We made it home just fine--I sure do hate those tiny airplane seats, though! On the good side, on both the first and last legs of the trip, we had three seats for the two of us, and an exit row on the last one. Neither of us slept at all on the 30-hour trip, so we were pretty exhausted when we arrived home close to midnight Saturday. Gary got up in time to go to a church meeting, but I slept around the clock; Gary had to wake me at 12:45 p.m.!
Lots of laundry to do, mail to sort, groceries to buy, and luggage to put away, but it was a wonderful experience. And I think the long plane trips are sort of like labor--painful to endure but once completed you think maybe it wasn't so bad! :-)
Australia is a beautiful country/continent, at least what we saw of it. If you have the chance to go, please do so (but if you can afford to go business class or 1st class--as if any of us could--that will improve the trip even more!). Beth and Dan were wonderful hosts, even giving up their own bedroom for three weeks, and we were blessed to spend so much time with them.
Thanks for sharing all of this with us. We hope that our next adventure will be to The Netherlands, since Beth and Dan are moving there in September.
Jan
Sunday, 10 June 2012
Friday, 8 June 2012
Things I'll miss
A few things I'll miss about Australia:
Grass trees--these are wonderful trees and come in all shapes and sizes; they are indigenous to Australia (unlike the many palm trees out here, which came from who knows where!)
The ocean--wish I lived closer to a big body of water; the Kishwaukee River just doesn't do it for me!
Tim Tams--to die for!
Caramel and rocky road slices--also to die for!
No tipping--not the cabbies, the restaurant servers, the hairdressers, anyone!
No pennies--just round to the nearest 5 cents. Pennies really are a waste, don't you think?
No tax--well, there is tax, but it's included in the price. Why can't the States do that?
Here, most of the pedestrians obey street lights; however, I will not miss the fact that pedestrians really have no rights here. You take your life into your hands if you don't see a car coming when you're in an unprotected crosswalk. Really. It's a rare thing for a driver to stop to let you cross the street.
Beth and Dan, of course, and most of all!
Grass trees--these are wonderful trees and come in all shapes and sizes; they are indigenous to Australia (unlike the many palm trees out here, which came from who knows where!)
The ocean--wish I lived closer to a big body of water; the Kishwaukee River just doesn't do it for me!
Tim Tams--to die for!
Caramel and rocky road slices--also to die for!
No tipping--not the cabbies, the restaurant servers, the hairdressers, anyone!
No pennies--just round to the nearest 5 cents. Pennies really are a waste, don't you think?
No tax--well, there is tax, but it's included in the price. Why can't the States do that?
Here, most of the pedestrians obey street lights; however, I will not miss the fact that pedestrians really have no rights here. You take your life into your hands if you don't see a car coming when you're in an unprotected crosswalk. Really. It's a rare thing for a driver to stop to let you cross the street.
Beth and Dan, of course, and most of all!
Well, that's about it; next time I post, we should be back home. Thanks for joining me on this vacation!
Wednesday, 6 June 2012
Cape Leeuwin and Mammoth Cave
On our way to the southwest tip of Australia, we stopped at Conspicuous Cliff along the Southern Ocean. More sea views and some interesting vegetation--and some kind of chicken that must have escaped a nearby farm!
Then we headed to Cape Leeuwin and the lighthouse there. Cape Leeuwin is where the Indian and Southern Oceans meet each other. There were many people there with binoculars because June begins the whale-watching season. We did not see any, but June has just begun!
An interesting sidebar: there is a very Dutch influence here because so many Dutch Royal Navy ships sailed to and from Australia. Cape Leeuwin, for example, was discovered by the crew of the Dutch ship Leeuwin in 1622, whose captain named it "The Land of Leeuwin." In 1627, it was named Cape Leeuwin.
And, of course, the touristy thing to do is to have your photo taken where the two oceans meet (this is the closest we could get).
We stayed that night in Karridale Cottage; no television or phone reception, so a quiet evening of reading was had by all--all the small towns close down (except bars and some restaurants) at 5:00, so unless you want to spend your evening at the local tavern, you go "home."
This cottage was one of four on 47 acres of land. We heard possums on the roof at night and were advised to keep the doors closed because a possum had gotten in to one of the cottages sometime previously, and it was "not pretty." The cottage was really lovely, and we wished we could have stayed longer and explored more of the property. We did enjoy playing with the owners' puppy, Doug, though.
By the way, possums in Australia are not at all like the opossums in the States. These are actually cute (not my picture, by the way):
The next day we headed to Mammoth Cave, which was discovered in 1850 but not explored until 1895. Tours were led by the first explorer, using only candlelight and kerosene lamps until 1904, when electric lighting was installed. Ours was a self-guided tour, using MP3 players to give us various facts about the cave. Los of stairs to climb, including 160 at the end. My knees did surprisingly well!
Stalactites grow from the top of the cave and stalagmites from the bottom. Both are formed by dripping water. When the two join in the middle, they form columns.
Entrance to the cave:
Here are various stalactites and stalagmites--our favorite is the elephant trunk:
After that, we headed back to Perth. It was a great trip in our little Toyota Corolla Ascent. We logged over 2000 kilometers (about 1400 miles) in the 12 days that we had the car.
And now we're just about finished with this vacation. I think Beth and Dan are ready to have their apartment back (and begin planning for their move to The Netherlands in September), and we're gearing up to head back home. We had hoped to visit Rottnest Island, but rain is predicted for our last days here, so that probably won't happen. All in all, though, we have seen so much and have gained a new appreciation for this fabulous country.
Stay tuned!
Then we headed to Cape Leeuwin and the lighthouse there. Cape Leeuwin is where the Indian and Southern Oceans meet each other. There were many people there with binoculars because June begins the whale-watching season. We did not see any, but June has just begun!
An interesting sidebar: there is a very Dutch influence here because so many Dutch Royal Navy ships sailed to and from Australia. Cape Leeuwin, for example, was discovered by the crew of the Dutch ship Leeuwin in 1622, whose captain named it "The Land of Leeuwin." In 1627, it was named Cape Leeuwin.
And, of course, the touristy thing to do is to have your photo taken where the two oceans meet (this is the closest we could get).
We stayed that night in Karridale Cottage; no television or phone reception, so a quiet evening of reading was had by all--all the small towns close down (except bars and some restaurants) at 5:00, so unless you want to spend your evening at the local tavern, you go "home."
This cottage was one of four on 47 acres of land. We heard possums on the roof at night and were advised to keep the doors closed because a possum had gotten in to one of the cottages sometime previously, and it was "not pretty." The cottage was really lovely, and we wished we could have stayed longer and explored more of the property. We did enjoy playing with the owners' puppy, Doug, though.
The next day we headed to Mammoth Cave, which was discovered in 1850 but not explored until 1895. Tours were led by the first explorer, using only candlelight and kerosene lamps until 1904, when electric lighting was installed. Ours was a self-guided tour, using MP3 players to give us various facts about the cave. Los of stairs to climb, including 160 at the end. My knees did surprisingly well!
Stalactites grow from the top of the cave and stalagmites from the bottom. Both are formed by dripping water. When the two join in the middle, they form columns.
Entrance to the cave:
Here are various stalactites and stalagmites--our favorite is the elephant trunk:
After that, we headed back to Perth. It was a great trip in our little Toyota Corolla Ascent. We logged over 2000 kilometers (about 1400 miles) in the 12 days that we had the car.
And now we're just about finished with this vacation. I think Beth and Dan are ready to have their apartment back (and begin planning for their move to The Netherlands in September), and we're gearing up to head back home. We had hoped to visit Rottnest Island, but rain is predicted for our last days here, so that probably won't happen. All in all, though, we have seen so much and have gained a new appreciation for this fabulous country.
Stay tuned!
Southwest Western Australia
We've just come back from four days in southwest WA, spending time at the ocean(s), in the rain forest, exploring a cave, and seeing lots of nature (Gary even saw a kangaroo in with a field of cattle, but I was not able to experience that, much to my disappointment.)
The first day we drove about five hours and ended up at Greens Pool on the Southern Ocean. It was a beautiful place, with great rocks to climb/walk on. All the time we spent at the ocean was really my favorite of all things.
That night we stayed at Bay River Cottage in Bay Bridge. There were Alpaca grazing in the pasture in the front yard. We had a supper of cheese and crackers, a glass of wine, and chocolate (of course). Then we had some rousing games of Dutch Blitz.
The next morning we headed to the Valley of the Giants, "giants" referring to the Tingle trees, which can grow nearly as tall as Sequoias and Redwoods. Tingle trees rot from the inside out, from the bottom to about 1/3 of the way up the tree. They have almost no root structure, but are able to grow so tall because as the bottom rots out, the trees get a hole in the middle of the bottom of the trunk, forming a buttress, so they can stand firmly:
As the Valley of the Giants became more and more of a popular visiting area, people would stand under, camp in, and even drive through some of these trees. Eventually, because of the small root structure, the trees started falling down. So a group got together to propose a tree top walk, so that the trees could be enjoyed withough damaging them. Now you can walk among and above the trees (you can also walk through some of the trees, but they have walkways to protect the roots).
As many of you know, I am terrified of heights, and this walk was no picnic! It swayed with the wind--and it was a fairly windy day--so that you could "feel as if you really were like a tree." The railings on the walkway are very smooth, testament to the many hands that have gripped them tightly! Several deep breaths and a little panic, and I made it. Afterward, Dan and Gary walked it again and could take their time. :-)
Later that day, we visited the Elephant Rocks, very near Greens Pool. Again, we did some more rock climbing/walking and enjoying the Southern Ocean.
The first day we drove about five hours and ended up at Greens Pool on the Southern Ocean. It was a beautiful place, with great rocks to climb/walk on. All the time we spent at the ocean was really my favorite of all things.
That night we stayed at Bay River Cottage in Bay Bridge. There were Alpaca grazing in the pasture in the front yard. We had a supper of cheese and crackers, a glass of wine, and chocolate (of course). Then we had some rousing games of Dutch Blitz.
The next morning we headed to the Valley of the Giants, "giants" referring to the Tingle trees, which can grow nearly as tall as Sequoias and Redwoods. Tingle trees rot from the inside out, from the bottom to about 1/3 of the way up the tree. They have almost no root structure, but are able to grow so tall because as the bottom rots out, the trees get a hole in the middle of the bottom of the trunk, forming a buttress, so they can stand firmly:
As the Valley of the Giants became more and more of a popular visiting area, people would stand under, camp in, and even drive through some of these trees. Eventually, because of the small root structure, the trees started falling down. So a group got together to propose a tree top walk, so that the trees could be enjoyed withough damaging them. Now you can walk among and above the trees (you can also walk through some of the trees, but they have walkways to protect the roots).
As many of you know, I am terrified of heights, and this walk was no picnic! It swayed with the wind--and it was a fairly windy day--so that you could "feel as if you really were like a tree." The railings on the walkway are very smooth, testament to the many hands that have gripped them tightly! Several deep breaths and a little panic, and I made it. Afterward, Dan and Gary walked it again and could take their time. :-)
Here we are at the highest point--no, I don't want to do it again!
Later that day, we visited the Elephant Rocks, very near Greens Pool. Again, we did some more rock climbing/walking and enjoying the Southern Ocean.
They look like the backsides of elephants, don't they!
We stayed in the same cottage a second night, then headed to the southwest tip of Australia, where the Southern Ocean meets the Indian Ocean. More on that in the next post.
Thursday, 31 May 2012
The Perth Mint
The Perth Mint is Australia's oldest working mint, although today it only makes special coins, such as those that marked the Olympics in Sydney in 2000.
Perth needed its own mint when people began to discover gold in Western Australia in the late 1800s. At that time, there was a mint in Melbourne and one in Sydney, but the people in WA were not inclined to send their gold there to be refined! This mint was under British control until 1970, when ownership and control was transferred to the government of WA, so now they can keep all the profits. We were able to see molten gold poured into a mold, creating a brick worth over $350,000. Of course, that same brick gets melted and re-molded several times a day, year-round.
If you want to spend a lot of money, this is the place to do so (we restrained ourselves!). We were not allowed to take pictures inside the Mint so can't show you any of the goods, but here's a photo of the outside. By the way, if I'm worth my weight in gold, my worth today is almost $3 million!
The browner parts of the outside are local limestone, but the white limestone came from Rottnest Island, about six miles off the coast (we plan to visit Rottnest next week).
After visiting the Mint, we meandered toward the city center, where we purchased some souvenirs and had lunch, then headed for home, beating the first rain we've had since we arrived.
Below are a few pictures of St. Mary's Cathedral in Perth.
And the Perth Town Hall:
We have just over a week left! This weekend, we'll head south to the Albany and Margaret River areas. More after we get back.
Perth needed its own mint when people began to discover gold in Western Australia in the late 1800s. At that time, there was a mint in Melbourne and one in Sydney, but the people in WA were not inclined to send their gold there to be refined! This mint was under British control until 1970, when ownership and control was transferred to the government of WA, so now they can keep all the profits. We were able to see molten gold poured into a mold, creating a brick worth over $350,000. Of course, that same brick gets melted and re-molded several times a day, year-round.
The browner parts of the outside are local limestone, but the white limestone came from Rottnest Island, about six miles off the coast (we plan to visit Rottnest next week).
After visiting the Mint, we meandered toward the city center, where we purchased some souvenirs and had lunch, then headed for home, beating the first rain we've had since we arrived.
Below are a few pictures of St. Mary's Cathedral in Perth.
And the Perth Town Hall:
We have just over a week left! This weekend, we'll head south to the Albany and Margaret River areas. More after we get back.
Wednesday, 30 May 2012
New Norcia
New Norcia, WA, was created by Benedictine monks from Spain as a mission to the aborigines in 1847. At its peak, there were 80 monks at New Norcia and about 20 nuns. Today, there are only 9 monks and 1 nun. New Norcia is completely self-sufficient with no financial assistance from the Vatican. They operate a bakery (wonderful bread!) and used to make wine at the site. Today, the wine is made at a winery just south of New Norcia, then it matures in the wine cellars at New Norcia. The monks also make award-winning olive oil.
Throughout the years, the monks of New Norcia built a chapel, cottages, a hostel (now the hotel), colleges (schools) for boys and girls. They designed and built every building and everything in it, occasionally hiring locals to help. It's a beautiful place, and we were given a great tour by Trish, a Maori recently moved here from New Zealand. Anyone can stay at the monastery if they wish a quiet, retreat-like experience. The hotel is available for those who wish to make more noise!
Many children come to NN for "school camps," where they learn about the art that is housed there (the gallery and museum have hundreds of paintings that were purchased in the early days of the monastery), about the history of the aborigines that the monastery ministered to and about the history of the monastery and monks that started it all and continue it to this day.
Hotel at New Norcia. Very small rooms, with shared baths--however, all the rooms on the front side open up onto the veranda and some of the rooms have fireplaces. A great place to visit, although I'd recommend the spring or summer--it was pretty cold in the rooms today.
Inside the chapel at New Norcia. This one of the stations of the cross. Each station is multi-layered and textured. It started out as the brown layer, then the black was added, then the white. The artist was at liberty to make it relevant for the day (early 1960s) so one of the stations has several figures, including an Eskimo and an astronaut.
This is the organ at the front of the chapel--one of only two Moser organs in Australia. Imported from Germany, there are 2000 pipes (all these that you see are decorative), and an addition had to be quickly put on to house the organ. It gets played every Sunday at mass. When the pipes arrived in Australia in the 1940s, it took three months to convince customs officials that they were not trying to smuggle in German weapons in the pipes.
A view of St. Gertrude, the school that was built for girls. Both St. Gertrude and St. Ildephonsus have fabulous acoustics in their chapels, and now many musical groups use them for recordings.
The altar in the chapel at St. Gertrude's. The domed ceiling makes this the absolute best place for a concert. Would have loved to have our women's chorus sing in St. Gertrude's!
It was a good day, and we all have a lot of respect for this group of monks and nuns who dedicated their lives to serving the aboriginals without taking away the traditions that were so important to that group. This kind of life may not work for me, but they live what they preach every day.
Throughout the years, the monks of New Norcia built a chapel, cottages, a hostel (now the hotel), colleges (schools) for boys and girls. They designed and built every building and everything in it, occasionally hiring locals to help. It's a beautiful place, and we were given a great tour by Trish, a Maori recently moved here from New Zealand. Anyone can stay at the monastery if they wish a quiet, retreat-like experience. The hotel is available for those who wish to make more noise!
Many children come to NN for "school camps," where they learn about the art that is housed there (the gallery and museum have hundreds of paintings that were purchased in the early days of the monastery), about the history of the aborigines that the monastery ministered to and about the history of the monastery and monks that started it all and continue it to this day.
It was a good day, and we all have a lot of respect for this group of monks and nuns who dedicated their lives to serving the aboriginals without taking away the traditions that were so important to that group. This kind of life may not work for me, but they live what they preach every day.
Tuesday, 29 May 2012
Waneroo
You know that you are not in the states when you visit towns called Joondalup and Waneroo! Waneroo is where Beth works--for the Waneroo Regional Museum and Community History Center. We visited today and got the grand tour. It's a great place for Beth to be employed, and her co-workers all love her and will be sorry to see her leave.
http://www.wanneroo.wa.gov.au/files/700c885f-ecd3-4bda-8e5e-9e2b00c66afe/web_Regional_Museum_brochure.pdf
Waneroo is best known for its market gardens, small family farms that grow fruit and vegetables. Many years ago, farmers would start at midnight, two times per week, with their horses and carts to ride to Perth in order to get there by 6:00 a.m. to sell their goods. By the way, Waneroo did not have electricity until the early 1960s!
After visiting the museum, we headed down to the waterfront and dipped our feet in the Indian Ocean, then sat on the beach and read our books for awhile, listening to the water "crashing" onto the beach. A good day!
http://www.wanneroo.wa.gov.au/files/700c885f-ecd3-4bda-8e5e-9e2b00c66afe/web_Regional_Museum_brochure.pdf
Waneroo is best known for its market gardens, small family farms that grow fruit and vegetables. Many years ago, farmers would start at midnight, two times per week, with their horses and carts to ride to Perth in order to get there by 6:00 a.m. to sell their goods. By the way, Waneroo did not have electricity until the early 1960s!
After visiting the museum, we headed down to the waterfront and dipped our feet in the Indian Ocean, then sat on the beach and read our books for awhile, listening to the water "crashing" onto the beach. A good day!
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