Best of/Worst of

The top 10 worst things about Australia and New Zealand:

10. School uniforms. They're so bad they make you sad to look at them.
9. It's winter, but there's no indoor heat.
8. Bizarrely proportioned change; the 2 dollar coin is the smallest and the 50 cent coin is the largest.
7. Hostel roommates who don't know how to be roommates.
6. Everything closes at weird/inconvenient hours.
5. Most people have a terrible fashion sense. These people invented Ugg boots.
4. Expensive food.
3. The creepy woman in our Hobart hostel.
2. Not knowing which animals/trees on a hike could kill you or at least really hurt.
1. No one knows how to pluralize nouns properly. They use apostrophes like it's going out of style.


The top 10 BEST things about Australia and New Zealand:

10. Glaciers right next to tropical rainforests and mountains next to beaches.
9. The shockingly clean hostel at the converted rail station.
8. New Zealand cafes.
7. Public washrooms--clean and everywhere.
6. Every animal you encounter is amazing.
5. No pennies... yet, they still have squished penny machines (they provide a silver plug... but that still doesn't explain why they cost about $3 each...)
4. Cheap, tasty sushi in huge sizes.
3. Friendly knitting people.
2. Every city has a botanical garden and some place to take a nice walk.
1. Being with my best friend!

Back home

Good morning, everyone!

I landed in Boston around 9:30 last night, but didn't go to bed until 1am. No matter how tired I am, I always seem to find little things that need to be done after a long trip. Even though I've slept until 11am, I'm still really tired and have the feeling of constant motion. Jetlag takes on a whole new meaning when you've been traveling this long.

I've noticed that, though I've been gone only three weeks, the US has up and changed part of the currency on me. Rather than getting rid of the penny (Australia and New Zealand do just fine without them... and they even still have squished penny machines!) they've changed it and made it look stupid. Oh well.

Later on today, I plan on sorting through my 560-odd photos for printing. I'm also going to post a best of and worst of list, but I need to do some thinking first.

Thanks so much for reading, everyone! It's been very fun!

Updates

Hello, all.

I just went through and added photos where I could. You might want to check back through old posts to see the new pictures.

This will most likely be my last post until I hit Worcester. I fly out tomorrow, Wednesday... and the come home Wednesday night. Sounds like a short flight! Nope. I'll be flying for more than 20 hours total. I arrive on the "same" day I leave only because of the international date line. : )

Talking Dog Fountain in Sydney

Across from the statue of Queen Victoria in Sydney is a statue of one of her pet dogs. He was placed on top of a fountain that collected coins for deaf and blind children. Apparently, he did so well that we was given "the gift of speech," recorded by a famous Australian radio talent. The best part is that this person also recorded the dog's bark.

This is the best video I could find, but sadly the tourist is talking over the dog's bark! If anyone can find a clearer video, please let me know!

Hilarious Fountain

Hobart/Sydney

Last night after I posted, Laura and I perfected the art of nursing beer and stayed in a pub, reading and drinking for about four hours. Then we had some pretty decent Italian food. The best part of last night was coming home just in time to watch the finale of Master Chef Australia. I don't know if I mentioned this, but Master Chef USA will premier on the 28th!!

This morning we flew into Sydney and checked into our hostel. It's a converted railway station and our dorm is in a converted the railway car. As if this wasn't exciting enough, everything is shiney and operating-room-clean. It's really great!

For lunch we got sushi and then walked over to the Lindt Cafe where we bought amazing hot chocolate, Lindt truffles and two French macaroons. We planned on drinking and eating in the botanical gardens, but as it started raining, we just sort of propped ourselves on a wall.

We then visited the Australian Mint museum where we learned more about converting to the decimal system as well as the conversion to polymer bills. (Australian money is plastic). All of the polymer bills used around the world are made in Australia (but printed elsewhere). We got to watch, again, my new favorite cartoon. I can't find it on YouTube, but it's catchy and hilarious.

We walked a bit in the botanical gardens, but honestly, I'm a bit gardened out. Then I went to the Australian Museum, where they charged be $8 instead of $12 because I got there with only an hour to go. They had a neat skelleton room and lots of big dinosaurs, but nothing particularly heart-stopping.

Laura and I are back at the hostel now, wondering what to do for dinner...

We leave for Brisbane tomorrow. We'll do lots of laundry and I'll upload all my photos so I can go back to my posts and add pictures. Check back soon!

Hobart

Okay, so Hobart is less grim by daylight. Laura and I have been following a walking tour written up in her Lonely Planet Guide to Australia. We had a great breakfast at a cafe (I tired Vegemite--foul!--and I got some packets for whoever wants to try it).

After the cafe, we went to the Tasmanian Museum because it was free and we assumed it was warmer than outside. This last assumption proved to be incorrect. I've never been to a museum that uses space heaters... They had a neat exhibit on Australian money as well as their switch to decimal currency. They also has an exhibit and 3D film on Antarctic exploration. The best parts of the museum were the 1$ squished penny machines--other places have them for 3$ and the luggage locker room. You have to pay a 2 dollar deposit to use a locker, but then you get the two dollars back. Only, I guess some people didn't catch on, because Laura and I found 2 dollars each by opening all the lockers.

Once we got out of the museum, we chanced upon the ship used for Australian Antarctic research.

We also saw a neat park that had once been a cemetery. The larger monuments were still present, but all the headstones had been removed and set into walls at the foot of the park.

After this, we walked some more and went to a great bakery for lunch. Our food was great and bizarrely inexpensive. I had a small scallop pie and it was quite tasty.

Our plans for the rest of the day include going to the pub to read until dinner, eating dinner and then going to bed. We're hoping the random older woman in a hostel room will be gone, but signs are pointing to otherwise.

That's about it!

Sydney and Hobart

We left our Christchurch hostel at the ungodly hour of 4:15am and flew into Sydney earlier this morning. After the scariness of quarantine the last time I flew into Sydney, I was surprised that they didn't even x-ray our bags. The people at customs were really nasty, though. It was less "welcome to Sydney" and more, "fuck off and enjoy our shitty weather" than anything.

Anyways, we had a lengthy lay-over in Sydney, so we hopped on a train to the city center and did a free walking tour. I was really excited about this since the tour I did in Brisbane was awesome. This was informative, but not as funny or entertaining. Eventually, Laura and I left early (but we still tipped the guide) and strolled through Sydney's Saturday market. Everyone got something and I got something very cute for Clark. By the way, I should mention that as we did this, we were carrying all our luggage and such.

Finally, we got back to the airport and flew into Hobart, which is in Tasmania. I'm guessing we should have heeded the exasperated cries of "why are you going to Tazzie??" since this place is pretty grim, at least by moonlight. Our shuttle driver was very nice, though. He gave us the backpacker rate even though we didn't have YHA cards and then said we could stay on the shuttle a bit longer if we wanted a tour. Of course we took him up on it. In his bus, the city seemed cute. Now that we're in it, it's just empty and sort of sad. The hostel is clean, but a little weird. We're hoping a certain roommate, who just seems too old for hosteling (why is she here??), will move out soon since we're here for two nights. Oh, and there's no Internet so we're at a decidedly creepy Internet cafe.

No idea what we'll do for tomorrow, but Laura seems to be angling for a brewery tour and a tour of the Cadbury factory even though she knows very well that the factory "tour" consists only of a film and an "informitive lecture."

Back in Christchurch, dammit

I'm wearing a tshirt and gnome shorts as I write this. Pretty much everything I own is in the wash right now.

Laura and I took a bus from Fox Glacier to Greymouth today. The busride was very pretty and far less scary than yesterday's. All I could think of yesterday was, "Bus... black ice... mountains... what country did Cliff Burton die in?"

The farmland was very pretty to watch, all sheep, cows, ferns and mountains. We saw many signs warning about 1080 and many signs protesting 1080. It turns out that 1080 is a US made poison, which New Zealand drops down on the forests to kill brushtailed possums. These possums were imported to NZ from Australia in an attempt to start a fur trade. Unfortunately, and of course, there were devastating to the local wildlife. In fact, it's actually illegal to swerve when you see a possum in the road--you must hit it. NZ is trying its best to keep the possums in check (they sell possum fur, nipple, naval and "willy" warmers...); they will never fully eradicate them.

At Greymouth, we found great disappointment. Laura had been told that it was a very cute town. It is not. I have been to Alaskan outposts that were more cheerful than this town. It was depressing. It had a cafe called, literally "Eating and Drinking." It was (again, literally) across the street from "Hunting and Fishing." We ended up eating at a cafe housed inside of a mostly abandoned building... we left quickly.

So the real reason why we were in this grim little town was to catch the TranzAlpine train, a scenic train that runs to Christchurch. More sheep, cows, mountains and ferns! It was very nice.

We're in Christchurch tonight for less than 12 hours. We're up at 4am tomorrow to catch a train to Sydney and then on to Hobart. I have a feeling it will be another day in which everyone will be very glad for a shower.

We're Laughing Because We Know We Can Pass the Test

So! Last night our roommates spent inordinate amounts of time washing stuff in the sink very late last night and then hanging it all everywhere they could, including on our towels, next to my bed, over Laura's bed, etc. One of the roommates was potentially not a girl, too. Hard to tell. Anyways, we did not feel bad about hogging the shower this morning, nor did we feel bad about turning on all the lights.

The bus ride to Fox Glacier (both township and glacier) was beautiful. New Zealand is probably the most beautiful country I've ever been in. I'll post pictures when I get back to Brisbane. The bus driver gave Laura and I a great compliment: we're the lightest female packers he's ever encountered. As he unloaded our gear, I spotted a huge rainbow over the mountains.

The hike up to the glacier was scary, but our guides were adorable. One of them looked just like Jocelyn. Anyways, we had to walk up 700-some odd steps through damp, drippy rainforest. So, everything was slippery. But, once we got up there, we got to wear crampons. I love crampons. They make me walk with the confidence you only hear about in feminine product commercials, only this is for real. Incidentally, we've totally got Cannibal Corpse on the most metal song title ever: Crampon in the Face. Brutal. Do not worry--this is total hypothesis and has not been experienced, but these crampons did look very painful if gotten in the wrong area.


The top of the glacier was amazing. Imagine billions of pounds of compacted ice, surrounded by rainforest. Plus, as we left, we caught the sunset through the gorge created by the glacier a few centuries back.

Once we got back to the main base, we even got little certificates of completion. I'm pretty happy, but I know I'll be very sore tomorrow. I already have a very sore arm (not the same "injury" as sleeping with it wrapped over my head 4th of July). I finally figured out what it's from--hauling my pack on. I call it backpacker's arm. I'm glad to have figured this out. I was worried it was some Australian Death Worm I'd picked up hiking or something.

The internet at this hostel (It's all very pink and run by one woman... you can't do your own laundry. She does it for you. We're skipping that and waiting, dirty clothing and all, until Christchurch) is expensive! So I'm off.

Long train ride through the mountains to Christchurch tomorrow... Tasmania Saturday!

Queenstown Day Two

Laura and I slept late and then emerged from our dorm with the smiles worn only by those who know they're about to have a fabulous breakfast. We went back to the same breakfast place as before and had eggs Benedict, pancakes and home fries. Awesome.

Afterwards, I read a bit and then took another walk around the lake. I walked on the path out and then came back via the lake's rocky shore. This was great for a time, but the closer I got to the main town, the slipperier the rocks got. I eventually had to climb up a fairly steep rock wall to get back on the main path--but I made it!

Later one, I went to the Kiwi and Birdlife Park. It was pretty expensive--$28 after a discount, but since it translated to about $20USD, I did it. I saw four adorable kiwi... they spent most of their time poking each other with their beaks... and some other birds. I also went to a little conservation show at the park and got to see some cool parrots, a brushtail oppossum and a tuatara. I was very excited about the tuatara. Also, the girl giving the presentation was as cute as a button.

After a stop at the grocery store (it'll be a long bus ride to the glacier tomorrow), we went to a pub for drinks and then onto the same place we went to for breakfast for dinner. We got a bread and spread plate, soup (with toast) and split a sandwich. We are both very happy people right now.

Tomorrow is our very, from what I hear, pretty ride to the Fox Glacier!

Queenstown!!!

Well, take that, former gym teachers. We were very close to missing this bus to the airport this morning, but we ran and made it. In fact, I even ran faster than Laura (and I was wearing my pack, too) and she's very fit. The bus driver was very nice He gets a mention here, not only for holding the bus for us but because he sounds just like the old Professor Dumbledore.

The flight to Queenstown was short. I listened to three songs and then we prepared for landing. Once we landed it was clear this place is special. Mountains everywhere! But it's also damn cold. It was probably 5C this afternoon. But the thing is, the town smells wonderful. Sometimes it smells like Christmas in the suburbs, sometimes it smells frosty, sometimes it smells like nice, wet forest. It's the best-smelling city I've ever been in.

We got to our hostel very early (just in time for rain) and they wouldn't let us check in, so we walked around trying to find tacky post-cards for friends. Then we got awesome breakfast and hot chocolate at Cafe Vudu. I got eggs Benedict-awesome-and Laura got a breakfast quesadilla. The cafe was very cute, with a little fireplace. We took a quick walk to the lake... and the sun came out!

Afterwards, Laura and I split. Laura went on a jetboat and I wandered around the Queenstown Garden. This was beautiful and, of course, smelled good. The gardens are quite near the lake, so I was able to see pine forests, lake and mountains all at one go.

We then met up around 3 and headed off to take a gondola up the local mountain. The view was lovely, but the best part was the mountain luge track. This was similar to the one I went on in Switzerland, but the track is paved so you can pass other people. I had a lot more fun than the first time I luged. After this, we got some tea and waited for the sun to get a little lower to take some pictures of the mountains.

Once we got off the return gondola, the sun had made all the mountain tops pink and pretty. There's a nearby old cemetery, so we got some great pictures. If you didn't pay close attention, the whole scene felt more Scandinavian than New Zealandish.

For dinner, we at at the famous Fergburger where we ate outside (it was a miracle we got any seat at all, and these were heated anyway). We had GIANT burgers... I mean, at least 7" in diameter, awesome crispy fries and cider.

I really like Queenstown. It's a cute little mountain town. Half the shops cater to skiing and boarding. The town is filled with mostly twenty-somethings and a few Asian tourists. It's just fun to be here, even if it's wicked cold.

Tomorrow we will see the kiwis and walk around the lake!

Christchurch

We started off our journey with a bunch of random, mildly funny difficulties. My watch/pedometer reset itself around 5:15am... so it was lucky I got up before the alarm, otherwise I never would have woken up. I'd like to point out that the only way to reset the thing is with a pen.

When I had gotten out of the shower this morning, Laura was dismantling my tent. I told her about some weird static electricity within the tent and dove into the tent to demonstrate. Only, she had deflated my mattress and I hit the floor, hard!

On the bus to the airport, Laura broke the zipper on her bag.

At the airport, Laura got paged, which is always a scary moment. It turned out they only needed to inform her that they were moving her seat. By one seat.

Anyways, we made it to New Zealand without further incident. Immigration was easy and friendly, but biosecurity was a bit intense. They were completely unpacking some people's bags. Anyways, before you get to the unpacking, or the x-ray, if you're lucky (which we were), you have to fill out a card listing any goods you have to declare and if you've been near animals or if you've been hiking, etc. The official who checked my passport and declaration card was tickled to learn that I had a pet hedgehog. It was cute.

After the airport, we checked into our hostel and were delighted to learn that our room has hooks for hanging our packs. Hurrah! (Bedbugs are an issue here) After that, we got some dinner at an Irish pub. I had cider and bangers and mash. Laura got probably the best veggie pizza I've ever had. It had huge carrots and potatoes, which was weird, but tasty.

Now we're home and ready for bed. We're leaving for Queenstown early tomorrow morning. This is only a stopover...

Gold Coast

We went to the Gold Coast/Surfer's Paradise and I must say that I am very impressed by the lifeguards. I haven't seen lifeguards in Cape Cod and the lifeguards in California just sit on their perch and peer out into the distance. These people guard. There are 2-3 guards per station and they have a truck with a PA so they can yell at people who are swimming out of bounds. Additionally, there's a helicopter that patrols the coast, looking for sharks. Finally, they keep shark bait on hooks way away from the swimming area to tempt the sharks elsewhere. All in all, it was about as safe as it could be.

Unfortunately, they can't really save you from the sun. Even though it's winter, the sun was very hot and very strong. When I wasn't in the water (which wasn't too long), I was sitting on the shore with a book... and a hat and a pullover and a towel over my legs. Not because I was cold, but to keep off the sun.

Tomorrow Laura and I leave for New Zealand and the on to Tasmania. I'm not sure what the internet situation will be. If I can upload photos, I will, but I definitely think I'll be able to post. Tell you what, though: I'm really looking forward to coming home.

Me and the Panda... I Mean Koala

So, here's a not great picture of me and a Koala named Stacy. Her bottom, which is pretty much all I got to feel, felt much like more poor elephant, Jam, after I took him out of the dryer that one fateful night. In other words, sort of like a brillo pad. But nice!

We went to Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary today. It was awesome, but sort of koala overload. Koalas everywhere! You really get your money's worth. We also saw a platypus, dingos, wallabies, kangaroos, birds of all sorts and giant flying foxes.

One cool thing was the gallery of famous people holding onto koalas. Pope John Paul II (this was just too cool... I mean, the Pope!!), the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Nine Inch Nails (sans Trent, so really, just a bunch of back-up musicians in black), the Queen Mother, Marilyn Manson, etc. That was pretty cool. I wonder if they say, "Hey, we're NIN" or if the photographer just figured it out...

Anyways, there's not a whole lot to say except that we saw our fill of koalas and it was cute and everything you could wish for out of 130 koalas. : )

But now I am super tired. We all have to rest up. The beach is tomorrow!

City Cat(amaran), Bookstore, and Morning Market

After Laura got home last night, we went out to downtown Brisbane to get New Zealand cash (we leave Monday) and stop by a used bookstore that would put the old McIntyre and Moore to shame. This bookstore was HUGE: two rooms, many shelves... and they were tall. Nothing really caught our eyes, but it was still neat to be there.

Laura and Bon live on the other side of the river, so we took the City Cat back home. This is a commuter catamaran that is fast and comes often. The cool thing is that the fair is the same as a bus trip of the same length and you can just use your bus card (it's like our Charlie Card). It was awesome.

This morning we woke up early to go to the neighbourhood market. This was probably the coolest outdoor market I've been to. It was filled with fresh fruit and vegetables (all well priced), but also had little stalls of clothing, breakfast foods, jams, baby clothing, blankets, knitted things, jewelry, etc. It was well worth being awake at 7am after staying up late. Watching Australians huddled under blankets and wearing mittens was also worth it. They persist in thinking it's very cold!

Laura and Bon bought the produce for the week. Laura got us giant cheese breadsticks and I got us giant Lamingtons. These were a total let down. We assumed that because they were so big, they'd be filled with cream, but alas.

After a bit of shopping for a friend of Bon's, we're off to visit the koalas at Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary.

Back to the Botanical Gardens with a Camera and Mt. Coot-tha

So, I felt terrible about forgetting my camera yesterday, so I went back to the gardens to take some of the pictures I would have taken the day before. Off to the sides you'll see some floating ferns, a little gecko and the fig tree I told you about. Luckily the gardens are both free and lovely, so it wasn't that big of a pain to go back.

After that, I took the bus further up the hill to the summit of Mt. Coot-tha. I just want to take a moment so say that I've been remarkably lucky catching buses that only come once an hour right on time these past three days. The summit of the mountain is ho-hum. You can see the city, but not other mountains or anything nature-y. In true Australian style, there's a restaurant and gift shop at the top, too. They had cute postcards, though, so that's cool. As I was filling out one for Beth, I heard a woman and children with an American accent. I commented on it and found out that she's from Boston... actually, from Haverhill of all places. So that was neat.


I then walked down the driveway to get onto the summit trail. It was paved, which was odd, but also nice... and steep. Of course, the way down was fine. (The way back was literally breathtaking) There were some pretty dramatic stream beds and waterfalls all along the way, but as it's the dry season, there wasn't a whole lot going on. Fine by me--fewer bugs! I ate as a sad picnic area, near a dry streambed. I clingy couple claimed the sole picnic table, but it was gross looking anyways. I hate sitting on the ground in Australia. It just scares me. So, after a really quick lunch, I headed off for the "Aboriginal Art Track."

After the nice, wide, paved path, this track was a bit unnerving. It was unpaved and narrow... and the vegetation was a little too close for comfort. I'm normally not this wussy about plants, but I still haven't forgotten about the stinging tree. Anyways, the art on the path... I'm sorry... it sucked. I KNOW aboriginal art is more exciting that what they threw on the path. They basically bought two cans of paint (white and yellow) and painted maybe 15 rocks and put them in two circles. Then they painted a simple carving on a fallen tree. Woo. The map said there were cave paintings!!!


Tonight Laura and I are picking up some New Zealand cash and visiting a used book store. We're going to have Indian take out and, of course, watch Master Chef. Do we have Master Chef in the US?

More about Lamingtons

I'd just like to inform everyone that the 21st is National Lamington Day in Australia.

It will be a day of mourning for Laura and I since we'll be in New Zealand at the time.

And here's a recipe for Lamingtons...

... You know, just in case you want to make some... maybe sometime in August... and then share them...

Lamingtons!!!!

Mt. Coot-tha Botanical Garden

Brisbane has two botanical gardens: one in the city proper and one up Mt. Coot-tha, a popular tourist lookout.

The Mt. Coot-tha botanical gardens and awesome, and I'm sad to say that I forgot to bring my camera with me. I saw some pretty neat trees and plants. They had a whole garden of just lavender and rosemary, a cinnamon tree and a fig tree, just to name a very few. The fig tree was very cool--the figs grow in clusters along the trunk and branches, no where near the leaves. Additionally, I saw their Japanese garden and bonsai house. The bonsais were amazing--most of them were quite large and intricately crafted. I'm very interested in growing a bonsai now.

After my walk around the gardens, I looked in at their lending library. I picked up some hiking maps since I have one last day in Brisbane on my own. I think that tomorrow I'll go back to Mt. Coot-tha. I heard it was only good for its view, but apparently there are some good trails and a nature hut, too.

On Saturday we're planning on going to the Lone Pine Koala Reserve. You can actually hold a koala there (of course, you have to pay extra!), but I'm not very keen. I hear they smell and hurt, besides, I'd rather see one doing its own thing in a tree. The reserve also has a platypus pool (okay, I'll try to get a decent picture this time, Clark) among some other cool animals. Laura, Bon and I would really rather go to the Daisy Hill Koala Sanctuary since it's free, a national park, and just lets the koalas be natural. Unfortunately, there's really no good way to get there by bus.

By the way, Queensland is one of the only states in which you can hold a koala. You'll be happy to know, however, that the koalas slated for holding have their own human-run union that makes sure they're not being overworked. You have to remember that koalas sleep up to 23 hours day and then spend their remaining time cramming down fist-fulls of eucalyptus.

Bon works late tonight, so it's just Laura and I for dinner. We're planning on nachos, guacamole--the avocados 80 cents here!-- and homemade salsa. Hopefully, Laura will bring home another package of Lamingtons today. We bought a 12 pack yesterday and demolished them in an hour. Lamingtons are a famous Australian dessert. Originally, they were rectangles of stale cake dipped in chocolate and then coconut. The cheap ones we bought last night were sponge cake covered in shoddy looking chocolate and sad-looking coconut (think Hostess snowball coconut)... and, good Lord, they were phenomenal. Shockingly tasty. I can only imagine what the bakery Lamingtons taste like... Anyways, I'd show you a picture, but we ate them all. You can see a picture here.

Brisbane Forest Park

The US needs more national parks accessible via public transportation. Actually, Australia does, too, for that matter. Anyways, I took the 385 up to Brisbane Forest Park today.

The park has a little nature center with some wallabies, a sugar glider, lots of birds and... wait for it... a platypus. I still really hate seeing animals in captivity, though, so I can only hope that in a first world country they're at least being taken care of as best as possible.

The park has several awesome hikes, only two of which are accessible if you don't have a car. I did a 5km (3 mile) hike around a little lake. It started off with a sign warning hikers that the Eastern Brown Snake (among the top 10 most deadly snakes) has been spotted several times on the trail. It warns to never hike alone (darn it), to dial 000 in case of a bite (darn it--don't have a phone) and to not move if bitten (well, how am I supposed to get back?). This, in combination with my new biggest fear, the stinging tree, made for a very slow hike. Look up, look down, look around, draw in skirt so as not to brush those purple flowers (could be deadly, right?), okay, take a step forward.

It started off sunny. Then in got cool and started to rain. By the time I got the rain gear on it was sunny again. All during this, it was windy--LOUD windy--as hell.

The hike was filled with all sorts of little birds, but I didn't really get to see any of them. I did get to see two frogs, one of which was right on the trail. I also saw some sort of spiny caterpillar.

I finished the hike just in time to catch the bus back. It leaves only once an hour.

Tonight we'll go to the grocery store. I've got steak marinating in the fridge for kebabs. Aaaand we'll watch more Master Chef!

Wallabies, Parrots and Stinging Trees

Today I took another eco-tour. It started out at Mt. Tamborine, which was a drag. They made it sound like, you know, a mountain. It was tall, but on top it only had cutesy gift shops and such. It was a let down. Luckily, the next major stop, Lamington National Park, was amazing.

We traveled up a mountain through eucalyptus forest and then, quite suddenly, we were in sub tropical rain forest. There is no blending of the two eco systems whatsoever. At one moment it's sunny and warm and the next, it's cool, dark and damp.

The bus dropped us off at Lamington and gave us two hours on our own. I started off at a bird feeding station, where you could buy food to hand feed wild birds. I skipped the birdseed and took pictures instead.


After this, I set out on the path that leads to the tree top tour, an elevated wooden path through the canopy of the rain forest. This was neat, but I didn't see a whole lot except for trees. I saw the strangler fig tree, which grows from the top of the forest downward, taking over and sucking the life out of a host tree. By far the most interesting tree is the stinging tree. Just when you thought everything in Australia was terrifying enough (when I hear even the faintest of insect buzzing, I run), you learn that even the most harmless of plants is awful and evil. If you brush against the stinging tree, you'll get a nasty sting that lasts three days. THEN after THAT, every time you get the sting wet, it will hurt like it originally did... for the next SIX MONTHS. Pretty scary.


After the treetop walk, I walked through the botanical garden, which was much more exciting. There were more trees and tons of cool birds! I then took a little and unused path back to the bus. I saw a mouse. It was probably venomous.

Back near the bus, a wallaby was spotted! I got some good pictures and then more of another wallaby on the way back.

I hope you enjoy the pictures!

Not much

Hello! There's not a whole lot going on here right now.

Yesterday we bought groceries and did laundry. I made egg McMuffins for breakfast! Very tasty.

After laundry, we took the City Glider ("rapid" transit bus... but it's endearing because it has a picture of a suger glider wearing a helmet on the side of the bus) to a yarn shop Laura found online. They didn't have a whole lot, and we actually ended up buying Irish yarn (!), but the woman who owns the store was very, very nice. She recommended a spinning and fiber store that I plan on visiting today.

After our brief foray with yarn, we explored an open air market in Fortitude Valley, which is the Brisbane China town. Nothing very exciting at the market--mostly clothing no one would want to wear.

We came back and took naps and made hamburgers for dinner. We managed to watch the new IT Crowd and Master Chef, which I am becoming addicted to!

Moreton Island Tour

Today we all woke up around 5am to get ready for our big adventure: Moreton Island, the world's third largest sand island.

The day started with a ferry ride to the island. It rained and as the island got closer, we could see that it was enveloped in a particularly large, dark rain cloud. Through the rain, we could also see some "wrecked" ships just off the coast of the island, placed there to create coral reefs. When we got off the ferry, we took a 4WD vehicle across the island to a nice beach spot. The ride was very bumpy and most of the conversations went like this:


Me: Yeah, that is a cool tr--wahhh!

And it still rained.

Luckily and amazingly, it stopped raining and actually cleared up at the beach. Laura and I went swimming. It was one of the few times I've ever stepped into the ocean... and then kept walking forward. The water was a great temperature.

After lunch, we visited a few lookout points and from one, we saw a mother whale and her tiny baby! Bon was very excited about this.

We moved on to the Blue Lagoon (it seems like everyone calls their lagoon The Blue Lagoon, right?) that is filled with tea tree oils from fallen tea tree twigs. Well, good Lord if the water wasn't bloody freezing. Don't worry, Aunt Emilie, I went all the way in even though I think it was colder than that glacial lake in Switzerland. The cool part, though, was when our tour guide waded out to us (not many went in) to give us each a slice of pineapple. It was so simple, but perfect.



The whole trip was great. I just wish we could have spent more time in the water (the warm water), but the ferry leaves at 3:30. Even so, we didn't get back to Brisbane until about 5:30, which is when it gets dark, so I guess we couldn't have stayed any later anyways.

Oh, by the way, the burger last night was pretty good. It had "salad" (tomatoes, onion and lettuce), fried egg, beet, pineapple and cheese. It's a tasty combo, but you can't help but think the only reason why they came up with it is to cover up the fact that the hamburger itself wasn't that great.



I don't think we're going to do much tomorrow; we're all pretty tired... And right now I'm going to tuck into a nice banana bread beer.

Cultural Center, Sushi and GIANT BAT! Update

First off, upon further research, I have learned that yesterday's bat is called a Flying Fox. See? Even the Australians think it's unnaturally large.

Today I visited the Queensland Museum and the Art Gallery. Let's just say there's a reason why they're free. The art museum did have a few cool Australian pieces from the early 1900s... but not a whole lot else. The Queensland Museum had all sorts of taxidermied animals, an exhibit on conservation and an exhibit on the history of the bathing suit. Not to be a stickler, but the "history" of the bathing suit started around 1880 or so... surely people have been plunking themselves into the water since before then.

After this, I got some sushi for lunch (what you see, plus a cup of miso soup cost 6 dollars) and ate at the Botanical Gardens. It's about 60 or 65 degrees outside, but most of the people here are wearing winter coats and scarves. They really love the scarves.

I think we're getting burgers for dinner tonight. I've been told that the Australian hamburger is an experience unlike nothing else--they put eggs and beets on them. I'll let you know how that goes.

Tomorrow we're off on our first eco-tour of the trip. We're going to Moreton Island, which is just off the coast. We'll be traveling in a 4X4 and I believe body boarding is somewhere in the mix, too. Laura says the company we're traveling with has excellent lunches. I do love being fed.

I SAW A GIANT BAT

I just got back from free walking tour of downtown Brisbane. It was really awesome. I learned a lot of Australia's role in World War Two. Apparently, once the Japanese landed in New Guinea, the next stop was Australia. While England could not send backup forces, but the US could, there was still an emergency back-up plan: just give Japan the top half of Australia and pray they don't want more.

I also got to learn about their current politics. People are pretty upset right now since the Labour party (currently governing) decided to remove the Prime Minister and put in a new one. This is totally legal, since in a Parliamentarian system, you vote for a party, not a person. However, it's never been done before and people are upset. Also, apparently the right-wingers are called Liberals. Go figure. They don't sound very liberal.

We also talked a bit about Australia under the monarchy. In the 90s, the Australian people were allowed to vote for three options: Stay with the monarchy, leave and have a presidential government, leave and have a parliamentary government. Staying with the monarchy won out with the majority, BUT the total votes of options 2 and 3 were the greatest, illustrating that the Australians are ready to leave the monarchy. It sounds as if another vote will come around when the Queen gives up the crown and our tour guide is certain that Australians will vote to be independent.

During the tour, we stopped for lunch. I had very good sushi--giant and inexpensive. I am hooked.

One stop on the tour was the old governor's mansion. As we were sitting there, listening to ghost stories, I saw a giant bat-like creature fly into a tree. In daylight.

Me: I just saw this big thing that looks like a bat fly into that tree.
Person from Perth: Well, it was probably a bat. They're a real problem here.

It was very cool.

After the tour, I did some more walking. I went to the City Botanic Gardens and then did a bit of shopping. Target here is cool--their clothing section is huge and pretty decent. I didn't get any clothing, but I did get a neat book on Australia wildlife.

Now I'm back at Laura and Bon's place and very, very hungry.

Jet Lag

Here's my tent!

I always assumed that jetlag pretty much entailed simply getting caught up with the time zone. This is not so. I have an amazing headache and a feeling of dizziness/constant motion. It's not fun, but not altogether awful, either.

This morning's weather is pretty gloomy. It's chilly and cloudy and we have a good chance of some light rain. Despite this, I plan on taking a free walking tour at 11 this morning. I'm also hoping to get some of the phenominal Australia sushi I keep hearing about.

I also want to get an Australian wildlife guide. Needless to say, the trees here are totally different and unlike anything we have at home. I've also seen some pretty cool birds just hanging out, which makes me wonder what sorts of amazing things they have at the wildlife preserves and botanical gardens. The birds that woke me up this morning sounded more like car alarms than birds... they sound like they belong in a Dr. Seuse book or something.

Here's a picture of the Australian 5 cent coin that reminds me of Gus. The little creature is an Echinda.

In Brisbane

So!
The backpack made it carry-on. The Twizzlers were allowed. Deodorant is indeed a solid.
I'm in Brisbane now... and very, very tired. Laura and I are making dinner and watching Fraser.. and then I'll go straight to bed. Laura's set up a tent in the living room for me. It looks very inviting right now.

Stay tuned....

My flight to LAX leaves tomorrow at 4:50pm... stay tuned for the answers to several intriguing questions:

Will American Airlines overlook Madeline's 22.75 inch backpack and allow it as carry on?

Will Madeline make her connecting flight to Sydney and then to Brisbane?

Is Australian customs as hard-core about clean hiking boots as it claims to be?

Will Madeline be tariffed on 2 pounds of Twizzlers?

Will Madeline be struck with deep vein thrombosis?

...And most importantly, IS solid deodorant considered a liquid/gel or a solid??

These answers, and more (!) coming soon.

Welcome

Well, with just two days to go, I guess it's time to get this blog rolling.

I leave for Australia Monday evening, but I'm already worried now. There are so many factors that your standard worrier can choose to worry about! I've selected most of them. TSA, Customs, getting my backpack on carry-on, getting through customs and on a bus to another terminal in 1.5 hours to fly from Sydney to Brisbane... Then I'm also worried about out-staying my welcome with Laura and Bon, but of course, they'd be too good to say anything, which makes it even worse.

But, despite all that, I'm pretty excited. Laura's planned a lot of cool things to do together--an eco tour of Moreton Island, beach trips, glacier climbing--and cool things to do on my own--another eco tour, museums, botanical gardens, markets...

Down below, there's a calendar that lets you know where I am and what I'm doing. Right now it's set on Eastern Standard Time, but when I arrive in Australia, I'll update the timezone. There's also a list of links to the right. I'll probably add to this as I visit places.

Thanks very much for visiting!