Christmas in July?

Yesterday Tristan asked, "Since it's winter, will Christmas arrive soon?"

A Great Storm

Wow! It's been really stormy and rainy for this last week. Since we've lived here, there have been two other weeks where it rained off and on for 7 days. Those storms were different - this one is much more intense. The wind from this storm is so strong that there are waves on the lagoon!

This storm extends up to Brisbane. The news reported that Brisbane had received a year's worth of rain in 3 days! With that much rain, there's been flooding. There have been evacuations in towns in northern New South Wales (our state).

The winds really whip - so our Wisconsin minds think "cold". But the temperatures have been really very moderate - even warmer then weeks prior to this. This late autumn, we purchased a space heater because it's been cold at night - 50 is the low. But the coldest night temperature has been about 55 during the storm.

Macmasters Beach and Copacabana Beach Surf Pictures

My friend Jennefer took these awesome pictures of the surf from Macmasters Beach and Copacabana Beach yesterday (May 13, 2009). She has given me permission to share them with you. These pictures are stunning...in part because of the skill of the photographer and because of the beauty that surrounds us here. Jennefer took 39 pictures of the beach. To see the rest, just follow this link http://picasaweb.google.nl/BartenJennefer/Surf?feat=directlink#5335264784841144802 Enjoy!

Australian Autumn

The Brisbane Waters/Woy Woy Girls Regional Soccer Team shakes hands with their opponents after a match at Putney Oval

Sorry I've been so long away from the Blog! Once the kids got back into school, we've been quite busy with their activities.


Clara played goalie in the last game...nothing much going on - see the birds

On 30 April, Clara played 5 soccer games in a row as a representative of the Brisbane Waters/Woy Woy regional girls soccer team. She had to leave the house at 6:15am to make it to the game location in Putney, a suburb of Sydney. Her schoolmate and friend also made the team. Her mother could drive the girls there, but could not bring Clara back. So after I got the other children off to school, I drove to Putney. It was a beautiful park. Clara's team placed 3rd of the 6 teams that played. Her friend was chosen to be on the Sydney North team which will go on to play at the State level. Congratulations to Clara for making it as far as she did. We're very proud of her.


Neo inside the Sydney Opera House - Harbour side.

On 4 May, Zoe and Tristan went with their school to see "The Little Mermaid" at the Sydney Opera House. They went by bus and had to be to school by 7:20am. Neo and I took the train and met them there. It was a beautiful autumn day! The performance was not what I expected. Nothing visual for the children - just lights, occasionally, and the narrator with a scarf as a prop! There was a 13 piece orchestra to accompany. The story did not follow the Disney script either.


Inside the Harbourside of the Opera House

I've never been inside the Sydney Opera House before. The performance was in the Concert Hall - the smaller theatre. The most amazing feature of the Sydney Opera House is the bathroom! Really, it was an amazing design.

Bathroom sinks at the Sydney Opera House

Following the performance, the school children had lunch in the Royal Botanical Gardens. Neo and I caught the train to Wynnum station and had lunch with Dave. It was nice to see his corner of Sydney - and the famous Pitt Street.


ANZAC Memorial near Pitt Street, Sydney.


Tristan with the kids from Copa school performing @ Mother's Day Extravaganza

There was a Mother's day stall at school on Thursday, May 7. Each classroom was escorted to the hall where many gifts were wrapped in clear wrappings. The children could chose a gift for their mom to give her on mother's day. Each gift was $6. Gifts ranged from tea cups to teddy bears, to toe nail and finger nail kits, and of course chocolate. It was well done. I gave Zoe and Tristan money. Tristan said he didn't find anything to his liking. Zoe gave me a toenail kit - so our nails are beautiful now.


Zoe making her Mother's day craft (flower)

On Friday 8th of May, there was the Mother's Day extravaganza at school. It began with a tea and scone. The scone was delicious - but I only had 1 bite as Zoe claimed 1/2 of it and Neo claimed the other! LOL Then the children gathered together for a short performance by the Kindergarten to Year 3 students. It was very sweet. Then the moms went to the classrooms to help with a special mother's day art project. Lovely.


Tristan with his finished Mother's day craft

Mt. Ettalong Look Out and Waterfall near Pearl Beach

Overlooking Lion Island and Pearl Beach - at a typical lookout - no railing!

Dave took 2 days off of work to spend some time with the family during their Easter break. Unfortunately, Dave was sick with a cold over his 4 day weekend - as was most of the family. It also rained and/or was overcast the entire time. So we laid low and recuperated.

On Monday, 20 April, Dave was back to work. A 5 day week after 2, 3 day weeks. It was a difficult week. He was scheduled to have training that week, but it wasn't scheduled properly, so was canceled. (Amazing, the paperwork was completed, the training approved, but no trainer allocated!)


Pearl Beach from Mt. Ettalong Lookout

We took Monday to do some preparations for the week - groceries, etc. On Tuesday, 21 April, we planned to go to the Taronga zoo - but it was overcast and more rain expected.



Lion Island (notice the storm clouds brewing)
Lion Island can be viewed from Blackwall Mountain Reserve Lookout



Ettalong as viewed from Mt. Ettalong Lookout

Instead, we went to the Mt. Ettalong Look Out. The views were amazing.


This Lookout actually has a railing!

At this place, there was a sign with notations, in miles, not kilometers, of the distance to other locations.

On the walk back to the car, it began to sprinkle. That was fine because we were warm from the walk. But with 50 meters to go, the clouds opened up....and we ran for it!


Sign on the road to Pearl Beach - what it doesn't show is the grade - it's a steep decline. There's another sign further down the road that indicates "changing road conditions" - an exhilarating drive!

We were wet but in good spirits. So we drove to Pearl Beach, ate lunch in the car and prepared to go explore the waterfall near Pearl Beach.



Small waterfall near Pearl Beach
Somersby Falls is another waterfall in the area

This was really a bush walk! The path was over grown and fairly steep. I warned the kids to stay on the path and use a stick to make noise in front of them - to warn snakes to get out of the way.


We found tadpoles here too - they are different then the ones at Somersby Falls - larger - but not more developed


Tristan at the lower part of the Pearl Beach water fall. He was the only one to go down here because it's fairly difficult to access.



I noticed the rain clouds coming our direction again, so we high tailed it to the car - but not before the showers caught us, again!

Beautiful wildflowers blooming, even in fall

Koala Video

Koala Video
Originally uploaded by tiger222_97

Whenever we've seen Koala's in the day, they've been asleep and very sedentary. I was surprised to see these were awake. I was even more surprised to see them jump! I was fortunate enough to get this recording. Sorry it's sideways, I cannot seem to flip it.

Sydney Aquarium

Neo in front of the aquarium wall, with the fish over and on either side - a viewing tunnel

On Wednesday, 15 April, we went to the Sydney Aquarium. We again bought the DayTripper Family pass from the Woy Woy Train depot. We rode the train in to Sydney....but this time it was standing room only! We were able to board the train in the doorway of the last car. Every other car was packed - no room for another person to enter. We stood in the entryway of the train for about 1/2 the trip. Then we had the good fortune to sit. Most of those on the train got off at Strathfield exit - so they were on their way to The Royal Easter Show - which is not unlike the Wisconsin State Fair meets Summerfest. We had no problem taking the Circle Train then Wharf 5 on Circular Quay for Darling Harbour.


I took a few pictures during our ferry ride across Sydney Harbour. I thought this water taxi was cool

The Aquarium had long lines for admission. There were examples of aquatic life from the Murray Darling River Basin. I was intrigued by this area since Kevin Rudd's stimulus plan was passed by 1 vote - after a generous contribution to engineer a solution to the Murray Darling River Basin problem.



One of the main attractions to the Aquarium was the Dugong - a creature related to the Manitee. There are only 5 dugongs in captivity and the Sydney Aquarium has 2 - 1 male and 1 female. The story goes that the Sailors mistook the dugongs for mermaids. That's why the Aquarium had "mermaids" at the entrance to the dugong pool.



The largest tank areas of the aquarium appears to be a large boat anchored to the harbour floor. To enter the area, guests walk across gang planks and go down a ramp to the floor of the boat. The viewing area is from the ocean floor. The fish swim overhead! It's a really cool way to view the fish.


Diver cleaning the glass of the viewing tunnel over Clara's shoulder

There's a please touch rock pool area for kids to feel some sea creatures. There were some very large glass areas where the sharks reside. It was really well done, and a different perspective from other aquariums I've visited (Boston and Chicago).

One of the things I learned at the aquarium is that the jellyfish we saw in Queensland were not blue bottle - instead they were Box jellyfish. The instructions for dealing with these stings was vinegar then seek medical attention - can cause death. So that girl that was stung when we were in Queensland should have been seeking medical assistance. Blue bottles are much smaller - and there are many of those here.

Sydney Walk About

Harbour Bridge from Circle Train Platform

It's Easter Holidays. In fact, most of Australia closes down to observe Good Friday, so Dave had off from work. Dave also had Easter Monday as a holiday from work. During this time, we saw the aboriginal drawings and went on other excursions near our home.

The kids have 12 days off school. So we are taking this time to do some exploring. We looked into having some time away from the area, but there's a minimum number of nights required and a premium for overnight bookings, so we're going to stick to day trips.

On Tuesday, we bought a DayTripper transportation ticket with the Family Deal. The Family Deal is 1 adult can take up to 4 children for the price of 1 adult fare plus 1 child fare. Neo is under 4, so he is free. The DayTripper one price with unlimited rides on buses, trains, and ferries. For the cost of a return train ticket to Sydney (which means round trip ticket), we could also ride the ferry.


Bronze Plaque

We arrived in Sydney's Circular Quay at 10:45. There's a great view of the Harbour Bridge from the train platform (see picture). It was the children's first time in Sydney. On the Quay, are bronze plaques commemorating individuals. Also markers where the original Circular Quay was - before the most current.


Harbour View of the Sydney Opera House

We walked by the Sydney Opera House at the end of the Circular Quay and across from the Royal Botanical Gardens.


Zoe at the gate of the Royal Botanical Gardens

We had packed a lunch and drinks, so we decided to dine in the Royal Botanical Gardens. A couple of ibis birds kept us company while we ate. Neo enjoyed chasing one around the park for a while.


Harbour Bridge from the Royal Botanical Gardens

Near to where we ate was a wonderful view of the famous Harbour Bridge. If you look closely, you can see people climbing up the arch of the bridge - it's a sight seeing trip. One we won't be taking.



After lunch, we walked around the Government House, which is inside the Gardens but fenced off. The grounds are available for touring daily. The interior has tours on the weekend. As we walked through the gardens, we noticed a large colony of bats roosting in the trees.


Tristan on one of the stones

Outside of the Gardens, we found this interesting Art display. It apparently is unique pieces of a building that once stood.


Zoe playing on the stones


Zoe and Tristan outside a restaurant in Darling Harbour

We walked back to the Circular Quay and took the ferry to Darling Harbor. Darling harbour is a tourist destination. The Sydney Aquarium is there. There are many hotels and restaurants.


Crane water fountain


We walked past many water features.


We walked past the Chinese Gardens.


Wall of Water, water feature

We walked on the outskirts of China Town, and the Paddy Markets, on our way to the Central Train station, so we could catch our train home. We arrived back in Woy Woy about 45 minutes before Dave.

Easter

A quick note about Easter. Since there were no white eggs to be had, I wasn't too keen on dyeing eggs. We stopped off at a boot sale that the Kincumber Uniting Church was hosting. (A boot sale is where people bring car loads of stuff to sell in a parking lot - and they pay the organization for a space to display their wares from the boot a.k.a. trunk of their car)

The church was offering a craft of painting Easter eggs. I asked the woman running it where she found the white eggs. She said she looked everywhere but in the end, she painted the eggs white!


Zoe and Neo painted these eggs. Then we found some ceramic eggs and paint - which Zoe and Neo painted at home. Notice they were painted and not dyed!

There are Hot Cross Buns available everywhere you look weeks before Easter. You can have traditional - with raisins, plain, cinnamon, chocolate chip. I don't see many Hot Cross Buns in Madison - I remember looking for them one year - but had to go to Scott's bakery to find them.


Toffee Apple cut up - they come in red and green. The topping is hard - but melts.? A little weird - but tasty


Terrigal beach in early morning light
Easter morning, I went to a sunrise service on Terrigal beach. The service was a combined church service. It was very moving....yet relaxed. We sang some wonderful hymns.




Later on Easter Sunday, we went for a bush walk with Dave down to Lobster beach. The kids and I had been to Lobster beach previously, but Dave had not. When we were there before, Tristan had found a snail that was as large as his fist. He was eager to show Dave.



The beach is difficult to access and in a cove - which makes it ideal for boaters. They were out in droves due to the Easter holiday. Dave prefers beaches without so many people.