Dream world

I have to share this with everyone cause I woke up laughing. If you don't know the people I am talking about, it doesn't matter, just insert your own friend who fills in nicely. The dream went something like this...

I was at Nate B's house with John, Susie, Nate, and someone I can't remember. We were enjoying a bbq and a bonfire. Everything was going great, when susie the pyromaniac decided the bonfires could be bigger. The problem being there was a lot of surrounding trees and bushes, and it must have been fall cause I remember lots of dried leaves on the ground. So sue is creating more fire and John, Nate and myself are commenting on how that wasn't the best idea, cause we'd had problems before with large bonfires getting into the trees. And wouldn't you know it, one tree caught fire, then a couple more, then the bushes and the dried leaves. With things getting out of hand, I saw water spiggot not far away and run over to turn it on, this got the sprinkler system going and it was enough to quench the flames. Even the ones in the trees. I know go sprinklers, it was a dream cut me some slack. So with the spriklers going, susie and whomever was making fire with her try to help by grabbing a garden hose. She steps on the hose which turned it on and all the sudden it was going nuts like a out of control fire hose in some cartoon. Sue reaches for the hose when as it went by her hands, whacking her in the head, where she pinned it holding on for dear life. Then I looked over at John, who is now doubled over laughing at Sue's 'Tom & Jerry' like situation.

Okay, perhaps not as funny to everyone else, but I was amused during the dream, and when I woke up. Probably more funny because all of those things could have really happened to Susie. Alright, I'm off to go enjoy another day of great weather! Sory you're all stuck in the cold and snow.

Guy

This is wave rock, called so for obvious reasons. It's 15 meters high, so a big wave indeed. 

Here I am at the whaling museum waiting for the 3D movie to start. Crappy animated movie about whales and what not. Two thumbs down. The previous 2 movies were much more interesting 

One of the roads that I maybe shouldn't have driven down. But not scratches, dents or fluid was lost. Just think of the things I could have done with 4wd! 

Here I am about to start a self guided tour of Mammoth cave. You were provided with a MP3 player and dorky headphones.  

This is from lake cave, and one of the few cave pictures that turned out . As you can see there's a bit of water about. This is a true table supported only from the ceiling. The lake is really a stream that is 2 or so feet deep over a 250 foot by 30-40 foot section in the cave. So it does act like a lake. They used some cool lighting effects to show off the cave's other features. I was told I could drink the water, but declined cause I'm a wuss. 

Had to take a picture of the ride. A fine little car if I do say so. Over 30 miles to the gallon (9.21 litres per 100km) with a peppy V6. Fairly comfortable, and it went everywhere it wasn't supposed to be. 

Here's an action picture. Gives an idea of the major road ways here. I could have driven though this kinda scenary for days, unfortunatey, the landscape changed, andit bacame horribly uninteresting.  

Here is the exciting town of cook. The other direction is much the same. I was standing in the middle of town to take this shot. That's our train off to the left. There are houses behing the trees, but no one was in them. Much have been out and about...to where, I'm not sure. 

This is the town of Bunbury. At least I hope it is. I'll have to double check that on a map, but we'll just say it is for now. I'm perched atop the town's look out tower for excellent viewing. As you can see, it's a colorful little town. I did a little exploring here, but couldn't find to much to look at. Had a fine lunch here though 

This is the lighthouse on the southwestern tip of Australia. Despite the cloudy morning, it was great, and I was the only one there.  

I hope you can make this out. There's a really large spider in the center. It was hard to get close and not lean into something else that may have gotten a hold of me, and drug me into the large plants of the botanical gardens. It would seem now that I look back, the garden was as dangerous as beautiful. What you don't see in the pict. is the 2 other spiders also located in this really, really big web. 

Here's me on the train. It's not crowded...yet. 

A blurry picture of the scenic blue mountains just west of sydney. I would have asked for the train to stop for a better shot, but there were afew other passengers to consider.  

When I was walking through the Botanical gardens something from above caught my eye. A couple of large bats is what it would seem to be:) 

pictures soon to come

Okay, I've found a converter so I can plug my camera in to charge the batteries, so I can A) take more pictures, and B) give you something new to see, hopefully later today. And that's a good thing.

Perth anyone...

Whew...well after a long and disappointing afternoon sunday I'm back in Perth. Everything started off so well, went to some more beautiful beaches at a national park close to Esprence then shipped off to Hyden to see the wave rock. It was a 5 hour drive, it was hot and desolate, but I figureed I'd see this rock, get a room and hang out. Well, I saw the rock, it was cool, not 5 hours of driving cool, more like 2.5...maybe 3. I tried to go for a little hike, but it was still too hot out at 4pm for that kinda nonsense. Then I spy a sign for a cave, and some kinda dam. Why not right? Went to the dam first, either it didn't exist or it was buried aways back from teh fence that was out in the middle of nowhere, so I didn't get to see that. So off to the cave, looked like another bad deal so I skipped it in favor of the sign promising some sort of hole in the ground. Well, after some walking, being tormented by a couple of flies, and some more brutal heat the result was nothing. Very disappointing. The bright side was seeing the largest collection of lace in Australia. It's out in the middle of nowhere, 100 yards from wave rock. Couldn't figure that one out, but hey! Has to go some place right.
So off to Hyden to get a place to crash. More disappointment. One hotel in the town which was packed, the hotel not the town. Not even a place to eat, so I break out the trusty little map to see what's around, hit the gas station and make like a banana and split. Well sorta...I got stuck at the gas station talking to a really nice older gentlemen who was informing me of the very non-democratic elections taking place in Iraq, and how he didn't like the U.S., British, and Australian governments. I finally get to pay for my petrol, and I stop to bid him farewell when he got me again. This time about the differences between their education system and ours, specifically the system in Hyden, KY. While talking to this man, someone tries to back up to the gas pump my car was at, and proceeds to rearend my parked ride. Awesome. But no damage done, I got away from my new pal and make tracks back to Perth cause there was nothing else to do. And that's kinda nice cause now I can venture around Perth city, and relax not in the car.

The ugly open road

Okay, finally caught up with my posts, so everyone will be up to speed after this. Starting the day off right with a fine breakfast (don't worry Tisha, I'm eating plenty), I went to the whale museum Now, this wasn't about whales themselves so to speak. No...it was more about the industry of whaling. The museum itself was the last whaling station in Austraila to go out of business. So this little old lady lead us around the station, showing us what happened after the whale was killed and brought up on shore. Very gross, but interesting. Can't say I didn't learn anything while I was here. We even watched a couple of movied in the whale oil holding tanks. I think the smell is still in my shirt, and I didn't even touch the walls. Did you know that whale oil was used for transmission oil, for fine watches, and the textile industry? Sorry, all this new found knowledge just needed to be shared with someone.
The beaches of Albany are also excellent. A mixture of white sand beaches, and huge granite cliffs, I couldn't have been more pleased with the views. Got to check out some blowholes, not whale related. They're cracks in the rocks, where, when a waves crashes on the cliff wall, the force pushes air and mist up through the crack higher up on the rocks. The warning sign said a few people had died from standing too close when larger waves were about, but you see alot of stuff like that here. Also stopped at a natural rock bridge. Bigger cliffs, more danger don't go any farther signs, very cool views, with waves breaking on cliffs, and beaches and islands in the distance.
Then the driving. Not a pretty trip today. 500km of crusty looking shrubs, vast areas of dried up wheat fields, and some more shrubs. The drive eventually got me to the town of Esprence. A smallish town, but they are apparently known for rediculously nice beaches and something like 100 islands off the coast. My bed for the night is about 100 yards from the water and a great view...if not for the trees in my way. Whew...that was a lot of work. And no John, I'm not getting all my driving done in 2 days. But I'm still looking at 1600km in 3 days of serious driving. So I'm pacing myself. Lots of stops and detours, which breaks up the time in the car nicely. Which reminds me. So yesterday, while driving the last part to Albany, I planned my route to go thru a national park. So I go down to the road and bam! The road I want is a dirt road, and there's a sign saying its closed a bit down the way. So I figure, what the heck, I'll have a look. So I start down the road, and it turns on to this half sand, half dirt road. And there's a sign at the head of this saying danger, of course, engage 4wd, and proceed with caution. So I think about it for a second...and keep going. About 2km down this new road, it was closed sadly, but it didn't say why. I was disappointed. I was sure the car would have made it, but I guess I'll have to try something else.

More open road...

I started Friday off with a trip to the southwestern tip of the country. There's a light house posted out on the point where the Southern and Indian oceans meet. The fun part was walking around onthe rocks, which I like to do, and seeing the crabs scurry to the nearest crack to hide. So after Augusta, I thought I'd try to make the town of Albany which is father down the road on the south coast. But first I needed to explore the caves. I looked at 3 caves, all quite different, all very cool. All the guides were hiliarious, but that was mostly the accent. And now I know quite abit about the goings on in a limestone cave. You can test me when I get home, just wait a few days so I can function semi-normally.
Next stop was the town of Pemberton. Had to drive thru endless forest roads, all one lane, no shoulder, and with pretty high speed limits. But, back to Pemberton. The point of this stop was a tree. A specific tree. This tree which I'd try to name but couldn't spell even if it was in front of me, was the area's fire lookout. It stands 200ft, and can be climbed by way of 30 inch rebar sticking out of the trunk. It was insane, but the view was more than worth it (pictures to come) I seem to keep promising pictures, they do exist, I swear, but the computers I keep finding are crap so please be patient. Like you can do anything about it:)
After the tree, more national forests and Albany. A nice little town on the coast. Found some people staying in the same hostel who were in town for a 2 week class, so we ventured over to the pub and watched Andy Roddick lose in the semis. I think it was best though, since I was the only American in the place, could have been ugly, or not.

The open road

Sorry I jsut got very unmotivated because I have to redo this post. A little discouraging when you're on the clock. But not much I can do about it is there? First the important stuff. For those who are wondering, the food is fantastic. Fresh fish, and just good everything else, even if it is a tad on the spendy side. And for those wondering about the swirl of the water in the toilet/sink. It's true, it does spin the other way. The test needed to be done in a sink because the openings in the toilet are a little to big to allow for the water to begin to spin. However it does let other things go down the drain much more effectively, I'm sure everyone wanted to know that litte tid bit.
Anywho, I'm now working my way across the southwestern part of the country by car. Nothing has been hit...yet, and I'm getting quite used to driving on the wrong side of the road. Thursday I made it from Cottesloe to Augusta, which is at the extreme southwestern tip of the country. Everything was absolutely beautiful. Stopped in a ton of national parks, and drove on many roads that probably weren't meant for the rental car featuring 2wd. And the view from the shore lines, wow! It's unreal. It's total different from the U.S., seems like it's the edge of the world just over the horizon. I think it has to do with the raw natural lanscapes. There has been a lot of nature's goodness to be seen here. I happened on a fine little hostel and eatery in Augusta. One of those places where you order a slab of raw meaat and cook it yourself. Mmm...it was good!


Guy

Austraila day!

HAPPY AUSTRAILA DAY!
I went into Perth today thinking, hey...today is austraila day, this should be fun. What I didn't consider was much like the 4th at home, everything is closed. Oh well, went into Kings Park and the attached botanical garden, very cool, very big, and even better than Sydney. It over looks the city and river, which is more like a large lake. You can see for miles. And apparently I was walking around where the fireworks were going to shown cause everyone and the grandma, and her kitchen sink were a headed there to stake out a spot. I did not stick around for the next 6 hours to take in the show, but I'm sure verything will be just grand here on the beach in cottesloe. It was a little odd seeing the hordes of people coming in off the subway not only carrying in coolers off drink, but having already open drink in downtown Perth, just a walkin on by the cops. Just strange to me, but then again, I'm far far from home.
Oh yeah, so yesterday is was walking down the beach, minding my own business like ya do. When all the sudden I look up and low and behold I was in nude beach territory. I thought, huh, guess that's what curiosity gets me. And no I didn't join in the fun. And it was 95% older men, so it wasn't that great.
Tomorrow I leave my little beach haven but haven't decided to where yet. Either north to shark's bay, or south to what ever it is I find. But I'm just my trusty like Holden commadore executive will get me there in one piece. Unfortunately my ride doesn't sport any of the battle gear from "Mad Max Road Warrior" like some cars and trucks do. So no aiming or wildlife for me. And with my luck, if I do hit something, it will be something very endangered.

Trains, right hookers, and no planes in site

Well I'm out of Sydney and all the way over in Perth. The train was okay, not great. Day light hours consisted of looking at the bleak lanscape outside and reading. The wild nightlife on the day was me trying to find away to fall asleep for more than 30 minutes at a time. Met some good people, with fine ideas of what to do for Australia Day Jan. 26. Mostly the ideas ended up with getting a little bit more than silly, and see what happens next. I also thought I missed the train out of one of the stops. I came back from my quick tour of the city only to see my train leaving the depot, then looking at my clock and noticing that I hadn't made any adjustment for time changes. I didn't freak too much cause I figured I could beat the train to Perth, but the nice man at the counter informed me I was still okay. There was also a lady on the train who I swore was wearing a bathrobe or short moo-moo the whole time. It turned out upon closer inspection, her blouse, skirt, and wrap were all made out of the same, very floural fabric. I can't seem to be able to get away from the germans either. They were at the hostel in Sydney, and on the train. Not that there is any problems with Germans, it's just that you never see just one, there's always like dozen or so. Weird.
Let talk about the towns you see on the train. The town of Cook had a population rumored to be between 2 and 6. I saw one and assumed the other was in the sovenier shop with all the train people. There was one road, about 1000ft long, 5 houses, and no visible gas stations, food stores, anything, anywhere. Outside of town, shrubs at best. No hill, trees, grass, buildings, paved roads, nothing. It was awesome. Then there was Kalgoolerie (I'm just guessing on that to lazy to spell check). This town houses the miners from the worlds largest open pit gold mine. We got there just after dark, and they were offering bus tours of the town and mine. I declined, I know I know, but going from sitting on the train, to sitting on a bus to look at things in the dark, I think not. So I ventured out on foot again, with a group this time so as not to be confused when the train left. Nothing but 2 bars and the red light district, which we didn't make it to (perhaps on the road trip portion of the journey), was open. But the bar did serve real pints of beer as apposed to the 12 oz. pints in Sydney.
So I got a car today in Perth. A fine automobile, a right hooker. I don't think I'll get used to driving on the other side of the road, but I haven't hit anything yet, or gone down the wrong side of the road, but I have tried to. I'm sure something good will come of that situation!
I do have pictures, but need to get to a more better computer to do that kinda stuff, so it may be awhile. Hope all is well at home. I'm still safe even though I did see the biggest spider, bat, and cockroach I've ever seen a in the same night.

Guy

My arrival in the hostel after many, many hours of travel. 

Beautiful St. Mary's church. 

A really big crab next to his rock lobster mate. 

Captain Cook in all his glory. 

Little budha in the Chinese garden 

Sydney opera house. 

Skeleton family at the australian museum. Please notice the cat and mouse in the backgroung. And I don't know if you can see it, but there is a bird in the cage. There kinda different down here I'd say. 

Sydney thus far

So here's the story that I'm sticking to. Since arriving in the good ole down under, I've seen the royal botanical gardens, the chinese garden, sydney observatory, marinetime museum, australian museum, st. marys church complete with crypt, sydney aquirium, the museum of contemporary art, state library, the red light district (my hostel is actually in the red light district, who knew), anzec war memorial, hyde park, the sydney opera house, and china town. There's probably a few more things that I've written down but those would be the obviously more memorable things. So today, friday, I'm just bumming around town with nothing planned. Tomorrow I leave for Perth on my 3 day train tour.
I did get to see a platypus at the aquarium, however no picture was taken for 2 reasons. One, the little bugger wouldn't stay still, spending its time hunting crayfish (which it did get). And 2, taking a picture of something underwater, behind glass, in a dark room when the thing you're trying to photograph blends into the background pretty dang well, makes it tough to see even it you do manage to get it in the frame. Unfortunately I didn't think of doing a video clip until it was to late. So I apologize for not having a picture of a platypus, I'll try to make it up to everyone.

The next day...well actually 2 days later...

With that whole international date thing, it is now weds evening. I missed most of tuesday, maybe participated in it for a couple of hours but its hard to say. First off, I'm in Sydney safe and sound, so I've got that going for me. I have a place in a hostel til saturday, so I also have shelter, also good. Went touring today for a long while, saw many things and took many pictures (hopefully I'll find a better computer to load a few of them up with). The temperature is only in the 80's, but I'll be alright:) I'll send more soon!

Guy

The day

Well today is the day were I get on the plane. Yep...something like 24 plus hours on a plane, and I don't arrive til weds morning. Stupid international date line. To everyone whos is dissappointed in how seemingly not excited I am, sorry..this is the best as it gets for me and traveling, and I think it's something only the men in my family understand. Hopefully I don't get stuck in some random airport for days on end, or pulled aside by customs because they think my camera is something else. And if that does happen, you will definately hear about it! See everyone in a month!

Speak now...or at least soon

Plans are being made for the up coming trip and you can get in on the ground level. Anyone with suggestions of where or what to visit speak up. Want something from 'down under'? place your orders. It looks like I'll get to be in Sydney for a couple days before jumping on the Great Southern Railway to Perth. After spending a week in the area, Cairns is the next stop. I'll use that as a starting point for the final leg of the journey, a leisurely drive back to sydney. It's far, but there's 10 days to do it in, and if you've heard any about my driving habits, you know I'll have plenty of time.


As a side note, I will not bring back any plants or animals. No koolas, kangaroos, lizards, snake, spiders, or anything else that needs to be fed. If you want food, think prepackaged. I don't think customs will take kindly to me bringing fresh fruit back to the good old U.S. of A.