Fire-breathing diplomats!

Until I came to Australia, I had never heard of Dragon Boating.  This year, I was able to sign up for the team from the office which was pretty cool.  Today, we competed in the Dragons Abreast Regatta.  The regatta is sponsored by the Dragons Abreast Dragon Boat team to raise awareness and money for breast cancer research and support for those undergoing treatment for breast cancer.  There were 20 boats competing today and we had two preliminary heats to decide where we fell in the finals.  While we did pretty good, we only made the B final (There were 4 from A to D with A being the best).  In that race, we came second  taking the B final 2nd place trophy.  Not too shabby, but it would have been better to be in the A heat!  We watched that one and they were FAST and STRONG, so we have some work to do before next year.

Be afraid!!  We are on the water!!!

The Ambassador with our team mascot

Hey look who is out in front!

 During the regatta, they held a ceremony remembering those who lost their battle with breast cancer.  The ceremony is called flowers on the water and they take flowers and petals and release them from the boats on the water.  Those of us on shore also released petals (you can see them close to shore in the next photo) for our loved ones who didn't survive.  I floated a petal for our Topsy and in honor of our survivors too.  It was very moving.

The Dragons Abreast team

The Dragons Abreast team doing flowers on the water

The flowers released

Stroke of Luck!

Award time.  2nd place in the B final.

Unda tha Sea

Because time is flying by, I have decided to try to mark things off my *list* of things to see and do while here in Australia.  The latest adventure took me to the World Heritage Listed Great Barrier Reef.  In order to get to the reef, there are many towns along the coast of Queensland from which to choose.  This trip, I went in via Cairns (pronounced CANS).  Once there, I was delighted to learn that there was not only opportunities to go to the reef, but Queensland is home to actual rainforests!  Of course because tourism is one of the largest (if not THE largest) employers in Cairns, we were spoiled for choice in tour operators.

Day One's adventure was a trip on the Skyrail.  This cable car takes you from Cairns up to a little town called Kuranda.  Along the way, you travel over the rainforest, beautiful waterfalls and the views provided go all the way to the Coral Sea.  From the Skyrail website,

Australia’s Tropical Rainforests cover approximately 900,000 square hectares and are internationally recognised as being one of the most ecologically fascinating natural areas in the world, as one of few remaining truly pristine tropical rainforest places on the planet. Stretching for over 500 kilometres along Tropical North Queensland’s coastline, these rainforests are the oldest continually surviving rainforests on earth and once covered the entire Australian continent.

If I thought New Zealand was lush and green, Queensland gives it a run for its money.  The cable car takes you up and over but it makes stops along the way for you to get out and explore the rainforest up close.  Here are some shots as we traveled up.

 At the first stop, we had to get out of the cable car and had the opportunity to either continue on or walk a designated path around the rainforest.  There was also a chance to take a short tour with a park ranger.  We managed to catch the tour as we made our way around.  Some of the trees were so lush and green but this fella below was huge.  I cannot even begin to articulate how large this tree is except for the fact that I stood at the base of this tree and looked straight up to take this photo.  Not just up, but an actual 90 degree angle from where my head normally sits.

One of the oldest species in the area and it grows to be the tallest, reaching over the canopy of the other trees.

We made our way around to the observation deck to overlook the valley below.  It was beautiful and absolutely peaceful.  So peaceful in fact that some lady just pulled up there at the rail and started hanging out there.  You cant tell but this observation deck is quite small.  Im standing in the corner and there were maybe places for 5 other people to stand if they stood shoulder to shoulder.  There is no ROOM for you to hang out and meditate on life for an hour or two lady, we ALL want photos here.

Overlooking the area

Then it was back in the little cable car and up the hill some more.  The higher we got, the less excited I was about the others in the car *wiggling* around.  I understand you cant see everything from all angles, but please sit still and stop rocking this bubble hanging hundreds of feet above the ground.

The view from our car.  Good thing Im not scared of heights!

One more stop and we were at Barron Falls.  Because it has been rather dry, the falls were more of a trickle than a *falls* but beautiful nonetheless.

Barron Falls

We finally made it to the top!  As with most things these days, they take your photo upon arrival which you can then conveniently purchase in the gift shop for a thousand dollars.  I gave this a big pass for two reasons, 1) I didnt know the other folks in the car, 2) It was a stupid picture of me, and 3) I wasnt paying that much for a bad picture.  I win this one tourism industry.  Of course you must disembark the cable car and the exit takes you conveniently through the gift shop.  I made my way out and into the little town of Kuranda.  There was a bus that took you from the Skyrail station to the end of town then you could walk back to the station at your own pace.  Sounded like a good option to me.

As we made our way around the town, there were tons of little shops, markets and art galleries.  We stopped in a few and did a little shopping all while making our way back to the train that would take us down the hill once more.  I ran across this little church and had to stop and take photos.

St. Saviors - Kuranda

Inside of St. Saviors

It was SO SWEET.  They had few stained glass windows and they were not very large but they were well done and very pretty.  I was completely enamored by this little church and immediately wished we had been able to do this trip on Sunday rather than Saturday so I could attend the service.

Aboriginal art gallery shaped like a ship!!

This is an example of some of the randomness that is Kuranda.  Right across the street from St. Saviours was this.  Yes, that is a building shaped like a pirate ship.  It is an Aboriginal art gallery.    As a matter of fact there are examples of random art all over Kuranda.  This mural was painted on the wall right next to the ship/gallery.

Up the road a bit they had these rock works in the side walk.

Hey, now those are some shapes I recognize.

Who puts a carriage on top of a bar?  The citizens of Kuranda.

So after lunch and a bit of a walkabout, it was time to catch the train to go back down the hill.  You could get a round trip on the Skyrail, a round trip on the train or you could split it up.  I thought splitting it up sounded more fun.

ALLLLLLLL ABOARD!!!!

The trip down was pretty much the same as the trip up, except rather than looking down on it you were right in the middle.  It took us by to the falls so we could see them up close.  Not super impressive but again, it has been rather dry.

If you look closely, you can see two ladies out walking their dogs next to the train.  The locals are thoroughly unimpressed.

Over all, it was a really fun day and I got to see stuff I might not have been able to see other wise.  The weather was perfect for that because it was not too hot or too cold.  I got a little sun and got to see some beautiful flora and fauna native to Australia.  The next day would take me out to see the sea to see what I could see....

This is the catamaran that took us out to the pontoon.  It was pretty big and Id say held about 200 people

I get motion sick and was very worried about this portion of the trip.  I was pleasantly surprised to find that the ride was not very *wobbly* and I did fairly well.  It started with a few bumps but was calm.  The first stop we had to make was at Green Island to drop off those who were just going to the island for the day and to pick up folks who had gone on in the morning.

Scenery on the way to Green Island

Its a little overcast but look how calm the water is!  It was a smooth ride.

Green Island

Once we picked up the folks from Green Island and deposited those who started out with us, we headed on out to the outer reef.  I didnt realize that the seawalkers were only available on Green Island so I missed out on that but I did get to take a ride on a semi-submersible to see the reef.  With glasses, it makes it difficult to snorkel.

The pontoon at the outer reef.  LOOK at the color of the water!! Ive never seen water that color in nature.

HAHAHA!!! Looks like Gator is everywhere!

The semi-submersible that gives you a view of the reef.

Under the sea, we could view the Great Barrier Reef from a carpeted seat on the semi sub. At first I was disappointed because you could only see some coral and not much else.  As we went out a little further, we started to see some of the natural inhabitants of the reef.  Its hard to tell from the pictures but a whole school of fish just swam right up to the sub.  As we sat inside looking at them, they were looking back at us!

Look Flounder, its PEOPLE!  Have you ever seen such a wide variety of people before?

This is a better shot of the school.  They were so curious and funny!

So I did ok for the most part.  It was touch and go once we got onto the pontoon (which moves more than I think it should....) but the killer was the trip on the semi sub.  As I disembarked and got back on the pontoon, the little fella running the tour helped me off and said, "You right, love?  You look white as a ghost!"  I had a hard time answering because I was trying to keep my lunch down but I sort of nodded.  Then I flopped down on one of the tables and tried to make the world stop spinning.  I got back on the catamaran and waited to die.  We started back and I felt horrible.  After a stop to catch a peek at a whale swimming near by (which I did not see because I couldnt get out of my chair) we headed back to Green Island to pick those folks back up and drop the others back.  Its not like the weather was bad but for some reason it was really rough.  When we finally ended up at the dock, I felt like I had been on a ride in a blender.  Im super glad I went there and can mark the GBR off my bucket list.

Kia Ora from Wellington!

That is a traditional Maori greeting.  It means "be well/healthy" and is used informally as "hi".  Im practicing my "Kiwi" words because I headed to New Zealand!  Im a very lucky girl.  I have this trip for work then another for vacation later in the year.  I get to visit both islands this year so it will be a big check mark on my bucket list when I get back.

Part one of our journey takes us to the North Island of New Zealand.  For those of you unfamiliar with what New Zealand looks like Ive included a map as a reference.  :D

Wellington will be the only stop on this portion of our tour.  Wellington is the capital of New Zealand and as such is home to the seat of government (more on that later...).  Though I had to work for the majority of the time I was there I did take advantage of the weekend.

Our journey begins at the Bolton Hotel.  This hotel is one of many in Wellington but only by the grace of the travel agent did I end up here.  I highly recommend it to anyone visiting Wellington as it is fairly centrally located (or with in short walking distance) and quite comfortable.  I got a regular ole room but boy what a room!

It was very comfortable to stay here.  The fact that there was a fridge/freezer and oven helped overcome the hassle of trying to find a different place to eat every night.  Though it is not a chain, the amenities make up for the lack of a reward program. (*No compensation was received for the glowing review above).

After speaking to the concierge (who was actually German) he recommended a tour of Wellington which would pick us up from the hotel.  We figured that would be the best way to see all the sights with minimal effort so we all booked in.  The tour was pretty good, the driver was weird and a little too "familiar" with us.  I dont really like it when people act like they have known you forever when you met them five minutes ago.  This tour operator thought he had jokes, but they got old really quickly.  Anyway...

Our first stop on the tour was Weta Cave.  If you are thinking, I have no idea what that is, then you are like me.  What I learned was that this is the place where a lot of the New Zealand film industry completes their projects.  On the way we stopped at Park Row studios (where Peter Jackson turns out his epic masterpieces).

Outside Park Row Studio

Some monsters outside Weta Cave

King Kong was one of the movies produced here

All of the Chronicles of Narnia were produced here too!

This is the artwork...on the ceiling!

Lord of the Rings

Precious!

I will admit to you now, I have not seen any of the Lord of the Rings movies.  Not. One.  So a great deal of this portion was lost on me.  Im sure that if that is your cup of tea, this would have been a fantastic stop on the tour.  I enjoyed it but not knowing about the LOTR movies, a lot of it was lost on me.  There is one element that seemed to be on track though-the scenery!  As we took our bus ride through Wellington, the driver pointed out some areas where scenes of the LOTR series were shot.  Wellington is, in spite of all the rain (or perhaps because of it) is absolutely luscious.  The green here is deep and seems to completely swallow you up.  Mind you, it is winter here in the Southern hemisphere but where Im from that means dry and brown.  Not so in Wellington.

Because of the booming and growing movie industry here in Wellington, they sometimes call it "Wellywood".  In keeping with that theme, they have their very own Hollywood sign.  Of course because Wellington is so windy, it is appropriately set up.

Right now this sign says "Vellington".  It is not a typo.  They changed the sign for a movie that is out right now about vampires.  I had never heard of it but it was produced in New Zealand so they were doing a little cross promotion.

Our next stop was the top of Mount Victoria.  It is the highest place in Wellington and from it you could see the whole city and out to the sea.  It was beautiful.  Im sure it would have been more beautiful if a) the weather didnt suck and b) it wasnt so COLD.

A random cannon on the hike up Mt. Victoria.  It was too cold to stop and read the plaque.

Views from Mt. Victoria

Beautiful Wellington

View of the airport

Do not adjust your computers..that IS a zebra striped building

So when we could no longer feel our fingers we headed back down to get on the bus once more.  On we went to the Wellington cable car.  We got dropped off at the top and got to ride the cable car down.  It was pretty cool and very historical.  The little bench seats in the cable car were wooden and you could tell it had been in use for quite a long time.

The cable car has stops on the way, this is one of them coming up.

The end of the line!

 The next stop was the parliamentary buildings.  On the way there, we passed the original government building in Wellington.  It is constructed entirely of wood.  The earlier buildings are all wood as they found that wood could withstand the constant earthquakes much easier than concrete.

A small portion of the original government buildings.  It is made from WOOD!

 We then went up the road to the current parliamentary buildings.  Like a lot of things in this corner of the world, it has a nickname.  The current building is called "The Beehive" because of its shape.  I suppose the analogy is two fold as that is where the "worker bees" should be putting in all the hard work.  I say should be because like all governments there are some scandals that show the worker bees not working so much for the people but for their own interests.

Archive and Library

The Beehive

 In this photo, you can see the Beehive and a lovely marble building.  The marble building was to be the new parliament building.  You may have noticed that the stairs are at the end of the building.  That is because the materials used to build this became so expensive they could not afford to build the whole building so they just built one wing.  The stairs were meant to be in the center of the building but because they couldn't finish the stairs ended up on one side.  On another note, the guide told us the Beehive was voted the 4th ugliest building in the world (but it was 3rd, evidently).

Welcome to Wellington

 The last stop on our tour was Old St. Paul's church.  It used to be an Anglican church until the 1960's when it was decided that the congregation needed a larger space and a cathedral was built a couple streets over.  This church, like most of Wellington is also made entirely of wood.  When the congregation moved to the cathedral, the church became non-denominational and services are held here for all faiths.

Old St. Paul's

Add caption

During World War II, U.S. troops were stationed outside of Wellington as a launching point to Asia.  The story goes that one weekend, 20 Marines wanted to attend church service.  The Marines boarded a train and got off at the station, walking the short distance up the road to Old St. Paul's.  The locals were so excited that these soldiers had come to town that, in typical Kiwi fashion, they took them home for Sunday lunch.  I don't know if you are familiar with the American fighting man, but I can say with great certainty they are food-fed, air-cooled, water-driven weapons.  The key to that is the "food" and they can throw down some grub, especially if all they have had to eat for a while is K-rations or MREs.  The story claims that the following weekend the 20 Marines turned into 200 Marines.  Word gets out about a good meal.  In return the Marines were so grateful for the kindness shown to them by the Kiwis they presented them with an American flag and a USMC flag.  Both of which still hang in the church today, more than 70 years from when they were given to the parish of St. Paul's.
  

The USMC flag and behind, a 48 star American flag just on the right.

 Perhaps it is because of my upbringing in the Anglican church (Episcopal if you are from the States) that buildings like this hold a deep meaning for me.  Its more than the sum of its parts.  There is something about a church that moves me.  There is "something" there for me.  This will not be a blog devoted to my faith, but in this portion I would be remiss to ignore it.

Some of the stained glass windows in the church.

The alter

A close view of the windows above the alter

This window is what the church is known by, with many postcards and images of this available in the church bookshop.

A close view of the alter

The lectern

The church also had displays of some of the alter garments for the different seasons.  They were absolutely beautiful.  One, used at Christmas time, displayed the Pohutukawa (Po-ti-ka-wa) flower.  Known as the New Zealand Christmas tree, the tree blooms with bright red flowers usually in December and January.  It was at this point that our tour ended.

Sunday, we decided to go to Te Papa museum.  The best explanation I can give would be its like cramming all of the Smithsonian into one building.  I didnt get around the whole building but it was a great exhibit.  I was especially interested in the Maori exhibits.  One shows a traditional meeting place called Te Marae.  I managed to sneak a photo (Te Papa does not permit photography of exhibits, which is why there are not epic photos here...)

Then as I wandered around the building I looked out the windows.  The museum sits right on the harbor and the views are spectacular.  However, just past the Marae exhibit, I looked out the window and had a moment of panic.  That person is about to JUMP into the harbor!!   I was pulling out my phone to call 111 (the emergency number in New Zealand) and then I realized...they are not moving.  Upon closer inspection, I figured out it was a statue.  Not cool guys, not cool.

Don't do it, mate!

 On the tour the previous day the guide told us that the location for the museum had once been the location of a hotel.  The owner was excited but was worried about what would happen to his livelihood.  So they moved the hotel down and across the street about a half a kilometer.  They didn't pack anything up or take stuff out of the building, they just picked it up and moved it whole.  Plates, glasses, beds, nightstands, the whole lot.

Here is the hotel in its current location.

I enjoyed this trip but as you may notice, the weather was gross.  It rained and was cold for the most of the time I was there.  Every local I encountered apologized for the weather as if they were in control of it.  I thought it was sweet.  The weather was probably the least of my worries.  While I was there, I noticed my hotel room would "pop" a lot during the night some nights.  I thought it was due to the wind.  However, it may be more attributable to the earthquakes for which New Zealand is famous.  Here is a picture of Wellington and the lower North island.  The gray circles are earthquakes that occurred during my visit (and the marker is close to where I stayed).  The biggest one was a 3 on the Richter scale so no damage was sustained and most were not even felt, but some did make the building pop. 

Dont worry mom, they were all *baby* earthquakes.  I didnt feel most of them.

So that is my trip to Wellington.  My first across the Tasman but not the last.  Below are a few more photos of Wellington harbor.  As wonderful as the Aussies are, the Kiwis are some of the most genuine, generous and kind people I have ever met.  I would happily go back to "N ZED" in half a heartbeat.  I plan to do so very soon but to the South Island this time.  Watch this space!