Australia and New Zealand Highlights

I am back from a whirlwind tour of Australia and New Zealand and had an incredible time experiencing things that I had always dreamed of and some I never knew to dream about.  It was a super busy 4 weeks of nonstop early morning, late evenings and lots of sightseeing.  One of the other ladies on our tour had shown our itinerary to an Australian who commented that we were speed dating Australia and I think he was right.  We got to see a little bit of a lot but there are a few places that now that I have experienced them then I would like to go back sometime and get to spend more time and see more detail of the area.  We saw so much that this post could be pages and pages long and since I go back to work in a couple of days and don't want to spend so much time writing it, I thought I would share the highlights of my favorite experiences instead.  So in chronological order of how I experienced them...

The Penguin Parade (Phillips Island)- Every day these Little Penguins wobble out to the beach during the morning sunrise to dive in the ocean and gorge themselves on fish, swim and play all day, and them make their way back up the beach in the evening for what is known as the Penguin Parade and it is adorable!  You can't take any pictures because the flashes would hurt their sensitive little eyes and put them at risk for not seeing natural predators.  As soon as the sun started to set, we saw the first little penguins making their way up the beach in packs of 5 to 20 at a time.  As they make their way up the beach, their mates are waiting for them in the nests and you can hear them calling out.  When the penguin finally makes it home there are great amounts of squawking and noise making as the mate welcomes them home!  When the penguins are getting ready to molt their feathers, they are not able to go into the water and therefore just prior to the molting process they gorge themselves on fish to get really fat and live off the extra energy stores while they can't return to the sea.  Watching the really fat penguins trying to get up the hill was probably the cutest part.  One in particular would take about 5 or 6 steps and then fall flat on his stomach and rest for about 30-40 seconds before getting up again and taking another labored 5-6 steps before falling flat again.  He just looked so miserable and you could hear him call out to his mates a kind of, hey! wait for me!, that was just too cute for words.  I couldn't take any pictures but if you go to the website you can see some pictures that they have posted that were taken with special cameras. (http://www.penguins.org.au)  We did the Penguins Plus ticket and I think the little extra was worth it.

Great Ocean Road- The Great Ocean Road is located about 2 hours southwest of Melbourne and is home to the famous 12 Apostles that are giant rocks sticking out of the ocean and worn away at the bases from years upon years of waves splashing against the impressive rocks.  There actually were never 12 but it just sounded better and I think there are only 8 now due to a few toppling over from the wear against the bases from the ocean.  Mom and I took a 10 minute helicopter flight over the top of the Apostles before getting to go down to look at them from ground level.  There are many gorgeous sights along the Great Ocean Road and with literally every turn there is jaw dropping scenery but the 12 Apostles are the most well know.  Overall it was a beautiful way to spend a day and was one of the things that I really wanted to do and was not disappointed by.

Feeding kangaroos at the UnZoo- In Tazmania there is a place called the UnZoo because it keeps animals there but also has no outer walls so wild animals are free to come and go through the Unzoo as well.  Some of those animals included kangaroos and wallabys.  These sweet creatures know when it is feeding time and with a bucket of feed nearby we each took handfuls and had the kangaroos literally eating out of our hands!  They were so soft and friendly.  We spent about 30 minutes with the kangaroos and it was by far one of my favorite parts of the trip. 

Standing on the beach with wild sea lions- On Kangaroo Island (where we strangely didn't see any kangaroos) there was the opportunity to walk down to a beach with a park ranger and stand on the beach with sea lions all around basking in the sun, calling out to their friends, and jumping through the waves that were breaking onto the beach.  We watched a baby sea lion emerge from the dunes and call out for his mama as he waddled down the beach within 20 feet of where we were standing and he didn't even take notice of us.  It was as if we were just rocks on the beach and something to skirt around as he searched for his mom.  So cool!

Champagne toasts at sunset and camel rides at sunrise in Uluru- Sunset at Uluru was not what I thought it would be when we signed up for the tour.  Instead of positioning yourselves so that the sun sets behind the rock, we were actually positioned so the sun set facing the giant rock so we could watch the way the colors of the sunset changes the way the rock looks through the reflection of the sunset.  Also, I'm a fan of anything that involves champagne!  It just makes everything feel more festive.  In the morning, we were up very, very early to catch a sunrise camel ride.  If you are heading to Uluru, I would say this was a very unique experience that is not to be missed.  I had never been on a camel before but from what I was told, in Egypt camels are quite rude and spitting on their passengers, but Australia's camel population is very friendly and mild.  We rode Pete who was the tallest camel in the group and when he first stood up, I held on for dear life!!  After getting use to being up high and the way a camel walks, it was a peaceful, beautiful ride and definitely worth the early morning wake up call.

Swimming with a sea turtle on the Great Barrier Reef- Dream. Come. True. I have wanted to snorkel the Great Barrier Reef for as long as I knew that it existed.  I thought it would be this magical place full of color, fish of all shapes and sizes and after watching Finding Nemo...who didn't want to meet Crush?!  It was as amazing as I dreamed it would be but getting to spend time with a green sea turtle who was just as curious about me as I was about it, really made me feel like I was in a dream. After watching the turtle swim and eat under the water, it came directly up to me and looked at me before bumping into me and sliding it's smooth shell against my arm.  It was only a few minutes of a blip in time that I will never forget.

Holding a koala!- Dream. Come. True.  Ok, I'm repeating myself but swimming with a sea turtle on the Great Barrier Reef and getting to a hold a koala were two things that I have always wanted to do and getting to actually do both of them in one trip was incredible.  When I think about it, I can't erase the smile that comes to my face with just the memory.  I have gone through my koala pictures multiple times since returning home with this huge, goofy grin on my face every time. It was so sweet and fuzzy with this giant bum resting on my arm and its arms cradling my other arm as if I was a tree and he had this completely uninterested expression on his face.  It was amazing.

Climbing the Sydney Harbour Bridge- The climb had just the right amount of excitement and adrenaline with being a little bit scary from the height but in reality I was completely safe.  I thought it would be hard with so many steps to climb but it was actually very easy.  They would have us walk up about the equivalent of 2-3 flights of stairs at a time and then stop, take a break, and look around to absorb the view.  You can't take your own camera or have anything lose that might fall to the traffic crossing the bridge below, but my guide took plenty of pictures of us with the iconic Sydney Opera House behind us that we could buy once we got down.  The view was beautiful and at one point as a helicopter flew by that seemed rather close it was a bit disconcerting to realize I was closer to the helicopter above than to the boats floating under the bridge below.

Jet boat tour outside of Queenstown, New Zealand- I had 2 people tell me that I had to try the jet boat tour in New Zealand and I would pass that advice on to anyone going to Queenstown.  High speed boat that glides over shallow water and does 360 degree spins...what's not to love?  Even one of the friends we made on the trip who was worried about the spins because it usually makes her sick, loved it.  The speed was fun and the scenery was jaw dropping throughout the entire hour long ride.

Waitomo Caves- When we started planning this trip, I knew I wanted to go to New Zealand as well because I had heard it was beautiful but I didn't have as formed of an opinion of places that I had to see like I did in Australia.  The glowworm caves were the exception.  They aren't actually glowworms but more like a phosphorescent larvae that cling to the ceiling of the caves to attract bugs into "the light at the end of the tunnel" which turns out to be their web for food.  After walking around the cave and viewing the stalagtites and stalagmites and listening to our guide sing a Maori song to demonstrate the excellent acoustics of the cave, we boarded a boat in the dark and rode beneath the stars of the cave in pure silence with nothing but the occasional trickling of water to interrupt it.  It was fantastic and serene and I think I could have spent several hours instead of several minutes down there if I had been allowed.

Australia and New Zealand have always seemed like another world to me and almost inaccessible with such a journey just to get there.  The almost 16 hour flight to Melbourne from L.A. was not easy but it was worth it.  The land down under is no longer a mysterious place I dream of going to one day but now a happy memory that my mom and I can relive together with stories and pictures over and over again.  It is a little less intimidating now with the airplane ride under my belt and with any luck I will return one day to explore these delightful countries even more.  Which reminds me of a fantasticly bad joke we were told outside of the caves that I will leave you with... Do you think if they cut the tail off of the glowworm that they would be delighted? 

Everglades National Park

I'm almost embarrassed to admit this but I've lived in Florida most of my 36 years and have never been to the Everglades.  My brother even lived just a short distance from the Everglades and we never made it to the National Park.  It's been a goal of mine to get there for a few years now but after watching Bill Weir's series "The Wonder List" on CNN last year, I've been even more determined and I finally made it there!  By the way, if you have never watched The Wonder List then you really should check it out.  Amazing footage of places that I've either dreamed about visiting or never knew they existed but now dream about visiting.  The stories told are fascinating and I am captivated throughout the show.  But this post is not about the show so back to the Everglades.

I have always pictured the Everglades as a hot, humid, muggy and bug infested place which may be why I hadn't been there before but visiting it in January completely falsified my previous opinion.  It was beautiful and serene with miles of flat wetlands and swamp land to look at.  I entered the park from the Homestead entrance and immediately drove the 38 miles back to the Flamingo entrance where the boat rides depart from.  The drive was a smooth, easy drive and I barely encountered a car the entire way back which was so nice after the aggravating overcrowded drive back up from the Florida Keys.  I arrived just in time for the 11 am Backcountry Tour.

While waiting to board the boat and looking out into the water my first thought was "Is that...?" and it was a manatee and her baby!  I hadn't even boarded the boat yet and I was already getting to see the wildlife that made Florida famous.  I was lucky that our tour only had 10 people on it.  I think that was a bonus from getting up early and heading straight back to that point without stopping at the many trails along the way.  On the boat tour, we were mostly looking for American Crocodiles and the occasional gator.  The very tip of Florida and the Keys are the only place in America to find the crocodile.  You can tell the difference between a crocodile and an alligator by looking at the snout.  A crocodile has a more pointed snout and when their mouths are closed you can see all their teeth whereas on an alligator you can only see a few of his teeth.  Alligators are also darker in color than a crocodile.  By this time in the day, it was still a cool morning for south Florida but the sun had come out so we were hoping to see a few reptiles sunning themselves and different bird species that live in the park.  We had success!  We saw one large alligator and two baby crocodiles as well as many different birds, tangles of mangroves, air plants, and, of course, just being out on the water in the backcountry of the Everglades was peaceful, quiet, and beautiful.

 Manatee

 First gator sighting

 Tricolor Heron

 Baby crocodile

 Another baby crocodile

Big crocodile

After the boat tour, I slowly made my way back to the main entrance, stopping at different points along the way.  One stop included a large crocodile sighting lazing about on the bank of the lake with unassuming kayakers paddling right past the great reptile without even noticing him.  To be fair, the crocodile didn't seem to notice or even care that the kayakers were paddling past or that the paparazzi (me) was taking its picture from surprisingly close by considering these guys can run up to 20 mph if the mood strikes them.  All but the last stop I made seemed somewhat remote, where I definitely ran into people and didn't feel afraid to be out there walking around by myself, but at the same time could have moments alone to take in the serene nature and really enjoy my surroundings without the noise pollution of other people instead of the birds and sounds of nature that I really wanted to enjoy.

 Crocodile and unknowing kayaker

The last stop I made in the park was actually very close to the Homestead entrance at Royal Palm visitor's center and walking the Anhinga Trail.  The trail is easily accessed and has boardwalks over the water that let you look for birds, alligators, and turtles while looking into the water.  There were a couple of alligators basking in the sun next to the walkway that were not even fazed by the dozens of people walking past them and taking pictures with them in the background (myself included).  I had to take the chance to take my picture doing the Gator chomp with the biggest gator that was closest to the sidewalk and I admit that I was more than a little nervous turning my back to the gator while I smiled for the camera and could already see the newspaper headline... Crazy Gator Fan Gets Chomped By A Gator While Doing The Chomp...but thankfully the alligator didn't even stir and the photo op was completed.  In all actuality, it is rare to hear of a gator attack.  According to our boat guide, American gators and crocodiles swallow their prey whole so they do not eat anything bigger than the size of their head.  So as long as you are not being completely stupid and challenging the gator then you should be safe.  Your little dog, not so much...he's lunch size.

This big gator is the one I'm pictured with below.

I only spent part of one day in the Everglades and hope to go back again one day soon because I only scratched the surface of what there is to see in the park.  I know Florida is very humid and buggy during the summer months so I would suggest sticking to our winter months when visiting the park for a more pleasant experience but it is worth the time to make a visit and see if it will challenge your previous expectations as well.

Fort Zachary Taylor

Fort Zachary Taylor is in Key West and is located next to one of the better beaches in Key West.  You can take a guided tour of the fort everyday at 11 am.  Our guide was a Florida Gator so I knew it would be good.  I went to the fort knowing absolutely nothing about it but found the history to be fascinating.  It was commissioned after the War of 1812 when the U.S. realized it needed more bases along the water to protect it from enemy forces.  It was held by Union forces during the Civil War and was 3 stories high with 200 cannons spread out between the 3 floors.  The fort never saw action during the Civil War as it was decided that Key West was not an important hold.  However, because of it's location, they were able to stop supplies from getting to the Confederate soldiers and ended up being an important part of the war.  Eventually the 2nd and 3rd stories were removed to be less obvious of a fort and to not draw as much attention and part of the fort was fortified with concrete walls.  The fort was a part of the Navy base and was mostly forgot about for many years.  In 1968, volunteers began excavations of the fort and found the largest collection of Civil War cannons.  It was interesting to hear the history and thinking about standing in the same place that so many historical things happened in the same spot.

 Cannons lined up in the fort

 The courtyard

Old Civil War cannons that were found buried in concrete walls

Dry Tortugas

This is it!  This was the day I was finally going to get to do the one thing I had vowed I was not going to leave the Keys again without doing... go to the Dry Tortugas!  The few other times I have been down to the Keys and Key West I was only here for a couple of days and didn't want to spend a full day taking the trip out to Dry Tortuga National Park, but this time I was here for 3 months and was determined to make it out there.  I kept waiting for the perfect day and had put off the trip one other time due to rain concerns (which ended up not raining) but I finally realized there may never be a perfect time and I just needed to go ahead and do it (take home life lesson- don't wait, just do it) and as it turns out- it was the perfect time!  It was a picture perfect day and I have the pictures to prove it.

First look at Fort Jefferson in the Dry Tortugas

The Dry Tortugas are a chain of remote islands that are still a part of Florida and the Florida Keys.  Key West is the last point in the Keys that you can reach by car but there are still many islands that spread south and west of there.  The Dry Tortuga National Park is 70 miles from Key West.  There are two options of how to get there.  One is a 2.5 hour ferry boat ride (or your own personal boat if it is big enough and you are comfortable with your navigational skills) and the other option is a 30 minute seaplane.  I chose the second option after some encouragement by several of my patients and I am happy I did.  It is a pretty awe-inspiring sight to fly over the fort and come down for a smooth landing on the crystal clear waters surrounding the island.  The flight itself was fun looking down into the water and seeing sea turtles, islands, and even a shipwreck along the way.

 Ready for take off

 Just after take off- flying over Key West

View of Fort Jefferson from the plane

The islands were originally discovered by Ponce de Leon who named it the Tortugas because there were so many sea turtles here and Tortuga is the Spanish word for turtle.  The Dry part was added later to let other explorers know about the lack of fresh water on the islands.  Fort Jefferson was built on the island in the mid 1800s but was never fully completed due to the weight of the fort being too much for the little island. The fort was used by Union troops during the Civil War as a base to help stop supplies from getting to the Confederate soldiers from the south and was later used as a military prison.

The sand there is pure white and had some of the most beautiful shells I have seen including a full conch shell with the conch still in it!  I am told the island is surrounded by coral and lots of marine life and is a great place for snorkeling but unfortunately the water was a bit too cold for my Florida blood and I didn't get any farther than sticking my toes in it.  Just another reason to go back and visit some day!

 Beautiful shells on the beach

Conch shell with the conch still inside it

White sand beaches and crystal clear water

Pigeon Key

I am spending my last week in the Keys ticking off all the last few things I really wanted to see before I left.  Today I visited Pigeon Key located just south of Marathon, along the 7 mile bridge.  To get there you can either walk the 2+ miles along the old bridge (although right now it is closed to that route due to the walkway from the bridge to the island being under repair) or you can take a 10 minute boat ride out to the island from Marathon on the north Atlantic side of the 7 mile bridge.  We ended up being the only 2 people on the tour so it was a private tour for us which was fun and a nice little unexpected perk.  It was a cold, very windy day but the sun was shining bright so it was a nice day for the adventure.

Pigeon Key was instrumental in the building of the overseas railroad that was the vision of Henry Flagler to connect Miami to Key West.  It is on Pigeon Key that the housing for 400 railroad workers was kept.  To see pictures of what it looked like back in 1908 when the bridge was started, it is amazing that the conditions were tolerable back then.  Today there are beautiful, big shade trees and palm trees to sit under (although it was cold so we were looking more for the sun) but when the construction workers were living there, there were no trees at all.  I can't imagine the hot July/August sunshine and not a single tree to escape under!  The railroad was completed in 1912 and the island then became home to the swing bridge keeper.  Someone had to live there to work the bridge for when bigger boats needed to pass under it.  During WWII, military lived on the small island to protect the area from German U-boats.  It's amazing that such a small little island holds so much history and was so important to the growth of Florida and especially the Keys. 

It was a nice leisurely afternoon and in nicer weather you can stay and snorkel around the area but today it was definitely too cold to even consider snorkeling.  I'm happy I got the chance to visit before I left the area.  I love history but I love it more when I get to be in the place where the history occurred while I am learning.  I have always known that Henry Flagler was a huge part of the growth and history of Florida but the more I learn about him, his entrepreneurship and shear determination to make paradise a more livable place, the more impressed I become and the more I want to continue to learn about him.  I might need to consider a trip to his museum sometime in the near future.

Iguanas, Manatees, and Dolphins, oh my! (Ruth's visit!)

My time here in the Florida Keys is slowly coming to an end and I am left with a mix of happy and sad feelings.  I'm happy I got to have this amazing experience living down here and meeting new people, eating amazing food, and being close to the ocean again.  I'm excited to see what lies ahead in my life and looking forward to new adventures but am sad to be leaving behind the new friends I've made and this beautiful place.

I have gotten use to waking up and looking at the canal in the morning while I make my breakfast and get ready for work.  Looking for the iguana that likes to lie on the bush above the canal and trying to find any manatees that might be swimming along. 

My best friend Ruth, her husband, and her daughter came to visit last weekend.  My previous two road trips to the Keys had been with Ruth so I was looking forward to having my partner in crime back with me!  We woke up Saturday morning and slowly got ready for the day, enjoying a relaxing morning when Ruth said "Is that a manatee in your backyard?" and it was!!   We went outside and watched in swim around the neighbor's boat before it came over to us!  It is so exciting to me to watch animals in the natural habitat and these fellows are sooo big that it is just a fun sight to see.

We got ready and headed into Key West for the Seafood Festival.  We spent a few hours walking around the arts booths and eating seafood including some delicious conch fritters and stone crab claws while listening to live music.  We spent some time sitting on the pier in Mallory Square watching the pelicans and enjoying the blue green water in front of us.  You can't come to Key West without walking at least part of Duval Street to see what all the excitement is about and ended up just off of Duval at the Key Lime Pie Company for Key Lime Pie dipped in chocolate which is AMAZING and I highly recommend to anyone who makes their way down here!  We made our way back to Mallory Square for the nightly sunset celebration with street performers and vendors all there to celebrating the sun setting one more day.  Unfortunately, the sunset itself was anything but exciting but just having the energy around us at the pier was fun to be in.

On Sunday we went up to Grassy Key to the Dolphin Research Center.  It is a non-profit research center that focuses its research on dolphins and their wellbeing.  There are currently 27 dolphins in residence there and 3 sea lions.  The dolphins do tricks in a smaller more intimate setting and are in pens in the actual ocean.  There were even a few baby dolphins there!  So cute!  You can pay extra for different interactions with the dolphins anywhere from petting the dolphins to swimming with them and even being a trainer for the day.  Erin and Ruth opted to pet the dolphins which made for a cute photo op.

We had lunch at the Island Fish Company in Marathon and the food there was excellent.  The highlight was the fried key lime pie.  Yep, you read that correctly fried key lime pie.  The pie was warm with a creamy center from the heat of frying it and had whipped cream with cinnamon and sugar topping it and it was Delicious!  I highly recommend it if you ever get the chance.

Yesterday was my last day of work and my coworkers and I went out for happy hour and appetizers to celebrate.  We did a mini version of the Duval Crawl having a drink at different bars along the street and I had a great time celebrating with them and soaking up the energy of the night and lots of laughing.  I'm definitely going to miss them when I go.

While my time here is coming to a close very soon, I still have a few exciting things planned for this week and am really looking forward to it!