoomba Hospital covid clinic were on alert when they learned he'd recently flown in from Italy.
But the test came back negative.
"Ever since then I've been making sure I wear the mask when sanding," Brandt said.
His fiance wasn't so lucky. Soon after arriving in the US she tested positive for coronavirus, but has recovered quickly. She was expected to reunite with Brandt in Lawson this week, some three months after last seeing each other in person.
Brandt expects to stay in the Mountains for the rest of June, as he considers his next move.
The former Perth Wildcat and Sydney Kings man is considering returning to the NBL but admits his earning potential is greater in Europe than Australia: "It's made my decision a lot harder."
"I'm not ruling out coming back to NBL. I'm not leaning one way or another," Brandt said.
"I'm talking to a few different clubs in Australia and overseas. I'm weighing up my options. I'll take my time as much as possible and see what happens with Covid."
