The Public Health Sneeze

Once again, my allergies have reared their ugly heads, and I've run into a bit of a problem. 

I have been trained in the fine art of the public health sneeze - sneezing into one's arm or shoulder to avoid getting germs on your hand, which then transfer to door knobs, etc.

However - as you may have guessed - in this lovely tropical climate, I very rarely wear sleeves at all. So where, exactly, does an Australian sneeze to avoid the ickiness of sneeze all over themselves, while still managing to shield their fellow citizens? 

A quick google search yielded little apart from complaints about an ad for flu vaccines. (Apparently seeing the symptoms of flu on TV is far too disgusting for some people - imagine if they saw it in real life!)

The Government of South Australia (state including the City of Adelaide) suggests the sleeve sneeze/cough, or at least moving away from others (see handy fact sheets here). But I still find that difficult. Maybe THIS is why Australia always gets the flu before others!

Fun Factoid!

Dear Ottawa friends,

Many of us have spent lots of (way too much, in fact) money at Bushtukah, our handy-dandy local outdoorsy store. But did you ever wonder a) how to actually pronounce it, or b) where the name came from?

Even if you know this bit, keep reading and pretend you don't. I'll never know.

The name comes from the term 'bush tucker', which refers to all the native animals, plants, fruits, seeds, etc. that one can find in the Australian bush. Aboriginal Australians have been eating this stuff for about 50,000 years and survived quite well on it. So the term ultimately refers to things that will help you survive in the bush, or Outback. 

And of course with the accent, it's pronounced 'bush tucka', and can be funnily spelled as Bushtukah.

Now, I'm not going to argue about whether the $600 bike is a necessity on the same level as fruits and herbs... everyone has different needs :)

From Healthy Eating, Training Manual for Strong Women Workers

First Impressions Are Key

I like:

1) Taxes included

Honestly, I don't know why we don't just do this at home - there's nothing easier than knowing the exact price you're going to pay at any given time. Britain's got this down too so Canada needs to catch up!

2) Cheeky humour

And you thought we were self-deprecating... those giant inflatable beavers at the Olympics closing ceremonies? They've got nothing on these guys...

3) The heat

At least for now. Check in with me in a month's time.

4) Touchpad transit systems

Just like England - you load up a card, tap it when you get on and off the bus, and it automatically calculates the cheapest rate for you, plus gives you loads of discounts. A proper 21st century bus system - unlike certain others, that simply have ticket feeders that seem to break down half the time. Rhymes with Landspo.

5) Fresh fish

From the sea to my plate - one of my first meals here was grilled snapper, and it was delicioso! Not to mention pretty affordable - I'll be stocked up on those elusive omega-3s in no time!

I will learn to like:

1) Frizzy hair

Holy geez, I have not had this much volume since crazy crimping back in grade school. Don't get me wrong, I'm happy to have it (Andrea M. knows how much I worried about losing all my hair) - but to get all that volume at once is a little... erm... overwhelming?

2) Prices

Triple sigh here. I was duly warned - but the prices can be quite astronomical. Food's not terrible though - and they DO have discount stores! And IKEA!

3) Closing times

The banks open nice and late in the morning (wouldn't want to rush to work) and close before rush hour hits. I think I should get a banking job. At least there's internet banking.

4) The left

This is not Australia's fault, of course. They have been on the left for.... well... ever. But it makes walking across the street a little bit more terrifying - I tend to forget halfway. Biking will be quite the challenge...

5) Diet Coke

I can hear the groans from those who know me - and again, I was told that there is a "pop tax" (surely diet sodas don't count? no sugar? come on, now) and that Diet Coke is quite pricey. It's very very true. A nice, cold 600 mL bottle? 3 Australian dollars, fanks very much. Yesterday I got overly excited because someone had a half-price Diet Coke sale. I bought three - because I couldn't carry any more.

On the plus side, the tap water's great!

Waltzing Matilda

A very happy Australia Day to you all!

Attended the annual 'Ausralia Day Cockroach Races' at the Story Bridge Hotel in Kangaroo Point.

Yep, cockroach races. They're quite speedy little devils.

Of course there was the requisite crowning of the 'Cockroach' Queen - and yes, she has a nickname, which I'll leave to your imagination.

A few beers, lots of sun, and a glorious (if somewhat off-key) rendition of Waltzing Matilda later, and I am readying myself for AusDay part 2 - hostel BBQ (excuse me, barbie). There just may be kangaroo meat.

Cairns pt. 2 - The Reef

Well, my good friend Cyclone Anthony has done a bit of a number on my ability to sightsee.

Today, we headed out with Great Adventures, a travel company, to see the lovely Green Island. Plans for the day included snorkelling, swimming, and a glass-bottom boat tour.  After an extremely rough 45 minute trip over during which I saw at least one person's breakfast (apparently a big one), we docked at the relatively small Green Island - one of many islands in the Great Barrier Reef, but the only one to host its own bitty rainforest.

After a walk down a wind tunnel alternatively known as the jetty, we found out that the glass-bottom boat tour had been cancelled because, well, there was no bottom to see. Snorkelling was out for the same reasons (and the fact that my swimming lessons did not include the Kanata Wave Pool).

In lieu of these activities, we were given a free pass to a crocodile museum on the island (guess they ran out of food). Even the 'salties', as they call saltwater crocodiles, were put out by the weather - apparently freshwater rain reduces their body temperatures, making them even more sluggish than usual. So when I poked them with a stick... no, only joking. I sent another tourist in instead :)

I did learn, after accidentally walking through a "Crocodile Eats Human" display, that Australians have no qualms about putting the icky stuff out for the world to see. But on a positive note, the display included lots of "Crocodile TRIES to eat human, but human survives and crocodile is then sacrificed by angry villagers and made into a good stew" stories. So I'm going with 50/50 here. Need to find some villagers to bring with me...

Despite the lack of Reef-viewing opportunities, I'm not concerned - given its size, there will be plenty more to see in the future!

Cairns pt. 1 - The Rainforest

What, you ask, is the best way to see the rainforest? Why, in a complete downpour of course!

Today we headed off on part 1 of a booked tour, heading to:

1) A lovely lake called Lake Barrine, where we had Devonshire tea (honestly!) and a nice little cruise about the lake. Regrettably the wildlife had had a bit of a rough night out before, and were not up to making an appearance (minus a very sleepy python of a wee 3 metres). This lake apparently formed in the crater of an extinct volcano - at least, they THINK it is extinct...

This location also had 2 massive Kauri pines - more than 1,000 years old. Baby sisters to sequoias, of course, but very cool nonetheless.

2) A full-to-the-brim waterfall named Millaa Millaa falls - which in a local Aboriginal dialect either means "many waterfalls" or "many vines" - tour guide says one thing, website says another... usually the water is a lot clearer, but apparently it was cyclone day?

3)  A quick stop at the Giant Curtain Fig Tree. The fig tree is from the strangler fig species Fichus virens. The curtain effect happened when one tree leaned against the other at a 45-degree angle. The strangler vine then grew along the edge of the leaning tree, dangling 15 metres to the ground to create the curtain. 

4) Paronella Park - absolutely beautiful. Apparently (here's a little for the history buffs), a Spaniard named Jose Paronella was determined to build a castle for his bride-to-be Matilda. He sets off to Australia in 1911 to make his fortune - and does (the place is beautiful). But when he goes back to get her 11 years later, the woman has up and married someone else! But all is well in the end - he married the younger sister and they lived happily ever after in their dream compound that Jose mostly built by himself.

And for the real nerds out there (ahem, engineers) - the place is still powered by the original 1930s hydroelectric dam that Jose built by himself. How's that for quality?

5) The Babinda Boulders - due to the aforementioned cyclone (cheerfully known as Anthony), the waters in these boulders were raging. And I mean raging like,  should you like to hide anything from the world, throw 'er in there and it will never be seen again. Usually it is a nice, relaxing swimming spot. Today, not so much.  I think this really crushed tour guide Brett, who swims in this spot "every day", and probably would've had he not had a busload of tourists to drive home. Brett also gave us puppet shows while driving. Look ma, no hands!

Part 2 next - Green Island and the infamous Reef!

Flying Is Not My Friend

The trip so far:

Ottawa - Toronto: 349 km
Toronto - LA: 3511 km
LA- Auckland: 10471 km
Auckland - Brisbane: 2292 km
Brisbane - Cairns: 1396 km

The grand total? 18,019 km... 45% of the circumference of the earth at the equator (source: Dad).

7 hour layover in the LAX airport - no celebrities spotted, no fun stores to shop at, and some very underwhelming architecture - somehow I expected more from Hollywood's airport? They DID have a Disneyland Express bus - if only the layover were longer...

Redeemed by Air New Zealand - can definitely understand their reputation for excellence - reclining seats, a safety video guest-starring the New Zealand All Blacks (mmm Richie McCaw), excellent food (chicken and eggs), and for Auckland to Brisbane, a lovely elevated footrest. I'm a nervous flyer by nature, but they sure try to fix that...

And as much as I'd like to brag about the weather (which today is nice and sunny), we've had HEAPS of rain - which made the rainforest tour all the more cooler - more on that later!

To the left: the view on arrival. I know, tough life...