LAZY SUNDAY MORNING

After sleeping in some on Sunday morning, we headed over to the home of Juliet's brother (Daniel) and sister-in-law (Nicole) for homemade scones, cream and jam and some good conversation and fun with the children. The scones were DELICIOUS - thank you Daniel! What a wonderful way to start off the day.

The children consist of Joshua who will be 18 in June and is starting at Newcastle University today. He is a delightful young man, very smart and easy to talk to. Callum is 10 years old and one of my neighbors on Farmville - I felt like I knew him before I even got here. He loves WWE wrestling and reminds me of my nephew, Barry, when he was that age. Elijah is 8 years old and has an awesome smile and loves soccer. Skylah, 4 years old, is the feisty one, full of energy and always on the go.

If we can pull it together, we all decided it would be fun to go to Sydney for a weekend together and do the zoo and aquarium, among other things.

Coming next........ a trip to Blackbutt Reserve where we saw koalas and other animals! Here is a preview:

SURF'S UP!

Saturday afternoon (Feb. 27), we drove to Stockton Beach for a swim and walk on the beach. When we got there, it was extremely windy so we decided to fore go the swim and just enjoy walking on the beach. One of my VERY favorite things to do - I think I could walk forever on the beach (one just has to remember that you have to turn around and walk the same distance back).

The origin of the name Stockton is itself unclear. One argument has it that the area was known as "Scott's Town" after A. W. Scott, an early land owner and that this name was eventually mangled through "Scotton" to finally Stockton. The more pragmatic explanation is that it is named after Stockton in the north of England.

Stockton was known to the local Worimi Aboriginals as "Burrinbingon" which meant "the land of plenty" with Oysters, pipies, myraids of fish species in the surrounding water and abundant wildlife in the surrounding forested areas.

The tourist park offers a modern camping and caravan area, where tourists can enjoy fishing, kite surfing, horse riding, four-wheel driving, kayaking, and swimming.

Because it was so windy, there were several Kite Surfers enjoying the waves. I'm not sure how they avoid getting tangled in each others wires. We even saw one kite surfer do a flip after catching a huge wave. Kite surfers have to have major upper strength to be able to control the kites. I was impressed.

Kite surfing guarantees an adrenaline packed, water explosive adventure. It consists of a participant using a board on the water, harness, bar, and lines. In multiple locations in Australia, you can take lessons in kite surfing. I think I'm going to skip this one and just enjoy watching.

Later in the evening, after getting cleaned up (and taking a nap), we went to the Belmont Sailing Club which I saw on my previous cruise, where we had dinner (fish & chips) and then played the pokies. It reminded me of when I was a teenager. We lived on a lake and on Friday nights my mom, dad, and family would get into our boat and go over to Sail Inn where we had dinner and the adults had dinner and beer! The Belmont Sailing Club had the same atmosphere, with lots of families enjoying an evening out.

Unrelated notes: Today (Monday) I finally made my first cup of decent coffee! Also, Juliet just rang me from work and told me that the current Survivor season will be aired here in a couple of weeks. Yohoooooooo! News from Sydney: 5,200 nude people gathered at the Sydney Opera House to be photographed by artist Spencer Tunick. If I would only have known about this in advance.............

MORNING WALK

They might call this exercise, but this was pure delight! The sand, the water, the cool morning breeze - this I could get use to!

On Saturday morning, Juliet and I drove into Newcastle to Nobby's Beach which is ranked as probably Newcastle's best beach. It is suitable for surfing, fishing, windsurfing, swimming and kite surfing. The beach is always patrolled and therefore safe for swimming. There were several surfers in the water trying to catch the waves.

We walked along the break wall at the northern end of the beach. The views of Newcastle and the northern coastline of Stockton Beach were spectacular. After we arrived at the end of the break wall, we turned around and started walking back. What we saw was horrifying - a middle aged fat man with a huge beer belly wearing only a speedo! Juliet and I looked at each other and it was all we could do not to burst out laughing!

We watched a group of dolphins playing in the water - there were probably about 20 in the group. Unfortunately they are so quick, I didn't get a picture of them.

If you look very carefully on the horizon of this picture you will see all the cargo ships waiting their turn to come into the harbour.

Nobby's Head Lighthouse and Signal Station. 1854. The lighthouse was the third lighthouse built in NSW. The entire station is floodlit at night. The lighthouse stands on a former island, which has been reduced in height and joined to the mainland by a causeway. It is an active lighthouse.

This is one of the huge cargo ships being towed out of the harbour by a tug boat.

MOUNT SUGARLOAF LOOKOUT

On Friday, Feb. 26, we drove the windy, curvy road up to Mount Sugarloaf to enjoy the 360 degree view from the top. Towards the top were picnic areas with grills for barbecuing. Juliet said her family used to come to Mt. Sugarloaf when she was young for picnics.

Mount Sugarloaf is an extinct volcano over looking the city of Newcastle, in New South Wales. It is home to television transmitters that broadcast to the lower Hunter Region. On July 18 & 19, 1965, the mountain received the first recorded snowfall of 4 inches. It also snowed in the winter of 1975 and again in June 2009. On sighting the Sugarloaf Range on May 10, 1770, Captain James Cook described it as " a little way inland, a remarkable hill that is shaped like the crown of a hat." But who named it "Sugarloaf" remains a mystery. "Warawollung" (pronounced Warrawalong) is the aboriginal name given to this landform, originating from the word "wol-lung," meaning human head as the range resembles one at certain angles.

We drove up to the car park area and then had to walk up hill until we got to the top. I am SO out of shape that I was huffing and puffing until I finally got to the top. When we arrived at the top, you could see for miles.

The Australians use the term "the bush" for what we would call the forest or the woods. So here is a picture of the bush. Everything is so green and beautiful.







Overlooking the City of Newcastle.











We saw several spotted lizards crawling on the rocks. The Aboriginal artists often use the spotted lizards in their artwork. I saw a mask at the local petrol station that I have my eye on!


Ahhh, walking down the steps was SO much easier!

THOUGHTS AND IMPRESSIONS

RIDING IN A CAR

I have to say that it is mind boggling riding in a car on what is our driver's side of the car and watching cars go by on the right-hand side of the street while we are driving on the left hand side of the street. It is really frightening when making a right hand turn - For a brief moment, I panic, thinking we are on the wrong side of the street. The round-abouts are everywhere and the person on the right has the right-of-way; however, we are going clockwise rather than counter clockwise like we would in the States. Juliet's car is a stick rather than a manual so between the lane differences and the stick, I doubt that I will try driving. What do you think, Karin? Should I try it? My daughter Karin has a stick shift and when I drive it she gets whiplash and laughs when I stall out (which I do quite often).

PUBLIC MAIL BOX


I had to take a picture of the public mail box. Juliet's mum asked me why I was doing that and I told her because it is so different from ours. I think she wondered about my sanity at that point. But then again, those of you who know me, know I lost my sanity along time ago! And I get such a kick out of the "postie" (mailman) riding along on a motorbike to deliver the mail.

PUBLIC SCHOOL

I went with Betty to pick her grandchildren up from the public school. They do not have junior high schools here, just primary schools and high school. All the children at public school wear school uniforms - different colored uniforms that represent each school. The schools have the following policy for the children : "no hat, no play." Because so many schools have been broken into and vandalized, they now are all surrounded by fences.

SHOPPING

Yesterday Juliet and I went to the Westfield mall. It was quite similar to our malls. The mall is designed in a circular pattern with off shoots like ours (think the Mills Mall). However they have non-carpeted areas and carpeted areas. The carpeted areas have the designer label stores where the non-carpeted areas have the cheaper type of stores. Name brand stores that they had at the mall were K-Mart, Gloria Jean Coffee (yeah!), Target (they carry mostly clothing), Toys R Us, Woolworths, and to my delight and astonishment, a Borders Bookstore. I don't have to tell you which store we went to first, right? I ended up buying 3 mystery books. Barry Maitland is one of the authors I really like to read and some of his books are not published in the States so I bought 2 of his books. And then the real treat - the third book of the trilogy by Stef Larsson - The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest - which has not yet been published in the States. That was an "OMG!" moment when I found it.

Books are very expensive here in Australia. I paid the same price for a paperback book as I would for a hard cover book in the States. So books here are definitely luxury items here.

The lower level of the mall contains practical type stores such as banks, supermarkets, bakeries, butchers, hair salons, etc.

TELEVISION

Scott & Juliet watch mostly American TV shows although they are usually the previous season to what we are watching in the States. One exception is American Idol. We watched that last night and I have to say the boys on the current season so far are pretty bad!

WORDS - SOMETIMES I NEED A TRANSLATOR

I thought it might be fun to start a list of words that are different here than in the States. I will try to add words to my blog postings as I go along. I hope you enjoy them and thank you all for reading my blog and giving me such nice feedback. My son said people are going to ask me what I did in Australia and I will have to reply "Most of the time I was on the computer working on my blog."

chips = french fries (they eat chips with almost every lunch and dinner meal)

car park = parking lot

veranda = porch

cutlery = silverware

nappies = diapers

footpaths = sidewalks

lollies = candies (any type of candy - hard or soft and thank goodness they do have M&Ms)

ABORIGINE WORDS THAT I HAVE LEARNED

We sailed by the following suburbs on the Lake Macquarie cruise that we did yesterday. The aborigine language does not have plurals, so when there is more than one, they say the word twice.

Wangi Wangi - means "place of many owls"

Eleebana - means "quiet, peaceful place"

4-HOUR BOAT CRUISE ON LAKE MACQUARIE

Macquarie Star

On Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2010, I went on a 4-hour lunch boat cruise on Lake Macquarie with Betty, Juliet's mum. Lake Macquarie is Australia's largest saltwater lake covering an area of 42.5 miles. It is 4 times larger than the Sydney Harbour. The lake was discovered in 1800 by Captain William Reed who had been sent from Sydney to retrieve a load of coal from Newcastle Harbour. Reed took a wrong turn and found himself on a lake rather than a river, with no coal to be seen anywhere. The name "Reed's Mistake" was retained until 1826, when it was renamed in honor of Governor Lachlan Macquarie.

Just one of the many beautiful homes on the waterfront. I really like this house with all the glass. They must have awesome views of the lake.

The cruise was very relaxing and I really enjoyed being on the water. The weather had cooled off and it was an overcast day so the temperature was perfect!

We went by a place called Caves Beach. The caves were used by the Aborigine women as birthing caves. Can't even imagine having a baby in a cave!

We went by several marinas with every size of boat, houseboat and beautiful yachts anchored in the water.

One of the premier venues in the Hunter Region, a 90-minute drive north of Sydney, the Belmont Sailing Club offers fine dining and entertainment facilities. They have approximately 26,000 members.

The Norfolk Island Pine has a distinctive appearance, with its widely spaced branches and symmetrical, triangular outline. It is widely planted in Australia.

Toward the end of the cruise I was so excited to see two dolphins swimming along with our boat. They were swimming under the front bow of the boat, guiding us along. Every once in a while they would jump through the water. Unfortunately they were so fast I couldn't get a very good picture.

SCOTT & JULIET'S HOME IN AUSTRALIA

Scott and Juliet were married in Vegas on May 3, 2008. They met over the internet and Juliet had planned a trip to the U.S. so after 8 months of talking via the internet and the phone, they met face to face at the Vegas airport. Long story short - they got married and moved to Australia. I hate having them so far away from our family but they are very happy here and that makes the distance okay.

They rent the home they live in here in Cardiff. They want to buy their own home but need to wait until Scott has his permanent visa (two years from date of entry) so they can get a loan without paying a huge amount down.


The house they live in is in a very quiet neighborhood with very hilly streets. Their house is actually built on an incline so the back of the house has columns holding it up - kind of like the California homes built on stilts. Juliet says that most of the homes in Cardiff are older homes, and many of them have been remodeled. Their home has had rooms added on during the years after it was built and the garage has also been added on. For my farmville friends, Meghan (my lovely granddaughter) thinks the house looks like a farmville house (probably because of the picket fence).

The yard is not laid out in a square but seems to be more of a triangle. I have taken pictures both inside and outside so you can get a feel of normal Australian home.

HOUSE (OUTSIDE)

Because the house was built on an incline, the back of the house was built using cement columns so you can actually walk under part of the house.
VERANDA (PORCH),
BACK AND SIDE YARD

SCREEN DOOR AND ENTRY HALLWAY

LIVING ROOM

KITCHEN

SUN ROOM

LAUNDRY ROOM

This is a picture of the bedroom and hallway doors. I was taken with the height of the door knob and the old fashion key.

SPARE BEDROOM (my bedroom while I am here)

View out my bedroom window looking out into the street.

Scott and Juliet's Computer Wall in Bedroom

BATHROOM

Scott says this is the smallest shower he has ever seen!