Where in the world?

Australia!

We arrived in Australia on 30 November 2010 and will be travelling throughout the country until 28 February 2011! We will be visiting the states of Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia, and West Australia. Anticipated adventures include surfing, scuba diving/snorkeling, stand-up paddle boarding, hiking, mining, and farming!

 Things we learned along the way:

1. Bedbugs do exist! Turns out, these little tiny bedbugs are commonly found in Australia where ever bats are found! They are harmless, except they make you itch... A LOT!
2. Coral dies when it is touched by humans, so scuba divers and snorkelers must be very careful.
3. Magnetic Island was named such because Captain Cook's compass mysteriously went a bit crazy when he discovered it. He eventually found his way, but the island's been named Magnetic "Maggie" Island ever since!
4. Author P.L. Travers was born in the little town of Maryborough and later went on to write the Mary Poppins book! There is a Mary Club exclusive for Marys and a Mary Poppins statue in town. 
5.  Australia was in a drought for approximately 10 years. Since we've been in Australia, Queensland has had to evacuate certain cities due to extensive flooding! Good news: Drought is over. Bad News: People have lost their homes and the farmlands now have too much water!

What we learned in NSW:

1. Surfing is hard. It takes lots of balance, persistence, and lots of gulps of salt water. Even though we are grown ups, we still had to start on the itsy-bitsy waves. Safety first!
2. Tea-Tree Oil, which comes from the Australian Tea-Tree, is a very beneficial substance. It makes your hair super shiny and leaves your skin feeling very soft. It's red in color and has a very strong smell.
3. The Three Sisters is a rock formation in the Katoomba Valley. Legend is that three sisters (Meehni, Wimlah, and Gunnedoo) fell in love with three brothers from a different tribe. They desperately wanted to marry the brothers, but the parents wouldn't allow it! The village the brothers came from were very angry and waged war on the village of the sisters. So that the sisters would not be injured during battle, an elder cast a spell on the sisters and turned them to rock. He'd planned on turning them human again...but, he accidentally died during the battle. The sisters are still stuck in the rocks! But this is just a legend....
4. The Sydney Opera House was modeled off of orange slices! Even the greatest of architects still ate their fruit. 
5. The Sydney Harbour Bridge has six-million rivets and not one has ever been replaced since it's original construction in 1932! (Rivets are fancy bolts for bridge)

 What we learned in Victoria:

1. Torquay Beach on the Great Ocean Road is where world-famous gear from RipCurl and Quicksilver originated. Two guys decided they wanted a better wet-suit for surfing, so they stitched themselves two fancy ones. Soon everyone wanted one and the rest is history!
2. Mindii was a snake recognized by the aboriginals. They believed that Mindii preyed on tribes not following tribal law. because Mindii could stretch the distances of several hundred miles, there was no way of deceiving the slippery snake. Everyone was always on their best behavior.
3. London Bridge actually fell down in the 1990s. Not the REAL London Bridge... the one found on the Great Ocean Road! There was a natural bridge connecting the mainland to a rock in the ocean. At the time, people could cross the bridge. Unfortunately, the bridge collapsed, but no one was hurt.
4. Stand-up Paddle Boarding is a lot harder than it looks! It takes a lot of balance and energy to keep the thing moving! It also is a great form of exercise as we were pretty sore afterwards.

 What we learned in SA:

1. Riding a bicycle as a primary mode of transportation in a busy city can be very dangerous, but if done correctly, can be very good for the environment!
2. Aboriginals and Torres Strait Islanders are not the same. Aboriginals are from the mainland Australia and existed in several hundred tribes. Torres Strait Islanders are from a little island chain in the northeast of the country. They dance differently, speak creole, and are primarily a fishing culture.
3. Adelaide is home to the largest fresh produce market in the Southern Hemishpere!
4. South Australia is the Opal capital of the world with large mining towns extracting all varieties of the fifty million year old gem. This includes the most precious and rare Black Opal!
5. The coat of arms for Australia includes a kangaroo and an emu because neither of these animals are capable of going backwards. They can only turn sideways or go forwards, representing progress.

What we learned in the NT:

1. Uluru is the most sacred site to the Aboriginal people. The Aborigines believe that Uluru, along with the sister rock formation called The Olgas, are a creation of their great ancestors. For this reason, Uluru is the souce of many myths, songs, stories, and beliefs of the Australia natives.
2. The Aboriginal peoples survived on the land. One of the delicacies that they ate were honey ants. The women of the tribe would dig a hole with a stick near a nest. Then, they would pick the ants up and squeeze the ants bottoms. The ant, filled with honey, would burst with the delicacy.
3. The Ghan train is named so because of the Afghans that were the first to access the harsh center of Australia. They Afghans brought their camels to Australia to tackle the Outback. The camels are now wild and roam freely through the Outback. In fact, Australia has the largest wild camel population in the world!

What we learned in the WA:

1. Huntsman Spiders, while very large and scary looking, are in fact harmless. They grow, on average, to about six inches in length and can be very hairy.