Go-Carting, Oh The Memories

Friday night went to a comedy club which was something I haven't done here.  Was a bit smaller than The Funny Bone in St. Louis which I liked so that everyone could be close to the comedians.  There were about 3 openers before the main guy.  All in all they were ok, not the funniest I'd seen.  They did however make fun of Americans (2 of the comedians) which I wasn't happy about.  They made jokes about how easy it is for us to buy guns and shoot each other (I did not find this funny), but the audience sure did-ugh!  

  

Saturday morning headed off to go go-carting!  Reminded me of growing up and the go-cart that we had.  Good times:) 

This is the course we went around.  It was pretty big.  Broke my time up into two 15 min. sessions so that my arms could have a break.  I got passed quite a bit, but once I got the hang of it I started passing people! 

On the way to the go-cart track I stopped by The Evergreen Taoist Church of Australia.  I know absolutely nothing about Taoism but when I Googled it, it says Taoism is a "Chinese philosophy based on the writings of Lao-tzu, advocating humility and religious piety."

They had very interesting art and sacred things in the church.  This is a sacred bell and the note says not to ring it.  

Sunday I drove down to Byron Bay which was absolutely beautiful.  A co-worker had been talking about it so I thought I'd put it on my list of places to visit.

Gotta love this sound!!!

 

I officially went to the most easterly point of Australia:)

Hiked up to this lighthouse

Along the hike I heard something in the trees and then all of a sudden I saw something hopping and low and behold it was a  Swamp Wallaby.  He stopped and looked RIGHT at me, awww.  How cool is that?!  If you're wondering how I knew this was a Swamp Wallaby and not a kanagroo, well at first that is what I thought it was, just a little one, and then at the end of the hike there was a sign that said you might see swamp wallabies on your hike along with a picture.  So...that's how I know what this little fella was!

I'm sure you're wondering why I am showing you this picture of a plant.  Well, there was another sign on the hike that said you might see Barwan (Barrawang Palms) which were very common in pre-historic times and would have been eaten by DINOSAURS.  Did you read that right, this plant was eatin by T-Rex himself, holy cow!  This is a close tie for 1st place on the coolest thing I saw all day (you know how I love seeing furry friends on my hikes), but the fact that a dinosaur ate this very plant kinda blows my mind. 

I would definitly mark Byron Bay on my list of places to come to again.  It had beautiful beaches and scenery!

Sydney

Flew down to Sydney with a few friends for the weekend and had a blast!

The famous Sydney Opera House

Didn't get to see a show, but there's always next time.

 Rode a ferry out of the harbor and this is looking back at the city.

Further away you can see the city and the Sydney Harbour Bridge.

Went for a walk along the beach and looked out and saw this sailboat.

Stopped for an iced coffee (should have taken a pre picture) but they brought me out this platter with a little glass (on left) of espresso, glass of skim milk (in back), and a glass of ice.  I got to make my own iced coffee, first time for that.

Went for a ghost tour on Friday the 13th from 10pm-12am.  It was the first time they'd done a tour at that time.  This is the oldest house in Sydney, Cadmans Cottage and it's where we started the tour.  I have never been on a ghost tour so I didn't know what to expect.  We got to see a lot of neat places around the city and learn a lot of history.  I didn't see a ghost however:(  

Went to the most famous beach in Australia, Bondi Beach. 

Walked along a path to sight see other beaches and the surroundings.

Came along this beach cruiser which I thought looked pretty awesome!

Debbie and I taking a break on our walk to take a picture.

They had these pools which people were swimming in (lap swimming) that were right next to the ocean (well in the ocean actually).  It was interesting to see these.  People would take their kids to them so they could keep an eye better on them vs. letting them swim in the ocean.  My friend Brad used to swim in this exact pool as a kid!

Saturday evening I climbed the Sydney Harbour Bridge (we climbed all the way to where the flags are at the top).  It was very similar to the Story Bridge in Brisbane that I climbed, just taller.  

You had to pay for your pictures (unlike at the Story Bridge) so the only proof I have is this certificate they gave me.

 We did get a group picture.  I am third from the left in the front row. 

Rode the ferry out to Watson's Bay for the day.  You can see Sydney in the background.

Had to take this picture for all of my Gap girls:)

Really pretty views from the top of a walk we went on.

Of course after we checked into the hotel I had to ask where the nearest Starbucks was so I could take a little walk down and put a big smile on my face:)

Ate at a famous restaurant called Pancakes on the Rocks.  This was called Bananarama and it was "Buttermilk pancakes with grilled banana and home made butterscotch sauce, topped with cream and vanilla ice cream."  Totally unhealthy but they were the best pancakes I have ever had!!!

If you look closely you can see white blobs under the water....those are jellyfish!

Trip to Sydney passed by so quickly it felt like we were there and then it was time to come home.   Another great weekend Down Under!   

Fun Things & Third Time's NOT a charm for Mexican:(

No where in the States would you EVER see a sign like this alongside the road:)  

 

Some things I've noticed while being here:

-You usually pay either before you get your food at a restaurant or you go up and pay at the end of a meal (the wait staff NEVER takes your credit card).  This is a good way to cut down on credit card fraud but it took a little getting used to.

-At a restaurant if you order a soda they either bring you a bottle of soda and a glass or they bring you a glass of soda and you get zero refills.

-If you order a chicken dish for supper all you get is the chicken dish, no sides.  Sides are a separate fee.

-Restaurants have to pay a fee for you to take leftovers home (they call it takeaway) so what you don't eat gets thrown away (I've only encountered a few restaurants that have given me a to-go box).

-Over here when you pay with a credit card they ask if they can do PayWay-this is where they take your card and hold it over the machine and it charges you what you owe.  Um...maybe I'm behind but none of my cards are able to do this.  I say, we just got the chips in the US, we don't have PayWay yet.  They are all shocked, but they take my card and then insert it in their machine.  They are a little advanced over here compared to what I'm used to.

-Not food related but as you know I work in scheduling and when they say the word schedule they leave out the c and say sheduling.  I want to say a shed is something in your backyard, but I just keep my comments to myself, haha.  Brian and I have discussed how weird this sounds to us because we hear it on a daily basis.        

Went out for a 3rd time for Mexican food and this was rated as the #1 Mexican restaurant I found when doing a search on-line.  When I ordered chips and salsa, which again, were not free and you only got what you see here.  The chips were thick and were covered in a sweet sugary chipotle powder and the salsa was hard to describe, but it was not what American's call salsa. 

 Ordered a side of pico de gallo (which was an additional fee) and this is what I got.  Now this was definitely more like salsa and was quite yummy!

Thought I'd try a margarita and this is what I got.  It was in a glass the size of a martini glass and cost $14.  Oh how I longed for an $8 fishbowl margarita from El Maguey!

New Life

I had a happy thing happen this week....

I HAVE A SPROUT!!!!  

For all of you out there that have Netflix I'm sure you've heard of the Making a Murderer series and a while back they talked about it on the Bobby Bones show so I thought I'd give it a watch.  Well, it has consumed my life this week and Friday night I stayed in and binge watched it.  After it ended I had to Google to learn as much as I could about Steven Avery.  I know everyone has different opinions about if he's guilty or not but I thought he was framed and think he is innocent.  I was in tears when they read the verdict because for the love of Pete, the guy has already spend 18 years in prison for a crime he didn't commit.  He can never get that time back and he doesn't have a relationship with any of his children, my heart just goes out to the guy.  Anyhoo-I heard that he has a new lawyer and apparently she has found some new evidence.  I read that they tried to get Obama to let him out but he isn't able to with how all of that legal stuff works.  I can't wait to see what happens....if you are into this as much as I am, let's discuss:)

Saturday I went to the XXXX brewery and got a tour.  It's a large brewery here but after going on the AB tour back home, this place is tiny.  I still enjoyed getting a tour of the place and of course the samples at the end were tasty:)

Brian, myself and Dave with a picture of  Mr Fourex, their mascot

Too funny that I blogged earlier this week about how Winter is Coming and low and behold at the gift shop in the brewery was this sign. 

Sunday I woke up and went hiking back up at Mt. Ngungun and since I took pic's last time I just did the hike and enjoyed the scenery.  

I did however come across these corn on the cob plants/flowers and I don't know which one they are, but I'll ask at work tomorrow for the scoop on them.  Just thought they'd be fun to share:)

Here I am driving on the wrong side of the road (well the correct side for them), haha;)

Winter is Coming

I sure hope this song came to mind when you read the header: Dun dun duhduh dun dun duhduh dun dun duhduh duuuuuuuuuuuuun duuuuuuuun duuuuuuuuuu dududududun dun dun dun dun dundudndundudn and of course it’s the best show out there!!!  For any of you that are clueless right now I’m talking about Game of Thrones, if you aren’t addicted I highly recommend binge watching this show to get caught up on what is a regular conversation piece anywhere you go. 

Lately I’ve been hearing around the office, Winter is Coming, time to get the kiddies new clothes and get prepared.  I want to say, prepared for what—you have no idea what winter is.  Their winter from June to Aug is Low: 50 degrees F and High: 74 degrees F.  I know I don’t experience the winters like they do in Minnesota and upper New York, but I am from the Midwest and we do get snow (sometimes lots of snow) and ice and sometimes we can’t leave our houses when it gets so bad.  These folks don’t even get snow, so I find it hilarious when they say Winter is Coming.  If there are any Australian’s reading this, I am not ripping on you—I actually find it cute when I hear you say this:) 

Weekend of Nothing

As hard as it is to believe I had a very uneventful weekend, well for me.  I joined the social club at work, I can see it now--you are rolling your eyes.  One day a few weeks back a guy walks up to my desk and says I hear you're new here, would you like to join the social club and of course I got excited (but I didn't show it) and I asked what the social club was all about.  I'll boil it down for you, you pay yearly dues (he told me I would only have to pay for the amount of weeks I will be here) and they have all kinds of events they plan and you get to attend for free.  Once a month you get a free coffee at one of two local cafe's so even if you do nothing else if you get your free coffee you'll get your money's worth.  After he left I asked a few co-workers to tell me if being in the social club was a dorky thing to do and if I knew anyone else in it.  Well come to find out most of my co-workers are in the club and so after thinking for about 30 more seconds I contacted the gentleman that was at my desk and said I'd love to be a part of the social club and I'd get him the dues I owed.  It just so happened this Friday was the free coffee day (like I was saying the Australian's LOVE their coffee) and if you know me I don't drink plain coffee (ewwww), so asked the cafe if I could pay the difference and get a latte and she said yes, .60 later I was one happy camper and off to my desk I went.  Then I received an e-mail that the social club was putting on a happy hour at a local bar and we could get any drink up to $10 free and there would be snacks there.  I got off of work and Brian and I headed over to the bar and I was able to get a whole pitcher (they call it a jug) of cheap beer with my voucher and the snacks....holy crap--the snacks were delicious.  I definitely got my money's worth.  Got to meet some new people too!  I then left happy hour because I had reserved a ticket to see Civil War that had just come out.  It's Captain American vs Iron Man and like I said about Batman vs Superman, I am not a fan of two good guys fighting one another, but I did enjoy the action.  I have a mad crush on Robert Downey Jr. So I was going to see it regardless;) I now have a reward card and I have seen so many movies now that this one was free which made the deal even sweeter!

Woke up on Saturday at 8:00 and ate breakfast on the patio.  Then I laid back down and didn't wake up until 3:00.  I thought to myself, why not stay in my pj's and not go anywhere all day long?!  So...this is what I did, no joke!  I did do a few productive things, but all in all I had an extremely lazy day and I must say staying in my pj's all day was absolutely FANTASTIC!!!!

Sunday--wake up and it's friggen raining, ugh!  I'm not going to stay inside all day again so I rent a car and go for a drive.  I thought if I drove far enough away the rain would stop---well, it didn't:(  What a shitty day.

At one point there was a wee bit of sunshine and I took this pretty picture.  

I came across this ginormous pineapple and thought, well I think I'll have a stop and take a picture with this guy.  This was up north in a town called Woomye. 

Monday was their Labor Day so we were off of work.  These 3 day weekends are awesome!  Seemed to be a bit more promising as far as weather goes so went up to Mount Coot-Tha to go hiking.

Hiked the JC Slaughter Falls.  Even though it rained there weren't any waterfalls, dang it.  It was still a pretty hike.

Brian, me, Debbie and Ross at the summit.  You can see the city in the background.  

Pretty view from up at the summit.  They have a cool restaurant up here, but it was super packed so we left and went to a nearby town for lunch.  

After lunch we headed home because we were all sweaty and gross and needed to shower, ha.  Took a nap and then headed over to Brad's for a bbq.  You know I am not a store bought type of gal, but I have no bowls or containers so I couldn't make anything homemade to take so I did have to take something from the store, tear.  

 Brian, myself and Ross standing in front of the bbq'd KANGAROO!!!  We got to try kangaroo kabobs, steaks and links (like hotdogs).  It wasn't too bad, didn't take like chicken though, hehe.

All of us outside enjoying good food and chattin it up with one another.  We had a really nice time and it was enjoyable to see what they eat at a bbq.