Holy S*#t! I can’t believe it’s been two years since Shane and I left the UK to move Down Under. They say as you get older the hands on the clock tick faster. Add in a few life changing moments including two international moves, new career, marriage, and time can play some funny tricks on you. While the days and nights inbetween may appear fuzzy, the important moments remain frozen in time.
I remember August 28, 2008 as if it were today. We celebrated our last night in England with each of our favorite meals – take-away Chinese from the shop below our flat for Shane and take-away Indian from the village for me. We left our newly renovated flat in pristine condition, ready for the tenant who moved in that same day. As it’s still our flat, someday we’ll be back to say hello, making the experience even more familiar.
Our flight to the US was departing at 11am. Before sunrise, we left our home (southwest of London) in order to be in Essex (northeast of London) at 7am when the doors opened to the shipping company where we would leave our car to be shipped to Australia. We said good-bye to the car, a very small classic car, crammed with as many of our personal belongings as we could manage and rushed to Heathrow airport, nearly two hours away. Fighting time, we decided in advance that the only way to make it from Essex to Heathrow and not miss our flight was to rent a car.
Right on track with not a minute to spare we dropped off the rental car and shuttled it to our terminal, only to discover that we were in the wrong terminal. Waiting for the tram would put us at risk for missing our flight so we paid ten pounds to take a taxi from terminal five to terminal four. With four suitcases checked in containing nearly every item we owned (aside from what we could cram in the car) we slid onto the plane with plenty of time to reflect on what lie behind and what lay ahead.
The next ten days were spent in limbo with my family and friends in the US. This too is a very clear time consisting of a lake house holiday, shopping, Mexican food and some very sad good-byes. On September 11th, we landed in our new home country. Our car with the remainder of our material possessions arrived four months later - just in time for Christmas, making it a Christmas filled with gifts we forgot we even owned.
This move was particularly monumental for Shane who had spent the last seven years living in England and was finding himself acclimating to a home that now felt like a foreign land. After 2.5 years of living overseas (in the UK and Australia) I feel I’m now at the point where I can sympathize with Shane’s struggles.
I wish I had done a better job documenting my initial days living in Australia. It’s now difficult to recall the emotions and impressions that filled my head during that time. It’s even more difficult to elicit those thoughts because what was then my initial impressions of life in OZ are now a way of life, no longer foreign concepts but the norm.
As I write this blog I find myself naturally replacing my z’s with s’s and my o’s with ou’s. On my third trip back to the US, I struggled for the first time to drive on the right side of the road. I find myself getting passionate about issues which are important to Australian’s and the slang that leaves my mouth is Aussie not American. The accent is no longer an accent but a native sounding tongue. Of course, the sound of my own voice brings me back home but even that too has changed a bit and is unfortunately completely out of my control.
Only in my dreams, do I sometimes drive on the right side of the road, through the winding mountain roads of Colorado, the green lush suburbs of St. Louis, or the busy city streets of Chicago. After all, I am an American. Even a million miles away from America, you are still surrounded by America. But now, I experience it through the eyes of the Australian nighttime news, the latest films, and weekly gossip magazines.
I’ve read a few books by the author Bill Bryson. As an American married to a British woman, he spent nearly twenty years living overseas. Upon his return to the US he wrote a book titled “I’m a stranger here myself.” I look forward to seeking solace in this book upon my eventual return to the US with some good old-fashioned Bill Bryson humor. In the meantime, I’ll live as an American vicariously through family, friends, and mass media. I’ll continue to enjoy Australia’s finer attributes but will miss endless restaurant options, shopping at all hours of the day, the latest technology at the cheapest prices and most of all my family and friends.
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
Monday, August 23, 2010
Lose yourself in Western Australia
Ok, so both these slogans elicit negative and positive connotations. If you’ve heard of the 2005 horror flick Wolf Creek, which surrounds the disappearance of backpackers in the WA outback and is based on true events, you may not want to "get lost" or "escape civilization" in WA. But all of us, at some point or another just want to get away from it all and escape the dramas of everyday modern life. And if that’s the case, then WA’s the place to do it.
The state of Western Australia covers 2.5 million square kilometers which equates to approximately 1 million square miles. To put that into perspective, that’s four times the size of Texas and larger than Western Europe. Physical size is irrelevant until you take into account Western Australia’s population which is a mere 2.3 million people, 1.7 million of which live in the Perth metropolitan area.
If I still haven’t captured your attention, imagine the following. Take the western portion of the US all the way to the eastern borders of New Mexico, Colorado, Wyoming, and Montana and add in, say, Kansas for good measure. That’s roughly the size of Western Australia. Place a metropolitan area about the size of Austin, TX somewhere in the vicinity of Los Angeles and then scatter another 600,000 people primarily along the coast. Separate Canada and Mexico by vast oceans, and you’ll have WA.
As a whole, despite Australia’s rather prominent stature on the world map as the island country in the Southern Hemisphere, it’s a rather lonely and desolate place. The remaining 20 million residents reside primarily along the east coast, separating West Australian’s from their neighbors by thousands of miles of outback desert. Compare this to the US where a population of 310 million is scattered about all nooks and crannies of the nation. Even the motherland, a much smaller island, is the home to 62 million people – three times the population of Australia. Maybe it’s not just the sunshine and hot weather that continues to attract and upward of 20,000 UK migrants to Australia each year.
I laugh every time Shane answers the question as to how he ended up in St. Louis as an 18 year old foreign exchange student. The answer is he didn’t have much choice. He knew nothing about St. Louis except that it was inland, but his perception of inland was Houston, TX not smack dab in the middle of America’s heartland. He was dropped into St. Louis, in the middle of August, in 100 degree heat with 200% humidity and no beach in sight. Imagine his surprise.
Each time a friend back in the US talks about a trip to Chicago one weekend and San Francisco the next, I'm reminded that those days are over, as logistically (and financially), it’s just not possible in Australia. Even our days of living in England, with cheap and easy European weekend trips at our fingertips, seem like a distant memory. Tomorrow, I embark on my monthly two day pilgrimage to Sydney for work. Sydney, the largest city in Australia and one of only five with a population over 1 million - Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth and finally Adelaide, being the closest of the lot to Perth at 2,700km away. This business trip is the extent of my plane hopping mini-breaks these days.
Most short-lived getaways for those in Perth are done by car and for the pleasure of lounging on the beach away from the city, surfing big waves, catching massive fish, or exploring the vineyards of Margaret River - and relaxation and beautiful scenery are high on the agenda. No fast paced cities and weekends filled with endless tourist traps - just peace and quiet and relaxation in a place where you can escape civilization and lose yourself in the millions of stars amongst the milky way.
Sunday, August 15, 2010
Whitsunday Islands
We’ve been home for a day but my body still feels like it's on a sailboat swaying to the tune of a gentle ocean swell in the Whitsunday Islands. Over the course of a week Shane and I soaked in the sun on land and boat, fished, and explored the ocean reef from below by snorkel and scuba and from above by seaplane.
The Whitsunday Islands are made up of 74 islands off the Queensland coast and the Great Barrier Reef. Although coral grows quite freely around the islands, the Whitsundays are not considered a part of what they call the outer reef (Great Barrier Reef) which sits about a two hour boat ride from the mainland. Most of the islands are nothing but forested mountains jutting up from the aqua waters with only a handful of the islands containing resorts, some quite luxurious. Hamilton Island, the largest of the inhabited islands, is a town of its own complete with an airport.
If you haven’t heard of the Whitsunday Islands, maybe you’ve heard of two of its most famous icons – Whitehaven beach, consistently voted one of the world’s most beautiful beaches, and Heart Reef which you’ve probably seen a photo of at some point in your life even if you don’t realize it. The six kilometer Whitehaven beach, coupled with adjoining Hill Inlet, is a spectacular site and a bit of an anomaly. Tourism Australia would lead you to believe that the Whitsunday Islands are abound with soft white sand beaches but most of the island shores are made of rock and broken coral with very little beach. I suppose this is what makes Whitehaven so special.
Our trip got off to a bit of a rough start. We departed Perth at midnight and three and a half hours and two time zones later, we landed in Brisbane. It was 5am and we had another six hours till we caught our connecting flight to Proserpine Airport. I jokingly suggested that we get a hotel room and sleep for four hours. Shane quickly agreed and by 6am we were sound asleep at the Novotel hotel. At 9:30am my phone brought me out of a deep sleep. The catamaran that we were scheduled to depart on that night blew an engine and they needed to transfer us to another three night trip. Rather effortlessly we adjusted our hotel stay and were upgraded to what was considered a nicer tour. Crises averted.
The next day we departed on the Pacific Sunrise, a thirty-three meter sailing boat with nineteen other guests from Germany, France, Spain, Japan, the UK, the US and Australia. Despite some questionable weather, the boat, its fabulous crew of six and our wonderful shipmates made it a relaxing and enjoyable experience. The main activities consisted of snorkeling, scuba diving, kayaking, whale watching and relaxing. Rarely did we leave the boat, except to get in the water and step ashore Whitehaven.
The remainder of the week we stayed in the coastal town of Airlie Beach. Airlie Beach is a small tourist town which serves as a hub for many of the island and reef tours of the Whitsundays. Airlie Beach got its origins as a backpacker town and still carries much of a backpacker feel with a wide variety of accommodations to suit all budgets and travel preferences. The hilly landscape provides magnificent views of the islands and the steep one kilometer walk from the town to our apartment was well worth the view, not to mention a relief from the guilt of gluttonous holiday eating.
Shane was keen to fish the east coast waters so after a morning of sitting by the pool indulging in gossip magazines, I spent an afternoon with six blokes on a seven meter fishing boat. There’s nothing like the launch of a fishing reel and the crack of a beer to shut up a group of men. It was all boys' talk for the first thirty minutes but when the engine stopped and the bait was hooked it was nothing but silence for the next three hours. Unfortunately, we didn’t catch anything worth photographing and our boat broke down causing a slow two hour sunset crawl back to Airlie Beach. Despite this, being out on the water with the sun beating down was enough to make me happy. I should also mention that I caught one of the only two fish that met the size requirements for keeping.
We saved the best for last – a seaplane trip to the outer reef. Along with eight other passengers and two crew we took a twenty minute plane ride over the islands to the outer reef where we landed on a small private pontoon and snorkeled for an hour with nothing in sight but multi-colored ocean. From there we flew to Whitehaven beach where we spent an hour lounging on the beach. Viewing the reef from above was like living inside a postcard. I could have stayed in the plane all day and never tire of the view.
The Whitsunday Islands may sound like paradise and in many ways it is. But as a West Australian I must point out a few subtle differences between us and our east coast friends that I feel you should be aware of before booking your flight. Being tropical, it rains, sometimes a lot along the Great Barrier Reef. Winter is the driest time and August the second driest month of the year yet we still battled a bit of rain one or two days. Our first visit to Whitehaven was overcast and unimpressive. On the other hand, the west coast is mostly dry and we can go for months without seeing a cloud.
Secondly, Jelly fish are rife in the northeast. Wetsuits or stinger suits are required between November and March, although the Pacific Sunrise required we still wear them this time of year. We did not wear them on the outer reef. Due to the stingers (and possibly also the dramatic tidal changes) many coastal towns have man-made lagoons for public swimming. The colder waters of the Indian Ocean keep the jelly fish at bay so we don’t require stinger suits but instead we live in fear of sharks so maybe not so much a win for us. Finally, the beaches. Growing up in WA, Shane is a beach snob as he’s been spoiled with a lifetime of beautiful beaches. To me, a beach is a beach but now that I live in WA I’m starting to understand.
Differences aside, I was sad to return to the real world and leave the Whitsunday Islands as only a memory.
The Whitsunday Islands are made up of 74 islands off the Queensland coast and the Great Barrier Reef. Although coral grows quite freely around the islands, the Whitsundays are not considered a part of what they call the outer reef (Great Barrier Reef) which sits about a two hour boat ride from the mainland. Most of the islands are nothing but forested mountains jutting up from the aqua waters with only a handful of the islands containing resorts, some quite luxurious. Hamilton Island, the largest of the inhabited islands, is a town of its own complete with an airport.
If you haven’t heard of the Whitsunday Islands, maybe you’ve heard of two of its most famous icons – Whitehaven beach, consistently voted one of the world’s most beautiful beaches, and Heart Reef which you’ve probably seen a photo of at some point in your life even if you don’t realize it. The six kilometer Whitehaven beach, coupled with adjoining Hill Inlet, is a spectacular site and a bit of an anomaly. Tourism Australia would lead you to believe that the Whitsunday Islands are abound with soft white sand beaches but most of the island shores are made of rock and broken coral with very little beach. I suppose this is what makes Whitehaven so special.
Our trip got off to a bit of a rough start. We departed Perth at midnight and three and a half hours and two time zones later, we landed in Brisbane. It was 5am and we had another six hours till we caught our connecting flight to Proserpine Airport. I jokingly suggested that we get a hotel room and sleep for four hours. Shane quickly agreed and by 6am we were sound asleep at the Novotel hotel. At 9:30am my phone brought me out of a deep sleep. The catamaran that we were scheduled to depart on that night blew an engine and they needed to transfer us to another three night trip. Rather effortlessly we adjusted our hotel stay and were upgraded to what was considered a nicer tour. Crises averted.
The next day we departed on the Pacific Sunrise, a thirty-three meter sailing boat with nineteen other guests from Germany, France, Spain, Japan, the UK, the US and Australia. Despite some questionable weather, the boat, its fabulous crew of six and our wonderful shipmates made it a relaxing and enjoyable experience. The main activities consisted of snorkeling, scuba diving, kayaking, whale watching and relaxing. Rarely did we leave the boat, except to get in the water and step ashore Whitehaven.
The remainder of the week we stayed in the coastal town of Airlie Beach. Airlie Beach is a small tourist town which serves as a hub for many of the island and reef tours of the Whitsundays. Airlie Beach got its origins as a backpacker town and still carries much of a backpacker feel with a wide variety of accommodations to suit all budgets and travel preferences. The hilly landscape provides magnificent views of the islands and the steep one kilometer walk from the town to our apartment was well worth the view, not to mention a relief from the guilt of gluttonous holiday eating.
Shane was keen to fish the east coast waters so after a morning of sitting by the pool indulging in gossip magazines, I spent an afternoon with six blokes on a seven meter fishing boat. There’s nothing like the launch of a fishing reel and the crack of a beer to shut up a group of men. It was all boys' talk for the first thirty minutes but when the engine stopped and the bait was hooked it was nothing but silence for the next three hours. Unfortunately, we didn’t catch anything worth photographing and our boat broke down causing a slow two hour sunset crawl back to Airlie Beach. Despite this, being out on the water with the sun beating down was enough to make me happy. I should also mention that I caught one of the only two fish that met the size requirements for keeping.
We saved the best for last – a seaplane trip to the outer reef. Along with eight other passengers and two crew we took a twenty minute plane ride over the islands to the outer reef where we landed on a small private pontoon and snorkeled for an hour with nothing in sight but multi-colored ocean. From there we flew to Whitehaven beach where we spent an hour lounging on the beach. Viewing the reef from above was like living inside a postcard. I could have stayed in the plane all day and never tire of the view.
The Whitsunday Islands may sound like paradise and in many ways it is. But as a West Australian I must point out a few subtle differences between us and our east coast friends that I feel you should be aware of before booking your flight. Being tropical, it rains, sometimes a lot along the Great Barrier Reef. Winter is the driest time and August the second driest month of the year yet we still battled a bit of rain one or two days. Our first visit to Whitehaven was overcast and unimpressive. On the other hand, the west coast is mostly dry and we can go for months without seeing a cloud.
Secondly, Jelly fish are rife in the northeast. Wetsuits or stinger suits are required between November and March, although the Pacific Sunrise required we still wear them this time of year. We did not wear them on the outer reef. Due to the stingers (and possibly also the dramatic tidal changes) many coastal towns have man-made lagoons for public swimming. The colder waters of the Indian Ocean keep the jelly fish at bay so we don’t require stinger suits but instead we live in fear of sharks so maybe not so much a win for us. Finally, the beaches. Growing up in WA, Shane is a beach snob as he’s been spoiled with a lifetime of beautiful beaches. To me, a beach is a beach but now that I live in WA I’m starting to understand.
Differences aside, I was sad to return to the real world and leave the Whitsunday Islands as only a memory.
view from our Airlie Beach Apartment
Heart Reef
the white pontoon where we landed and snorkeled on the reef
Whitehaven and Hill Inlet
some of the islands from above
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)