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Taronga Zoo, Sydney, June 13th

Taronga Zoo is in north Sydney, a ferry ride from downtown. Jim spent the weekend with us and this was our first stop. The girls patted a corn snake and got to hold an olive python. Mercedes agreed to help Kyra hold it but only if she could have the tail end. The possum was just roaming about free, an escapee or visitor?

Sydney With Jim, June12-15

Sydney, June 10-17

Back in Sydney with no more motorhome. We visited some sights we hadn't seen, like the Chinese Gardens in Darling Harbour pictured here.

Saying Goodbyes, June '08

Our last time at Jim's house.

The girls said goodbye and gathered emails from Shaminy and Jacinta, and then from Kieran and Lateisha across the street and in the photo. Sorry if I spelled any names wrong. They also got to participate in net ball practice with Lateisha's team, her mom couching. Thanks again for that, the girls had a great time and learned to play a new sport.

We enjoyed meals from some of our favourite restaurants one last time (Wok It Up, Yum), mailed home our extra junk, and packed our suitcases once again. Then we headed for Sydney for our last week before flying home. The girls will miss their room at Jim's with its playstation and Simpson posters, but they'll miss Jim more.

The other photo is of a visitor in Jim's house. He may not be native. We named him Fred.

The Zig Zag Railway, May '08

In the Blue Mountains just west of Sydney we visited the Zig Zag railway steam train in Clarence. It was used in the past to bring coal up from the bottom of the mountain. It stops twice on it's way to move the engine from one end to the other to pull the train cars up the next stretch (thus 'zig zag'). Each change-over took about 10 minutes and we got to ride in the engine for one of them, crammed between the coal bin and the furnace with the engineer and his assistant. Cosy and warm. A man we met who takes regular tour groups on the train put two 50 cent pieces on the tracks. The train flattened them out smooth and he gave them to Kyra and Mercedes.

The Elusive Platypus, May '08

In Bombala, NSW, we finally saw ourselves a platypus. Our caravan park was by the river in town. They only splash about at dusk and dawn, so in the evening we walked the banks until dark with no luck. We looked again in the morning and finally Dad saw one. Mostly we just saw a bit of splashing about and swimming, like an otter. The binoculars confirmed it was a platypus. We felt very lucky. Sorry, we have no photo. A picture of Dad waiting for it to resurface was as close as I got.

The Beach, May '08

The beautiful beaches continue. Here is one at Point Ricardo, a long, sandy beach. Dunes on one side, endless ocean on the other. The couple fishing caught a leopard (?) shark, about a meter long. We had a good look at it, then he threw it back because they aren't good eating.

Pelicans, May '08

We love these huge birds. A man had been cleaning his fish here and throwing the extras to the birds. It was a noisy production among the pelicans and the seagulls fighting over the tasty entrails.

Koalas and Crabs, May '08

After penguins at Phillip Island we visited the koala sanctuary of Phillip Island. Most of the koalas were boring grey lumps of sleep. At least this one was doing something.

That's a soldier crab from a beach somewhere on the coast of Victoria. Cute little things.

Phillip Island Penguins

Back on the Australian mainland we made our way to Phillip Island. We bought tickets to see the little penguins come in at night and congregated at the penguin centre as the sun went down. We usually like our wildlife viewing to be more spontaneous but it turned out to be a great experience. The centre was very informative and it had little windows where you could peek down into nesting tunnels where 1 or 2 little penguins would be preening or sleeping. They're actually called 'little penguins' and I think sometimes 'fairy penguins'. They aren't much larger than a seagull.

We walked the boardwalk down to the ocean and sat in the stands. Our front seats were level with the beach and we were soon rewarded with a flock of penguins coming up over the dunes. They waddled along and some headed to the nesting holes that dotted the hills while others stopped to dry and preen eachother right in front of us. They didn't seem to mind the people and dim lights at all. We weren't allowed to take photos because the flash might scare them.
During the next hour a group of them would waddle up about every 5 or 10 minutes, coming in from the ocean to nest and mate. This time of year the nesting and mating was false, apparently. I wonder if the penguins know that.

As the numbers dwindled we headed up the walkway following little groups and individuals as they waddled along looking for nest sites and mates, calling and listening for family members. One fella was calling loudly from beside his tunnel and was finally rewarded with his mate. They put on quite an educational display for our giggling girls. Mercedes informed Grammy later: 'I got an education!'

The next morning we checked at the information centre for penguin numbers the night before: 613! They count them every night. We felt sad about how these cute little guys get eaten by sharks. Penguin nuggets.

Extras, May 08

I wanted to add these extra photos from Dad. The first is from Jindabyne, then Geehi in Kosciuszko, the third is near Hobart at a great playground. The last is the rainforest walk in Tasmania.

Lanceston, Tasmania, May 08

Just outside the city of Lanceston we went on a wetlands walk. The boardwalks take you across several kms of wetlands, crossing rivers which at low tide look just like the muddy banks and flats of the Minas Basin. Except for the black swans hanging out in the muck.

You have to look closely at the last photo. Kyra and I spotted this after waiting quietly where we heard rustling. We don't know what kind of spider that is, it was the size of a large ant.

More Tasmania. May 08

Above are 2 photos from the Freycinet Penninsula where we saw the dolphins. The others are from a rainforest walk just inland from St. Helen's.

Tasmania

Tasmania is a beautiful place. We only had 6 days there and managed to see plenty, but we know there was much more to see. Arriving early in the morning we drove west and visited Wings Wildlife farm in Gunn's Plains. Here we got to see a few things we haven't seen in the wild yet: wombats (extremely cute), tasmanian devils knawing on bones (not so cute, but cool), and echidnas (again, extremely cute). A cockatoo chatted to Boppy saying 'Hello Boppy' (or Poppy?) and another pretended dramatic sneezing. An emu tried to sample Dad's camera lens, sneaking up beside him as he photographed another. A monkey growled at Kyra, and 3 donkeys were very attentive to Mercedes's singing. It was an eventful outing. We knocked an assortment of poo off our shoes and moved on.

A few days later we visited the Salamanca markets in downtown Hobart. We had a great time here, sampling, perusing, buying. The girls and I watched a busker: a very tall contortionist/sword swallower. Kyra and Mercedes found it hilarious and shocking.

On Mother's Day we got a special treat: frolicking dolphins. We watched them off the Freycinet Penninsula. We continued up the east coast and stayed at Lagoons Beach for a night, enjoying a big campfire and meal. Black swans floated on the lagoon and people fished from the beautiful beach. Fairy wrens scouted our campsite for crumbs in the morning.

The next day at a marina in St. Helen's we had delicious fish and chips. Dad and Kevin met a man with a sailboat from London, England. He's been sailing for 10 years and counting.

Melbourne, May

We made it to Melbourne a day after being in Kosciuszko national park. We like Melbourne, lots of character. We visited the aquarium after finding a parking place for 2 motorhomes, not an easy task. What a great aquarium it was, giant manta rays and huge crabs that can live for 50 years. That night, rather than trying to find a caravan park for the night, we parked together and enjoyed a night under the overpass. Surprisingly we all slept great. We had a good laugh about the country bumpkins sleeping under the bridge in Melbourne.

We took the evening ferry to Tasmania, spending a night in the on board cabins. The kids thought it was wonderful! They sqealed when they saw how big the boat was and then again when they got to sleep in bunk beds. And yet again when they got to go see the Alvin and the Chipmunks movie with Grammy at the theaterette. It was a very nice ferry, very clean and comfy.

Dad's photos

Here are a few photos courtesy of Dad (aka: Roy and Boppy). If you enlarge the middle photo it's very cute.

As you view the third photo you may be confused. Australia does have penguins but very tiny ones called 'little' or 'fairy' penguins. These are King penguins on South Georgia island in the South Atlantic Ocean, from a recent adventure enjoyed by my folks. They could walk among these 1000's of penguins and the birds would just look at them, maybe nibble a shoe. I thought I'd throw in this great picture just to shake things up, take the blog to another part of the world for a moment.