Canoe trip, continued...

We pulled onto a secluded beach to have a "bushtucker" lunch, which means foods the aboriginals ate. We waited about 10 minutes for the last canoe to finally get there, but they quickly announced that there was another canoe from our group that was stuck in the reeds, had almost capsized, and was taking on a lot of water. The guide and the husband of the woman and two teenagers in the sinking canoe then launched a rescue mission, and about 10 minutes later they all made it back to the beach. How the mom and teenagers managed to nearly sink the canoe remains a mystery, but like I said before, they were paddle challenged.

Anyway, after a short hike to a lookout over the river, the guide prepared the lunch, and had us all taste native foods including blood limes, spices, flour, a kind of nut and a powder that tasted like coffee. He put out smoked emu and kangaroo, along with chutneys and pesto, olives and cheeses, bread, etc.

At the end he brought out "dessert," which were grubs that he cut up and mixed with yougurt, since he said that was the only way anyone would try them. While most of us declined, Bill ate one and then went back for seconds, it was so yummy. One of the kids that ate one of the grubs promptly threw up, but at least he went off to the side to do it. Here's Bill eating a grub.

Monday, December 28

We checked out of our B&B and headed south to Prevelly Beach, at the head of the Margaret River. There we met up with our canoe trip guide and group of fellow canoers. And although they all said they'd been canoeing before, it quickly became clear that many of them were "paddle challenged." The current was strong enough so that we soon realized we didn't even need to paddle, so we just relaxed and drifted along. However, behind us we could hear the non-stop clanking of paddles hitting against the sides of the canoes, and it seemed bizarre to see many of the people paddling feverishly but basically going nowhere. That's when we realized we probably had a pretty good chance of winning the race at the end.



Here's a pic of a small island we stopped at, where our guide picked several different plants for everyone to taste, including one that tasted like celery and another like carrots, which were used by the aboriginal people.

Monday, December 28, continued...

Following the canoe trip we headed south to our next B&B in Pemberton. This is the heart of the tall trees country, and the "tingle" is the tallest tree in Oz, growing only in the extreme southwest corner of the continent. There are also beautiful "karri" and "marri" forests here, and the karris sometimes reach over 200 feet tall. Although the drive down took an hour and a half, we did not pass one gas station, fast-food restaurant, etc. For that matter we barely saw any other cars, and this was on a main road, during the peak summer, holiday season.

After checking into the B&B we went out to dinner, and there are not a lot of choices in Pemberton. The restaurant we ended up at was a throw back to about the 1950's, complete with frilly lace curtains and light fixtures you'd expect to see in a saloon in some old Western movie. The artwork consisted of pictures of trees in the process of being chopped down. The only other photos on the walls were of prize winning steers, and the music playing was country western from waaaay back, sounded like songs from the era of maybe George Jones and Tammy Wynette, or possibly even older. We could have been in some little town in Oregon or Idaho, with all the logging photos, but the seafood was excellent. We had marron, the local delicacie, which is found only in this extreme southwest corner of the country. It looks and tastes like a small lobster, and along with the marron we had both baked trout and smoked trout. Afterwards Bill went to the "toilet" to wash his hands and when he came back, he said I had to see the restroom for myself. Well, first I had to try to find it, because when I followed the signs for "toilet" there were 3 doors, all marked private, and the only other door led to the outside. The waitress saw me standing there and yelled out, "Ya got to go outside luv, then it's out on the verandah." Well, sure enough, outside was a small building with a sign on the door which read, "Toilet," and sure enough there was a toilet in there, but no toilet paper and no sink. That was outside in the open air, but there was no soap or paper towels, just a sink. But at least the bathroom fit in with the ambiance of the restaurant.

Saturday, December 26, Boxing Day

Another holiday, but there were lots more businesses open today than on Christmas. Today we hiked the Bunker Bay track, near the Cape Naturaliste Lighthouse in Leeuwin Naturaliste N.P. Absolutely gorgeous ocean and cliff views, with water so clear and a true turquoise color. The only drawback were the flies, which were the worst we’ve experienced so far. We wore our fly nets for the first time, and decided they were by far and away the best investment we could have made. We also saw lots of other people wearing them, something we’d not seen before, but without them we could not have done the hike at all, the flies were that bad. The net fits over your hat, and limits your vision somewhat, although you get used to it fairly quickly. At the end of our hike, we walked down to the beach, without our fly nets, and although the flies were somewhat less annoying down at the water, just going up and down the short distance from the car and back was amazingly bad with the flies. We were literally covered with them, ugh…….

I hate those little suckers. You look and feel like you’re wearing a burka with the nets on, but anything is better than dealing with the flies.

Friday, December 25

Merry Christmas from the other side of the world. We arrived in Dunsborough late yesterday afternoon, for a 4-day stay at a B & B not far from the beach. This morning we went hiking along part of the Cape to Cape track, above the cliffs with beautiful ocean views.

We saw more people at the beach today than we’ve ever seen, but we were told that many Aussie’s have a tradition of going to the beach on Christmas. There was virtually nothing open, except for one gas station that was only open in the morning, so luckily we were able to get some “petrol.”However, when we went out later in the day to get some Christmas dinner, everything was closed. Just as we’d given up and headed back to the B&B to make sandwiches out of the leftover turkey and brie we’d bought the day before for lunch, Bill noticed a Thai restaurant with an “Open” sign in the window, and sure enough, they had just opened for dinner. So, that certainly beat cold left over sandwiches for Christmas dinner.

Tuesday, December 22, continued...

Here are some pics of a marri tree, which bleeds when wounded. It's not the exact same tree I wrote about in an earlier post, but it's the same type, and it shows the bloody looking sap, called "keno." Ironically, the aboriginal people dried the keno and sprinkled it into their own open wounds.

Tuesday, December 22

Well, I actually feel like I've gotten quite a bit accomplished this morning, and it's only 11:30. Had several calls to make to businesses in the states, and by 9:00am our time, everything there is closed, so I feel lucky to have gotten through all the phone trees and being transferred to various departments, and actually accomplished what I needed to get done. Then I went out and got all my errands here taken care of, before it gets too hot. It's already about 85 degrees, and will surely get hotter as the day goes on. Christmas day is supposed to be 36 degrees centigrade, which is about 97 degrees fahrenheit.

However, Bill and I are heading to the wine country for Christmas and New Years, and it's supposed to be a bit cooler down there. It's about 2.5 hours south of Perth, and we're staying at a B & B on the coast in Dunsborough for the first 4 days, and then at another B & B a bit further south, in the forest area of Pemberton, for the last 4 days. Bill's office actually closes down for 18 days over the holidays, so we figured we would take advantage and have a holiday, as they say here. At dinner last week Bill's coworkers were questioning him as to how much time off employees in the US get, and they were flabbergasted to hear that the norm is only 3 weeks. They explained that if someone here works for the same company for 7 years, they get 3 months paid leave, and after another 7 years, they get 6 months. They also have something they pay into called superannuation, which is similar to our social security. However, by the time they retire, they not only begin collecting their benefits, they are exempt from paying any more taxes, for the rest of their lives.

Friday, December 18

Well I just got a very nice, unexpected surprise, someone from Bill's office delivered a big gift basket from his boss- addressed to me, not Bill, and it's full of bath salts and lotions and all kinds of nice things. This same boss took 6 of the managers and their partners (they typically use the term partners instead of spouses or wives) out for a really nice dinner this week, and they all seem like really nice people. Aussie's for the most part seem to have a really good sense of humor, and they love to laugh, joke and drink. Afterwards I told Bill I was able to understand everyone fairly well, except for one guy whose Aussie accent was really strong. Bill said "Don't worry about it, everyone at work has trouble understanding him, and they're from Australia."

This particular restaurant had something we'd not seen before, a short list of "premium meals" on the first page for only $135 per dinner. No one ordered from that menu, and the regular menu was along the lines of many of the restaurants here, at about $75-$85 per person, not including drinks.

Wednesday, December 16

Well we'd decided not to get a Christmas tree this year since we'll be gone over Christmas and New Years, but we found a nice tree sitting out on the verge (parkway) on our walk yesterday, and we brought it home. It was wearing a sign that said "Free Christmas Tree" and I had the perfect spot for it, so I planted it today. Here's how it looks in it's new home.

Most of the cities around here hold a "pick up anything day" twice a year, which allows for everyone to get rid of their unwanted furniture, appliances, etc. The stuff sits out on the verge for several days before being picked up, and one day I passed a whole bunch of outdoor pots, which I've been buying up like crazy ever since I got here, because our patio was pretty barren looking. However, I decided not to take the pots, (seemed almost akin to dumpster diving) but I changed my mind when a woman walked by carrying a set of kayak oars. Well, it was obvious there was no way she went out for a walk carrying oars, so she had to have picked them up on the side of the road. I decided if she could garbage grub, so could I, and I carried the pots home on my way back from my walk. And they were very heavy, pots here are made much thicker than in the US, for some reason, so they weigh a ton.

Sunday, December 13

Went to the beach this morning for our Sunday walk, and it is surprising how many people are swimming at 7:00am. It seems like most people go ocean swimming, and it's mandatory that kids learn how to swim. Bill went in briefly and said the water was cold but refreshing, especially since the temp is supposed to get up to 108 degrees today. It's a bit disconcerting to see the helicopters making their runs over the beach, they're the shark patrol and the water is clear enough for the sharks to be spotted easily. They closed our local beach last weekend because of a shark sighting, but it was reopened fairly quickly.

Went to the farmers market yesterday that is run by Asians, and they were playing a tape of Christmas carols, which lapsed into Chinese off an on. I noticed that they intermingled the words from one carol into another, while continuing to sing to the tune of the first song. Interesting.

I overheard a couple talking and since they sounded American, I just had to go over and ask if they were from the US. They were here visiting relatives and said they used to live in Carpenteria and the woman worked in Camarillo, before they moved up to northern California. Truly a small world.

One good thing about knowing that pedestrians do NOT have the right of way here, is that there is no wondering if the cars might stop for you, you know for certain they will not, so it's up to you to get out of the way. Luckily the streets around here are quite narrow, so everybody just runs across whenever they can, regardless of the stop lights, and no one ever gets a jaywalking ticket.

Saturday, December 12

Well, we had two firsts today. At Bunnings, the big Home Depo type store, we were actually asked if we needed help finding something, and that is an absolute first. You could wander around for days and no one would ask you if you needed help, although they are very friendly and helpful when you do ask. Last week I needed help getting something down from a top shelf, and I waited patiently for the clerk to finish boxing up a Christmas tree for a customer. Although he had to have seen me standing there for at least 5 minutes, when he was done he just turned to walk away, and I had to go after him and ask him to get the items down from the shelf. He was very helpful and friendly but it never seemed to occur to him that I was standing there waiting for 5 minutes because I needed some help. In talking with an Aussie coworker and her husband who'd been to the US, they commented that one of the things that amazed them the most was the way clerks asked them if they needed help, as they just don't do that here.

Another thing Bunnings does that seems odd is that they water the outside plants in the garden area with overhead sprinklers, during the daytime while customers are shopping. Granted, today it was close to 100 degrees so when the sprinklers came on while I was looking at plants and I got soaked, it actually felt good. However, the last time we were there it was more like 60 degrees and getting wet wasn't so great. Just seems like they could either water before the store opens or after it closes. But hey, that's just my crazy idea.

The other first we experienced today is when we stopped at a fish and chips place and were charged an extra $2.00 for ketchup. Wow, just never been charged for ketchup before.

Here's some more Aussie slang, although I may be repeating myself because I can't remember what I typed earlier, and I'm too lazy to go back and read my old posts. Anyway, "daggy" is out of style or uncool, a jumper is a sweater, removalists are movers, bathers are swimsuits, rips are riptides, sunnies are sunglasses and if someone here is pissed, they're drunk, not angry.

Sunday, December 6

We went out and bought bicycle helmets yesterday, since it is the law here. Well, not that everyone buy helmets, just that you wear them if you want to ride your bike. We rode to King's Park, since there's lots of bike trails there and no traffic, but we were both hit (slightly) by a magpie. I had read that many people are attacked by magpies during the breeding season, as they are very protective of their nests, but the season supposedly ended at the end of October. Apparently this particular bird failed to read the book. He hit Bill first lightly on the head and then just brushed me on the shoulder. I also read that they go after bicyclists even more aggressively than walkers, and the book suggested gluing fake eyeballs onto the back of your helmet, as they tend to go after the eyes.

Early in the morning there are lots of serious cyclists in the park, many of them in large groups, with a coach yelling encouragement and directions. One morning I heard a female coach yelling "You're naughty, you're naughty." Hmmm...couldn't quite figure out that one.

Well we just finished "schoolies week" or "leavers week" which follows the last week of high school for the graduating seniors. They tend to go to some resort type place to get wild and crazy, much like our Spring Break. Rottnest Island is a popular place here on the west coast and apparently they were very well behaved this year, in contrast to the schoolies on the east coast, particularly in Sydney.

When I'm riding the train, the diversity of races and cultures makes me feel like I could be in L.A., except for the fact that L.A. has no decent rail system. However, the teenagers sound just like they're from L.A., since everything is "I'm all like..., and she's all like...." The only difference is they say "loik" instead of like.

Saturday, December 5

Found a new place to hike today called Bold Park, and it's nearly as big as King's Park. The flies were awful, again, and we forgot to bring the new fly nets we bought. We finally saw someone wearing one today, and while he did look kinda weird, at least he was not shooing away flies, like his wife was.

After shopping in the afternoon, we stopped at a Mexican restaurant, but since it didn't open until 6:00, we had about a ten minute wait. When we walked in, there was only one table occupied in the whole restaurant, which was no surprise since they'd just opened up, but we were still asked if we had a booking. I wanted to laugh but I think that is just something they always ask, whether or not they are busy. However, if we'd been told there was an hour and a half wait, then we would have been suspicious. That actually happened a few weeks ago when we tried to get seated at another Mexican restaurant, which was very busy, but we think they didn't like the fact that we were wearing grubby hiking clothes and had kangaroo poop on our boots.

Our Ozzie friends who lived in Santa Monica for 3 years told us to simply forget about having Mexican food while we're here; they simply do not know how to make good Mexican food. The place we went to on Saturday had very bland food, seemed like they used no spices or seasonings whatsoever. I'd like to make some enchiladas and chile rellenos, but I'll be surprised if I can find all the ingredients I need.

Grocery shopping here is an interesting experience, it takes forever because they only have 1 or 2 brands of each item, so it's easy to pass up whatever you're looking for. I decided to make some Christmas cookies for our friends but could not find chocolate morsels or powdered sugar. After much searching I found what I'm sure are morsels, but they call them either buttons or melts. The powdered sugar I bought (at least I hope that's what it is) is called icing sugar. So the uncertainty of not knowing if I even have the right ingredients, coupled with the fact that half of the temperature markings are rubbed off of the oven, should make for some interesting baking.

Saturday, November 28, continued...

Nambung N.P. is a bizarre landscape consisting of thousands of limestone pillars, set in yellow sand. We walked around them, then took the winding drive through the area. The pinnacles are so surreal looking you feel as though you're on another planet, and it's hard to believe sci-fi movies have not been filmed here. At one point the yellow desert sand of the pinnacles meets the snow white sand of the dunes, and the line is very distinct and dramatic.

Saturday, November 28

Our first road trip - we drove 2.5 hours north to Jurien Bay, then to Cervantes, and then to Nambung National Park. Since all 3 places are right on the coast, I assumed we'd just drive along the ocean, but in fact, there is no road running along the coast, at least not in this area. The road runs inland and to get to any of the small fishing villages you have to drive over to the coast, then back to the road again to continue going either north or south. Both towns were very small and very quiet, with hardly anyone on the beaches.

We stopped to change drivers along the way, and as soon as we opened the car doors the flies poured in. Amazing, it's as if they just hang around, waiting for the opportunity to bug. These were some of the road signs we saw, although none of the animals made an appearance. They also have "road trains" which are basically 3 semi's hooked together - 3 trailers and 1 cab, and they are not easy to pass on a two lane road. The speed limit on these roads is actually higher than the freeway speed limit, which is 100 kilometers, about equal to 60 mph.

Monday, November 23

Our stuff was delivered, oh happy day. Although one nice thing about having almost nothing in your house, the junk drawer stays empty. Every time you open it, there is just the same small amount of junk, it doesn't keep growing, like it will now. In fact, now that I've unpacked several boxes, I find I need a much bigger junk drawer, yet somehow we managed to do without all that stuff for the 7 weeks we've been here. Interesting the way that works.

And I discovered an advantage to having a really small place, you only have to plug the vacuum cleaner in once, and the cord reaches the entire house.

We had dinner with a fellow ex-pat, now living in Melbourne, and he mentioned a strange policy here regarding doggy bags. He said he was having dinner with some coworkers, and one of the women asked for a to-go bag. The waiter explained that because they were not licensed for "take away" she had to sign a paper stating that she felt physically fine at the end of her meal and if she became ill the following day she would not blame the restaurant.

This same ex-pat told us about a great place to buy good wine at reduced prices, and there just happens to be one of the franchises right around the corner from us. This company buys up overstocked or discontinued wines from vineyards all over the country, strips the labels off, and puts on their own bizarrely named labels. He said one of his favorites is called Larry, Moe and Curly Joe, and they all have strange, but easy to remember names.

Well this is probably as good a time as any to discuss toilets. Everyone from home always asks if the water really does swirl in the opposite direction when you flush, and the answer is "I don't know." It's hard to tell because the water basically just goes straight down, like a waterfall, and doesn't really swirl around like in US toilets.

Some other differences are rather odd, like when you turn the DVD player on, the light goes off, and when it's off, the light stays on. Same thing with the electric plugs, there is a switch you have to hit to actually turn on the juice; but when they're on, a little red dot shows up, which to me should indicate it's turned off, since it's red. Then there are the electric cords, which never match the appliance. For some reason they put a black cord on a white microwave, and a white cord on a black lamp.

Sunday, November 22

Here's the road sign we saw last month on our way to Serpentine N.P. It was supposed to be removed weeks ago, but it's still there.

Sunday, November 22

We returned again today to Serpentine National Park, thinking it would surely be reopened by now, but there was a sign saying that as of September 2, the park would be closed until further notice. However, before driving away, Bill called the number on the sign, and the ranger said "Oh, that sign is 4 or 5 years old, and it's o.k. to hike there, only the campground is closed." So, we drove on in, but the ranger failed to mention the road was a disaster, and only a 4-wheel drive could get through. Well, of course, I was driving, only my 2nd or 3rd time, and I was sure the car was going to get stuck in one of the very deep ruts. So Bill managed to get the car turned around, we drove back to a level area to park, and got out and hiked. Just as in other parks, we only saw one small group of people, there just never seems to be anyone else out in the parks.

I mentioned how bad the flies are here, and this pic shows how many are typically around your head at any time. They like to hitch a free ride, and then take turns buzzing your face. We have to get some netting to put over our hats, the insect repellent we used did nothing to deter them.

Saturday, November 21

Bill went sailing today with his mates, and they won first place in their division. Afterwards, most of the participants met at the yacht club to have a beer, and 95% of the room were men. Soooo, when an American woman walked in and rather loudly announced that she would pay for the beers at her table, because she had her "fanny pack" with her, the room suddenly fell silent and everyone turned to look. In case you didn't read my earlier post, "fanny" in Oz means the front, not the back, so needless to say she attracted a lot of attention with her announcement.

Thursday, November 19

Haven't blogged in a while, been busy trying to get things to work, like the new phone, cable, internet, etc. The technology here on the West coast is a bit behind the times, somewhere back in the 80's I'd say, and everything takes a very long time to get delivered or fixed. You just have to learn to be patient, and we are trying, but most nights we spend at least an hour or two on the phone, talking to tech support.

Last night we signed up for a Camarillo phone number, so friends and family can call us at the same cost as before we moved over 9000 miles away. Very cool, spent all morning talking with family, until my voice finally gave out, but there's always tomorrow!

Bill has been invited to race on a friend's sailboat Saturday, and he was told he has to wear dark blue pants and a white shirt. A uniform! Since he doesn't even own a white shirt, we will have to go shopping tonight, but luckily it's a Thursday so the stores should be open until 9:00.

Well we've had our cable T.V. for a couple of days now, and it is nice to see so many American programs, although some are very old reruns. Also the times are all goofy, like the late night talk shows are on in the early afternoon and Ellen and Oprah are on in the mornings. And I was dismayed to find that the Sham-Wow! man has followed us here, I was hoping to not have to be subjected to any more of his infomercials, but he is here.

Been picking up some more Aussie lingo - some of the trees have interesting names, like woolley butt and black boys. Attorneys have multiple names including barristers, solicitors and just plain lawyers. Rip tides are rips, a cooler is called an esky, and instead of saying spoiled they say spoilt and learnt instead of learned. Mom or mother is always mum instead.

At dinner last week with some of Bill's coworkers, we were discussing the different meanings both countries have for various words, and one lady recalled a trip she made to the US when she was a teenager. She said she was shocked speechless when a boy told her she had a really nice fanny, and she felt like slapping him. As I was listening to her story, I was somewhat surprised that she would find that to be so incredibly upsetting, but then she explained that in Oz, the fanny is the front of that part of the female anatomy, not the back. I guess they probably don't sell fanny packs in Aussie stores.

Saturday, November 14

Busy day, starting with garage sales (yes they have them here but they're pronounced like gare-rage) and plant sales (got a bunch) and we ended up buying a new BBQ. We really missed barbecuing and intended to get just a small one, but ended up with a monster. So at least when anyone comes to visit we can just throw something on the barbie, like an entire cow or pig.

I had my first driving lesson in our new car, so much easier to drive then that big old clunker. But I must say I'm not crazy about all the roundabouts, they're everywhere. I practiced yesterday by going up and down the street, going through the roundabouts at each end, over and over ,and some old guy standing out in his front yard kept watching us go around and around, he must have thought we were terribly lost, or simply Americans.

I bought one of those shopping carts with wheels (they're called trolleys here) like old ladies use, cause I was tired of carrying heavy bags home from the store. Oh, and we bought a web-cam, so now we can Skype. It works amazingly well, lots of fun but you have to make sure you brush your hair before you turn on the computer.

Friday, November 13

Well hurray! our ship has come in and our stuff is now going through customs. I expect we will have to pay some fines, as we've been told they are extremely picky and the only thing we'd been told in advance was not to pack any seeds. We were talking with another ex-pat recently who said customs fined him $150 for having packed a box of popcorn, and another $100 for dirt on the bottom of his son's shoes. I'm sure they'll find dirt on some of our outdoor things, can't imagine how they wouldn't, especially with garden stuff.

At dinner with friends, one lady talked about her experience on the Aussie train that basically runs from the east coast to Perth, and she said the route is completely straight for many, many miles. Apparently it wasn't until several hours had passed that the train came to a curve, and the conductor was able to see the end of the train. He saw that a car, which was being transported by one of the passengers, had slipped off the back of the end of the train and was being dragged along the track, and had been dragged for miles. Needless to say the car was in pretty bad shape, and since many of the passengers had been drinking for hours, they all volunteered to lift the car off the tracks and back onto the train. However, the conductor thought this was not a good idea and so they had to wait several hours until a farmer arrived with some heavy equipment and was able to push the car back onto the train. The lady telling the story recalled that as they sat there for hours, waiting for the farmer to arrive, people began complaining about having to just sit there, when someone pointed out that they had been just sitting for hours before, the only difference was now they were not moving. So, to pass the time they continued drinking, and eating, and ended up consuming all the alcohol and food on the train, and because of the long delay, they arrived almost a full day late, hungry, thirsty, and hung-over. Another lady recalled shipping her household goods by train, and because different states in Oz use different guages of rail line, all her breakable items were basically rattled to pieces. Even her bike had broken in two because the metal had rubbed against something and after so long it simply broke through.

Thursday, November 12

Had dinner last night with some of Bill's coworkers, and one of the women lives in Darwin, which is basically at the very top of Australia, where it is quite humid. She was explaining that she is having a house built, and because they had not yet installed window screens, (they call them flyscreens) the frogs kept jumping in through the windows, and were even in the toilet. When I asked her what they did about that, she said she closed the lid but when she came back in, the frog was squeezing himself through the little space between the rim and the lid. She said since they've put the flyscreens on the windows, the frogs jump up and cling to the screens, hoping to get in, and there are so many they literally cover the screens.

Then I asked her if the cane toad had found its way to Darwin yet, from Queensland, and she said that they had, and most of the critters that eat them had died off. The toads have two poisonous sacs located on their upper backs, and when a predator bites them, the poison is released and kills the predator. She explained that in many areas of Australia, once the local wildlife that eat the toads has died off from having done so, they slowly start coming back as they adapt by learning ways to eat the toad without coming into contact with the poison sacs, such as flipping the toad over onto its back. She noted that she has not seen a goana, a very large lizard, in over 4 years, and they used to be very common, but the hope is that they will eventually return. I mentioned that I'd heard many dogs die from biting the toads, and she said that her dog has learned how to deal with them, and has basically become an addict. The dog licks the toads, just enough to get some sort of buzz, and she said when he comes back into the house it's obvious by the way he acts that he has been out licking toads again. She likened it to cats with catnip, and said the dog has shown no ill effects, but she thinks he is addicted to toad licking.

If you're not familiar with the saga of the cane toad, it's basically a phenomenal goof-up by the government, who brought the toads in to control the cane beetle. However, the beetles stayed far up on the cane and the toads did not jump up to eat them, per the plan, so the effort was fruitless. To make matters worse, the toads then began multiplying like crazy and they started to spread, and have continued spreading, becoming a far bigger pest than the beetles ever were. Thus far efforts to erradicate them have been unsuccessful.

Wednesday, November 11

Well we finally got our high speed internet in yesterday, after a 5 week wait, and I installed it! An amazing feat, I told the phone tech that I was techo-challenged but he was able to walk me through it with no problems, he was a very patient guy.

When clerks, waiters, etc hear our accent, they often say something like, "You're not from around here," and then they ask if we're from Canada or the U.S. When we tell them we're Americans, they always like to guess which state, and oftentimes they guess correctly! Then, if they've ever been to the U.S., they like to talk about it, and they LOVE New York. Also San Francisco, but we've yet to hear anything complimentary about L.A. The typical comments are that the air is dirty, it's too spread out and there's no way to get around. All valid complaints.

Here in Western Australia, most of the population is concentrated in Perth, and we've been told that there are more people living in Southern California, just from Santa Barbara to San Diego, then there are in the entire state of Western Australia. And WA is a big state, comparable in size to all the area from Denver, CO, west to the ocean. We've also heard that there are more people living in California than in all of Australia and New Zealand combined. Hard to believe, I will have to check that one out.

As far as traffic, they have a rush hour, but it is just that, lastly only about 1 hour, in the morning and evening. Bill says the train is virtually empty when he's taken it after 6:30 p.m., although it is crowded for a while in the morning. The train system is great, always on time and you never have to wait more than 10-15 minutes for the next train, depending on the time of day. If you buy a pass, you just swipe it prior to getting on the train, and again when you get off, and it keeps track of your balance.

Sunday, November 8

I couldn't stand not having any (well not many) plants or flowers to fuss with so we went to Bunnings and loaded up, and the patio is starting to look a whole lot better now.

Finally getting used to the fact that pedestrians do NOT have the right of way here, and there are signs warning pedestrians to give way to traffic.

Saw an interesting article in the paper, it seems building owners (or at least certain ones) do not own the outside walls of their buildings, only the inside. Some shop owner said he'd planned to put large windows all along one of the outside walls of his building, but when he returned from holiday (vacation) he discovered several other businesses had posted advertisements there. When he complained he was told he did not actually own the outside of the walls, only the inside.

Picked up a bit more Aussie lingo - a lounge can be both a couch and a living room, whitegoods are major appliances like refrigerators, washers and dryers, etc. Bits and bobs are odds and ends, breakfast is brekky and Tasmania is Tassy.

Saturday, November 7

Visited Yanchep National Park today, only about 45 minutes from home. There are 6 N.P.'s within a short drive from Perth, and many more down south, about a 3 hour drive away.

While hiking at Yanchep we saw our first wild kangaroos, and they are fairly common once you get out of the city. These signs are as routine as deer crossing signs in certain areas of California.

We also got some great pics of a mother koala and her baby, and like any little one, he was awake most of the time while his mom was sleeping. Amazing how they manage to not fall out of the trees while they're sleeping, although we've been told they occasionally do fall.

Friday, November 6

Well we found a great place to buy fresh, reasonably priced fruits and veggies, it's like a big open market with things like rice, grains and couscous in big open barrels. It's owned by Asians and the workers scurry around like crazy, trying to refill the bins, as it's very crowded and the aisles are narrow. It's only open on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, and you have to get there early, but it's worth it, everything is super fresh. They also have a few small eating places, and we actually found a Mexican place last weekend and the burritos were not bad. Never expected to find a Mexican restaurant here but there is pretty much every kind of food imaginable.

The houses here, at least in our neighborhood, are a combination of older homes called "character" houses, because, well, they have a lot of character, and newer townhouses. Many of the older homes have tin roofs and lots of gingerbread, especially lacy ironwork like you might see in New Orleans. The pic I took was from the car and is not the greatest example, but it gives you some idea.

Thursday, November 5

Well, our stuff did not arrive on Monday as scheduled, which probably means the ship has been hijacked by Somali pirates. Hope they enjoy wearing my hat with the corks around the rim.

More pics from Kings Park. The ducks are the same family of 13 babies that are now about a month old, maybe a bit more, they are so much bigger than when I first saw them. The flower pics were all taken in the botanical gardens, seems like there's always something blooming there. Many of the trees are covered with flowers, I guess I'm going to have to learn the names but the signs only list the latin names and very few give the common names.

Wednesday, November 4

It suddenly got hot, very suddenly, and the temperature is estimated to be 34 degrees, which in farenheit would be around 95. That's 15-20 degrees hotter than it has been. One thing that is very different from Camarillo, is that it does not cool down at night, and it does not get damp, even though we are only about 15 minutes from the beach. The humidity here is much lower, so it is a dry heat. However, dry or not, if it gets into the 40's, as we've been told, it will feel hot. That would be about 105 faranheit. Although our Aussie friends told us the weather here was very comparable to So Cal, they must have been referring to the winter, not the summer. We've been warned that although Christmas is typically quite hot, January and February are the warmest months.

Well today while walking in Kings Park, I came upon what appeared to be a bloody crime scene, as there was a bloody stick, and blood splattered all over the ground. My keen P.I. training told me something was indeed amiss! (although I can't recall having investigated any cases involving a claimant being bludgeoned in a forest.) But then when I reminded myself that we are in Oz, after all, it occurred to me that possibly the tree itself was bleeding, and of course, that in fact was exactly what it was. It was a bloody tree. Looked like some type of eucalyptus, and further up the truck was another bloody spot. Too bad my camera battery had died, would have made a great pic.

Sunday, November 1

Drove to Lake Monger this morning, only 8 minutes from the house. A really nice place to walk, full of waterfowl. We stopped to take a pic of a black swan and her two babies, but the mama swan came after us and chased us off - very protective of her little ones. Then when we were a safe distance away, one of the babies came after us too, squawking with his little wings outstretched - pretty funny, just a little guy but very brave.

Well, the dill seeds I planted have come up, and my one lonely little tomato plant is doing well also, so my garden is born. I’m sure I’ll keep adding plants as time goes on, can’t just quit gardening cold turkey, even though our outside space is pretty limited to room for just a few pots.

Monday, November 2

Our stuff is scheduled to arrive at the Fremantle port today, Hallelujah! But of course we will still have to wait a few more weeks for it to clear quarantine and then actually get delivered to the house, but we are getting closer. The feeling of camping out is getting pretty old, when you only have 2 plates and 2 bowls you wash dishes a lot. Bill took two of the kitchen chairs that were left here and put them upstairs next to the bed, to use as nightstands. Very classy look. But they do the job.

The flies are bizarre, horrible one minute and completely absent the next, hard to figure what brings them out but when they are they are incredibly persistent. I don't care how silly those cork hats might look I'm wearing mine as soon as it gets here along with our stuff.

Tuesday, November 3

Finally, the heating-A/C repairman showed up today, now that it’s spring and we no longer need heat, or air-conditioning at this point. While we wait to see if the heat will come on, we begin a conversation about where we’re from, why we’re here, etc. He says he was born in England, close to the border with Scotland, and his village was the first line of defense from “the heathen hoards” that came from the north. He explains that he moved to Bermuda and lived there for years, but decided he wanted a more permanent work situation, and after living in warm, tropical Bermuda, could not bring himself to return to the cold weather in Great Britain, so he came to Australia. He asked if we’d gotten used to the slow pace of life here, and he said that when the temperature hits 100 degrees, the tradesmen are all sent home, and they are paid for the whole day. He said that a new hire in most businesses is given 4 weeks vacation the first year, and that is added onto with subsequent years of service.

Well, I finally met one of our neighbors today, the first one I’ve seen. She said everyone is very quiet, except for the tenants who lived in our unit prior to us. They were three students from Zimbabwe, and they were very loud. We had assumed there must have been young guys living here, as none of the appliances worked but the problems were never reported, presumably because they never cooked or cleaned.

On our way to King’s Park today, Bill noticed a couple of strange things. In front of one house, squarely in the middle of the driveway, is a light post. Hopefully they drive a motorcycle instead of a car. Then at the intersection is a stop sign, yet near the sidewalk is a sign saying “no stopping allowed.” Near the park is the Subi Oval, a large stadium where Aussie rules football games are played. The streets near the stadium all have no parking signs that list only the specific dates of all the games, so spectators cannot park in front of the houses. But unless there is some sort of overlay for each sign, the city has to print new signs every year, which would seem to be very expensive. We passed by one house with a sign on the wall which read “Beware of wife.”

Saturday, October 31

Halloween. There's been a few articles in the paper lately about the need to crack down on teenage pranks, as last year they had some problems down by the beach. Sounds very similar to the US with eggs being thrown, pumpkins smashed, that kind of thing.

Well everyone is talking about the Melbourne Cup, which takes place on Tuesday. Sounds comparable to the Kentucky Derby, if you live in Kentucky; but although Melbourne is on the East coast, everyone really gets into it here as well. People get really dressed up (must wear a hat) and not a goofy bird watching hat either, those don't look good with a dress and heels. Then everyone goes to a restaurant, where the prices are pretty much doubled, to watch the race on big screen TV's. There is betting, which is apparently government sponsored? or at least allowed, and it sounds like everybody gets off work to do this. Someone even said it's a public holiday, but I'm not sure about that. Bill's office sent him an invitation to attend, which he ignored as he figured he has way too much work to do, but he was told that everyone goes, so I told him he'd better plan on wearing a suit to work that day. I guess I'm invited too, but all I have to wear are blue jeans or hiking pants, Bill's ratty old sweatshirt and of course one of my bird watching hats. Better plan on staying home.

Well I actually found Travelzoo, the Australia version, on line, even though the US version told me they were still working on getting a site that specialized on travel deals originating in Australia. So it will be great to see what kinds of deals they offer here.

Picked up a few more aussi terms, like "moggies"means cats, "dodgy" is shoddy, and "grotty" is unpleasant or offensive.

One of Bill's coworkers loaned us a small T.V., but without cable you only get 4 channels. Cable sounds pretty similar to what is offered in the US, with various packages offering movie channels, kids programs, an aussie version of HGTV etc.

Friday, October 30

In today's paper, an article on Sunday trading hours, and the mayor of Subiaco says starting January 1, 2010, stores will have the option of being open on Sundays and staying open during the week until 8 or 9:00 p.m. This is really a big deal, and there are lots of letters from people who say "Just leave things as they've always been." One of the letters read "No one needs to shop on Sundays or after 6:00pm during the week." Another letter claimed that the labor party, which would be comparable to our democratic party, was voted out in the last election because "they pushed for day light savings time" and that the "liberal party (comparable to our republican party) are pushing for Sunday hours and this will be their downfall." It's a very controversial issue, but it looks as though things are changing and the hours are going to be extended. Of course, this won't happen until after the Christmas shopping season is over, when you would expect stores to be open later.

Thursday, October 29

Bad day to leave my camera at home, saw lots of cool birds and even some wildflowers that I'd not seen before, erghhhh. There were two galahs on the ground, eating flowers, and they let me get really close, which they ordinarily don't do. Then I ran into the family of ducks I've been watching, the babies have grown a bunch since I last saw them and there are still 13 left, from the 14 they started with. There was also another new family of 6 babies, they look like they're only about 2 weeks old, so cute. Although I've seen kookaburras before, I'd never heard one until today, and it is easy to see why they're called laughing kookaburras. The best way I can describe the call is a oh-wah, oh-wah, hee, hee, hee. Very strange, and really did sound like he was laughing. There's another bird that sounds like a car alarm, haven't figured out what they're called yet, but Oz definitely has some strange sounding birds.

Well we got a new car today, halleluja. The one they gave Bill initially was called a Commodore, big old thing with super heavy doors that nearly takes your foot off at the ankle if your leg is out as the door swings closed. Which it does all the time. The best way to describe the car was "clunky" and it had some major blind spots. So, Bill mentioned that he would really prefer a much smaller car, and something that wasn't 11 years old, and they seemed shocked and embarrassed that he had been given such an old car. So, they gave him a 2007 Ford Focus and he is now a happy camper.

Wednesday, October 28

I think I am turning into a birder. I used to think birdwatchers were old people that wore funny hats, but I do have a couple of goofy hats I brought with me...hmm.... Today I came upon a magpie, having a confrontation with a kookaburra, and although I took a lot of pics, they are locked in the camera until our stuff arrives, since I forgot to put the card back in the camera. Basically the kookaburra (who has a very long beak) kept pushing dirt at the magpie, who ended up calling in 3 of his buddies to help him out. When it ended up 4 against 1 the kookaburra gave up and flew off, and the magpies were left with all the dirt they wanted.

Did something yesterday I haven't done in a very long time - hung sheets out on the clothesline to dry. The last time I tried that in CA (many, many years ago) they came out as stiff as a board, but here, even without any fabric softener, they felt great. So does that mean it's the water, or the air, or what is it that's so different?

I do laundry most days of the week, since the washer and dryer are hobbit sized, and the washer only holds one sheet at a time. See the above pic - tiny little things, as is the frig.

Speaking of hobbits, they have shires here, seems fitting, somehow.

People here take the sun very seriously, as they should, and there are more dermatologists than just about anywhere else. School kids are not allowed to go outside for recess without a hat, and they must use sunscreen as well.

Well, we're hoping to get our internet hooked up by the time our stuff arrives, but Bill thinks it must be coming by way of donkey, since he ordered it 4 weeks ago. At first we were told we'd have to have dial-up, but apparently there are other companies that do provide high speed internet. Hallelujah.

Tuesday, October 27

Was checking the classified ads last night for a BBQ, and there was an ad for a book, "Windows 98 for Dummies" and the asking price was $20. Yikes. In computer years that's probably about 30 years out of date.

Well we've had our first encounter with Australia's infamous insects - Bill got a tick. It was actually in there for about a week, and had become quite engorged with blood, but it came out easily and he's suffered no ill affects. The worst tick illness here sounds like it would be tick paralysis or something like that, I forget the exact name, but it's pretty nasty.

When we were here house-hunting, the relocation lady began talking with one of the realtors who was showing me a house. Donna said to the realtor, "I'm sure Vicki's heard all kinds of stories about our red-backed spiders but honestly, have you ever heard of anyone being bitten by one?" After a bit of a pause she answered, "Well, yeah actually, my husband." After learning that he had, in fact, survived the bite, Donna assured me that this was very unusual. Then she asked the lady, "Well, everyone always talks about tiger snakes, and I don't know anyone that's ever seen one of those." Again the lady paused and replied, "Well we have them in our yard." Donna was flabbergasted but was quick to assure me that this lady lived out in the bush and no one ever sees snakes in the city, where we would be living.

We saw this tree while walking in Kings Park and I told Bill, "Looks like we're not in Kansas anymore Toto." We've both said that to one another a few times since, as well.

Saturday, October 24, continued...

As we were getting on the freeway, a sign said, "No livestock to be riden or driven on highway." Not something you'd typically see on a CA freeway. We saw a great sign last weekend, it was a picture of a dinosaur, and underneath it said, next 7 kilometers. After our hike we stopped at a fish and chips place and while looking at the local paper, there was a picture of the dinosour sign. The article said local police had no idea who had posted the sign, which they believed was "a stab at the local residents" and they promised to have it removed by the end of the month. (Nothing ever gets done quickly here.)

When we got to the wildlife park, Bill pulled over and said "You drive." I was NOT prepared (figured I needed to get mentally ready) but I guess my lame attempt to get out of it didn't get me too far when I asked him what would happen if I didn't have my license with me. Anyway, I felt like a brand new driver, and kept turning on the windshield wipers everytime I tried to put on the turn signal, like everybody else does. I did O.K., but kept feeling like I was going to hit the curb.

Saturday, October 25

Went to Caversham Wildlife Park and took about 250 photos! Amazing to be able to get right up to the koalas and pet them, and to walk around with a bunch of kangaroos. We'd never even seen a wombat before, but got our picture with one, and this was the first time we'd ever seen tasmanian devils that were not sleeping. It was feeding time just as we were leaving and the devils had a tug of war over the meat that was thrown to them. Noisy little buggers.

They had a very interesting farm show, where they demonstrated how the sheep hearding dogs work, and then they sheared a sheep. The guy doing the narrating invited everyone to come down and rub their hands on the newly sheared sheep, to get the lanolin which can then be rubbed all over your skin for a smooth, silky feel. He then admitted that you'll stink like a sheep but your skin will be very soft. After the show Bill chatted with the narrator for a while as I waited in line to try milking a cow, pretty easy but I imagine your hands would get tired awfully fast.

When we were in with the kangaroos, a woman actually laid down with one of them to have her picture taken, and lets just say she was wearing kangaroo poo on her clothes for the rest of the day, cause it was all over the ground. Bill was concerned they might smell it on his breath, since he'd just had a "skippy burger" before going into the park. He couldn't decide between the kangaroo burger and the emu burger, but liked the sound of the skippy burger.

Before leaving the park, I filled out a volunteer form, so maybe they'll call me and I can work there, probably cleaning up some of that kangaroo poo.

Friday - Oct 23, continuation...

Took the train into the city to meet Bill for lunch, and afterwards I heard the most beautiful music in the outdoor mall. I listened for awhile and then bought both their CD's. Just two guys and a girl playing "music from the Andes mountains of South America," and all they had was a pan flute, a mandolin and a some sort of conga drum setup, but they sounded fantastic. I love the sound of a flute! So I played the CD's all afternoon and again today, so nice to have music again.

Since we still have no T.V., I was feeling like I needed a fix of US news, so I went on line and clicked on ABC evening news with Charles Gibson, thinking it would be something besides the celebrity news that is all over the internet. But no, in fact, the first thing that came on was Whitney Houston suffering a horrifying wardrobe malfunction. Her bra strap actually broke, while she was singing, and somehow she was able to actually finish her song. Amazing, how did she do it? Such a strong woman. Well the next item up was a movie clip of Kanye West doing something with a mouse that sounded disgusting so I clicked out before it came on. So much for the news, I guess I'll stay in the dark and uninformed for a while longer.

Communicating via the internet can be amazing, I have to say. I emailed my dentist in Calif., to see if he agreed with the dentist here wanting to pull one of my wisdom teeth that is not hitting the opposing tooth but otherwise is problem free. I also explained about breaking my crown off just before leaving for the airport, and that the dentist here says the root canal failed. My dentist seems to think the root canal may not have failed and wants to have a look at the x-ray, so he can offer a second opinion. I was not surprised that the dentist here does not have the capability to send the x-ray electronically, but at least I was able to go in today and pick it up, and I can at least mail it to the US. And who knows, maybe I won't need another root canal after all. That would be nice, although of course I'll still need a new crown.

Well last night was late shopping night, so we drove to the Woolworths (the big grocery store) to stock up. There is underground parking and the escalator is called a travelator. It has a uniquely grooved surface that holds the wheels in place, so the carts (trolleys) can't roll.

I needed to buy some dishwasher detergent, and was shocked to see it cost $26.00, and this is not a Costco sized box, just a regular size that would cost about $7 or $8 in the US. Moving along, I check out the frozen turkeys, and let's just say we will probably not be having turkey for Thanksgiving or Christmas. It was $67, and it was on sale. It was about an 18 pounder, so our little mini oven would never hold anything that big anyway, but $67.00, for a turkey???

Friday, October 23

This is a glass bridge - good views of the city from up there. These pics show where a fire went through the park a couple of years ago. Although the trunks of the grass trees are completely burned, the trees have continued to grow and bloom, while many of the other trees were killed off in the fire. The aborigines used the grass tree for all sorts of things, including making a very strong glue by mixing parts of the tree with kangaroo dung.