The Thunder from DownUnder

Shacks, Waterfalls, Beachfront Property, and Sugarcane....

2006-08-23T04:42:00.000-05:00

On the road to Tully and Mission Beach, just outside of Cardwell, north of Townsville yet south of Cairns, lies this old homestead. I took a picture of it (obviously).
One day, I took Lee, from Korea, to Alligator Creek. We did the 18 km hike up there.
It was a nice view.
But VERY dangerous. We could have plummetted over 100 metres to our deaths! But we didn't.
I took a footbath in one of the rock pools. It was too cold.

But it had a nice view.
On the way out, there were some wallabies with children.

Steve and Beth invited me sailing Sunday. They have a nice boat.

Lawrence joined us.

Luckily I did not crash the boat into the jetties.

I gave a presentation to Mundingburra about my proposed PhD research in Brasil.
Lee, me, and Florian (YEP student from Germany) rode up to Mission Beach last weekend. We stopped along the way at Wallaman Falls, the largest dropping waterfall in Australia.
Flo was stronger than me.
But the waterfall was cool.

It started here.
And fell there.
We hiked down through the rainforest to the bottom.
The water was quicker down.
It ended here.
How lush, the tropical rain forest.
And green.
Don't know what this plant is. Probably poisonous. Likely deadly.
This rock could be deadly, too. You never know what things can get you here.
Wow, here is a nice Land Rover Defender Turbo Diesel Ingine Extreme from Victoria.
No, this isn't Wallaman. It's Murray Falls near Cardwell.
So on the road to Mission Beach are these silly signs every 10 metres.
Obviously for these. We were lucky to see this on the side of the road--only about 1200 alive. This one was fortunate that I wasn't in a bad mood and was driving a precious Volvo.
So then we were off to the beach.
Mission Beach is something like 12 km, supposedly.
It was Flo's first time out of Townsville.
There's Dunk island.
There's some rocks.
And there is Korean Gandolf.

Flo was overjoyed to be away from Townsville.
Lee enjoyed playing around.
He was busy catching crabs, like this one.
Or this one.
They make these little sand balls.
Here's my giant foot for comparison.
Here's Uncle Lane's version of transportation.
And here's mine. (How classy).
Here's the view to Hinchenbrook.
Beware! There are dealy snakes everywhere.
Living in nasty places like this cool stream.
Down this road.
But not on the beach.
There's Hinchenbrook again from Cardwell.
Here's a nice creek.
Did I mention that Tully has a giant rubber boot that they call 'gumboot'?
Here's the Tully sugar mill. All the way up there from Townsville there's nothing but sugarcane.
Here's Tully city/town. Looks like Aspen. Only tropical.
Here's an old canefarmer's church.
Until next time, I'll be trying to pick up strongyloides by walking barefoot.

Morning Tea, Sailing, Volvos, and more Fauna

2006-08-05T20:24:00.000-05:00

And above we have the lucious honeyeater, resident of the sunny Strand...
Here is the Strand park area, all fit from the 1930's.
Alas, the Prime Minister John Howard meets me, it was a happy day for him.
Oh, and he met Neil, too.
T'was a sunny day on the Strand...
And here at Riverway we have Queensland's Premier Beaty with some women...
For the opening of the giant pool.
Alas, Townsville!
Here's the party barge we rode on...
Oh, and I went sailing with Lawrence again, too.
Sailing.
Here's Lawrence.
And then Wednesday I rode down with Bob Doyle in his new Land Cruiser to Mackay:
Where there were some large boats:
Not far out from Townsville was an old Queenslander that looks like a plantation:
I stopped and gave a speach on oil prices and national security:
The flowers were happy to hear my words:
Then we were off to raise money for Huong, who is getting his new prosthetic leg:
Oh, and I bought a volvo yesterday for about $900:
We drove up to Mt. Stuart in my car to see the view of Townsville:
and beyond:
what's that?
There's the city with Magnetic Island in the distance:
No standing:
Here's the fish at Jupiter's Hotel and Casino:
And here's a Masked Lapwing:
Here's an Australian White Ibis:
Some random seagulls:
And this is what happens when you smoke:

The Beach, Queenslanders, Parties, Class, Titantics, and Antiques: All in a Day's Work

2006-07-09T05:45:00.000-05:00

Things have been moving along lately. I've had seven weeks of non-stop classes, the last of which was human parasitology. I can now diagnose the 4 species of malaria! Not to mention all last week I was looking through a microscope at an African refugee's diarrhoea (amongst other things) for parasites--it was full of nematode eggs. Anyway, when not in class, I enjoy modeling on Palarenda beach with Jodi: Yes, so we had a picnic out there, Magnetic Island was off the coast:
As our backdrop:
I doodled in the sand:
And Theane helped me:

Then we went up Castle Hill. Here's the view out towards university way and Mt Stuart:
And out towards Palarenda:
And towards Maggie Island:
And towards the tablelands:
Nice scenery from up there:
After our jaunt to the beach, we went to Fiona's place, which was a beautiful old Queenslander house (circa 1890, more to come on Queenslander homes). It was a lot like an old plantation home in Louisiana:
Even had the kitchen set apart:
Windows open, allowing Dengue to come in:
There were some crazy girls inside:
Actually, they were going to a dress-up party. Here they are, can't keep their lips off Lawrence:
I had a few to drink (not):
And in Public Health Managment we all presented our group topics. My group did Cholera in emperor penguins in Antarctica. Here is Dr. Bruce demonstrating the effects of sexually transmitted infections in aboriginal communities:
We were all amused, especially Margaret:
Here is Gifty from India, he is a dentist gone physican gone PhD virologist:
Here is Dr. Michael Golding, fellow INTJ, showing who is boss:
And here are some Rotarians enjoying brekky at the recycling plant we visited:
On Fred's president changeover night, the theme was Titantic. We all dressed up:
Woah there Captain Ian Weller, looks like you had a bit too much to drink, no wonder the Titantic sank:
Ha ha, people are dressed up:
Here's the Van Amstel's, in their silly octopus hats (even little James):
Oh, wait, thier whole table has silly octopus hats, and brass instruments:
Trevor, Carol, and Mary had a go, too:
That weekend we went to Ingham to see the district govenor:
Here they are:
Clap clap:
Wow, so Kate rented this beach condo while here doing classes, and she let us have it for the weekend:
Nice pool, no extra cost, just put the money on the fridge:
Nice views of Castle Hill:
And the strand:
Wow:
For some odd reason, they had the US flag up:
Jodi and Tierra, both Canadians, weren't pleased (they were really just jealous, as Canadians always are):
Today (Sunday), I went with Trevor and Carol to Brandon near Ingham to meet with their club of council members:
There was this nice old Catholic church, which a cyclone blew over. They were going to burn it or tear it down, but instead the council decided to move it to their land and pay unemployed people to paint it (note to Welsh!):
Let's go inside:
Wow, how beautiful. To think they may have destroyed it! It would have made a nice house at the least:
Nice construction:
And beautiful wood floors! Keith tells me they are cypress floors. Cypress is the only pine that grows in Australia. How similar to home!
Nice gallery, too. They were turning it into a museum:
Outside was an old steam engine from 1890:
And in the council barn there were some old tractors:
This was the same model as my grandfather's:
Oh, and no wonder Aussie dental hygeine is so bad. Just look at the dental equipement they work with:
I might take this one home for my office!

Reedy Brook Camping, Alligator Creek Camping, Fishing, and Fauna

2006-06-15T23:29:00.000-05:00

Busy time lately, with all the camping, hiking, fishing, and, yes, class. The weather is ideal this time of year, so why not enjoy it? Let's start the story off with what's happened the latest...Trevor and Carol invited me to go camping with them at the top of the Burdekin River, at an always-flowing-spring-fed creed near Reedy Brook Cattle Station, about 400 km inland northwest of Townsville. The photo above is where we stayed on the way back, a little mining town called Greenvale.
Here's the view from the Toyota Land Cruiser, along the way:
Ah, the gate to Reedy Brook Station. They were suppose to be running the cows through Sunday, but it rained the night before and they didn't. I was looking forward to seeing the cows cross the creek.
Ah, the infamous DroughtMaster Breed of Australia:
And their pastures:
This is where they round them:
With these horses:
Okay, time to camp. Here we are discussing whether or not this is a good spot:
Okay, it turned out to be a good spot on the sand next to the creek:
Here's Keith and Jeanette's set-up:
Und the fire (Brennen):
And the creek:
The tree bark was like wet carboard:
Oh, here's Jeanette's biscuits (scones) she baked in the fire! Mmnn!
So I took a hike up the hill on Saturday to see the view:
Here's a stump:
I saw a pond with lillies, so I decided to go in for a photo opt session:
I was up to my chest in muck:
But nice photos:
Here's the creek, which contains the infamous "RED CLAW" (i.e., crawfish):
How do you catch them? With these:
Ah hah! Here they are, like tiny lobsters:
Like crawfish:
We caught about 4/trap/hour times 12 traps, so we caught a lot:
And cooked them (I suggested the Louisiana method of cooking them):
And peeled them...looks and tastes like crawfish! Only harder shells.
I caught a fish, too:
I fried up some red claw for supper:
But it rained and we left early. Here's some more cows:
Here's and ancient international truck in Greenvale:
And some Gallahs in the trees:
Wait! How plush. There's a golf course:
I think I'll play golf:
Or go to the general store:
Here's a little bird on the wire:
Rest stop:
Here's a funny rock:
Here's the view of Townsville plain from the Tablelands:
Okay, the weekend before I went camping and hiking again up to Alligator Creek (see last post's photos) with Theane, Jodi, Kate, and Fiona:
Yes, back along the rocks:
Yes, like mountain goats:
Ha ha.
Jodi was happy to swim, but it was cold.
I prepared lunch: tuna fish salad (made with Tartar sauce), mmnn:
Theane and I made fire with Jodi's lecture notes:
Okay, the weekend before that Cedric took me fishing in an estuary south of here:
He had a nice boat:
There were crocs in there:
We caught crabs and fish, I cooked them at home:

Now for some fauna: camping we let a opposum eat some pudding:
Fishing there was an eagle:
Camping there was a wallaby and baby:
And at night there was some sort of cool bird:

That's all for now!

Alligator Creek Camping Weekend

2006-05-24T07:45:00.000-05:00

This past weekend I went camping with the JCU Adventure Club to Alligator Creek at the Bowling Greens National Park. Surprisingly, it is only 25 minutes away by car, just on the other side of Mount Stuart. It is a whole different world on the other side. I brought my tent, and the whole trip only cost me AU$16.
So this is the creek, with its lucious water and fake, water-park looking rocks (that are actually real).
Oh, and look! There are women to go along, too!
Yes, it is like fairy land here with nymphs and twazookles and all!
Oh! How picturesque, this unique little waterfall and girl.
Ah, the solitude of your own little pond of crystal clear water...
Under the trees, even. Okay, let's go for a walk upstream with Pia (Germany)...
But be careful! The rocks are a challenge. Where is my bike helmet for protection?
But wait! I do not need protection. We are strong peoples:
Ah, so many waterfalls.
They are little, too.
Some cut through the rocks quite profusely:
And the reflections...
And the Canadian sun-bathers, how lush:
What a place!
Oh no, looks like ominous weather.
Better go for a last swim before sunset:
Ah! I am drowning! Save me! (Actually, I don't know what's going on in this picture...):
Luckily, I made it to the other side...
Just in time for sunset:
Ha ha, that night we laugh about me almost drowning, ha ha!
The next morning we dicide to go hiking to look for bigger and better waterfalls.
The path was along the electricity wire service roads:
But look the flowers!
Wow. That's actually not impressive at all.
Just keep walking...
Wait! A different looking flower! Must take photo:
Ah, yes.
But Pia and Michelle had to wait while I took the photo. They seem happy.
Under the bushes and through the woods:
To the waterfalls we go, just follow the creek:
And fjord it:
Ah! A clue we are getting closer. Only 2K to go (that makes it a total of 18 km round-trip):
Oh! I can see our destination:
Just climb over those rocks there.
And voila! Alligator Falls:
Luxury photo:
Yes.
Ah, that looks swimable:
But, during my swim, I faked cardiac arrest at the falls to lure the girls into the water:
Ha ha, she fell for it!
And Pia!
Oh, your too late...Ha, ha, so funny:
What a nice place to swim:
One last look:
Okay, get out the water and start walking the 4.5 hours back...
Here's a bandicot:
And a brush turkey thing.
And a blue kingfisher:
And Stephanie (Germany) with our dough baby on biscuit-breakfast night:

Rotary Relations, the Great Barrier Reef, and the Splendid Fauna of Australia

2006-04-30T22:32:00.000-05:00

What a busy week in review. Monday night we all met the Group Study Exchange Team from Brazil, including Ronnie, Ernesto, Ivana, Luisa, and Tatiana, and all week I've been having loads of fun doing things with them. Friday night was the opening of District 9550's Convention here in Townsville. On of the best things I saw this weekend among the plethora of goodwill programs that Rotary spearheads was ROMAC, a program that brings kids needing medical treatment to Australia for surgery (kinda similar to what Shriner's does). We met a lively little Huong from Vietnam whose left leg was congealed together from a fire accident when he was a kid. He was a marvelous youngster, who wasn't shy at all despite the hoards of Rotarians (didn't speak English, either). See more about ROMAC here: http://www.romac.org.au/index.shtml

Anyway, Friday night, I met the mayor of Townsville, Tony, and spoke with him about cyclones, hurricanes, and disaster managment (which someone said is needed to be mayor of Townsville!!?). He was very interested in knowing if Ray Nagin would be burned at stake:

Sunday night, at the close of convention, we all went over to the District Govenor's Dinner. Here is Luisa and me :
Here are the GSE girls and Wally (quite happy as you can see):
Again, the girls being popular, with Fred and Sgt. Ray:
Oh, here is the district govenor, Peter Kaye, congratulating Fred (incoming president) for having the most members of any club (Mundingburra) attend conference:
I had some problems with stuff getting caught on my face during the evening:
Shift gears--Wednesday nights one can go sailing for free if you hop over to one of the local sailing marinas and put your name on the list. I went out with Russel on his boat, Supermac:
First time I've been sailing besides the time we raised $18,000 with Rotaract in Vienna:
It was a nice sunset:
Shift gears: Thursday morning I went with the GSE Team, Ken, and Wayne to the Great Barrier Reef on a snorkeling tour:
It was a 2.5 hour ride to the reef:
Everyone was sick except Luisa and me. Here is Ernesto, a urologist, about to throw up:
Ivana was not sick, either, at the beginning:

We picked up some passengers at Magnetic Island:
And here is Wheeler's Reef. You can't go on the sand because that is where turtles lay their eggs. I saw a huge moray eel and one shark, but no turtles!
Here are some snorkelers:
It was a nice trip with the GSE team, but next time I will go from Cairns so that the ride to the reef is not so long (it was 5 hours to get there and back, and only 1.25 hours snorkeling!). Here is a tanker we passed coming in:
Land Ho!
Castle Rock!
Shift gears: Friday morning I was picked up by Carol (Trevor's wife) and her mother along with the GSE Team and taken to the Billabong Sanctuary near town:
The animals were great! I was impressed. It was a lovely day. Here is Charlie (a professional hockey player) posing with the girls:
Now sit down for the show! Not here, that seat is taken: First on: the wombat:The GSE Team and Mr. Wombat:Watching was Mr. Cockatoo (native):Wow, he was surprised to see me:Or maybe he saw the lizard near my feet:Okay, then I was off to look for the illusive Koala. There he is!:We learned that they are very stupid. Their brain space is the size of a small mellon, but their brain is the size of a peanut (much like rednecks). They love to sleep:Wait! This one's awake. Have your photo taken with him for $10. Or just say it's overrated.Now onto my favourite, the kangaroos:Yeah, we're cool:So are the wallabies:Here is another Blue-winged Kookaburra:Wow, above our heads are loads of Bats--flying foxes:Closer:CLOSER:They even have some ibises:And here is a Curlew, at night it makes a shrilling noise like a banchie or dying human:Mr. Monitor Lizard:Luisa and some small animal (bandicot?):Oh No! She was very close to being eaten by this giant crocodile. Good thing I was there to save her!Don't see these at the Laccasine Refuge:Here's the less-dangerous fresh-water variety:Here is Mr. Emu, with toupe:And Mr. Wedge-tailed eagle:And Mr. Kangaroo: Doing exercises for me:Wow, he's a tall bloke:Ah, that little girl is being attacked by a snake (pronounced "snike"):Wait, so are Ivana and Luisa!And Tatiana: And me! Were all going to die!Luckily, we actually survived.
THE END!

"Lest We Forget" ANZAC DAY AUSTRALIA: Gunfire Breakfast, A March through the Strand, GSE, and even more Fauna!

2006-04-25T23:02:00.000-05:00

Australia New Zealand Army Corps (ANZAC) Day is a day to remember all those who served their countries (i.e., the 4th of July/Veterans Day for the antipodes). The day mainly brings back thoughts of all those Aussie and Kiwi troops who died at Gallipoli in Turkey during the First World War trying to keep Turkey British. It's a very momentous occasion, and up to now I was beginning to think Aussies weren't very patriotic (nor have I ever seen them so well-dressed). The photo below is not from Princess Diana's funeral, but rather garlands laid at the WWI memorial along the Strand in Townsville:
It's a big day for Australia, as seen in this portrait of amateur abo painting on top of castle hill:

The day began at 4:00 a.m. on the Lavarack Barracks next to JCU campus. Kevin (Mundingburra Rotarian), a Salvation Army officer, invited me to the Gunfire Breakfast and Dawn Service being held there:
The service came first (it was dark--no photos), then everyone ran off to breakfast, leaving the seating empty for me to photograph (Mt. Stuart in the background):
Oh, here they are enjoying breky (i.e., breakfast):
After Gunfire Breakfast (no, I was not shot), I headed down with Fred and Janet Gillham (Munidgburra Rotary) to the Strand to catch the 9:30 march. Everyone was going (Magnetic Island in the background): Ah, what a lovely place along the Strand (Castle Hill in the background):
Well, I marched in the parade with the Mundingburra Rotarians, but before then I was able to catch some of the troops go by. Aussie troops are currently in Iraq, but more importantly they have now been deployed to the Soloman Islands, where they are keeping them 'democratic' and squashing the rebellion against the lately elected PM. The first marchers in the parade consisted of military personel, but mostly veterans. Here is a regiment that must be of Scotty origin:
It reminded me of an old war movie, maybe Patton, when the GB troops go marching along the streets to the tune of bagpipes:
Here they come...Getting closer....
Wow, he's catchin' some shut-eye (must have woken up early):
Don't see this too often:
When do American troops march through the streets?

Ah, the blue regiment:

A bit young to be in the military:

Different types of camo:
Ah, the police:
While marching, all the brass watched us go by. The dude in red is the mayor (Note: these are NOT actors):
Oh, wait, they are actually watching the local school girls walk by:
Yes, local school girls, in their uniforms (how cute):
Looks like they all wear uniforms:
Don't forget about the navy:Okay, now for the midday service. It's over there:
There:Wow, I am far away. That's a nice hat:
Yes it is:
Though they did not play Sousa or SSB, they did play some other recognizable tunes:
And now some up-close photos:
There's Fred on the left (South Africa Corps):
And here's our group:
There's the harbour:
And now to the Group Study Exchange Students from Brasil, who we met over at the RSL:
Trevor and Carol (Mundingburra Rotary) invited us for a tour of the town and dinner. Here's Ivana trying to photo a wallaby outside of Rotary International House:
Here's Luisa giving us her batwoman impression infront of the amateur abo paintings:
And now, a tour up the hill in back of where I live. The view wasn't that great, and there were quite a few flies and mossies after all the rains:
There is downtown. The tallest building is known as the saltshaker (it's really a Hilton):
Ah, living at Rotary International House, what views:
Oh, and wait! More fauna. This bird was outside of my window, creeping around one morning (bad photo equates to distance X minimal photons). I had to get Steve Cardiff (LSU Museum of NS) to identify this one. He says it's a Pheasant Coucal (Centropus phasianinus). I'll take his word for it:
Looks sort of hawk-chicken like (after-effects of Bird flu):
Here's a Grey Fantail (Rhipidura fuliginosa):
Here's a rainbow bee-eater (saw them in Turkey, beautiful birds, Merops ornatus):
Don't know this one (Birdus Idontknowus):
This bird makes cool noises, but don't ask me what it's name is:
And lastly here are some lovely black cockatoos on the lawn of the barracks:

Easter under the Coollabah Tree...

2006-04-16T20:11:00.000-05:00

Ah, it's Easter Sunday and alas, Trevor and Carol Philipson (Mundingburra Rotary) invited me to spend the day with them and their friends at Flecther's Creek near Charter's Towers, a nice little camping spot. It sure beat spending the day at James Cook Community College (I've decided to bump it down from unversity status...another story). Anyhow, what better place to put a camp site then Fletcher's Creek (the friends had been camping there all week)...hmnn, under this sign looks like a good place (why is "NO SHOOTING" in black...they don't allow guns here anyway?!!):
So, now a lesson on Australian automobiles. Look near the campsite...what do you see? A plethora of Toyota Land Cruisers from a variety of times past:
What is this, a Land Cruiser convention? No, not really, it's just what people drive around here. This one is a 'yute':
This one belongs to Trevor, it's a 2001 model:
But wait!!! This is not a Toyota! It's a bloody Nissan Patrol (pronounced "niss-an") with extended wheel base and fit-in camping periphinalia: Okay, now on to the party. Did I mention that Australian adults like to play paper-rock-scissors while drinking beer?
Other than that, they walk barefoot and tell jokes (sounds familiar?):
Don't forget about the dog (notice the sign in the background, too):
So nearby there's a creek full of water because it's been raining quite a bit lately:
Wait! What's that I see down the creek? Is that a tire tube? Yes, does that mean there are no crocs to tear off your limbs one at a time here? Right-O, that means it's safe to go for a swim!
But watch out for the ropes, you may get caught:
These fellas sure did:
Ha, ha, how funny, people getting caught in the ropes, they laugh. Wait, something looks familiar with this picture:
Could it be this picture, a scene from an Easter party in Louisiana? Uncannily similar...except for the difference in beer. [Is Roger gaining weight?]
So, yeah, we went up and down the creek in a tube, they had rapids and we beat our limbs all up on the river's rocks.
People were camping like mad:
I went across the creek with my camera to see the 'cow pasture:'
There were some Brahmans earlier, but they are gone; looks like a wheat field:
Actually, it's just grass.
The reflection is nice.
And the sunset, cast forth on the roof of a Toyota Land Cruiser...
But after sunset comes supper, so Trevor made us up some t-bone steaks, medium, and that was Easter Sunday:
Thursday was Mundingburra Rotary's Easter Breakfast. Kevin read some verses from the Aussie Bible and Cockney Bible.
Now for more Fuana. Over at the creek, about 160km from Townsville, exists the Psittaciformes version of parrot called Galahs (Aussies call stupid people 'Galahs,' too):
In the yard at Rotary, we have the Australian scrub turkey (Megapodiidae):
And on my balcony we have the Australian Magpie-Lark (Dicruridae)

Aussie Fishing Weekend: Crabs, Camping, and the Beach...(And yet even more Fauna)

2006-04-02T05:19:00.000-05:00

What a weekend! When I was invited to go to a 'hut' with three Mundingburra Rotarians and two of their friends for a "fishing" weekend, little did I know what it would involve...how ideal some of these locations are...about 45 minutes north of Townsville and down a long 4X4 track to a private alcove on the beach. Couldn't swim in the ocean, because of the jellys, and had to be careful walking when the tide went out because of the one-step-your-dead stone fish. But the weather was great, and Darcy Cooke, Bill Kennedy, Ian Weller, Jim Foley, and Sam provided good company (though the old farts beat me in age by at least 20 years). So, with the Aussie Tablelands in the background, and clouds drifting by, we had a nice weekend at Darcy's beach hut...

Darcy Cooke's hut, to put it mildly, was the ideal short gettaway spot. Kinda resembles those weekend rentals that use to exist at Constance Beach...only a lot less skeeters...plenty of beds too, ideal for any sisters wishing to visit their nephew in Australia (hint hint):

Bill Kennedy (Scotland) cooked us up some steaks for supper the first night:

Thay's some nice seenry from the porch. Palm Island's out there. The tides here are huge, about 7 feet, so when it goes out, it goes out (see the second photo at top).

It was darn hot, and the water was coolingly refreshing. BUT NO SWIMMING! This is salt water croc ("Salty") territory, and they'd do more than just a flesh wound. This is way thays be livin'.

It's funny they don't eat the cows.

Darcy tried to catch some bait fish at the mouth of the estuary, but there was too much fresh water runoff. Then we tried to do some fishing too, but only for about 15 minutes. Crab catchin' was way cooler.

Reggie, Sam, and Jim were hopeless when it came to catch'in grub.

Thaise hair mud crabs were tutin big (you gotta grab'em by the back laigs). These thangs are kinney bigger than them thair in Lousianner.

Reggie and me, we's went out Saturday evenin' to collect the rest of dem crab traps (they call em 'pots'):

Oddly, the estuary looks alot like the Bayou?!!

Yum Yum Yum, Ian cooked a roast to go along with the crabs. I must say, these were the best tastin' crabs I've ever eaten...and we didn't even use crab boil! Actually, we went out to the ocean and swished up a pot of seawater to cook them in, then after they were cooked took them back out into the sea and washed off all the fat inside...yum. T'was Surf and Turf:

Look at all the meat on these claws! And I have big hands...interestingly enough, the claws had cusps on them alot like our molars, so I saved them:

La la on the Sunday morning walk on the beach...and what do I see? These imprints, about an inch long and two by two, in a straight line...What could these be but little wallaby tracks in the sand?!! Next to them are goana tracks, and next to them are more wallaby tracks (thair's me furder down, too):

And yet even more Aussie fauna for you: this here is the infamous Kookaburra, the animal you hear in all the Tarzan movies and think is a monkey. I think it is in the kingfisher family. This one here was on our balcony for some odd reason the other morning, so I was able to stalk it for some one-on-one photographing...

Race Day, Classes, and More Australian Fauna...

2006-03-25T02:42:00.000-06:00

Today, the Rotary Club of Mundingburra had "Race Day," a fund-raising event held at the Townsville Turf Club:
This is a lush racing place:
Because it's summer time still, it's kind of empty:
Rotary had allocated the room for us in this building:
Obviously the Mundigburra Club is a sponsor:

Inside, everyone was having a merry time:

Good friends Janet and Fred were enjoying the prawns:

The races were on. Note that they race around the track clockwise and on grass (Mount Stewart in the background):

It's a family event.

And that's the races. On the way to the last day of class:

Marcia always does the dirty work in the School of Public Health's Kitchen. She supplies yummy cookies, too:

Because of the cyclone the class was kind of empty:

I am the youngest one in the class and also the only one who has never had a job before! Note the classroom is a funky green colour, which is actually quite nice...

The last day presentations captured the audience's attention!!?:

Professors Rick Speare (MD, DVM, PhD) and Adrian Miller decide our grades:

My group was Fiona (Scotland), Margaret (NSW), Kristy (AUS), and others that were not here. We did a presentation on skin cancer, hence the funny dress:

Now for some more fauna. If you look up into the trees,

You might see one of these giant black cockatoos (they make that aweful screeching noise that you may have heard as a dinosaur on Jurassic Park):

And, in Rotary, late at night, the RIH oppossum climbs into his box:

First Katrina, then Rita: Here, first it's Larry then Wati?!!

2006-03-21T05:43:00.000-06:00

Here comes Cyclone #2:

From: http://www.bom.gov.au/weather/qld/cyclone/

Latest Headlines: Cyclone Larry: Could Townsville be another New Orleans?!!

2006-03-19T00:51:00.000-06:00

Yes, folks, it's true, migrating to Australia does not free you of hurricanes...this'n here is a Category 4 cyclone (i.e., hurricane). What's funny is that they give them silly names like "Larry" here, too. Western news agencies don't know about them. Australia's news is not priority...I've circled the cyclone in red. Note: it is very large, with 250 mph+ winds; LA would fit into that circle (the state, not the city):

We just wouldn't want something like this happen'n again:*

*Image Bibiliography: http://www.beerlooterdude.net

Dear Staff and Students,
Due to the approach of Severe Tropical Cyclone Larry, it has been decided to close Cairns Smithfield Campus and Townsville Douglas and Vincent Campuses tomorrow, 20 March 2006. Further advice will be issued once the cyclone has passed which should be tomorrow afternoon. We would remind everyone to take appropriate precautions before the Cyclone arrives and wish you all a safe 24 hours as it passes.
Regards,
Prof Andrew Vann
Pro-Vice Chancellor Information and Corporate Services

Thursday Rotary with the Mundingburrans

2006-03-17T04:48:00.000-06:00

Getting into a Rotary meeting happens quick in Australia. After 32 hours of aircraft and airport, I arrived in Townsville 9 February 2006 at 5:50 p.m. By 6:10 p.m. that Thursday, I was already in my first Rotary meeting in Australia (sorry pictures for this first meeting are N/A). By the next Friday, I was invited to go with 8 others to the next town over, Ingham, to hear Rotarian Tom Henderson (Cornwall, U.K.) speak about his program "SHELTER BOXES." The journey was through fields and fields of sugarcane, backdropped by waterfalls and green hill-mountain type things. When we arrived, we were edified on the disaster-relief kits known as "Shelter Boxes." These are large, green plastic containers filled with survival-related periphinalia, including tents, saws, hammers, big-screen TVs (well, not the latter for you residents of N.O.). Each one has a number, so that donors can track where their boxes have been sent. This program is funded 48% by Rotary. Tom's presentation stressed the recent work done by shelter box in post-earthquake remote regions of Pakistan [For more information on a great organisation to donate to, visit: http://www.shelterbox.org/]. Below is a photo of Tom and an Ingham sugar cane farmer, Vince, who likes ways of 'osteopathic' farming:
Here is the city hall in Ingham. Note the distinct Aussie architecture.

You are probably all wondering how I get to the Rotary meetings...well, Fred and Janet Gillham (South Africa, England, respectively) usually pick me up and drop me off. Fred will be Mundingburra's president soon. In one of the meetings, I sat at the table with district govenor Peter Kaye (Australian) and Ron Degenhart (Ameristralian). Peter's first remark to me was, "Oh, do you like being in part of the Empire," to which I replied, "We are all M.B.E.'s (Members of the British Empire)." You see, Peter thought that I was from the U.K. (England), but later was informed that I was just from Louisiana. Anyway, back to the story... Ron's daughter had just returned from Paris (France) where she performed for Moulin Rouge. We are photographed below (with Fred):

The Rotary club is a hoot. President Bob (seated) usually keeps the meeting pretty humerous:
Sometimes, Andrew de Boulay (yes, there are Boulays in Australia) provides the laughs:
Sometimes it's Bill Kenedy supplying the laughs:
Or maybe it's some dude that is in the administration of the Cowboys ALF team:
Jan Johnson, my great host counselor, is very passionate about what she has to say:
Akiko, a Japanese YEP student, is being said goodbye to:

Peter Gilby and Jan:
Rush to the tables:
Everone seated:

That's my Sponsor Rotary Club!!!

Good on 'ya: When in Australia, Do as the Aussies Do...

2006-03-04T09:05:00.000-06:00

Almost a month into Australia, I find myself doing what Australians do, which is quite similar to what one may do, in say, Texas or Louisiana. For instance, I just returned from my first Aussie rodeo (pronounced "Roe-day-Oh") and probably my first rodeo in ten years. In addition, later you will see how Aussies catch quite large bass-like fish out of bayou-coloured water and 'grill it up.' To put things mildly, things are not short of fun here...

This first picture is out of order, but because it turned out so well, I have placed it here. It is from the rodeo and is a perfect model of Aussie-like rodeo culture (click on it to see it in all its photographic glory):
We arrived at the rodeo an hour early (bloody radio broadcast fed us the wrong information) so things were rather quiet when we arrived...

Later, cowpokes began arriving in their SUV-drawn carriages...
This little infant, next to us on the hill, kept looking over at me (what's up with that and babies?) and later rolled and tumbled down the hill, laughing all the while... Loads of spectators turned up. Trevor and Carol (Rotary Club of Mundingburra , seated next to the red ice chest and who, may I add, drive the great Toyota Land Cruiser) had brought munchies for us to chow on--some tasty chicken, ham and chutney sandwiches. I learned a few select Aussie phrases while waiting for the rodeo to start, like "That man over there, he is so tight that he uses both sides of the dunny (i.e., toilet) paper." [Note: if the bloke in the white cowboy hat in the lower right corner looks a bit amiss, it's because I am taking a photo graph in the direction of his breastfeeding sheila--oops!]

While waiting, the glories of sunset were upon us:

Let's take a closer look:

Well, back to the rodeo:

This photo, taken at discounted shutter speeds, actually blurred the subjects (no one made the 8 seconds that night, only honorable mentions):

And now let's move onto another topic of discussion: discrete parts of Townsville. Townsville provides quite a number of handy biking paths and roads, and is very catered towards the everyday bikist. Luckily, Graham Stevens (Mundingburra Rotarian) set me up with a racing bicycle that is very efficient to pedal, allowing me to reach suburbs outside of the Douglas Campus really quickly, like the suburb below:

And other times paths will take you quickly to Mundingburra:
And yet other times, it involves joint strolls alongside the Ross River:

Wait a minute, I see something familiar. Is that aqatic vegetation water hyacinths? Yes it is! I feel just as if I were at home!!! What Joy!
While gazing into the throngs of invasive waterly flora, I stumbled across this freshly dead 5-foot long baramundi. That gave me an idea. If I could dramatically and bravely rescue this favoured/flavoured delicacy from the hoards of Ross River crocodiles and carpet pythons, then it may be good to eat/edible...
And voila!!! After four hours of wrestling the Ross's reptiles, I had a baramundi ready for culinary preparation. But where would I cook it? Alas, Trevor and Carol (Munidburra Rotary) were kind enough to throw it on their "bah-bee":***
***See next note
***Note: the above statement is incorrect. Actually, the fish in the river was downright skanky. Trevor called me that same day and offered for me to go over to his house for some 'Bear' on the barbi. After scouring tons of scientific journals, I finally figured out that there are no species of bear in Australia, and he actually meant the fresh and salt water habitating fish "Bear-a-mundi". It may be of your interest to know that its life cycle is similar to that of salmon's. It is purchasable at your local fish market (Geographical Restrictions Apply). Anyway, back to the story...it was Dee-licious. Similar to catfish, but with more hardy texture and taste...

Sometimes, we have 'bah-bees' at Rotary International House, but with not nearly as delicious the food (Note the well-liked ratio of boys to girls, that well makes up for the food discrepancy):

Besides the fauna that flock to bbq in the breezeway, what other fauna lies there in the wilderness of Rotary?

There are noisy parrots:

And the same two wallabies:

To photo wallabies, one must do a 'shoot and run' because if you stop to take a picture, they get suspicious and run away...that's all for now, join us next time...

Arrival to James Cook University, Townsville, Queensland, Australia

2006-02-15T16:58:00.000-06:00

This is the walking tour of where I live, Rotary International House...

A quick look to the left and you'll see that RIH is in the 'bush' at the end of campus...

It's hot here...poor people wait for the bus...

The trees are nice...

And the drive is resort like...hard to believe it's uni...

The epiphyte orchids on the palms give the passerby viewing pleasure on his way up to the breezeway...

Or, if you like, you can stop off at the volleyball...

So these are the RIH living quarters....

Behind which lies the breezeway...

Every night and morning the wallabies are munching grass next to the bridge...

Sometimes they stop off in the breezeway for a drink...

There are giant toads, too...

Anyway, I'm getting off track, these are our buildings, I live in the far one on the 3rd floor...

This is our living room with veranda (third floor)...

This is the kitchen that 5 of us share...

Being an RA, I have an office...

They did supply me with a bed and private bath, too...

This is the backyard, which I haven't gone into yet...

I haven't been to the beach yet, its on the other side of town, and it is a hot trip there.

These pictures aren't great, but I haven't had time to take some good ones...

Maybe later...