All Good Things Must End

It's time to go home and leave all of this behind, perhaps for another trip someday.  This far off corner of the world, so completely removed from everywhere else has allowed us to see and enjoy things not existing anywhere else on Earth.  It's been a supreme adventure and one that we would recommend to anyone who finds an opportunity to travel here to witness it for themselves.  If that isn't possible we hope that this glimpse into what we have seen will bring you enjoyment and fill you with the awe  that we experienced. Thank you for traveling along with us, we were glad to have you aboard.

Our trip was comprised of eight separate flights consisting of forty-two hours in the air totaling 20,060 miles. The journey included numerous busses, inner-city trains,  taxi-cabs, two gondola rides and miles and miles of walking as our methods of travel.

Here's an abbreviated list of Adventures

1. Weathered cyclone Lusi which arrived just in time to greet us on our arrival in Auckland, New Zealand

2. Quaffed cider with the friendly hobbits at The Green Dragon Inn in The Shire at Hobbiton

3. Explored the world’s youngest geothermal area and witnessed water boiling from the ground at 240 degrees.

4. Performed the Haka war dance with the Maori Tamaki tribe (and ceremonially stuck out a tongue as they did, wow,  Brian did look fierce!)

5. Drove on the left side of the road (with much trepidation both to us and to the natives!)

6. Traversed the incredibly beautiful Cook Straight on a huge ferry between the North Island and South Island of New Zealand

7. Meandered through the Marlborough wine country near the city of Picton, New Zealand on the tip of the South Island

8. Enjoyed a picnic lunch on Lake Rotoiti (with black eels present) at Nelson Lakes National Parks (truly awesome scenery!)

9. Felt the wrath of the Tasman Sea at the Pancake Rocks and Blowholes State Parks

10. Kayaked on lovely Lake Brunner with absolutely no one else in view and in total silence

11. Rode horses overlooking the dramatic Waimakarri Gorge

12. Witnessed the beauty of the city of Christchurch from atop a dormant volcano though the city itself had been devastated by earthquakes.  

13. Felt the charm and the warmth of the great city of Melbourne

14. Experienced life as a criminal at the Old Melbourne Gaol (Jail)

15. Swam with turtles and stingrays and rode in a submersible craft beneath the waters of The Great Barrier Reef

16. Hopped aboard a one hundred year old train for a memorable journey through the hot and wet Kuranda Tropical Rain Forest

17. Napped with kangaroos and wallaby’s at the Taronga Zoo

18. Ferried through the Sydney Harbour.  Then perched high above the city for a view from the Sydney Eye Tower.

19. Travelled from 45 degrees north Latitude to 45 degrees south latitude and back, crossing the equator and the International date line twice.

20. Enjoyed the warmth and sincere welcome of countless friendly and truly accommodating New Zealanders and Australians

...and we'd do it all again, just as soon as we get our breath back!  But where to next?  Hmmm, perhaps we will offer a little hint...

Sydney Opera House, April 1

On our last day in Sydney we enjoyed an amazing tour of the world famous Sydney Opera House. The Sydney Opera House is Australia's most recognizable building and is an icon of Australia's creative and technical achievement. Since its completion in 1973 it has attracted worldwide acclaim for its design and construction, enhanced by its location on Bennelong Point within a superb harbor setting. It is placed right at the end of Bennelong Point, juxtaposed to the harbor and completely to scale in relation to the Harbour Bridge, the sandstone cliff face, Macquarie Street and Circular Quay. Viewed from a ferry, from the air, or by approach on foot, the vision is dramatic and unforgettable.

It took sixteen years to build. Constructed between 1957 and 1973, it  is a masterpiece of modern architectural design, engineering and construction technology in Australia. It exhibits the creative genius of its designer the Pritzker Prize winner Danish architect Jørn Utzon⁵, the successful engineering by the Danish firm Ove Arup and Partners, and the Australian building contractors M R Hornibrook. The completion of the project was overseen by the architects Hall, Todd and Littlemore, and the story of its construction was one of great controversy. Complex engineering problems and escalating costs made it a source of great public debate that only subsided when the beauty and achievement of the completed building placed it on the world stage. The technical challenge of how to construct the roof sails took four years to solve and at first the problem was thought unsolvable, even by Utzon himself. In a rare moment of insight after years of struggle he discovered the secret of how to design and build the structure. It was unlike anything that had ever been built before. The roof sails were based on the geometry of the sphere and Utzon used this to demonstrate the creative potential and the assembly of prefabricated, repeated components. It was seen as a structure at the leading edge of endeavor.

Just a few of the 1,056,006 tiles on the roofs.  Only when this close can one see that the tiles are two different colors and finishes.

The inside of the building is in multiple levels of soaring girders and steel specifically designed to support the outside shells that comprise the unique design of the structure. The interior walls and ceilings are finished in Australian Birch in warm shades of "reddish brown".  The design of the building, with its soaring white roof shell shaped sails atop a massive red granite platform, has been internationally acclaimed as an architectural icon of the 20th century. As a dominant sculptural building that can be seen and experienced from all sides, it is the focal point of Sydney Harbour and a reflection of its character.The outside shells are finished in handcrafted tiles made in Denmark specifically for this project. The white tiles finished to a high gloss, tan tiles have been left with a rougher finish. All one million, fifty six thousand and six tiles were handcrafted to specific dimensions and angles of curve.

Check out the purple carpet.  According to the tour guide, it is not well liked by many.  Also notice the Sydney Harbour Bridge in the windows.

The inside of the Opera house features multiple auditoriums, the largest of which seats 2700 people and houses the worlds largest pipe organ. The  picture shown here will offer a view of that auditorium and the appearance of the sensationally beautiful wood interior of most of the building. 

PIctures were not allowed inside the performance halls - but the tour was kind enough to sell us some images of us superimposed on some inside pictures.

Sydney, April 1

Sydney is the state capital of New South Wales and the most populous city in Australia. It is located on Australia’s southeast coast, on the Tasman Sea. In June 2010 the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people. Inhabitants of Sydney are called Sydneysiders.  Good thing the city is not named Apple.

The residents are comprised of a cosmopolitan and widely diverse international population. The predominant number are English speaking Australians primarily of British descent. Also present are those of Asian, East Indian and Aboriginal descent, primarily in the larger cities. The  preponderance of the Aborigine people continue to reside in the vast open “outback” interior of the continent. They have an identity as a people proud of their heritage and retaining their life style rooted in extreme reverence for the land.

We thought that we had finally figured out that it was necessary to walk on the left side of the sidewalk in Australia to avoid bumping into people but once we arrived in Sydney we discovered that we were once again completely out of step. The Sydneysiders still walk on the left side of the sidewalk but because this city is so large it draws a significant number of tourists from a vast array of countries where some walk on the left, some on the right and some right down the middle. It is not unlike attempting to walk through the tines of a large fork. Bumping into people and getting bumped into is inevitable and we just do our best to keep on our feet.  

To get acquainted with the city we boarded a hop-on-hop-off tour bus that circumnavigates the town stopping at most of the points of interest within the city. 

Some tour-bus American posing as a bloke

Martin Place building - this is where we had the best steaks of our lives (hands down!) 

Finally, to enjoy the scenic city a trip up the Sydney Eye tower at dusk was in order.  The tower is the tallest building in Sydney but compared to towers in other cities it is relatively short.  However, the views were still fantastic and well worth the trip up.  The harbour weaves in and out of the city making it one of the most picturesque cities we have been in.

View from Sydney Eye tower

Sunset from Sydney Eye tower

Another view from the Sydney Eye tower

Taronga Zoo, Sydney, New South Wales, March 31

 Can one go to Australia without seeing a kangaroo?  Certainly not!  But since we have failed to do so up to this point we decided to take in the world-renowned Taronga Zoo in Sydney.  As a side note, nine of the ten most deadly animals in the world reside in Australia.  Hopefully, those of the nine that live in the zoo are well contained.  The Taronga Zoo is home to kangaroos, wallabies, koala bears, platypuses, lemurs, echidnas and many, many more critters.  It is a very well done zoo. Although the San Diego Zoo is larger, the Taronga Zoo is done better.  It is laid out well and the exhibits are top notch.  Plus the views from the zoo cannot be beat.

View of the Sydney Harbour from the Taronga Zoo

Napping Koala Bear  

Napping Red Kangaroos

Two blokes and lazy Red Kangaroos

White-lipped Tree Frogs

Brush-tailed Rock-wallaby

Red-necked Wallabies - we guessed this pair just filed for divorce

Napping Bongos

Komodo Dragon 

Sailfin Lizard

Little Penguin

Little Penguin

Kuranda Rain Forest, the "Tropical North" of Queensland, March 29

Golden Orb spider

The tropical rainforests of Far Northern Queensland are among the oldest on earth. They are home to an incredible array of plants and animals. Twelve hundred species of flowering plants, eight hundred different rainforest trees,spectacular orchids, Strangler figs, exotic palms and hundreds of unique creatures inhabit this lush green world. This is the largest remaining wet rain forest on the planet. The Kuranda rainforest is the only surviving wet rain forest in Australia and is dated at 120 million years of age. This panorama is similar to what our planet looked like long before the forerunners of man crept out the sea and while prehistoric creatures still roamed the earth.

We opted for a ride on the world’s longest tram, known as the “Skycar”, 4.7 miles in length and travelling high above the jungle floor below. The tram travels uphill to the village of Kuranda. The cars suspended by cable high above the rain forest and the rivers that we crossed below teemed with “Freshy” crocodile”. “Freshies”, as their name implies, inhabit fresh water and brackish rivers as opposed to “Salties” in the ocean. The town of Kuranda was replete with countless souvenir shops and small restaurants but there was nothing much else to see or do.  

The return trip offered a second option, a journey aboard a 100-year-old train. The trip took us down the mountain alongside the sheer rim of steep gorges that dropped away into thin air just three or four feet from the side of the train. The ride took us past steeply plunging waterfalls and through sections of the steamy rain forest filled with colorful tropical birds and giant blue butterflies.

Barron Falls

Completion of the railroad in 1886 required fifteen hundred workers, laboring daily throughout long hot, steamy days using only picks, shovels and dynamite as methods to break through the rocky surface.  The narrow gauge railroad travelled through fifteen hand-hewn tunnels, 58 bridges and 98 curves, some suspended high in the air. Gold had been discovered in the area in 1883, that was the impetus for the arduous three-year construction.  Numerous lives were lost due to dangerous work conditions and it is suspected that far more died as a result of snakebites and encounters with other predator species that continue to inhabit the region. 

At dusk in downtown Cairns we were surprised to find thousands of Lorikeets flocking to a single tree chirping loudly and continuously.  The picture is underexposed since this photo was taken at dusk but you can still see the beautiful bright colors of the birds.  It was a truly impressive display of nature. 

Just a small number of Lorikeets hanging out for happy hour