Australia - Friday in Sydney - Part 2

From where we were staying, we took the ferry over to the Circular Quay (pronounced "key"). It's a short trip that drops you off within walking distance of downtown. After getting off the ferry we walked over to the park to get our packets for the race. On the way over, we saw some aborigines playing a didgeridoo. A really unique sounding instrument. I'll need to buy a didgeridoo CD before I return to the US.

We got our packets for the race (bib number, timing chip, etc.). Here are Bob and Rosie in front of the tent where we got our packets.We then went for a walk downtown to see some of the sites of beautiful Sydney. Great fun!

Australia - Friday in Sydney - Part 1

After Lorraine picked us up, we went to Robin and Graeme Harris' house in a very nice suburb of Sydney. Here's a picture of the Harris' house. It was a great place to stay and very convenient for all the things we did while in Sydney. Thank you Robin and Graeme!

After dropping off our bags we went for a walk around the neighborhood. We were right next to Sydney harbor. The views we had were simply outstanding. Here are a couple of shots we took on our walk. The brightly colored Rosella birds were beautiful. Here's a Rosella in a banksia tree - both new to us.

Here are 1) Rosie and Lorraine and 2) Bob and Rosie on the bay with the Opera House and Bay Bridge in the background.

Here's a close-up picture of the Bay Bridge. Notice the people walking up and down the bridge? They're the little ants you see on the bridge. We plan to do the bridge walk on Saturday 10-OCT. Really looks fun.

Australia

We arrived in Sydney, Australia, at about 6:20 AM on Friday, 19-SEP, after leaving LAX at 10:30 PM on Wednesday, 17-SEP. Yes, we totally lost Thursday - where did it go? Both Rosie and I were able to get some sleep on the plane. I believe Rosie slept at least 8 hrs of the 14 hr flight.

Our friend, Lorraine Fletcher, was at the Sydeny airport to me us. We met her at the intersection of two well known US establishments: McDonald's and Krispy Kreme. In the photo below, Rosie is munching on a Krispy Kreme doughnut while Lorraine is enjoying her McDonald's hamburger.

Here's a picture of Krispy Kreme taken from our seats at McDonald's.


Our goals for the day were: stay awake, do some sightseeing in Sydney and stay awake. We were successful in all - as long as we kept moving. We saw some great sites and stayed awake with no naps until about 9:30 PM. Being outside in the fresh air really helped. The weather in Sydney was fantastic and the spring flowers were really beautiful.

We Went to Branson and It Rained

On Tuesday, 02-SEP, Rosie and I drove up to Branson, MO, to hear a timeshare pitch and see the presentation of Noah the Musical. The timeshare pitch got us free hotel (below 1 star?), dinner coupon for a restaurant we'll never go back to, reduced ticket prices and a bit of gas money. However, the supposedly 90 minute sales pitch ran for over 3 hours. Luckily it wasn't high pressure. At the end I told the woman we weren't interested and that was OK.

We had the chance to walk around the river front area of Branson which looks really nice. The water spray and fire in the background below are synchronized with music. The sync was really good. Rosie is standing overlooking the White River / Lake Taneycomo.

Bob is standing down by the river with the water spouts in the background. The song changed and the water/fire show wasn't nearly as exciting. Which is probably better since we would have gotten wet that close to the spray.
On Wednesday night we went to see Noah The Musical. It was excellent. Here's a shot from in front of the Sight and Sound Theater. Note: the theater was built especially for the presentation of Noah. Here's a shot of the screen inside the theater before the musical starts. We couldn't get the entire screen to fit on the camera.
At one point you feel like you're inside the ark with animals all around. There are animals down both sides of the theater. They used both live and anamitronic animals in the production. Bob had an aisle seat and many of the live animals walked down the aisle right next to him - NEAT!

The weather even cooperated. It rained the entire time we were in Branson. So going to see a presentation of Noah was a real appropriate thing to do.

We drove back to HSV Thursday morning and picked Sam up at the doggy daycare. He was glad to see us. He ate like a horse when he got home and has been sleeping ever since. So what's new?

We can highly recommend Noah to you if you ever make a trip to Branson. However, neither of us have any interest in returning to Branson. We're just not "show going" people.

We can also recommend eating at the College of the Ozarks Dobyns dining hall. The meal and service were excellent. By far the best and most relaxed meal we had during the entire trip.

Deer on the Golf Course!

I happened to be in the backyard today with my camera when 2 deer ran across the golf course (Isabella). I think you can see one in the upper left hand side of the photo (in front of house in background).

What's also interesting is seeing the trusty dog not even noticing the deer at all. He never picked up their scent. Maybe he's olfactory challenged. Whatever! He's more interested in the sights/smells in the grass. Who cares about deer - they're overrated anyway! I guess Sam is like a lot of us - we tend to focus on what's next to us versus our surroundings (or the short term vs longer term). Have a great day! Don't forget to "look up" every now and then - you might miss something!

Tomatoes Gone WILD!

When we first planted our very small tomato plants in May, we were worried that they wouldn't survive. They really looked bad and just sat there for the longest time. However, as the temperature got warmer, they revived and exceeded our wildest expectations.

Most of the plants are now about 6 ft tall and taking over the corner of the patio. We've really enjoyed having vine ripe tomatoes; makes a big difference in salads. We think we've gotten a good "return on investment" with our tomato crop. However, we may plant them a bit later next year.



We also learned that we need more stable stakes to hold the plants in place. As they've gotten so big, the small cages we used simply can't support them when a good wind comes along. Oh well, another learning for next year's crop.

Sam's New "Do"

Sam - our 10 year old Golden Retriever - got a new haircut this week. This is his third short haircut of the summer. When the temperature is hot and his hair is long, he really pants a lot. The short cut makes a big difference.

After his cut, people stare at him and as if wondering what kind of dog he is. Oh well, it's fun to be "dinner conversation."

When we take him to Little Rock to get his cut, he starts shivering as soon as we turn into the Petco parking lot. He knows what's coming next. He's such a "wus". He sure is happy to see us when we get back. The woman who cuts him is very gentle with him, but Sam is just a "home body."