I wanna be a celebrity...in Bendigo

Well, it was finally back to school for me today, and with it the start to another school year for the students at Spring Gully Primary School in Bendigo.

There were different routines than I have been used to in Calgary; the mandatory uniform try-on being one; the opening of a new building being another.  However, there were many similar routines as well: writing in the agendas, setting out books and lockers (more like what we would call cubby holes back home), and learning names and routines.

I have also begun settling in to life in Bendigo.  We have walked around a few of the parks in the city,  all of which seem to include a wonderful park with baby swings that my daughter cannot get enough of.  They are all also kitted out with public bathrooms, the quality of which we could only wish for in Calgary.

The temperatures have finally begun to subside, no more +40 days and the nights are blissfully cool to the point of being frigid.  Upon my arrival Luke’s lovely parents pointed out a thick wax candle that they had left on the bistro table in our backyard had melted like it had been in a fire. (see picture)  This did get me to thinking about how cool it would be to leave something out in the Calgary winter to see how fast it would freeze to show Australians (think about a water balloon, a wig or possibly one of the dead kangaroos from the road en route to Bendigo).

I have also attained the level of local celebrity after the Bendigo Advertiser ran a story about me in the local paper.  It read something like this:  Handsome man-of-the-world from Canada has come to Bendigo to teach for a year.  His eloquence, grace and intelligence rivals that of kings and philosophers of yore….blah, blah, blah.  Unbelievably, the story didn't run until page 14, being judged less important than new Taxi stands in Victoria, the Melbourne opening of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and another school in Bendigo that has 4 sets of twins all set to start today.

It actually was quite flattering to have such a fuss made over me, and completely unexpected.  I only hope Luke is enjoying such ado in Calgary.

Batman's City

Well we have mercifully left the 46 degrees of Sydney for the much more humane 38 of Melbourne,  a city founded, or at least made important, by John Batman (unfortunately Robin Gibb lived in Brisbane).

Thankfully, my sister-in-law and her husband have a pool and air-conditioning as I try everything to stay cool in this relentless heat.  Surprisingly, Ambriya seems to be dealing with the heat better than any of us.  Other than a few sweaty mornings and her new found dislike of sunscreen, she hasn’t complained at all.

Melbourne, on top of being Australia's Gotham City, also has the idiosyncrasy of making drivers turn right from the left hand lane, which would be like trying to make a right hand turn in Canada from the far left lane across 5 other lanes of traffic.  I have yet to have someone give me a reasonable explanation for the design and continued use of this road layout. 

While in Melbourne I took in a few of the local sporting events.  I was present to watch the Brisbane Heat knock off the favoured Melbourne Renegades in the semi-final of the Big Bash league (cricket).  Then, the next day I went to the Australian Open where I watched some equally commanding performances, most notably Maria Sharapova who beat her opponent 6-0, 6-0.

The other big news from Melbourne was seeing my first whitetail spider.  While living in New Zealand I was warned about being bit by these spiders as they could cause paralysis, necrosis and death!  However, I have since been informed that this probably isn’t the case and that the whitetail, while big, is mostly harmless.

This is actually my last stop before heading back to Bendigo to start work.  I must admit it has been a very pleasant summer break here, save the few nights of plus 30 temperatures.

Canberra to Bendigo along the road to Gundagai

Canberra, as well as being where I lived for 9 months on my first stay in Australia, is also the home of my parent in-laws and Australia's capital.

It has a population of less than 500 000 people and is a completely “designed” city.  While having a reputation as a boring city, which may be deserved, it is also probably the only major Australian city where you will encounter authentic wildlife as you wander the parks (read: bush-land) in the city.  So, because of this I have always enjoyed going for walks here and being surprised by the reams of Kangaroo or the hope of being surprised by a Wallaby or Platypus near Lake Burley-Griffin (named after the “designer” of the city).

We only spent a few days in Canberra before driving south towards the state of Victoria and our new home.

Some observations I made during the road trip from Penni’s folks house to Bendigo.

·      Driving Time: A lot

·      Cities/Towns passed: A few

·      Dead Kangaroos: Over 50

·      Dead Echidnas: 1

·      Ambriya naps: 2

·      Penni naps: 1

·      Chad naps: 0

·      Cost of a bag of potato chips and a can of lemonade in Corop: $6

In all seriousness, after about 8 hours of driving we finally arrived in Bendigo, which appears to be a very pleasant town.  While we are only staying a night before heading down to Melbourne I am looking forward to returning in a week.

Sydney-side in +43

-->

G’day from Australia

Well I have finally arrived and will spend my first week between Sydney and Australia's capital Canberra.

As for my time in Sydney, I have to admit parts of this city are as pretty as any city I have been to on the planet.

I took the ferry in from my sister-in-law’s place in Longueville and got some amazing views of Darling Harbour and the Harbour Bridge and the Opera House that reside there.

As I have been to Sydney many times now I find myself looking at things I haven't seen before, or those interesting quirks that make cities endearing to those who live there.  So without further adieu:

While I was there I witnessed the quietest Apple Store I have ever seen in the CBD (central business district).  Compared to the mad-house that we all witness at Chinook or Market Mall, or what I saw in Santa Monica on Christmas Eve, it was quite a juxtaposition.  I have never seen so many Apple staff with nothing to do but play with the devices.

Secondly, we visited one of the two Ikeas in Sydney (of which Australia only has 5) and it was also pleasingly quiet.  We found a parking spot close to the entrance and wandered around in whatever direction we chose, and did not spend any time queuing for the checkout.  It also had the most wonderful shopping trolleys I have ever had the pleasure of driving.  One could almost imagine the trolley replacing the image of a Jaguar in one of those car ads about the pleasures of driving a luxury car.

Finally, I have included a picture from one of those electronic road sign we pass all the time as we drive down some major road.  Instead of talking about an impending traffic delay, or the need to leave space and not tailgate.  This one, however, warned drivers about the danger of dying while in their car due to heat and lack of water!  I tried to imagine road signs in Calgary warning drivers to wear warm clothes in the winter for fear of freezing to death during their evening commute.

Fiji

Bula,

and greetings from Fiji.  Sorry for the late posting of this blog entry but due to Cyclone Evan that passed through Fiji the week before we got here the wireless is still down in many parts of this island nation. 

It is amazing at how quickly the army has gotten much of the tourist part of the country back up and running after the storm. Removing downed trees from the road and power lines, getting water and electricity back up and running and clearing many of the grand hotels of debris.

Our hotel had one bure that was completely destroyed but otherwise was none the worse for wear after a week.

Many of the schools here, which are some of the biggest buildings in many villages, have had their roofs destroyed as well as structural damage to classrooms and plumbing.  It is a testament to the people here how quickly they have gotten around to repairing the damage in order to have everything up and running by the start of semester in January.  I can’t help but think what would happen if 75% of schools in Calgary were damaged.  What would happen?

In an interesting coincidence, we were on the flight from LA to Fiji with Delia and her family.  She happens to be the goddaughter of a mum whose daughters I teach back in Calgary.  Small world!

Well after a 5 day stop here, off to Sydney where the temperatures have been in the mid to high 30s.