And Were Off

Sitting here in the Quantas Lounge at the Brisbane Domestic Airport I am being spoiled. Soft drinks, pastries and whatnot...

Bummed - have to get our bags in Melbourne and re-check in to a company called Jet Star - OWNED by Qantas. WHY they cannot get their act together and load our luggage is beyond me.

I am hoping this is not foreshadowing of things to come ...

Places to go, Things to see, Much to do ...

Spent yesterday being a total slug. Read my book. Ignored my decisions for Hobart, Tasmania, ignored the laundry. It was MARVELOUS!

Gary came home early to meet a guy who was putting a new windscreen on his car (windshield) - we had a rock hit it last time I was here and there was a serious crack. After that - we decided to go to dinner and a movie.

Stepped outside on a beautiful, Brisbane day:

Walked to Queen Street - got dinner - then off to the mind bending 'Inception'. It's ... odd, weird, unusual - we LOVED it! Then home and since I had done nothing all day ... of course ... I was spent! So off to bed with me.

Now it is Friday and we are heading to Hobart, Tasmania, Australia tomorrow morning at what Gary calls 'O'Dark Hundred' (very, very early). Ryan asked what we expected to see in Hobart. Told him I didn't know - that's why we were going.

Won't see the Tasmanian Devil - unfortunately their population has declined very rapidly by a cancer that seems to spread like a virus that leave tumors all over their faces and eventually kills them by suffocation or starvation since it blocks airways, etc. Not a fun way to go. There is a sanctuary that is collecting the healthy ones and trying with DNA to make them resistant to the virus or they will soon be extinct ... sad ... and no Tasmanian Devil for us to see I am sure.

By tomorrow this time I will be in the air - but by afternoon - my itinerary has us taking a historical walk through downtown. We are staying in a historical building, right on a historical harbour and surrounded by old, historical buildings - so fun photo ops - and the hotel has Internet in the room - so I will be able to harass y'all and fill by blog with photos!

So off to do what I should have done yesterday, the laundry, clean up, packing - and then - on to adventure!

Three AM

Three AM.

Can't sleep ...

It is winter here. A mild winter, but winter none the less.
I have my balcony door open. I lay in bed and listen to the early morning sound of the city.
The cars. A horn. A siren.
I smile.
A year ago I could not keep the door open because the sounds of the city and the light of the dock kept me awake.
Now - the cacophony of the city and the light of the dock lull me to sleep.
It is the sound of Brisbane, and the glow of Brisbane.
It is familiar, peaceful and comforting.
I will miss it.

Three AM.

I get up - go out on the balcony to stare at the beautiful view.
I look at downtown first - its lights and colors always consistent and beautiful:

I turn my head to look at Story Bridge.
Cars, trucks, ambulances passing over.
A city still active and awake at 3:00am. It makes my insomnia feel less isolated and more like I am just one of the many awake at this hour:

Three AM.

I wander into the office. Look out the window at the other two high rise apartment buildings. Most are asleep - the flash of the TV's the glow of the computers are off. A light here and there - but mostly locked down for the night.

I realize that I am at the halfway point of my last visit here to Brisbane.
Eight days down - eight days to go.
I'm not ready for this to be over.
But my body is - so I'll be done.
Soon ... too soon.

I have spent my days relaxing, enjoying good books, enjoying the bliss of quiet in the apartment and the view ... always the view.
Today (yesterday) I studied up on Hobart, Tasmania, Australia.
I am an expert on 'All Things Hobart' now and realize that 2 and 1/2 days is not nearly enough time to fit everything in.
Tomorrow (today) I must pick and choose - what a hard thing to do.

Three AM.

I realize that it is noon over in the States.
Most my acquaintances, my friends, and my children are only a ways into the day that I completed hours ago.
This has stopped feeling weird, and is normal now.
I get on the computer - surf - write a quick, silly post, and wonder how the day is there at my other home.
Is it raining? Did the lawn crew cut the lawn? Is Ryan getting along?

I tell myself 'soon enough'.
Soon Enough - I will be home - with no trip back to this beautiful country looming on the horizon.
It has been over a year since that has been the case.
I wonder how empty it will make me feel.
The chance that I may never see this place again ...
I decide to not think of that now.
I am here.
I will enjoy being here.
Now.
For eight more days ...

Three AM

I have a 'big' day ahead of me.
Hobart - finish the itinerary.
Finish my book and start a new one - per each day this week (it is a requirement).
Take a short walk - without my cameras - to just soak in the day, and the time and the place ...

So many things to do ...
So I am off to bed ...


Again ...

View and More PNG

Been hanging around the apartment since Sunday when we arrived home from visiting the birds at O'Reily's. Not feeling very good - so Monday - just read a book and did the laundry. It is now Tuesday morning and things don't seem to be shaping up for a 'day on the town' for me. Will probably FOLD the laundry, read another book and rest up so that I am in good shape for Tasmania.

We fly out very early on Saturday and come back on Tuesday so I have a few days yet to get feeling better. Rest, rest, rest. It is such a bore ...

So - since I have been spending so much time in the apartment, and since the view does not change from our window - I have taken my fair share of panoramas of Story Bridge and Downtown. Gary laughed at me this morning taking even MORE shots. It is sort of ridiculous - but soon, all I will have is the photos - so why not?

I noticed this morning stitching together a panorama - that I have come a long way in Photoshop since I first began. I now can generally shoot straight enough to get a decent stitch to start with and empty spaces? Not much of a problem now that I just use 'content aware' to fill it in. It makes it up - but generally makes up a pretty decent chunk of photo - so my panoramas are much wider now - being able to keep the tops and bottoms where I used to have to shave them off because of offending white space ...

Also - been playing with the view and my new found discovered tools. So my view is not ALWAYS the exact same:

And since I don't have anything 'real' to post today, and since Gary will never write this stuff down, and since Gary asked me why I didn't post about it ...

... thought I would take care of that now.

Papua New Guinea ... a strange place. Gary has been told they are very fond of their pigs. Being the only domesticated animal he has seen so far - maybe it is that. They do eat them, just ... they are family members before they are dinner. They live in the houses (sometimes) and are treated much like children.

Here Gary took photos of a woman 'babysitting' her pigs. He thought there were children in the photos also, but no ... just pigs:

Sorry, didn't find a shot of a cute adorable baby pig - just an adorable baby pigs butt:

When they are not living in the houses - they have their own huts that look just as nice as the huts the people live in:

And speaking of huts. Gary took a bunch of photos of the building materials and the huts themselves and wondered why I didn't post any of it. Mainly for space - so here goes:

Here a man is showing them how they make rope and lashing material out of a plant. Everything in their huts are made from materials found in the jungle:

Here is the grass used for the roofs:

And, as we have seen before, the walls (that I want to take home and make into a mat in my house):

They were in an area that was making some huts - thus the building material just laying about - it does not grow that way ...

And an interesting side note that the gentleman giving them the tour told them. This plant (don't know the name) the red one - we see it all over Australia - so not rare or anything - is used as 'virtual fencing'. People plant this on their boundary line to mark their property. Cool concept - probably doesn't keep out the machete wielding burglars:

And a few more huts: here one is by side one that is yet to have its roof finished:

Gary will be headed back there a few more times. I am sure I will have more photos to share then ...

In Search of Birds and Roos

Got up at 4:45 to get on the road to one of our favourite places: O'Reilly's. We take a off road track on the way up in hopes of spotting roos - and with my parents - saw 5, with Ryan - saw more than we could count. So, being my last time here and wanting to see a kanga in the wild just one more time - we got up and were on the road by 5:30.

Since it is winter - it was darker than we have had in the past and decided we were going to hit our roo spotting sites at just the right time: dawn. I was super excited!

Saw some beautiful scenery on the way - there was fog in the low spots which made for even more beautiful scenery.

Past all our roo spotting areas with me seeing one - waaaay out in a field - too far to photograph and nothing else. I was disappointed and we were sort of wondering where all the roos were?

Started climbing the 4 wheel drive track and knew we were out of roo territory. We have seen smaller, brown kangaroos in the mountains, but they scare easily and generally hop off before we get a shot off.

Took photos of the scenery as we climbed:

Saw a couple of hopping, small things and Gary said it counted - our trip was not entirely roo-less - but I was hoping for hoards and flocks of roo. No go.

Arrived at O'Reilly's and decided to concentrate on the birds. Went in to get a bite to eat - and Gary spotted a ... wallaby. In wikipedia it says the name is used for anything in the macropod family (includes kangaroos) that is smaller than a kangaroo - thus this fit. It was tiny - but I did get photographs of it!

Birds are everywhere in the rainforest of O'Reilly's - and sounds divine - this little guy held still enough for me to take his photo:

But we had come (with unsalted sunflower seeds in hand) to find these guys:

The above is just a photo from the day - but a cute photo with an ugly background - thus - I took the background out.

And the fun began:

I had one bird that was VERY interested in my cameras:

I think he wanted his picture taken!

But ... oh, the shots I got of Gary with the birds! I had a blast!

Gary conversing with a friend:

Gary getting a head massage:

Secrets being told ....

Gary's: "Look, I have a bird on my head" look:

Gary telling the fighting birds to 'play nice':

"Birdies - look at the camera!"

"OK, now look at Gary!"

Pretty bird in the hand ...

A new friend that decided to take a walk with us:

We were thinking of heading to the Byron Bay lighthouse - but I was a bit queasy from being lurched about on the 4 wheel road - then winding down the mountain - I got so sick - all I wanted was to go home.

So back in the apartment early. Gary is napping - and I am off to do the same. Too much lurching about for the last two days! The next few days should be casual - then off to Tasmania!

Whale Watching

Whale watching. Noticed that it did not start until July - so mentally put it on my list of things to do while I was here in July. Never really thought about it - remembered to get us tickets and Saturday was the day.

I must have had some sort of idea as to what was going to happen - I tightly french braided my hair in two braids - Pippi Longstockings style. So I had the thought that there might be some wind.

Wind. OK. How about boat, rocking, sun, lurching about as if a puppet with a very cruel master ... NO - none of those things went through my head. And I was EXCITED!!!

Got there a bit early and watched these birds do - whatever it is they are doing - for a bit ... then onto the boat: Eye Spy we went. Got a seat on the front row in the very top of the boat. Sure it would be a little cold and windy, but we had a 360 degree view - and it was a BEAUTIFUL DAY!

This bird decided to land on the boat while I was away from my camera. I got back and motioned Gary to take a photo of it before I scared it off:

Got to my camera and got another view - very pretty bird:

Saw some sailboats

And a lighthouse - on Moreton Island. We were heading north of Moreton Island to look for pods of whales.

We looked for some time without much but one or two. After we left the protection of the island itself, it was very rough water. We had purchased the sea sickness pills and taken them earlier - and hoped they worked ...

I was starting to feel - well - icky and when I get feeling icky - my photographing enthusiasm declines at a rapid rate. I kept my camera on full view of the ocean since you didn't know where the whales were going to appear.

I LUCKED OUT and got a shot (from very far away - so blurry) of a whale with a ship in the foreground to give it scale. These guys were huge!!

Feeling progressively worse and worse - I skipped lunch (a VERY good idea) and just let the boat throw me about.

I did get a series shot - also it is far away - so not the best photos - but a fun series:

Then, I realized that I was in trouble. Needed to barf and no where to run (no side of the boat to puke over on the top level) so off I ran, down 3 flights of steps to the toilets. Barely made it.

And, oh my was I sea sick! The captain was keeping a running commentary that was broadcast all over the boat, so as I heaved, I heard about the whales I was missing ... and SO DIDN'T CARE ...

Gary, being not as sick and much more photo savvy, was at the back of the boat watching a particular whale. He said he surfaced twice then would come all the way out - so he was able to wait - knowing where he was going to jump out of the water (called breaching / breeching ? - for what ever reason). Gary most definitely gets the BEST PHOTOS OF THE DAY award:

Glad I went. They were beautiful - even just to watch ... since I cannot claim any good photos ...

But very glad to be home, on solid ground - with a bed nearby!