Homesick Blues

I don't understand it. I haven't been homesick once since moving here. Instead, I have happily and effectively adjusted to my new life abroad. Don't misunderstand me. If it weren't for Skype, Email, IM and Facebook, I'm sure I would have had bouts of homesickness by now. But, I haven't... that is until the day I took my sister to the airport.

My older sister, Dayna, spent three weeks with us. We had a great time showing her around our corner of Oz. We spent most of the time in or around Brisbane, but the last four days of her trip were spent at a friend's beach house north of us on The Sunshine Coast.

Sunrise at Marcoola

Seeing the Sunrise over the Pacific on the East Coast of Australia


Sisters enjoying the beach at Marcoola

With the exception of two days, we were on the go the ENTIRE time. You name it, we did it! I can't say that Dayna and I were the most adventurous kids. Anyone who knows our mom, will understand why. She was/is a little overprotective (Love you, Mom) For this reason, I think we are both more cautious than we'd like to be. During Dayna's trip, we threw caution to the wind. Hell! You only live once right?

We zip-lined through a ropes course on Tamborine Mountain






We rock climbed at the Kangaroo Point Cliffs












We hiked in the Rainforest at Mt. Glorious






...and the coastal track at Noosa National Park






We kayaked in the Boondall Wetlands


We rode our bikes for miles and miles through neighborhoods and along the coast at Redcliffe






We took a 12 mile cruise up the Brisbane River on the Miramar II to the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary






We pet some wallabies




We got a little more comfortable with the giant Aussie lizards






We ate a Bindi Burger at the Australia Zoo




Where we saw heaps of crocodiles and other animals native to Australia








We pet a Koala and some more wallabies






And we watched as a koala, who had been hit by a car, had surgery on his broken jaw at the Australia Zoo Wildlife Hospital.




During her trip, we seemed to gravitate towards places with superior views (which in Oz, is not difficult to do)






And we had delicious lunches and superb coffees.








All in all, we had a fabulous time. When the time came for her to leave, it was a little surreal. She and I had been looking forward to her trip since before I moved here, and now it was coming to an end. I reluctantly dropped her off at the airport and solemnly drove home. I felt a bit sad on the drive home, but it wasn't until I walked through the door and saw Ryan that I began to cry. Poor Ryan had to wring out his shirt when I was done. I've lived here for almost 10 months, and until that moment I hadn't felt heartsick for home. Thankfully, Ryan is taking a 3 1/2 week holiday from work next month, and we are headed home for a visit. Based on my reaction to my sister leaving, this trip home couldn't have come at a better time.

Walking with Wallabies

Seeing wallabies in the wild is exponentially better than seeing them in captivity. Ryan and I have seen our fair share of captive wallabies in four out of the six states of Australia. However, until yesterday we had never seen wild wallabies.

We drove to the Brisbane Koala Bushlands which sits on 14,000 hectares (34,600 acres) about 20KM (15 miles) southeast of Brisbane. The Bushlands are part of the Koala Coast Network that is one of the most important koala habitat areas in Australia. The Koala Coast protects between 3,000 and 5,000 koalas, as well as many other native animals.













Ryan and I went expecting to see koalas! Instead, we came across a mob of wallabies half way through our walk. I must explain what it's like walking in the Australian bush while looking for Koalas. Remember Australia is home to the world's deadliest snakes and spiders, and Koalas are found in trees. So, we walked quietly, constantly shifting our gaze from the treetops (looking for koalas) to the ground (checking for snakes). And each time you look down checking for snakes, you're afraid you've missed a koala above. So, you look up quickly searching for Koalas.... only to think you're going to step on the world's deadliest snake. And the cycle continues until your Koala walk is over.

Half way through our walk, minutes after I wanted to turn around and go back to the car because I was sure I saw a snake wrapped around a stick sunning himself...



I looked across a field and there they were. At first, I thought they were big, tan dogs.



Two of them stood motionless staring at us, while the other 5-7 hopped away.

After that, we must have looked even more comical as we walked searching the treetops for koalas, the nearby fields for wallabies and the ground underfoot for snakes. We never did see any koalas (or snakes). But, we did see a few more wallabies. My favorite being a little, black-faced one that couldn't have been taller than 2 feet.



Even though we didn't see any koalas, we did get to experience another one of Australia's beautiful natural areas. And we came home without any snake bites!!