Bendigo and Some Great News too!

Not too much exciting to report this work week.  Outside of work I had a small "tip over" on my bike on Monday morning while trying to clip out of my pedals at the top of a hill.  Thankfully the only person that was around to witness it was a nice looking gentleman in a car, who happened to also be a cyclist.  He shared his story of "tipping over" in front of his friends at a cafe.   Anyhow, on to the weekend.

This weekend we had another ITF exchange weekend but this time in Bendigo.  Bendigo is the third largest city in the state of Victoria and another former gold town like Ballarat.  I left work Friday afternoon and headed to Southern Cross to catch the train to Bendigo.  I managed to catch a pretty direct train and so I was there by a bit after six pm.  Jodie, my host of the weekend, along with Hamish, another exchange teacher, were waiting for me at the station.  We headed back to Jodie's house where we chatted, enjoyed some wine, and had a fabulous meal.  Jodie loves to cook so Hamish and I received the royal treatment.  THANKS AGAIN JODIE!   Jodie went on exchange a few years ago to Canada so she has a liking for Canadians (heck, what's not to like RIGHT??).

Saturday morning I was up early with an attempt at a run.  I didn't sleep well the night before and I wasn't feeling all that great so my sixty minute planned run was more like twenty with a lot of walking.  I went from Jodie's house to Lake Weeroona and back.  While at the lake I took a  couple of pictures including one of the local black swan and her babies.

Lake Weeroona

The black swan with her babies.

After a quick shower Jodie took Hamish and I to Bendigo Pottery, Australia's oldest working pottery.  I inquired about shipping some of it home but the cost was insane so I bought a few smaller pieces instead and  hopefully I can get some help bringing it home to Canada (Nancy B? Tammy ? Nancy H? Mike? Judy?)

A demonstration at Bendigo Pottery

From the pottery we made a quick stop  at Lake Weeroona for coffees before meeting up with the ITF group at a local restaurant.  As usually it was a loud bunch as we chatted and caught up with one another.  After lunch we went on a walking tour of Bendigo.  I learned a bit more about the city and its buildings.

Camp Hill Primary

(what a cool looking school eh?)

View from the tower.

At the end of the tour I headed over to the Golden Dragon Museum.  I spent a bit of time wondering the museum and its gardens.

Jodie then picked up Hamish and I and we headed to Dan Murphy's for wine and then to the grocery store.  Jodie again offered to cook (which neither Hamish or I refused) so we watched her choose what she needed for dinner and we paid for the groceries.  We had a wonderful thai salmon dinner.  Once we were good and full so we headed to the main event for this Bendigo weekend - the "Bush Dance".  The best way for me to describe bush dancing is to say that it's like square dancing except there usually isn't a square.  At the beginning of each dance we were clearly told what we needed to do.  It was a total hoot except for the fact that I was getting some really bad pain at the back of my head.  I ended up taking part in just two dances but I enjoyed watching everyone else.  I also met a lot of people.  There were a few couples there that are going on exchange next year as well as some other people that have already been on exchange.  I met a nice girl named Naomi and she lives in Melbourne too.  Hopefully we'll get together here in Melbourne.  

A bush dance.

Madeline (from Ontario) and I

(Madeline attends the yoga in Camberwell that I've been going to when I'm in town)

Proof that I bush danced too.

(You can see a bit of the live band in the background)

Me bush dancing with Tom and Bridget (from Winnipeg)

We ended up staying at the bush dance until the very end, and helped with clean up before we headed back to Jodie's.  It was a great night.

The next day Jodie, Hamish, and I met up with Jodie's friend Mel and her adorable ten week old daughter Tahlia for brunch.  After a wonderful brunch Jodie took us wine tasting (see she was the BEST host).  We visited three wineries and I managed to keep the Bendigo wine community happy.  We also took an outside walking tour of her school along with a visit to the part of town that was affected by the terrible bush fires back in February.

 

Mandurang Valley Winery

(This man is a retired principal)

The view from Balgownie Estate

Jodie and Hamish having some hot chocolate 

while I was busy tasting Lynnevale Estates wine.

At this point in the day I needed to get back to the train station to catch my train to Melbourne.  After some sad goodbyes I was heading back to Melbourne.  It was a really great weekend  and Jodie was an excellent host.  She's also getting into cycling and if I can swing it I'd like to come back to Bendigo to go for a ride with her.  Obviously a coffee stop would be part of the ride, and after the brunch we had this morning we might have to get back there too.  Now I just need to figure out if I can make it work.  (Plus Jodie is going in for knee surgery Tuesday so she maybe out of commission for a few weeks).

And finally the GREAT news.  I don't know how I forgot to mention this a couple weeks back but.... I received a full refund for my original medical bills. It was close to $2,400 CDN so I'm so glad to be reunited with my money.  Unfortunately I doubt I'll see any more from them since my condition has gone from "emergency" to "chronic".  But I'm happy to see what I've seen.

Oh, and before I close this out my assistant principal has taken another job in the district so my THIRD assistant principal will start term three (or sooner if they can be hired quickly).  In case you're keeping score with my school year here by the time my one year is over I will have gone through THREE principals AND THREE assistant principals.  Needless to say the teaching part of this exchange is the part I've been the most disappointed with.  But I do like my class and I think that there are some incredible teachers at this school - it's just too bad I needed to be thrown into this year of transition and change.  It wasn't quite what I had signed up for and it sure makes me miss my school back home - A LOT!

Ocean Grove, Bellarine Peninsula Aug 14-16, 2009

After returning to Darwin late Monday night I was a back at work for what was a typical Footscray North Primary school week.  Wednesday after school I was hoping to get back to the store that sold me my camera but I forgot the bill at home so it had to wait until Thursday (after my team meeting).  Thankfully the store was very good to me (since I had purchased the camera less than 30 days earlier) and I had an immediate replacement.  The photos taken in this blog are from my latest camera.

Anyhow this weekend I was invited by my work friend Julie down to her place in Ocean Grove.  Since Julie doesn't work on Friday's I went down with Ruth my assistant principal from school (although she's on leave at the moment).  Ocean Grove is on the Bellarine Peninsula and if you've ever been to the Great Ocean Road you would turn left when you got to Geelong instead of right.  It was a beautiful place to spend a weekend, and even a winter weekend.

Saturday we were up early enough. Julie and Ruth headed to the gym and after a nice slow cup of coffee I went out for a run.  I ran along the beach at Ocean Grove and took a few pictures along the way.  You'll see from the photos below that it was a pretty tough place to run.

Ocean Grove Beach 

(this is about 100 m from Julie's flat)

My running shoe prints in the sand.  Yes, I had to run along the beach.

I know poor, poor, me.

The view looking back from where I had come from.

The views from the path along the river.

The amazing view and light I saw while running over the bridge and into Barwon Heads.

About 45 min into my run my mobile rang with Julie asking me where I was.  Needless to say everyone was hungry so instead of running back to Julie's place I ran into Barwon Heads and met them for breakfast.  We snooped around there for a bit and had a great breakfast before heading back to Julie's.  Once all cleaned Julie's family (along with Ruth and her daughter Sharon) and I headed out for a sight seeing journey around the Bellarine Peninsula.

Our first stop was at Point Lonsdale.  It's the opening for the ships that are heading into Melbourne port.  The opening isn't particularly large but all ships must come in and out of the opening to get into Phillip Bay.  From across the bay you can see the tip end of the Mornington Peninsula, the other side of the opening.

Point Lonsdale's White Light House

Our next stop was Queenscliff.  Queenscliff is a beautiful town with a ton of historic buildings.  For what ever reason I actually forgot to take pictures of the buildings but I did see the Royal Hotel, Post Office, Queenscliff Hotel, and Vue Grand Hotel.  I also went to the pier and took a photo of the black light house (apparently it's one of the last remaining in the world).  The black light house and the white light house at Point Lonsdale work together to help the ships get into the bay.  We spent a fair bit of time in the town which I enjoyed a lot.

Queenscliff's black light house in the foreground  and 

Point Lonsdale's white light house in the background.

The little red bird that peaked his head out at us from the

top of the tree in Queenscliff.

A view from the park in Queenscliff.

Queenscliff's Main Street

After an hour (or more) in Queenscliff we headed back to Ocean Grove.  Julie and I went for another walk along the beach.  After the walk Julie and I went for a drive to 13 beach and I DROVE!  Although their vehicle is quite big it didn't feel that big and I really enjoyed driving.  I figure I better start to practice a little bit since Tammy and Nancy are coming in less than five weeks and we have hired a car!!  Only once did I turn into the wrong lane and that was on a side dirt road with out another car in sight.  I think I'll actually be okay driving although it will require extra concentration (that and Tammy's GPS so we don't get too lost).

Walking on the Ocean Grove beach Saturday afternoon.

Sunday morning I slept in a bit later (okay like until 8 am), and Julie, Ruth and I went for a walk along the beach.  The clouds were pretty scary looking so instead of walking back we called the troops to meet us in Barwon Heads for breakfast. Below is a view from the sky taken outside the restaurant.

Ocean Grove Spit

(notice the crazy sky)

After breakfast Julie and her daughter and friend and I headed to see more of the peninsula. By this time the clouds had let us have it and it was pouring rain.  Our first stop was in Portarlington.  It was another cute town with an incredible bakery.  Julie bought a couple of loafs of bread and now that I'm hope I wish I had too.  We headed down to the pier so that I could take a picture.  It's really too bad it was raining so much because the photo doesn't do the area justice.

Portarlington Pier (in the rain)

From Portarlington we headed to St. Leonards another small town.  This isn't too much to this town except the pier and the house with the ducks on the front lawn.  I'm not sure if they are always there but they were certainly there today, in the rain.  After visiting St. Leonards we headed back to Ocean Grove.

St Leonard's Pier (in the rain)

The two ducks I saw cross the road in St. Leonards.

The house next door had several ducks in its front yard.

We spent the afternoon doing little errands and then we headed back to Melbourne.  Steve, Julie's husband, was kind enough to take me right back to my place even though I live 30-45 min away from them.

Overall it was a very good weekend and I'm glad I was able to get to Ocean Grove.  If I'm lucky and it works out I'm going to try to get there when the weather warms up and before I head back to Canada.

That's the update for this week.  Next weekend I have an ITF weekend in Bendigo which includes a Bush Dance.  It could be very interesting.  

Keep in touch.  With the time difference and me being away on weekends it's really tough to be in voice contact with people back in the home country.  Remember I do LOVE reading personal e-mails.

Oh and to my IMC friends... two weeks and counting!!  WOW how quickly it has arrived.  Now let's just see if there will be on line entry for IMC 2010.  I need some crazy weight loss program to get back to "fit" Karen.

Darwin and Kakadu - Aug 7 - 10, 2009

This past weekend I spend three full days back in the Northern Territory.  Last time I was there was back in January when I went to Alice Springs, Uluru, and Kings Canyon.  This visit was dedicated to Kakadu and Darwin.  Darwin is up near the top of Australia which means it's always warm.  During summer it's warm and very wet, but during winter it's just warm and wonderful.  Needless to say I was excited to be in 30+ degree heat.

I arrived safely (at 1:00 am on Saturday morning after a four hour flight) and quickly got settled into my hostel.  I figured the rest of the room was asleep so I was extra quiet.  Little did I know that at the time I was the only one in the room and I was rudely awakened at 3:30 in the morning to the return of two drunk girls.  Obviously being drunk they could have cared less that I was actually trying to sleep so the conversations continued at full volume with all the lights on.  Since I only had the opportunity for a maximum of five hours of sleep this made me angry.  So a few hours later when it was my turn to get up I wasn't my curtious self and I too turned on the lights and didn't take any extra care to be quiet.  It's not my style of course but I must say I felt great doing it.  

Anyhow back to my adventures.  I met up with my group at 6 am but we waited around for about another hour because three guys from the tour were coming in from Thailand and their plane was delayed.  By 7 am ish we were off in our four wheel drive vehicle. Our first stop was at Humpty Doo for coffee and breakfast.  From there we headed to a Billabong.  A billabong is like a big puddle of water that is left over from the wet season.  As the dry season passes the billabong gets smaller and smaller until there is no water left.  Kakadu has many billabongs and most (if not all) are filled with CROCODILES!  

At this particular billabong we were greeted by an aboriginal family.  The father made sure that we would not be bothered by the spirits on the land by taking water from the billabong and spitting it on our heads.  Apparently that's a good thing.  We all thought it was pretty gross but went along with it of course.  We also went through three  stations where we learned about aboriginal weaving,  didgeridoos, and spears.  We took part in all three activities and to be honest I wasn't all that great at any of them.  But it was still a great experience (the best aboriginal one I've had so far) and I learned a ton.

Aboriginal Weaving

Me playing the Didgeridoo

From the Billabong we headed for a Crocodile Cruise.  There are crocodiles in all the waters up in the Northern Territory.  The billabongs are also home to many different types of birds.  But the coolest part of the boat ride was seeing a Jabiru mother bird and her two very young babies.  If you look in the picture you'll see they are all so small that they can walk on lily pads.  But what was the coolest was that because the mother felt her babies were in danger she actually hid them under her wings.

I don't remember the name of this bird but it wasn't the smartest bird.  It can swim under the water but only for 30 min.  After 30 minutes has passed its wings become water logged and it must get out of the water and open its wings to allow them to dry. It can only stay out of the water for 30 min too and then it has to go back in.  This entire process is repeated ALL DAY LONG!  The poor bird.

The mother and two baby Jabiru birds 

(the babies are to the left and right of the mother -

you might want to double click on it to see them better)

The mother protecting her babies.

(If you look closely you can see four extra legs hanging down from her tummy).

From the boat cruise we travelled to Ubirr to check out some Aboriginal rock painting.  Rock painting is a very seacred thing but the aboriginals have allowed us to see some of the paintings from their young.  I learned that we will never be allowed to see the more complicated paintings.  They ones we saw were impressive enough.

Aboriginal Rock Paintings

More Paintings

A billabong at the Ubirr sight in Kakadu National Park

Me, on the lookout at Ubirr

After Ubirr we headed to our campsite in Kakadu national park for the night. The night sky was incredible with so many stars.  Sheldon our guided told us a bit about the stars.  It's too bad I couldn't get a photo of the night's sky.

The next morning we were up REAL early (5 am) and on the road by 6 am.  We headed along a  dirt road until we came to a point in the road where four while drive was required to continue.  Once our hubs were locked we kept on going toward Twin Falls.  The drive there was pretty crazy. It was either super bumpy, super sandy, or super wet.  You'll see in one of the photos below that we actually drove through a river!

Driving through the river!

A picture taken out the window while driving THROUGH the river!

(Notice how stunning Kakadu is!)

After a lot more four wheeling adventurous driving we arrived at Twin Falls.  In order to access the falls you have to take a small boat down a crocodile infested river.  Thankfully we arrived safely and after a short hike we were at Twin Falls.  Since it's the dry season right now the water was not running as wildly as it can in the wet season.  We also found out that the river was five meters higher at the end of the wet season then what it was when we were on it.  The wet season is one very very wet season.

Scenes from the boat ride.

(Thankfully we didn't see any crocs but we were warned to keep our hands INSIDE the boat)

Twin Falls 

(the twin fall is the small one to the right of the bigger one)

After a short stop at Twin Falls we headed back onto the four wheel drive road and made our way to Jim Jim Falls.  Unfortunately Jim Jim falls is complete dry at this time of year so we didn't actually see any falls.  However it was excellent being their because we could SWIM in the water with out fear of crocodiles.  At this point it was probably 35 degrees or warmer so swimming was wonderful.  We stayed there for about 90 minutes and we even enjoyed our lunch there which was wonderful.  As we hiked out of the falls we came across a snake, which I was brave enough to hold.  Unfortunately I look too fat to post the picture but I've posted one of the snake being held by the guide for you to see all the same.  

A small glimps of Jim Jim Gorge/Falls with out the Falls

The Snake I held!  REALLY!

From Jim Jim Falls we started to make our way back to Darwin (over 200 km away).  Sheldon took back dirty roads so we could see more of Kakadu. We stopped at another billabong and I took and I took a few pictures of other aspects of Kakada.  Here's one to enjoy.

One of the many sides of Kakadu

We arrived back in Darwin around 6:15 pm. I quickly checked back into my hostel, had a REAL shower (we were filthy from Kakadu), and headed down to Mindil Market.  Mindil Market takes place at sunset Thursday and Sunday nights.  It's a market with local crafts and many food vendors.  I walked to the market with two girls I met in the hostel.   It was a great place to pick up a souvenir necklace and dinner.  We also listened to a man play several digeridoos.  It was a nice way to end a weekend.

Mindil Market

The multiple digeridoo playing man 

(He was excellent!)

The next morning I was up early and out for breakfast.  I walked around the city section of Darwin. It's not a particularly big city (maybe around 100,000 people) and so I was able to cover a fair bit in just a few hours.  What I liked was that I found the gallery that I loved in  Alice Springs in Darwin so I was able to pick up a few more things that I wanted.  I was hoping to maybe buy a piece of aboriginal art to ship home but what I loved wasn't in my budget.  I'll keep looking but I know the Northern Territory is the place to buy it.  While in Darwin I visited the new wharf/water front area.  I walked all day only stopping for food and coffee (yes Tracey I did get to your friend's coffee place but I didn't say hello).  Oh and did I mention it was HOT!  Oh, I loved the heat.

Wharf/Water Area in Darwin

Well, my time in Darwin quickly came to an end as I headed back to the airport for my four hour flight back to Melbourne.  When I left Darwin around 6 pm it was still over 30 degrees. When I landed in Melbourne around 11 pm it was 8 degrees and raining.  I'm so glad I had the opportunity to visit the top end of Australia.  I wish I could have stayed longer though as I would loved to have gone to Litchfield, and Kimberly.  I hope there will be another trip to Australia in my future.  Heck Darwin in July/August would be a great place to be.

Anyhow before I end this post I need to thank KAY from work for lending me her camera for the weekend.  As I mentioned in my previous post my NEW camera is no longer working.  Tomorrow it's heading back to the store (only four weeks after I purchased it).  Hopefully I'll get a replacement camera because I need to keep this blog running with PHOTOS!  Next weekend I'm heading to Ocean Grove with Julie from work.  Ocean Grove is right on a surf beach and I've heard the area is just stunning.  It also been rumored to be 20 degrees and SUNNY this weekend in MELBOURNE!!  I can't wait!!

Until next time...

At The Airport

Right now I'm sitting at the Melbourne airport passing the time as I wait to board my plan to Darwin. It's been a long but productive week. This morning I was up early because of crazy rain and wind storm. Early was five hours after I went to sleep so needless to say I've been pretty tired all day long.

My school has a disco as a fundraiser. It was today after school from 5 - 6:30 for the junior kids. It was so cute to see these kids dancing away covered in neon products like necklaces and bracelets. I went to take some photos only to find out that my brand new (like what four weeks old?) camera isn't working any longer. I'm not really sure what's up - all the parts work but the screen only takes black pictures even though I can clearly see the pictures taken with it yesterday. Needless to say it's going back to the store next week. Thankfully though a work friend lent me her camera for the weekend. It seems a bit unwell but hopefully I'll be able to take some photos while in Darwin.

Oh yah, that's why I'm at the airport in Melbourne. I'm off to DARWIN, Northern Territories to visit Kakadu National Park. My plane arrives at about 1 am in the morning and I'm on a two day one night Kakadu tour five hours later (yes, 6 am pick up). It reminds me of my trip to Perth and Margaret River. But like I often say, you can catch up on your sleep when you're 80 (and hopefully I'll actually sleep on the plane for a bit).

Not sure what my internet access will be while I'm away but know that I'm safe and having fun. Fingers crossed that the borrowed camera works so that I can share some photos on the blog when I get back. Darwin is suppose to be in the mid 30's and SUNNY so I can't wait. Summer in the middle of winter is NEVER a bad thing.

Until then....

July 31 - Aug 2, 2009

This weekend was my second weekend in a row in Melbourne before I venture away for five weekends in a row.  After work on Friday, as you probably read, I registered for the Melbourne Half Marathon.  Danielle and Zane then came by and picked me up and we headed to Lygon Street for dinner.  We went back to the restaurant I went to when my sister was here and I had another great risotto.

Danielle and Zane

As usual I was up early Saturday morning.  I managed to catch up with a couple of friends before I headed out for my run.  I ran for about 50 min and after a short walk I was back on Smith Street.  Some how I managed to find myself in another shoe store and I now own a new pair of brown leather boots.  Since all the winter sales are on right now (making room for the SPRING clothing) I picked them up for a score - $50 AUD.   

The New Brown Boots!!

Once home I showered and changed and headed to Eithad Stadium to meet up with Tracy and her family.  Tracy is one of two reading recovery teachers at Footscray North Primary School.  I think she's great so it was nice to get to know her husband and children a bit better too.  Tracy's family members are  huge Western Bulldog's fans. Tracy took real good care of me too - providing me with a hat and scarf for the game along with some snack.  They have great seats too right down near the field.  Unfortunately I couldn't get any great pictures of the game but I have a couple to share all the same.  The Bulldogs also won (which is no surprise because they are third in the league this year).  I then went back to Tracy's home and enjoyed a wonderful meal with her family.  It was a great night.

Woofer and I!

(Woofer is the Bulldog's Mascot)

Me and Tracy

(Her eyes had trouble with the flash - they are usually OPEN)

This morning I was up early and I headed back to Lululemon for a yoga class.  It ended up being a pilates class which was fine too.  Madeline wasn't there this week (which was too bad)  but I did catch up with Jessica for a few minutes before and after class.  

Jessica and I outside of Lululemon

I spent a good part of the day lying on the couch.  I think I've got some allergies these days as my nose is running like crazy.  I don't think it's a cold though because I have regular energy.  Last night I didn't sleep though so the couch time was wonderful.

I'm about to start what I dread most about this adventure and that's my weekly planning.  Next weekend I'm off to Darwin though so no matter what happens Monday to Friday I know that there are great adventures in store for me.  Darwin is also very warm so it will be so nice to be back in the warmth.  As I mentioned at the start I'm actually away the next five weekends in a row.  Two weekends are airplane weekends (Darwin and Hobart), two are car trips (Ocean Grove, and Healsville), and one is a train trip (Bendigo). There should be lots to write about and little time to complain about work.