February 22, 2009
Leaving Australia was sad. We didn't want to go home to the cold, dreary weather. Leaving Gary there was even harder. We did come home with an extra suitcase to bring home souvenirs and chocolate. Friday, February 27, 2009
Leaving Australia
Leaving Australia was sad. We didn't want to go home to the cold, dreary weather. Leaving Gary there was even harder. We did come home with an extra suitcase to bring home souvenirs and chocolate. 
Glenworth Valley
February 21, 2009
Saturday we drove to Glenworth Valley to go horseback riding. This was probably our favorite activity. We took a two hour ride into the country. Gary rode a Clydesdale that was one of the bullies of the group. Rach rode Peter who was another bully. Ty was on Oscar. He was pretty mild mannered and I rode Brody, who was spunky and didn't want to mind me. It was really fun, but when we got back, a huge outback thunderstorm rolled in and we barely missed it, but it was an awesome sight! We loved seeing parrots on the bird feeder and the 200 horses on the land. At a creek on the ride, we saw a Water Dragon just out in the wild. It was weird! Oh yes, I did see a Kookaburra!
Saturday we drove to Glenworth Valley to go horseback riding. This was probably our favorite activity. We took a two hour ride into the country. Gary rode a Clydesdale that was one of the bullies of the group. Rach rode Peter who was another bully. Ty was on Oscar. He was pretty mild mannered and I rode Brody, who was spunky and didn't want to mind me. It was really fun, but when we got back, a huge outback thunderstorm rolled in and we barely missed it, but it was an awesome sight! We loved seeing parrots on the bird feeder and the 200 horses on the land. At a creek on the ride, we saw a Water Dragon just out in the wild. It was weird! Oh yes, I did see a Kookaburra!
One More Beach Day
February 20, 2009 
We had to take advantage of the sun once more and go back to the beach. We had a lot of fun making sand "castles" and seeing which ones would still stand when the water came. The kids were talking about the foolish man building his house upon the sand. I was pleased to see that they remembered some of their past experiences as they named each "castle." BTW, the Colosseum made it the longest, with Timpanogos coming in next.
Afterwards, we went back to Manly Beach to get some more fish and chips. Mmmm, they were good! Ty and Rach fed leftover fries to the seagulls.
It was so weird to look up into the trees and see these parrot-type birds. Rach happened to be doing a report on the macaw, while on this trip, and learned that these birds have a mate for life. We always saw them in pairs.
We had to take advantage of the sun once more and go back to the beach. We had a lot of fun making sand "castles" and seeing which ones would still stand when the water came. The kids were talking about the foolish man building his house upon the sand. I was pleased to see that they remembered some of their past experiences as they named each "castle." BTW, the Colosseum made it the longest, with Timpanogos coming in next.Afterwards, we went back to Manly Beach to get some more fish and chips. Mmmm, they were good! Ty and Rach fed leftover fries to the seagulls.It was so weird to look up into the trees and see these parrot-type birds. Rach happened to be doing a report on the macaw, while on this trip, and learned that these birds have a mate for life. We always saw them in pairs.
Monday, February 23, 2009
Blue Mountains
February 19, 2009
Gary had been wanting to see the Blue mountains, so we took a 1 1/2 hour drive to spend the day there. It's really more of a canyon than big mountains, but they were spectacular. The famous "Three Sisters" was three rocks side by side that were explained by a legend of sisters that were turned to stone. We took a ride on a train that went down the mountain vertically, which was intense, but short. We walked around the rainforest and rode the tram back up. We actually saw some "Tarzan" vines in the forest. 
Gary had been wanting to see the Blue mountains, so we took a 1 1/2 hour drive to spend the day there. It's really more of a canyon than big mountains, but they were spectacular. The famous "Three Sisters" was three rocks side by side that were explained by a legend of sisters that were turned to stone. We took a ride on a train that went down the mountain vertically, which was intense, but short. We walked around the rainforest and rode the tram back up. We actually saw some "Tarzan" vines in the forest. Gary loves to take pictures of the scenery. Here are a few.
When we got back, we took the ferry out to Manly Beach for some out-of-this-world fish and chips!
Saturday, February 21, 2009
Aquarium and Parametta
February 18, 2009
The day started out rainy, so we decided to see the Sydney Aquarium. It's amazing to see the colorful marine life that we'd probably never see otherwise. It was the wrong season for snorkeling, so the Great Barrier Reef was out.
The day cleared up beautifully, so we took an hour ferry ride up the river to a cute little town called Parametta. In learning about life there many years ago, it was interesting to learn that it used to take 3 days to make that trip to Sydney on the water. As their vessels improved, the time it took reduced. Of course we got a picture of the kids with the captain for Ty's class (the raccoon, remember?) Anyway, we were able to get some pictures of the famous Sydney Opera House and the bridge. On the trip back, the sky looked really smoggy from the smoke that had blown up from all of the terrible fires in Victoria.
The day started out rainy, so we decided to see the Sydney Aquarium. It's amazing to see the colorful marine life that we'd probably never see otherwise. It was the wrong season for snorkeling, so the Great Barrier Reef was out.The day cleared up beautifully, so we took an hour ferry ride up the river to a cute little town called Parametta. In learning about life there many years ago, it was interesting to learn that it used to take 3 days to make that trip to Sydney on the water. As their vessels improved, the time it took reduced. Of course we got a picture of the kids with the captain for Ty's class (the raccoon, remember?) Anyway, we were able to get some pictures of the famous Sydney Opera House and the bridge. On the trip back, the sky looked really smoggy from the smoke that had blown up from all of the terrible fires in Victoria.Wild Animal Park and Koalas
February 17, 2009
Since the weather was kinda rainy, we decided to get over to Sydney's Wild Animal Adventure. Here we were able to see most of the wildlife found somewhere in Australia. Ty and Rach really enjoyed the whole museum. There was a room with butterflies flying in the open. They kept landing on us, so if you can tell, Rach has one on her arm and hat and Ty has one on his shoulder. You can see them up closer on the picture used as the background.
Near the end of the exhibit, they had a photo opportunity with the Koalas. We were able to pose with them and even pet them with the backs of our hands. They sure are sleepy little guys. Ty has his class "Traveling Raccoon" that his teacher asked him to include in some of the pictures, so you will see a lot of him. This definitely was the highlight of the day.
Ty was so excited to be able to try the Hovercraft. It was hard to control. They had other activities showing what kinds of things were getting closer to being possible and what things wouldn't really happen for a long, long time. It was quite interesting. We made a car out of Legos and magnets, sent it thru some more powerful magnets arching over a track, and sent our car down, pressing buttons to activate the bigger magnets to see if it would make it to the end. We were proud of ourselves for figuring it out.
When we were done with our museums, we met for ice cream at the Lindt Cafe' featuring hot fudge made from Lindt Chocolate! I will never be satisfied with Leatherby's again.
Since the weather was kinda rainy, we decided to get over to Sydney's Wild Animal Adventure. Here we were able to see most of the wildlife found somewhere in Australia. Ty and Rach really enjoyed the whole museum. There was a room with butterflies flying in the open. They kept landing on us, so if you can tell, Rach has one on her arm and hat and Ty has one on his shoulder. You can see them up closer on the picture used as the background.Near the end of the exhibit, they had a photo opportunity with the Koalas. We were able to pose with them and even pet them with the backs of our hands. They sure are sleepy little guys. Ty has his class "Traveling Raccoon" that his teacher asked him to include in some of the pictures, so you will see a lot of him. This definitely was the highlight of the day.
Ty was so excited to be able to try the Hovercraft. It was hard to control. They had other activities showing what kinds of things were getting closer to being possible and what things wouldn't really happen for a long, long time. It was quite interesting. We made a car out of Legos and magnets, sent it thru some more powerful magnets arching over a track, and sent our car down, pressing buttons to activate the bigger magnets to see if it would make it to the end. We were proud of ourselves for figuring it out.When we were done with our museums, we met for ice cream at the Lindt Cafe' featuring hot fudge made from Lindt Chocolate! I will never be satisfied with Leatherby's again.
Wednesday, February 18, 2009
Bondi Beach
February 16, 2009
We had a sunny day, so we headed down to Bondi Beach. Oh the sun! Gary got in and did some body surfing while Ty jumped the waves. Rachael stayed close to shore and jumped waves while I took pictures. It was a fun day for us since we have been longing for the sun. Everyone got sunburned, but it was worth it!
We had a sunny day, so we headed down to Bondi Beach. Oh the sun! Gary got in and did some body surfing while Ty jumped the waves. Rachael stayed close to shore and jumped waves while I took pictures. It was a fun day for us since we have been longing for the sun. Everyone got sunburned, but it was worth it!
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Gary and Kathy
