The Winds Are a Changin'

Australia is now experiencing its autumn months, and here is a four-day forecast to give you some idea of the dropping temperatures.  I've found a metric converter on my phone, so I can give you the Fahrenheit reading of these temperatures!  For example, today the forecast is 22/12 degrees Celsius, that's 72/54 Fahrenheit.  Right now at 5:45 p.m. it's 20 degrees Celsius, or 68 degrees Fahrenheit.  It also nearly completely dark by 6 in the evenings. 

 

 

 Weather for Perth WA

20°C | °F	Thu	Fri	Sat	Sun
Current: Partly Cloudy
Wind: E at 21 km/h
Humidity: 43%	22°C | 12°C	23°C | 12°C	24°C | 12°C	24°C | 13°C

The Gifts of the Sun Goddess

The following is a story from the Dreamtime.  In Aboriginal culture, Dreamtime stories tell of the creation of Earth and all living things.

When all animals, insects, birds, and reptiles had the appearance of men, they were dissatisfied.  They went to Yhi, the sun goddess, and begged her to give them the gifts they longed for.  The goddess took pity on them.  

'I will grant all your requests,' she said, 'but remember this.  Once I have given you what you want you will never be able to change back to what you are now.  Are you satisfied?'

'Yes,yes,' they all cried.

'Give us our hearts' desire.'

'Very well.  Who is first?'

'I am,' said Mouse.

'And what do you want, my little one?'

'I want wings to fly with.'

The sun goddess waved her hand and long, leathery wings sprouted from Mouse's legs and arms until it was transformed into Bat that flies by night.

Seal lumbered up.

'I have had too much of land,' he said.  'My body is far too heavy, and I hurt myself when I scrape between the trees.'

Yhi smiled sympathetically at the unwieldy Seal.

'Here are flippers for you,' she replied.  'You will still be able to walk on land, but your real home will be in the cool waters of the sea, where you will be able to dive and swim like a fish.'

'I'm next,' said Owl.

'But you can fly.  What more do you want?'

'I want bigger eyes, so that the other animals will admire me.'

'There you are, Owl...but perhaps you will be sorry some day for being vain.'

Her words came true.  Owl could no longer bear the light of day, and had to spend the daylight hours deep in the heart of the bush, coming out only at night when his large eyes could see in the darkness.

Last of all, after the other animals had had their wishes granted, Koala came prancing up to the sun goddess, waving his long, bushy tail from side to side, and exciting the envy of the others.  Unfortunately Koala was not aware of their admiration.

'Take it away,' he begged.  'It is useless.  Take it away!'

And Yhi took Koala's tail away, to his everlasting sorry.  

 

Beginnings of the bucket list.

Mid-Semester Break Trip

Apologies for such a huge gap in posting :)  This one's going to be a biggy though, promise.  Alright to begin, Australian uni's have a mid-semester break over the Easter holidays.  So, yes, while everyone back home was on spring break I was on my mid-semester, autumn break.  For this week long break, a couple of friends and I booked a trip that would take us up the Western coast of Australia, from Perth to Exmouth.  We booked with a company called Western Exposure, and we were going to be living in hostels/backpackers for the next seven days.   

 

Let it be noted that Perth has been dubbed "loneliest city in the world" because the nearest comparable city is Adelaide, nearly 1,500 miles away (Smith, n.d, p. 214).  So, when we left the day after Easter, there was only open road to be seen:

Our first stop on day one was the pinnacles, extraordinary rock formations.  The pinnacles began as sand dunes, consisting of sea shell fragments and quartz based sand.  As it rained on the dunes, the calcium carbonate grains dissolved, leaving limestone.  How the pinnacles arrived at such picturesque shapes is still a controversial debate in the scientific world today (I should probably opt for a Bachelor of Science rather than a Bachelor of Arts).  Nonetheless, they are breathtaking to look at:

 

From there we traveled to the coast, and I gave sandboarding another go.  Attempt number two was no greater success than my first attempt:

  

Our tour guide, Sasha, would make stops along the road whenever he felt a photo-shoot was necessary.  Tonight he stopped for a captivating sunset:

Night one we stayed on a wheat farm near Kalbarri, with a most hospitable Australian farmer.  The farm often houses campers, as evident by the row of small boarding houses and a shower house.  Our host cooked dinner for us, ready upon arrival.  Bunk beds are recurrent theme in backpackers/hostels:

 

 Day two began with an early morning hike through Kalbarri National Park:

   

With this next photo I would like to introduce you to Carina, a girl we met on the trip.  From Germany, Carina is in Perth for a year as a live-in babysitter to an Australian family.  I now consider her a close friend:

 

Still in Kalbarri Natinal Park, we decided to take a group picture at the park's famous Nature's Window.  So, here is our group, mostly Canadians on exchange at University of Western Australia, and then my friends and I:

Next on the day's agenda was abseiling, or basically plunging into an abyss.  I did it though!  You are harnessed and attached to a rope, then propelled down the face of a cliff, slight adrenaline rush does occur:

We continued north that day, onto Shark Bay and a quick stop at the World Heritage stromatolites.  To expound, "The World Heritage list includes 911 properties forming part of the cultural and natural heritage which the World Heritage Committee considers as having outstanding universal value" ("World Heritage List," n.d.).  Stromatolites are living fossils, aged at 2,000-3,000 years old.  These structures, built by microbes, reflect life forms found on Earth 3.5 million years ago.  Stromatolites have shed light on the evolution of the world, and today they are a must see for tourists passing through Shark Bay:

Stromatolites ladies and gents:

Our final stop that day, before reaching Monkey Mia, was Shell Beach.  Yes, that is correct, a beach made entirely of shells.  The sun was setting when we reached Shell Beach, but that did not matter, if there's water, I'm swimming.  I coerced poor Carina into taking a dip with me :)

As previously mentioned, we stayed at Monkey Mia on day two.  Ironically, the main attraction at Monkey Mia is the daily feeding of bottlenosed dolphins--not monkeys.  We arrived into the campground after dusk, and awoke early the next morning to witness the feeding.  It was an overcast morning, but there was no rain in sight.  If I'm recalling the morning correctly, five dolphins came into the bay for breakfast.  Trainers stand knee-deep in the water and the dolphins circle them until they are fed.  Campers are encouraged to wade in the water as well, so here it is quite possible that a dolphin may brush against your toes:

I had to take a picture of this little guy because he reminded me of a loon from "On Golden Pond."

Day three was mainly spent driving to Exmouth, we drove eight hours that day I believe.  We ate lunch on the road, overlooking the most barren land I have ever seen.  Pretty sure the Coen brothers filmed "No Country for Old Men" here:  

 

During the day's journey, we passed the Tropic of Capricorn and massive termite nests:

I have taken you through half of my trip, tomorrow I'll post the rest.  Right now I need a cup of tea and peanut butter toast :)