Australian Holiday - Adelaide to Cairns - 31 Oct 2006

Brian woke us at 3:45 AM and we showered, finished packing, said farewell to 9 John Street and headed for the airport. Brian and Sarah flew Virgin Blue by way of Melbourne while Dan and Rhonda were on Qantas through Sydney. We checked our luggage, passed through security, bought some breakfast sandwiches, said farewell, and headed for our departure gates.

We arrived about noon at the Cairns domestic terminal, where Brian and Sarah were waiting patiently. Cairns is a tourist hot spot with a busy airport, so it took a while to collect our bags and pick up the rental car, which turned out to be the same Ford Falcon model as Brian and Sarah’s with black, rather than silver, exterior. We drove about 15 minutes north from Cairns to Trinity Beach (Dan’s first time driving on the left – quite exciting for all), where we located the Roydon Beachfront Holiday Apartments and checked in. The second floor apartment was very nice; two bedrooms, two baths, a full kitchen, large living and dining room and a balcony with a view of the ocean. The rooms were furnished with wicker furniture giving them a tropical look.

Roydon Holiday Apartments
Dining & Living Room at the Roydon
After settling in, we spent the afternoon at the pool, enjoying sunshine and 85F, but trying to avoid getting sunburned. The pool area was partially covered with a huge nylon canopy stretched horizontally about 20 feet overhead, which made it easy to move in and out of the sun. The water in the pool was cool but comfortable.

We did some grocery shopping and then had steak and lobster for supper at Trinity Beach Grill, a short walk from the Roydon. After eating, we walked the esplanade to the south end of Trinity Beach and back. As we walked, we noticed what we thought were large birds darting about just above the palm trees but, looking more carefully, saw that they were large fruit bats. Their wing spans looked to be three feet or more. We were not bothered by bugs, so we figured the bats (also called Spectacled Flying Foxes) were doing their job well.

Back at the apartment we played the dice game, Greed, until bedtime. Dan and Rhonda are finally over jet lag enough to stay awake past 10 PM.

More Victor Harbor - The Bluff from Granite Island
Granite Island from the Bluff

Australian Holiday - Victor Harbor - 30 Oct 2006

After breakfast we returned to Adelaide’s Rundle Street Mall to do some souvenir shopping before heading for Victor Harbor. It was, once again, a beautiful day as we drove the 85 kilometers south across rolling hills and coastal countryside. In Victor Harbor, we visited a tourist information office, then walked the causeway to Granite Island. A horse-drawn taxi runs from the mainland to the Island, but we opted for exercise. We greatly enjoyed the Island’s perimeter trail, with stunning views of the Harbor, the coastline and the ocean.

We drove about five kilometers east to the highly-recommended Port Elliot Bakery for a late lunch of meat pies, cheese and vegetable pasties, apple turnovers and baked custard. We sat at the picnic tables outside, dug in, and were not disappointed. Hungry as we were, the delectable fare disappeared quickly. We headed back to Victor Harbor, full and happy, for a hike up The Bluff.

Sarah opted to stay in the car while Brian, Dan and Rhonda hiked the steep trail to the top of the bluff. We were rewarded with gorgeous views of the ocean waves crashing against the rocks below and the coast stretching north toward Victor Harbor and southwest toward Newland Head Conservation Park.
We stopped at a rocky beach below the bluff where Rhonda waded in the salty water and nearly got her pants wet as a big wave rolled up further than expected.
We drove back toward Adelaide, made Glenelg Beach just in time to watch a beautiful sunset over the ocean, and returned to Brian and Sarah’s house after dark to pack our things in preparation for tomorrow’s trip to Cairns.

Australian Holiday - Climb Mt. Lofty - 29 Oct 2006

This morning we packed picnic lunches and water bottles and headed out for a hike up Mount Lofty. We started at a park on the edge of town featuring a beautiful waterfall and pond.
The trail up the mountain, about five kilometers (three miles) long and a climb of 2,000 feet, was paved with asphalt for about half the way, then gravel. Brian was very patient with his pregnant wife and aged parents; we took it fairly easy. The weather was beautiful; starting out cool and winding up warm. At the end of the climb we were glad we had braved the cool morning by putting on shorts. As we passed other hikers, the usual greeting was, “Hello. How ya goin’?” The view from the top was gorgeous, looking west over all of Adelaide and its suburbs to the sea. After cooling off and eating lunch, we made the trek back down the mountain, which was less taxing, but more painful for Dan’s sore knee (fell on the ice last winter). Brian found a nice walking stick, which helped greatly.

We arrived back home with just enough time to get ready for the 5 PM service at Holy Trinity Church, which featured great music and a good sermon by seminary student David Brown on Matthew 6:19-34. After the service, Brian introduced us to the 5 PM associate pastor, Craig Broman and the church rector, Paul Harrington. We enjoyed talking with them and easily sensed their love for the Lord and his people. We are so glad Brian and Sarah have joined such a fine congregation in Adelaide.

We picked up supper at a Wok in a Box noodle bar (Asian fast food) and brought it back to Brian and Sarah’s house to eat. We were bushed after the hike and our beds felt very nice.

Australian Holiday - Warawong Wildlife Sanctuary - 28 Oct 2006

Saturday Morning Dan and Brian headed to Rundle Street Mall in the CBD after breakfast. This is not an enclosed mall, but a street closed to traffic and dedicated to shopping, people watching, and teenage loitering. Brian wanted a camera bag to house both his Nikon 35 mm film camera and HP digital along with his lenses for the Nikon. They found just the thing.

We headed back to the hills for an afternoon at the Warawong Wildlife Sanctuary, founded 35 years ago by a farmer who turned his dairy farm into a home for endangered Australian wildlife. We started our tour with the Birds of Prey show. The presenter was great, introducing us to a kookaburra named Jack, a barn owl, a falcon and a wedge-tailed eagle. Throughout the presentation a couple of magpies harassed the birds of prey, until the keeper finally lured them into a cage using meaty tidbits and shut them up to protect them from the eagle. The birds were quite amazing. The barn owl hovered silently overhead and the falcon flew about snatching bits of meat tossed into the air. The eagle was our favorite; not what we would call beautiful, but extremely powerful and very majestic. He ate a rabbit carcass while sitting on the keeper’s hand, chewing it up bones and all. He was very affectionate toward his keeper, who said that eagles, once tamed, become one-man birds. An eagle’s vision compares to a human’s like a 10 mega pixel digital camera compares to a 4 mega pixel.
Wedge Tail Eagle - One Bad DudeLoving Couple
After the bird show we toured the rest of the sanctuary. First, we petted the kangaroos, who were lounging on a grassy slope. Brian and Sarah said kangaroos are lazy, which they did nothing to disprove. They look quite comfortable lounging around; almost human in their posture and expression.

Next was the platypus pond. We really wanted to see one. The sign said to be very quiet and watch for bubble trails in the water. We waited for a while, then spotted bubbles 20 or 30 meters across the pond. We waited patiently and silently, cameras poised, for 10 or 15 minutes as the creature slowly but surely moved in our direction. Finally, it came close enough so we could get a good look. It was not a platypus, but a big turtle. Quite disappointed, we moved on. Further along the trail we spotted bandicoots and wallabies (miniature kangaroos), one wallaby posing nicely for pictures with a Joey in her pouch.
We returned to the Adelaide CBD for supper at Good Life Modern Organic Pizza – Brian and Sarah’s favorite. We feasted on garlic and olive breads and three pizzas: Margarita (tomatoes and basil); free-range chicken with baby potatoes, garlic, rosemary and parmesan slices; and Barossa Valley double smoked bacon with pineapple and Australian Swiss. So good!

Australian Holiday - Adelaide Botanic Garden & The Big BBQ - 27 Oct 2006

We slept in this morning; beginning to feel as though we are truly on vacation. Sarah took us to town for lunch at Taste, Etc. and a tour of the Adelaide Botanic Garden. We spent a while looking for a place to park, which places are rather curious in Australia. You must pay for nearly all public parking. There are no parking meters, but signs are posted showing the maximum time you can park in a given area. Once parked, you walk up or down the row to a ticket machine; put in enough coins to cover the time you want to park (the machines give no change), and put the printed receipt on the passenger side dash. It seems an efficient system. The costs are reasonable, but you need to keep a stash of coins handy at all times. For lunch, Rhonda ordered a classic Caesar salad, which included anchovies. Dan sampled a few but Rhonda carefully removed them.

The Botanic Gardens, established in 1855, are beautiful!! They are laid out in a more ordered fashion that the Mount Lofty Gardens, which have a more natural look. Some of the trees are huge!! There were palms, mangrove, fig, bamboo and many others. We saw a living fossil, the Wollemi Pine, which was thought to be extinct until 1994, when a ranger in Wollemi National Park, New South Wales, discovered one growing in a deep gorge. Subsequent research found 100 adult trees growing in a single canyon in this wild and rugged area only 150 kilometers from Sydney. You can now buy one of your own!
The rose garden was exquisite; roses seem to be the favored flower in Adelaide – you see them in almost every yard, along roads and in public spaces. At the Botanic Garden, they grow as bushes, climbing trellises and arbors, and as little rose trees. They come in all sizes and colors. We especially liked the orange/coral ones, which were brilliant.
After the Garden we went back home to get ready for the BBQ (known in Australia as a barbie), which Brian and Sarah threw so we could meet their friends and co-workers. Dan helped Brian sweep the patio, pick up Joe and Megan’s grill (we would need two), and set up chairs. Sarah and Rhonda put together fruit pizza, potato salad, and veggies and dip.

About 40 people turned out; it was great to put faces with the names we had heard. That is quite a few people to fit into a small back yard, but fit they did with no problem. The crowd helped us keep warm as the evening temperatures dropped to about 50 Fahrenheit. Brian grilled boneless chicken thighs, kielbasa, kangaroo steaks, and 4 kilograms (about 9 pounds) of minced beef as hamburgers. Australians are not big on pickles or ketchup; they prefer mayo, mustard, onions and tomatoes on their burgers. People brought their own beverages, and the conversation, food and drink were all delightful.

Australian Holiday - Central Market Day - 26 Oct 2006

We woke up at the usual time; 5:30 AM for Dan and 7 AM for Rhonda, and read before breakfast. Brian and Sarah’s friend, Brigit, and her sweet son, JJ, visited us this morning. Brigit and her husband, John (Brian’s co-worker), plan a trip to Kangaroo Island this weekend, so they will miss the BBQ Friday night. It was nice to meet them after seeing pictures of JJ on Brian and Sarah’s web log.

We drove to Brian and Sarah’s church, Holy Trinity (see www.trinityadelaide.org.au), where Sarah met with music director Mark Peterson about the planned “Carols in the City” Christmas program while Dan and Rhonda toured the historic building. Holy Trinity was founded, along with the city of Adelaide, in 1836. The stone building is beautiful; the interior woodwork and ceiling structure are amazing. Since its beginning, the church has maintained a strong testimony to the saving power of God through our Lord Jesus Christ.

From Holy Trinity Church, we went to the Central Market in the CBD to pick up food for Friday’s BBQ. The Central Market, located under a 1,000 car parking ramp, and adjacent Market Arcade and Market Plaza house about 250 shops in a very outdoorsy and festive atmosphere. Rhonda was impressed with the beautiful fruits and vegetables – luscious greens! The cheese and butcher shops had great variety; whole rabbits, all kinds of lamb, minced (as opposed to ground) beef, pork, chicken, and so forth.

After Brian came home from work he and Rhonda took a walk around the neighborhood, snapping pictures of interesting houses, cars and vegetation, while Sarah and Dan napped.

Australian Holiday - Wine Tasting & The Red Ochre - 25 Oct 2006

From the Mt. Lofty Botanic Garden, we traveled to the Petaluma Vineyards Millbridge park, restaurant and wine tasting room. We had a picnic lunch in the park (turkey sandwiches on lunch rolls with avocados, cucumbers and cheese), then spent over an hour sipping wine samples (except PG Sarah) and learning about the fine art and science of wine making. We bought a couple of bottles of sweet wine to have with cheese and crackers before the barbeque part Friday night.

We returned to Adelaide by way of Gorge Road, which follows Cudlee Creek through a winding valley, the valley turning into a rocky canyon for part of the way. We were glad for the shoulder harnesses as Sarah negotiated the tight turns of Gorge Road. The Adelaide Hills are gorgeous; filled with orchards, vineyards and picturesque views from ridge roads and valleys. Brick or stucco ranch-style homes dot the country mountain roads, with metal or tile low-sloped roofs and lots of windows.

Brian and Sarah treated us to dinner at the Red Ochre Restaurant in North Adelaide, built on the bank of the River Torrens with a beautiful view of the CBD across the water. Seated at a semi-circular table facing the view, we watched crew teams rowing on the river as dusk settled over the city. For appetizers (the menu called them entrees) we had crocodile cakes and goat cheese ravioli with wild lime sauce; all very delicious (the crocodile was a little chewy). For the main course, Sarah had duck, Rhonda the beef filet mignon, and Brian and Dan the mixed grill – a tremendous sampling of Australian meats: wallaby skewers, kangaroo steaks, emu sausage, lamb cutlets, and quail breasts with mashed potatoes and gravy, served at the table on a grill with live coals to keep it all hot. The food presentation was a beautiful thing.
Several of the restaurant staff waited on us throughout the evening; Brian and Sarah said that all Australians receive a “living wage,” and tips are not expected. Whenever we thanked them, the wait staff would reply, “No worries.” The service was excellent, though we had to ask for the check. Australians take their time when eating out. After the meal, we headed home to bed, our eyelids still getting very heavy after 9 PM.

Australian Holiday - Mount Lofty Botanic Garden - 25 Oct 2006

After breakfast, Sarah, Rhonda and Dan headed out for a tour of the Adelaide Hills. We drove first to the Mount Lofty Botanic Garden, climbing about 2,000 feet out of Adelaide, with views reminiscent of the Great Smoky Mountains. We parked at the top of the mountainside garden and strolled down the winding paths through the overarching eucalyptus trees, with rhododendrons and azaleas in full and glorious bloom below. The garden is planted with temperate-climate trees, shrubs and flowers from around the world, identified with small plaques giving names and origins. It was so beautiful; evidence of our Creator’s boundless imagination.

We came to a pond in the lower part of the garden surrounded by water plants with the largest leaves we have ever seen; like something out of the Jurassic period.
This feeling continued as we hiked back to the top of the garden through Fern Gully, with huge, tree-like ferns arching over the path.

Australian Holiday - Adelaide - 24 Oct 2006

Dan and Brian spent few minutes together this morning before Brian headed for work; Sarah and Rhonda rose at 8:30 AM and we had breakfast; toast with Nutella for Sarah; Semolina for Dan and Rhonda. Dan also had a piece of toast with Vegemite. Brian had picked up a single serving container at a restaurant. It is a yeast extract; supposedly a health food; very salty; tastes kind of like beef bouillon. Sarah said they scrape it from the bottom of beer brewing barrels. Mmmm...
After breakfast Sarah took us on a driving tour of Adelaide. It is a city of about 1 million; the downtown area (called the central business district or CBD) is surrounded by parks and the suburbs stretch from the Gulf St. Vincent on the west to the Adelaide Hills on the east. Adelaide has a reputation as Australia’s quiet town. Our shuttle bus driver in Sydney said, “Oh! A whole week in Adelaide, eh? What you gonna do?” However, we found it a beautiful place with lots of attractions, though Sarah says they do roll up the CBD sidewalks at 6 PM.

At lunchtime, we met Brian at the Air Warfare Destroyer (AWD) Systems Centre just a few blocks from Brian and Sarah’s house. Brian gave us a quick tour of the high-tech looking center, which his company, Gibbs & Cox naval architects, shares with Raytheon combat systems engineers, ASC/Bath Iron Works shipbuilders, and the Australian Navy AWD Defence Materiel Organisation. Brian has a Steelcase work station (made in Grand Rapids, Michigan) complete with dual computer monitors and photos of family and friends decorating the walls.
We had a picnic lunch in the park next to the AWD building, with lamb yiros from a local shop. Brian and Dan finished it off with baklava. Little flies showed up, too, which delighted in landing on our faces. We hope they are short-lived.

After lunch, Sarah took us to the Adelaide Art Museum, where we took a tour of the galleries containing the classic collections going back to the Australian colonial days in the early 1800s. Our tour guide was an Italian woman (we suspect) with a French accent, who pointed out that the state of South Australia was founded by free citizens, not convicts; a matter of pride for the modern day residents of SA.

Brian grilled steaks for supper, with which we enjoyed a very fine, local red wine; Rockford Barossa Valley basket press (first juice out of the grapes) Shiraz 2003; a very fine gift from Brian and Sarah! The steaks and wine were delicious, and we could feel the relaxing effects flowing through our jet-lagged limbs. After eating, we retired to the living room where Rhonda viewed photo albums on the couch with Brian and Sarah while Dan sat back in a comfortable recliner and began working a Sudoku puzzle. Brian put on a Johnny Cash CD and Dan was soon dreaming of sitting around the campfire with a group of cowboys, discussing wagon wheel repairs. The dream was short lived when Sarah noticed his slumber, called his name, and he woke with a start. We played a few hands of Uno around the kitchen table before hitting the sack at 9 PM.

Australian Holiday - Sydney to Adelaide - 23 Oct 2006

We took the train back to the hotel, picked up our luggage, and boarded the shuttle bus back to the airport. We checked in for the Qantas flight to Adelaide well before the 4:30 PM departure time and had a leisurely lunch at a Thai restaurant in the airport. Rhonda had Teriyaki chicken and Dan went with the chili pepper chicken, which had him sweating profusely.

The flight to Adelaide was great: clear weather and a fine view of 1,000 miles of Australian countryside ranging from plains to hills to farmland to near-desert, then orchards and vineyards as we passed the Adelaide Hills. We also enjoyed conversation with a chemical engineer who works for a New Zealand brewery but grew up in Adelaide. He said he had a large family – four kids – and was surprised to hear that we have eight!

The flight arrived five minutes early. We took the escalator down to pick up our checked bag, and headed outside to watch for Brian and Sarah. Meanwhile, Brian and Sarah arrived upstairs and watched for us to come down the corridor from the arrival gate. After waiting 20 minutes, Dan called Brian’s cell phone from a pay phone and left a message. About 10 minutes later, Brian checked his phone, realized we had called, and he and Sarah headed down to find us. It was a joyous reunion!

We loaded our luggage into Brian and Sarah’s Ford Falcon and headed across town to 9 John Street, Payneham; a right cozy abode that they have furnished very nicely. We were fading fast – falling asleep in mid-conversation. After a supper of chicken kabobs, we hit the sack at 9:30 PM. Glorious rest in a great guest room bed!

Sydney Royal Botanic Gardens

Pine Tree Flowers (??)
The Rocks
Sydney Harbour Bridge

Australian Holiday - Sydney - 23 Oct 2006

After a good night’s sleep, we showered (briefly, to save water), dropped off our luggage with the concierge, and hopped the train for downtown Sydney. We got off at the Circle Quay (pronounced “key”) station with skyscrapers to the south, ferry docks to the north, the Opera House to the east, and Sydney Harbor Bridge to the west – a very beautiful spot. We ate breakfast at McDonald’s. Dan wasn’t sure whether to go with the long black or flat white coffee. The flat white turned out to be a good choice (espresso with steamed milk) and Rhonda had black tea, which is regular tea without milk. A pigeon walked around the dining area picking up crumbs – nobody paid him much attention.

We proceeded to the Opera House, through the Royal Botanic Gardens and Government House grounds (very sweet, and very strange vegetation!), through downtown, up to The Rocks (old waterfront shops), under Harbor Bridge, and back to the train station. We listened to a man playing steel drums and ate Royal Copenhagen ice cream by the Quay. What fun!

Beatles Tunes on the Steel Drums

The Sydney Opera House

Downtown Sydney

Obvious Tourists

Australian Holiday - More LA to Sydney - 21 & 22 Oct 2006

Our flight from LA to Sydney was surprisingly enjoyable. It took 14.5 hours, which is a long time to be cooped up in an airplane, but we did okay. The seat next to Rhonda was empty, with the next one occupied by a young lady who slept nearly the entire trip. She ate nothing and had only a bit to drink. We suspect she used sleeping aids to accomplish this feat.

The seats were a bit roomier than the usual coach crunch – each had its own LCD screen on the back of the seat ahead with an entertainment system providing music, news, movies, TV shows and games. The controller could be removed from the seat arm for playing games. The Qantas flight attendants were amazing – like having your own British butlers on board. They served two very nice meals with a bag of snacks between and numerous rounds of drinks.

We spent most of our time reading, relaxing, wandering and looking out a rear window at the peaceful Pacific with puffy clouds and an occasional island surrounded by bright blue shallow waters and coral reefs. We left LA a little after 1:00 PM Pacific time Saturday, crossed the Equator and international date line on the way, and landed Sunday at 8:40 PM Sydney time. Neither of us slept a wink on the plane, so we were pretty tired on arrival. We went through customs, picked up our checked bag, and headed for the long luggage inspection line. We expected a long wait, but when we got in line, a customs agent looked at our declaration cards and asked if we had any food. Rhonda said, “No, but we do have a pack of chewing gum.” (Rhonda is impeccably honest.) The customs agent said, “Okay, then you go that way,” pointing to a doorway that said, “The Way Out.” We thought they would inspect our pack of gum in a separate line, but it was truly the way out! We were quite pleased.

We made our way to the subway station right under the international terminal and tried to get some Australian cash out of an ATM, but it was out of cash so we charged our tickets on Visa. It was a short wait and a short ride to Mascot Station. When we got off the train and took the escalators up to street level, we found ourselves in a sort of commercial district, deserted and dark, with no sign of the Holiday Inn where we had a room reserved. Dan spotted Coward Street (odd name), which he recalled from a map, so we headed in that direction. Cresting a hill, we joyfully spotted the hotel. Dan looked left, saw no traffic, started across the street, and nearly got run over by a bus! It was turning right from the left oncoming lanes – utterly wrong from our American perspective, but the way it is in British-based Australia!
We checked in at the Holiday Inn and proceeded to Room 505, a lovely corner room with full-wall windows facing south and west over the airport and Botany Bay. The hotel was kind of oval shaped, so our room was trapezoidal; the bed at the wide end and a table with two chairs at the narrow end; like being on a ship. The bathroom was pretty amazing, with fixtures and amenities looking quite foreign. Toilets in Australia are equipped with two buttons on top of the tank that provide minor and major flushes. There was a sticker on the mirror encouraging water conservation, which is especially important in the current drought.

Australian Holiday - LA to Sydney - 21 Oct 2006

We awoke at 7:30 AM after a good night’s sleep and went to the hot tub and pool before breakfast. It felt good to work out the kinks before our long flight. The outdoor air was cool and steam rolled off our bodies as we climbed out of the hot tub and jumped into the pool to cool off (actually, Dan jumped in and Rhonda eased her way down the stairs). We ate breakfast at the hotel – eggs benedict for Dan and the buffet for Rhonda with delicious fresh fruit.

We headed for the LAX international terminal three hours before our scheduled 1:00 PM departure and used most of that time to check in, walk our checked bag through the TSA screening line, and make our way through security to Gate 43. As we watched the huge 747 and the people who would soon board it with us – all ages, sizes and nationalities and so different from one another – Rhonda wondered at how God knows each of us, even our anxious thoughts. Priscilla Litty shared the following Scripture passage before we left – very appropriate:

“Your love, O Lord, reaches to the heavens, your faithfulness to the skies. Your righteousness is like the mighty mountains, your justice like the great deep. O Lord, you preserve both man and beast. How priceless is your unfailing love! Both high and low among men find refuge in the shadow of your wings. They feast on the abundance of your house; you give them drink from your river of delights. For with you is the fountain of life; in your light we see light.” Psalm 36:5-9

Australian Holiday - Starting Out - 20 Oct 2006

We flew from Grand Rapids to Los Angeles via Cincinnati this afternoon – arrived in LA about 6:30 PM Pacific time. We took the shuttle to the airport Radisson Hotel and had dinner at the penthouse restaurant before retiring. The view was great with LA spread out to the east with planes lined up over the mountains and landing on each side of us.