More Australia

It's only been nearly a month since I posted a little bit about my trip so I figure it's time to get around to it again!

I had a fabulous time in Australia and I can't really capture it in a paragraph. . .or two. . .or fifty. But who wants a twenty page travelogue? So in about 150+ words (I wouldn't want to discriminate against anyone like me with a short attention span), here's a briefing of my trip. . .

Bondi Beach, Sea Cliff Bridge, Port Stephens, dolphins, surfers, kangaroos at a golf course (and lots of other really cool animals at various places- see previous post), Australian Reptile Park, The Magic Flute (at the Opera House!! Ok, this was super awesome!), Katoomba (mountains/rainforest), Manly Beach, sunburn, downtown Sydney, Sydney Tower, shopping at Paddys and the Rocks, QVB (Queen Victoria Building), the Harbor Bridge (walked it at night, it was beautiful), Koala Park, Darling Harbor, the Sydney Aquarium, going to church, the temple, the church offices, ferries, trains, busses, more ferries, and eating (The yogurt is unbelievable, like no yogurt I have had before, more like a creamy delicious dessert than a healthy breakfast- vanilla mixed with fresh mango was my favorite. Also, date pudding. . . oh it was divine, and did not taste like dates.)! I can't really say that this or that was a highlight, because it was all a highlight. It was fabulous and crazy busy the whole time. As the saying goes, a picture is worth a thousand words. So here are your 18,000 words (plus more words in the captions) for the day.

A few more koala pictures

Koalas are really very cool animals. Besides being a cute marsupial (they are extra cute in a real life and the whole marsupial--underdeveloped wormy fetus blindly crawling into mommy's pouch--thing is really amazing I think) they have really unique hands and feet. On their hands (forepaws) they have two thumbs (opposable digits), then a big gap and then three fingers. It makes climbing trees a lot easier. Then on their feet they techinically have five toes, though it looks like three. The first toe (digit) is clawless, the second and third are fused resulting in a double claw (works nicely for grooming I hear), then two more. Sorry if that's too boring (at least Pat thought it was interesting right Pat??). I found it rather fascinating.

Michelle and I at Circular Quay with the Harbor Bridge behind us

On the opposite side of Circular Quay with the Opera House behind us

The other side of the Opera House

It's actually two buildings, a smaller and a larger one. We saw The Magic Flute in the one on the left.

The Opera House at night from the Harbor Bridge

Michelle, Mom and I with downtown behind us.

On the ferry to Manly

Manly is a beach town right on the ocean, with access to the Pacific Ocean on the east side and Sydney Harbor on the west side. It takes about 30 minutes to ride the ferry out there. In the picture behind me you can see the Sydney Tower. It's the tall skinny tower on the far left.

Manly Beach

Since we were visiting our missionary parents there wasn't any swimming/sunbathing going on. The weather was so perfect the day we were at Manly.

About to get sunburned on the ferry back from Manly Beach

View from Sydney Tower (downtown) towards the Pacific Ocean

Dad stayed behind while we shopped like crazy
(frugal shopping of course)

Early morning hours

Mom, Michelle and I walked most mornings and this day we walked to a church that my grandfather built years ago when my mom was a teenager and their family was living in Australia (Grandpa was building churches). See the car in the background- early morning seminary!

A cool clock inside the Queen Victoria Building

Mom and I at Wharf 5 on Circular Quay
(where we got on and off the ferry)

Michelle and I with a dig player downtown.

This guy was pretty good. He did some talking, some playing, more talking, more playing. He had the whole circular breathing thing down. I have never seen anyone do it and he was awesome!

Michelle and I at the temple after church on Sunday

Mom and Dad at the entrance to the church office buildings (and temple)

Monday morning came too quickly and we were on our long 14 hour flight home. The jet lag was beastly. I cried when I saw my family. I had a wonderful time but I sure did miss them! The happiest moment was when Eli saw me and climbed into my arms with a smile. I was afraid he'd want nothing to do with me.

Sometime I will get around to posting pictures from Spring Break and Easter. But I'm not holding my breath.