Minnamurra Rain Forest

Today, we went to Minnamurra Rain Forest with the Sheridan's. We left our apartment building in two cars. Of course, boys (Sam and Alex) in one and girls (Kait and Emma) in the other. We had a picnic lunch shortly after arriving and then headed out on our walk through the tropical rainforest. The foliage is beautiful. I took this picture of a large fern growing over the path filtering the sunlight.
The trees were very tall, they need to be to get through the dense foliage to the sunlight that they need.
John and Shaun pausing on the walk. The boys and Helen took off in a dead sprint through the forest. We refused to go so quickly and miss the sights. However we came to a "y" in the trail. We did not know which way they went. One choice took us back to the beginning, and the other promised a very difficult steep walk with waterfalls the reward at the end. John and I were sure the boys would have allowed Helen no choice but the tough route. So we headed up. I will admit it was very steep. Kait and Emma refused to go further at not quite half way. John and Shaun went a bit further, while we rested on a bench. They soon returned convinced that Helen and the boys would not have continued up this path as it only got steeper. So we headed down. On the way, we saw a Superb Lyrebird. A large black bird that mimics almost any sound, forages on the ground for insects, and displays a lyre-shaped tail. Anyway, we got to the bottom finished the walked expecting to find the boys and Helen waiting for us. No, they did the whole hike--sounds like it was quite difficult but they succeeded. They were very thirsty but filled with adrenaline.

A look up through the canopy. The "floor" is filled with streams and boulders, ferns and many other plants

Minnamurra Rain Forest

We are all on one of the rope bridges-except Helen, she was ahead of us at this point
This is all one tree. Not only was it very wide, it was also very, very tall. It is called a Strangler Fig Tree.
The fern that is growing in this tree is quite large. The parasitical relationship must work really well --there were many of these ferns. At a nursey these ferns are $100.
I took this picture looking straight up a very tall fig tree. The rainforest canopy is absoutely beautiful. I could not get enough of looking up through the foilage at the mottled sunshine. This was a great day. The rainforest is only about 1 hours drive south. I am sure we will go there again.

Sydney

We arrived at Wollongong Station for our trip to Sydney. We took the South Coast to Central in Sydney. We walked only 3 blocks to our hotel. We packed light--only one backpack with all of our clothing. It was heavy and we were happy to check into our hotel at 10:00 am. We stayed on World Square in a Rydges Hotel. The location was central to the train, Darling Harbour, the Monorail, and China town.
We took the monorail outside our hotel to Darling Harbour. I wish we had more pictures of this beautiful--made for tourism location. Many shops, restaurants, jet boat rides and various entertainment. It was well done and very fun place to be. We went to the Sydney Aquarium. Our big highlight, besides the wonderful fish, was the platypus! I had never seen one before and was suprised that it was so small. A big one weighs only 3 kilos about 6 to 7 pounds. It is an odd looking animal. We also went to the Australian Wildlife Museum. This was equally as nice. The highlight to us was the butterflies. There we many brightly colored ones landing on us.

After two museums, Sam tried to talked John into a water taxi ride. Didn't work! We walked to the other side of the Harbour and saw street acts, merry-go-rounds, paddle boats, bungee jumping etc. We were exhausted and walked back to the hotel. We stopped at a Spanish restaurant. Spanish Austrilias. We had tapas. We were very happy the kids tried many of the dishes. We bought a plate of back up schnitzel and chips(chicken and fries), just in case. John and I enjoyed the Sangria. We were all ready for bed at 9pm!!

Sydney

On Friday Morning, we headed out to Circular Quay. We walked about 10 blocks from our hotel. We went through Hyde Park. The trees and gardens are striking. This is a beautiful oasis in the middle of the city.
Sam wanted to go in the Sydney Tower. We suggested we do that another time we come. He was not happy and I am sure he will try to hold us to our promise. It looks like it would be a nice thing to do. . . another time!

In the park, we found the Anzac Day Memorial. It was a beautiful ornate building, but the most moving thing was this statue in the center of the building. It is of two people supporting a fallen comrade.
St. Mary's Cathedral is preparing for the Pope's visit. The white archway is a countdown display with 200 more days until WYD (World Youth Day). We could not go in as there was construction and cleaning preparation going on.

Sydney

Here is the famed opera house. It is very beautiful. It truly defines Sydney, as you approach by sea. They were setting up for the big NYC--New Year Celebration '07. There was alot of hubbub about the impending event. We took a ferry from Circular Quay (pronounced "key") to Manly beach as we left CQ we first came around the Opera House.

We saw the Prime Minister's home, across the bay from the Opera House.
Kait and Sam enjoyed the sights of Sydney. The city is quite large. this is just a small portion of the skyline. You can see the Sydney tower--the tall tower with the lookout on top. Sam is hoping to go up there on the next trip.

This is Manly beach! It is famous--but oh so crowded. We have been to nicer beaches!!! From the ferry in Sydney Harbour we walked about 2 blocks to the open ocean. In those two blocks there is every cafe and shop you could ever need. I can see it being a wonderful place in the evening--with no kids of course. We ate at a wonderful outdoor deli--Sam is getting into antipasta with John and I. We took the ferry to Circular Quay the city train to Central Station and took the South Coast Train home. I insisted on a taxi home from the train station. It is great to be home!

Fitzroy Falls

For our Sunday adventure, we set off for Morton National Forest. We have read and heard of the Fitzroy Waterfalls. The Nat'l forest is really quite large and we are going to the northern most edge. We have about a 1 hour drive southwest. John maneuvered the steep incline and hairpin curves up the escarpment. We stop at this pie shop, for a restroom break and to try a pie. Pies are traditionally meat pies. We get a couple to try. Sam and John love them. Kait and I don't share their enthusiasm.
We arrive at the park and find a nice welcome center and head out on the easy trail. We pass a natural habitat for duck-billed platypus, according to the sign. However, they are in the nest this time of year. We will have to come back in the winter. June, July and August are when they are the most active. We come to a lookout over Yarrunga Valley. The mountains in the distance look blue. This is due to the Eucalyptus trees and the haze created by the moisture of the forest. Just to the left of the photo is a very long waterfall and a very long way down. We tried but could not get a photo of the entire falls. It was just too large. So we hiked around for a better lookout on the other edge of the valley.
Here it is! Fitzroy Falls. If you look at the top of the falls to the left, you can see the lookout we were on taking the first photo.
We hiked further and came to Twin Falls. There are 2 of these on either side of the mountain. We hiked back and had our picnic lunch at the welcome and information area. We ask about Belmore Falls. We had been on a dirt road before and turned back sure we were in the wrong spot. The guide said we should really see it. So off we go.

Belmore Falls

Next, we went to Belmore Falls. We drove down a dirt road about 5km. This road is barely described as a service road. It is quite rough and not at all maintained. We were definately in the bush. We saw a wallaby in a field! There are supposed to be wild koalas in this park and we keep a look out, but do not see any. I decided to try my hand at driving, my first time. I thought I was pretty safe--only a couple cars came the other direction. I will say, the road was very narrow so when a car did come, especially the Holden Ute, it was a bit hairy. We are cruising fairly slow and then we came to a hairpin turn by a large rock cliff. As I turn the car the road well . . . the photo above is the road. Yep, I drove across the water. Not so bad, right?
To our right is the meandering creek, that drops right off a HUGE cliff to create the falls. See where the water line stops in the center of the photo!!! That is only about 10 meters from the road. Obviously we were amazed enought to get out and record the moment.
This is our car. Every other car on the road is a SUVor some sort of outback truck. Obviously our car is not made for rough road travel.
AND here is the other side of the falls!!! Quite a drop! The first section of the falls drop to a pool of water --a good size pond. The second set drop to the river bed below. This is such a great spot and it is not really publized or is it easy to get too. We felt it was definately wonderful. We had a great day!!!!

Saturday Night Sunset

We were home this Saturday evening and this is the sunset off of our front balcony. If you look to the far right over the house . . . see the horizon --that is our view of the Tasman Sea. We do have an ocean view . . . of sorts, I guess!
I took this photo from the back of our condo. The sun is still "up" on the back of the mountain. So it created dark where we are, but the buildings up on the hill were lit up by the sun. Beautiful views!

Christmas Program SFX

The kids had their Christmas Program yesterday. They did a full Christmas pageant with Mary, Joseph, the inn, the sheep etc. Many holiday classics were included. Sam's class sang Jolly Old Saint Nicholas. Sam is positively thrilled to be wearing antlers with bells on them!
Kait's class sang a new one to me, "Christmas Star." It was a very pretty song about the Magi following the Star to Bethlehem. The 2nd graders were the "kings" with elaborate homemade crowns and robes made of whatever: towels, sheets, bathrobes, a few had the more "official looking costume type. They processed down the aisle and surrounded Mary and Joseph on the altar. The first year were the shepards and Kindy were the animals. It made for a very crowded, but adorable altar!!! It was all very well done. Hope you all are enjoying your preparations for Christmas!!

Stanwell Park

On our way back from Symbio, we stopped at Stanwell Park. If you look in the far distance you see the third mountain--that is Wollongong. We are just about 25 k north. The view up here is amazing. There are coal mines here producing coke for the steel plant. It is so incredibly beautiful--not what you expect of a coal town. This exact area is called Bald Hill. It is famous for Lawrence Hargrave, Australia's pioneer of flight. Hang gliders take off from this point and land in Wollongong at the park near North Beach. See the village and beach below--

Now we are on the beach looking back up to Bald Hill. This beach is a carved-out cove between two large cliffs. There is a cute little village built into the valley. These modest homes have incredible views.
Kait and Sam enjoying the big waves at the beach. We had a picnic lunch on the beach and stayed a few hours. We then continued our drive home. There was an old highway built along the cliffs to Wollongong. Apparently a storm washed it out and a new Sea Bridge was built. A highway out over the sea, along the mountain edge. The pylons are sunk into the sea edge giving the appearance of suspension. There is a walk way along the highway that we hope to travel one day.

Symbio Animal Park

Today, we went to Symbio Animal Park, a private animal reserve that has won many awards for conservation. It is a bit different than a zoo, in that you get up close and personal with most animals. Here is Kait with her favorite --The Koala.
Sam had to have a shot too. We took about 150 photos but here are a few.
We had such a great time. We saw Emus, spider monkeys, peacocks, stone lizards, camels, ostriches, meerkats, alligators, turtles, red pandas.

Symbio Animal Park

The kangaroos were great. We got bags of food, some sort of hay, and the kangaroos were very trusting and open to a treat. This one Roo and Sam had a good time. The roo followed Sam and made sure he was getting his fair share of food. He even went over Sam's back as he was feeding another!

Kait had a special affection for the mom with joeys in there pouches. There were several. What a fun experience this was!


This is a Tasmanian Devil. We are near the Island of Tasmania, which is part of Australia, that is where these little creatures are thought to be from originally. They are native to the Australian outback now though. They do sound quite evil when they are competing for food!

Swim Carnival-Sam

Sam between events--cruisin' the pool!
That is Sam in the jammers(long speedo). He got third in the 50 free.
Here is Sam celebrating a first place finish on the 25 meter back. He tied 3rd in the 25 breaststroke and got last in the 200 IM (He said he just got too tired--we were proud he even finished). He had a great time! The pool is salt water with chlorine.

Swim Carnival--Kait

There was a swim meet today through the school. The classmates competed against each other by age. The event was held at the University of Wollongong or Gong U, as it is called here. That is Kait is the floweredy suit. The man following her is Sam's teacher. Yes, hats are on at all times.

Here is Kait with her school friends, Rachel and Ali. They had a good time cheering, eating and swimming. The sign-ups for events was prior to our arrival. We found that out this morning. Kait chose not to swim. She hung out! She was happy!!!

Christmas Tree

We decided to use this "palm" tree as our Christmas tree. The plan is to use it on our veranda after the holidays. We decorated it with seashells hung with fishing line, a few small red ornaments we bought and an angel made with paper and dried leaves. Our tree skirt is a red bath towel. We are not buying Christmas decorations--we will be home next year--hopefully--and we can't bring them with us. So we are have a different sort of Christmas this year. Hopefully you all are having a great time preparing for the holidays. I do miss the hustle and bustle.

Last Weekend

I did not take any pictures last weekend. We had dinner at the Sheridan's, the family in our building, on Friday night. Their son Alex slept over with Sam. On Saturday, we had Parr's over for drinks and dinner. Emma Sheridan slept over with Kait. On Sunday, Sam had surf club and We spent the afternoon at the beach. We had coffee with Amie Allen, John's 1st boss at North Star, at the kiosk on North Beach while the Sam was surf club. The waves were tremendous. Maybe 10 ft? the surfers were all excited. We even witnessed a rescue, with the boat and all. Everything turned out fine. Swimmers were getting out too far and could not get back into the shore because the under current was strong. We have not witnessed a riptide. However, the lifesavers were on constant alert for them.

Thanksgiving 2007

This is Thanksgiving-Aussie style. Eating outdoors over looking the ocean. Tami shared her photo with me. We are at her flat with Alaina, and Spencer at the end of the table. The Russell's, then John and I, The Mckeevers, The Rowland's. Tami is taking the picture. The kids: Casey and Nicki McKeever and Kait and Sam. We had a really great time!!

Ok! I get the rain issue. We have had a fairly heavy down pour for about 3 hours. It is 8:23 am. The thunder has been quite loud and the lightning intense. It is the lightening that is the concern at school not the rain. I see the intensity today. I must leave to walk with the kids to school. I am on canteen duty, from 9 am to 2pm! The mum's actually make the food--and the kids have a full menu from which to choose. I will let you know how it goes.

Sam was asked to be on a rugby team. The coach even offered to drive him if we had challenges getting to practice with one car!! Sam was excited!!!

I have been wanting a copy of our front door key. Our front door locks automatically when it closes. We were given two keys with "do not copy" engraved on them. Good! I understand for security of the building, you can't just let anyone copy a key. I contact the realtor. (Everything on rentals go through the realtor--home repairs etc. The renter has no contact with the property owner directly) She says I need to get a letter from the property mgr and go get the key made. Great I want 3 keys. One for Kait, one for Sam and one to hide when I do get locked out. I forgot to tell you, we did get locked out in the 1st week. While I was returning a phone book to a neighbor both kids came out to join in the conversation and the front door shut. Of course it was locked! The neighbor, Laurie--says, "no worries, come into my apartment and scale the 3/4 wall between our balconies." Thankfully, Sam accepted that challenge. So, I gotta get back up keys! Well, I find out yesterday that yes I can get a key made but I have to pay a $50 deposit per key and it is $35 per key to have it cut. $85 per key! Well, now I only need one key! But, $85!!! John is questioning why we need one but still does come around and think it is a good idea--but $85 seems ridiculous. I decide to think about it. So today, I look up the propery mgrs # to get a key. The $85 is bugging me. I decide to switch the laundry and think about it some more. In the laundry room there is a door that leads to a back balcony. I notice some insects on the outside of the window and decide to spray them. I walk out, the wind blowing through the apartment slammed the door shut. Yeah, It was locked!!!! I am on a balcony 2 floors up, no way down. Locked out! I don't have my cell phone --it is on the charger. There are two other doors to the balcony --sliding glass doors to each of the kid's bedrooms. LOCKED!! It is cool and cloudy--no one is out. I can see many apartments and back yards not a soul. Prayertime! I begin to think of the kids --school is out in 2 hours. What will happen if I don't show up to pick them up??? I start to panic. Decide to spray more bugs so I had time to think about what I could possible do. Then I heard a noise, in the apartment below and to the side of me. So I start calmly saying "excuse me." A little louder, "Can you help me!" A young guy, I later find out is "BEN," comes out. He is understanding of my predicament--at first he suggests I climb down. Then we both realize it is just too high. I told him my only solution is to call my husband. "No worries, mate," he says. Ben pulls out his shiny cell phone. What's his number? I don't know?? So he graciously calls information with little hope. Bluescope is huge here --thousands of employees. The receptionist is able to locate John's phone. Luckily he was at his desk and he could come home to rescue his princess stuck on the balcony. That is not exactly his reaction. I am safe and sound I can get the kids in a little bit. Yes, I ordered a key and $85 doesn't seem so bad now!

I just have to tell what happened yesterday. It was a beautiful sunny day. About 2:30 in the afternoon a black cloud came over the mountain behind us and created a rain shower. I leave the flat at 3:00 to be at the school by 3:15 dismissal time. Well, it is still raining, but not hard. I have no umbrella (didn't buy that yet), no problem--I'll get wet. It is warm about 85 degrees f or about 23 c here. I get to school and there is not the usual group of parents waiting for children. The parents are coming out of the school escorting thier children, putting up there umbrellas and heading to cars. I am becoming increasingly alarmed. What is going on? I approach a parent, aware that I am damp definately, not dripping, my hair is not looking its best--but I just walked in the light rain up here. She looks at me and says the weather is really bad--just go to your child's classroom and get them. She went on to tell me when the weather is horrible the children wait inside. I am concerned that there is a tornado or something catastophic that I am not aware of.

I get the kids and I ask Kait's teacher. He smiles and says, "They are just not used to so much rain." OKAAAAAAY! I get the kids we walk home --enjoying the chance to walk in the rain. If only they knew about the weather at home!!!

New Friends

Sam and his friend Alexander, pause just for a moment. They have a great time together! They are always at the beach, or creating mini skateboard parks on the patio, or playing rugby.
Kait and Emma (Alex's sister) are great friends too. They were practicing doing "stage make-up." Emma is a cat and Kait is a butterfly. These two are always doing "girly stuff" together. Now they are planning their first sleep over.

It is great to have friends for the kids in our building--their parents are pretty awesome too!