Birthday Party Marathon

Our last weekend in Australia seemed like a great time to celebrate Isabella's birthday and Emmett's early birthday. On Saturday Emmett and 9 other boys tore up the house Star Wars style, every boy but one ending up in the pool (freezing cold water). On Sunday we followed up with a manicure/karaoke party for Isabella and her girl pals. After dozens of renditions of "I Gotta Feeling," "I Kissed a Girl," and "Halo" sung by girls with freshly painted nails, we declared the party, and the whole weekend, a great success. Most of the girls ended up in the pool too. PK and I ended up going to bed very early.

Expedited!

The children's US passports were due to expire three days before our flight date. Rut Ro. But the American Consulate came through and we received new passports within a week. Must be that awesome Secretary of State doing wonders for her people.

Sold!

Finally, our chariots found new owners. We suspect one buyer simply took pity on us, but yes, against all odds in a glutted used car market, we sold the cars. Godspeed Mama Saab and Baby Saab--you treated us well.

City Slickers

Dear Readers, it is getting a little painful to blog as our departure date draws nigh. We're going through every emotion in the book.

Clearly needing some "us" time, PK and I decided to take a night away in the city. Grandma Joan agreed to stay with the kids at Whalie so off we went. After an exhausting workout with Major Tom (our friend the trainer at Circuitry in North Av), we met our friend Maya at Icebergs on Bondi Beach for a scrumptious lunch sitting sort of inside/outside on one of this winter's loveliest days. Yes, Americans, this is "winter" in Sydney: 75 degrees (faren), crystal clear skies, and turquoise water. As we ate (we had earned it, after all), of course the humpback whales swam by with their greetings.

Sleepy from the wine and workout, we checked into the Shangri-La where we were upgraded to a corner suite with harbour views. Lordy. We met PK's cousin Ann Marie and her husband Ben for drinks at the Blue Bar overlooking the Opera House and then headed over to Woolloomooloo (yes, really) for dinner at China Doll with our friends Alex and Andrew Bird (see Australia Day blog entry).

The morning was even lovelier than the day before, so we just watched the sailboats cruising all around the harbour from our hotel room. Bliss.

Photos to come...

Waratahs v Brumbies

While Sid and the girls were squashing it up in Newcastle, Emmett & Philip went to the rugby. The Super 15 is the premier rugby tournament in the world, played between 5 regional teams from Sth Africa, Australia and New Zealand. This weekend saw the last round before the finals - and the local team from Sydney, the Waratahs (a flower, in case you wondered) needed to beat the Canberra based Brumbies (a wild horse) to cement a spot in the finals. A group of 8 - Emmett & PK, Grandma Joan, brother Jonathan, brother in law Mick & some of his kids - made the trek out to the stadium to catch the game. The stadium itself is in the Olympic complex, the site of action from the 2000 Olympic games. Despite the team nicknames, the Waratahs outmuscled the Brumbies & won comprehensively, 41-7. Joan & Jonathan, loyal Brumbie supporters tried hard to hide their disappointment, although Jonathan did cover his brumbie jersey with his coat half way through the game. Emmett enthusiastically waved his Waratah banner every time the team scored. He enjoyed that more than the game itself.

Off to the finals for the 'tahs!

Aussie Squash Tourney

Clare and Isabella were invited to play for the city of Sydney in the 2011 New South Wales Green Shield Annual Squash Tournament. Five teams compete from various regions of NSW (including ACT, for some reason), fielding 3 girls and 4 boys from each age group. The tournament was in Newcastle (Newie! Our home away from home) at the Cardiff courts. Up we trekked with the team in 3 vans with trailers. The girls played with great poise and sportsmanship, each of them leading their age group to a division win (u 11s and u 13s). After each athlete played 4 matches, the organizers tallied up the scores and . . . (drum roll please) Sydney got the win for the first time in 15 years or so!

The girls not only proudly sported the Sydney colors, they also made some friends. We stayed at the Bimet Motel Lodge, 3 to a room, including parents. Yours truly bunked with two other squash mums; luckily we not only had squash children in common but also a love for the "goon" (that's wine of a certain ilk). Though our girls were good about getting enough sleep, the same cannot be said for a few renegades. We mums tried to outlast the group on Saturday night, but at 1:30am had to call it a night. Some of the kids reportedly stayed up until 4 and at least 2 ended up in the pool (which was freezing). Not to worry, the kids played brilliantly the next day (ah youth).

We had so much fun, we're talking about returning next year (although it may not be kosher to "ring in" from the US). Photos, from the top: Sydney Squash! the u 11s--they won with only 2 girls! the u 13s (one not pictured, don't ask), the girls with Don, the Sydney coach, with the Green Shield itself!

Family Reunion

After some furious organizing, we managed to gather together a sizable chunk of family members from Grandma Joan's side of the tree. Joan & her elder sister Maria (their younger sister Margaret passed away a number of years ago), 2 of Maria's 5 kids (Sean & Melissa), 3 of Joan's 4 (Philip, Jillian, Jonathan), 2 of Margaret's 3 (Annmarie and Amanda), together with partners and at various times, the next generation...it was quite a gathering.

Saturday night at a local Indian restaurant - whom seemed unfazed by the 22 or so, then 30-odd people up at our place at Whale Beach. Fortunately the weather cooperated & we could all enjoy the lovely setting, and more importantly, the gathering of the clan.

Slainte! See those sausages sizzle!

Opera House Revisited

On Mom and Dad's last day in Oz, we opted for a tour of the Opera House, a walk through the Botanical Gardens, and a spin through the Art Gallery of NSW.

It's hard to oversell the Opera House--the interiors are just as jaw-dropping as the exterior, and its nativity story has lots of juicy noir elements: budget-busting, backstabbing, and scandal after scandal. But when all is said and done, the building is simply a marvel--a sculpture so brilliant that the engineers had to invent the technology to build it.

Check out the purple rug--Pavarotti refused to be photographed on it because of the karma.

After a behind-the-scenes tour of the Opera House, Mom, Dad and I walked through the Botanical Gardens to the Art Museum of NSW--the gardens were exquisite, the effect aided by the hundreds of sleeping, macabre flying foxes hanging in the denuded boughs above. At the Art Museum, Dad reminds me, we viewed a painting by our very famous neighbor in my home town of Lexington, Virginia, Cy Twombly. It was his triptych of Turner's "Fighting Temeraire" in flames. Funny how one travels so far to see art created in one's own backyard.

I know they call this place Oz, but . . .

. . . when we spotted this waterspout from our livingroom, we started to get concerned. We've observed a great many amazing sights from our windows here in Whalie (whales, dolphin, the southern cross, awesome sunrises, rainbows, kayaking races, swimming races, sailing vessels of all ilks, possums, rabbits, bush turkeys, parrots, flying foxes, seaplanes, helicopters, massive waves, glorious storms) but this might just take the cake.

Grand Grands

The photo speaks for itself--three grandparents with the kids and PK in Canberra.

Canberra

Keeping up the crushing pace, we zipped back to Whalie and scooted off again, this time for the nation's capital. The folks and I were in the advance party, leaving a day ahead of PK and the kids. We managed to get lost in the middle of Canberra (there were no lights!), and then miraculously intuited our way to Joan's doorstep. I think I'm getting a feel for this place.



After all the nature worshipping, it was time for some culture. We spent the morning at Parliament House, the afternoon at the National Gallery, and the evening at the Canberra playhouse for the Bell Shakespeare production of Much Ado About Nothing.

Parliament House is quite a wonder. The architects went overboard with the symbolism but in the best of ways. For example, you enter into a majestic hall that evokes the gum tree forests with its many green marble columns and the color schemes of two houses were also inspired by the gums (green for the leaves and red for the blooms). By far the coolest feature is the building's green roof, built way ahead of its time. Its environmental friendliness is only a side benefit--the main function of the roof's grassy expanse is to encourage the feeling that the people are above the government. I likey.

With its Sydney Nolan paintings of Ned Kelly, the National Gallery is awfully special too. Besides the Ned Kelly collection we enjoyed seeing some great American art (Jackson Pollack's "Blue Poles" and two Chuck Close portraits) cleverly purchased before their value went into the stratosphere, and some powerful Asian art.

Back at Joan's, we met up with PK and the kids and then set off to see the play, a rollicking production that capped the day off perfectly.

Oh, and PK and I once again climbed the hill behind Joan's house looking for kangaroos . . . and we saw about 20 of them. Aren't they gorgeous?

Wine Tasting and Gorge Gazing

Next stop was Lovedale in the Hunter Valley for some wine-tasting. Got there too late for afternoon imbibing so we had to go for the dreaded early morning tastings where the wine mingles with toothpaste on your palate. We soldiered through it, hitting Hungerford Hill and Brokenwood. There's nothing like a 10am buzz. We got to see some wild kangies grazing nearby, but that may have been through wine goggles.

We stayed at Lovedale Cottages (not to be confused with the Cottages at Lovedale--heck if we'd known the difference we might have made the last afternoon tasting), in a very quaint faux Aussie outback style homestead.

The schedule demanded we move onward to the next stop--Leura and the Blue Mountains. We made it in time to see the glow of the sunset (sort of) on the Three Sisters. The temperature went down to well below 10 degrees Celcius.



We stayed at the Old Leura Dairy, revisiting the scene of Grandma Joan's notorious 70th bday party in 2006.

Tasmanian Devilishness

Back to Sydney from Cairns, the folks, PK and I set forth on a trip sans children (Grandma Joan stayed at Whalie with the kids). First stop, Walkabout Wildlife Park (been there, done that with Justine and the Holbrookes). Ah but there's always a twist at WWP. This time, we got to see the feeding of the Tazzie Devils.



It was primal. You have to imagine the grunts and snarls, truly elemental stuff. Dad was most impressed.

Atherton Tablelands and Barron Gorge

Still a little dazzled by the previous day's Reef experience, we bid farewell to Stephen's lovely condo (view from the living room featured to the left) and headed back to Cairns via the Tablelands and Barron Gorge. The sites were all rather terrestrial but still lovely, of course.

The Reef

On our last full day in Queensland, we hit the Reef, the largest living organism on Earth, easily discerned from space, and the refuge for thousands of species of coral, fish, and other magnificent underwater creatures.

We consulted Stephen for the very best way to experience the Reef and he suggested Synergy catamaran--a 60 foot double-hulled yacht with captain and experienced underwater guide. Sounded excellent so off we went--a 20km motor/sail out to the "Outer Reef" to a private mooring for superb and private snorkling. The conditions were excellent, with great visibility above and below the water. And when we weren't snorkling, we could lounge on the deck, partake of a gourmet lunch, and help ourselves to some bubbly.

Before anyone entered the water, we were dutifully lectured about the perils of encountering the devilish irukandji, a stinger the size of a fingernail with 100 times the venom of a cobra. Its sting is so painful, victims often plead for death (no kidding). We were at the tail end of irukandji season, but still... Isabella quite sensibly donned a stinger-proof suit and was resplendent (and safe) in blue. Meanwhile, the jokes about the incident from years ago where the couple was abandoned by one of those big touristy snorkling outfits were rather more abundant than necessary.

The girls ventured into the depths first . . . and immediately came up screaming, "shark!" They had indeed seen a white-tipped reef shark, confirmed by our fellow sailor, Emma, who confirmed the sighting and then promptly climbed back into the boat and waited another 2 hours before going back in again.

Sharks, excruciating stings from invisible jellyfish, possible abandonment to the elements by the yacht...we all went in the water without a second thought, for the Reef is one of the most beautiful and awesome things I've ever seen.

Parade at Port!

We managed to hit festival week in Port Douglas--and you know what that means. Yep, parade! A good old fashioned parade with homemade floats, antique cars, Elvis impersonators, girls bedazzled in rhinestones (or facsimiles thereof), and boys with light sabers.

Mossman Gorge: a Walk on the Wild Side

With a healthy respect for the crocs, we headed up into the mountainous rainforest to a place called Mossman Gorge where two sreams feed into one spectacular fresh water river. After gazing at the illicit swimming hole, we inadvertently separated into two groups. PK, Isabella and Emmett stayed for a swim while Grandpa, Grandma, Clare and I hiked up the rainforest trail--several km through dense vegetation, over slippery rocks, past strangler figs that looked at too much like the pythons we knew were lurking up in the trees. Ever vigilant for the elusive cassowary, we only came upon a lyre bird or two, but the trees were the real attraction.

The other group caught up, speeding through the trek to find us. Turns out PK had had quite an adventure of his own back at the swimming hole. A mother and son were in danger of being swept downstream, so PK dove in and saved the day!

I thought Gma and Gpa were pretty heroic too, taking on the rainforest with Indiana Jones-like proficiency.

Queensland Rainforest

Thursday three generations flew to Cairns in North Queensland for a trip to the Daintree Rainforest and Great Barrier Reef. We stayed at our friend Stephen's condo in Port Douglas--a lovely spot, perfect for all 7 of us. "Port" reminded us all a little of Key West in Florida with its cool and hopping bars and lush landscape. It's also the last port of call for miles--to the north is really nothing but rainforest and the paved roads turn to dirt after Cape Tribulation (named so by Captain Cook whose ship crashed there on the reef).

We spent the first full day exploring the rainforest, mad keen to spot some cassowaries (signage above), but, alas, all in vain. But we did see crocs--deadly salties--on the banks of the Daintree River, 5 altogether! And check out the beautiful Ulysses butterfly.




Daintree River ferry--you do NOT want to fall into that water.



Momma Salty

Sydney with the Folks

Something old and something new: we walked the spectacular Bronte - Bondi Beach trail, stopping for lunch at the scrumptious "Trio" at Bondi. It was my 5th or 6th time doing so, and it just never gets dull. The surfing conditions and the weather were excellent--lots of good wipeouts. The next day, we hiked North Head, something PK and I had never done, to our great shame. Not only is North Head a wildlife (bandicoot) conservation site (run by the AWC), it features perhaps even more dramatic vistas than those of South Head. The cliffs between North Head and Manly certain rival any of the world's most sublime views.




We found ourselves on the Harbour side for lunch at a place called Q Station--the former Quarantine Station for immigrants (in use up through the 1980's). A little eerie (far too many sick immigrants died there), it was fascinating, and, like everything else we saw, gorgeous.



On the third day, we met a fellow Heights Casino member, Alex, for coffee at the Opera House--walked all around Bennelong Point, through the Writer's Walk (Mark Twain! Dorothea McKellar!), across Circular Quay and into The Rocks (for lunch).

West Head and The Basin

We spent the weekend, gently giving Mom and Dad, a taste of the sites and topography on the "insular peninsula" where we live, with short drives to Church's Point, West Head, and The Basin, all on the Pittwater north of Sydney.


That's a swamp wallaby with Dad.

Grandma and Grandpa arrive!

Three weeks of fun with Grandma and Grandpa (the American versions) began when they landed after nearly 30 hours of travelling on the 13th. Due to some maniac who abseiled down the Harbour Bridge to disrupt traffic on a Friday morning, I was a little tardy collecting them from the airport. Not a great start, but suffice it to say that the rest of the trip was pretty wonderful and ran right on schedule. In less than 3 weeks, they experienced the Northern Beaches, Sydney, the Great Barrier Reef, Daintree Rainforest, Hunter Valley wine tasting, the Blue Mountains, and Canberra. That's 2 states and 1 territory for those who are counting. We had generally good weather, too, with the exception of the last two days of storms (including a waterspout!).

Let this blog post serve as the general overview with more specific ones to come.

Easter

Photos to come...

Eastward Ho!

I had tears in my eyes when we left. But all good things must come to an end--we flew out of Mornington at about 10am with Mark again as our pilot. This time we had Tony and Sally on the plane with us--Sally is the feral cat finder--a brilliant dog! Tony is her trainer/handler and a terrific guy. From Broome, we took a flight to Brisbane and then another to Sydney.

Here are some photos of our goodbyes:

That's Butch the chopper pilot/photographer/expert on Aboriginal art above with the kids. Joey and Swanie are below with Emmett; and there's Clare with Sarah, chief scientist of the AWC. Oh yes, and how can we forget Isabella with her crutches?