Australia Zoo day!

* There are 2 new posts so make sure to look for the one I posted a right before this one.

they were HUGE

Yesterday I went to the Australia Zoo with Karin and her host mother (and then when to a Footy game after).  We spent the day at the "Home of the Crocodile Hunter".

The first thing we did was pass by a few exhibits before heading to the Corcoseum for a Wildlife Warrior show.  On our way there we saw a Komodo dragon and other Australian lizards. We saw some giant tortoises that were standing less than 3 feet away from us.  As we got closer to the Crocoseum we saw saltwater crocodiles. For anyone who watched the crocodile hunter growing up (and remembers any of it) some of the crocodile names would be familiar.  There was Bluey, Agro, and Casper all in a line and then Acco and Lucy among others.  And again if you remember the show the enclosures would also look familiar.

Mossman going after the chicken 

We arrived at the Crocoseum just in time for the show.  There were birds, snakes, an alligator, and yes a big crocodile.  The show was all about conservation and how the average Australian can help out by doing simple things at home.  The most impressive part of the show was definitely the part with the saltwater crocodile named Mossman.

After the show we grabbed lunch and moved on to some more of Australia's famous animals.  We walked through an open area with Kangaroos and Wallabies hopping around.  There were also some Echidnas in a smaller enclosure.  Then we walked though wetlands with large Australia birds and across to the Emu enclosure where we saw an Emu up close with less fence in between us than I expected.  One of the Emus was only about 3 or 4 feet away from us and it walked along the fence with us making a very deep noise that you would never thing a bird could make.

Sleeping Kangaroo sleeps like my cats at home

We walked through an open Koala area where Karin and I got to pet a Koala (they are softer than I had been led to believe they were). While we were standing there one of the Koalas decided to get down from his tree and run across the path to a different tree with all kinds of people walking around.

Just chilling in the grass

We then got to see Wombats! Finally I have been waiting all trip to see a wombat and I now have.  There were four or five of them out wandering around their enclosure with a keeper.  For anyone who doesn't know what a Wombat is they look like a cross between a Koala and a woodchuck (at least I think so).

Another animal I got to check off my list that day was Tasmanian Devils! There were a bunch out running around sniffing the air and just looking too cute for words.

A Tassie Devil peeking out from the rocks

We also stopped by the American alligator exhibit so that Karin could say that she had seen both Crocs and Alligators.  We would later see an enclosure with a bunch of young gators. The young gators were actually moving around instead of just basking in the sun like the larger ones.

Near the end of our day we saw another crocodile being fed. This one's name was Weipa and he shares an enclosure with Lucy (known for being very protective of her nest of eggs).  Weipa put on quite a show as he launched himself out of the murky water in his enclosure.  I know that I never want to be inside that fence.

I wish I could have gotten closer to these beautiful young cheetahs 

Our last area of the Zoo was Southeast Asia and Africa. First stop Asian elephants and it was feeding time so Karin and I jumped in line to feed them.  And then we didn't know what to do with the Elephant slobber that was all over our hands.  We continued on to see the Red Pandas and Tigers before heading to Africa.  On our walk to Africa we saw 2 cheetah cubs with handlers being walked on leashes.  The two looked happy that they were allowed to just lounge in the grass.  The rest of the Africa exhibit was an open grassy plain with Giraffes, Zebras, and a Rhino sharing the space.

One of the Asian elephants we got to feed

On our way out we stopped by the wildlife animal hospital where we got a peek into what goes on there and what kind of animals they treat.  A koala named Ros was being re-bandaged after a dag attacked him, there was a bird with something wrong with his wing and a turtle that had a shell problem from being run over with a car. All three seemed to be on the mend and there were more animals resting in cages recovering from numerous injuries.

Ros the injured koala waking up from anesthesia. 

It was a long day. We got back to my homestay house at 6pm, just in time to leave for the Footy game that night.

Tassie Devil

I haven't had a chance to do anything with the pictures so they are all completely unedited and there are a few pictures that I don't have on my computer so I'll have to add them later.

Brisbane

I don't think I mentioned that it rained everyday for the first week in Brisbane.
 This is the rainbow we saw after the scavenger hunt.

Paige, Eric, and I arrived at 6:30am on a train into Brisbane.  Tired and hungry we dragged our bags from the train station to the hostel we would be staying in for the night.  But the reception desk didn't open until 8am and we couldn't check in until 11am, so we waited and waited until we finally were able to check in. We spent the rest of the day lounging around and went to bed early.  The next day we met up with the group again where we spent one night the the Brisbane YHA before heading to North Stradbroke Island for a few days of field work. When we returned from Straddie we were passed off to our host families where we would spend the next 2 weeks.

Scavenger hunt: this is a BBQ

My host family is very nice.  They have free wifi (which I am using right now), TV, and are located not too far from a bus stop.  I have enjoyed my time here with them and for the first time since I've been in the country I have been able to unpack my clothes! I was also able to do laundry and make sure that everything actually got clean.  The only bummer has been that it is hard to get together with people because everyone is living somewhere different and they may not live very close to a bus stop.  So we mostly see each other in class. These 2 weeks have been mostly lecture weeks with quite a few days off.

My room for 2 weeks! Yes it is a but messy but I took this towards
 the end of my stay and I was running around so much my room
started to show that all I had time for was sleeping in there.

And with our time off we have all figured out how to plan get togethers in the CBD including a scavenger hunt and a group outing to a rugby game.  Paul and Ann Marie also hosted a potluck BBQ where they were staying.  We had enough food to feed probably 40 people and there where only 28 of us.

The little gecko that lives in my room :)

When we are not doing things in a group most of us do things with our host families.  On my first day with my family I went to one of their daughter's houses and met a bunch of the family (including 6 dogs!).  On another day off my host parents took me out into the country where we saw a bunch of Wallabies and Kangaroos.  And then last night they took me and the French girl that is also staying with them to a Footy match.  And today (my last day here) they took me, Marion (French girl), and Grace (Chinese girl also staying with them) out for a fish and chips picnic.  And the rest of the day has been mostly spent packing or  writing this post.

Picnic on the last day with the host family.
From left Marion, me, Helen (host mom), and Grace

Bustin' a move for the photo scavenger hunt

Sydney Parts 2,3, and 4

Paige and I ready for our snorkel in the harbor.

Paige and Hen looking fine on our snorkel

A tiny waterfall in the Blue Mountains

After leaving the city we stayed on the other side of the harbor in Chowder Bay at a place called Lands Edge.  It was great everything was green around us, we didn't have to think about cooking and we spent most of our time outside.  A couple of the days we worked with the local park services pulling weeds or excavating an old military tunnel. We also learned about the Aboriginal culture in the area.  I even got to throw a boomerang!


We weren't there long (not that we're ever anywhere long). We returned to downtown Sydney for a few days before head off in seperate directions for break.  I stayed in Sydney for break with Paige and Eric. There were others that stayed in the city too and Emily Smith and Karin stayed in the same hostel as us.  It was nice to not be on a schedule for a few days. Paige and I went to Manly for a day where we met up with others from our group.  I took a dance class at Sydney Dance Company and then wandered through a market with Paige in the Rocks (the oldest area in Sydney).

We met up with a bunch of others from the group one night for pizza at the Australian Heritage Hotel where we all enjoyed pizza made from some unique Australian ingredients.  There was the Kangaroo pizza (my favorite) and Crocodile pizza (not so favorite).

I also had the chance to meet up with Izzy Roe. She, Paige and I went out to dinner one night and explored some areas of Sydney that Paige and I hadn't seen.