On: Trolleys

by Donnie Hayden

Guhday mates from Dahni, Your Aussie Koala Coles' Trolley Expert — Guhday mates from Donnie, Your Aussie Koala Coles’ Trolley Expert

Well, first off, I do apologize for this post running a little behind. I have been working on several to try and get ahead. We are leaving on Friday, I believe, for the weekend to the Blue Mountains and I’m not sure if I will have Internet/WIFI access until we get back to Camden, Sunday night? So, after today’s post, I will schedule a couple of posts to publish automatically around midnight of Eastern Standard time (EST) in the United States.

For today, On: Trolleys.

I’m not exactly sure, but I think Australians refer to “trolleys” as anything that has wheels and moves including: elevators and escalators, but certainly what we call shopping carts in the United States.

In Camden, New South Wales (NSW), Australia, the two local and frequently visited places by the general public, for grocery shopping are: Woolworth’s (not the familiar past 5 and dime department store) and Coles’. This post is about Coles’ and their trolleys (shopping carts).

Have you ever grabbed a shopping cart at the store and it seems like you always get the one that has a flat spot on one wheel and as it rolls it goes frump, frump, frump, squeaks or just doesn’t roll right? Me too! Problem solved at Coles’!

OMG, these have BIG O’ HUGE wheels and roll so smoothly, you check between the wheels and the floor, just to make sure the trolley (cart) is not actually floating over the floor! As shown above, there is one size for quick shopping of a few items or the average size for more items or say, your weekly grocery shopping. I say “weekly” shopping loosely as, it appears just like in Japan, many people shop daily. Like Japan, Australian refrigerators are smaller than in the U.S.A., which seems to suggest that many Aussies shop frequently. They also, as the Japanese, like their stuff, really fresh!

There are, of course, some other carts with baby seats similar to the car seat or child-restraint seats used in most vehicles. The baby seat carts are attached to the trolley/cart and have seat belts.

There are trolleys/carts for those that are walking impaired or challenged.

Then there is another kind of trolley/cart that I have never seen before!

These are much more than just adorably cute! They are constructed with the same quality of materials as all the others. The flags attached are not to advertise the name of the store. The flags are so the adults (any responsible adult) can easily find the kids. And the trolleys/carts are for much more than mere amusement, to keep the children occupied. They are important teaching aides. And they help instill in the child the – “I’m not a little kid, I’m a grown-up,” attitude, most kids desire to embrace. And each child is instructed that if they do not return the cart to the place where they got it at the end of their shopping experience, they will not be allowed to use one next time. That’s a pretty good lesson in personal responsibility, good manners and discipline.

Notice how the little girl is in front, leading her father? Oh, and she is taking this so seriously too, just like an adult! 🙂

Oh, I love these trolleys/carts! They are the best made and the easiest to steer and guide and glide that I have ever seen! And yes, just like in the United States, I’ve seen these in and around the neighborhood. I know of no complaints at Coles’ so, I guess these wandered off trolleys/carts, make their way back home, eventually! 🙂

With all this sincere and honest praise about these trolleys/carts, there is just one problem…

Trolley1 — …what’s missing in this picture?

Yes, what’s missing in the above picture? Yes, that’s my foot you see. But there is no bottom rail!!! I can neither be pushed nor run fast and jump on and ride this cart through the store and the parking lot! 😦

I suppose these were built this way because, either my wife Susan told them they should or they just knew I was coming! 🙂

April 9, 2014 2

On: Proof

Guhday mates from Dahni, Your Aussie Koala Scientific Discovery Discoverer — Guhday mates from Donnie, Your Aussie Koala Scientific Discovery Discoverer

For quite some time, we have been told and have been taught that the world was at some time past, was once, one large land mass in the midst of water, we now call oceans and seas.

Then also, some time ago, the popular catch-phrase – ‘a global village’ was coined to show that the world is really a small place and that we are all connected by some commonality called, “the human race” or simply put, humanity.

Yes, yes, I know that I, as a Koala, am an arboreal (tree hanger-outer) herbivorous (leaf eating) marsupial (pouch carried) mammal (milk fed), Phascolarctidae (the only extant bear that lived in a pouch), cousin to the wombat, native to Australia, and not a human bean! 🙂

But I have made an all-important discovery!

Despite our many differences in language, culture, the many pigments within our skin, our beliefs, economic status, education, intellect, talents and skills and whether we are female, male or a child, we all have much in common. Principally, each of us desire life, liberty and the pursuit of, “happily ever after,” at least every once in awhile.

Oh sure, there are birds and bugs and plants and animals here and where ever your there is that are no place else on earth, and everything I guess got land-locked whenever the great land divide took place, but there is still proof we were once all connected!

And now, for the first time ever, I, yours truly, here in Australia, at almost the bottom of the world or just plainly, here down under, have undeniable and irrefutable PROOF that we were all once connected!!!!!

Note: And I don’t want to hear anything about this being possible because of bird migration either! 🙂

April 8, 2014 0

On: The Camden Show

by Donnie Hayden

Guhday mates from Dahni, Your Aussie Koala Camden Show guide — Guhday mates from Donnie, Your Aussie Koala Camden Show guide

Well the Camden Show. Where do I begin? The Show was held April 4th and 5th, 2014 in Camden, New South Wales, Australia. I probably took close to 300 pictures and with the exception of perhaps a small handful, I’m pretty happy with the rest of them. Choosing which ones to share and sizing them (down) has been quite time consuming. But I had the time.

Thus far during our stay here, it seems we have some activity on one day, followed by a day of rest. This has worked out very nicely for me. I’m not sure what factor or factors may be involved (my age, physical condition, the high humidity, intense sun or all of the above), but walking a lot and the activities have pretty much left me spent the following day. Adjusting to the time zone and/or jet lag may have made their contribution to my tiredness as well? But nothing hurts, I feel great and enjoy the walking just like we did much of it in Japan too. Days have been really pleasant. The temperature rose during our visit to the show, but was cooled off by the weather-predicted rain or actually, the downpour. It was nice, fun and funny. We were all able to duck into a large tent of interesting demonstrations and wait out the rain.

Well anyway, back to pictures. I have chosen 50, yes 50. That may seem like a lot and they are not because I believe they are such great shots that I want to share them with you, but because they reflect the wonderful Camden Show. It is very similar to any county fair you may have ever been to, but still different. So I will just start with pictures and some text and some captions and see how it goes. Perhaps it will end up with more posts about the show? Here we go.

Lady in a lovely 1960's style dress — Lady in a lovely 1960’s style dress as we walked in

Beautiful display made from fruits, vegetables and seed — Beautiful display all made from fruits, vegetables and seeds

horse and riders nicely dressed and groomed — Horse and Riders nicely dressed and groomed

Susan's New Aussie Hat — Susan’s New Aussie Hat

Painted Pony. Do you see the silhouette of the head of a horse on its side?

Aussie Coats - lanolin/bees wax coated — Aussie Coats – lanolin/bees wax coated

Well yes, camels. We missed the camel race, pooh. :( — Well yes, camels! We missed the camel race, pooh. 😦

Authentic Aussie Wear Wearers :) — Authentic Aussie Wear Wearers 🙂

Brahma Bull Yeh hah mates! — Brahma Bull Yee hah mates I mean partners! 🙂

Some baaad Sheepies :) — Some baaaaad Sheepies 🙂

Camden42 — Sheep Shearers Shearing Sheep 🙂

Buy what you want and put it in a show bag

Show bag shops were everywhere. Very decorative and artistic billboards. You find the stuff you want for a certain price and then put it all in a show bag. There were many of these vendor/shop/kiosks. Very popular with the youts (youths). 🙂

There the sheep again heading for shearing — There go the sheep again, heading for their sheep shearing

Sand Sculpture First Prize. WOW did the artist have intuition or what? — Sand Sculpture First Prize. WOW, did the artists know they would win?

20 Cattle Cart Team :) — 20 Cattle Cart Team 🙂

Kite Flying And there were several balloons lost to the clouds. — Kite flying and there were several balloons lost to the clouds.

The Common Ground is a totally self-supported and self-sufficient Christian Commune. The support themselves by places like these eateries. We ate in one in Picton Australia where I recorded the Bell Birds. see: Bell Birds here

They make their own clothing and grow their own organic food, some of which they use in their restaurants. Their food is excellent! I believe they have a sister cafe in Ithaca, NY in the United States.

Bundab Distillery Display — Bundaberg Distillery Display

This was an interesting and miniature museum. It was filled with history of the company which is a major producer of rum in Australia. Various shapes of bottles were on display as well as the process involved in how rum is made from raw cane sugar. We even got to taste samples of the molasses. The next picture is of a bottle of rum made to look like one of those pirate movie pistols.

Petting Zoo for the kids. OK, kids younger than me. :) — Petting Zoo for the kids. OK, kids younger than me. 🙂

Beautiful Horses and... — Beautiful Horses and…

...Clydesdale Horses too! — …Clydesdale Horses too!

There was something for everyone at the Camden Show! So many different kinds of food, animals, shows, rides, demonstrations and people of all ages having fun. It rained both days and was not perhaps the greatest for the vendors pocketbooks, but it was a wonderful experience. They even put down straw and other materials so people did not have to walk through the mud. That’s was real nice and something I have never seen in the United States at any of the fairs I have ever been to. And the children were all so engaged, curious and their excitement was well contained, controlled and managed. People were all, for the most part, nice, friendly and well behaved. No alcohol was allowed except for the two wineries that gave samples. All in all it was a wonderful time. I was like a young child again. I would have loved every minute of both days, rain and all, but glad for the time I had. It was all eye candy for me. My camera was not unhappy either. 🙂

After we left the tent where we ducked under after the downpour of rain had stopped, we had to take the ardent and difficult task of getting home. WE HAD TO WALK LESS THAN SIX MINUTES TO GET HOME!!! 🙂 Around 9:00 PM, we watched the fireworks from the middle of our street. That was perhaps the closest and best view of fireworks I have ever had. And it was produced by a world class and world renown top pyrotechnical company, F0ti International, based in Australia.

http://fotifireworks.com.au

Then two of us walked back to the carnival at night and watched the wild Brunby run. The Running of the Brunby are wild ponies in Australia, similar to the Mustangs of the southwest in the United States. So I will conclude this post with a small Youtube video I made and uploaded.

Final Night of the 2014 Camden Show

http://www.camdenshow.com

April 7, 2014 0

On: Damper

by Donnie Hayden

Guhday mates from Dahni, Your Aussie Koala Swagman — Guhday mates from Donnie, Your Aussie Koala Swagman

Today, I had intended to share our experience with The Camden Show on Saturday April 5th, 2014, here in Camden NSW Australia. But there are so many pictures I would like to share, I’m still working on it. But, but again, today’s post has pictures from this amazing show. I separated the pictures out for this post because, even though they were taken at the Camden Show, this post should be considered as a whole other subject. The subject is, Damper. Before I explain what damper is, please allow me to set the stage.

In previous posts we looked at such things as the Kookaburra Song which mentions the Swagman. The swagman is a bit of a character in Australian folklore and a very real person or persons, that out of necessity lived very meagerly. Their common mode of transportation was their two feet. Their traveling companion was Matilda, the pack on their back. They traveled around in this manner because, many were poor and moved from place to place seeking better opportunity. If any were well-off-enough to have four-wheeled transportation, it was most likely well-worn and kept together with whatever they could find for parts and that their wit could muster. Their home and kitchen was a campfire. They took shade and some protection from a Coolabah tree, a kind of eucalyptus. Their Billy boil (a metal pot carried on their back for water and to make tea over fire) was essential. Food was often scarce and they needed something easily affordable, simple, easy to make and something filling, to rid themselves of hunger. This common food was called Damper.

Let’s enter the campsite look of a Swagman. And kudos to those that presented this visual and informative and DELICIOUS display at the Camden Show!!! 🙂

Some Swagmen might have had some old wheels like this

Bill the swagman.

They would look for a nice place to set up camp. Their campfire area would look something like this.

Must have water or bring it to make your billy boil and damper

So what is damper? It’s delicious, that’s what it is! 🙂

Damper is a traditional Australian soda bread prepared by swagmen, drovers, stockmen and other travellers. It consists of a wheat flour based bread, traditionally baked in the coals of a campfire. Damper is an iconic Australian dish. It is also made in camping situations in New Zealand, and has been for many decades.

Damper was originally developed by stockmen who traveled in remote areas for weeks or months at a time, with only basic rations of flour, sugar and tea, supplemented by whatever meat was available. The basic ingredients of damper were flour, water, and sometimes milk. Baking soda could be used for leavening. The damper was normally cooked in the ashes of the camp fire. The ashes were flattened and the damper was placed in there for ten minutes to cook.

mixture over of pot in hot coals — mixture in pot over hot coals

Following this, the damper was covered with ashes and cooked for another 20 to 30 minutes until the damper sounded hollow when tapped.

Damper is covered with a lid of hot coals

Alternatively, the damper was cooked in a greased camp oven. Damper was eaten with dried or cooked meat or golden syrup, also known as “cocky’s joy”. Cocky’s joy – were small farmers who settled or perched (like a bird) on the portions of his land that was resumed for agriculture. Some believe they were first called this from the area of Cockatoo Island, hence the word “perched.” So the joy of the Cocky’s was to be able to have land to settle and something to sweeten their damper, which was by tradition, golden syrup.

Damper done down under and ready to come up and eaten

Golden syrup is a pale treacle (un-crystallized syrup made from refining sugar). It is a thick, amber-colored form of inverted sugar syrup, made in the process of refining sugar cane or sugar beet juice into sugar, or by treatment of a sugar solution with acid. It is used in a variety of baking recipes and desserts. It has an appearance similar to honey, and is often used as a substitute by people who do not eat honey. I like to use this instead of Karo syrup (high fructose) when making my pecan pie. I think it is better for us than high fructose corn syrup and I like the added character it brings. It is more expensive than Karo syrup, but worth every extra cent!

Molasses, or dark treacle, has a richer color than golden syrup, and a stronger, slightly bitter flavor.

Slather some butter and golden syrup and dig in! :) — Slather on some butter and pour on some golden syrup and dig in! 🙂 Thank you Swagman Bill!

I have been promised an authentic Australian Damper recipe. Can’t wait to get it and make it for YOU, when we get home! 🙂

Take it away Dingo Dennis!

Waltzing Matilda
Australian unofficial National Anthem
Lyrics by
A.B. Paterson

Once a jolly swagman camped by a billabong,
Under the shade of a Coolibah tree,
And he sang as he watched and waited till his billy boil,
You’ll come a Waltzing Matilda with me.

Waltzing Matilda, Waltzing Matilda,
You’ll come a Waltzing Matilda with me,
And he sang as he watched and waited till his billy boil
You’ll come a Waltzing Matilda with me.

………………..

Down came a jumbuck to drink at that billabong
Up jumped the swagman and grabbed him with glee,
And he sang as he shoved that jumbuck in his tucker bag
You’ll come a Waltzing Matilda with me.

Waltzing Matilda, Waltzing Matilda,
You’ll come a Waltzing Matilda with me,
And he sang as he shoved that jumbuck in his tucker bag
You’ll come a Waltzing Matilda with me.

…………………

Up rode the squatter mounted on his thorough-bred
Down came the troopers One Two Three
Whose that jolly jumbuck you’ve got in your tucker bag
You’ll come a Waltzing Matilda with me.

Waltzing Matilda Waltzing Matilda
You’ll come a Waltzing Matilda with me
Whose that jolly jumbuck you’ve got in your tucker-bag
You’ll come a Waltzing Matilda with me.

………………….

Up jumped the swagman sprang in to the billabong
You’ll never catch me alive said he,
And his ghost may be heard as you pass by that billabong
You’ll come a Waltzing Matilda with me.

Waltzing Matilda Waltzing Matilda
You’ll come a Waltzing Matilda with me
And his ghost may be heard as you pass by that billabong
You’ll come a Waltzing Matilda with me.

For more about Waltzing Matilda here, see also: http://wp.me/p4jGvr-k9

April 6, 2014 0

On: Australian Mailboxes

by Donnie Hayden

Guhday Mates, from Donnie, Aussie, your friendly Koala tour guide 🙂

Like many mailboxes the world over, many here are unique and suggest some of the personality of those they belong to.

I love the post card mailbox shown in the picture! 🙂

But since our short time here in Australia, at least here in Camden NSW Australia, I noticed the mailboxes are quite low to the ground. Having the type of perspiring mind, I mean inquiring mind that I do, 🙂 I wanted to know why?

I asked several people including our hosts for a reason. They did not know the answer. Along with my question about the mailboxes, I wanted to know how the mail is distributed here and if our hosts had ever seen their mail delivered. In the two years or so since Johnathan and Caitlin have lived here, neither had ever seen their mail delivered. It was just a matter of never being here or noticing when it was dropped off.

This is a really laid-back area. They are not so focused on the mail delivery as say, we in the United States might be. I know when our mail is delivered and sometimes, I wait for it and from time to time, even say “hello” and/or “thank you” to our mail person.

By the way, I’m sorry to use the politically correct crap word “person” which does not distinguish whether or not the deliverer is male or female. OK, I get the “equality thing,” but I’m glad I am am a man and that my wife is a woman and she’s pretty OK with it too. And our mail “person” is a woman. I call her our mail lady and she likes it.

In the pictures shown thus far, the mailboxes are approximately two and half to three feet off the ground. That’s a little low for the postal delivery vehicles in the United States that distribute mail is rural areas like where we live in the country. In this area of Australia, I have not seen any mailboxes attached to the homes. Each are about 5-10 feet from the curb of the street.

Well, as it happened and just the other day, I was outside when it was mail time. My mystery has been solved! 🙂

Mailbox3 — Motor Scooter Mail Delivery System

The scooter the driver is on, actually looks like something a child would drive as it is, pretty small. I’m sure it is great on gas here and/or natural gas. Natural gas is big here and many of the public transportation buses we saw in Sydney have signs above them that read: Powered By Natural Gas.

Most likely the other reason this vehicle is small is because, the driver actually drives up on the lawn, pulls the mail from the two side bags on the scooter and then drives to the next address. No tracks or treadmarks were left in anyone’s lawn that I could see. And the driver wearing rain gear because of it having rained this day. The ground was soft. So this scooter with mail and rider did not appear heavy enough to even leave a dent in anyone’s yard.

I am not sure how newspapers or magazines are delivered here. See round tube in picture #1 above.

Also, I’m not sure what happens if there are large packages as the mailboxes are quite small. I do think the driver in the picture actually delivered to the house, perhaps a larger package then what would fit in the box. I was down the street when I snapped the picture. The driver shutoff the scotter and was just getting back on when I took it.

Anyway, mail delivery in Australia seems quite efficient, the scootter was pretty quiet and overall, I think it’s pretty awesome!

April 4, 2014 0

On: Sydney Opera House

Well, not even a year ago if you would have told me I would be in Australia, I would have been just as surprised then as I am now! Once the reality set in (whenever that was), one thing for sure I wanted to see here (besides grand baby Felix, his Mom & Dad and the animals of Australia) was the Sydney Opera House. I would have been glad, just to see it from the outside and with a further glad, to seeing it inside. I spent several hours on line at http://theoperahouseproject.com/ looking at a timeline of the making of this beautiful architecture. I invite you to click on the link above, do yourself a favor and do the same thing! It is interesting, informative and awe inspiring!!

WOW, were we in for a surprise! Surprise and excitement is really an understatement!!! Why? Well not only would we see outside and inside of ‘The House’ we were treated to a whole day downtown Sydney, a fabulous dinner of fresh oysters and on-and-on, and tickets to a live performance of the world-class Sydney Orchestra and choir! Did I mention or emphasize enough the word, “LIVE’?!”

DESCRIPTION:

“My name is Maximus Decimus Meridius, commander of the Armies of the North, General of the Felix Legions and loyal servant to the TRUE emperor, Marcus Aurelius. Father to a murdered son, husband to a murdered wife. And I will have my vengeance, in this life or the next.”

Powerful, spine chilling and epic. Ridley Scott’s blockbuster, Gladiator, comes to Sydney for its world premiere, and the film score will be performed live in concert by the Sydney Symphony Orchestra and Lisa Gerrard.

The Sydney Opera House will transform into the Roman Coliseum as Hans Zimmer and Lisa Gerrard’s sweeping and dramatic score, among the all-time favorites, is brought to life by a full symphony orchestra while the movie is played in high definition live on the giant screen above.

Gladiator, winner of five Academy Awards, and a Golden Globe for Best Original Score – Motion Picture follows loyal Roman general Maximus Decimus Meridius (Russell Crowe – born in New Zealand, but now an Australian citizen), who is betrayed when the emperor’s ambitious son, Commodus (Joaquin Phoenix), murders his father and seizes the throne. His family dead, and reduced to slavery, Maximus rises through the ranks of the gladiatorial arena to avenge the murder of his family and his emperor.

excerpt from: http://www.sydneyoperahouse.com/whatson/gladiator_with_sso.aspx

soundtrack to: ‘Gladiator’

Now I have seen this movie a couple of times previously, but NEVER like this! There was an intermission where you could move about, get something to drink, go outside and etc., but OMG, by the start of the rest of the movie, I kind of got lost into the music itself and the vocals from the choir and the lead vocals from Lisa Gerrad that actually performed on the original soundtrack for the movie. The timing and the volume and the acoustics of the opera house were incredible!

The performance received and was much-well-deserved of a long, standing ovation! And by the way, the people of Australia generally and genuinely love to dress up when they go out. It was nice to see this!

Many years ago and even before my time, 🙂 the first movies were black and white and before the “talkies” (movies with sound), background music was performed by a sole pianist, some other musician, musicians or a small orchestra. Our experience at the Sydney Opera House was like a trip back in time. By this I mean, the old becoming new again. Obviously we cannot go to the movie, rent one or buy one and expect like “fries come with that,” to count on a live symphony and chorus to show up. But WOW, wouldn’t it be great if this was the common thing!

For me, I have never appreciated the importance of music in a film as much as I now do! And it was just beyond words to express my gratitude for this experience, for the incredible seats and to not only hear this music “live,” but to see the musicians as they played and the vocals as they were sung by such a world-class orchestra, choir and the vocalist that sung on the original soundtrack. All together, this was perhaps a lifetime experience being first in Australia, 2nd in this theater, 3rd to experience the movie/live music/visual display acoustics and to share this with my best friend and the love of my life! And I am thankful that Jonathan and Caitlin our ‘gifters,’ were here to join us and that they had some much needed time together. A big shout out to Wendy that took care of baby Felix, so they could enjoy date night! 🙂

I do apologize for some of the pictures above as they are not to my satisfaction. I have been having some difficulty with my camera recently. Also, the favorite digital media card for many professionals and me is compact flash. Unfortunately, it is a terrible design for downloading via a card reader to my computer. Before I left for our trip, I bought a new card reader so I could download my pictures to our laptop. Yesterday, the pins got bent and I had to get a new reader today. Today was raining so I spent it recouping my energy, and catching up with pictures and posts. I will need to address my camera with perhaps something new after we get home and I find some money or knock out all my teeth so the tooth fairy can visit me big time! 🙂

Sydney Opera House is a marvel of vision and construction. I believe I am correct in saying that each year, Sydney and Australia celebrate this icon in what is called, ‘The Lighting of the Sails.’ This year, the event starts on May 23 through June 9th, 2014. I would love to be here for this, but we will already be home. Each year it is different. I will close with a beautiful picture from http://vividlive.sydneyoperahouse.com/lighting-the-sails/?gclid=CO-Ph9Pixr0CFQUJvAodA7IAIg and two (2) YouTube videos, highlights from 2013 and 2012. If possible, crank up the volume and watch these FULL SCREEN! Enjoy! 🙂

‘Lighting the Sails’ 2013

‘Lighting the Sails’ 2012

April 4, 2014 0

On: Out N’ About I

by Donnie Hayden

Today, I would like you share with you, a mini-walkabout in the neighborhood. Let us just see visually, some house and shops within 2-3 blocks of where we are staying. But first, what is a “mini-walkabout?”

OB20 — House on the corner of Little Street

Walkabout refers to a rite of passage during which male Australian Aborigines would undergo a journey during adolescence and live in the wilderness for a period as long as six months. In practice they would trace the paths, or ‘Songlines’ that their ancestors took, and imitate, in a fashion, their heroic deeds. Merriam-Webster Dictionary, however, identifies the noun as a 1908 coinage referring to “a short period of wandering bush life engaged in by an Australian Aborigine as an occasional interruption of regular work”, with the only mention of “spiritual journey” coming in a usage example from a latter-day travel writer.

To white employers, this urge to depart without notice (and reappear just as suddenly) was seen as something inherent in the Aboriginal nature, but the reasons may be more mundane: workers who wanted or needed to attend a ceremony or visit relatives did not accept employers’ control over such matters (especially since permission was generally hard to get).

Another great possibility is that the Aborigine had no concept of time. If given a job to do, we may not completely finish the work in a day and would return at it’s end and continue the following day and so on until it is finished. The Aborigine would just take off and not return until the job was done.

So, my mini-walkabout is just a short period of time, walking the neighborhood to see what I can find.

Most of the homes here have tile roofs and the rest have metal roofs. The ceilings inside most homes are around 8′ (eight feet) high. These construction materials and methods are to keep the interiors as cool as possible, for this area can reach temperatures as high as 115 degrees + Fahrenheit in peak summer.

Sometimes the relative humidity can be upwards of 90 percent, but at 115 degrees F., the heat burns off the humidity and it is a dry heat. This would be similar to the desert southwest in the United States. It is hard to imagine such beautiful and fragrant things surviving in such climates, but they seem to thrive.

Even though there are tropical birds, trees and plants here, it can become very dry and parched, due to lack of rain. Things could quickly turn brown, but as they say in Australia, “No Worries,” because everything adapts to these extremes and fluctuations.

In the United States we might freak out if our grass turns brown due to lack of rain and start watering like crazy. But in this area, brown can be normal, Again, “No Worries,” the rains will come again and everything will turn green again, almost instantly. At present, most everything is nice a green here, so we are happy about that.

The weather of their fall is between 70-80 F. by day and 65-68 F. at night. It has been very nice during the day and pleasant sleeping. The air is clean and fragrant although I seem to be allergic to something and have a little upper respiratory congestion. I am told that it never snows here, but it can get somewhat cold in the winter, but it is short-lived. They may have around five seasons here. Spring, early summer, late summer, fall and a short winter. I am sure this has to do with Australia’s position below the equator and I am told the hole in the ozone layer, its effects are greatly experienced here. I’m not sure of the accuracy of this, but I’ve heard 1 out of every 2 people experience some type of skin cancer. This country does have the highest rate of melanomas in the world. THE SUN IS HOT, AND BLINDING HERE! Cover up and where skin protection.

In another post, I mentioned that everything needed to live here, is within a short walking distance. I meant it! And actually, within seven minutes!

There is A family practice, Chiropractor, Orthopedic surgeon, a lawyer, hairstylist, Thai massage, a caterer, shed builder, engineer, daycare, a hospital, ambulance service, MRI & X-ray place for diagnostic images, cottages, houses, apartments and condos.

In a later post, I will share pictures of the downtown area. It’s only seven minutes from here on Little Street where we are staying. There you can get everything else you need!

And God forbid, there is even a funeral director in the neighborhood. 🙂

April 1, 2014 0

On: Music Down Under

by Donnie Hayden

Being in Australia, I thought I should share some music. What better songs than ‘Down Under’ by the 80’s Australian band, Men at Work and a childhood favorite, The Kookaburra Song by Marion Sinclair in 1932.

“Marion Sinclair wrote the song in 1932 for a contest being held by the Victorian Girl Guides.

The competition was for an ‘Australian round’ song. Her song, the Kookaburra Song won and was introduced by Marion at the World Jamboree in Frankston, Victoria in 1934. It was instantly a hit with the girls and has become a much loved song all over the world.

This is a fun children’s song. A gum tree is a name for the eucalyptus tree. There are more gum trees than any other kind of tree in Australia.

Lawsuit
The Kookaburra song was involved in a copyright dispute with the Aussie band Men at Work over their song (I come from the land)”

excerpt from: https://alldownunder.com/australian-music-songs/kookaburra-song.htm

The Song, ‘Come from the Land’ or simply ‘Down Under’ had a flute riff which the Australian Court ruled is an infringement of the copyrighted tune, ‘The Kookaburra Song.’ Despite the controversy between the two songs, and even former members of ‘Men at Work,’ both songs are wonderful and are shared here via YouTube videos. But first, what does a Kookaburra look and sound like?

Now for the lyrics and followed by the video of, ‘Down Under.’

“Down Under”

written by Collin Hay and Ron Srykert

Travelling in a fried-out Kombi
On a hippie trail, head full of zombie
I met a strange lady, she made me nervous
She took me in and gave me breakfast
And she said:

“Do you come from a land down under
Where women glow and men plunder
Can’t you hear, can’t you hear the thunder
You better run, you better take cover.”

Buying bread from a man in Brussels
He was six foot four and full of muscle
I said, “Do you speak-a my language?”
He just smiled and gave me a Vegemite sandwich
And he said:

“I come from a land down under
Where beer does flow and men chunder
Can’t you hear, can’t you hear the thunder
You better run, you better take cover.”

Lying in a den in Bombay
With a slack jaw, and not much to say
I said to the man, “Are you trying to tempt me?
Because I come from the land of plenty.”
And he said:

“Oh! Do you come from a land down under (oh yeah yeah)
Where women glow and men plunder
Can’t you hear, can’t you hear the thunder
You better run, you better take cover.”

Even though this video is about 14 years old and was filmed during the Olympics in 2000 in Australia, note both the familiar icons on stage and the enthusiasm of the crowd. They (the Aussies) loved this song, seem to connect to it and it was treated as an almost unauthorized national anthem. The term Down Under is a colloquialism referring to all things Australian, New Zealand or just one or the other. it is also known as “The Land Down Under” for its position in the southern hemisphere. This is because when one looks at a map in the most common way, Antarctica at the ‘bottom’ of the page, north appears to be “up” and south; “down.”

By the way, it rained this evening then cleared off. I am not a star specialist nor do I know the difference between the big and little dipper, but the sky was full of stars and what ever ‘dipper’ I was looking at, I have never seen it appear so close!

Anyway, despite the term “down under’s” wide usage, it is rarely used by Australians themselves, many of whom regard it with some derision. Nevertheless, Australians are not above using it themselves, as exemplified by Men at Work song “Down Under” which has become a patriotic rallying song. Australia’s most famous boxing champion, Kostya Tszyu, was nicknamed as “The Thunder From Down Under”.

According to Roger Ebert, “No film set in Australia is allowed to use the word Australia in its title where “Down Under” is an acceptable alternative. For example, we don’t get The Rescuers in Australia or Quigley in Australia.”

And now for the childhood favorite the world over, The Kookaburra Song.

The Kookaburra Song

By Marion Sinclair in 1932

Kookaburra sits on the old gum tree,
Merry merry king of the bush is he.
Laugh, Kookaburra, laugh, Kookaburra,
Gay your life must be!

Kookaburra sits on the old gum tree,
Eating all the gum drops he can see.
Stop Kookaburra, stop Kookaburra
Save some there for me!

Kookaburra sits on the old gum tree,
Counting all the monkeys he can see.
Laugh Kookaburra, laugh Kookaburra
That’s not a monkey, that’s me!

Here is another video that I thought you might also enjoy.

March 30, 2014 0

On: Birds of Paradise

Guhday mates and mate-esses or Sheilas, from Australia 🙂

After the flight in from China and stowing our suitcases for the next month at Jonathan’s & Caitlin’s and baby Felix’s place in Camden, we instantly set out to discover this new country and experience what it has to share to share with you. It did not take long!

You might think, Oh yes, English speaking after Japanese, yes, yes, yes! But let me say this, you have to be a born and raised Australian to understand what some of them are saying sometimes! “Huh, was that English you just spoke????” 🙂

But yes, mostly it is nice to be able to understand and communicate in a language I am mostly familiar with.

Quite a contrast here to Japan which is just now starting to heat up into their spring. Here down under the equator where the water spins counter-clockwise, they are into their fall. Fall of 70-80 degrees Fahrenheit by day and mid sixties at night. It has been raining slightly for the last couple of days and everything looks lush and lovely. It was dry today and with the humidity of over 90%, it was hot, but we get a lot of the cool sea breezes.

Camden is about an hour from Sydney. It is considered the country. Those in the city call this the ‘bush’ but those that live here say the ‘bush’ is somewhere else. We are not far from where kangaroos roam freely. They are overpopulated and used for food. It is considered the reddest and leanest meat you can eat on the planet. Jonathan grilled some last night for us and well, it was DELICIOUS!

Camden is a quaint community of around 80,000 or so. People are genuinely helpful and friendly. Jonathan joined a community band and they had a concert this morning outside of the local library. Music is a universal love and they played many familiar tunes, even dedicating one to Susan, Jonathan’s Mom from the USA and another to a Belgium couple. We met for the first time a couple and they invited over to their home for lunch, coffee, tea, wine and desert. The world is, truly becoming, a global village. People really are, quite the same everywhere. We all just want to find our voice and our place in the world, love, be loved and live happily ever after, at least once in awhile. :).

Everything we need or could desire is only about a 7 minute walk to town. You walk past huge gum trees where they seem to be growing without bark. They are and the bark has just fallen off. They call the bark ‘fuel’ because, this is what it is used for. You pass home after home with mostly tile roofs (some metal), which are so built because, it keeps the homes cooler inside. It can get pretty hot here and stay this way for quite some time throughout the year. We are told that fall is the best time to be here and here, we are! But when it reaches a certain temperature, the humidity is just burnt off leaving the environment hot and dry, but again, cool breezes come in from the ocean regularly.

But oh, the birds of paradise! It is almost like a dream that we have traveled so many thousands of miles away from home to the other side of the world and now, almost to the bottom of the world. Our lunch hosts had recently been to the literal bottom of the world in Antarctica and showed us some incredible pictures of their time year. Their suggestion was to see the movie, ‘Happy Feet’ as the landscapes and the penguins including their personalities is just about how it really is. I also sometimes call new baby Felix, ‘Happy Feet,’ because he is always moving them like he’s dancing! 🙂

But anyway, birds of Paradise. For the most part where we are is, tropical. There are palm trees here and flowers and birds I have never seen except in picture books or movies. Some are similar to Florida USA or the country of Jamaica, but there are species here that exist no other place on earth. The streets are lined with color after color of sweet fragrant roses. But besides Lily of the Valley, my favorite flower is…

It was so nice to be able to snap this picture just a few minutes away by foot on my mini-walkabout. 🙂

Then, there was another bird of paradise just outside the living room window where we are staying, eating at the feeder.

I hope to be able to capture and record and share with you the beautiful bird-music by day and night be here just outside, as well as, the other birds of paradise that live here. I feel like I’m in paradise here. If I am not any more colorful or beautiful here, I am at least surrounded by color and beauty. Maybe, just maybe, some of Australia will wear off and into me? 🙂

March 29, 2014 0

On: The Land Down Under

“G’day mates and ma-tesses!” Well, we’re off to the Land Down Under.

'The Land Down Under' by Dahni © 2014, all rights reserved — ‘The Land Down Under’ by Dahni © 2014, all rights reserved

So waltz Matilda and tie me kangaroo down sport, we’d put some shrimp on the barbie for you, but I don’t really think they say this in Australia?

Paul Hogan, yep the same mate that played the lead in the ‘Crocodile Dundee’ movies

“Shrimp on the barbie” is an often-quoted phrase that originated in a series of television advertisements by the Australian Tourism Commission starring Paul Hogan from 1984 through to 1990. The actual quote spoken by Hogan is “I’ll slip an extra shrimp on the barbie for you”, and the actual slogan of the ad was “Come and say G’day”. It has since been used, along with some variations, to make reference to Australia in popular culture.”

excerpt from:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shrimp_on_the_barbie

March 27, 2014 0

Category: The Land Down Under

On: Trolleys

On: Proof

On: The Camden Show

On: Damper

On: Australian Mailboxes

On: Sydney Opera House

On: Out N’ About I

On: Music Down Under

The Kookaburra Song

On: Birds of Paradise

On: The Land Down Under

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