Beaudesert Pony Club Camp

Drove down to Beaudesert to join Peta and her daughters at annual Pony Club 'Draft' Camp. 

Bit different to pony club in the UK: 

• riders were 'cutting' steers (selecting one from the herd and then driving it through an 'S' shaped course and all in 40 seconds);
• being shown how to ride their horses over a 'body' (inflatable) and push through crowds (huge, inflatable balls) by the mounted police (whose training headquarters is within 1km of our house so we are going to go over and see them training one day);
• taking part in an endurance race (checking the heartrate of their horse and cantering around the very large arena five times);
• jousting;
• jumping, dressage and gymkhana events.

Oscar got a ride on one of the ponies. Both boys took part in a water bomb fight and we all ate massive cheese burgers from the barbie...great Aussie experience.

I got to ride two ponies. Took them for a fling round the fields and went through the bending poles with them. Got told off for not wearing a sleeved top (!), not following pony club rules - reminded me of being part of pony club in UK and getting told off for galloping too much!

Met a man called Greig who has a 'station' (cattle ranch), breaks/trains horses and says I can go help him muster cattle on horseback...yeehah! Have bought myself a lightweight riding hat (as used by the Aussie mounted police) and as the size is adjustable, the boys can also use it. 

Anstead Park, Moggill

Went to Anstead Park (only about 2km from us) to do free session of qi quong/tai chi last Wednesday (with Ali) and met a lovely bunch of women with whom we had a cuppa in a horse feed/tea shop just opposite, where you can pick up hay, kit, worming medicine and have a latte at the same time. Then stuck around to go riding on an ex-racehorse belonging to a woman Patrick met on the side of the road - a woman called Suse from Zimbabwe. She brought them on her 'float' (Aussie for horsebox) and we ambled around the park, disregarding the 'no horses' on this path signs!

Went back later that day with Alfie and Ali and James' dog, Macey to catch the evening sun setting on the Brisbane river that winds through the park. Evidence of stone quarrying - apparently the stone was used to build Brisbane city hall and other esteemed buildings! Macey doesn't get walked much which is probably why her tongue is hanging out! Alfie is wearing his year 7 'Moggill Seniors' shirt - so this is his school uniform. Oscar is happy because everyone wears shorts at school.

Beware of dinosaurs (and pigeons)

The staff at the museum have failed to stop pigeons perching (and pooing) on the t-rex!

Behind the scenes at the museum

I've been lucky enough to work with a taxidermist at Brisbane museum...here is a photo of the 'office'!

Here are some of the birds that have been stuffed recently.

They can be finished in two ways: one, for display to the public in which case they are put into a 'natural' pose or two, for research, in which case they are put on a stick (!) and stuffed flat so that they can be kept in a drawer!

This is a photo of a real crow's nest and yes, those are coat hangers in there! I thought my mum would like this photo to go with her wire sculptures that she has done for her final year art show (well done mum)!

It's not just birds in here...there are mammals too - here is a koala that has been finished recently and then situated on an existing display. It sounds like it is not unusual to have to stuff an animal in such a way that it will fit within an existing display...so for example, if they take out an animal/bird that looks tired and moth-eaten, they fill the space with something else..!

 Here is the taxidermist with an example of a 'bird on a stick' - BBQ anyone?

Glass house mountains

On the way back from Mooloolaba we took the 'Steve Irwin' scenic drive thru the Glass House Mountains.

https://maps.google.com.au/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=glass+house+mountains+national+park&sll=-26.897944,152.958923&sspn=0.11145,0.130119&g=glass+house+mountains&ie=UTF8&hq=Glass+House+Mountains+National+Park&hnear=Glass+House+Mountains+National+Park,+Glass+House+Mountains+Queensland+4518&ll=-26.926355,152.810898&spn=0.445685,0.780716&z=11

A series of volcanic rocks erupt from the otherwise flat plain.

The Aboriginal Legend fo Glass House Mountains

It is said that Tibrogargan, the father, and Beerwah, the mother, had many children. Coonowrin the eldest, Beerburrum, the Tunbubudla twins, the Coochin twins, Ngungun, Tibberoowuccum, Miketebumulgrai, and Saddleback. There was Round who was fat and small and Wildhorse who was always paddling in the sea. One day, Tibrogargan was gazing out to sea and noticed a great rising of the waters. Hurrying off to gather his younger children, in order to flee to the safety of the mountains in the west, he called out to Coonowrin to help his mother Beerwah, who was again with child. Looking back to see how Coonowrin was assisting Beerwah, Tibrogargan was greatly angered to see him running off alone. He pursued Coonowrin and, raising his club, struck the latter such a mighty blow that it dislodged Coonowrin’s neck, and he has never been able to straighten it since. When the floods had subsided and the family returned to the plains, the other children teased Coonowrin about his crooked neck. Feeling ashamed, Coonowrin went over to Tibrogargan and asked for his forgiveness, but filled with shame at his son’s cowardice, Tibrogargan could do nothing but weep copious tears, which, trickling along the ground, formed a stream that flowed into the sea. Then Coonowrin went to his brothers and sisters, but they also wept at the shame of their brother’s cowardice. The lamentations of Coonowrin’s parents and of his brothers and sisters at his disgrace explain the presence of the numerous small streams of the area. Tibrogargan then called to Coonowrin, asking him why he had deserted his mother. Coonowrin replied that as Beerwah was the biggest of them all she should be able to take care of herself. He did not know that she was again pregnant, which was the reason for her great size. Then Tibrogargan turned his back on his son and vowed that he would never look at him again. Even today Tibrogargan gazes far out to sea and never looks around at Coonowrin, who hangs his head and cries, his tears running off to the sea. His mother Beerwah is still heavy with child, as it takes a long, long time to give birth to a mountain.

It was about 2.5km to reach the top...easy for us (Patrick ran it of course) but some people struggled...

Note the blue sky (again)!!

Only problem was that the boys only had 'thongs' (flip flops) with them so they had to do the ascent and descent in bare feet...here they are with a fat labrador dog called 'Shadow' who was taking his time getting down the steeper parts!

What a view

This young man, like others, was wearing his shorts very low but whilst most were wearing boxers underneath, he wasn't - unfortunately I didn't get to photograph him until he sat down....

However, he stood/sat right in front of this wheelchair bound, elderly woman...I watched her face...and I can tell you that it improved her view!

Loo with a view

 
Spent the weekend at Mooloolaba or 'loo with a view' as it is fondly called, a coastal resort an hour north of Brisbane. Called in at 'Kathmandu', an Australian outdoor gear shop on the way and picked up a couple of duck down, sleeveless jackets for Alfie and Hannah and a large, orange frisbee that has been used endlessly on the beach!

This part of the beach is patrolled by lifeguards from 7am till 4.30pm.

"No lifeguard = no swim"

But we went out onto the beach just before 7am and saw plenty of older people (mostly) swimming out beyond the breakers. All the men in Mooloolaba swimming club were wearing maroon speedos...many of the women were wearing wetsuits! The water is 19 degrees celcius at the moment so we thought it was lovely even without a wetsuit.

You are advised to swim between the red/yellow flags. The blackboard warned of some 'rollers' and risk of being dumped by the waves and caution when body surfing - we all enjoyed body surfing - next time we'd like to be surfing or at least on a body board!

Crisp, white sand for miles...

Another blue sky day

No Monday morning blues here except for the sky. Sulphur crested cocktails screeching, other birds whooping & whistling.
Just trying to update from a phone for the first time!

Moggill State School

This is Moggill State School. It is a primary school but they take kids up to year 7 so Alfie is here with Oscar. Alfie has gone into year 7 and Oscar is in a year 6/7 class. Alfie was so confident about going that on day one, as I drove past to drop Patrick off at work with the boys in the car, Alfie said "you can drop me here and I will go in"! I didn't, just because I had forms to fill in...Oscar on the other hand was more reluctant to go - positively against going at all - partly because I had said that they didn't need to go to school in Australia (especially when I thought that we would have to pay £250 per child, per week). As it is, education is free for them because the type of visa that we are on allows them to study (and me to work) and for all of us to get medical cover 'as if' we are Australians...!

This is a link to the school -http://moggillss.eq.edu.au/wcms/

On day one at school, Oscar did Latin and on day two, he (and Alfie) did Japanese...so lots of new subjects as well as the usual maths, English, science stuff. Plenty of music and drama but Alfie wants to get the opt out on RE because he hated being given lollies (bribery) for identifying what begins with HS 'Holy Spirit' and then thought the teacher was getting desperate when he talked about 'sex' within RE just to make the half-the-class who stay for RE, snigger.

Oscar has already had someone come in to talk about living in Antarctica for 36 months - apparently you get something akin to claustrophobia and a form of colour-blindness because it is so white. Overall though, this guy loved it and recommended it to everyone. I can see Oscar thinking about that one...!

It's a dog's life

Lots of foofie dogs dressed up...this wasn't the most outrageous...I've seen lots of bows!

Have dog, will travel...anyone say 'baby substitute'?

Hombu dojo

Standing outside the international headquarters of aikido, Hombu dojo.

I've been training every day. The first session starts at 0630 and the last session is at 1900. I managed four sessions one day (each one lasts for one hour) but usually it is 2 or 3 because it is just so hot! Luckily, there is a washing machine and dryer in the hotel so I can wash my gi (aikido outfit). I've just sent my hakama (the black skirt I wear over the gi) to the local dry cleaners - not something I could do in Exeter! At least here they know what a hakama is and how to wash and fold it!

Some regulars leave their gi out to air at the back of the dojo!

Our house in Moggill, Brisbane

This is a first picture of the house we will be living in for the summer. It's not the best, most flattering photo and we will try to update a more attractive picture, but it will give you the gist to start off with. A wooden house, trucked in from elsewhere, it is a traditional 'Queenslander' built on stilts and made of wood to try to stave off the furnace heat of high summer. It's been more on the freezing side since we arrived but I've been told this is just a cold patch and it will warm up in August! There are two bedrooms, an open plan living room, a kitchen and a bathroom. Outside, the house is surrounded by fields with horses, cows and plenty of funny looking noisy birds that you don't find in Devon. A tiny frog is sharing our kitchen with us, which is fine. The scores of ants that invaded last Sunday were less welcome but fortunately James (the 'man next door' that we are renting from) nuked them all thank goodness. I've only seen one cockroach so far and no nasty looking spiders, so things are going pretty good all told.

Near to where we live - at 99 Aitcheson Street, Moggill 4070, QLD - the river Brisbane curls its way around a huge u-shaped bend with tall gum trees lining each bank. Our house is practically at the bottom of this bend, only a few minutes walk from the Moggill Ferry, that takes cars and pedestrians across the river from bank to bank daily between 6am and 6pm. We've taken it a few times already, as pedestrians are free and it gives you a great view of the river up and downstream. We've been told there are bull sharks in the river, confined in freshwater having swum upstream from the sea and become locked in after weirs were built to control the river's flow. It's put us off swimming there even more than the murky brown water! There's been serious flooding here, most recently last year. As you walk up the hill towards home having disembarked from the ferry, you trod over a squiggly pink line scrawled 2011 across the tarmac road. It traces the high water mark from last year's devastating floods and shows an awesome rise in water levels. One of the good things to come out of the floods is a lot of rebuilding of riverbanks, with this one no exception. The council have put in a small riverbank park with enough room to play 40:40 'it' (a great chasing game I've been instructed in by the boys) as well as some fun climbing stuff. It's not usually very busy and has become a bit of a hang out for us ...

Singapore airport cactus garden

At the same time as Hannah was heading East to Tokyo, the boys and I were stopping off for a couple of hours at Singapore's Chiang airport en route for Brisbane. There wasn't time to leave the airport, but in a quest for fresh air, we found the rooftop garden where there were various cacti of all shapes and sizes and where we found this gorgeous sculpture of a barrel cactus. It was a hot and humid evening as the boys gobbled their Burger King meal and we watched the stars come out overhead ...

Tokyo homeless with Tiddles lookalike

Like last time, I'm amazed at the tidiness of the people living on the streets of Tokyo - note the 'tatami' style cardboard mats, the neatly lined up shoes and the folded plastic sheeting. Even the cat, which looks a lot like our cat 'Tiddles' seems to be tidily arranged next to this man's umbrella shelter...

Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden

Shinjuku Gyoen according to the Japanese Tourist Board "is an oasis with rich natural environment that has seasonal landscapes..."

It generally costs Y200 (about £2) for an adult to enter the park but because June is 'environment' month, the first week of June is free! Fantastic...a great place to go when you have arrived in the country at 5am after an 11 hour flight, found the hotel at 7am and then been told that you can't check in until 2pm! That means hanging about the busy streets of Tokyo, with serious jet lag for 7 hours....hence the need to find a park to lie down in!

I found a sunny spot (too hot), found a shady spot (too many monster ants) and then found a tea room (just right). I thought it was a WI outfit for a moment because the ladies, all dressed in proper geisha-style kimonos, were of a certain age...lovely of course, and after presenting me with my green tea in lacquer bowl and Japanese sweet, she sat next to me and showed me how to hold my right hand when picking up the bowl and then to turn the bowl so that the lettering (not shown below) is turned towards your left thumb - all very artful! Note the massive 'toothpick' for hacking into the 'sweet'. Still no idea what it was even though I've finished it!

View across to temple set within the park - just out of view in the window above!

Such polite police

I love this...whenever a Tokyo police car approaches a junction they say 'excuse me' over the loud speaker! This gives a glimpse of the busy Shinjuku district....

Hanazono-jinja Shrine

Hanazono-jinja Shrine, Shinjuku, Tokyo
Each person approaches the shrine and places a coin (or in some cases a note) into the white trough. Then they back away, bow, clap their hands twice, make a short but silent prayer, bow again and then ring one of the bells using the thick ropes. The bells don't chime...more of a thud!

If you have an extra special request, you can descend the steps and purchase a small, wooden plaque from a kiosk on which you can write (and draw) your prayer...I'm not sure how long they are left here - or what they do with them...how long does a prayer last?

It is the chinese year of the dragon so there were quite a few dragons....a powerful symbol!

Catch that cat

Last time we were in Tokyo, I told the boys that these vans went around picking up stray cats, hence the cat logo on the side of the van. I think it traumatised Alfie...so this is for you Alfie - another photo of the van and btw it is a cleaning company!

Oscar's last day at primary school...mixed feelings all round about trip and its impact on the boys...Oscar and his friends were very sad not to see out the whole of the term, the residential week and the inevitable 'do' at the end of the year. Only consolation was that his year 6 teacher, Mr White had just left himself to take up a headship in another Devon school...hopefully Australia will fill the gap!

Hectic departure

Setting off with a rucksack each...thanks to Jo for a lift to the station! Got there on time despite meeting 5 chickens ambling down the road, all (3) of the neighbours and what seemed like a whole convoy of school children being picked up from school - all on single lane highways so a lot of reversing in flower-filled, Devon lanes. Horrified to find that train had been CANCELLED! And of course we hadn't left much contingency for delay....next train in one hour so we waited...got it and then as it pulled into Reading station it was early on the approach and late by the time it made it to the station platform....which meant that we missed our onward airlink coach connection by 2 minutes..PANIC No way we could make the flights if we waited for the next coach so had to order a taxi - after a stressful 15 minutes waiting for him to turn up, he flew down the motorway in his mercedes and we made it with...about 10 minutes to spare! Thank goodness everyone can run!! Boys headed off to Brisbane on an A380 much to Oscar's delight. I waited around for what seemed like ages to be picked up and taken to a nearby Heathrow hotel...where I didn't get much sleep in anticipation of an early start. I know why it was cheap - shared bathroom/toilet meant there was only one for the whole building!