KRISTY -- Down Under!: November 2012

So last Saturday was my halfway point... I can't believe that I've been living in Australia for 8 weeks already. The time really has been going by quickly and I've been having just the best time.

Now, would you believe that I've been in Australia for EIGHT WEEKS, and the only kangaroo I've seen was in the form of roadkill?! I really thought I would have seen so many by now that they wouldn't even interest me anymore... not the case. In order to rectify this situation, two of my friends from work took me Kangaroo Hunting! We were determined to find me a kangaroo...

The trip started off with a stop off at the corner store for Fanta slushies and candies, it really was a necessary part of the trip :)

We then headed off to Pinaroo, which is a memorial park (aka a cemetary). There aren't any gravestones or anything, only plaques in the ground and it has plenty of kangaroos just grazing.

The one in the front right has a joey!

The one on the right has a joey in its pouch too!

This one is for Bec, the kanga just lazing around like a human!

There was also a kangaroo fight! Two ones of similar size started going at it, they lean back on their tails and hit each other with their back legs since their front legs/arms are quite short.

A bigger kangaroo came to try and join in the fight but the two smaller ones didn't want anything to do with him! Here he is standing tall (on the right).

Finally, one day past my halfway point did I get to see some kangaroos. Hopefully, these aren't the only ones I will see in my time here!

LOVE KRISTY

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hi Everyone,

I know its been a little while since I posted, work was a little busy this week! But I'm back with lots of pictures and stories from a trip that my team at work took last weekend to Rottnest Island, which is an island off the coast of Perth (similar to, but cooler than, the Toronto Islands).

It is a tradition on the team to take the Canadian secondee to Rotto for one weekend of drinking, dancing, quokkas, and just general chaotic fun. So off we headed! To get there you have to take about a 30 minutes ferry ride (about 25kms).

ROTTNEST ISLAND FERRY

To get to Rottnest you need to take about a 30 minute ferry ride (25kms), similar to the ferry to Toronto Island in all but the following ways:
a) It goes 3x faster
b) It is 2x smaller
c) The waves at 5x bigger
c) They serve beer!

Rebecca, James, Rachael, Peter, and Esther -- waiting for the ferry

Michelle, Bec, and Rachael on the ferry

Craig and Steve on the ferry

Rachael, James, and me on the ferry

Steve on the ferry and the sunset!

ROTTNEST ISLAND SCENERY

Rottnest Island is literally gorgeous, the water is so clear and blue, the sand is so white, and the whole island is so pretty!

The next few were taken on our walk from the ferry to our rented cottages

This is the view from our balcony onto the beach

A few people from my team swimming in the ocean - no sharks here!

Bec and me on the beach!

ROTTNEST ISLAND WILDLIFE

One of the cool things about Rottnest Island is the wildlife that they have. I saw a few unique animals that were pretty neat to experience!

First of all, the quokkas. They are these cute little animals, kind of like miniature kangaroos. They can only be found on Rottnest and are very domesticated, they come up to your outdoor tables and scurry around your feet.

There was a little incident with one of the quokkas on the way to the restaurant. It was in the middle of the path as we were walking through, and in its haste to get away from the people at the front of our group, it hopped right into my feet. In a knee jerk reaction I accidentally kicked it! It was okay and hopped off just fine, but I was quite upset about this and then scared of them for the rest of the night!

There were also some pretty birds hanging around the beach... this one we weren't exactly sure what it was but it had a huge long orange beak that it stuck into the sand, we assume to eat its food.

Another snake! In the middle of the day on Saturday we were walking towards the beach and saw a snake scurrying across the road. It was a small one, and had just eaten something so it had a huge lump in the middle of its body. Everyone was pretty shocked by seeing the snake as most of them hadn't seen one before, so I was pretty lucky!

And finally, the best part of the wildlife sighting, TWO STINGRAYS! They were so calm and smooth in the water, just swimming back and forth along the shore. They seem to be used to people as they came quite close to us and didn't seem phased by our presence at all.

Yes - that is my foot and how close I was to it!

Another close shot!

The sting ray swimming around as seen from our balcony.

THE TEAM

And finally, the trip wouldn't have been nearly as good without the amazing people who came along. A big thank you to everyone who helped organize, cook, laugh, smile, swim, anything! It was a lot of fun :)