| S | M | T | W | T | F | S |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | |
| 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 |
| 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 |
| 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 |
| 28 | 29 | 30 |
There is something inexplicably cool about recognising locations in films. Particularly the big budget ones. I still love seeing London on screen. Any part of London. On any type of screen ... be it film, or tv. I don't think it will ever get old. I get all squee-ish and homesick inside ... I just can't help it. Being able to recognise a far away location, and for it to be so innately familiar - it's a fabulous thing. Especially when you come from somewhere like Brisbane - a city which barely ever makes it into any form of tv or film.
Even more exciting than recognising London though, is recognising somewhere else. Somewhere that wasn't home for a year and a half. Somewhere that I 
visited while travelling ... somewhere familiar purely from a tourist perspective. Because let's face it ... London is hardly an unfamiliar sight on tv or film. As much as I love seeing it, it's not an entirely uncommon occurrence.
Last night however, I saw the much anticipated "Made of Honor" ... a fun, light hearted, romantic comedy starring the ever-fabulous McDreamy and set for the most part in New York - somewhere I'm yet to have the opportunity to visit. Little did I know though, the amusing story line eventually takes the lead characters on a journey across the atlantic to Scotland ... and somewhere entirely familiar and recognisable.
By now, you may have recognised that the photos here displayed are of the very locations in Scotland that are visited in the film. I was so excited while watching ... my poor friends must have been entirely sick of me squealing in recognition. Eileen Doonan castle has been a favourite of mine for years though ... since well before I visited in 2004. I had a photo print of the castle on the wall of my room at uni in Melbourne. I have ancestors who once worked at the stunning place. The connection is a special one for me.
And seeing the familiar locations on a massive screen during a relatively big budget film ... all the more exciting as a result! Surely I'm not the only one to find such familiar film locations so thrilling?
New layout! Obviously. Obligatory, really ... given that I'm on holidays. And I needed a change ... I'd reached the point of being entirely uninspired by the last layout. The colour change certainly wasn't enough of a change to maintain interest. This one is created with one of my own photos ... a shot I took at Rainbow Valley during my fabulous adventure around Australia. I'm loving the colours at the moment. Very outback Australia. Blue skies, red dirt. It works I think.
Meanwhile, photos to share from New Year's Eve. I have to say, Sydney would have to be THE place to be on New Year's Eve. It's just spectacular! The bridge, the city, the harbour, all the boats ... it's gorgeous! I've 
done New Year's in quite a few different cities ... Brisbane, Melbourne, Rome, Prague, London ... but Sydney would have to top the list!
The entire day leading up to it was far more enjoyable than I'd expected too. Jolene and I decided on Bradley's Head, on the northern shore of the harbour. Gorgeous view of the bridge, the city, the harbour ... it was perfect! We arrived to claim out spot just after 11am ... and spent the next 14 hours sitting on a picnic blanket killing time. This wasn't nearly as difficult as I'd anticipated though! We scored a shady spot, which was a huge blessing. And people were all so friendly!! We chatted to loads of people, spent a bit of time people watching, read the 
paper, played Pass the Pigs, ate, drank, took photos ... before we knew it the sun was setting and the fireworks were about to begin.
Two fireworks displays of course ... the 9pm Family Fireworks were rather spectacular, although incomparable to the midnight display. All the boats in the harbour looked incredible too ... all lit up and fancy-like. We spent a decent amount of time trying to figure out what all the years signified ... loads of the boats had what seemed like random years displayed in lights. We (and most of the people around us) were trying to find some kind of meaning in the years. Some seemed obvious ... 1788, 1901, 2000 ... but others less so. At the end of 
the night I was chatting to an SES dude from Mosman, and apparently the years simply signified the year the boat was built. Haven't decided yet whether his explanation was believable or not.
The entire trip to Sydney was fabulous fun! NYE was the highlight I guess, but we successfully filled the entire six days and kept suitably busy. Jolene also had a friend visiting from London, so played tour guide and I got to tag along to the Blue Mountains and Bondi. I hadn't been to the Blue Mountains in an awfully long time, and I'm not sure I'd ever visited Bondi before, so both were lucky opportunities. Took far too many photos of course, as I always do. All posted at Flickr, along with all my NYE shots.
I caught up with Jen and Nadine ... well overdue and great fun. We also shopped, of course ... I bought the cutest Peter Alexander pyjamas on sale at a dedicated Peter Alexander store (heaven!), and I also found the perfect watch which was purchased with Christmas money (hurrah!). We took a trip into the city for a day, went to the movies (New Year's Day ... needed a quiet one after the three hour journey home post-midnight fireworks ... a story in itself), and ate out more than we probably should have. Fabulous fun though!
And a week from today, Jolene and I head to Darwin for our next adventure! A trip to the Top End ... should be fun, if not a little humid and uncomfortably hot.
Packing is my least favourite job in the world. I feel like a broken record. I'm sure I've blogged this before. And I'm also sure I'm exaggerating at least a little. I'm sure there are jobs I like less than packing. But usually they would be jobs I'd avoid doing. Packing is something that is innately linked to something I love doing ... ie. travelling. And I go to great lengths to ensure I travel as often as possible. So as a result, I find myself needing to pack somewhat regularly. I can't avoid it.
Needless to say, I'm currently procrastinating. I fly to Sydney at 7am tomorrow morning, and I should definitely be in bed already. Instead, my suitcase is half empty and I'm sitting at my computer pretending I don't need sleep. Ooh, and another thing ... why does packing for a week always seem to involve packing everything in one's possession!? I can pack for a weekend in another country with a tiny little cabin-bag sized suitcase, but add a few extra days and throw in a whole lot of unplanned potential activities, and suddenly I look like I'm moving house. Crazy!
Anyway, back to the packing. I'm spending my first ever New Year's in Sydney ... hurrah!!
Is anyone else finding facebook is somewhat taking over any desire to blog? It's bizarre! I seem to be spending far too much time on there. Instead of reading blogs, or summing up random events, or destressing by posting on here, I jump on facebook and randomly respond to or write wall posts and other such things. Which is fine, and social, and great fun ... but it's infinitely more temporary, or "of the moment". I feel like I'm losing the record I usually have of my life. I like being able to look back over what I've been doing in past years. I don't really want to lose that! So new resolution - I need to start posting more often.
To begin with, I need to post about my day on Moreton Island yesterday. In the rain! It was soooooo wet! In fact, I should probably start this with a weather update. The weather in south-east Queensland has been so insane! A week ago a group of Guides from the UK (including Annette from Sweden who I lived with at Pax) arrived in Brisbane for a weeks stay in "the sunshine state". Needless to say, the long awaited rain also arrived on Sunday. It hasn't rained in months ... not properly at least. We're in drought, and have been for a record length of time. So the rain was rather welcome, by all but the travellers of course.
Anyway, a week later and it's STILL raining! Not so much today, but we haven't had this much rain in years. It's been raining so much, that now we're dealing with flash flooding! Not so much here in Brisbane, but it's pretty severe just north on the Sunshine Coast (near where Annette and the UK Guides were staying until they flew to Tassie today). There are reports of up to 700mm of rain in places inside 24 hour periods! It's massive! So, so, so wet! The Noosa river rose about a metre overnight a couple of days ago. Crazy!
Needless to say, SES has been keeping busy. I haven't been called up yet, but there were eight people from my local group up on the Sunshine Coast last night helping out, and a few more went up today I believe. Loads of sandbags to fill, and residents to help out of flooded houses and so forth. There are plenty of flood boats out in action, and loads of roads cut off by water complicating the situation. People are stranded, and some fools are trying to drive and getting stuck. Sounds crazy!
Anyway, despite all this insane weather, we (Annette, the UK Guides and I) went to Tangalooma yesterday! We were meant to be going on a whale watching cruise, but it was cancelled. They said dolphin feeding would still be happening though, plus in the morning on the news they were saying the rain should be clearing around lunch time.
So, we went! We took the 10am ferry across to the island. Good trip over ... a little bumpy, but not bad. It was showering lightly this morning, but not too much. It almost looked like it was going to clear up too!
However, it didn't! It kept raining. Got heavier at times. Stopped raining once ... but started again shortly after. Basically, the entire day was wet! So we were on this gorgeous, sandy island at this lovely resort ... and we could hardly leave the cafe area. It was too wet! We had a fabulous day, but I wish the travellers could have all seen it the
way it would usually be ... gorgeous sand, blue skies, lots of sunshine, heaps of fun! Rather than the grey skies and insane wet!
Oh well, no point complaining about it now. We had a blast all the same. We went quad biking for a while ... which was loads of fun! We all had our own bike and followed the guide around on the beach for a bit then up the hill to a specially designed track and through a heap of puddles and stuff along the way. I'd never been on a quad bike before, but it was great. Super easy, and hilariously entertaining.
We kept running into each other ... or rather, I could find my break easily enough, but the girl behind me (and the one behind her) less so, and they kept running into me from behind and pushing me forward into the person in front ... rather funny! One girl had trouble steering at one point and nearly rode into the sea! Then at another point one girl got bogged, and in the process of trying to get out her wheels threw sand all over the girl behind her. All so funny!
The others were all super prepared mind you ... being English, they're obviously used to the rain. ;) They all had wet weather gear - jackets and waterproof pants too. I had one of my hooded jackets from London, so my top half was fine, but I was in jeans with nothing else to protect my legs. And it rained the entire time we were out on the quad bikes! Serious rain too ... getting in my face as we were riding and everything. By the time we got back to the resort my jeans were absolutely sopping. I felt slightly better to discover that many of the English girls' wet weather pants hadn't worked ... so they were all wet too. ;)
At the very end of the day was the highlight - we got to feed the dolphins. Of course, this meant getting very wet again! We were all under the impression that we'd get wet up to about thigh level. We just had to wade in, hold a fish under the water, and the dolphins come in and take the fish out of your hand. Simple. Our legs would get wet, and our arm to our elbow, but otherwise we thought we'd keep relatively dry. Big mistake!!
It was still raining when we fed the dolphins! Perhaps not particularly heavily, but it was still wet! And the water was really choppy ... lots of waves and so forth. So when standing on the beach waiting to go out and have our turn, we noticed that we'd be getting wet a little higher than expected - more like up to our waist. I was still in regular clothes on top! I'd only prepared my lower half for wading, thinking that was all that would get wet. But we walked in as far as our waist, so in no time my tshirt was wet. Then a big wave came ... and we hardly had time to turn around before the wave crashed into us and I was drenched head to foot! Even my hair was drenched! Oops!
It was still fun though! We fed the dolphins, and it was the most incredible experience! We weren't allowed to pat them, but they came right up to us to take the fish. I fed one called Echo ... and he was beautiful! A regular ... he's about 15 years old, and has been feeding at Tangalooma for over ten years. The water was really murky because it was so choppy, but he rubbed against my hand a bit as he took the fish, so I could feel him there. So beautiful! They came up out of the water a bit as they were coming in and out too, so we could see them a bit then at least. I'd love to do it again one day when the water is clearer ... usually you can see them in the water too apparently. And one day ... I'd love to swim with them! Such gorgeous creatures!
Anyway, after that, we raced back in and changed/dried off as best we could (difficult, considering most of my clothes were now sopping wet!), and headed to the boat. The trip back on the ferry (a 20m catamaran) was pretty rough! Apparently they nearly postponed it on account of the weather - still being rather windy and rainy of course. I have never in my life been seasick, and I've been out on rough seas before. I love the water ... I feel so at home out there. But I can't in all honesty claim I didn't notice the rough seas this time.
We were being thrown about all over the place, and it was dark, and we couldn't see a thing out the windows. Plus we were watching tv, which I don't think helped. We were all mucking around chatting and having a great time ... laughing continuously and the UK girls were squealing every time we bumped (which was rather often, at least at first). It certainly wasn't terrible ... one of the staff was handing out sick bags at the start, and insisted it would be bad and we may well need one, but none of us did. I have to confess I was a little queasy though. Not horribly so, but it was a bizarre feeling!
I guess we were lucky to get home ... they did cancel some trips earlier in the week, and watching the news when I got back last night regarding the weather and flooding on the sunshine coast, it's not surprising the seas were as choppy as they were. Oh well, it was still a great trip back! And far more interesting than it would have been if the seas were flat! And in spite of my surprise in the morning that the trip was going ahead at all, the day turned out to be a rather enjoyable one. Far more so than staying home and studying! ;)
The seasoned traveller has once again returned. Exhausted and seemingly perpetually sleepy, but happy and well. This despite a somewhat frightening incident on Monday afternoon when we blew a tyre and rolled the vehicle ... twice! I will at some point post photos of the now essentially destroyed vehicle - it's rather terrifying to see them, especially when you think I was sitting in the passenger seat when it happened.
Rather incredibly though, we both walked away from the accident for the most part unharmed. I have a few rather nasty bruises to show for it, and I bumped my head on something, so got loaded into an ambulance and taken to the local hospital to be checked out. Nothing to report though, and a short time later my uncle and the tow truck called in to pick me up.
We were on the way home, and just north of Charleville, so after a good night's rest in Charleville that night we picked up a hire car on Tuesday morning and transferred all our gear across, then drove home. The wrecked vehicle remains in Charleville and it is now up to the insurance company to sort it out. We expect they'll write it off though ... I'd be awfully surprised if they don't.
That's one way to add some excitement to the end of a holiday I suppose! The timing could have been far worse though, as it didn't affect our travels in any major way ... we were already heading home. We place all the blame on the tyres. They were meant to be brilliant ... best available. Coopers. I'll never touch them again ever ... they're absolute rubbish. This was the fourth one we blew ... the first three my uncle was able to maintain control. This last one just went down too quickly. A lesson learnt I guess.
The rest of our trip was incredible! A trip of a lifetime. I never thought I'd get to see so much of Australia. It's such a huge, fascinating country! I've taken over 2600 photos, so in time I will upload them to Flickr and then I'll post about the different adventures we had ... with photos included. It has to be more interesting to read about stuff when I can show what I'm talking about as well. Otherwise, if I try to sum up the entire holiday in one go the post will never end. Hardly fun.
So more soon! Meanwhile, I'm back, gradually resurfacing on various messenger programs and will hopefully catch up with everyone soon! A little over a week until uni starts back ... a decent break and with any luck enough time to achieve everything I want to before being inundated with study once again. I hope!
Well, we're on the way! Currently in Kunanurra, WA. We crossed the NT/WA border earlier this morning, after leaving Darwin yesterday morning. The weather is incredibly beautiful! Blue skies, not a cloud in sight. It was incredibly, almost unbearably warm in Darwin on Wednesday, but we headed off from there yesterday morning and it's been lovely since. The air-con in the vehicle is no doubt helping with that!
Heading to the Bungle Bungles tonight ... can't wait. We did a cruise on the Victoria River late yesterday afternoon ... spotted a few crocs, and various other forms of wildlife. Watched the sun set ... it was gorgeous! We check out Wolfe Creek Crater tomorrow, then start the Canning Stock Route. Going well, and making good time! Ooh, and survived the night under the stars in the swag last night! I could get used to this I think!! Better go ... heading out of range again now. More news from Uluru!
I just checked in and printed my boarding pass! This time tomorrow night I'll be on a plane heading to Darwin, and I already know I'll be sitting by the window. Checking in before even arriving at the airport seems somehow counter-productive. Convenient though!
So Semester One is officially over, for me at least. I handed my last assignments in this morning, presented my drama micro-lesson to the class, caught up with the crew for coffee one last time, then left uni in rather high spirits ... albeit slowly due to the crutches.
My foot is still broken, but I believe it is healing. I'm done with the crutches. I detest them ... they cause more pain to my hands and arms than walking does to my foot. I've spent the last two weeks keeping weight off my foot ... hopefully that's enough. I may take a ridiculous looking walking stick with me though, to help take the weight a little. Plus, I'm hoping my lovely new hiking boots will help a bit. And we'll be spending a fair bit of time in the car. Fingers crossed all will be fine.
I think I'm just about ready to go. I have a to-do list that I'm working through slowly. I still have to pack, but I have a pretty good list of what needs to be packed. Most of it has already gone ... my uncle left here on Thursday, so I put as much into the vehicle as possible. He's already in the Northern Territory ... should get to Darwin sometime tomorrow. I arrive tomorrow night, then we spend a couple of days stocking up and getting sorted ... then head off. Exciting!
Meanwhile, I need to get some sleep! I can't believe how tired I am ... it's crazy. This semester has been awfully draining ... everyone has said so, it's not just me. Crazy though, seeing as this was my "lazy semester" ... only three subjects and no outside work, yet still I'm more exhausted than I was last semester. I'm blaming the evil literacy subject. Evil, I say!
It's fractured! I'm on crutches for the next two weeks. Likely to take six weeks to heal. How ridiculously bad is my timing? Can't believe it. I keep shaking my head and laughing at myself. Then getting annoyed. Then laughing again. It's ridiculous!
The x-ray findings state: "There is a horizontal fracture through the base of the left 5th metatarsal without displacement." It's really easy to see on the x-rays. Explains the severe pain. And I continued to walk on it for over 36 hours. Clever.
My foot is now strapped, and I'm on crutches. Could have had plaster, but the doctor suggested it wasn't necessary if I'm careful to stay off it. Works for me. I'm slowly getting the hang of the crutches, but not a huge fan. I have the forearm ones ... might end up changing to underarm ones. Meanwhile, I'm keeping my foot up as much as I can.
I told the doctor about my travel plans. He said I should go. I won't be doing much hiking now, but I can still sit in the 4wd. He even said I might be right to drive after a while. I'll hopefully be off the crutches before I go, then just taking it easy. Gradually using it more. By the time we get in to central Australia, I'll hopefully be walking okay. That's almost six weeks away still. Doubt I'll be climbing the rock though!
Life got busy again. It always does. All kinds of stuff happening. Gumnuts started ... a new Guide unit for 5 and 6 year olds. Eleven girls came along for the sign up day! They were all born this century ... how to make a girl feel old! At uni, assignments are all coming due ... I really should be spending more time working on them. Hard to prioritise, although my stress levels at the moment are surprisingly quite low. Not sure how much longer that will lost.
Loads to organise for the outback trip. Accommodation is now sorted for the central Australia part ... very nice five-star deluxe spa hotel rooms at Ayers Rock, Kings Canyon and Alice Springs. I've never stayed anywhere quite so fancy. After three weeks of sleeping in a swag under the stars on the side of the track ... it's going to be the most appreciated accommodation ever! Fancy or not. I've also been shopping over the last couple of days for quick dry, sun protective, moisture transfer, mosquito repellant (no kidding!) travel wear. Gradually nearing being ready I think!
And in amongst all this ... Stella, a friend from London, came to visited over the last couple of days. Such fun. A perfect excuse to push the study aside for 24 hours or so. We spent last night in town exploring what Brisbane has to offer on a Sunday night (more than I expected, I must admit!). It was fun ... a trip up to Mt Coot-tha, dinner at South Bank, a ferry trip down the river, walking through the Queen St Mall then back to South Bank. All was lovely ... until I tripped over the curb. And did something nasty to my foot.
Seriously, can there be a more dull way to injure one's self? I was completely sober, I wasn't even doing anything silly ... I was just checking for traffic and looking where I was going, and the ground underneath me was uneven so I tripped. And now I'm hobbling, and everyone asks what happened. I don't even have an impressive story to tell. I have to admit it was pure clumsiness. So pathetic!
Meanwhile ... we were on the other side of the river, so after it happened I had to walk all the way over the Grey St bridge, through South Bank and back to my car (near the cinema) before I could pull out an instant ice pack from my first aid kit and ice it. Severe pain the entire way, and major swelling almost instantaneously. Really appreciated having the fully stocked first aid kit on board! Too bad the car was so far away though. Ice pack still helped of course, and then we bandaged it so I could drive home ... it's my left foot at least, but I drive manual so it was still far from fun!
The irony of this whole situation ... Stella is a podiatrist! Of all things I could have done while she is in town ... I have to go and injure my foot. Pretty classic, really. It would be like having a mid-life crisis while a psychiatrist friend was visiting, or losing my passport while visiting my Vice Consul friend. Rather convenient though. Stella kindly strapped my foot this morning, and offered all kinds of tips along the way.
Isn't feeling a great deal better though ... today I had a drama workshop at uni, then I took Stella to the museum, then after dropping Stella at the airport I called in to DFO to look for cheap travel wear ... so I've been walking (read: hobbling) almost non-stop all day (and as such in severe pain the entire time). Tried to rest it as much as I could ... but hard when there's so much to do.
Tonight, I finally went to the doctor (first appointment I could get), and tomorrow I have to get an x-ray. The doctor said I might have been walking around on a broken bone all day. The fifth metatarsal, assuming I read the radiology request correctly. Comforting thought. I pointed out that I've been walking all day ... so surely it can't be broken? Apparently it can. More likely a pulled tendon I suspect. I guess I'll know more tomorrow.
Such perfect timing! Hoping such injuries can heal within a couple of weeks. Two weeks tomorrow I fly to Darwin. Hiking in central Australia won't be much fun with an injured foot. Even with lovely new hiking boots.
This evening was rather thrillingly spent discussing the upcoming trip to the middle of no where! My uncle came around for dinner, and we started going through the details of the trip. So incredibly exciting! And still a little intimidating at the same time. It all feels so much more real now though! We've been talking about such practical stuff ... like how much water we're going to carry with us, and whether to take a tent.
My uncle has already planned so much! Which is probably lucky, as the trip is fast approaching. Only three more weeks until my uncle heads off from Brisbane ... and I'll fly to meet him in Darwin a few days after that. My uncle has ordered a satellite phone, and he's managed to recover his radio. A fuel dump has been arranged in the middle of nowhere ... quite literally! A 44-gallon (200L) drum of fuel will be waiting for us on the side of the stock route at roughly the time we expect to pass through ... because we can't carry enough fuel to get us from start to finish. Itinerary is sorted, and my uncle is looking after the vehicle. So glad he's done all this before!
Still so much to organise before we leave though! I have to get a swag, as we'll be sleeping on the ground beside the vehicle ... under the stars! I need to figure out what clothes to pack considering the cold nights and warm days, and limited space. I have to look into a GPS, and sort out flights, and organise a decent first aid kit. Accommodation needs to be arranged around Alice Springs. Food needs to be considered. Supplies need to be bought. And so much more! Not to mention three uni assignments and a lesson to present.
All so exciting though! What a thrilling adventure.
While visiting Caro in Belgium, my lovely host and I decided one snowy day to take a trip to the seaside. In the snow! We jumped on a train in Leuven, and travelled out to the little seaside town of Knokke, not far from the better known seaside town of Oostende. It snowed for most of the journey (including the walk to the train station in the morning - walking in the snow still hasn't grown old!), and the view out the window of the train was gorgeous!
The whole journey, we were trying to decide if it would be snowing when we got to the beach. Had we made the right decision heading to the coast? The entire concept of snow on the beach just sounded so bizarre, so we couldn't really imagine it. But it was snowing quite convincingly, and it was hard to imagine the snow stopping as well.
When we arrived at our destination, it was still snowing ... perhaps not quite so heavily as it had been in other parts of the country, but snowing all the same and the streets and rooftops were all covered in white. We weren't quite at the beach though, so after picking up a map and asking for a few directions, we started walking down the main street towards the water.
The beach was unlike anything I'd ever seen before! It was gorgeous and white, and the waves were lapping at the shore ... but not sand, it was covered in snow! Right down to the water's edge, the sand was covered in a gorgeous layer of beautiful white snow. There were dark clouds, and the water was grey, and the beach was brilliantly white. It was stunning!
We saw people throwing snowballs, and someone had made a snowman on the beach. Caro and I lay down and made snow angels on the beach ... so the sand showed through the snow, and behind us was the sea. It was all such a bizarre experience! Certainly not something you see everyday. We could tell by the way the locals were acting that they weren't so used to seeing snow in their town either.
Unfortunately, Caro had left all her practical snow shoes at home in Germany, figuring it hardly snows in Belgium, so what was the point in bringing them with her? So her feet were very quickly cold and wet. It did at least give us a perfect excuse to find a lovely little café to sit down for a while, drink yummy hot chocolate, warm up and dry off. And of course, stare out the window at the snow ... on the beach!
Then began the adventure in which we tried to reach Het Zwin. This is a nature park and bird sanctuary recommended by one of Caro's housemates ... and further recommended by the waiter at the café we warmed up in. All advice suggested it would be beautiful, especially given it would be covered in snow ... and well worth the trip. We also asked the waiter for directions (straight down along the beach), whether there was a bus (no, he didn't think so), and how far it was (about a 25 minute walk).
Armed with this information, we decided to make the journey. What was a 25 minute walk along the beach after all? And it was snowy and beautiful ... so the walk itself would be lovely.
We headed off in the direction of the nature park ... stopping frequently to take photos of the beach (covered in snow!), and the Australian Home Made Ice Cream booth (covered in snow!), and the Belgian Sailing Club (covered in snow!), and a surf club named "Surfers' Paradise" (covered in snow!), and random houses and buildings and pretty views (all covered in snow!).
Before we knew it, we'd been walking for over two hours! Caro's feet were once again cold and wet. We were over two hours away from the train station. And there was still no sign of the nature park. We had been stopping frequently to take photos ... but certainly not enough to justify the additional hour and a half of walking. I still can't explain what the waiter at the café meant when he told us 25 minutes.
So we were two hours along the beach, and our destination still wasn't in sight. We decided it was time to ask for help! In English of course (Caro being German, and me Aussie ... neither of us knew enough Dutch to ask in the local language). We managed to stop a lovely old man riding his bike, and he told us that Het Zwin was another 15 minutes away. He was also able to tell us there was a bus back to town, although he wasn't sure on the timetable.
New information meant time for yet another decision. Do we turn around and walk the two hours back to town? Or do we keep walking for 15 minutes, in the hope of actually visiting the nature park and then catching a bus back to town? We farewelled the lovely old man on the bike, and discussed our options.
All the signs we'd seen along the way for Het Zwin said it was open until 5, and it would be nice to actually reach our destination ... eventually we decided to take a punt on the bus being there, and continued on our way.
A few minutes later we rounded a bend to discover the lovely old man had pulled over and was waiting for us, so he could point out a short cut across the park ... so sweet! We took advantage of the short cut, and in under 15 minutes we finally arrived at Het Zwin! At 4:30 in the afternoon, after over two hours of walking in the cold wet snow.
And it was closed! Completely shut up, shutters on the entrance building pulled down and not a soul in sight. We couldn't believe it! We could hear the birds. There were even some wandering around outside ... quite lovely really! But the sanctuary itself was completely inaccessible. And we were in the middle of no where!
What about that bus? We looked, and eventually found the bus stop. We checked the timetable, managed to decipher the Dutch, and discovered that the bus only ran on weekends and holidays. It was a Thursday. What now!? To turn around and walk back would take another two hours. Caro's feet were cold, wet, and by now painfully numb. And it was cold. Soon, it would be getting dark.
And we were in the middle of no where! We needed to get back to town. We needed a cab. We had our mobiles, but what was the number to call a cab in this town we'd never been to before? We didn't have a clue. So we stood there. Silently. Thinking. Pondering. Admiring the beauty around us, yet realising we would be appreciating it far more ... if we had a way to get back to town!
While standing and pondering and staring, we spotted another man on a bike. He was riding along the road, heading vaguely in our direction. We were at the end of the road though ... the road stopped, and beyond was only the path along which we had been walking all afternoon. What were the chances this bike would actually pass us, instead of turning off and following another road we could see that actually continued rather than ended?
We stood transfixed, staring at the man on the bike, willing him to ride our way ... which thankfully seemed to work, as he continued along the road in our direction, and eventually rode right up to us. We caught his attention, and he kindly stopped. He spoke English, thankfully, and he was incredibly kind!
He answered all our questions ... Is it true that the bus won't be coming? (yes, unfortunately so). Which way do we go to get back to town? (a little disconcerting when he replied with "Which town?" ... apparently the Netherlands was just over the hill, so he could well have given us directions to a Dutch town instead). Which is the quickest way back to Knokke? (of course, the way we'd come). We then asked if he knew how we could get a taxi ... but he too was a tourist, just there on a holiday (from Leuven, believe it or not), so he didn't know the number.
His kindness didn't end there though ... he then pulled out his mobile phone, and called his wife to ask her for the number for a cab company. She was out walking their dog, but almost home. We waited a few minutes, while she headed home and looked up the number ... then she called back and provided the number. Our hero then proceeded to punch the number into his mobile phone and kindly called us a cab ... arranged for it to come and pick us up right there at the bus stop, and let us know it should be there inside 15 minutes.
Not content to leave us in the middle of no where, he then gave us his mobile number ... just in case there was a problem with the cab! We were asked to call him if it didn't turn up. He also asked us to let him know when we get back to town okay ... which of course we did. I still have the number saved in my phone under the name "Nice man in Knokke" ... it still makes me smile when I see it there.
The cab of course showed up soon after ... such a thrilling sight to behold! We got straight into the cab and sat down ... enjoying the simple comforts of seats and warmth! The trip back to town must have taken 10-15 minutes ... I'd hate to think how much longer it would have been if we'd had to walk. €15.20 later and we were dropped off in the main street, around three hours after leaving.
We stopped briefly in a pool hall for hot chocolate and to warm up by the heater, then walked back to the train station and caught the 6:10pm train back to Leuven. And despite the exhausting afternoon of walking, we still considered hopping off the train at Brugge to have a look around ... as per our original plan. I think exhaustion caught up though ... we were too tired to decide whether we should get off the train ... and then the train pulled out and we were still on it, so Brugges wasn't visited that night.
Instead, we headed home ... picked up fries on the way (we were in Belgium, after all ... fries had to be bought somewhere!), and had a lovely, lazy night in ... exactly what we needed I think, after our adventurous afternoon!
I'm going on an adventure! A real, middle of no where, outback adventure this time! I'm travelling again, and this time ... I'm staying in my own country! I'm heading west ... into the great Aussie outback and the remoteness of central and western Australia. And if all goes according to plan ... I leave in a little over five weeks!!
The opportunity has landed in my lap ... and the timing is perfect. My uncle was planning a trip with my cousin, and my cousin has pulled out somewhat last minute. My uncle is still going ... and he called Friday night saying he was looking for a passenger. Less than 24 hours later, I'd secured myself a seat. He's driving from Brisbane ... and I fly to Darwin to meet him as soon as my assignments and classes are over.
So, the trip ... will be seriously remote! We head south from Darwin to Katherine, then over to Halls Creek in WA. From there, we tackle the Canning Stock Route ... "one of the most remote and isolated four wheel drive tracks in the world". According to road signs, it's over 1900km ... with no water, fuel or services.
From the bottom of the Canning Stock Route, we head back east along the Gunbarrel Highway. This one is 1400km of isolated desert track ... one of Australia's most famous roads, and the first of many built by Len Beadell - "Australia's last great explorer". And at the end of the Gunbarrel Highway ... we'll reach Yulara and Uluru! Yup ... I'm going to see Uluru!
The trip up until this point should take around three weeks, maybe a little more. My cousin is planning on joining my uncle at Yulara ... and my plans after this point are undecided. I might fly home, or up to Darwin to visit my sister. Or I might join my uncle and cousin on their trip around the red centre!
I'm so excited, and at the same time ... a little nervous! The photographer in me can't help but think about all the fabulous photos I'll be able to take! Lots of red dirt, and blue skies. ;) And so much more, of course! The landscapes, the wildflowers, the creepy desert creatures, the never-ending sand dunes, the iconic Aussie outback. And the night sky ... I can't wait to see the stars! Can you imagine how incredible they'll look from the middle of no where!?
At the same time ... I'm not entirely sure what to expect. It will be rough! Seriously rough. Sleeping in swags on the ground beside the vehicle. Cooking outdoors, and carrying all our own food, and water, and fuel. I don't even want to think about washing, and toilets. But many others have done it before me ... I'm sure I'll survive!
It's hardly an experience I can pass up ... it's going to be incredible! Unforgettable. Once in a life time. And it's happening in under a month and a half!
Vegas ... what a wonderland! In the middle of the Nevada desert. Such a fun city ... and so removed from reality! Seriously ... nothing felt normal. It was all so over the top, so glitzy, so Vegas! But so much fun!
The Venetian. I have never been to Venice. And after visiting the Venetian in Vegas ... I certainly have no misconception that I've seen what it's like.
The Venetian is gorgeous, in it's over-the-top-ness. It's so very Vegas. It's stunning, and insane, and fun, all rolled into one glorious hotel sized package.
The canals weave both inside and outside the hotel. They feature numerous gondolas in which you can ride ... and the gondoliers sing! So tacky, but such fun!
I couldn't bring myself to take part though ... I'm saving that experience for when I actually visit Venice, with the real Venetian gondolas. Preferably with a cute boy at my side.
Treasure Island ... where we stayed! Seriously ... we stayed in this hotel! On the strip, opposite the Venetian (explaining the canals in the foreground of the shot). It was gorgeous! So much more than I expected, and so convenient to everywhere.
Treasure Island theme ... and a pirate show every evening. Very amusing. From our window, we could see The Wynn, and The Venetian ... and the fireworks from the pirate show.
Cirque du Soleil was inside the hotel! We saw Mystère ... and didn't even have to leave our hotel! It was fabulous!!
Inside the Bellagio ... one of the most gorgeous of hotels! No crazy themes, but quite beautiful inside.
And outside the Bellagio ... the infamous dancing fountains. Exactly what they sound like, and fabulous to watch.
In the background ... The Paris. Also gorgeous ... in it's over-the-top Frenchness. So stunning, particularly at night. The familiar Eiffel Tower, and the barely visible Arc de Triomphe. A far cry from the Paris I fell in love with at first sight ... but it makes for a lovely night scene.
New York New York ... doesn't it look brilliant!? A bunch of NY skyscrapers ... but all one building. One huge hotel. Inside ... it's designed to look like Central Park. Such fun!! And outside ... a roller coaster. Of course! Why not!?
And of course ... the Luxor, with the easily identifiable pyramid, and the sphinx. Only in Vegas! Sadly far less impressive from the inside than from the outside. But so easy to spot from the Las Vegas airport! And at night, a beam of light shines straight out of the tip of the pyramid.
Missing from the photos ... well, so much! Ceasar's Palace. So Roman, and so not at the same time. Mandalay Bay ... golden, gorgeous, and a lovely buffet! The Aladdin ... currently covered in scaffolding. The MGM Grand ... and the real live lions walking around in their enclosure inside. So much to see and do in Vegas!
And a trip to Vegas clearly wouldn't be complete without a visit to M&M World. Buy M&Ms by the colour ... any colour you want! I bought Green and Gold, I was feeling particularly Aussie! Then Navy Blue and Maroon ... a bit of a State of Origin theme. Such fun!
Vegas was a blast! We were there for the Presidents Day public holiday ... and it was All Star weekend! So half of America was there with us. It was absolutely insane. People everywhere, fun everywhere ... and it was Vegas. Anything goes!
The contrast from Europe I think made the experience all the more memorable. All the more removed from reality I'd come to know. The elegant European adventure I'd been having over the preceding two months completely conflicted with the oh-so-American craziness of Vegas. Polar opposites ... each fabulous in their own way.
I'm an Anglophile at heart ... Europe will always fit me better than America, I'm quite sure. And I don't think I'll rush back to Vegas any time soon ... a been there done that kind of place, at least for the time being. But Vegas was SO MUCH FUN!
Funniest television scene ever ... Gilmore Girls, season two, episode five. Jess has just arrived in town; he's seriously messing with Luke's head; they have an argument, walk across the lake side by side, each fuming silently, and Luke casually pushes Jess in the lake. Absolutely classic. Love this show!
Meanwhile, I have now finished uploading all my travel photos ... and all have been captioned. Check them out here. The new "detail" option might make things easier ... after clicking on a set, switch to detail mode rather than thumbnails. Or slideshow them if you prefer. I will still try to share individual shots in posts in future, to highlight some of my particular favourite memories. I think there's close to 1500 photos in that lot though, so not all will be posted here!
Better run ... places to be! Seeing Narelle and baby Hannah again today ... and shopping! I love ignoring uni work. :)
Random comment! I have to leave shortly for Relay for Life ... a fun filled night of lots of walking and no sleeping. I'm a little concerned how I'll be tomorrow when I have to catch up on study.
Anyway, I was packing some things to take with me for the weekend. Including jeans. Jeans which I have worn various times since coming home. Washed various times since coming home. And while folding these jeans, I turned them upside down ... and a quarter fell out! And a dime. Random American currency, which has been hiding somewhere in my jeans for the past month and a bit. Intriguing!
Yesterday, I shopped absolutely guilt free!! The spending money part wasn't exactly guilt-free, considering how much my credit card is already suffering. But the time spent not studying ... 100% guilt-free! Something that is very hard to achieve mid-semester. I was out all day ... down on the Gold Coast, browsing through Pacific Fair, then walking along the beach ... so much fun! And I didn't have to worry about not being at home studying, since my cousins are the absolute perfect excuse!
Last time Sarah came I was horribly sick with Glandular Fever, so I couldn't do anything! And I haven't spent time with Justine since she was 7 or 8. We're getting along so well! But they're only here for five days. So quite simply, the spending time with them part is non-negotiable. Which means studying just hasn't been a possibility, and not studying is out of my control and therefore guilt-free. So loving it!! I need more of this!
Today, however, I've allocated as a study day. I can't really help it ... I have readings and tute preparation that need to be done for class tomorrow. And assessment is approaching, plus more weekend activities that will detract from future study ability. I've had such a nice few days though ... outlet shopping Thursday, Australia Zoo Friday (how much has it changed!?), and Gold Coast yesterday. And tomorrow after uni I'm meeting them in the city or at Southbank ... so more fun ahead. :) All of which is making studying today far easier.
Although the distractions are apparently still easy to find. Hmmm. Back to work I guess!