It's a heatwave here in the twin cities and in a couple days we should actually be above 32F (0c) and I imagine the shorts will be pulled out and dusted off and all sorts of people will be going coatless. It never seems to amaze me how quickly we ditch the winter clothes when the thermometer reaches above freezing.
As cold as we have been the past week I am so hoping that Melbourne isn't in the grips of one of their heatwaves when I land next Saturday. Otherwise, I am afraid that I might just melt on the tarmac especially if it might have high humidity to boot. But enough speculation about what the weather might be... I've waited far too long for this dream trip to bother worrying about that. As long as the cyclones and flooding stay away we'll just adapt as we go.
After Sydney the first week and Tasmania the second week my third week in Aus, (note to Tour Guide: I spelled Aus right this time!!) and actually the last two weeks of the trip, will be spent traveling around the great state of Victoria. I am so excited for the drive down along the Great Ocean Highway and going up into the mountains and exploring all the fabulous places I've only been able to dream about until now. Some of the places on the itinerary will be Airleys Inlet, Angelsea, Lorne, Apollo Bay, Sovereign Hill, Ballaret, Bright Portsea, Sorrento, Cape Shank, Healesville, the Yarra Valley and a night out to the Queen's Theatre to see the musical Mary Poppins.
Whew!!! If this trip doesn't leave me with months and months of blogging material I'd be shocked...and very disappointed though I doubt that will even be part of the equation.
So now...you all have a bit of an idea of what all I'll be seeing and doing on my month long trip to Aus!! Hope you all come along for the ride...I'll try to blog while I'm there but I'm being honest here...if I have to choose between watching a beautiful sunset over the Tasman Sea or blog I'm going to be out watching that sunset.
Until next time, wherever you are...have a great day!!
Saturday, February 12, 2011
Friday, February 11, 2011
How to Speak Strine??
Seven days!! It's getting closer to reality and I am going to just stop trying to hide any of my excitement now as it's not working. Never could hide my emotions well...my face always has given me away though I would like to think I've gotten better but years ago I was told I had a face of a thousand expressions. Maybe that's why some of these damned wrinkles are coming in cockeyed?! Oh well...
If I survive my first week in Oz* the second week will be the true test of my stamina! Saturday we are again going into the city to tour the Shrine of Remembrance and the Royal Botanic Garden. Definitely am going to be in heaven with all the photo ops of flowers! On Sunday we will travel to Philip Island and am sooo looking forward to getting up close and personal with some of the native animals and, of course, we'll be there to see the penguin parade when the little ones come back from feeding all day in the ocean.
Monday?! What's this?? Nothing is scheduled on the itinerary!! What the...?? Oh I see...we get a bit of rest Monday as bright and early Tuesday morning we head to the airport and fly over to Hobart, Tasmania for five days and four nights where we will drive up the east coast of Tasmania, over to Launceston and back down through the countryside to Hobart. Not so sure about the 'bright' part as I have never been that at 4 a.m. Must speak to the Tour Guide** about these early morning departures!
Soooo much to see but somehow I did not realize that there would be such a language barrier as we both spoke English...boy, was I wrong! The Tour Guide** read some of my posts last night...oy vey!! I was 'delicately' informed that Oz* is far from correct in referring to Australia as they do NOT live in the 'Emerald City!' Going forward I am to say 'Aus' though when you say Aus it is pronounced Oz* but is spelled Aus and I am not to make that mistake again in any further posts!!
I am definitely going to have to learn 'how to speak strine' very quickly or at the very least get an understanding of what the h*** they are talking about. Wonder if just smiling and nodding my head will be a good cover when I haven't a clue?!
I'll just have to secretly take notes to keep track of everything...I had best start going back through that dictionary the Tour Guide** sent me a while back on "How to Speak Australian" this afternoon...oops...I meant to say this 'arvo.' Oh...so confusing!!!!!
Now...need to go work on that base tan!!
If I survive my first week in Oz* the second week will be the true test of my stamina! Saturday we are again going into the city to tour the Shrine of Remembrance and the Royal Botanic Garden. Definitely am going to be in heaven with all the photo ops of flowers! On Sunday we will travel to Philip Island and am sooo looking forward to getting up close and personal with some of the native animals and, of course, we'll be there to see the penguin parade when the little ones come back from feeding all day in the ocean.
Monday?! What's this?? Nothing is scheduled on the itinerary!! What the...?? Oh I see...we get a bit of rest Monday as bright and early Tuesday morning we head to the airport and fly over to Hobart, Tasmania for five days and four nights where we will drive up the east coast of Tasmania, over to Launceston and back down through the countryside to Hobart. Not so sure about the 'bright' part as I have never been that at 4 a.m. Must speak to the Tour Guide** about these early morning departures!
Soooo much to see but somehow I did not realize that there would be such a language barrier as we both spoke English...boy, was I wrong! The Tour Guide** read some of my posts last night...oy vey!! I was 'delicately' informed that Oz* is far from correct in referring to Australia as they do NOT live in the 'Emerald City!' Going forward I am to say 'Aus' though when you say Aus it is pronounced Oz* but is spelled Aus and I am not to make that mistake again in any further posts!!
I am definitely going to have to learn 'how to speak strine' very quickly or at the very least get an understanding of what the h*** they are talking about. Wonder if just smiling and nodding my head will be a good cover when I haven't a clue?!
I'll just have to secretly take notes to keep track of everything...I had best start going back through that dictionary the Tour Guide** sent me a while back on "How to Speak Australian" this afternoon...oops...I meant to say this 'arvo.' Oh...so confusing!!!!!
Now...need to go work on that base tan!!
* For the purpose of this post Aus was incorrectly referred to as 'Oz' for clarification purposes only.
** Tour Guide...aka Natalie
PS...hope those disclaimers satisfies the Tour Guide!! LOL
Thursday, February 10, 2011
How I Met My Tour Guide
Good morning!! In just one week from today I envision myself buzzing around the house frenetically trying to assure that I do not forget to pack every little essential (and probably many nonessential) items for my trip. Who am I trying to kid...my mind is already racing faster than a gerbil running in a wheel and I am not expecting it to shut down until total exhaustion reaches sometime mid flight over the Pacific Ocean.
But how did this all start? This trip started years and years ago partly as a joke between two classmates about how we were going to go 'Down Under' and fence out the kangaroos and grew into a fanciful dream that is shortly going to become reality.
Six years ago I was working at an international company in their marketing division...one of the many 'cogs' working on one of many loyalty marketing programs they had and I hated that program with all my heart. It was a fiercely manual and time consuming program that went against all the company's standards for a loyalty program and I had somehow 'drawn' the lucky number of being assigned to manage one client of that program.
Visions of a closed door meeting and a coin toss come to mind on how it was decided to obtain this loyalty program and after months of pain yet another coin toss to decide to expand and add Australia. Expansion meant that yet another 'lucky' person would need some training and as the IT & marketing parts were in North America Natalie traveled here to learn the essentials of the program. Little did I know that that dastardly program I hated with all my might would be the impetus behind a resurrection of a dream dreamt long ago.
In one's lifetime many people come and go. Nothing prophetic there but once in a while you meet someone that you hit it off with from the get go and that's what happened when I met Natalie and despite the vast distances between where we each live we have been able to grow a great friendship via emails... kind of a modern day penpal or do we now call it a 'keyboard pal?'
Anyways...as this friendship grew along came an invite to visit and, after several years of wishing, hoping and trying it's gonna happen and who could ask for anything better than having a native of Australia to be your personal tour guide and touring we are going to be doing!
I land in Melbourne on Saturday the 19th at 9:55 a.m. their time and will (must) hit the ground running!! On the itinerary for the first week is two days in the Dandenong Mountains (Saturday afternoon and Friday). Sunday we are going to Marysville with some of Natalie's friends, into the inner city of Melbourne on Monday and bright and early on Tuesday morning we fly to Sydney for three days and two nights of exploring the Sydney Harbor, Bondi Beach and an all day tour up into the Blue Mountains.
Whew!! ...and that's just the first week! At least being on a personal tour if the pace becomes too frenetic we can back off a bit with the exception of the planned trip to Sydney and another flight to another part of the country during the second week.
But I'm gonna save the second week itinerary until tomorrow. Time to end this blog for the day as it has become a novella of sorts and I really must get back to checking those lists I've made, practice packing and changing my mind until next Thursday comes and I've got just the essentials packed.
Really?? Only the essentials?? Who am I trying to kid??!!
But how did this all start? This trip started years and years ago partly as a joke between two classmates about how we were going to go 'Down Under' and fence out the kangaroos and grew into a fanciful dream that is shortly going to become reality.
Six years ago I was working at an international company in their marketing division...one of the many 'cogs' working on one of many loyalty marketing programs they had and I hated that program with all my heart. It was a fiercely manual and time consuming program that went against all the company's standards for a loyalty program and I had somehow 'drawn' the lucky number of being assigned to manage one client of that program.
Visions of a closed door meeting and a coin toss come to mind on how it was decided to obtain this loyalty program and after months of pain yet another coin toss to decide to expand and add Australia. Expansion meant that yet another 'lucky' person would need some training and as the IT & marketing parts were in North America Natalie traveled here to learn the essentials of the program. Little did I know that that dastardly program I hated with all my might would be the impetus behind a resurrection of a dream dreamt long ago.
In one's lifetime many people come and go. Nothing prophetic there but once in a while you meet someone that you hit it off with from the get go and that's what happened when I met Natalie and despite the vast distances between where we each live we have been able to grow a great friendship via emails... kind of a modern day penpal or do we now call it a 'keyboard pal?'
Anyways...as this friendship grew along came an invite to visit and, after several years of wishing, hoping and trying it's gonna happen and who could ask for anything better than having a native of Australia to be your personal tour guide and touring we are going to be doing!
I land in Melbourne on Saturday the 19th at 9:55 a.m. their time and will (must) hit the ground running!! On the itinerary for the first week is two days in the Dandenong Mountains (Saturday afternoon and Friday). Sunday we are going to Marysville with some of Natalie's friends, into the inner city of Melbourne on Monday and bright and early on Tuesday morning we fly to Sydney for three days and two nights of exploring the Sydney Harbor, Bondi Beach and an all day tour up into the Blue Mountains.
Whew!! ...and that's just the first week! At least being on a personal tour if the pace becomes too frenetic we can back off a bit with the exception of the planned trip to Sydney and another flight to another part of the country during the second week.
But I'm gonna save the second week itinerary until tomorrow. Time to end this blog for the day as it has become a novella of sorts and I really must get back to checking those lists I've made, practice packing and changing my mind until next Thursday comes and I've got just the essentials packed.
Really?? Only the essentials?? Who am I trying to kid??!!
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
Duck & Cover
I survived my CPA yesterday but didn't come out completely unscathed but that's ok. Mom always said if you had to pay income tax you were doing ok and that probably comes from many years of her and dad struggling to keep their heads above water on the farm. Even though we lacked a lot of amenities like a bonified bathroom until I was a freshman in high school we most always had our basics met.
We had this galvanized tub that we would fill with a bucket for bathing and one quickly learned to always have their back to the door as we would bath in the 'shanty' (entrance room) as we called it next to the oil stove and you never knew who might stop by to visit. If you had your back to the door you could quickly 'duck and cover' and maintain a bit of modesty. Awe...the good old days!!
Back in those 'good old days' I was young, naive and a dreamer like most kids growing up in the 70s. Many of those dreams were never realized but in nine days my biggest dream is going to become reality...have I told any of you I'm going to Australia??!! I know...I know...this is getting to be like beating a dead horse but I am soooo excited!!
Tomorrow we'll start sharing a bit of the itinerary of what the first week will be like in Oz. Until then...just thought I'd leave you with a picture I took last summer...kinda makes you think spring is coming?
Have a great day everybody...wherever you might be!!
We had this galvanized tub that we would fill with a bucket for bathing and one quickly learned to always have their back to the door as we would bath in the 'shanty' (entrance room) as we called it next to the oil stove and you never knew who might stop by to visit. If you had your back to the door you could quickly 'duck and cover' and maintain a bit of modesty. Awe...the good old days!!
Back in those 'good old days' I was young, naive and a dreamer like most kids growing up in the 70s. Many of those dreams were never realized but in nine days my biggest dream is going to become reality...have I told any of you I'm going to Australia??!! I know...I know...this is getting to be like beating a dead horse but I am soooo excited!!
Tomorrow we'll start sharing a bit of the itinerary of what the first week will be like in Oz. Until then...just thought I'd leave you with a picture I took last summer...kinda makes you think spring is coming?
Have a great day everybody...wherever you might be!!
Tuesday, February 8, 2011
G'Day!!
Only ten days now before I step onto Aussie soil!! I am having a hard time suppressing my excitement both inside and out. Rest assured though I am not walking around saying 'G-day'...maybe tomorrow but not today though I could try it with my CPA as I drag myself to his office with exuberant anticipation - NOT - of what my bill to 'Uncle Sam' might be. I have yet to meet anyone who relishes paying any amount of income tax. Besides...there might be a hidden penalty somewhere in one of those forms for pretending to be Aussie?!
The excitement for the upcoming trip actually went up a notch late yesterday afternoon when 'Brown' (the UPS guy) showed up at the door with my new oversized suitcase. Shhhh...don't tell my neice Mary Ellan...it really is a one size fits all and she wouldn't have to go to unusual contortions to fit inside it!
But with the appearance of the suitcase we now have three dogs that are showing signs of neurosis. It always happens when I take a suitcase of any size out even if I'm just moving it to another room. Gertie becomes the 'velcro dog' and starts watching every move I make and becomes more possessive and snarls at any of the critters that cross her imaginary line for being too close to me when we're snuggling in the recliner.
Ok...I'll be honest...she just gets plain crabby and I'm afraid it's going to be a long 5+ weeks for the dogs. Oh well...not changing plans for them but will try to be a bit more compassionate and refrain from outbursts of 'Advance Australia Fair,' the Australian national anthem.
Speaking of that I had probably best get about my day here...too much to do...too much to do and so little time!! YEAH!!
The excitement for the upcoming trip actually went up a notch late yesterday afternoon when 'Brown' (the UPS guy) showed up at the door with my new oversized suitcase. Shhhh...don't tell my neice Mary Ellan...it really is a one size fits all and she wouldn't have to go to unusual contortions to fit inside it!
But with the appearance of the suitcase we now have three dogs that are showing signs of neurosis. It always happens when I take a suitcase of any size out even if I'm just moving it to another room. Gertie becomes the 'velcro dog' and starts watching every move I make and becomes more possessive and snarls at any of the critters that cross her imaginary line for being too close to me when we're snuggling in the recliner.
Ok...I'll be honest...she just gets plain crabby and I'm afraid it's going to be a long 5+ weeks for the dogs. Oh well...not changing plans for them but will try to be a bit more compassionate and refrain from outbursts of 'Advance Australia Fair,' the Australian national anthem.
Speaking of that I had probably best get about my day here...too much to do...too much to do and so little time!! YEAH!!
Monday, February 7, 2011
Go Pack!!
You probably think I'm going to bore you with a blog today about packing for my upcoming trip to Australia...nope...not today...maybe later but not today.
Yesterday was Super Bowl Sunday here in the U.S. and all the football aficionados were glued to their televisions in wild anticipation of the big game. I have to admit I, too, had to watch the game but I didn't do any ginormous preparations for it...just made tacos and brownies and settled in maybe a half hour before kickoff.
I am not going to bore anyone here with play by play of the game but kudos to the Green Bay Packers for bringing the Lombardi trophy back home after a 31-25 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers. The Pack won the first two Super Bowls under the tutelage of Coach Vince Lombardi and subsequently in the latter 1960s the World Championship Game trophy was renamed the Vince Lombardi Trophy...hence the reasoning behind everyone saying the trophy is now back home.
Gotta admit I was pulling for the Packers. They are a working man's team...no ifs and or buts about it. Oh sure...they do have their share of players with multi million dollar contracts but in a multi million dollar business the Green Bay Packers are a team not owned by a rich owner but by the people...they are the only non-profit, community owned major league sports team in the U.S. so there really wasn't any question that I would 'back the Pack.'
That might be why I may be persuaded to become a backer of the North Melbourne Kangaroos, one of the teams in the AFL (Australian Football League) as they have seem to appear much like the Pack being a people's team. But we'll see about then when I get over to Oz though I seriously doubt I will even get to see a preseason game.
But for now...congrats to the Greenbay Packers and all those 'cheeseheads' out there who are celebrating their win and probably will continue to celebrate for quite some time.
Yesterday was Super Bowl Sunday here in the U.S. and all the football aficionados were glued to their televisions in wild anticipation of the big game. I have to admit I, too, had to watch the game but I didn't do any ginormous preparations for it...just made tacos and brownies and settled in maybe a half hour before kickoff.
Gotta admit I was pulling for the Packers. They are a working man's team...no ifs and or buts about it. Oh sure...they do have their share of players with multi million dollar contracts but in a multi million dollar business the Green Bay Packers are a team not owned by a rich owner but by the people...they are the only non-profit, community owned major league sports team in the U.S. so there really wasn't any question that I would 'back the Pack.'
That might be why I may be persuaded to become a backer of the North Melbourne Kangaroos, one of the teams in the AFL (Australian Football League) as they have seem to appear much like the Pack being a people's team. But we'll see about then when I get over to Oz though I seriously doubt I will even get to see a preseason game.
But for now...congrats to the Greenbay Packers and all those 'cheeseheads' out there who are celebrating their win and probably will continue to celebrate for quite some time.
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