The Gold Coast

We have moved up the Australian eastern coast to south of Brisbane which is the area called the Gold Coast.  We are actually staying in Mermaid Beach, but this part of the coast is one community after the other, definitely vacation territory.  Everything is geared to water activity.  Surfer's Paradise is one of the communities/beaches and the beach is lined with high-rises and restaurants.  Makes you wonder how they can keep so many hotel rooms filled, but I guess there is enough year-round traffic to keep them in business.  We have certainly seen lots of young adults and young families, even though their school season is still in.  (We have seen TV commercials and such gearing into the Christmas season, too, which is really weird when the weather is summer weather.)  There are some lovely, big houses jammed together along the ocean side as well.

The beaches seem endless and there are life-guard stations all down the coast.  The last one we saw was #38.  Surf rescue is important and they even have sports related to it.  We have passed more than one surf rescue school and we saw several groups in the water training.  They have competitions and everything.

If you go just a little west into the interior you get into hilly, wooded terrain with big open valleys left over from the active volcanic period of their history.  We came across some para-gliders taking off from a steep hill on one such excursion.  Maybe half a dozen guys took off or were gearing up to while we stayed and watched.  They waited for the right wind gusts, ran a little down the slope, and took off up into the air lift.  It was amazing how high they would go and someone told us that they could glide for up to 6 hours if they wanted to.  They sat in a big, complicated kind of sling.  Guess if you stayed up that long, you would have to make accommodations for personal needs.

We also toured a couple of national parks.  Their national parks seem more primitive than what we are used to with Yellowstone and Yosemite.  They are more like national forests.  Lots of waterfalls to hike to.  The foliage is more like rain forest, too.  We took a walk in one, a private attraction called the Skywalk.  It is a raised open-grid walkway and gravel path that takes you through the upper rain forest on the walkway and down into the lower part on the pathway.  Gives you a better appreciation of rain forests and they are trying to promote understanding to also promote preservation (while making some money at the same time).  It was really interesting.

can you see the joey in her pouch?

We toured the David Fleay Wildlife Park, too.  Saw a lot of unique animals and birds up close and personal.  The wildlife intrigues me.  It is just so different.  They had lots of wallabies in the park and we found out the difference between a wallaby and a kangaroo.  The wallabies are smaller, much smaller in some cases, and have fuzzier fur.  We saw many varieties including one that they thought was extinct for 30 years before being rediscovered and one that lives in the rocks.


This guy is a cassowary bird.  It looks like something prehistoric.  It is a flightless bird with powerful feet that remind me of an ostrich.  It's funny topknot is hard and acts like a helmet when they push through think forest undergrowth.  The park's pair were in mating season.







Just some pictures of some of the different birds for a flavor of the country.

Pokolbin and the Hunter Valley

Most of the timeshares are not in the large cities and that has worked out pretty well, actually.   We are seeing parts of Australia that we probably wouldn't have otherwise seen, like the Mornington Peninsula and the Hunter Valley.  Pokolbin is in the Hunter Valley, which is the Napa Valley of Australia.  There are a lot of big wineries there and we would have liked to spend some time at them but we refrained.  We have had NZ and Australian wine at home and they were pretty good.  I think, after spending some time here, I would like to try more of them when we get back home.

We drove the area and it isn't far from the coast.  Have seen more of the spectacular coastline and beautiful water of Australia.  We toured Fort Scratchley in Newcastle and were met by one of several older gentlemen tour guides.  This guy was a real character, friendly and talkative.  You almost had to be rude to get out of there but he was so sweet.  He taught us how to properly say "g'day, mate" with just the right inflection.  If you say it one way, it is a greeting.  If you say it another, it is almost a challenge and rude.  He also told us the history of the fort and the harbor, plus gave us several rules to follow.  We always use our seatbelts but he admonished us not to forget as the fine is $800 on the spot if you are stopped by the police.  We were informed that we also just missed the firing of the canons which they do regularly and are quite proud of.

We went up to Nelson Bay Head Lighthouse at Port Stephens.  Wonderful views.

We have also seen quite a few kangaroos in the wild.  I tried to take pictures but zoomed too far and some didn't come out very well.  I just need to stay within the limits of my camera and not try to push it so far.  It has been really cool to see kangaroos in fields by the road, though.  I really didn't expect to see that.

When we were in Nelson Bay at the beach, we saw the biggest pelicans I have ever seen.  I couldn't believe how big they were and just kept taking pictures.  A fisherman had come in and was cleaning his catch, occasionally tossing fish to them.  It must be a regular event because they all
knew he was coming and congregated, waiting for him.  It was so funny to watch them.  We saw others in the area, and I can only say they grow them big here!



We have seen many species of plants and birds here that are different from what we know.  I am enjoying that part of this country as well.  The national bird is the ibis, we found out, which we have seen in a lot of places.  Turns out they are so numerous that they are somewhat of a pest.


We also have been to several gardens and they have some really pretty flowers, too.  I didn't get the names of all of them but this one is the trumpet flower tree.  Many parts of it are poisonous.  Pretty but deadly.  One was simple and we came across a frilly one later in the garden.  Just so much to appreciate.

Sydney, Australia

Sydney Opera House

We left the Mornington Peninsula and headed north along the eastern coast of Australia toward Pokolbin, which is north of Sydney.  We decided to break up the long drive by staying the night in Campbelltown, just south of Sydney.  The next day we took the train into Sydney for the day, planning to continue the drive to Pokolbin in the evening.  Best laid plans and all that.  The train ride into Sydney went fine and we had a great day in Sydney.  We weren't so lucky on the train ride back.  There was a problem with the track somewhere and one train at a time was being let through that part.  Therefore, what should have taken 1 1/2 hrs to get back to Campbelltown took 3 hrs and then we still had to drive 2 1/2 hrs further into Pokolbin.  Finally got to Pokolbin late at night.

Harbor Bridge

Sydney was terrific, though.  We spent that first day and then drove back down another day to see what we missed the first time.  Hit all the tourist spots.  Opera House was first and Sydney Harbor.

Government House

Went to the Government House next which is right there on the peninsula.  It is very much still used and is a beautiful old building.  The view from the back patio is wonderful, looking out into the harbor.  You can just imagine what it was like a hundred years ago.  There was even an old sailing vessel going by in the harbor.



I am very impressed by the size of the fig trees here.  There was a huge one in the back patio area of the Government House and we have seen them all over the place.  I especially love the intricate trunks they have.  I think they are very interesting.

St Mary's Cathedral

We walked the whole upper part of Sydney, going to old churches,

Chinese Garden of Friendship

the Chinese Garden of Friendship in downtown Sydney,







parks,

The Rocks

the neighborhood called "the Rocks",

ANZAC War Memorial

street art, little boy

the ANZAC War Memorial,







and just "about town".  

Tired legs, tired feet, but full of wonderful sights and memories.

Leaving NZ and on to Australia

We left Te Anau, where we stayed for the Milford Sound fiordland, and drove back to Christchurch so we could fly over to Australia.  We had driven down the interior of the southern island, so drove back up along the coast.  Spent some time in Dunedin where we looked at some old churches and other old buildings.  We just can't seem to stay away from the old churches.

Further north along the coast we came upon the Moeraki boulders.  These started as pebbles on the sea floor 55 million years ago that were continuously encased in limestone.  As the geography of the region changed, they were uncovered from the mud deposits and left on the shoreline.  They can reach 1 meter and more in diameter and are like huge stone marbles left on the shore.



Reached Christchurch and flew over to Australia into Melbourne.  From there we drove down to Boneo on the Mornington Peninsula where we spent the next several days.  Weather changed from spring chill and partly cloudy to summer sunshine.  Locals said they were experiencing summer weather early but it was quite a change.  Needed layers in NZ and shorts in Australia.  Admittedly, it has cooled a little since we got here but it is definitely warmer than NZ.  Continually have to remind myself that it is Oct. since it feels like June/July.

London Bridge

If NZ was characterized by waterfalls, so far Australia has been characterized by spectacular ocean colors.  Can't get over the shades of blue and turquoise in the water.  The Mornington Peninsula is actually south of Melbourne around the Port Phillip Bay.  We hit local beaches in the area and Fort Nepean which is out on the tip of the peninsula.  It was fortified to protect the bay during war time and was also an immigration and quarantine area for incoming ships, especially during the influenza epidemic.  It was used from the mid 1800's to the late 1900's.  It brought home that Australia is really a young country.  I keep forgetting that it really wasn't settled much until the early 1800's.

Melbourne's Flinders train station

We took the train into Melbourne for a day.  It was ridiculously cheap and so much easier than driving in and finding parking.  It was a windy day and I couldn't believe how strong the wind got.  Chicago is called the "windy city" but Melbourne could easily rival that, at least the day we went.  Sometimes, you felt like you were going to be blown over.  And the dust and grit that was blown around made it really uncomfortable sometimes.  Melbourne is a very large and modern city, though, that is a mix of old and new.  Mostly new, but there are old buildings mixed in here and there that just add to the character.

a kangaroo, not a rat

We also went to an animal conservation park.  It was like a natural, outdoor zoo of sorts.  It was the closest we will come to koala bears and kangaroos, probably, although we have come across road signs to beware of kangaroos crossing the road, like signs at home to watch out for deer crossing the road.  Kind of weird.  Don't expect to actually see a kangaroo on the road, though.  At the park, it was a hot afternoon so most of the animals were taking it easy and sleeping in the shade.  The kangaroos were in amongst the trees so it is hard to make them out in some of the pictures.  But it was cool to see them.  One crossed the path behind us, but of course, I wasn't fast enough to get a good picture.