Christmas Greetings From Tollendale 2009

Christmas Day at Tollendale Village in Barrie was indeed a delight. True to form, Mom cooked an amazing meal and no stomach was left empty. In fact, most of us ate too much. We hope you will enjoy this greeting from December 25, 2009.

Geoff & Glenda's Dogs With Lorraine Caught On Video

We thought we'd add some video footage to our blog after the fact and are now adding this short movie of our cousin Glenda's dogs visiting with Lorraine. This was taken in Melbourne, Australia in March, 2009. We hope you enjoy it as much as we enjoyed meeting these friendly Groodles!

Los Angeles, California: April 27-30, 2009 (Last Stop En Route To Canada)

Well, we're now on our last hurrah before we return home to Canada after three months abroad. It's been an adventure and like all other outstanding adventures, this one is ending in style.

After an 8-hour Qantas flight delay --OOUCH! --we finally arrived in Los Angeles. Our plane was late arriving in Brisbane due to a mechanical problem. Fortunately, we arrived at our hotel at Manhattan Beach, the Hawthorne Suites at a reasonable hour despite the delay. Although our time has been short in L.A, you will see that we've had some time to do a bit of exploring, including spending a day in Hollywood. Now we can say we've been there.

We hope you've enjoyed following our travels abroad. We look forward to seeing and hearing from many of you when we return home.

1. On the pier at Manhattan Beach, Los Angeles, California
2. The pier at Manhattan Beach
3. Lorraine on the pier
4. The courtyard outside our room at the Hawthorne Suites, Manhattan Beach
5. In the Hollywood Hills with the famous "Hollywood Sign" showing in the background.
6. Trevor in the Hollywood Hills
7. Hollywood Boulevard with famous characters strutting their stuff
8. Trevor with Julie Andrews' Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
9. The Hollywood Walk of Fame
10. Graundman's famous Chinese Theatre
11. Trevor with Marilyn Monroe's Imprint which is one of many famous stars in the front courtyard of Graundman's Chinese Theatre
12. Hollywood Policemen on patrol
13. Trevor on the staircase in front of the Kodak Theatre (where Academy Awards are presented and the final broadcast of American Idol is recorded)

More Brisbane and Queensland: April 13-27, 2009

We're down to our last time in Australia now and head off to Los Angeles next for a few days before finally arriving home. It's been an incredible 3-month journey with lots of adventure along the way.

We've enjoyed the fabulous Queensland weather immensely. In particular, we've really enjoyed the Gold Coast and the Sunshine Coast. However, the less commercial Sunshine Coast has our vote for being the most scenic. We've seen some really awesome things in this area and as the photos will show, we've come across some interesting wildlife in the area as well. As an added bonus, when we approached a pineapple farmer by the Glass House Mountains on the Sunshine Coast wanting to purchase some pineapples, he simply asked us how many we wanted and went to pick three fresh ones from the field which we brought back to our apartment. This is just a typical example of how friendly people are in Queensland.

Now it's time to pack for our flight to Los Angles. Perhaps we'll have a chance to report from there. Thanks for continuing to tune into our blog. Lorraine and Trevor

1. At Noosa Heads National Park on
Sunshine Coast
2. Lorraine at Tea Tree Beach, Noosa Heads National Park
3. Trevor at Mooloolaba Beach, Sunshine Coast
4. Univeristy of Queensland courtyard
5. Brisbane City Cat ferry. We took this from the city centre to the University of Queensland.
6. Pineapple Field by Glass House Mountains (we were given 3 free pineapples from the owners)
7. Lorraine with freshly picked pineapples from the field
8. Some of the Glass House Mountains
9. Koala we spotted in a tree along the path at Noosa Heads National Park, Sunshine Coast
10. Iguana in the parking lot at Noosa Heads
11. Kangaroo in the wild at the Glass House Mountains Lookout. We spotted it while eating our lunch at the picnic area
12. Our pet Gecko in our apartment at the Quest Spring Hill. It likes to visit us in the evenings.
13. Bush turkey at Noosa Heads eating Trevor's apple core
14. Lorraine by the pool at Quest Spring Hill
15. The Queensland Orchestra. Brisbane Chorale and Adelaide Symphony Chorus and soloists performing Verdi's Requiem at the Queensland Performing Arts Centre, Brisbane. 300 performers took part in the performance

Brisbane & Queensland, Australia: April 13-27, 2009

Our last hurrah in Australia has been blessed with fantastic weather as we continue to enjoy lots of sunshine and warmth in Queensland. The weather has been ideal for exploring some of the beaches in the area and we have enjoyed our excursions to the Gold Coast and the Sunshine Coast.

The Gold Coast, is the more commercial area which is located south of Brisbane and its star resort town is Surfer's Paradise. This is a beach area which largely tries to imitate Miami and Honolulu at the same time. The sand is exquisite here but huge condominium skyscrapers tower over the beach, unfortunately blocking out the sun at times. Amusement parks and arcades abound in this area.

On the other hand, the Sunshine Coast, located north of Brisbane is not as commercial and beaches are not as busy. It is the more popular choice for families seeking a nice spot for a vacation. Beaches on the Sunshine Coast are popular but are not as crowded as those on the Gold Coast.

A highlight of our stay in Australia has been the various visits to Wildlife Parks and Sanctuaries. While there are many of these in the country, each park has its own unique features. At the Corrumbin Sanctuary, on the gold coast, we discovered something truly unique in the lorikeet feeding ceremony which takes place every day in the morning and at sunset. At the sunset ceremony, we witnessed literally hundreds of lorikeets gathering in the trees and swooping down en masse to feed from the metal plates filled with milk, honey (and another substance) held in hand by visitors to the park. As you will see from the photos, these birds come down very close indeed and it is incredible to see these colorful creatures at close quarters.

We have only a few days left in Australia but be assured that we will make good use of the time we have left.

1. The Lagoon, Brisbane Botanical Gardens, Mount Coot-Tha
2. Honour Guard and Band rehearsal for the opening of the Queensland State Parliament in front of Parliament House, Brisbane
3. Surfer's Paradise, The Gold Coast
4. The Gold Coast
5. Lorraine at Caloundra on the Sunshine Coast
6. Trevor on the Sunshine Coast
7. Lorraine feeding Lorikeets at the Corrumbin Wildlife Sanctuary on the Gold Coast
8. A Platter of Lorikeets, Corrumbin Wildlife Sanctuary
9. Trevor is attacked by a giant snake
10. Kite Surfer on the Sunshine Coast. Glasshouse Mountains (so called by Captain Cook) are in the background
11. Kookaburra sitting on a fence at the Brisbane Botanical Gardens
12. Termite Control, an essential service in Queensland

Brisbane, Australia: April 13-27, 2009

The day after Easter Sunday, it was goodbye to the family in Sydney and on to Brisbane in Queensland, Australia's Sunshine State. Who thought that nickname first? Was it the Americans or the Australians.

At any rate, we landed in Brisbane in the middle of a rainstorm. At the airport car rental, we picked up our Toyota Aurion car rental which is a model only made in Australia. It is basically the same as a Camry with a V6 engine and a few little extra bells and whistles. Nice to try something different for a change though.

Upon arrival at our apartment hotel, the Medina, in downtown Brisbane (in a pouring rain storm), we found the apartment to be quite small and lacking compared to what we had just left in Sydney. Although we could have survived there easily, we thought we would take a shot at finding something else since we are in Brisbane for two weeks. After some Internet research, and an inspection of a property the next morning, we decided to move to the Quest Apartments in Spring Hill, Brisbane. This location is much more central and the apartment is a huge two bedroom, immaculate and extremely well fitted. Quest is the largest hotel apartment chain in Australia and since we'd already had good luck with our Quest Apartment in Auckland, we thought we'd try them again.

The weather improved in Brisbane dramatically the day after our arrival and we've been enjoying sunny Queensland with temperatures averaging between 28 and 30 degrees. We've now had a good chance to explore Brisbane and have also taken a trip to the world-famous Australian Zoo in Beerwah, about one hour north of the city. This, of course is the zoo brought to fame by Steve Irwin, the Crocodile Hunter and his wife, Terri. As you know, Steve was tragically killed by a Sting Ray in a movie filming a couple of years ago. As it is now the school holidays in Australia, Terri and her two kids, Bindi and Robert were all involved in the Crocodile Show at the Australia Zoo on the day we visited. Quite a spectacle really. The stadium where the show takes place is called The Crocoseum. Who would have thought?

As we explore Brisbane, we'll also be looking forward to hearing the Queensland Symphony on April 24 at the Performing Arts Centre. They, along with the Brisbane Chorale and Adelaide Symphony Chorale will perform Verdi's Requiem which involves over 300 performers. Stay tuned for more from Brisbane.
1. Brisbane Skyline from the South Bank
2. Trevor on the Brisbane South Bank
3. Brisbane taken from McAfee Lookout in Brisbane Forest Park
4. Lorraine in the South Bank Precinct
5. Lorraine in our Toyota Aurion in Bellbird Grove, Brisbane Forest Park
6. Steve Irwin Memorial, Australian Zoo, Beerwah, Queensland
7. Trevor with Steve Irwin, The Crocodile Hunter
8. Terri Irwin hosts the "Croc" show at the Australia Zoo
9. Terri Irwin taming a crocodile
10. Bindi Irwin, the Jungle Girl with the Crocmen
11. Lorraine at the Australian Zoo
12. Koala poser at the Australian Zoo
13. Tasmanian Devil Poser at the Australian Zoo
14. Kangaroo with Joey in pouch at the Australian Zoo