LONE ASIAN AND ISLAND RICE - Adventures in Oz

2006-05-12T22:54:00.000-07:00

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Out of Gas????

2006-05-09T20:46:00.000-07:00

As we are about to depart back from Milford Sound we realize that we need to fill up as we have about a quarter tank left and the drive was probably at least 2.5 hours up and down mountains. (obviously not enough to get home) What we soon learned was that the only gas station in Milford Sound wasn't manned and required a New Zealand EFTPOS. Since we didn't have one of those bank cards, our only alternative was making a slight detour to a place called Gunn's Camp where there was apparently emergency gas.

Therefore as we make our way down, the turn off we were suppose to take ended up to be a dirt road or as the local's say "unsealed". As you can imagine, we began to question if this was first, "is this the right way" and two, "will there be gas?" Seeing how the gas was also decipating, our options were running slim. Oh yeah, did I mention the sun had already set?

About 20 km into this dirt road we end up seeing what I believed to be Gunn's Camp. And campsite it was. This place consisted of cabins built in the 1930's and have not changed since. There were probably 8 in total with a VERY small store and yes folks, a gas pump. Not your everyday gas pump though. This was a manual gas pump that needed to be hand pumped to be dispensed. Another slight problem we ran into was that we didn't have normal gas but needed diesel. Luckily for us these people did in fact have a 20L container of Diesel which he offered to give us 10 of.

What was even more interesting was not only was this place surrounded my mountains, it had no electricity, no lights, no nothing. Rustic was the best word I could come up with. We did visit one of these cabins to have a look and found out that its heating system consists of a coal oven which also works as your kitchen stove. (see photo on your right) You would be surprised at the amount of heat that could actually come out of that.

Because of the uniqueness of this place, we decided to stay the night to truly experience this rustic lifestyle. It was amazing. The place was truly a nature lovers dream. In the morning we then went for a tramp (NZ word for hike) to one of the local peaks to see what the area looked like from the top (as seen below).

What started out as a possible obstacle turned into a spectacular experience.

- the lone asian

Milford Sound

2006-05-08T12:02:00.000-07:00

Our next major stopover was Milford Sound. This was situated on the western side of the south island in the famous Fiordland region nestled in the mountains. A place that often receives 200 days of rain during the year, we were fortunate enough not to be in one of those days. The sun was shinning this day.

We thought the best way to see this "sound" was by kayak, away from the several cruise ships that took the lazy... I mean, other tourists along the waters. It left us with a more intimate experience in a place that seemed magical to begin with as well as untouched to the general population.

This "sound" is one that boasts several wildlife species which include dolphins, sea cucumbers, sea urchin's and my personal favorite, the seal. We were lucky enough to catch a glimpse of these amazing creatures as our kayak slowly drifted along side them as we watched them lather themselves up in oil.

Our guides then went as far as digging out some sea urchin, cracking it in half and having us try it. As disgusting as it may sound, it was quite tasty similar to a tofu taste with a hint of salt water.

- the lone asian

Pt II and III

2006-05-06T11:27:00.000-07:00

Our second jump of the day was on top of Queenstown in the mountains. The twist was that the jump was going to be at night in pitch black. We decide to go there a bit earlier while there was still daylight to check out the view and watch the sun set. We also decided to hop on a luge and race down the hill just to kill some time.

As darkness fell upon us, it was show time. The good news was the jump was only 43m high compared to the 134m prior. The bad news was that we still needed to jump. What made this jump more unique (other than the fact it was at night) was that you needed to have a running start before you jumped. What was also different was that we used a chest harness rather than a leg which gave you a bit more mobility in the air.

I decided on the 180 reverse falling back into the night keeping my eye on the wooden treehouse. The only thing I remembered from this jump was how quickly the pod became so small as I hurtled towards the ground.

Our third jump came off the Kawartha bridge (seen on the right) which is the first ever commercial bungy jump site in the world. This also meant the touristiest stop to jump. Some might welcome the crowd as you fell towards the river, but others might not. We really didn’t care as we just wanted to jump. What we do care about is when there are people ahead of you that completely freak out before they jump and end up not even going. The problem with that is you begin to question whether what you are doing is really that safe and normal. In the end we ignored sensibility and reason and completed our thrillology jump with a bang.

If you ever find your way to Queenstown, New Zealand DO NOT miss out on this event!

- the lone asian

I Believe I can Fly!

2006-05-05T10:54:00.000-07:00

Our next adventure takes us to Queenstown which is known as the adventure capital of the world. You name it, they have it. An endless supply of adventure sports for the young, old or family person.

My only goal was to do a bungy jump as this was the first place that had commercial bungy jumping. When we arrived, we quickly learned about the concept of Thrillogy; which was 3 jumps in a 24 hour span. Go BIG or GO HOME was my thought so after a bit of prodding, I convinced Island Rice to do this as well. Later, she would not regret this.

Our first jump was the highest of the three and was also rated within the top 4 in the world. Driving there, you could feel the tension on the bus as we all rode in complete silence. The location was situated in the middle of a dry canyon that was over a 134m looking down. Once you got to the jump site, all you see is a pod suspended by cables in between the canyon. Your first reaction is wonder what is crazier, jumping or going onto this pod.

The entire process didn’t take too long as they didn’t want you to think about the insanity before you jumped. It was a simple strap you in, and 5-3-1 JUMP and you were off! Gravity then takes you as if she was your best friend and dances with you all the way down. The drop is so long that just when you think the ride is over, you still continue to freefall. An unbelievable rush is what you are left with and perhaps a small dent in your wallet.

- the lone asian

Armed and Dangerous

2006-05-04T10:02:00.000-07:00

You wanna piece of me?

Today we decide to take a quick break along the way at a place called "have a shot". With several activities involving your weapons of choice, we decide to go with the bow and arrow as well as the clay shooting. This was a nice way to break up the driving and a great way to relieve some stress from all the bloody sheep we've been seeing....

Mt Cook

2006-05-03T10:34:00.000-07:00

Mt. Cook

2006-05-03T10:30:00.000-07:00

The world renown Mt Cook is the tallest mountain in New Zealand. As we flew into this country above the clouds, this was the only piece of land that could be seen from the air. The actual drive to the mountain itself boasts some of the finest lakes in the country as it uses Mt Cook as its backdrop.

The morning we were driving there didn’t seem very promising as it was covered in clouds (apparently a common occurrence here) and we couldn’t see the peak. We drove to the local tourist office to confirm the weather report and they told us that it was scheduled to get better by noon.

We then took our chances and drove as close as we could before hopping out and doing a hike to one of its glaciers at the bottom of the mountain. The trail itself was called the “Hooker Valley trail” and it took us about 3 hours return to complete the journey. As we got there, the weather did in fact clear up as if it was New Zealand’s way of saying “welcome to our country”. As the pictures show, it was a spectacular sight to see.

Dolphin Swim

2006-05-02T10:18:00.000-07:00

So why not get ourselves into the thick of things right away. One month may seem like a long time, but in reality it will fly by without thinking twice. We decide to start our adventure by swimming with the dolphins.

(though its hard to see, the pic on the right is myself with a hector dolphin)

These however, are no ordinary dolphins. Considered endangered, the Hector Dolphin can only be found in the south island of New Zealand. They grow to about half the size of a blue nosed dolphin (or about 3 meters).

As these animals our wild, once we end up finding a pod (group of dolphins), we need to convince them that we are a friendly bunch of people and just want to play with them. Imagine a bunch of grown adults jumping into the frigid waters of the Pacific Ocean with only a wetsuit and a snorkel then pretending they are able to speak dolphin paints a pretty accurate picture of what we were doing.

A WHOLE NEW WORLD

2006-05-01T00:01:00.000-07:00

It is now time to embark on our new adventure! This leg of the journey brings us to New Zealand.

Often referenced as the Canada of Australiasia, the Adventure Capital of the World, land of the Hobbits. Whatever the claim to fame, we are here to find out!

The goal: Drive around the entire country in a campervan in one months time exploring all that we can see and do in that timeframe.

First stop: Christchurch, South Island

Not much to tell you about this place expect it's alot colder than what we were used to in Oz. Our main task was to use it as our first base as we picked up our car which will act as a bedroom, kitchen, living room and most importantly a mode of transport.

Stay tuned for more....

THE RACE IS ON!

2006-04-30T16:45:00.000-07:00

So long Potts Point... thanks for the memories!

2006-04-29T14:21:00.000-07:00

It's official folks!

We are now homeless once again. Giving up the apartment has been one of the hardest things we've had to do here in Australia. We've had great times at the place and we want to thank everyone who had a chance to come and visit or stay with us as you are now a part of history! Never again will we ever have a view such as this but the time we spent enjoying it will be engrained into our memories forever....

Top 5 apartment moments:

1. New Years Eve Party overlooking the bridge fireworks
2. Dinner on the rooftop watching the sunset and the bats fly over us
3. Sitting in the pool on a hot summer day, having a beer, looking at the opera house
4. Watching random fireworks on evenings without having a clue what it was for
5. Our final send off on the roof celebrating it with all the people that made our lives in Australia a memorable one

- the lone asian

Anzac Day

2006-04-24T22:36:00.000-07:00

Today commemorates Australia’s equivalent to Remembrance Day back home (ANZAC Day). It signifies when the Australians and Kiwi’s joined forces for the first time to go into battle with what was once known as Constantinople (or otherwise known as Turkey). Though many died in the battlefield that day, their memory lives on through the people they left behind and Australian’s treat it as a day of mourning and pride.

Now that you’ve been familiarized with the history behind the holiday, let me enlighten you on the a most unique game we took part in. It’s called “Two Up”. A game that was created to pass the time during the war and since then has been banned 364 days a year. That’s right, this game is considered illegal everyday except today.

It starts off with two coins (hence the name) placed on a paddle. The coins are tossed in the air and the goal is to get both coins to equal each other in suit(as heads or tails). How the betting works is that each person must find another person to equal them in dollar value of the bet as well as agree to the opposite of heads or tails (depending on which you chose to begin with). The game really takes no skill. Your odds are essentially 50/50, yet the attention it grabs is phenomenal! Everyone plays to have a good time, yet the intensity builds as each bet is placed and the suspense of having the coins drop in your favor is nail biting.

In the end, some of us won, some of us lost but we all ended up coming out as winners as it was an experience long to be forgotten.

As the Sun Sets - One Final Party

2006-04-23T22:19:00.000-07:00

The time has come to bid adieu to our life in Sydney. Almost one year has past in a city we fell in love with at first site, we still can’t believe it’s about to end. The good news is that our adventures will not stop here as we are planning to add a few more adventures to our collection before making the journey back home.

That being said, it was another reason to have one last celebration with all the friends that have provided us with memories, support and good times during our stay here. What better way to do this than by hosting “one last party” at the ultimate venue, on our rooftop overlooking the Opera House, Harbor Bridge and City Skyline.

We decided to add a theme of “Any and Everything Australian” to commemorate our time here.

The last thing left to sort was the music. Some of you may or may not recall that when Australians have parties here, they seem to go all out. That being said, we thought it would be fun if we got ourselves a DJ to really set the mood (we’ve come along way from when music was powered by our laptop at our first party). Luckily for us Island Rice had a local hook up (which included the full system and lights), and our buddy Spooner made the atmosphere complete with his bongo drums.

In the end, everything came together and the party was the perfect send off. (We also accomplished our goal of finishing the rest of our alcohol which had been accumulating from the several visitors we had). It was our last chance to thank everyone for making our time in Oz a special one and that is who we dedicate this entry to.

A special thanks to James and Spooner for providing the beats on the streets.

Easter Weekend Adventure

2006-04-17T22:08:00.000-07:00

As we wind down our time in Australia, we thought we’d spend our last official long weekend in Sydney away from the city life and by the beach (ironic isn’t it?). Searching high and low for a reasonable activity to take advantage of the 4 day weekend, we end up discovering a surf trip that took us 4 hours north to a beach house called Tiona.

The house itself was situated with the beach in its backyard, while on the other side there was a gorgeous lake. What a weekend it turned out to be:

- 30 people from around the world also wanting to get away.
- Sand boarding on the Stockton Dunes one last time
- Evening party’s on the beach by the fire pit.
- Breakfast on the beach watching the dolphins pass us by
- In three days, over 6 surf sessions for everyone!
- My ultimate favorite, our first surf session in the water as the sunset, we were greeted by a full moon rising behind us
- If that wasn’t enough, throw in a windsurfing lesson and you have the perfect weekend

I don’t usually like advertising but a big thank you to the Bondi Adventure Desk Company for putting on a great time for us all…

- the lone asian

Crab Racing

2006-04-12T16:35:00.000-07:00

It has come to our attention that Australians are very much into their horse races (that’s right, “horse races”). They have a national holiday (unofficial of course) for an event called the Melbourne Cup. Think of it as the annual Superbowl except this involves a 2 min. horse race. Everyone gets dressed up in their finest outfits, television stations are out judging what people are wearing (much like Oscar night) and everyone has a few drinks while placing some bets.

Anyways, I digress as I’ve veered off topic. The past evening we decide to take part in another form of racing as we aren’t as prim and proper and couldn’t really be bothered to make the trek to the stables (didn’t have any feathers to put in our hats/hair). Our race consisted of hermit crabs, a bowl, water hose and a whole lot of beer (I know… pretty classy). How this event works is you place a bet on any random crab, name it and hope that its not dead when the bowl is lifted. There are three heats and the winner is awarded a t-shirt. In the end, none of us won anything but we did have this lovely picture to share with all of you…and an adopted crab which had 3 minutes of glorious hope and momentum which will echo in our lives forever...

Aussie Rules Football – AFL at its finest

2006-04-08T16:25:00.000-07:00

This past weekend we finally were able to watch our first AFL match. It was situated in the Sydney Cricket Ground where we were fortunate enough to get some tickets from a friend of ours for FREE! One interesting note to mention is our tickets put us at the “Noble” section away from the “Commoners” that also attended. Yeeeah, what happened to the days of Section’s A-Z or perhaps lower bowl vs upper bowl?

So to give you a bit more background, the Sydney Swans (name of the team we were watching) was the team that won the championship last year (first time in history). We thought this would be a great game to watch as it was their first home game of this season.

The game started off as a great battle. The crowd got into it and the beer was flowing nicely. Half time came around and our entertainment was a bunch of 10 year olds battling it out. The second half was a bit more disappointing as the game started to get out of hand as the visiting team spoiled the season opener by dominating the Swans and ended up winning by over 20 points.

The best part of this experience definitely had to be after the game as everyone was allowed to enter the field where the players were and kick their rugby balls and run all over. Probably meant for kids but hey, we are all kids at heart right?

- the lone asian

Team Canada comes for a visit

2006-03-18T16:15:00.000-08:00

This entry is dedicated to “Team Canada” who wanted a taste of the adventures that our “one of a kind eco certified tour” offers.

Four brave women - four days of ab-strengthening laughs:

From trekking to secret waterfall pools, surviving the kings cross night life, and bargaining at the markets, to surfing, scaling the bridge, and beaching…they ‘savoured’ the experiences and had room for seconds!

Team Canada quickly earned a name-change to “Team Australia”, and will conquer the eastern seaboard over one month!

Though their time in Sydney was short, we were pleased to host them and thank them for their fun t-shirts and break-dance lessons.

Come back anytime girls for "just one drink"

- Island Rice (aka: “Team Australia Coach”)

The end of an Era – the surfing saga continues

2006-03-15T16:07:00.000-08:00

As mentioned in several previous logs, we have taken up the sport of surfing. No longer is it a hobby, but now a passion. Any spare time we can find, we are on the beach trying to catch wave. We’ve experienced any and every condition you could possibly throw at us and we still keep on fighting.

In recent days we have experienced a phenomenon in Sydney which hasn’t happened in over 30 years. It began as any other ordinary day at work, waiting until the final bell rang before we were off to the beach to catch our usual surf. As we approach the beach, we could see it from a mile away. The waves were the biggest we have ever seen as they gathered to well over 20 feet at some points. Apparently the night before, a cyclone had blown through and built up enough power to create such a magical sight. At first, we spent several minutes watching in awe (as did several other surfers). Once that moment was over, it was time to take on the challenge.

As we entered the water, it was some of the most powerful rips I have ever come across. In seconds we would be swept back where we came from, yet we weren’t about to give up that easily. I am the first to admit that I am by no means an expert surfer and did stay closer to shore as it was probably the safer thing to do (as lifeguards on skidoos were plucking/saving the odd person out of the backwaters). What I can tell you is that once we did get picked up by the wave, the surge of the swell instantly took us to our feet. When we sat on top of the water, it was one of the greatest feelings we ever had.

Once we got out of the water, we knew that we would probably never see this again. That coupled by the change in daylight savings meant an end to our weekday adventures on the beach. As the sun set that final day, our season slowly came to a close leaving us with only the memories of Bondi Beach.

A special thanks to our mate Lee who graciously took us out each day in the vehicle shown on the right. It has definitely been a great ride!

- the lone asian

LOOK OUT BELOW! - Canyoning in the Blue Mountains

2006-03-04T17:26:00.000-08:00

Canyoning is defined as doing a hike through a canyon where you will be required to cliff jump into pools of water, abseil (or repel) down or through waterfalls, slide on natural slides and swim in pools of water. Canyons themselves are formed through millions of years of water flowing between mountains, breaking down rock formations and eventually creating a gaping hole to allow the water to flow through (that's your scientific lesson for the day).

My first experience was in Interlakken, Switzerland. As it was great fun and a chance to bond with your mates, I decided to organize a trip out to the Blue Mountains to see if this could be repeated.

I was definatley impressed with the canyon we went into. It was called Serendipity. Our journey begins with a hike down a steep path that takes us to the gateway. There we put on our wetsuits and scale down the cliff wall as we are held up by only a piece of rope! From there we continue through puddles of water often reaching waist high. I would have to say our highlight of the day was when we jumped off the ledge into a small pond (rocks on both sides), then followed it up with one final abseil through a waterfall.

Though the overall canyon itself was not as technical as in Switzerland, it was a great way for everyone to feel what it's like to do the sport. It was also another opportunity for us to get a bit more intimate with the natural beauty of the Blue Mountains.

- the lone asian

Open Air Cinema Part Deux

2006-02-27T17:04:00.000-08:00

This time the venue is at Bondi Beach. Home of the most famous beach in Sydney. The concept is the same as the first only in addition to chairs, they offer bean bags (as seen in the pictures) some of which are the molding of a shark.

The movie of choice this evening was Riding Giants. I thought it would make most sense to watch a surf documentary on the beach where we spend most evenings catching the waves. I would definately recommend this movie to all avid sports fans. It's a movie that explores the history of big wave surfing and has some great shots of waves we can only imagine to ride.

- the lone asian

The Brochures’ fine print – what they didn’t want you to hear

2006-02-26T16:54:00.000-08:00

Although it may appear that we lead a “champagne lifestyle”, we thought it may be time to share some of the adversities we face on a day to day basis:

1. Having to watch cricket highlights rather than NHL.
2. The feeling of being LOST because all the maps are upside down, and street name signs are knocked down by drunken hoodlums.
3. 1.5 hr commute to work via a combination of biking, train, and bus…which requires a 5:30am alarm.
4. FORCED to shop for “reduced” items at the grocery store because everything else is too expensive! (e.g., green capsicums/peppers $9/kg; mushrooms $7/kg). Some days we are forced to fight to buy leftover scraps at the local Chinese market
5. Walking past people who are homeless and have addictions everyday on the way to/from work.
6. Awakening at 2am, 4am, and 5am to the sound of mosquitoes buzzing in one’s ear.
7. Every meal preparation takes double the time due to efforts to keep cockroaches away, having no oven, a bar fridge, and having only 2 “hot plates” as a ‘stove’.
8. Lack of high speed internet and proper telephone connections.
9. 1 sandwich with ham, cheese and lettuce and tomato costs $7.50. Mcdonald’s meal that includes fries, drink AND a burger is $5. Small coffee costs $3, 1 doughnut is $2.50; compare that with 1L beer at $4. Due to ridiculous prices, we are forced to a consume the unhealthier things in life
10. Having to use one of the MOST PATHETIC (perhaps I should use MOST UNRELIABLE) transit systems in the civilized world. (though I could write a book on why this is, let's just say 16 different lines does not equal efficiency. LATE, OVERCROWED, COSTLY, and OVERHEATED are just a few issues to point out
11. Being so far away from family and friends.
12. Searching for hot wings all over the city only to find out they don't exist!

Island Rice’ wisdom: life always seems to balance itself out…total satisfaction vs. “not so nice things”…but these can all be put into perspective. Life could be worse! So we will continue to enjoy it all – even the “bad”

Trop Fest 2006

2006-02-25T16:03:00.000-08:00

The festival is called Trop Fest 2006. It is the world's largest short film event and the screening occurs in Sydney, Australia.

After reviewing over 700 short films, the judges narrow it down to 16 finalists and show them on a big screen in the middle of the domain park(situated in our backyard). Every year, crowds of up to 80,000 people show up for yet another "free" event (I still haven't figured out where all this money comes from to pay for such events)

This year was a bit more unique as the weather didn't seem to want to cooperate with the event. As the sun set (though it was covered in clouds), the rain decided to bare itself upon us. It began as a light sprinkle and tapered off before really releasing its full force in an all out tropical storm! It took about another 10 minutes, but the show was finally postponed due to the fear that the equipment could be damaged by lighting.

As I was already soaking wet, I thought I'd sit and watch the stampede leave the grounds as it seemed like absolute chaos everywhere! Some decided to take advantage of this rare occurance and started playing in the rain. The weirdest thing I saw was seeing a person stripped down to nothing walking around as if it was the normal thing to do. To end off the night, we decided it would be fitting to head to the bar to escape the rain and watch the madness from indoors.

- the lone asian

A BIG PRICE TO PAY FOR ‘NEGLIGENCE’ – RAW'S Injury

2006-02-13T20:19:00.000-08:00

A routine weekend surf at the beach …turns into a day where the force of nature toss us like a piece of Kleenex in the laundry.

After battling some fierce wave action for 20 min, I stumble onto shore with “RAW”. The poor thing suffered a fractured right dorsal fin. We tried to keep Raw from going into shock and rushed it home. OT splinting methods failed. Fortunately, our friendly neighbor supplied us with some adhesive products that only industrial workers have access to, and we attempted to fix it into place.

Our efforts were only a ‘band aid’ solution, as Raw suffered even more damage the second day. The fin was now fully broken off… IT WAS TIME TO VISIT THE ‘HOSPITAL’.

“The DING DOCTOR” – the only doctor in town had to give us a ‘scolding’. He said that our “negligence” has lead to only one option – ‘SURGERY’.

1 week without Raw created a void in our evenings, and the cost of our ‘negligence’ was more than we budgeted for. The Ding Doctor wanted to pronounce death, and even tried to offer money to us to put Raw “to sleep”. However, the fun times we will have with it will be priceless! We decided to go ahead with surgery, and treated Raw to a new waxing before taking it out on its first rehab surf. Just like its hardy owners, Raw withstood all blows thrown its way, and made a complete recovery.

Lessons learned:
1. If you buy slightly damaged goods, there is a good chance it will lead to further damage.
2. Band-aids, duct tape, and crazy glue can only get you so far.
3. If you get pushed off, jump back on…you may go further the 2nd time around, and if not, the ride will be enjoyable.

- Island Rice

Attack of the Jelly

2006-02-11T19:23:00.000-08:00

Let me first retrack my last statement of "right place, right time". Don't get me wrong, I do feel very fortunate with all that we've been able to do, but read on and you'll find out my latest encounter with the creatures in the sea.

It's called the "blue bottle jellyfish". Tiny little sea monsters that have no vertebrae or spine. They have no real swimming capability other than the fact they use their bodies as a parachute and take them where the wind blows. With no natural predators, it seems strange they contain a poisonous venom (non lethal) inside them. These little buggers are often found in Queensland, but this year have found themselves as south as Sydney harbor.

My incident begins in Manly Beach. Going for my usual weekend surf, I failed to realize the several signs warning swimmers that there were several blue bottle's that afternoon. And even after I saw them in the water for my very own eyes, they still did not deter me from my surf. Looking back, it should have occurred to me that there was a good possibility of contact considering the people around me were getting stung and getting out of the water. It was the last set of the day, perhaps what could have been my final wave, only to be sabatoshed by the blue bottle as is wrapped around my wrist and released the poison.

I'm not going to lie to you, that bite was extremely painful. It ended up swelling up my entire wrist then leaving it's tentacle scarring embedded in me as a reminder. I was told that you really aren't a true Aussie until you've been bitten by one of it's deadly creatures. I think this was my ticket in.

Lessons for the day:

- read and obey signs that warn you of blue bottle jelly fish
- NEVER put vinegar on it as it will increase the pain
- the only real cure is to apply ICE to keep the swelling down

- the lone asian

Outdoor Open AiR CiNemA

2006-02-05T19:50:00.000-08:00

Since it "rarely" rains (knock on wood) here during summertime, Sydney-siders take advantage of this weather by setting up several open air cinema's in the park. It's a great way to have a picnic before the sun sets and once it does, watch one of your favorite flicks in the park.

We were again fortunate enough to live near the best cinema available as the screen was placed in the Botanical Garden's Bay (literally in the water) with the Opera House, Harbor Bridge and City Skyline acting as the backdrop.

We decided to watch a movie called "Goal" which was a story about a boys dream to play professional soccer and the obstacles and challenges he faces along the way. Because this show was already sold out, our only option was to watch it from the rocks behind the back of the cinema (also known as the poor man's seat) which is a fine option, only you don't get a proper seat.
20 minutes before the movie starts, a man approaches all of us in the back and tells us that he has 6 extra tickets available as he had some cancellation. Before he could ask if anyone wanted it, I was up on my feet thanking him for his generosity. I think you're going to have to rename us to "RIGHT PLACE, RIGHT TIME" because that how we feel some times. Once we entered the seated area, we discovered that this was actually the Australian Premiere of the movie and had the actual producers introduce the film!

The movie itself was decent but the experience of watching this movie with the opera house and bridge on one side, the city on your left and bats eating on top of you will last a lifetime....

- the lone asian

Rugby League

2006-02-04T19:32:00.000-08:00

We have officially been to our first "footy match" in Australia. The league is called the Super 14. It is equivalent to the NFL (National Football League) as opposed to the CFL (Canadian Football League). What I mean to say is these players are bigger, hit harder and are promoted as the elite rugby league amongst the rest.

I'd explain the difference between these leagues in more detail but truth be told, I really don't understand it myself.

Tonight we witnessed a rivalry between the Australians (Waratah's) and Kiwi's (Crusader's from New Zealand) that has been ongoing for years. What ended up starting off as a one sided blow out turned out to be a VERY competitive game that saw New Zealand win by only 2 points. The game itself was entertaining enough, but what was even more amusing was the commentary coming from the crowds. Probably nothing I would prefer to repeat online but try and imagine what it must have been like and multiply by 10.

- the lone asian

The Art of Surfing

2006-01-28T19:06:00.000-08:00

Since the purchase of RAW, it has been our hobby to go out and surf as much as possible as we have the perfect environment to do it in. After progressing to a point where I feel my skill is competent, I thought I would take this opportunity to explain this sport called surfing...

It begins on shore. You check out where the best waves are to catch and you make a b-line into the ocean and attempt to pass the break. This is no easy feet, as there are some days where the waves will push you back to shore along with the current. On other days its so bad that you will see a line of people similar to soldiers on a battle field that are about to engage in combat before being pelted back as the enemy does not welcome you.

If you do manage to paddle out to sea, your next challenge is to find the perfect wave amongst hundreds of other surfers who are all waiting for the same thing. Some may yell and some may just run you over if you are in their way but its survival of the fittest and only the strong will survive.
When that wave does come, it is then your job to paddle as hard as you can towards where you JUST came from (I know, why bother). The wave will eventually pick you up from underneath and you have less than a second to place both feet on top of the motioned board, stand up and turn the board towards where the wave has yet to break.

The effort is then rewarded with as little as 2 second to as long as 10 second adreline rush before having to go through it all again!

Is it all worth it?

You better believe it!

- the lone asian

2006-01-26T15:50:00.000-08:00

Australia Day

2006-01-26T15:46:00.000-08:00

Let me first start off with “someone out there is really looking after us, and we want to take this opportunity to thank that person/person’s for the amount of luck you have provided to us!”

What do I mean? You’ll see in a sec...

Australia Day starts off as any other day except we didn’t have to work. We decide to head into the harbor as we were told there would be several events happening throughout the day. As we arrive, we end up missing the first event which was a surf board race across the harbor waters.

Not a big deal, so we then decide to take a walk around to see what else was going on. We end up stumbling onto a set of three tall ships docked in the harbor and rumor had it that these were the ones that were going to be racing in the afternoon. As we board the vessel to take a closer look, we were told that the boat was departing for the rest of the day and we were welcome to join them for a fee. At the time it seemed a bit much for our budget but after a bit of wheeling and dealing on Island Rice’s part, we were ready to set sail.

Yes folks, your two Canadian Ambassadors spent the entire day sailing on a tall ship on the Sydney Harbor! It was the most amazing way to experience Australia Day as we started by participating in a boat parade that saw hundreds upon hundreds of boats dressed in their finest outfits form a line behind us and partake in this annual tradition. Not only that, in order to insure no other boats came near us, we were given a police escort the whole time we were on the water.

Once the parade was over, we had a couple of hours to relax on the water where we went back and forth under the harbor bridge watching the thousands of people on the mainland passing us by. To keep us entertained until then, other events on the water included an aerial display of 7 jets flying above us, trained skydivers doing above ground acrobatics and a search and rescue display.

As 3pm struck, we were put to work. Being the younger, lighter ship, we were definitely the favorites going into the race. All who were able gathered to the front and joined in to raise all the sails. Once they were all up, we could feel the surge of the wind pick us up and send us flying! Though the race was a short sprint from start to finish, it was a great feeling crossing the line first amongst all other tall ships.

After the race, we were treated to yet another fine display of fireworks launched from Darling Harbor. As the sun set and the Commonwealth torch (as it made its way around Australia) sailed past us, the sky became lit up with a fantastic show to the awe of thousands of people who came to celebrate the country’s national holiday.

What started out as another average day turned out to be a moment we will remember always...

- the lone asian

Australian Open

2006-01-21T15:27:00.000-08:00

The next 2 days were going to be dedicated to tennis as it was the purpose of our trip to Melbourne. We begin early in the morning as we wanted to get to the stadium before everyone else did in order to get the best seats possible. What we didn’t take into consideration was the extreme temperatures that were being predicted for the next 2 days. By 9:30am, we had hit 37 degrees and it was only going to get worse!

By the time we were in the stadium, you could feel the heat intensify as more people started showing up. It was 10:45am when the tournament organizers decided it was time to close the roof. Forget rain delays folks, ONLY in Australia, do you also have to deal with EXTREME HEAT CONDITIONS. Play outside was suspended the entire day as temperatures soared to the mid 40’s. We on the other hand, had the best seat in the house as the roof closed on top of us and the air conditioner turned on. The next 8 hours would be spent watching some of the worlds finest battling it out for the top reigns in Australia. It was the fourth round of play and several top seeded players had already made an early exit. Highlights in the next 2 days included the following:

- watching Justine Henin Harden easily destroy her opponent in straight sets (she eventually reached the women’s final)
- sitting in the stands front row with Chela’s family cheering him on (he was the player that knocked out Australian’s Leyton Hewitt.)
- watching journeyman Febrice Santorro make it for the first time in 17 years to a men’s quarterfinal grand slam after he defeated the seated Ferrer. (see photo on right)
- battle of Russia (Petrova vs Vesnina)

- the lone asian

Volvo Stop Over Race

2006-01-19T21:13:00.000-08:00

This weekend was meant to be dedicated to the Australian Open in Melbourne to watch some of the worlds finest duke in out in the first grandslam of 2006.

What we didn't realize until we arrived, however, was the Volvo Around the World race stopover was also being held during the same time! What a bonus that was. For those who are unfamiliar with the race, its a sailboating race that begins in Spain and travels around the world. The first stops are in South Africa and the second one is in Melbourne before heading off to Brazil, US, UK and finishing off in Sweden. Each stopover will consist of a 3 week stay as the boats are repaired and supplies replenished.

For those who have ever been out in sea can truly understand the dangers that lay in this race and the mental and physical challenges these competitors must endure to compete. This weekend marked the arrival of the several boats and as we all anxiously waited, the first one finally arrived at 8:45pm in the evening!

It was amazing seeing the size of this maxi sail boat gently ride itself into the harbor to the applause of thousands of bystanders waiting to get a glimpse. This was then followed up with a spectacular fireworks display to end the night off...

- the lone asian

The Best Things in Life are Free

2006-01-14T20:40:00.000-08:00

As we now approach the heart of the summer, we begin to find out that Sydney was definately the best place to be as there are heaps of festivals everywhere you turn. We have spent the past week visiting some of these and thought we'd share our favorites thus far

1. Concert of Fire: Unbelievable can only begin to describe what we saw. Think of it as Stomp meets the Symphony of Fire (ie: fireworks display). For 50 minutes in the middle of darling harbor, we were treated to a group of drummers lit up by only a headlamp while the rest of their body was in total darkness. Suddenly, as the sound got louder, the progressive beating of the drum led to fireworks being shot up right above us. Just when you thought the finale was there, they kept on coming! Definately #1 on the festivals list

2. New Orleans Jazz Festival: Why go to New Orleans when you can bring New Orleans to Sydney? That's just what happened as a stage was set up in the middle of the field (The Domain). Tens of thousands of people started showing up and waited all day to listen to some of the worlds greatest jazz players play and they were definately not left disappointed when it was all said and done

The Story of RAW

2006-01-12T15:35:00.000-08:00

This is a story about RAW. We found him purely by COINCIDENCE as we were heading to the beach bar to listen to another live band in Sydney. Passed on by one person to another, this orphan was offered to us by a nice english guy as he was no longer able to look after him.

Our goal in the next few months is to train RAW to obey us in the sea and carry us on top of the waves... We are extremely excited about our new purchase and be sure to follow his adventures throughout Australia.

We do ask you to help us out as we would like your opinions on the following acronyms:

R.A.W.
- real adventure in water
- riding adventure waves
- real adrenaline wave
- real adrenaline wrush

Tell us which one is your favorite!

- lone asian

To Adelaide - land of the churches

2006-01-09T15:09:00.000-08:00

The last leg of our trip would take us up one more mountain (just because climbing 3 wasn't enough). This one was called Mount Zero. We were told that the formation was different from the rest and as it was a bit off the beaten track, why the heck not eh?

Well, halfway through the hike it became apparent we were all questioning that decision. The mountain was only rock, with no trees to provide us shelter from the sun. As noon hit, the heat did little to subside and had it not been for the 4 litres of water we brought with us, we would have turned back.
When we did reach the top, it was definately a great site to see. Being the only ones there added to the experience compared to the several dozen of people we usually fight with to get a glimpse of the scenery.

It was then off to Adelaide. Not much to add here, though we were introduced to local authorities upon our entry into South Australia and it wasn't meant to be a warm welcome. The city of Adelaide is one of the smaller ones we have visited thus far. They are reknowned for being a city of churches and that became apparent when we did in fact see "several churches". As we arrived later in the evening, it was our task to check into a hostel and find a local church that served local beverages.

In all honesty though, there was no church but several fine establishments that served South Australia's finest brew that came with "NO PRESERVATIVES". She was called Coopers Beer.

- the lone asian

The Grampians

2006-01-07T15:46:00.000-08:00

Day 5-6

The next leg of the trip brought us to North Victoria to the Grampian's National Park. It was goodbye to the coastal line and up to the mountains. This range definately had a certain uniqueness to it.

Our first day there saw us do several hikes, the highlight being Mackenzie falls which is featured on the picture to the left. Upon our return to our hostel, we were greeted by several Kangaroo's in our backyard lounging around looking for a bite to eat.

Day 2 began bright and early (well 9am is early for me) and up to what was called the Pinacle mountain. Given that several people do this hike a day I was under the impression that it would be a nice brisk hike to the top.

Nice, it was... brisk it was not. Elevating to 250m, this 6 km hike definately was a bit of a challenge but the journey itself was the greatest part. That as well as sitting on top of the highest peak in the area overlooking the rest of the region.

As we are entering the heart of summer season, the heat is definately rising. Tip of the day is to continually keep hydrated and plenty of sunscreen!

Remember that there is a hole in the Ozone layer on top of this country.

- the lone asian

GREAT OCEAN ROAD, it truly is...

2006-01-05T15:57:00.000-08:00

DAY 3-4

After a spontaneous decision to go Scuba Diving in the Southern Ocean, our drive then took us on a ferry ride across one of the most dangerous harbor openings in Oz as this was where several ships were laid to rest prematurely.

We then continue our journey onto the Great Ocean Road, where we begin by stopping at the Surf Capital of Victoria (TORQUAY, the home of Billabong, Ripcurl and Quicksilver) which was also the doorstep to Bells Beach Australia. For those who aren't familiar, this was the scene where the thousand year old storm took place in the movie Point Break. Definately a surfers dream with swells reaching well over 6 feet high.

The adventure then moves along to the infamous 12 Appostles. 12 limestone rock formations (actually 11 now), sitting independently along the coast overlooking the Southern Ocean. It was truly a natural wonder and a magnificent site! We decide to go all out when we arrive and take a helicopter ride over the coastal line to get the perfect birds eye view.

Once we were back on terra firma, it was off to visit the other rock formations all along the coast, each spot having a certain uniqueness to it. We definately got our fill of limestone for the day. We decide to end the day off by driving back to the 12 Appostles to watch the sunset. It was even a better view at dusk! When the sun finally set, we waited for a little while as we were told a little surprise might turn up.

As we all sat patiently, we are amazed to see hundreds, possibly thousands of penguins march from the ocean onto the beach in several different groups as if they were all gathering to go to a party. They were actually all heading into the caves where they sleep at night. What a way to finish the night!

- the lone asian

On the Road Again - in Melbourne

2006-01-03T17:54:00.000-08:00

The Goal: Travel from Sydney to Adelaide stopping in Melbourne and driving along the Great Ocean Road and the Grampians in 1 week

DAY 1

After 9 hours on the road from Sydney heading south, we enter into the state of Victoria. The drive seemed like a baron wasteland with fields so dry, a simple cigarette bud could light it up. In fact, we were quite fortunate we weren't affected by the several bush fires that sent the state in smoke for 2 days.

It was uncharted territory for the Lone Asian and Island Rice once again, but a refreshing change and the start of the new adventure. Oh, and this time we have another visitor from Canuckland. Let's call him Sailor Pete.

Definately an interesting experience being a backpacker once more. Sharing a hostel room with 3 other strangers, along with one bathroom. Our first night was definately a shocker as 3am rolled around and our gracious roomates decides to introduce themselves. Drunk out of their minds, one guy wasn't even able to get up on top of the bunk bed. Once he finally did, however, was when he decided a prayer to the toilet gods were necessary before heading into bed. I hope he chokes on his vomit (sorry, thinking outloud again)

Obviously not a good first night in Melbourne. What better way to cure a night with no sleep and a 9 hour drive the day before by touring the city on foot?

From what I was able to gather, however, Melbourne did seem like a quaint little city with alot of personality. This will be home to the 2006 Commonwealth Games as well as the Annual Australian Open (which we'll be coming back to see) Take a look at some of the pictures and decide for yourself what you think about this place...

- the lone asian

2006-01-01T19:24:00.000-08:00

New Years Day

2006-01-01T17:45:00.000-08:00

After an evening of festivities, it was the beginning of a new year. New goals, new resolutions, new adventures. We are looking forward to what the new year will bring.

This year was bit different from most. As temperatures reached a record high of 44 degree's with a scorching sun above, the only logical place to be was the beach. And to avoid the crowds, we decide to spend the day where the first person to surf a wave in Australia was recorded. Though, no one has ever heard of it, for those interested the beach was called Freshwater.

As we arrive, we begin by partaking in the annual tradition of the Jan 1st polar bear swim. Though I'm not sure it counts when the water is 30 degrees, it was a refreshing activity nonetheless. The rest of the afternoon was spent on the surf and lounging on the beach.

Not a bad way to start the year....

How to Throw an Australian New Years Party in 10 Easy Steps:

2005-12-31T20:51:00.000-08:00

1. Start by making your studio apartment look like a 2 bedroom apartment to fit all your guests

2. Have an 80% Auzzie content quota to fill, but replace it with 15 of the most friendliest Canadians and UK’ers known to Sydney! (Not sure how this happened but our guest list consisted of 13 Canadians and 2 UK’ers)

3. Insure that there will be ample beverages available even though it is BYO. Make sure there is bubbly around to ring in the New Year!

4. Fill your bathtub with 10 bags of ice and throw all beverages in for the ultimate chill factor... then sit in the bathtub, and use VB’s and Coopers to replace ‘rubber duckies’ to cool off from the mid-day humidity of 40 degrees Celcius.

5. Gawk at how lucky we are to live in such a prime location! Spend the afternoon walking the streets and parks to see all the less fortunate people who had to camp out all day in the scorching sun to get a good seat to watch the fireworks. Some people went as early at 9am in the morning to secure their spot.

6. Ask your local government to supply 5 million dollars worth of fireworks and have 2 shows (one at 9pm and the other at midnight) Launch them off 4 barges in sequence along the water

7. Have everyone in your party ascend to the roof top once the sun sets and ask everyone in the building to join you up there with all their friends (This ended up to be a very exclusive party for tenants and 15 of their closest friends)

8. Hire a DJ to play music all night on the roof and get your buddy who plays the bongo drums to mix it up with the DJ to create the ULTIMATE ATMOSPHERE

9. Ring in the New Year with your closest mates at 12am and watch the most spectacular fireworks display as the barges lit up the sky along with the harbour bridge being the centre piece overlooking the opera house!

10. Finish the evening with a spontaneous dip in the roof top pool to cool down

This was truly a night to remember and we feel very fortunate for being able to experience a New Years in this fashion. We want to take this opportunity to wish everyone around the world a HAPPY NEW YEAR and hope they had a great celebration where ever you are....

2005-12-29T18:03:00.000-08:00

Profile picture

Christmas in Australia (on the East Coast)

2005-12-25T14:17:00.000-08:00

Ever wonder what Christmas is like in the summer? Is it really that different from being out in the cold? Is it still okay to call it a white Christmas if you’re surrounded by white sands?

As it was our goal to bring you the most accurate facts about the land down under, we decide to split the research by traveling to the east and west coast of Australia to find the above answers.

My assignment was the East Coast while Island Rice was responsible for the West. I decide the best way to immerse myself was to visit a good mate’s family in the sunshine coast of Queensland just opposite to Fraser Island on a beach house at Rainbow Beach. It wasn’t going to be easy to just lie on the beach and by the pool all day, but I was willing to take that sacrifice all in the name of research! I wanted to answer the question of “how does an Aussie celebrate Christmas”

The answer was simple: Our morning begins with the world tradition of opening presents by the tree to see what Santa has brought. Then we head to the beach for an early morning tropical fruit breakfast followed by a dip in the ocean. As exhausting as that was, it was now time to prepare for Christmas brunch. The meal was kept simple, as we cracked open some mud crabs, plated out some fresh oysters, got ourselves a few pounds of prawns and we were set. After the meal, we needed to burn off some of the calories so what better way to do it then by going back to the ocean for a surf?

Not bad so far eh? Well, it gets better. Upon our return, we then have our Christmas dinner, which consisted of turkey, duck, chicken, lamb, and one big honkin piece of ham. Unfortunately there was no more room for a cow, but I think we were okay for meat. Oh, and for the vegetarians out there, we had plenty of rabbit food as well.

The rest of the day was spent mostly in the pool with a few cocktails and some floatation devices to try and stay cool from the scorching sun. We end the night off with a fire and some pudding. Why we needed a fire in 35 degree temperatures didn’t really make sense to me either but hey neither do vegetarians so I don’t bother asking.

Major thanks to the Blurtons for putting up a stranded Canadian in a foreign place and making him feel extremely welcome in a time when it was needed most…

- the lone asian

Christmas on the West Syde

2005-12-25T01:12:00.000-08:00

What is the best prevention from feeling homesick during the Christmas season?

a) Take 2 Gravol tablets, and some ant-acid.
b) Make drunken prank calls to everyone back home.
c) Flying the family down to visit.

Luckily for you, I chose c). I was very fortunate to spend yet another Christmas with my family, despite of being 100’s of miles away.

Mama and Papa “Island k-nuts”, wee sister “Island coco-nuts”, and Uncle “Island spice”, were all added to make the best “Island Rice” ever! Our family friends Juanita and Glen hosted a very Yummy Christmas. Thanks to them, we continued the same family traditions from back home: cooking for hours, sitting on Santa’s lap, eating for hours, playing crazy games, and staying up late with plenty of ‘toasts’.

Perth was a good fit with our “Island Rice-Family” sense of humour. The airport had comedians dressed up as Santa, Turkey and fig pudding, to crack jokes as we arrived, while playing out of tune instruments.

The lifestyle out west is more laid-back than fast-paced Sydney. I would end up spending ½ hour in the store to buy only one item, as I would hear about how “my sister, Sheila just had a baby; my new dog tore up the garden”…people are very friendly and love to chat. And just like in Canada, the west-coasters love to “take the piss” (Oz translation= “make fun of”) of Sydney-siders.

The state of Western Australia is almost ½ the size of Australia. This may explain why it became normal to see 7 dead kangaroos and only 1 car after 2 hours of driving!

The “Island Rice family” traveled from Perth to the most southern tip of Australia (Albany).

Highlights included:

- Wine tasting at some of Australia’s most popular wineries.
- Stunning untouched bright blue crystal clear water of the Indian Ocean, with white sparkling sand.
- Hugged Australia’s largest trees, then climbed a 60ft tree, using only metal rungs coming out of the trunk.
- Hitting our sticks really hard along the bush walks to scare off snakes and other creepy crawlies.

Although my mission was to learn about West-coast life, I also took away a life-lesson which I learned from the “Island Rice Family”: Although this rice is on an island, one needs the side-dishes to fulfill the appetite.

Hope Christmas filled all of your “life’s appetites” to your heart’s content.

- Island Rice

Crickey mate!

2005-12-23T14:13:00.000-08:00

As my holiday season begins, why not start her off with a visit to the world famous Australia Zoo. Yes folks, this is the home of “the” Crocodile Hunter! Though I never did get to see him in real life, it was great visiting the place where it all began for one of Australia’s icons.

Highlights of the trip to the zoo were as follows:

- being surrounded by crocs everywhere you turn
- meeting the oldest living creature in the world (Harriet the turtle), who was born in 1835 and was discovered by Charles Darwin
- feeding an elephant up close and personal
- hanging out with Kangaroo’s in the blazing sun and having a chat with them

As touristy as it was, definitely a place to visit to see Australia’s wildlife

- the lone asian

It's Beginning to Look Alot Like Christmas...

2005-12-18T19:57:00.000-08:00

Meet our new Canadian friend JP. We found him lost in Sydney so we thought we'd be good hosts and show him around town to all the hottest spots this holiday season. It definately feels strange having Christmas in shorts and a t-shirt, lying on the beach, but hey we're all about experiencing new things. There's no white Christmas downunder but plenty of sun to last a lifetime! No worries here mate.

Merry Christmas everyone. Have a safe and happy holiday season....

1000 miles

2005-11-20T14:54:00.000-08:00

This weekend was definitely a new adventure for me.

The task: hike through 30km's of bush (in the Royal National Park) which includes climbing up and down cliff tops, carrying a 45-50 kilo backpack, fighting the natural elements such as sun, wind, rain and deadly animals.

The reward: Personal satisfaction, a large pint of beer and one heaping hamburger.

Without really thinking it through, we were asked a couple days prior to leaving if we wanted to do a hike by a couple of fellow Canadians. Considering we didn't have anything else going on during the weekend, why not? What we didn't realize at the time, but learned very quickly was the physical and mental challenges we were about to face. We would start by walking through what seemed like a jungle with several parts of the trail being unmarked. It was a good thing we had the ocean to orientate us. Once we passed through that successfully, it was then open fields of grass on top of a cliff with the sun bearing down on us. Our greatest challenge came late in the day as we were exhausted and ready to give up only to face what seemed like a cliff that kept growing as you approached it. If that wasn't hard enough to climb on our own, we still had our 50 kilo backpacks still hanging around. As gruelling as it was, to finally look down and see what we accomplished left us feeling victorious that day. As it was a 30 km hike, we did need to break it up into 2 days.

Therefore, as the sun set we decide to set up camp at a cove we found along the way. Our first thought was to set up our tents on the beach, only to find that a storm was blowing in which made it impossible for our tents to remain still. We were lucky enough to find shelter in between some trees but our next task was to find a source of warmth. What better way to do it then create a fire in the middle of a dry forest right? Well, we successfully did so without burning the national park down.

We were triumphant in surviving the night, only to be welcomed the next morning by an infestation of black flies. These of course, weren't your ordinary flies. For some reason, once they land on your back, its as if they've laid claim to the new territory and decide to bring their entire colony over. No joke, there were around 500 or more of these flies hanging on each of our backpacks for the entire day and even as you brush them off, they keep coming back. It was definately a new experience with the Aussie insects.

Day 2 saw us probably doing the same amount of distance as we did in day one. When we finally arrived into town, it was the most bizarre feeling we had seeing buildings, people and motorized vehicles all surrounding us. Even though it was only 2 days, being in the forest definitely played some mind games with you.

Looking back now, I can honestly say that was one of the greatest hikes I have ever done. The natural beauty we saw can never be captured in a picture. You need to experience the real thing!

"I would have walked 500 miles and 500 more just to be the man who walks 1000 miles..."

Where are the RIOTS?

2005-11-16T15:33:00.000-08:00

As several of you know, the world cup of soccer will begin next year in Germany.

What you may not know is that Australia hasn't qualified for the world cup in 31 years. Year after year, tournament after tournament there is one heartbreak after another.

This year looked like it was going to be the same as the "Socceroos" were being matched up against Uruguay who earlier this year won the South American soccer championship. The first match was played in Uruguay and the Australians lost by one goal. The second game is to be played in Sydney and in order for the Australians to make it into the world cup, they would need to win by 2 goals. A feet not easily attainable playing such a strong team. Nonetheless we decide to watch the game at a local pub to cheer on the socceroos.

The feeling in the crowd was one of doubt but still remained positive as this would be the closest they've gotten in a long time. The game started off strong, as Australia was able to score in the first half. All they needed now was one more goal and they were in. Unfortunately, that goal was not going to come in regular time or even overtime. It was down to penalty kicks against a hot Uruguayan goal keeper but the good news was that it was in Sydney and the socceroos had the backing of the fans. At the peak of suspense, after the Aussie striker missed the net, it was up to the hometeams goalkeeper to save the day. He did just that and once the final striker kicked the ball through the net, it began another moment in history! The Aussies are going to the World Cup of Soccer!

You can only imagine what it felt like having an entire country come together in support of their sports teams much how a Canadian feels when we win the gold in hockey. There was no gold medal this day, but still it was a time to celebrate and what better way to do it then riot on the streets and share it with everyone else!

Sculpture by the Sea

2005-11-11T15:11:00.000-08:00

As summer is vastly approaching and as temperatures begin warming up, it is time to take advantage of the cities natural beauty, hence it is the time for festivals!

It seems that every weekend there is a different festival to attend and though we aren't able to go to every single one, we pick and choose the ones we feel will be time well spent. Sometimes we may luck out and find a nice surprise, but there are other times when we set our expectations too high and become dissappointed.

Nonetheless, here are some photo's of recent festivals we've attended. My favorite one would have to be the Latin Quarter festival where there were authentic food stalls filled with paella, chorizo and empanada's, latin music, salsa dance and much more!

Other notables is the Sculpture by the Sea show which spans from the cliffs of Bondi Beach to Tamarada Beach. Here you'll find artists who integrate their personal visions of the world we live in with the natural background of the ocean, beach, or cliff into life size sculptures.

(far left going right: Latin Quarter festival, hurdles of life, ocean picnic)

WHY Never Join A Tour

2005-10-29T15:46:00.000-07:00

Okay, in the last 7 years of travel, which spans to over 15 different countries, 5 continents, I am proud to say I have never signed up or been a part of a full on organized tour for one particular reason. My definition of a tour includes a tour guide, a bus and 20-40 other people traveling together and seeing what only tourist are meant to see.

The reason I bring this up is because my family recently came and visited me here in Australia as part of a tour group. Due to the sheer volume of all of them (9 in total), I can understand the reasoning for the tour. What did annoy me however was the way in which the tour company's treat their customers probably not taking into consideration that this may be the only time out of 365 days in which some people can have an opportunity to say they are "not going to work" today.

I ended up joining a portion of my family's tour to spend some quality time with them. What I learned only reinforced my reason's for never wanting to join a guided tour.

I saw it in their eyes as soon as they all landed. Pure exhaustion. After being moved around like a herd of cows and being milked for every dollar they have, there are but a few brief moments in which they can enjoy what they are actually seeing. For instance, our tour in Sydney consisted of a cruise on the Sydney Harbour that featured a seafood buffet. What we got was a boat ride on the harbour, no explanations as to the history, sites or sounds and a simple goodbye when it was all said and done. And let me explain that seafood buffet does not mean FISH STICKS made by McCain and baby octupus in vegetables. But let's continue along with the story.

The next stop was the Oz tower which is basically an observation tower taller than the highest buildings in the city. From the top, you can get a 360 degree bird's eye view which I've been told is spectacular. Unfortunately because the tour was on a tight schedule, we were ONLY able to go to the bottom of the tower (which doesn't even surpasse 10 stories) and watch a video about what the top looks like. THAT'S RIGHT FOLKS, they weren't even allowed to take the elevator to the top even though they were right there (talk about a tease).

But that's okay, because alot of people wanted to go and see the infamous Bondi Beach. Upon their arrival not only were they given a whole 15 minutes to see it (even prisoners get a longer visiting time), they were also told that they weren't allowed to take pictures even though it was a public beach probably because the TOUR GUIDE IS AN IDIOT! (sorry, little pent up frustration... it's out of my system now)

As you can see, we took the picture anyways...

In the end, it was great to see the family though I felt bad they had to see one of the most beautiful cities in the world in the way they did.

The lesson of the day is "don't try and do everything in one trip and spend more time exploring a particular area because remember, you are on vacation!"

- the lone asian

DANCING WITH FIRE - A Memorable Night in Sydney

2005-10-21T16:50:00.000-07:00

For the following entry I have no pictures though I wish I did. I will try and describe this night as best I can but you will need to try and paint the picture in your head.

It was Friday night. Our friends had asked us to come along to some drumming session held at Bondi Beach. We didn't think anything of it, but it sounded like something cool to do. When we arrive, we end up walking to the end of a cliff (overlooking Bondi Beach) where there was a stone circle just before the edge. Beyond the horizon, all I could see was the ocean stretching for miles with storm clouds edging closer as each minute passed.

Suddenly, the light show begins! We were shown a spectacular display of lighting dancing from one end to another. This combined with the ocean waves crashing hundreds of feet against the rocks was the perfect stage which was about to come.

Our friends then take out their African drums, along with bongo's, cowbells and rice shakers. We begin jamming on this cliff top and as we become more insync with each others sounds, more people started showing up from nowhere as if they were being called on stage. Pretty soon there was close to 30 people on this stone circle jamming the night away. All of them had some type of African drum or instrument that when played together creating an energy filled atmosphere. If you weren't playing you were dancing!

The highlight for me was at the peak of our performance, not only was everyone playing something, there ended up to be three fire twirlers all lit up and moving to the beats. I can imagine from a distance all you could see was a dancing flame that was powered by the sound of African rhthyms.

In the end, mother nature held off long enough for us to enjoy what was one of the most memorable nights in Sydney thus far...

- the lone asian

Wall of Fame

2005-10-15T15:23:00.000-07:00

I wanted to take this opportuntity to thank all the people that came and visited me in the past month. As exhausting as it was to host 15 people in 30 days (spanning from 3 different continents and 4 major cities), it was worth every second. I am glad you had a chance to experience a little of bit of Australian culture as well as prove that I never fabricated any of my stories.

I am also proud to annouce that we are now fully fledged official (maybe more "un-official") tour guides for the city of Sydney and are Eco tour certified. This is our invitiation to everyone who has ever thought about or wanted to come to Australia. All are welcome to come by and experience the Land Down Under wItH a tWiSt. Not only will we take you to the most famous places in the city, we'll throw in wierd and quirky facts, authentic accents and if there's time, perhaps a one on one encounter with some winged creatures.

For those who have already experienced Lone Asian Adventure Tours, we thank you for your time and efforts and hope that you will come back in the near future. This entry is dedicated to all of you!

"this was one of the greatest vacations I have ever had..." - JTL

Cultural Understanding

2005-10-10T15:35:00.000-07:00

As we have now spent some time in the land down under, I feel we have a good understanding of Australian culture and can now answer some of the questions pertaining to stereotypes about Australians:

Q: Are Australian's as laid back as everyone says?

A: Maybe out in the bush, BUT living and working in Sydney, I have found that Australians work alot more than even people in Toronto. They work later hours, weekends, 2 jobs you name. In fact, as I have discovered, there are only about 6 national holidays compared our 11 for the entire year. The price to pay to live in one of the most beautiful cities in the world

Q: Do Australians only eat shrimp on the barbie?

A: In 4 months of being here, I have probably seen shrimp on the barbie twice. Not sure where the saying comes from, but definately an over exaggeration (I did however add the photo of our first shrimp on the barbie)

Q: Does the toilet flush backwards in the southern Hemisphere?

A: It sure does...

Q: What do native Australian's look like? Do they really resemble convicts of the past?

A: No, there was actually thousands of Aboriginals that lived on this land long before settlers came (see below)
Q: Did the dingo really eat the baby:

A: Yes it did. Quite a sad story actually. Our first encounter with a dingo was in Fraser Island (right: not a dingo but native Australian animal nonetheless)

Labour Weekend in Oz

2005-10-03T21:25:00.000-07:00

This year there was no September long weekend. No Thanksgiving. Our first and only long weekend before the Christmas holidays would occur on the Oct 1 weekend. As this was our only short break, we decide to take an extra day off and leave the city for the entire holiday.

Choice of destination: Port Stephen's.

Located about 2.5 hours north of Sydney, this getaway town is far enough to feel away from the noise and congestion of the city and intimate enough that only locals inhabit this small port town (which also means no backpackers). The weekend went as such:

Day 1: we had our own one on one encounter with Australia's most lovable animal the Koala. Not only did we see it up close and personal, we were lucky enough to feed it and hang out with it for a good period of time while everyone else got to envy us from up top

Day 2: our own personal tour guide (luck was on our side today) take us through the Stockton sand dunes which are the largest sand dunes in the country. It stems for over 65km long. The sand is actually exported out to Hawaii's Wikiki beach twice a year. As you can see we were fortunate enough to go sandboarding in this natural wonder

We then take a hike across a spit that connects an island to the land during low tide. It's amazing as we crossed back we saw the ocean connect once again as it erased what was once our path and separated the island once more

Day 3: Today we spent the day swimming with dolphins. As great as it sounds, they weren't as close as we would like and our swimming consisted of sitting in the boomnet of a moving boat. The evening was truly an ozzy experience as we were situated in a campsite where every single site had a TV as they were watching the Rugby League Finals (equivalent to the Superbowl)

Day 4: As we head back into Sydney, we decide to end the weekend off with a trip to Manly beach (our first home) and catch the last bit of the Jazz festival.

Truly a nice weekend to get out of the city and experience what locals do when they have a few days off.

- lone asian

How to turn an ordinary Sunday into a party of 67,000

2005-09-14T15:26:00.000-07:00

The event was called the “City to Surf” run. It consisted of a 14 km run that started in the heart of the city and went all the way to Bondi Beach. Anyone can join at a minimal cost and each year the numbers continue to grow. This year it capped out at 67,000 participants.

Some people will walk, run, jog, crawl, you name it! But let’s backtrack a bit and paint the perfect picture for you. Considering I’ve never run this long a race before you think I would possess the common sense to train for it. Well, this wasn’t really the case as there were other matters such as employment, an apartment and just plain laziness that took precedence.

In fact, my pre run meal the night before consisted of a Chili Con Carne meat pie, one hot dog with the works, 2 pitchers of beer and a cheeseburger to cap it off (Please note this was NOT taken all at once but throughout the night).

When it came down to the start of the race we were geared up and ready to go. To be in a crowd of 67,000 people was a good motivator first thing in the morning. As the run progressed we began seeing people who came dressed for the occasion, the most shocking one being a guy dressed up as a condom. People were everywhere whether they were running or cheering us on. There were children, families, office mates and more. There were even several residents that decided to brave the early morning by throwing their couches on the grass, cracking open a beer and playing a few tunes on their instruments.

Our greatest moment had to have been when we finally crossed the finish line at Bondi beach knowing it was finally over. We didn’t finish first, nor did we finish last. In the end, we were above average and placed in the top 20% of the overall group of 67,000 give or take a few people.

Not a bad way to spend a Sunday morning eh?

How to Find an Apartment Part II

2005-08-11T15:07:00.000-07:00

Week 2 of apartment searching. This time there is a strategy. The local paper on Saturday’s comes out with a classified section that lists all apartments available, often including a time for one showing during the day.

7am: we pick up with paper and map out a plan. Because the area of choice was already decided, it would be easy to see several places because they were all near each other. Though we missed our first showing, there were several more to come.

And thus it began. It was as if we were a herd of animals being directed in each and every direction. We quickly realized that we weren’t the only people in the city looking for an apartment. We had competition! We’ll, it was more like beggars fighting for the leftover scraps. Though some of the places we saw were significantly better than the original 8, it was still no Shangri la. Several places had bits and pieces of what we want but it was very difficult to find an actual place that had it all!

A full day of searching and the pressure of needing to make a decision quickly, we decide to pick our top 3 and see what happens. We did have one other slim lead that was the showing we missed first thing in the morning. As I am unemployed, I was able to secure a viewing early in the week to see if we really missed out on anything or to justify that it was worth the extra 20 minutes of sleep over the weekend that made us late.

It took no longer than 30 seconds to make the decision once I entered. Not only was this the most fully furnished place I have found so far (which includes a TV, stereo, A/C, dishwasher, and all the furniture and kitchenware), it had the most amazing view I had thus seen (see below).

As the photo show’s (yes, that is the Opera House and Bridge on the right), I am no longer homeless or squatting in our fellow Canadians living room but finally we have something to call our own.

Lesson of the day: (follow the 3 p’s) being persistent, patient and pretty damn lucky will help in being successful in anything you do..

-lone asian

How to Find an Apartment in Sydney

2005-08-09T15:02:00.000-07:00

“Where to start?” is probably the first question you want to ask as we are completely foreign to all the different areas and suburbs. Criteria for residence is that I would like to be close to the action, not far from amenities, and preferably have a furnished apartment near the beach. That’s not too much to ask for right? Oh yeah, and I don’t want to pay the inflated prices here.

As I soon found out, this was not an easy task. The beach idea quickly died as it was not close to the Central Business District (CBD) which would make commuting a problem. My search therefore led me to an area called Potts Point. Though it is about 5 minutes from the red light district, it is a completely safe and posh area (so I’ve been told) that houses several upscale restaurants, is close to the ocean and the downtown core. Now the secret was to try and find a furnished place.

When I first started looking at places, I really didn’t know what to expect. What came to mind in several of them were, “how do people live in these places”. I was lucky enough to experience my first ghetto apartment. The price was too good to be true, in a little rougher part of town but hey, how bad could it be right?

As we enter the building, I turn to my left and see some dude urinating across the road in what seemed to be someone’s doorway (this is in broad daylight by the way). I enter the building to hear shouts and screaming from one of the apartments only to be reassured by the agent that its normally a quiet place to stay. When I finally get to the apartment, I discovered that it was furnished, HOWEVER with what appeared to be furniture that was straight out of a movie in the 80's (this is not a good thing). It was as if I entered into a crime scene and the white tape had just been taken out. Needless to say, it was a no go…

The next place I saw was a bit better. (I use “bit” very loosely here). Area seemed nicer and it was a high rise that placed me on the top floor. The good news was that there was a roof top that overlooked the city. The bad news was that the apartment probably hadn’t been renovated since it was built in the 60’s which left a nice white “shag” carpet in the whole place. It definitely gave new meaning to the word SHAG TOWERS! (see picture on left). As I am living in a county that has the worlds deadliest animals and insects I decided against taking the place due to hygiene purposes.

After looking at these places, I’m beginning to wonder if I will ever find something livable.

TO BE CONTINUED….

Back to Sydney

2005-08-06T15:00:00.000-07:00

I guess coming back to Sydney where my adventures first started wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. On the other hand, after close to 2 months of pure pleasure it was back to reality and needing to find a job and place to stay. SUCKS, I know…

Again, a big thank you to our gracious hosts (S&G) for putting us up while we are homeless! Don’t worry, it won’t be for much longer… I promise.

My first week of looking for residence as well as employment was definitely an interesting experience. Since Sydney was the biggest city in Australia, it wasn’t hard to find interviews straight away as I was able to secure 3 in a week’s time. Without boring you with the details, interviews ranged from head hunters to small businesses looking for a little help. The most interesting one came from a resume I sent out. Without any interview or questions about myself, her first question was “can you come in tomorrow and start working”. The only information I had was from the ad that explained it was a sales role, no cold calling involved, in a “fun” environment with lots of incentives and party atmosphere.

Interesting, but probably not for me. The search goes on but I am now relieved to know that I won’t have to settle for sheep sheering or fruit picking just yet. I can always turn to the “party atmosphere” job if all else fails.

Or I can simply take up the profession seen to your right. Take a closer look and let me know if its the right job for me?

House Party's in Oz

2005-08-03T16:46:00.000-07:00

So I am now winding down my trip along the east coast and I decide to stay one last weekend before heading back to Sydney, the logic is simple. One last night to party it up with Alana and Jules before they leave and one more week to esape the fact that I should be looking for work.

House party's here are something else. First off, people really like to dress up for any occassion and when I say dress up, I don't mean black tie, suit, or even dress clothes. I mean costumes. The night before the party, we spent close to 2 hours at the "fancy dress" shop looking for the most appropriate attire.

When it was time for the final choices, it came down to being a Wookie, a storm trooper, a Gladiator or a Jedi knight. (I know, where does Gladiator fit into all this?) In the end, due to economics and being practical, I ended up choosing the Jedi knight. It was a fine costume that allowed me to create several props... one of my favorites being "use the forks" but enough about me, let's talk about the party.

We begin by spending the entire day prepping for the party by buying the usual items needed. Things such as drinks, food, music, smoke machine... that's right SMOKE MACHINE to get us started. Why stop there though right? Well, we didn't. As it turns out, our impulse buy of the day was the light machine to complement the smoke machine. Once the stage was set, the drinks were next and the party was on full motion! I was surpised at how late the party went without any trouble from neighbors or police considering we were on the top floor of a two bedroom apartment.

Definately a nice end to my journey down the east coast of Australia. As this leg of the trip closes, there is still half of the country I still need to get to. Unfortunately due to the lack of funds, I am now forced to go back to Sydney and earn a living to save up for the next adventure... until then

- the lone asian

Fraser Island

2005-07-30T17:25:00.000-07:00

Who needs paradise island when you can go to Fraser Island?

All the hype and expectation that led to this trip was about to be tested to its max.

Note: To back track a little bit, as my friend Alana was leaving town for an indefinite period of time, this was her last big hooray with her mates before she headed out. This trip was planned several weeks ago and was about to be put into action.

We begin by packing up the pickup truck with the usual camping supplies, like the usual 2 twin foam mattresses every person needs, the bongo drums, amp, guitar… oh and who could forget the laptop and bar fridge (which we didn’t end up taking for obvious reasons). A stopover at the liquor store and after $260 worth of booze (I might as well add that this was far more than the total grocery bill) split between 4 people, we decide we were ready to go!

As I mentioned before, it was necessary to have a 4w4 to get onto the island (by law). The next note of importance was to know when the tide came out. Yes folks, this was no ordinary camping trip. As we leave the ferry boat, we begin our trek up the island and drive as quick as we can because our road was about to disappear into the ocean.

Once we set up camp, it was off to do the crazy and wild things people normally do while camping which I won’t get into too many details. Highlight definitely had to have been Lake Mackenzie which was the most amazing lake I have ever been to. Surrounded by white sands and trees, then filled with the clearest and freshest water that progressively gets darker in color the deeper you go in. The change from light blue to dark was something out of a club med commercial. This combined with a gourmet lunch/picnic, the guitar, some beer and great people could be described in 2 words…Simply AWESOME!

There was simply too much that happened on this trip and too little time to explain each event. I'm summarized a few of the more memorable moments and added a few more pics to help describe them:

Other highlights included:

going to Lake Wabby, which was a lake surrounded by sand dunes which led directly into the water.
Champagne pools where ocean waves came crashing over top of you while you were wadding.
Attempting to fish off the ocean with 5 meter poles with shark infested waters and a rip current
Driving through the dirt road circuit in a 4w4 and feeling like you were on ESPN as we would hit speeds I dare not say
Getting bogged down and having to pull out the tow rope to get out
Being away from civilization and really getting to know what Australian culture is really about

This place was probably one of the most amazing places I have been in all my travels.

“one small step for a Canadian, one giant step for the Lone Asian”

Byron Bay Surf and the Gold Coast

2005-07-27T17:16:00.000-07:00

4 days after staying in Brisbane, we decide that was enough and it was off to venture into the unknown once more. Our temporary stop would place us in Byron Bay. Most people would describe this town as a very chilled out, laid back type of place and they were right. Definitely one of the most relaxing places I have been to yet.

It was like we traveled through a time machine and landed in the 70’s. Not that I have ever been to Woodstock but I can imagine it would be similar to this. This town was the perfect getaway for any city dweller, beach bum or perhaps simply a pot smoker (more on this later).

This is also the place were I finally decided to take the plunge into the ocean with a surf board. Getting started, I decide to go completely against my beliefs of being a natural born athlete, and humble myself by joining a 3 hour class to learn the basics before I make a complete fool out of myself. As you can see, there was no fool this day! It was on my third try that I was able to balance myself on top of a wave “all by myself”. What a feeling it was! Though it was no 50 foot wave, it was nice to know Asian’s can surf.

The evenings at Byron didn’t leave much to the imagination. It would start out with Simpson’s and beer (literally), followed by death billiards (one of which Island Rice came out champion), then finally a trip to the local bar/club.

As relaxing as it was, time simply flew by. On the day we were leaving, we end up hearing about a place called Nimbim. This was situated in the interior and was simply a place where the weed would grow faster than snow would fall in Canada (I apologize for the lack of creativity in my metaphors). I was told that this is the only place in the world that hosts the cannabis Olympics. Before I cared to find out what that was, we were on our way back to Brisbane with a stop over in Surfers Paradise.

I guess you could say that because we conquered the waves, we earned the right to visit the infamous town. Truth be told, it was a cheap, cheesy and dodgy version of LA’s Venice beach or Florida’s Daytona beach. Yes, there was over 25 km of beach and waves, but because of commercialization and major corporations, they turned this small town into half a concrete jungle with shops, theme parks and heaps of buildings.

Our stay wasn’t that long as you can imagine but I thought it at least deserved a mention.

- the lone asian

Bris Vegas

2005-07-24T23:19:00.000-07:00

After spending a good amount of time up North Queensland to avoid an Australian winter, our next stop was South Queensland or more specifically Brisbane.

Because this was more of a reunion for me with my long time friend Alana, my stay would not be one typical of a backpacker but more of a local. I quickly got used to the luxuries I didn't have as a backpacker that I was longing to have. For example, we finally had our own washing machine/dryer (come to think of it, I never had this ever since I've left home) as opposed to the bathroom sink (actually I'm just exagerating). How about a clean kitchen for once rather than trying to find a pot or pan that wasn't rusted through. Oh, and the best thing was that we had a real bed rather than the army bunks that were usually in hostels. Much appreciated Alana and Jules!

First impressions of this city was definately a cross between Edmonton and Calgary. There was a river that ran through the city and the downtown skyline was overlooking the water. The city itself had more of a small town feel to it.

To sum it up, there was no Vegas strip, no bright lights, no casino, no redlight district (not that I was looking). In fact, I really don't know why they refer to themselves as "Brisvegas". It was a city that had personality and my time spent here will be mostly remembered through the people I was able to meet and hang out with.

New Trends I learned about included:

- shot of tequila with a slice or orange and some cinnamon (vs salt and lime)
- shot of tequila followed with a shot of tomato juice (also known as the "Trubador shot")
- "hotdogs for tea"
- "hump day" is for curry and beer

- the lone asian

Why Surf in the Ocean when you have a Jungle?

2005-07-17T20:24:00.000-07:00

Our adventure continues north to a place that's called Cape Tribulation. This is home to the only place in the world that has 2 world heritage sites in its own backyard. Not only does it have one of the oldest rainforests in the world, it also has the Great Barrier Reef.

Our decision was to spend 3 days and 2 nights in an exotic fruit farm away from the hustle and bustle of the backpacker life. More of a chill out place than anything. After spending a day at Cape Tribulation beach, we are back to extreme sports and decide to join a jungle surfing tour. Also known as the flying fox, we are lifted to trees spaning to heights of 20-25 feet where we are catapulted (probably an exaggeration) from one tree to the other. It was quite fitting that I was given a helmet named "Tarzan", not for my strong masculine abilities but simply because I was going to be swinging through the trees much like the fictional character.

The first transfer was slow and steady and more of a warm up. When it came to the final swing, we were placed upside down (our feet dangling from only one string that held us up) and released with little negative tension which meant we were being shot out at a pretty fast speed.

In the end, it was a great feeling to know that we survived and can look back and tell the world that we got to jungle surf in one of the oldest rainforest's in the world.

This was then followed up with a night walk through the rainforests looking for any wildlife creatures we could find which mainly meant giant spiders, crickets and frogs. I could tell you it sort of felt like being the crocodile hunter (also known as Steve Irwin) but it really felt more like I was back at school going on a field trip with the rest of the class. In the end, we did see a few deadly creatures but no huge reptiles were found. Yes, I know it was a bit disappointing. Nonetheless, life can't always be party and sports. We definately need to have some education from time to time.

Remember kids, "stay in school!"

- the lone asian

Let the Water Fall in Atherton

2005-07-15T20:04:00.000-07:00

Question: What do you do when you have a day to kill and you've already done everything in Cairns?

Answer: Hire a 4W4 vechile and go exploring!

This is what we ended up doing as we didn't want to spend a whole lot of money but didn't want to be in the city. What a great idea this became. As we hop in the truck, we map out our plan of attack and away we go. Our first stop was Bebinda Boulders which was a glorified version of Lynn Canyon in Vancouver. Now, I don't want to bore you with details of every stop we made but the purpose of this entry is to talk about Josephine and Milla Milla Falls. 2 spectacular waterfalls hidden in the Atherton Valleys and the biggest bonus was the fact that we could go swimming in both of them.

Josphine Falls had a natural waterslide while Milla Milla was the tallest falls in the region. Both of which were not overrun by tourists at all. In fact, what made this experience more memorable was the fact that I was able to swim to the falls with no one else around. A complete day exploring waterfalls combined with one of the most scenic drives I have seen based on no planning whatsoever. Let's call this entry a "nice surprise"

Also important tid bits to note are as follows:

- road kill here is not a skunk, racoon or squirral, the first one I saw was the corpse of a snake!

- "DID YOU KNOW?" fig trees (which are also known as stranglers) are created by birds feces as they eat the leaves then leave their crap (literarly) on trees. From there, photosynthesis occurs and the trees grow from branches downwards eventually killing the host. We were able to see the largest one in the world

1000 Leagues Under the Sea

2005-07-12T00:49:00.000-07:00

After 3 days of sailing in Witsunday Islands it was back to reality on the mainland. Once we docked, our task was to get back to where we came from which was Cairns, North Queensland. My personal goal in the next 24 hours was to avoid a 10 hour bus ride as well as $180 spent between the two of us. With a bit of luck and a charming personality, I was able to con...vince a nice couple from the UK to give us a lift and we would share gas with them. The only catch was that we needed to leave then and there which was fine by us. A long ride, it definately was. We made it in 7 hours straight but nevertheless our goal was achieved.

My next priority was to get my open water scuba certification. After analyzing all the pro's and con's of each and every company in town, we decided to go with the best priced and away we go! 4 days, 2 of which are spent on the Great Barrier Reef and you are certified (assuming you complete all the skills necessary)

To give you a bit more background on diving in this little town, this is probably the number one tourist activity to do. Therefore, it is their mission to get people in and out of their courses faster than Ford can produce pickup trucks or McDonalds can make Big Macs. Crash course, production line, you name it, we felt it. The only reward we had after 2 full days of classroom and pool training was that we were going out onto the reef and spend another 2 full days in one of the natural wonders of the world! 2 days, 1 night, 6 dives and a feeling that you want more!

Highlights of day 1 included a night dive with a torch where I was able to see a shark, a turtle sleeping in a cave, a parrot fish sleeping in his own mucus and thousands of fish swiming at your finger tips when you shine the light at them. After the first day, I didn't think anything could top that experience... I was wrong.

Day 2 began at 6am (for those who know that I am NOT a morning person, this is significant). As we enter the water, it is completely dark everywhere. I don't think that the fish were even awake. But nevertheless, we did the dive and when we came back up, the sun had risen and it was going to be another gorgeous day! If that wasn't enough, we were lucky enough to see the first humpback whale of the season as it breached right in front of us. This was then followed up with a dive where I was able to have a beer, do a little dance and make friends with all the people under the sea.

In the end, the animosity I was feeling towards the quality of instruction was overshadowed by the fact that I did receive my certification and can now dive anywhere in the world! (except for Norway for some reason - which who the hell would want to dive in anyways)

- the lone asian

WHITEHAVEN MAGIC

2005-07-09T23:36:00.000-07:00

They say that when you are sea, time sits still. Fortunately for me, this was not the case as I celebrated my 25th birthday for the third time while in Australian waters.

The stage was set. The location was Witsunday's Islands just off of Airlie Beach. We begin by boarding a tall sailing ship that was over 100 years old. This would be our home for the next 3 days. When we set sail, we didn't know what lied ahead. Fortunately we were with a strong crew led by an experienced captain. It was as if Captain Cook himself was with us on our journey and was showing us the way through the islands.

This trip was by far the top highlight! Not only were we able to help sail into the open sea's, we snorkeled with the most colorful fish one can imagine, bushwacked through tropical rainforests, encountered wildlife no where else to be found and of course jumped off the bow of the ship into shark infested waters. The peak of the journey had to have been spending the afternoon on a place called Whitehaven Beach.

The sand was the finest I have ever seen. Because it was considered a national park, the island could only be reached by day and no one could stay there overnight. The water was so clear, you could see for several meters into the bottom of the ocean. Not a bad way to spend a birthday. A special thanks to Island Rice as well as she was able to notify the chef of this day and he made me a cake from scratch. Definately a birthday that will not be forgotten.
When you read about the top ten things to do in Australia, this set of islands is often in the top 3. For me, this would be number 1. Definately do not miss out on this opportunity if presented to you.

- lone asian

Definition of a Backpacker

2005-07-05T18:07:00.000-07:00

An Australian definition of a backpacker is renting out the oldest, beat up looking van you can find, spray painting it in multicolors and then plastering the words "Cheech and Chong" along the side and then finishing off with the rear painted "man made alcohol, god made mirajuana, who do you trust" is a good start. No joke, this was the van that was to be our home for the next week and a half. For those who want to find out more, check out the following website: www.wickedcampers.com.au

Traveling now with 6 was a new adventure for me. We join up with 3 other Canadians and one Japanese girl and get picked up when we landed in Cairns, North Queensland (also home to the Great Barrier Reef). Our stay was brief as it was our goal to head south with our new travel mates. After a day trip to the reef to swim with nemo, gil, dorree, the sea turtle and one white tip shark, it was off to the south.

After a quick stay in Mission Beach and Paranella park, our goal was to head over to Magnetic Island, also known as the island where magnetic forces cannot be explained (hence the name). Well, as you'll see very shortly we began to understand why this was...

It was the evening of July 2nd, the day after Canada day. We were told there was a party happpening at one of the beach's on the island. As you probably already know, where there is a party, there is the lone asian. So after a few road pops, we were off on our adventure. [NOTE: you know you're in Australia when you are taking a bus and on the loudspeaker, the rugby game is playing for all to hear] We ask the bus driver to drop us off at radical beach and just as we descend from the vehicle, we hear the words "have a nice walk".

PITCH BLACKNESS was what we were left with. Good thing we had one flashlight between 7 people. (note this importance for later)

Not knowning exactly where we were going, we decide to follow the only path we saw that somewhat led to a beach. 20 minutes pass, nothing. And when I say nothing, this means, NO sound, NO lights, NO OTHER PEOPLE anywhere, just the sound of the wild animals following you and waiting for the appropriate time to attack. 30 minutes, still nothing. Stuck between pride and curiosity, we would walk another 30 minutes just to prove to ourselves there really was a party. Good thing we didn't have to.

45 minutes later our first sign of life. We found people that were actually at this so called beach party. "It wasn't far away" they replied.

When we arrive, we find that we took the long way over and there was actually a shorter trip though it involved some crossing of a swamp with crocs, that was waist high - truth be told, this description seemed to be exagerated more each time it was told by a different person. The party itself was wild as it seemed like a scene out of the movie The Beach. Some DJ playing techno and house music while they had a huge bonfire on the sand where everyone sat around.
The adventure however was the journey back. After a bit of deliberation, we decided to head back through the croc infested short cut. What made it more interesting was 2 more canadian girls joined up with us because the only light they could produce was with a lighter and an empty can. A short time into the journey we meet an Aussie and Kiwi that was also without a light. What we didn't realize was that the Aussie seemed to be high on some type of enhanced substance.

So once again, 8 people now, ONE LIGHT, bush trail with cliffs on one side and did I mention the poisonous reptiles we couldn't see but hear?

10 minutes into the hike, the Aussie begins to freak. He begins to attempt to steal the light from me, then progressively becomes more aggressive with our group by pushing several of the women aside in the pitch black, yelling obsenities at whoever would listen and simply holding us back as he would run ahead, stumble over himself and then lie on the ground complaining he dislocated his shoulder. Had it not been for his Kiwi girlfriend who was with us as well, I would have left him to the snakes and wombats.

This would continue for another 20 minutes with the climax coming off at a major standoff between my Canadian friend and himself. Because I am often known for my calm and collective demeanor, I was forced to become the peacekeeper that I am and successfully diffuse the situation. It was then where Island Rice took over as the psychiatric therapist where her tactics consisted of distracting him with lame jokes and random questions.

We eventually find our way back to civilization and all that we went through would never be spoken of again. Until now of course. So the moral of the story is don't talk to strangers just before you are going on a pitch black hike because anything can happen in the jungle. - that was the best I could come up with.

Oh, and just for those who were paying attention, we never did run into some swamp that was waist high and filled with crocs...

- the lone asian

Top Ten List Vol I

2005-06-28T23:04:00.000-07:00

Knock Knock....who's there....Kanga.....(your turn).....what accent did you just say Kangaroo in?
yea...lame jokes...that's what happens to one's brain on vacation x 2 months!!
My side-kick "Lone Asian" has already provided a description of our happenings for the first few weeks. But I will add to it in traditional "TOP TEN" format:

TOP10 EXPERIENCES IN SYDNEY (Vol I):

1. running on Manly Beach with the smell of salty air and sights of surfer dudes, not to mention the gorgeous scenary, and laid back culture!

2. feeling a lump in my throat, gasping for air, and thinking to myself - "wow...this is the best city I have been to", as my eyeballs jump out of their socket after the opera house and sydney harbour slowly reveal iteself as the ferry turns a corner.

3. waddling alongside a pelican (it was the same size as me!), to race to the fresh BBQ muscles and prawn stand at the Sydney fish market!

4. walking down...and then up 900 stairs (1800 total) at the magnificant "three sisters" in the Blue Mountians - sherpa style (lots of gear), and surrounded by very lush vegetation.

5. eating at a fancy-smancy restaurant in Sydney - in pitch black!!

6. being introduced to some really nice Aussies by Sarah & Geoff (who have been so great at helping us to get settled in when we first arrived), and chillaxing with them all at the "opera house bar"....in the pouring rain! (gotta love heat lamps).

7. eating fresh shashimi (RAW FISH) for the first time in my life! so fresh! mmm.

8. winning a beer drinking competition at a German restaurant in Sydney (I was competing with old ladies) - in case you think that I have become a lush!

9. being able to wear only a light sweater during the peak dead of winter in Oz - June 21!!

10. re-watching the Sydney Olympic opening ceremony on a tiny screen found in one of the 60 tall decorative posts on the Olympic grounds...its enough to give you goose bumps, and summon up a tear or two!

"good on ya mates",

-ISLAND RICE

First Impressions of Oz....

2005-06-26T17:09:00.000-07:00

They say that first impressions are are lasting one. If this is the case then the term "gods country" sticks in my head when I landed in Sydney for the first time. Though it was a long and drawn out flight (mad props to Jean and Yang for our stopover in SF), our 6:30am arrival into the city was rewarded by a ferry trip that over looked the Sydney Opera House and Harbour Bridge. It was literarly the scene out of "Finding Nemo" when Marlin and Doree popped their heads out of the water was how we felt when we turned the corner on our ferry to discover Australia's most recognized landmarks.

Our first 10 days in this city has been a great start and I couldn't have asked for more. Major thanks to our current hosts Sarah and Geoff for putting up with us homeless Canadians.
My description of the city is that it's a cross between Vancouver, NYC, Miami, and San Francisco all in one. Sydney offers a bit of everything for everyone. Beaches for miles surrounded by cliffs overlooking the ocean, animal life for the nature lovers at the largest aquarium in the world, or perhaps a relaxing afternoon stroll in what seems like the upper west side in Manhattan.

My adventures thus far includes Darling Harbour, Paddy's Market, the Sydney Opera House, Blue Mountains, the three sisters, the infamous Bondi Beach, the Sydney Aquarium, the Olympic Stadium where we swam in the worlds fastest pool and who can forget my first time driving on the other side of the road.

The people here are something else as well. Everyone always seems to go out of their way to help you out as well as try and give you as much information as possible without looking for anything in return. For instance, the first day I went to sign up my bank account, within half an hour, the attendant helping me offered us a place to stay, weblinks to job sites as well as the local scoop on what's happening around town.

Other notables that have also been pleasant are the following:

1. Tipping is not required at all

2. Taxes are already included in the price and you don't have to pay another 15% (damn CDN gov't taxes!)

3. People don't like to waste food here so before they close, everything usually goes for more than half off so they don't throw it away.
stay tuned for more adventures...

- the lone asian