Newcastle Drive Oct 25 08

Hello again everyone!

Surprise! Surprise! I'm finally getting things all caught up on the blog. Yes, I've even surprised myself. I had to learn a bit about the language of 'html' so I can make the blog look a bit better and that took some doing! The pictures and words on the last couple of posts were going all over the place. But, I've figured out some stuff. Enough I guess for now to make things look OK. I'll keep plugging away at it.


Can you believe it! Me driving!!

Yes, that's me driving in our new Tuscon on our way to Newcastle. Now I can drive on the wrong side of the road "legally"! The drive takes about 4 hours one way but even though it is only about 150kms. We took the scenic route that takes you down a costal highway (a longer drive but worth the views).Very beautiful drive. Bryan did pretty good with me driving. About 2 hours into our drive we needed to stop for gas. I went into the store to get us a munchie and when I got back guess who was in the drivers' seat? Yup, Bryan. I guess he had enough of my driving for one day. Don't really blame him either!

On our way we stopped at 'Wyong Shire'. It was like a lake filled with black swans. Beautiful area.


Lake at Wyong Shire

After stopping to admire the view we were on our way again. We actually wanted to find a beach called 'Signa Beach'. Along our way we came across another beach that was again beautiful. But of all the beaches we have been to thus far we have not found one we didn't like. They are all beautiful.

















Bryan checking out the water at 'Blacksmith's Beach.

Eventually we made it to Signa Beach. We saw a couple walking towards us and decided to ask them how far the beach was. Much to our dismay they told us that they quit trying to get to the beach for it was about 5kms farther from where they quit walking. We asked another gentleman we saw and he said it is only accessible via ATV. Now we understood why we saw nothing but yutes (trucks) in the parking lot and all of them had trailers attached. I guess we won't be going to that beach any time soon. You also have to purchase a permit to to on the beach with your ATV also. Not the beach for us. Oh well, live and learn.

It was getting onto about 2:30pm now, hot and we were desperate to find a beach to cool off. About a half an hour later we did. The beach is called 'One Mile Beach' and holds true to its' name. One really long beach with mounds and mounds of sand all over the place.

Left: Mounds of sand @ 1 Mile Beach
Right: Huge waves @ the beach

Left: Sand, sand and more sand
Right: Bryan rock climbing and exploring while I soaked up some sun.

On our way back we saw all these cars that were pulled over on the side of the road and looking at this tree. We thought there must be something to see. Much to our surprise there was a cute furry fellow in the tree.

Can you spot the little guy in the tree?

One little cute Koala sitting in the tree munching away. This is quite the sight to see for the Koala sleeps the majority of it's day.

Well that's the end of our Newcastle drive. It was a lot of fun and I must say that seeing a Koala in the wild was the highlight. Our drive to Victoria (the state south of NSW) coming soon. Keep checking things out!

Our love to all,
Bryan & Maureen

CNH Corporate Weekend @ Darling Harbour Oct 18/19 08

Good Day Mates!

I am finally getting around to getting the blog up-to-date. This is our all expenses paid weekend at Darling Harbour sponsored by CNH. And what a weekend it was. Shortly after we arrived here in July Bryan and I went to Darling Harbour for the day and we actually said to each other that it would be really nice to spend the weekend here sometime. Well, that weekend came but we never thought that it would be on CNH's dime. Bonus! Here are a few highlights of the weekend. Enjoy!

We arrived at our hotel 'The Four Seasons' on Saturday Oct 18th around 2pm. Bryan had just enough time to get changed and get to his poker game which was scheduled to start @3pm. He went off to his poker game and I went for a walk along the harbour.

Our hotel room was on the 29th floor and had a magnificent view.

After the poker game was over we all gathered for a fantastic supper. (Oh, I just about forgot. Bryan came in 5th overall in the poker game. Pretty good I thought.) It was soooo delicious! But the icing on the cake was dessert of course. Not only did they have a variety of dainties but they had a chocolate fountain and a large variety of fruit for dipping. Yes, I was in heaven! I thought about just standing at the fountain and helping myself till I was full but I thought that maybe I should show a bit of restraint and decided to let other people have a bit of chocolate as well. But let me tell you my plate was full of chocolate!

Bryan and I dressed up for Saturday night.

Saturday evening was coming to a close and Bryan and I decided to go for a walk along the harbour in the warm evening air. The skyline, the lights and stunning view is awesome. We walked along the harbour to the Sydney Opera House and back again to our hotel room. What a day and another fantastic one to come.

Sunday morning came all to soon after a late night on Saturday! But we already had plans for the day first thing. After going for breakfast we decided to take in the Sydney Aquarium.

In the aquarium you see lots and lots of huge separate aquariums displaying all sorts of ocean life and reef plant life. It was hard to take pictures through the glass but we managed to catch a few that weren't too bad. Also, you walk through a huge underwater tunnel which is actually a super large aquarium that holds lots of different sharks, manta-rays, sea turtles and so many different kinds of fish.

The underwater tunnel at the aquarium and Bryan posing for the camera.

White tipped sharks.

These are the same species of sharks that Bryan dove with last year at the 'Great Barrier Reef'.

Huge mantarays were also in the aquarium.

It is had to see but these were just enormous!

After the water tunnel we went to see the reef area of the aquarium. The pictures do not do the brilliant colors justice. The pictures are of real reefs and their plant life. I can now see why Bryan has been so excited when he was at the 'Great Barrier Reef' for the colors that we saw at the aquarium he said were just like those at the reef. But just imagine being underwater seeing them first hand!

Amazing colors! This is a real reef at the aquarium.

There is also a portion of the aquarium where you have glass basically all around you, even the floor. You feel like you are walking through one huge ocean aquarium tank.

After the aquarium we walked around the harbour. It was a really hot day over 30C. We saw this beautiful HUGE ocean liner. Mom and Henry you could sail to Sydney on this one!

After we came back from the harbour we decided to sit by the hotel pool. We got waited on hand and foot. They brought us slushes, water, whatever we wanted. They really know how to do things up right and treat their guest but at $360/night one would hope they would. Thank goodness it wasn't coming out of our pocket. Gotta love CNH!

Well, Sunday night was finally here. I think we were both really looking forward to the supper boat cruise around the harbour and what a cruise it was. We went all over the harbour. As soon as we boarded we were met with drinks and appetizers galore. Very impressive. Just before supper we anchored off by a little island while supper was served. We were also serenated by a trio of two violinists and one guitarist. They were very good.

Left: The front of the boat we were on.

Right: Bryan and I on the deck of the boat.

The trio. Very good musicians.

Our supper was fantastic. It consisted of beef, prawns, several different salads, fresh oysters, and I had something they called a 'bug'. It looks like a lobster tail (which is why I took one) but it is like a cross between a lobster and a crab. Pretty good tasting. Bryan was conned into trying an oyster. I don't think he'll be having another one anytime soon! Sarah, a CNH co-worker from Western Australia (really nice girl) showed Bryan and I how to peel a prawn properly. The prawns were very good. Dessert was not a chocolate fountain but wonderful chocolate cakes and several different kinds of cheese cakes.

Left: A sample of our supper! Looks good eh!

Right: Bryan & a dealer on the deck of the boat enjoying

some good conversation and drinks!

Left: Richard, his partner Tammy and Sarah (from Western Australia) sitting at the table where we were

sitting at.

Right: Part of the group on the boat with us. The gentleman standing up with the blue striped shirt is

Bryan's boss, Robert (extremely nice man) and his wife to the left of him, Wendy

Boat going under the Sydney Harbour Bridge.

After the formal supper was done and dessert was served the trio went from table to table seeing if anyone had requests. They came to our table first and I asked if they knew 'Canon in D'. I explained to the trio and the people sitting at our table that my two boys were very musically inclined and that Matthew loved playing this song and I loved hearing him play and missed hearing both boys play their music. They did know the song and played it very well indeed. The people at the table noticed I was getting a little teary eyed and I must admit that this was the first time that I felt homesick.

The trio continued going from table to table and the fun really started. Everyone was letting their hair down and the singing began by all. It was GREAT!

Jim, Chris and Rick these pictures are for you to figure out!!! I know that the boat is a bit rocky but I just can't seem to catch the skyline at dark. I would love to be able to catch such beautiful sights at night. I did not have a tripod. Any suggestions on getting a clear shot??

This is a side view of the boat that we were on. I tell ya, the weekend could not of been any better in our minds. It was like living a fairytale. The people were fantastic, the food incredible and the scenery was something like you would see in an magazine.

Truly one GREAT weekend!

This is the end of the trail for our weekend at Darling Harbour. Hope you all enjoyed the pictures and get a little taste of our wonderful weekend.

Take care everyone and of each other as well!

Love always,

Bryan & Maureen

Taronga Zoo Oct 12 08

Hello Everyone!


Sorry it has taken me so long to get things caught up on our blog. I also appologize for the layout of the blog. I am trying to work on it to make the viewing a lot more pleasing to the eyes but I have not quite figured it out yet. I will keep on trying. Our time over here has continued to be one adventure after another - one new place to see and new things to do all the time. We would not want it to be any other way. We are loving every minute of it!

A couple of weekends ago we took a trip to the Taronga Zoo (Sydney's Zoo). We could of driven there but the parking is not very good and our other option was more of an adventure to us, so we took the later option. We started off by taking the train to 'Circular Quay' a harbour by Sydney in which we had to make a train transfer in the process. Then we took the ferry over to the zoo. This is a 17 minute ferry ride but the view alone is worth the ride.

The morning we left was pretty cloudy but the sun decided to shine on us in the afternoon.


A picture of the Wharf where we took the ferry over to the zoo.

The ferry ride was a great opportunity to try and get some shots of the Sydney Harbour Bridge, the Sydney Opera House and the skyline.

Sydney Harbour Bridge and Sydney Opera House - picture taken from the ferry



Once at the zoo we had two options to get from the ferry to the zoo. You could take a bus up to the zoo or a tram. We decided on the tram. What a view!


View from the Tram - on our way up to start our zoo adventure.

There are so many different animals to see at the zoo. To many to post but here are some highlights. Again the vegatation is incredible.


Bryan standing under one HUGE tree.

Left: Seal poking his head out of the water.

Right: Baby elephant playing with the swing of tires.

Left: Baby rhino.

Right: Meerkat having a good look around.

Left: Tree Kangaroo - Not your typical Kangaroo!
Right: Spider Monkey. What a tail on this fellow!

We also attended the 'Seal Show' at the zoo. Very good show. The seals are very good at doing their trick and fast too. It was really hard to get a good picture.

The seal jumped on the side of the pool to greet his audience.
He has a pretty good balancing act.

The Komodo Dragon - the world's largest lizard.

Pretty mean looking lizard.

The gorillas I must say I thought were the highlight of our zoo trip. The big male with the light colored back is called the 'Silverback Gorilla'. He is a massive animal and is truly the King of the jungle. His siblings know he's boss and watch their father intently and listen to his every gesture. Really magnificent to watch.


Western Lowland Gorilla - named 'Kibabu'. He was born in 1977. He is a good role model and has total control over the group. Kibabu has 4 children.


Left: I think I see a bit of a smile.
Right: Nice teeth!


Left: I think the little one is getting 'the look'.
Right: Momma & baby. What a way to catch a ride.

After we were done our zoo trip we decided to go for a walk along 'Circular Quay'. We came across a native man playing the didjeridoo. It is like a long wooden flute and has claims of being the oldest musical instrument in the world. The didjeridoo is the 'sound' of Australia. The music is really nice with a catchy beat. He put on a little show for us as well. We bought a couple of his CD's to enjoy.



After walking around the harbour we decided that we would like to take the train across the Sydney Harbour Bridge. That was nice! Upon leaving the train station and just walking around a bit outside we discovered that you can walk across the bridge. So we did! Beautiful views!


Bryan just getting off of the train. Me at the start of the Sydney Harbour Bridge.

Views from the walk across the Sydney Harbour Bridge.

As we were walking across the bridge we saw some people climbing up the bridge. You can literally climb up the bridge if you so desire. I have looked this climbing exposition up on the internet and Bryan and I were talking about it as we were watching these people climb their way up. Yes, you can expect to see a posting on the blog about us climbing the bridge soon. Don't worry you are harnessed in and tied off and are led by a pro. Imagine the views!!


People climbing up the bridge. See the tiny people on the top. That will be us soon!

Well, that completes our adventure at the Taronga Zoo. It was quite the experience. As I mentioned earlier everything we do is a real adventure. The weather is getting really nice over here and the foilage is in full bloom.

Just thought we would leave you with one last photo. Wish you all were here but we'll enjoy the weather and scenery for you all!!! Enjoy your WINTER!! (Corporate weekend @Darling Harbour and our latest beach find coming this week)

WE LOVE AND MISS YOU ALL!