i think i may have accidentally glossed over something in my last blog that is... kind of a big deal.
my boyfriend is picking up his life, quitting a job that he enjoys and lets him spend every day with his best friend, leaving the football team he has been working with for years, leaving his friends and family, and moving hundreds of miles away to this deserted sink hole (for the record, that's about two steps up from a God-forsaken hell hole).
don't get me wrong, i am starting to get used to tucson, and even enjoy it at times. but it definitely cannot compare to a place that offers all of the comforts of home and family - and of course disneyland! i know that my boyfriend is glad to move here to be close to me and start to resume a somewhat-normal dating life again. and i know he is excited for so many new adventures: a new job, new place to live, new friends (hopefully!)...
but i know (and need to keep remembering) that he is making a lot of sacrifices for me - for us. and i need to remember to be appreciative and thank him!
Wednesday, December 8, 2010
Friday, December 3, 2010
things are happening
i definitely needed a blogging break, but i didn't expect it to last quite this long.
things have been incredibly busy over the past few weeks. i have been swamped at work (largely because of my own delays - more on that later), and have had visitors or been out of town every weekend since halloween. it has been a long few weeks, and yet a fast few weeks, all at the same time.
anyways, i have been a lucky girl in the past 6 weeks. i am getting some additional responsibility at work, which is great. and, my boyfriend has found a job and an apartment in the same town as me, and he will be moving out here in two weeks! this is really exciting, and i am totally looking forward to it! we haven't lived within 30 miles of each other for a year and a half, so i'm sure it will take some getting used to. in a good way.
things have been incredibly busy over the past few weeks. i have been swamped at work (largely because of my own delays - more on that later), and have had visitors or been out of town every weekend since halloween. it has been a long few weeks, and yet a fast few weeks, all at the same time.
anyways, i have been a lucky girl in the past 6 weeks. i am getting some additional responsibility at work, which is great. and, my boyfriend has found a job and an apartment in the same town as me, and he will be moving out here in two weeks! this is really exciting, and i am totally looking forward to it! we haven't lived within 30 miles of each other for a year and a half, so i'm sure it will take some getting used to. in a good way.
Tuesday, October 19, 2010
day 25. the worst day.
sigh. even writing about our last hours in australia makes me sad!
we woke up, checked out of the hostel, and hit the road with what we thought was plenty of time to get back to sydney airport. just like every other flight, we ended up being much later than anticipated. although the drive was fine, it took much longer than we planned for - and we got a bit sidetracked, even though we had a gps.
so, we pulled into the rental car return with only about 10 minutes to run to the counter and check in within the 2 hour deadline. unfortunately, the hertz return spaces were not very well marked, and the one hertz employee was not particularly helpful to us - making it a bit more frenzied as we tried to hurry the process. we finally got him to help us, and we ran off in search of the check-in counter.
there was a very long line to check in, and, unlike our other rushes to the airport, there was no customer service desk at the qantas international check-in. so we were stuck in line, with the minutes to check-in ticking down. 9... 8... we had hardly moved in the line. 7... 6... we were still 10 or 15 people away from the front of the line. i started to wander in search of someone to ask about skipping ahead in line. i finally ran into a woman who was clearly headed out on her break, but i stopped her anyways...
"excuse me, my friend and i are dreadfully late, and are just about to miss our check-in time for the flight to san francisco."
"where are you headed?"
"san francisco"
"oh, you still have another 30 minutes to check in."
"oh! i thought we had to check in 2 hours before the flight?"
"no, just 90 minutes."
it was another airport miracle! missing our flight home would have been fantastic in some ways (i would not have minded another few days in australia!), but also would have sucked in other ways (i don't even want to know how much it costs to buy a one-way ticket from sydney to SF just a day or two before the flight).
we were able to breathe a bit more normally after finding out we had more time. after checking our luggage (and watching the security dog train on the plain clothes officer pretending to check in next to us), making a quick bathroom stop, and passing through security, we headed straight for the duty free shop. we had planned for weeks to do some shopping in the airport. there were a few things that we knew we wanted that were either inconvenient to lug around with us (i.e., australian beer), or were better to purchase at the airport (i.e., cheesy souveniers). as we were shopping, we very quickly realized that there was no beer in the duty free! only wine and hard alcohol! this was really disappointing, as we both had planned to take some back with us, and we could have picked 6-packs up at any number of gas stations or stores we had stopped at or driven past. boo!
we also didn't have quite as much time as we had hoped (remember how we planned to be there with plenty of time before our 2-hour deadline?), so we didn't get to do as much shopping as we would have liked. but, we got a few last minute things, and headed to the gate. as much as i did NOT want to, it was time to board. we got onto the plane, settled into our seats, and said goodbye to the wonderful land of oz. :'(
we woke up, checked out of the hostel, and hit the road with what we thought was plenty of time to get back to sydney airport. just like every other flight, we ended up being much later than anticipated. although the drive was fine, it took much longer than we planned for - and we got a bit sidetracked, even though we had a gps.
so, we pulled into the rental car return with only about 10 minutes to run to the counter and check in within the 2 hour deadline. unfortunately, the hertz return spaces were not very well marked, and the one hertz employee was not particularly helpful to us - making it a bit more frenzied as we tried to hurry the process. we finally got him to help us, and we ran off in search of the check-in counter.
there was a very long line to check in, and, unlike our other rushes to the airport, there was no customer service desk at the qantas international check-in. so we were stuck in line, with the minutes to check-in ticking down. 9... 8... we had hardly moved in the line. 7... 6... we were still 10 or 15 people away from the front of the line. i started to wander in search of someone to ask about skipping ahead in line. i finally ran into a woman who was clearly headed out on her break, but i stopped her anyways...
"excuse me, my friend and i are dreadfully late, and are just about to miss our check-in time for the flight to san francisco."
"where are you headed?"
"san francisco"
"oh, you still have another 30 minutes to check in."
"oh! i thought we had to check in 2 hours before the flight?"
"no, just 90 minutes."
it was another airport miracle! missing our flight home would have been fantastic in some ways (i would not have minded another few days in australia!), but also would have sucked in other ways (i don't even want to know how much it costs to buy a one-way ticket from sydney to SF just a day or two before the flight).
we were able to breathe a bit more normally after finding out we had more time. after checking our luggage (and watching the security dog train on the plain clothes officer pretending to check in next to us), making a quick bathroom stop, and passing through security, we headed straight for the duty free shop. we had planned for weeks to do some shopping in the airport. there were a few things that we knew we wanted that were either inconvenient to lug around with us (i.e., australian beer), or were better to purchase at the airport (i.e., cheesy souveniers). as we were shopping, we very quickly realized that there was no beer in the duty free! only wine and hard alcohol! this was really disappointing, as we both had planned to take some back with us, and we could have picked 6-packs up at any number of gas stations or stores we had stopped at or driven past. boo!
we also didn't have quite as much time as we had hoped (remember how we planned to be there with plenty of time before our 2-hour deadline?), so we didn't get to do as much shopping as we would have liked. but, we got a few last minute things, and headed to the gate. as much as i did NOT want to, it was time to board. we got onto the plane, settled into our seats, and said goodbye to the wonderful land of oz. :'(
Sunday, October 17, 2010
byron bay and big banana
we woke up a little early so that we could spend some time enjoying the sights of byron bay. first stop: the beach. the beach was just a couple of blocks from our hostel, and even though it was a bit overcast, it was great to be on the soft sand and see the rocks and waves. we walked along the beach a bit, and then hopped back in the car to head to the lookout point.
byron bay beach
(you can kind of see the lighthouse on the hill)
we drove up the windy single lane road, to the lighthouse. byron bay is the easternmost point of australia, and the lighthouse / lookout point is situated on a little peninsula that juts out into the south pacific. so from the lighthouse, we could look behind us and see the beaches on both sides of the peninsula - beautiful! the view the other direction was just as beautiful, and it was made even more spectacular by the dozen or so whales we saw playing in the water. the were mostly spouting water up out of their blowholes, but we saw a few whales breaching off in the distance. i started talking to the whales that were closer to us, and told them they should jump out of the water so that we could see them - and i counted down from 10. i promise you, i got to "one" and one of the whales breached! he was a second early, but i definitely forgave him! we stood at the lookout for a long time, enjoying the whales, and we even saw a few more as we walked back to our car - we couldn't stop staring at the ocean! it was absolutely incredible to be standing on the shore and still see so many whales!
byron bay lighthouse
sarah-mae pointing home
unfortunately, we did have to get on the road. and our drive was nice, and mostly uneventful. one of the highlights was seeing "the big banana" in coffs harbor. australia has a lot of "big" things - a big koala, a big mango (which we saw near airlie beach), a big boxing croc... and one of the most famous is the big banana. we hoped to try and see more, but it was hard to make it out to them, as a lot of them are a ways off the beaten path. BUT, the big banana is situated right on the freeway, so it was perfect for us.
we drove down to port macquarie, where we stopped at a delicious italian cafe for dinner - and it was "buy one get one free" pasta night - yay! then, we kept driving for another hour or so until we got to newcastle, where we found the local YHA. i went in, and not a moment too soon, because she said that they were about to close the office. but, we were able to get a room and we unloaded our bags (something we repeatedly referred to as "bag vomit") and re-packed them to be ready for our flight. it was hard to believe that our time in australia was coming to an end! we still had about two hours to drive in the morning, so we headed to bed as soon as our things were packed.
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
koalas and more
the next morning, we planned to visit lone pine koala sanctuary, a small animal park up the river from brisbane. we took a ferry up the river to lone pine, riding past a number of brisbane neighborhoods, and a colony of fruit bats. it was a great way to start our day!
once our ferry arrived at lone pine, we headed in with just enough time to see the koala talk, where the lone pine staff member told us more about koalas - and she had to break apart two males who were starting to fight. after the koala talk, we headed over to a bird talk, where we saw a lot of birds of prey (another instance when sarah-mae should be writing this!). the guides had a new barking owl that they were incorporating in the show, and it was hilarious because she was very uncooperative. they kept throwing a (dead) mouse in the air so that she would nab it mid-air, but she would just watch it hit the ground.
after the bird show, we walked around some of the koala spaces and watched the koalas munching on leaves, climbing trees, and generally hanging out (ha ha). then, we headed to the koala cuddling zone to hold a koala! there wasn't anyone in line, so we were able to scoot right up and take turns holding (and taking pictures with) vinnie. vinnie was a young girl koala, and was so soft! i thought her fur would be coarse, but it was very soft - thick, but soft and kind of squishy. she scratched my arm a bit, but it was worth it!
after our photoshoot with vinnie, we grabbed some lunch and tried to ignore the giant bush turkey and peacock who were begging for food from tables. then, we walked through the koala areas that had babies - they were SO adorable! it was starting to rain, so some of them looked a little wet and matted, but the babies were so cute clinging to the fronts and backs of their moms. so cute!
while at lone pine, we also got to see adorable dingo puppies, sombats, tasmanian devils (that were running around in circles chasing each other), a yellow possum (that was sticking its butt out), and a platypus. it was neat to see all of these aussie animals! we also got to wander through the kangaroo reserve, where we could feed the kangaroos, wallabies, and pademelons. well, the pademelons would just run (jump?) away after i got close to them. the kangaroos were very friendly, and so were the wallabies, although they ate incredibly slowly... just one. little. pellet. at. a. time.
on the negative side, the rain was really starting to come down, so it made it a little less pleasant to walk around with the roos and wallabies and chase down the pademelons. we got pretty wet! so, we finished feeding the animals and headed out to the bus. a little bit rain-soaked, we rode back into brisbane city centre, and picked up our last rental car. after heading back to the hostel to pick up our gear, we started our final drive down to sydney. it's a long drive from brisbane to sydney, so we drove just a couple of hours that night and stayed the night in byron bay.
once our ferry arrived at lone pine, we headed in with just enough time to see the koala talk, where the lone pine staff member told us more about koalas - and she had to break apart two males who were starting to fight. after the koala talk, we headed over to a bird talk, where we saw a lot of birds of prey (another instance when sarah-mae should be writing this!). the guides had a new barking owl that they were incorporating in the show, and it was hilarious because she was very uncooperative. they kept throwing a (dead) mouse in the air so that she would nab it mid-air, but she would just watch it hit the ground.
after the bird show, we walked around some of the koala spaces and watched the koalas munching on leaves, climbing trees, and generally hanging out (ha ha). then, we headed to the koala cuddling zone to hold a koala! there wasn't anyone in line, so we were able to scoot right up and take turns holding (and taking pictures with) vinnie. vinnie was a young girl koala, and was so soft! i thought her fur would be coarse, but it was very soft - thick, but soft and kind of squishy. she scratched my arm a bit, but it was worth it!
after our photoshoot with vinnie, we grabbed some lunch and tried to ignore the giant bush turkey and peacock who were begging for food from tables. then, we walked through the koala areas that had babies - they were SO adorable! it was starting to rain, so some of them looked a little wet and matted, but the babies were so cute clinging to the fronts and backs of their moms. so cute!
while at lone pine, we also got to see adorable dingo puppies, sombats, tasmanian devils (that were running around in circles chasing each other), a yellow possum (that was sticking its butt out), and a platypus. it was neat to see all of these aussie animals! we also got to wander through the kangaroo reserve, where we could feed the kangaroos, wallabies, and pademelons. well, the pademelons would just run (jump?) away after i got close to them. the kangaroos were very friendly, and so were the wallabies, although they ate incredibly slowly... just one. little. pellet. at. a. time.
on the negative side, the rain was really starting to come down, so it made it a little less pleasant to walk around with the roos and wallabies and chase down the pademelons. we got pretty wet! so, we finished feeding the animals and headed out to the bus. a little bit rain-soaked, we rode back into brisbane city centre, and picked up our last rental car. after heading back to the hostel to pick up our gear, we started our final drive down to sydney. it's a long drive from brisbane to sydney, so we drove just a couple of hours that night and stayed the night in byron bay.
Sunday, October 10, 2010
seeing the sights in brisbane
after we miraculously were on time for the 4:30 flight, we realized that this tiny airport was, a) filled with children. filled.; and b) had absolutely no security. we just walked out to the plane when it was time to board. i will skip over the part where the plane had propellers, and the part where i couldn't change seats because i might throw off the balance of the plane, and will just say that we made it to brisbane in one piece.
we headed to the brisbane backpackers, where sarah-mae had lived for most of her time in brisbane, checked in, and then went to the west end to grab some dinner. it was saturday night, so there were lots of people out, enjoying the bars and restaurants down the main street. after dinner, we headed back to our room at the hostel and got a good night's sleep.
the next morning, we got up early and headed downtown. we walked past the museum, library, and performing arts centre, across the queen street bridge, through the queen street mall, and over to a bus stop to head out to mount coot-tha. mount coot-tha is a mountain just outside of the city, that offers an incredible lookout. it did not disappoint!
performing arts centre
brisbane river and central business district
brisbane, from mount coot-tha lookout
after enjoying the lookout, we headed downhill to the botanic gardens. we wandered around the gardens for about an hour, saw a wedding, a lot of plants and trees, and some bush turkeys, too. after leaving the gardens, we walked along the river, to the west end market, which is open on sundays. it was great to wander through the booths and enjoy something that sarah-mae got to do on a regular basis while she was there before.
after the market, we decided to hop on the ferry and ride up to the university of queensland. we wandered around the campus, which was pretty empty because it was a sunday, and the day before spring break. but it was great to see the sandstone buildings, open grassy spaces, and some of the student hang-out areas. it was also great to hear some of sarah-mae's stories from her time there almost 10 years ago.
UQ ferry stop
sarah-mae at her old stomping grounds
Saturday, October 9, 2010
goodbye, heron island :(
for our last day on heron island, sarah-mae got up early to watch the sun rise, and she was rewarded with a sight that was unbelievably beautiful (or so i assume, based on the photos - i was enjoying my last morning on heron island sleeping in!).
while i was being doted on at the spa, sarah-mae got to take a guided bird walk around the island. when we met up, she walked me back to where the island's resident greater frigate had landed in a tree. apparently, these are very rarely seen birds, as they spend so much time out on the ocean. (this is where sarah-mae should have been writing the entry!).
we decided to spend a little bit more time on the beach (one last hour!), and then just before it was time to head to the ferry, we sat on the patio, played scrabble, and had a snack. it was the perfect way to spend our last time on heron island!
eventually, we had to head to the ferry :( it was time to leave the island. unfortunately, the ferry was about 40 minutes late, which made our timing to catch our 4:30 flight a bit closer than we would have preferred. on the ferry, we were about half way back, when the captain suddenly stopped the engine. he got on the loudspeaker and announced that there were some whales and dolphins just off the front of the boat! we grabbed our cameras and ran out on to the bow. and we were rewarded with a few dolphins (one of which jumped out of the water right next to the boat!), and a baby humpback with its mother. it was incredible!
dolphin!
you can't really tell, but this is a baby humpback breaching!
unfortunately, the whale stop, combined with the already delayed ferry, meant that we were going to be very late for our flight. very late. we were supposed to arrive at the marina at 3pm, and hop in the shuttle for a 10 minute drive to the airport, with plenty of time for our 4:30 flight. well, we arrived at the marina at about 4pm. there was nothing for us to do, but to head to the airport and see what our options were.
we arrived at tiny gladstone airport at 4:15 (for our 4:30 flight), grabbed our luggage, and headed to the check-in counter. we explained our situation, and the woman took a deep breath, and said, "well, your flight is delayed, so you are fine." we were in shock! it was another miracle!
Tuesday, October 5, 2010
my fake 30th birthday
we decided that friday would be my celebratory birthday, and even though i really prefer to sleep in on my birthday, i agreed to wake up early, walk out to the eastern point of the island, and watch the sun rise. how many times in my life will i get to see the sun rise over the pacific ocean? or be one of the first people on the planet to greet the new day?
needless to say, it was beautiful, and an incredible experience. we continued our walk around the perimeter of the island before signing up for the 11am snorkel and heading to breakfast. after breakfast, we headed back to our room to take a quick nap before snorkel time. morning snorkel was fantastic! the best by far! we saw a lot of fish, including an anenome fish, and a blow fish. and... we saw two turtles! one of them was very close to us, and we swam behind it for a while. it started to swim faster, and, even though the snorkel guides warned us not to "ride turtles or chase sharks," sarah-mae took off after the turtle and tried to chase it back towards my direction - she prefered to focus on the letter of the law, rather than the spirit of it. but the turtle was left unharmed, and it swam back toward me for a while, so everyone was happy. (especially me!) we definitely did not want to get out of the water when it was time to head back!
after a fantastic morning snorkel, we decided to spend the rest of the day on the beach, and maybe snorkel off the beach in the afternoon - we definitely weren't going to top our morning snorkel! so, we grabbed our stuff and hit the beach. it wasn't as hot as the day before, so at least it was pleasant to relax on the beach and read. every once in a while i waded out into the water and joined sarah-mae, but mostly i layed on the beach and read. that is a dream birthday to me!
eventually, we headed to the gantry (the original boat dock on the island, where now only the old wooden gantry sits) to snorkel a bit. we didn't head far off shore, but the tide was coming in, so we were still able to see a lot of fish. we even saw another turtle! it was fantastic!
after our self-snorkeling, we headed back to get ready for sunset happy hour and dinner. we had another beautiful sunset, and, as we walked down the path, sarah-mae noticed some turtles in the water, just a few feet from the walled edge! in fact, there were about half a dozen turtles swimming around, playing, and burrowing in the sand.
dinner on my birthday wasn't great - the vegetarian options left something to be desired. so instead, i'll focus on the redeeming factor: dessert. sarah-mae and i both had a delicious chocolate and strawberry torte - it was incredibly delicious, and the waiter even put a candle in mine! it was a great way to celebrate my birthday, and a great finish to our unbelievably fantastic day!
what light from yonder ocean breaks?
needless to say, it was beautiful, and an incredible experience. we continued our walk around the perimeter of the island before signing up for the 11am snorkel and heading to breakfast. after breakfast, we headed back to our room to take a quick nap before snorkel time. morning snorkel was fantastic! the best by far! we saw a lot of fish, including an anenome fish, and a blow fish. and... we saw two turtles! one of them was very close to us, and we swam behind it for a while. it started to swim faster, and, even though the snorkel guides warned us not to "ride turtles or chase sharks," sarah-mae took off after the turtle and tried to chase it back towards my direction - she prefered to focus on the letter of the law, rather than the spirit of it. but the turtle was left unharmed, and it swam back toward me for a while, so everyone was happy. (especially me!) we definitely did not want to get out of the water when it was time to head back!
after a fantastic morning snorkel, we decided to spend the rest of the day on the beach, and maybe snorkel off the beach in the afternoon - we definitely weren't going to top our morning snorkel! so, we grabbed our stuff and hit the beach. it wasn't as hot as the day before, so at least it was pleasant to relax on the beach and read. every once in a while i waded out into the water and joined sarah-mae, but mostly i layed on the beach and read. that is a dream birthday to me!
eventually, we headed to the gantry (the original boat dock on the island, where now only the old wooden gantry sits) to snorkel a bit. we didn't head far off shore, but the tide was coming in, so we were still able to see a lot of fish. we even saw another turtle! it was fantastic!
after our self-snorkeling, we headed back to get ready for sunset happy hour and dinner. we had another beautiful sunset, and, as we walked down the path, sarah-mae noticed some turtles in the water, just a few feet from the walled edge! in fact, there were about half a dozen turtles swimming around, playing, and burrowing in the sand.
dinner on my birthday wasn't great - the vegetarian options left something to be desired. so instead, i'll focus on the redeeming factor: dessert. sarah-mae and i both had a delicious chocolate and strawberry torte - it was incredibly delicious, and the waiter even put a candle in mine! it was a great way to celebrate my birthday, and a great finish to our unbelievably fantastic day!
Sunday, October 3, 2010
heaven, day 2
for our first full day on heron, we planned to sleep as late as possible, but still make breakfast before they closed (i.e., 9am). we enjoyed the breakfast buffet, and then headed over to the marine center to sign up for the 11am snorkel boat. we grabbed our gear and headed out to the dock. there was a full boat of divers, and an almost full boat of snorkelers, and both boats headed out to the edge of the reef off the north end of the island.
i was a little nervous to snorkel out to sea, but sarah-mae was a good snorkel buddy, and made sure i was safe and secure. we saw way more fish than we had seen at bali hai. we even saw a shark only a few minutes after being in the water! we took a ton of pictures with our underwater cameras (the film hasn't been developed yet, so you are out of luck for those pictures for now) - it was incredible to see an underwater world teeming with life!
eventually, our snorkeling hour was up, and we climbed back into the boat and headed back to the island. we made a quick stop by the marine center to sign up for the afternoon snorkel boat, and then headed to the beach. i knew that i wanted to spend at least an hour on the beach every day, so after a quick snack in our room (we had brought some supplies with us), we hit the beach. it was H-O-T, but beautiful and wonderful, and i loved every sun-baking minute of it. if i could, i would spend every day reading on such a gorgeous beach.
i'm pretty sure sarah-mae was ready to go long before i was, but eventually, we had to head in to make our afternoon snorkel boat. this time there were fewer people, so the divers and snorkelers shared one boat. we headed to a similar spot as the morning, and jumped out to join the fish. it's hard to believe, but we saw even more fish - and lots of different kinds! we even saw an octopus, which sarah-mae said snorkelers RARELY see, especially during the day! we also saw a giant clam and a sea star. it was another fantastic snorkel session!
we came back to land with a few more great stories, and after a quick shower, we headed to the bar (and patio) for our sunset happy hour. not surprisingly, it was again incredibly gorgeous and wonderful!
after our sunset, we headed to dinner, which again was not as tasty as it was fancy, although the waitress let me eat the kids meal (brocoli and pasta with red sauce) - which was wonderfully delicious! over dinner, we made our plans for the next day...
just before our first heron snorkel...
i was a little nervous to snorkel out to sea, but sarah-mae was a good snorkel buddy, and made sure i was safe and secure. we saw way more fish than we had seen at bali hai. we even saw a shark only a few minutes after being in the water! we took a ton of pictures with our underwater cameras (the film hasn't been developed yet, so you are out of luck for those pictures for now) - it was incredible to see an underwater world teeming with life!
eventually, our snorkeling hour was up, and we climbed back into the boat and headed back to the island. we made a quick stop by the marine center to sign up for the afternoon snorkel boat, and then headed to the beach. i knew that i wanted to spend at least an hour on the beach every day, so after a quick snack in our room (we had brought some supplies with us), we hit the beach. it was H-O-T, but beautiful and wonderful, and i loved every sun-baking minute of it. if i could, i would spend every day reading on such a gorgeous beach.
i'm pretty sure sarah-mae was ready to go long before i was, but eventually, we had to head in to make our afternoon snorkel boat. this time there were fewer people, so the divers and snorkelers shared one boat. we headed to a similar spot as the morning, and jumped out to join the fish. it's hard to believe, but we saw even more fish - and lots of different kinds! we even saw an octopus, which sarah-mae said snorkelers RARELY see, especially during the day! we also saw a giant clam and a sea star. it was another fantastic snorkel session!
we came back to land with a few more great stories, and after a quick shower, we headed to the bar (and patio) for our sunset happy hour. not surprisingly, it was again incredibly gorgeous and wonderful!
after our sunset, we headed to dinner, which again was not as tasty as it was fancy, although the waitress let me eat the kids meal (brocoli and pasta with red sauce) - which was wonderfully delicious! over dinner, we made our plans for the next day...
Saturday, October 2, 2010
after spending the night in gladstone, we headed to the airport in the morning to return our rental car and catch the shuttle to the marina. once at the marina, we boarded the heron island ferry and started our journey to heron island.
heron island is a small island (it takes about 30 minutes to walk all the way around), about 2 hours off the coast of gladstone, out on the great barrier reef. heron island is a bird and turtle sanctuary, and is surrounded by a coral cay. on the island there is research station on one side, and a resort on the other. when sarah-mae was in australia before, she spent time on the island - at the research station. it was what sparked our plans to journey back down under when we turned 30, and was really planned to be the best part of the trip (spoiler alert: it was!)
the ferry ride out was fantastic, although sarah quickly had to move to the shade since she forgot to put sunscreen in her day bag. before we knew it, we were pulling up to dock at heron island!
we headed over to the resort, where we had an introduction (with tropical drinks!) to the resort, which was keyless and cashless... since the only people on the island are guests, staff, and researchers, they don't worry about locking doors (although they offered safes for any valuables). and, anything you purchase (snorkel rental, dinner, drinks) you charge to the room. it was actually wonderful not to have to worry about carrying a wallet or anything for our entire visit!
after our introduction, we went to lunch, where we ate at a table overlooking the water. then, we headed to our room, where our luggage had been deposited. our room was simple but nice, and just thirty yards from the beach. we headed over to the information center to join in the scheduled island walk. the woman leading our walk took us down to the beach and told us about the island as we walked along the shore. even from the shore we could see sting rays, and a LOT of sharks (mostly reef sharks). we walked down to the eastern point of the island, and headed inland to continue our walk. here is where it all went wrong. as soon as we headed into the trees, we were swarmed by monstrous, steriod-pumped, mosquitos (which the aussies call "mossies"). swarmed. sarah-mae and i were both wearing bug spray, but that did nothing to slow down these blood-sucking giants. our guide apologized and picked up the pace, and we tried to listen to her as we constantly kept swatting at each other to keep the mossies away. by the time we returned to the resort area, we were eaten alive. we had to have at least 40 bites between the two of us! the mossies continued to be a problem throughout our visit, although after the first day they weren't quite so bad. but let's not dwell on literally the worst part of our trip.
after our island walk, we headed to the "marine center" to rent snorkel gear, and we hit the beach. because heron is right in the center of the coral cay, you can snorkel right off the beach into the coral. we didn't go out very far, but still saw a bunch of sting rays and lots of fish! we snorkeled a while, and then headed over to the bar for a happy hour drink just before sunset. we took our drinks out on to the patio and sat down at a table with a great view of the western horizon. the sunset was gorgeous, and that became a heron island tradition for us.
after sunset, we headed back to the room to clean up and get ready for dinner. dinner was a bit fancier than i expected, and with limited veggie options, but overall the food was okay. there was definitely less stuff to do after dinner than there had been to do during the day, but we ended up reading and downloading the day's pictures and then hitting the sack a bit early. we wanted to get a good night's sleep so that we could enjoy our first full day on heron island!
heron island is a small island (it takes about 30 minutes to walk all the way around), about 2 hours off the coast of gladstone, out on the great barrier reef. heron island is a bird and turtle sanctuary, and is surrounded by a coral cay. on the island there is research station on one side, and a resort on the other. when sarah-mae was in australia before, she spent time on the island - at the research station. it was what sparked our plans to journey back down under when we turned 30, and was really planned to be the best part of the trip (spoiler alert: it was!)
the ferry ride out was fantastic, although sarah quickly had to move to the shade since she forgot to put sunscreen in her day bag. before we knew it, we were pulling up to dock at heron island!
our first look at heron island
we headed over to the resort, where we had an introduction (with tropical drinks!) to the resort, which was keyless and cashless... since the only people on the island are guests, staff, and researchers, they don't worry about locking doors (although they offered safes for any valuables). and, anything you purchase (snorkel rental, dinner, drinks) you charge to the room. it was actually wonderful not to have to worry about carrying a wallet or anything for our entire visit!
after our introduction, we went to lunch, where we ate at a table overlooking the water. then, we headed to our room, where our luggage had been deposited. our room was simple but nice, and just thirty yards from the beach. we headed over to the information center to join in the scheduled island walk. the woman leading our walk took us down to the beach and told us about the island as we walked along the shore. even from the shore we could see sting rays, and a LOT of sharks (mostly reef sharks). we walked down to the eastern point of the island, and headed inland to continue our walk. here is where it all went wrong. as soon as we headed into the trees, we were swarmed by monstrous, steriod-pumped, mosquitos (which the aussies call "mossies"). swarmed. sarah-mae and i were both wearing bug spray, but that did nothing to slow down these blood-sucking giants. our guide apologized and picked up the pace, and we tried to listen to her as we constantly kept swatting at each other to keep the mossies away. by the time we returned to the resort area, we were eaten alive. we had to have at least 40 bites between the two of us! the mossies continued to be a problem throughout our visit, although after the first day they weren't quite so bad. but let's not dwell on literally the worst part of our trip.
after our island walk, we headed to the "marine center" to rent snorkel gear, and we hit the beach. because heron is right in the center of the coral cay, you can snorkel right off the beach into the coral. we didn't go out very far, but still saw a bunch of sting rays and lots of fish! we snorkeled a while, and then headed over to the bar for a happy hour drink just before sunset. we took our drinks out on to the patio and sat down at a table with a great view of the western horizon. the sunset was gorgeous, and that became a heron island tradition for us.
after sunset, we headed back to the room to clean up and get ready for dinner. dinner was a bit fancier than i expected, and with limited veggie options, but overall the food was okay. there was definitely less stuff to do after dinner than there had been to do during the day, but we ended up reading and downloading the day's pictures and then hitting the sack a bit early. we wanted to get a good night's sleep so that we could enjoy our first full day on heron island!
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
on the road again
after our fabulous day enjoying the Great Barrier Reef, we had a day to drive down the coast from airlie beach to gladstone. our drive was enjoyable, although we didn't really drive "down the coast" - it was far enough inland that we didn't see much of the ocean. but we did get to see some banana plantations (farms? orchards?), and a bunch of sugar cane plantations (i'm pretty sure that one's right). definitely sights i don't see much in arizona (or california).
we also saw a lot of funny road signs, throughout all of our drives, actually. apparently, driver fatigue is a serious concern in australia, probably because their cities are pretty far apart and there is not a lot of population in between them - no mcdonalds or starbucks to stop for a refresher. so there are a lot of signs that say, "stop, revive, survive" and stuff like that. the best ones were "rest or RIP" and "driver fatigue kills everyday people everyday". some of the signs were accompanied by illustrations of cars crashing (head on, of course), which was a little creepy and a little funny. on one long patch of road, there were road signs that had trivia questions (australia related, of course). they would have the question, and then a minute or two later, the answer. after a few questions there was a sign that said, "keep playing trivia. it could save your life." i got a good laugh about that one! but i didn't get a good picture, because i was driving and sarah-mae was napping. the best sign we saw, by far, was one that just said, "speedo check" -- i can only assume that "speedo" is just short for "speedometer" (aussies shorten everything they can!). still, the idea of a true "speedo check" is hilarious.
anyways, we had a nice drive to gladstone, where we found the gladstone backpackers (which was not very well marked!), checked in, and got ready to head to Heron Island the next day!
b-a-n-a-n-a-s
sweet sugar cane
we also saw a lot of funny road signs, throughout all of our drives, actually. apparently, driver fatigue is a serious concern in australia, probably because their cities are pretty far apart and there is not a lot of population in between them - no mcdonalds or starbucks to stop for a refresher. so there are a lot of signs that say, "stop, revive, survive" and stuff like that. the best ones were "rest or RIP" and "driver fatigue kills everyday people everyday". some of the signs were accompanied by illustrations of cars crashing (head on, of course), which was a little creepy and a little funny. on one long patch of road, there were road signs that had trivia questions (australia related, of course). they would have the question, and then a minute or two later, the answer. after a few questions there was a sign that said, "keep playing trivia. it could save your life." i got a good laugh about that one! but i didn't get a good picture, because i was driving and sarah-mae was napping. the best sign we saw, by far, was one that just said, "speedo check" -- i can only assume that "speedo" is just short for "speedometer" (aussies shorten everything they can!). still, the idea of a true "speedo check" is hilarious.
they are not messing around
anyways, we had a nice drive to gladstone, where we found the gladstone backpackers (which was not very well marked!), checked in, and got ready to head to Heron Island the next day!
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
not much of a FantaSea
in planning our australian adventure, i came upon a company called FantaSea, that runs tours to the Great Barrier Reef. they have a giant pontoon called "ReefWorld" that is moored out near one of the coral cays. they have a snorkeling area, a diving area, an underwater viewing spot, and a semi-sub boat that goes out for tours - oh! and a waterslide. needless to say, i was really excited to go there. originally we wanted to stay there overnight (yes, you can do that!), but they weren't available the night that we could stay. so we settled on just visiting for the day.
anyways, i didn't mention this in my previous blog, but i emailed FantaSea two days before to confirm our reservation, and i received an email saying that they were chartered on the day i thought was my reservation, and that they had be scheduled for the following day. of course, i received that email late in our last night in darwin, and we were traveling ALL DAY the next day, with no cell phone reception or internet service. we tried to use a pay phone in one of the towns we drove through, but for some reason, our phone card wouldn't let us call FantaSea. so, we were headed to airlie beach, with no reservation for the next day, and no idea what to do.
so we woke up early to call FantaSea to make SURE they couldn't accomodate us. after complaining to the customer service agent, she offered me a complementary ferry to Hamilton Island, a resort in the Whitsunday Islands, and the main hub for FantaSea tours. but, she said that anything we wanted to do from there (e.g., snorkel, take a boat tour) would cost extra. i hung up with her to discuss our options with sarah-mae.
approximately one minute later, the customer service woman (nikkia) called me back and said that she could accomodate us on a "yellow sub tour" for the day. the "yellow sub tour" included the ferry to Hamilton Island, a jet boat out to small Bali Hai Island, a semi-sub trip, and snorkeling - it sounded great, so i accepted! we got ready for a day on the reef and headed to the bus stop.
the bus took us to the marina, where we checked in for our tour. nikkia gave us our tickets and little FantaSea bags with water and hats. we hopped on the ferry and enjoyed the short ride over to Hamilton Island.
on the ferry, in our stylish hats
(we didn't really wear them)
Hamilton Island is a resort island, and we had a bit of time to kill before our "yellow sub tour," so we walked through the shops at the water's edge, and had some lunch. before we knew it, it was time to get on our jet boat and take our tour. the ride out to Bali Hai was incredible - the sun, the wind, the beautiful scenery - it was heaven! we pulled up to the yellow semi-sub and loaded into it for a ride through the reef. we saw a lot of coral and fish, and even a turtle! it felt like i was on a real-life version of the old submarine ride at disneyland - ha ha!
our yellow semi-sub
a pic of the coral from the semi-sub
after our time in the semi-sub, we got to get out of the boat and see the fish a little closer. it was my first time snorkeling in a long time, and i've never been good at snorkeling, so i was a little nervous. sarah was super patient while i got more comfortable under water, and we snorkeled until the tour guides rode by on their lookout boat to let us know that time was up. we were the last ones in the boat! we jetted back to Hamilton Island, and had just enough time to enjoy an ice cream sundae before getting back on the ferry to airlie beach. on the ferry back, we got to see a marvelous sunset!
after taking the bus back to our hostel, we headed into town for dinner. although sarah-mae said she didn't want pizza or pasta, we ended up at mangrove jack's, a woodfire pizza place that her tour book said was the best place in town. dinner was fantastic - i am glad she was willing to go back on her no-pizza decision. yum-o!
Monday, September 27, 2010
darwin drama!
as i mentioned, we were supposed to be at darwin airport at 5:30am. so when i woke up and saw that the clock said 5:45am, i panicked! yes, 15 minutes AFTER we were supposed to be checked in. fortunately, our flight wasn't until 7am, so there was a chance that we would at least be able to get on the flight (hopefully). we wandered down the darwin streets at 6am, trying to hail a cab. after what seemed like an eternity, a cab stopped for us. we explained that we were incredibly late and sat in tense silence until the second we pulled up to the curb.
at that moment, sarah jumped out of the car and ran to the check-in counter while i handed my credit card to the cabbie (what a time not to have cash!). the cabbie, knowing we were late, proceeded to be as slow as a snail to process my card, which he then dropped under his seat... he had to get out of the car and reach under to get it. then, the printer for the receipt was not working properly. it was SO frustrating! meanwhile, sarah came running back out of the terminal, shouting that if we checked our luggage in 20 seconds they would let us on the flight. but i was still waiting to sign for my credit card - argh!
we grabbed our packs and ran back in. we checked in, but sarah had to take an oversize piece of luggage down to the "oversize luggage" counter. she grabbed our boarding passes and took off, while i grabbed our passports and headed to the gate (as a reminder, in australia, you don't have to show a boarding pass or ID to get to the gate, you don't even have to be a passenger... just like "the good ole days" in the US). anyways, i made it to the gate with plenty of time, so i made a quick bathroom break (airplane toilets are the worst!). i came back out and stood by the gate...
i expected sarah to return any second, but it was taking a lot longer than i thought it would. they started boarding our flight, and i hovered around the line, waiting. i didn't have a boarding pass - not that i would have gotten on the plane without her. i waited until the very last person went through, and i was about to explain my situation to the gate attendant, when i saw sarah's head bobbing through the small airport headed to the gate. apparently, she had gotten to the gate while i was in the bathroom, and, not finding me where she thought we would meet, she headed back down to the check-in counter to find me. of course, i wasn't there, and she spent the next 15 minutes running around the darwin airport trying to find me.
we finally boarded the plane, sat down in our seats, and said a prayer of thanks to the Lord, because it was a miracle that we even were on that plane!
after our whirlwind morning, it was a quiet flight to cairns. we picked up our rental car and headed south down the east coast. we didn't get far - we stopped at a market in cairns to have lunch. then, we stopped again about an hour later to put our feet in the south pacific. it was a great side-trek from our drive!
we hopped back on the road, and drove for a long while... but it was nice to see the country. at about 4:15, we heard a loud beeping. it took me a second to realize that it was my alarm clock - i had set it for 4:15PM instead of 4:15AM - d'oh!
we ended our drive at the Backpackers by the Bay in Airlie Beach... more on that tomorrow!
at that moment, sarah jumped out of the car and ran to the check-in counter while i handed my credit card to the cabbie (what a time not to have cash!). the cabbie, knowing we were late, proceeded to be as slow as a snail to process my card, which he then dropped under his seat... he had to get out of the car and reach under to get it. then, the printer for the receipt was not working properly. it was SO frustrating! meanwhile, sarah came running back out of the terminal, shouting that if we checked our luggage in 20 seconds they would let us on the flight. but i was still waiting to sign for my credit card - argh!
we grabbed our packs and ran back in. we checked in, but sarah had to take an oversize piece of luggage down to the "oversize luggage" counter. she grabbed our boarding passes and took off, while i grabbed our passports and headed to the gate (as a reminder, in australia, you don't have to show a boarding pass or ID to get to the gate, you don't even have to be a passenger... just like "the good ole days" in the US). anyways, i made it to the gate with plenty of time, so i made a quick bathroom break (airplane toilets are the worst!). i came back out and stood by the gate...
i expected sarah to return any second, but it was taking a lot longer than i thought it would. they started boarding our flight, and i hovered around the line, waiting. i didn't have a boarding pass - not that i would have gotten on the plane without her. i waited until the very last person went through, and i was about to explain my situation to the gate attendant, when i saw sarah's head bobbing through the small airport headed to the gate. apparently, she had gotten to the gate while i was in the bathroom, and, not finding me where she thought we would meet, she headed back down to the check-in counter to find me. of course, i wasn't there, and she spent the next 15 minutes running around the darwin airport trying to find me.
we finally boarded the plane, sat down in our seats, and said a prayer of thanks to the Lord, because it was a miracle that we even were on that plane!
after our whirlwind morning, it was a quiet flight to cairns. we picked up our rental car and headed south down the east coast. we didn't get far - we stopped at a market in cairns to have lunch. then, we stopped again about an hour later to put our feet in the south pacific. it was a great side-trek from our drive!
we hopped back on the road, and drove for a long while... but it was nice to see the country. at about 4:15, we heard a loud beeping. it took me a second to realize that it was my alarm clock - i had set it for 4:15PM instead of 4:15AM - d'oh!
we ended our drive at the Backpackers by the Bay in Airlie Beach... more on that tomorrow!
Saturday, September 25, 2010
kakadu 2
we woke up the next morning, bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, ready for day two of our kakadu trip. okay, i wasn't bright-eyed or bushy-tailed (have i ever been?), and i was a little extra cranky after waking up just as hot as i was when i fell asleep. (seriously, i hadn't stopped sweating in almost 24 hours!) we got ready for the day, packed up our gear, and had some breakfast with our campmates. apparently, after we headed for bed, but before we fell asleep, sarah and i were laughing (mostly about shane's shorty shorts, if i recall)... i didn't think we were that loud, but our campmates definitely asked us what was so funny, and called us "the giggling wombats"
sarah made me camp!
after breakfast, we piled back into the 4wd for more 4-wheeling fun. i didn't mention it yesterday, but it was really bumpy! but fun! we splashed through some rivers, and kicked up a ton of dirt as we bumped and jostled our way through the national park. it was definitely an outback adventure! this morning our off-roading took us to twin falls, one of kakadu's waterfalls. it used to be that you could swim up the gorge to see the falls, but (as with any other water source in the area) the risk of crocs became too high, and so we took a short boat ride through a beautiful gorge, and then a short walk to see the falls. we didn't get any good pictures of twin falls, but i really like this one i took while on the boat.
we took a few pictures and then headed back to the boat and out to the 4wd. our next stop was jim jim falls. jim jim is an incredible waterfall during the wet season - exploding over the edge of the escarpment and filling up the river below. the falls dry up quickly, though, during the dry season, and so instead of getting to see the falls, we got to head to the pool just below where the falls usually are for a swim. it was a long, hot walk to jim jim falls. the first half of the walk was low-key, but the second half involved lots of rock-walking (i feel like it's not quite bouldering if you're not heading uphill). and when i say "rock-walking" i mean walking over rocks that were the tempature of a hot frying pan. HOT. we were literally baking as we walked to the falls. because the pool is located past shallow water and lots of rocks, there are no crocodiles, so we got to enjoy a dip in the freshwater. sarah and i just rested our legs in, but that was enough to be refreshing and wonderful. did i mention it was hot?
the pool is at the far end of the gorge, where the canyon walls meet
sadly, after our cool off we had to cross the frying pan rocks again, to head out. we stopped back at the campsite for lunch (and another shower - did i mention we had been sweating nonstop?) before heading back to darwin. on the way back, shane blasted a very eclectic mix of music, starting with lady gaga, which according to sarah, he sang and danced along with the entire cd. we also heard a song called "hillbilly shoes" (which i contest would be no shoes at all), music by slim dusty - an australia country western singer, sublime, and a lot of other random stuff. we stopped for a drink and ice cream treat about half-way home, and then piled into the 4wd one last time.
left to right:
shane (shorty shorts not pictured), scotty, burke, sergei,
clare, (me and cheryl are behind sarah's head), and sarah
we arrived back in darwin about 6pm, sweaty (seriously we sweated nonstop for 36 hours!), tired, hungry, and with very jostled butts. we got some dinner, cleaned up and hit the hay extra early. not only were we tired, but we had to be at the airport by 5:30am the next morning, so we definitely wanted to get to sleep! our kakadu dream was really an incredible experience - from the people, to the wildlife, to the scenery, it was all really unbelievable!
Friday, September 24, 2010
kakadu dreams (day 1)
we were picked up bright and early by shane, our kakadu dreams tour guide. we hopped into the 4-wheel-drive vehicle and, after a quick stop at the office, headed out for another adventure. kakadu is australia's largest national park, and has a lot to see and do. although i really did NOT want to camp, the park's location a few hours from darwin does not lend itself to day trips. so, i sucked it up and agreed to do the 2-day camping tour.
our first stop was at a crocodile cruise. before our cruise, shane brought out a giant snake and we had the chance to hold it. sarah held it and i touched it, but really had no interest in wrapping it around my arms - ew! we had some "morning tea" (i.e., toast and tea/coffee), and then boarded our little boat for the crocodile cruise. we sailed out down the river a bit, and when the crocodiles began to swim out to us, one of the guides used a piece of meat on a stick to show us how crocodiles can "jump" out of the water in a moment's notice. one of the crocs missed the meat on his first try, and his jaws made a thunderous noise as they clapped together - i would NOT want to be on the receiving end of that! although sarah got it on video, the file was too large to upload here - you will have to take my word for it. we saw almost a dozen crocs on our cruise, and the tour guide even used the meat to draw some birds of prey to our boat - the birds were whipping around the boat to get a piece of the meat - incredible!
after our quick stop at the billabong, we headed to an aboriginal cultural center. just as with uluru, i was fascinated with how the communities functioned and used the land. we also had lunch there, and tried to find some shade to keep cool - seriously it was SO HOT.
next up was a short hike to an incredible lookout point. shane told us about the geological history of the land, and about the aboriginal people who lived here for so long. he was really a great storyteller, and full of fascinating information. the only downside was that he was rocking a pair of seriously short shorts. honestly, his shirt, when untucked, was longer than his shorts! and shane's shorty shorts had a hole in the inseam. i wish i didn't know this information, but he was crouching while telling us all about the park, and it was like watching a terrible train wreck. once i had seen the hole, there was no un-seeing it! i just had to try and focus on the beautiful landscape of kakadu...
our first stop was at a crocodile cruise. before our cruise, shane brought out a giant snake and we had the chance to hold it. sarah held it and i touched it, but really had no interest in wrapping it around my arms - ew! we had some "morning tea" (i.e., toast and tea/coffee), and then boarded our little boat for the crocodile cruise. we sailed out down the river a bit, and when the crocodiles began to swim out to us, one of the guides used a piece of meat on a stick to show us how crocodiles can "jump" out of the water in a moment's notice. one of the crocs missed the meat on his first try, and his jaws made a thunderous noise as they clapped together - i would NOT want to be on the receiving end of that! although sarah got it on video, the file was too large to upload here - you will have to take my word for it. we saw almost a dozen crocs on our cruise, and the tour guide even used the meat to draw some birds of prey to our boat - the birds were whipping around the boat to get a piece of the meat - incredible!
after the croc cruise, we piled back into the 4wd and headed into kakadu national park. it was a bit of a drive, so we used the time to get to know the 5 other people on our tour. there was an older couple (scotty and cheryl) from sydney, sergei, who was in australia for the weekend from singapore, burke, from western australia, and clare, a recently graduated doctor from new zealand. we were a diverse bunch, but all got along well!
our next stop was yellow waters billabong (a watering hole), that was beautiful. here, and everywhere else that had any water whatsoever, there were signs warning about the wildlife dangers...
can you see the picture in the bottom left corner?
let's take a closer look...
after our quick stop at the billabong, we headed to an aboriginal cultural center. just as with uluru, i was fascinated with how the communities functioned and used the land. we also had lunch there, and tried to find some shade to keep cool - seriously it was SO HOT.
next up was a short hike to an incredible lookout point. shane told us about the geological history of the land, and about the aboriginal people who lived here for so long. he was really a great storyteller, and full of fascinating information. the only downside was that he was rocking a pair of seriously short shorts. honestly, his shirt, when untucked, was longer than his shorts! and shane's shorty shorts had a hole in the inseam. i wish i didn't know this information, but he was crouching while telling us all about the park, and it was like watching a terrible train wreck. once i had seen the hole, there was no un-seeing it! i just had to try and focus on the beautiful landscape of kakadu...
do we look hot yet?
we hiked back down the rocks and headed over to nourlangie rock - the site of some great aboriginal rock art. there were paintings of kangaroos, and men and women in ceremonies, but my favorite by far were the hand paintings. it is incredible to think that people so very long ago have left a part of themselves on this rock. those are the hands of real people who lived in this land long, long ago. i love it!
shane (in his shorty-shorts) told us that while it is unacceptable to change someone's drawings in aboriginal culture, it is perfectly acceptable to paint over them. so a lot of the art had multiple levels, to the point where you can't really distinguish what elements go with what story. it seems like an interesting way to approach learning and history to intermingle past and present.
after spending some time appreciating the rock art, we headed over to our campsite to set up before dark. i was not looking forward to camping, but i did enjoy the campfire, even though it was still hot outside (i passed on the kangaroo meat and buffalo sausages), and getting to know our campmates. burke even brought marshmallows to roast over the fire! oddly, it was not unusual to roast marshmallows, but no one knew what a "smore" was! sarah and i also learned that "for reals" is a uniquely american phrase, and in australia, they say "fair dinkum" instead.
i'm not going to say that i enjoyed camping, but there are worse places to fall asleep than stargazing through your tent in australia!
Thursday, September 23, 2010
tropical darwin
after rousing ourselves VERY early in the morning, sarah was courageous enough to start our drive (which was uneventful). we arrived at the alice springs airport a bit later than we planned, but actually more than 10 minutes to spare (for once!). we flew to darwin, and were seated next to a wonderful woman who works on building job skills in aboriginal communities. she even recommended that we head to mindel beach for the markets that evening.
after landing in darwin, we gathered our belongings and headed to the yha to check in. after staying at the adelaide yha, we had high expectations for the one in darwin... but it was definitely not as nice. after unloading our stuff, we decided to take a walk to mindel beach and the markets.
darwin is in the far north of the middle of the country, and is definitely a tropical location. it was hot and humid, but i was willing to put up with that because there were plumeria everywhere! my favorite! our walk took us past the botanical gardens, which had a number of plumeria trees, all of them beautiful! we also walked past a team of young cricket players - think "little league" for cricket.
after some beach time, we walked back to the booths and did some shopping. we bought some fun stuff, and returned to the beach in time to watch the sun set. although the view was not perfect because of some low-level clouds on the horizon, it was still very beautiful. we walked back through some more booths and grabbed dinner just in time to see the sky turn bright pink and purple. the sunset had turned the sky into an incredibly beautiful scene - which of course my camera could not really capture.
we grabbed some ice cream and headed back to the hostel for a good night's sleep. tomorrow - kakadu national park!
after landing in darwin, we gathered our belongings and headed to the yha to check in. after staying at the adelaide yha, we had high expectations for the one in darwin... but it was definitely not as nice. after unloading our stuff, we decided to take a walk to mindel beach and the markets.
darwin is in the far north of the middle of the country, and is definitely a tropical location. it was hot and humid, but i was willing to put up with that because there were plumeria everywhere! my favorite! our walk took us past the botanical gardens, which had a number of plumeria trees, all of them beautiful! we also walked past a team of young cricket players - think "little league" for cricket.
we strolled over to mindel, where the sellers were beginning to set up their wares, and walked out to the beach. this was our chance to put our toes in the indian ocean! although it's the timor sea, sarah assured me that in oceanography, it counts as the indian ocean.
after some beach time, we walked back to the booths and did some shopping. we bought some fun stuff, and returned to the beach in time to watch the sun set. although the view was not perfect because of some low-level clouds on the horizon, it was still very beautiful. we walked back through some more booths and grabbed dinner just in time to see the sky turn bright pink and purple. the sunset had turned the sky into an incredibly beautiful scene - which of course my camera could not really capture.
we grabbed some ice cream and headed back to the hostel for a good night's sleep. tomorrow - kakadu national park!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
