The Tour Down Under

Well its been a while since I last blogged but to be honest nothing interesting has happened up until today. Of course if you count, watching the tennis on tv or finding an echidna on the front porch or a snake in the house all in one day exciting!!! hahaha all of that was exciting... well except for maybe the tennis but that's fun too. NOTHING compares to the what I experienced today! I got to see Lance Armstrong and a pro cycling race! I was on cloud nine all day and still am! It has been an amazing day and I really can't put into words the excitment and adrenaline I experienced today so I've put a lot of pictures up to show you how cool it was.

I do apologize if this blog bores you as basically it is mainly for my friend Dail as I SO wish he could have been standing next to me the WHOLE TIME!

Miss you Dail!

This is us before the race! Two days before we went to Big W (the equivalent of our Walmart) and bought supplies for Lance Flags... Yes, I know they look very similar to that of our Texas flag but they were made with the motivation to get Lance's attention and hopfully a signature on the star... alas it did not happen. BUT no matter the day made up for it in full.

We woke up early to get a good spot on the barricade. We chose a very nice spot about 100 meters on the receiving end of the finish line... the idea to see the finish clearly looking straight at it. A very cool move on our part as we got to see a smooth start and finish as well as every lap in between a this race was a circuit and set up on a loop type system.

But first warm ups...

That's right! George Hincapie!!!! What a beautiful picture! I would marry him if he wasn't already married! Drat!
Micheal Rogers!

A great Aussie Rider!

Team Columbias whater station was right infront of where we were standing I didn't have to zoom in much for this picture. I have many pics of him and my husband... I mean George sitting and chilling before the race.

Like so... Love this one

Robbie McEwen!!!

Another great Aussie Bloke!

Stuart O'Grady!!!

The First winner of the Tour Down Under and one of the best Aussie riders out there!

And look who snuck in the other way! None other than the legend himself!

Lance Armstrong!!!!

That bike is AMAZING!!!!

He just smiled his sly smile as he rode past because it took everone by surprise as we all were expecting to see him come from the other direction.

Then!!!! Then George came over and signed my hat!!!!! So exciting! I wished him a very good ride and he just smiled and said thanks sheepishly.

What an amazing guy!

The greatest domestique EVER!!!

Right before the start! Everyone ready?!?!?!

They blew past but I managed a rough shot of Lance! Can you see him?

Get ready!

There he is going on the other side of the loop... I told you the best spot! Got to see him twice on each loop and there was 18 plus warm up! I'm just saying I got to see quite a lot of my pal Armstrong today.

So much later in the race as the peleton caught up with the break away group Quick Step controlled the peleton to help out the main man Allan Davis!
A closer shot of the line and you can make out Allan Davis in the orange or ochre jersey!

There he is again!!!!
And again! He's so fast he's blurry!!!

Ok this picture is just to give you an idea of how close the cyclists were to us. In no way could you stick anything over the barrier or you would have died! It was amazing! I could feel the wind they generated like it was going to blow me over and they all were litterally inches away from me. Especially since I was pushed up against the barrier and was resisting the crowds push to not interfear with the riders it was insane!!! But I loved every minute! I saw Lance this close but of course as luck would have it I was never lucky enough to actually snap that shot the below pictures give you an idea of what I could get of Lance during the race.

Can you spot him...? He's in this picture I promise.

Or this... I have so many rear shots of the man. His girlfriend is going to come hunt me down for all the bum shots I have of him. GO #11!!!!

Alas all fun must come to an end. Those 18 laps went far too fast for me. I could have stayed out there all day long. But the boys must have their rest. :(

Give the man some water he deserves it!!!
"Sign my flag Lance!!!!"

Just another pic of my new friend.

The only pic I will have with Lance unless of course our paths cross in the future... oh how I hope that happens... can you see me in the center of the pic? I have an orange sweat band on my wrist and a camera in my face!

"Don't go Lance! Please sign my flag!!!"

I sound like a psycho fan and really I'm not I just was really excited to see him. He is an amazing athlete and a hoss on the bike. But more importantly I respect what he is doing by coming out of retirement and making cancer such a huge awareness to people. Everyone knows about cancer but they don't pay attention until it happens to them or someone they love. Believe me I know! Lance has two numbers on his bike that mean something to him. 1274 representing the days in which he hasn't been off the bike since his 7th Tour de France in 2005 and the first day of the Tour down under. And 27.5 representing the 27.5 million people that have died from cancer during those 1274 days. My mother is apart of that number and that is why his cause is so important to me. I appreciate what he is accomplishing with his tenancity and boldness. Most people think he's crazy for coming out of retirement but I think he's an angel.

I have a goal to ride in the Livestrong Challenge so I too can help make a contribution to the fight against cancer.

After Lance left it was Allan Davis's turn to take the stage!!!

That's the boy wonder!

I'm really glad he won he deserved it!

Bodysurfing with the fans!

Brave man!

Aussie! Aussie! Aussie!

Oui! Oui! Oui!

3,600 KM and counting

Well it's been crazy since I last signed on. I feel like I've driven through the whole country! In Canberra we went to the Australian War Memorial and National Museum. We saw the missions (which are the Embassy's from each country), and toured both Old and New Parliament. On our way out of the city we visited Peter and Jim at the Geoscience Australia. They showed us all the specimens they've found all over Australia as well as in other countries and then gave us a tour of everything they do. It was very interesting and so good to see them both. Thanks guys! We could have spent more time there but it seems there isn't ever enough time no matter where you go.

I took this at the war memorial. For my dad... my own personal Navy Hero. I love you daddy!

So my Christmas Eve morning started with this...

I got to fly in Graeme's Ultralight! It was so amazing! Thank you Graeme! I got a birds eye view of his property and the land that surounds his. It was just exhilerating! I was on cloud nine all day! Dad got to go after me and he was just as excited and happy as I was. That just started our amazing day. After some waking up (as flights started at 6:30am) we all visited and ate some breakfast and Graeme took us on a drive of his property. Our goal was to find a Christmas tree to bring back to the house. We took the long way around and got an amazing tour of the hilly and beautiful land that he and Pat live on. I was so happy that my Aunt and Dad got to share in that experience with us. I just can't put to words how lucky Danielle and I have been since we've been here and the time we spent at Pat and Graeme's house just gave my family a taste of what we've experienced here. Christmas was amazing between both days I think we ate enough for a month. The food was amazing and spending Christmas with such a generous and amazing family was just a blessing. Thank you for opening up your home to us I can't express to you enough how amazing our Christmas was and how much it meant to be able to share the holidays with such a wonderful family.

From left to right: Kylie, Ashley, Tanya, Auntie Cata, Melissa, Pat, Micheala, Tony, Uncle John, Dad, Danielle and Rebecca. I was taking the pic and poor Graeme was at work. Thank you all for making this blessed holiday a memory I will never forget. I hope we get to play spoons again sometime girls! All of you made this a very special Christmas.

We got back on the road and headed south towards Melbourne. Our ultimate destination Phillip Island. Beautiful that's all I can say. Check out the picture below.

Enough said don't you think? Just beautiful!!!

It was a near miss... hahaha! Since we couldn't take pictures of the seals or the penguins we decided to get inventive. Phillip Island was amazing. Koalas and Seals and Penguins... oh my! The penguins were my favorite part I just can't get over how adorable they are. It was just amazing getting to see them pop out of the ocean and onto the beach and waddle their little selves to safety. Too precious!

After some time in Melbourne we had to take Auntie Cata and Uncle John to the airport. After that we decided to head to the Great Ocean Highway and see the Twelve Apostles. It took a lot longer than we had anticipated and we found ourselves in a bit of predicament. Everywhere we turned there was a NO Vacancy sign lit up mocking our need for sleep! AHHHHHH after much deliberation and no other option we transformed our cozy Camary into our own personal bedroom. Yep that's right we slept in the car! It was comical but worth it because the next morning we got to see the Twelve Apostles.

There we are! If you can't tell from the pic it was amazingly windy! It was really cool to see and the ocean was just amazing especially with all the white caps. We ended up back in Robinvale and have been recovering from our nonstop adventures at our good friend Smythe's. It's been great to relax and just enjoy each others company and dad has been in hog heaven doing handy jobs around the house. We head out tomorrow for Melbourne again as dad has to leave in two days. :( Then it's back to work ~ wish us luck in finding one! ha

Now this is Australia!

They made it!!!!! Danielle and I met the "oldies" (as they've been deemed) Saturday (12/13/08) afternoon and we've hit the ground running! Although it was raining we decided to head into Melbourne anyway and get some food and see what we could find. We ended up eating and seeing the movie Australia as it was raining and cold so we wanted to chose and inside event. The movie was beautiful! I don't care what the critics say it was so good and I recommend going out and watching it!

The oldies heading to Cairns! We have SO much luggage! Danielle and I are packed for a year guys... what's your excuse! hahahaha back aches and pulled muscles later we all made it relatively in one piece.

Dad and I standing on the balcony of our apartment in Cairns! Check out that view! Cairns was so awesome! We spent three days there and although it was hot and sticky due to the 85% humidity 3 days was NOT near enough time!

Our first day out we walked to the marina which was a stone throw away from our apartment and we found this amazing wooden ship so we expored closer... we ended up getting a tour and found out it's the Duyfken which was a Dutch merchant ship and helped aid in the success of the beginning of Australias settlement. It was so cool inside! We got to explore the whole ship! Just amazing! And we could touch anything we wanted! Just look below!

Watch out you scallywags!

The next day we took off for the Great Barrier Reef! Beautiful just doesn't cut it but it's all I have! We took the Quicksilver out to the reef and once we got there our adventures began!

Lycra suits to protect us from jellyfish stings... we look like smurfs I know! Hahahaha Oh Dear! This is us suiting up for snorkling but first!

The oldies went on a helicopter tour of the reef! Lucky! I'm happy they got to though!

Dad looks so happy!

While they were braving the air we were braving the ocean!!!! Snorkeling was SO AWESOME!!!! I didn't think I would do it as I'm SO scared of big water and SHARKS but I just put on my sexy smurf suit and said why not! I jumped in that water like it was a kiddy pool and the next thing I knew I was looking at the amazing coral and ocean life below me! Just breath taking! We took pictures with a waterproof camera but those aren't developed yet. I just can't believe how amazing it was!

Then!!!!! Then we went on an ocean walk! Oh my goodness that was amazing! we put on wet suits and this huge helmet as you can see in the picture above of my Auntie Cata and we walked under the ocean! That's right WALKED! Poor dad couldn't go because of his heart surgery a year ago so he went on a semi submarine tour of the coral reef around the docking station. He got to see a sea turtle!!!! As we walked under the ocean we got to hold a sea cucumber, coral, sea anenimi... sp? and a conch shell! The guide fed the fish while we were down there too and they just came in droves! They were so awesome! They crowded around all of us just swimming like we weren't even there! It was amazing!

The gang! We all had so much fun at the reef! The observatory was amazing the food was delicious and the reef was just breath taking!

The next day we went on a train tour of the rainforest which ended at Kurranda where we caught a sky rail over the canopy down to the bottom. The rainforest is beautiful and although we didn't get to see the Barron Falls at their fullest we enjoyed in nonetheless.

Us on the train... and after we got off the train!

That's right we got to hold Koalas!!!!! This is Princess and we each got a chance to hold her and cuddle her and take pictures! So amazing!

It gets better!!!!!!

Feeding Kangaroos!!!!! We each got a turn and there were so many to feed we were all speechless!

Ranger Dave where were you?!?!?! We waited and waited and you never showed up! :(

We took the SkyRail from Kurranda down to the bottom of the mountains of Rainforest to the Tjapukai Aboriginal Culture Park where we had lunch and then spent the rest of the afternoon exploring the grounds.

The afternoon started with an Aboriginal Dance. They showed us traditional dances and fire dances as well as other fun dances which Danielle and I were picked to participate in. Hahaha it was fun as you can see from the picture up top. We did our best but I don't think they will be recruiting us any time soon! After that we got to try our hand at throwing spears and boomerangs! It was hard but so fun and after that we got a lesson on their food and the history of the didgeridoo. It was all very facinating. We watched a special on their creation story how they percieve the world to have begun and then the history of their people which was really sad because all they suffered and still suffer at the hands of those that don't understand them.

Dad got recruited!

That night we cooked at the apartment and enjoyed each others company and headed to Sydney the next day... bye Cairns we will miss you!

This is Danielle and I at Manly Beach. We had an all day bus tour of the city sites. The beaches are beautiful and this one in particular has pine trees surrounding the sand. Sorry I didn't get them in this shot.

We took a cruise of the harbor at lunch where we got to eat and take pictures of the harbor bridge and opera house! You can see them in the background! Although the day was full of interesting things to see and do we were spent from our time in Cairns...

"All toured out"

You don't even have to ask if the water is cold! hahahaha

Bondi Beach

The next day we drove up to the Blue Mountains where we saw the three sisters!!! We actually got to walk out to see them up close and personal. Danielle and I went down the back of the sisters on the Giant Stair Way which was 900 steps one way! We didn't realize how steep it really was until we had to climb back up! Ugh! It was amazing though!

We left Sydney on saturday and headed south towards Canberra. We stopped in Wollongong and saw the Nan Tien Temple. It's the largest Buddhist temple in the southern hemisphere. It was so inspiring and just down right breath taking. We were not allowed to take pictures inside the shrine but got to go inside and have a guided tour by this amazing 63 year old man who loves his job! After our tour we got to hike up a hill behind the temple and ring the gratitude bell... you are to thank God for the things you are blessed with then ring the bell 3 times and make a "wish" offering up your prayer to God.

The bell is huge!

Beautiful!

We stayed in Wollongong and got another apartment... I like traveling with the oldies! It had a washer and dryer so we did our laundry....

and some how my clean panties got flung into the toilet!!!! There is never a dull moment around here folks!!!!

We got back on the road today and headed to Canberra but not before stopping at Pebbly Beach where we saw Kangaroos on the beach just lapping up the sun! These are not like the roos we fed at the park as they are wild animals and below is the roo that almost killed Uncle John!

Isn't he huge!?!?!?!? He walked straight up to Uncle John and scared us all we thought he was a gonner! Uncle John just stood still and when he thought it was safe he started walking away slowly... I don't know how we did it but we managed to get out of there both excited and scared!

Well that's it for now tomorrow we discover Canberra! When I can I will update! Love ya!