A Day At The Races...

Today I went to Flemington Race Course for a dignified day at the races. The only problem is the weather front that has arrived:

If you can spot Melbourne then you can see that we're right in the midst of that....mess!

Perfect day for a black-tie day outside. NOT!

We did have a good time, trying to keep our spirits up as the heavens opened and threatened to drown us all. Seriously, I was close to building an ark and summoning the animals two by two. :o)

What was especially funny were the people around us. As the VIPs inside and on TV tried to maintain a sense of decorum despite the fact that everyone was soaked, the yobs outside decided to make a massive slip 'n slide from some massive sheets of tarpaulin! As I set off this morning, the last thing I expected to see was genteel ladies and guys in three-piece suits sliding across the ground on their stomachs! But alas, I guess thats how they do it down under!

Time To Move On...Again....

Today I fly back to Melbourne. I'm gonna miss this place.

Opps...

That was a long post. I promised I wasn't going to do that.

I sincerely apologise.

Port Arthur...

Australians and Americans don't have much in common, but one thing they share is their understanding of their heritage. I still remember everyone I met in the states trying their best to convince me that they were Irish too! One person even said, "Oh I love that irish movie, you know, the one with Mel Gibson!"

"Braveheart?"

"Yeah That's the one!"

Well thankfully the Australians aren't quite so bad, but a lot of them are very aware of their ancestry. Often this makes for interesting conversation because their ancestors were convicts from Ireland and the U.K.  Yesterday I spent the day at Port Arthur, the site of a famous prison here in Tasmania. It was fascinating! I started with a guided tour of some of the site by Joooaaaaaaaiiiiiimes. (Thats his own pronunciation for his name- James) He had the funniest accent, clearly Australian but mixed with a pinch of I'm-gonna-try-really-hard-to-annunciate-so-you-foreigners-can-understand. Brilliant!

I then took a boat ride out around the harbour stopping for a tour of The Island Of The Dead. Sounds promising doesn't it? Its a tiny island just off the coast where they buried 2000 prisoners and guards who died whilst at Port Arthur. This tour was from Shelly. If I thought Jooooaaaaaaiimes was a funny character, then Shelly took it to another level. The tour was supposed to be 40 mins long. She spent approx 37 of those precious minutes telling us about one of her convict ancestors that she'd written a book about! It sounds terrible but it was classic! She was one passionate woman! Some of the stories were remarkable. It's hard to believe how these people were treated, some of them as young as 9 years old!

I finished the day by taking an audio tour of the entire site (how many tours can I fit in one day!) Part of it told the story of a Sergeant Phillip Good who got punched by one of the other guards. Must go look into that further. There was also a Good convict (get it), Thomas. Maybe there's more to my family than meets the eye! This explains why I'm always checking for exits when lining up at the bank!

Altogether, it was a fascinating day. The site was basically beautiful gardens and buildings steeped in years of Australian history- what more tourist could ask for more? 

Scary Road Sign...

Another Day Of Stunning Views...

You're probably getting tired of photos of sunny coastlines, but today I set out for more. I had to work a little harder for today's pics- a three hour drive followed by a three hour hike up a steep mountain side.


After another gorgeous drive with photo opportunities all the way I arrived at Freycinet (fray-sin-ay) National Park. I was under strick instructions to get a view of Wineglass Bay, a beach in the area. The information centre said I had two options: Either an hour and a half return walk to a mountain saddle, or a three hour return hike up to the summit of Mount Amos- 1600 feet above seas level. Of course, I'm a MAN so I didn't really have a choice! Mt Amos here I come!

I drove to the foot of the mountain and climbed out of the car for the first great view of the hike- a kangaroo right beside the car! Thankfully this one was a little more reserved than the last one I met. He didn't even mind me taking his picture.


The warning signs at the start of the trail weren't kidding, it was a steeeeeeeep climb! A lot of the time I was on all fours and it wasn't long before the sweat was dripping from my nose! Thankfully, the higher I climbed the more the breeze cooled me and the better the views got. After lots of stops along the way, I made it to the summit. Awesome views and not another person in sight. I sat down for lunch overlooking the bay before snapping a few pics. After a nice long rest at the top I was ready for descent. Those slippery boulders, that were tough on the way up, seemed twice a slippery on the way down- some sections were better traversed on my bum!

I made it down with shaking legs and a soaking T-shirt but it was a lot of fun. After a brief look around some more of the park I headed home. 

Walking On Sunshine (Almost)...

Today I took a drive along the Huon Valley to a forest south west of Hobart. The drive was gorgeous. Water to my left, apple orchards and vineyards to my right. It felt a lot like Ireland, only sunny! :o)

The forest itself is made up of some of the tallest trees in the world (apparently) and while thats something new to see, it's not the reason I went. This particular forest has an 'Air Walk'- a walkway suspended 40 metres above ground level amidst the tops of the trees. Though the weather wasn't perfect, there were still some stunning views. The sun did come out for the second half of the afternoon and on the drive home I stopped at lots of spots to take some extra pics.

At the forest I took a two hour walk the was made up of the air walk, two swinging bridges and lots of forest paths. At one point the air walk reaches out on a cantilever which wobbled with every step you took. Let me tell you, that high up.... I was pooping my pants!

Some of the pics (see tab above) are obviously of the forest. The ones that seem out of place are the shots I took on the drive home. 

Sly...

Keeping all these animals alive may be trickier than I thought!

Climbed (drove) to the top of Mt Wellington to get an aerial view of Hobart. Pretty stunning view don't you think?

Arriving In Tasmania...

So just as I gear myself up for working, I find myself in Tasmania!

It is GORGEOUS here and the fact that I'm here for free is mind boggling. I've uploaded some pics of the house I'm staying in, the view of the harbour and the animals I'm here to look after (apart from the cats- they're elusive little fellas).

I went to the tourist office the other day and picked up approx 500 leaflets about stuff to do while I'm here. There's no way I'll get to see everything, but I'll give it a darn good shot!

Yesterday I took a walk around Hobart and mainly spent the day drinking coffee (it's a tough life). I went to the museum and to a number of galleries, I met a Scot who owns a fantastic little second-hand bookshop. The books we stacked form floor to ceiling! I'm gonna have to go back a get a picture of it. :o)

The weather here changes almost as quickly as in Melbourne so it's difficult to plan what to do. There are some fab views from the top of the mountain (I went last night but forgot to bring my camera) but only when the weather is clear. I just keep looking out the window....waiting. It the sky looks clear then I'm ready to dash out the door! But to be honest, the house here is so nice it's tempting to just flop into the bath and chill out.

As expected my phone has been ringing with schools back in Melbourne looking for me. Ugh... I have to force myself not to dwell too much on that. I must remind myself that I'm only here for a year and I have to make the most of it. Right?

Just Getting Going....

Heading back to Preshil School tomorrow. I'm teaching Year 1 so that should be interesting- I'll be able to make a direct comparison to teaching back in Nottingham. I hear they have saws and hammers just lying around for them to build with when they have free time. mmmmmmm....... 


Then on Friday its off to Chatham Primary for a day of teaching PE. I'll teach every year group from prep to year 6 so no doubt I'll be ready for an early night that night. Good job I'll have two weeks in Tazy to recover!

Work Work Work...

Today I had my first days work since I got here! It's been a long summer!

Last week I travelled around lots of schools in the area handing in my CV. I wasn't expecting much but I've already had five phone calls. This morning I had given up waiting for a call when my phone rang at 9am asking if I was available today. YES!

I was at a school called Preshill. This is a 'progressive' school and nothing like my teaching experience. It's noisy, chaotic and unstructured! The kids don't raise their hand to speak, they just shout out until they're heard! They don't sit at a desk to write, they can sit where they like- even outside by themselves! Like I said...different.

That said, they were all lovely people and I had a good day. I'm booked in to go back on Thursday. Yipee! More chaos!

The bad news is that just as I hand out my CVs I'm heading off to Tazzy! (See post below) So a number of schools have phoned me asking me to work while I'm away!! Such bad timing! If I'd known I was going to Tasmania I would never have given out my contact details. It would have made much more sense to just wait until I come home. But who's gonna turn down a free trip to Tasmania?

It's Not What You Know...

Up until now I have been living with Rosemary and Paul out in Sunbury, 45 mins away from the city. They have been so kind and generous- letting me stay with them for free, answering all my questions and helping me find my way about. 

Yesterday I moved in with their son, Rowan, and his family much closer to the city centre. They live in an area with LOTS of schools and it is here that I'll begin my search for work. They have been fab and have even converted their dining room to make a bedroom for me! 

The great news is that Rosemary and Paul have another son (Nigel). Nigel and his family live in Tasmania (south) and are planning a holiday in Darwin (north). They have dogs and cats and birds and it's usually a hassle to send all the animals to kennels etc. It's such a hassle in fact, that it's more convenient (and cheap) for them to pay for me to fly over there and house sit for them for two weeks! Sweeeeeeeeet!

So on Saturday I fly over to meet them and learn where the dog food is kept. Then on Tues they fly off for 10 days and I have the house (and car) to myself. Hobart, the capital of Tasmania, is supposed to be beautiful with lots of beautiful countryside surrounding. So just when I was planning on getting stuck into work, I'm planning on extending my holiday! Oh well.....

Thinkin Of Home...

Standing In The Purple Rain...

Tonight we had a BBQ (again!) with lots of friends here at the house. We've had a ton of rain today with thunder and lightening all afternoon. All the evening rolled on and the sky became dark the lightening became more and more vibrant. The whole sky flashed bluey purple and you could see massive forks streak across the sky. 
I tried (unsuccessfully) to take a picture but, thanks to Google, I have a picture of what it looked like.

Awesome

This Is All Wrong...

Salt and vinegar in a PINK pack! Chicken in a GREEN pack! WHAT!?!
(Excuse the red face, I'd just been for a run.)

Back And Forth...

Well I had a great few days with Stefan and Tricia. I'm still waiting for schools to come back from holidays so it's been nice to be able to relax without feeling guilty about it. That said, I've now had about 8 weeks of summer holidays!

Fun at the garden centre

Another close call!

I spent my time with Stef and Trish taking little day trips into the city centre- just seeing the sights and becoming familiar with my surroundings. We worked in the garden and enjoyed a few BBQ's. Spring is settling in here and the temperature is up to about 25 degrees. People here still think it's cold but its perfect for my pasty white skin. :o)


Right now I'm back out with the folks in Sunbury. This weekend I'm moving house agin! This time I'm moving in with Rowan and Jude, son and daughter-in-law to Rosemary and Paul (Can you keep up!) They live pretty close to the city centre and it'll be perfect for work and for fun. They're lovely folks and have been really helpful as I prepare to start working here. Ideally I'd like to be living with people my age, but its so convenient and cheap to stay with them that I can't refuse.