Tasting the Temptations of Tasmania!

Many times Anja has remarked to me how big my homeland is! Recently she was asked so 'if you now live in Australia you don't need to take holidays'? Well for these two hardened travellers an adventure is always on our minds so that was what exactly we wanted to do by visiting the most southern part of this vast continent Australia. The Australia Day long weekend at the end of January was when we decided to fly to Hobart the capital of the Apple Isle and the last remaining capital city I had never visited. We took an extra day and flew late on Friday night and treated ourselves to a taxi from the airport to our motel (yes not hostel!). This was our first "Tassie" moment as the taxi driver was short on conversation apart from "how was the flight" "is this your first time here" and then as we crossed Tasman Bridge the only tourist attraction pointed out to us was the "large white building to the left is the casino" which we strained to realise was the six storey building in the distance. We also were quite taken aback to see how dry it was but this was also revealed in our research that Hobart is the second driest capital city in Australia behind Adelaide. Our first night we discover a bar called "Das Zimmer" which is German for "The Room" so we sat back and enjoyed a Becks whilst checking out the locals. A late night visit to the 24 hour bakery and we headed back to the luxury of our own hotel room.

Salamanca Markets

Saturday and there is only one thing to do in town and that's the famous Salamanca Markets which has an enormous amount of stalls and we discovered also the allure of Bratwurst of many varieties in rolls. There was perhaps too many people for myself but the custard filled donut seemed to be a way to placate myself long enough for Anja to go through the multitude of offerings. Nearby was the beautiful village of Battery Point which took us back in time and was very pretty. A mate from Brisbane had sold us on the virtues of the Cascade Hotel and the delicious schnitzels they cooked. So as we left our hotel that evening we enquired at reception to get another sample of Tassie humour " It's about nine dollars by taxi there and nine dollars back" .On further probing we discovered it was on a main street so being the walkers we are we instead walked this short distance and actually arrived after about twenty minutes walk to this small pub at 5.30pm. Well we both had worked up an appetite so we headed in to see it was pretty quiet but nearly all tables appeared reserved! So we sheepishly asked for a table for two and got one luckily, well I couldn't resist asking for the Super Schnitzel so it was pretty overwhelming when out came a large plate with a schnitzel covering it all! Thus the nine dollar taxi ride walk back into Hobart was very necessary as we found a nice spot by the water to enjoy this sleepy but enjoyable city.

Stunning Scenery

Sunday morning and we were up early to get to the car hire place to pick up the larger than expected Ford Mondeo to take a drive to Port Arthur a historic convict site just under two hours away. After leaving the outskirts we discovered our first Tassie Devil sign so we couldn't resist getting out of the car for some photos.

Jason and the "Devil"

Having a car gave us the chance to jump out wherever we wanted as we took this scenic ride but it wasn't too late before we arrived at Port Arthur.This lead to another classic piece of Hobartness when I used the Eftpos to pay admission the attendant asked " Can I ask a personal question" , which we thought would be a postcode question but it was " Do you have a chequebook" so after leaving there we headed to our boat tour. Port Arthur was a place of stark contrasts, it was such a pretty beautiful scenic area so to hear all the tales of this being a a place for convicts in the 1800's was hard to fathom. We searched through this vast site after an informative tour before we made the drive back along some very stunning roads.

Anja in the Habour of Port Arthur

Jason in Port Arthur

Another tip was to visit a local Fish restaurant called Mures so Anja could sample the famous fresh Tassie fish while I was content to eat chips and very large potato scallops (they call them potato cakes down that way). Again a walk along the waterfront was needed before we went to the Customs Hotel to have a Cascade beer (another recommendation from my mate in Brissie) so that Anja and I could watch some indeed interesting locals! Australia Day arrived and we were again up early bypassing overindulging in the full buffet breakfast as we were going on a boat cruise to Bruny Island. Upon checking in we of course had to sign the disclosure in regards to safety (who reads those things?) and given our very large jackets for the jet boat ride later. The forty five minute cruise to Bruny Island gave us a chance to see how spread out Hobart was and see some of the coastline.








Stunning Coast Line on the bottom end of Bruny Island


We also saw where our Aussie Princess Mary from Denmark went to high school :). This was also a nice moment for Anja as someone asked where we were from and she replied "Sydney" well it is true now. Our destination Bruny Island came upon us and two mini buses met us and we chose the one that was to be driven by a fourth generation Bruny Island resident, sadly no commentary but nonetheless we enjoyed the sights. Now was the time we were to suit up as our jet boat arrived and a tactical decision was made to sit in the middle just in front of the driver. Leaving the bay we did the obligatory 360 degrees turns and rounded out into the open sea to come amazingly up close and personal to a pod of frolicking dolphins. We didn't even have time to get the cameras out as our guide explained they must be off to eat as no time to play. It was about now I discovered that my land legs weren't enjoying this as much as I would of liked but I put on a brave face for Anja. Still though as we hugged the coast the rock formations were spectacular and we moved from the Tasman sea to the Great Southern Ocean and the most southernly point of the large continent being my homeland. Just as I thought I could take no more we came to the resting place of a multitude of seals and immediately my spirits were lifted.








Australian Seals


They seemed so comfortable with our presence and continued to bask in the sun and play in the ocean whilst we watched in astonishment. After some time we headed back and to make it quicker we headed to more open ocean to my dismay as we picked up speed.








Just before taking up some speed again...


Even though we came across things such as an Albatross I was more than relieved to be back on land at the end but it had been a great ride. The bus we chose on the way back had the guide so we heard a little bit more about the settlement of this very southern outpost. Our boat arrived with other passengers along for a cruise and it was lunchtime where we had a delicious platter of local produce and I watched Anja overcome with joy from the tasty bread. After a short stop at a resort we cruised back to Hobart and we enjoyed pizza for our evening meal followed by a walk around Hobart for our final evening in this quiet city. Also we gathered some intelligence regarding the Cadbury factory and discovered that it wasn't offering full tours so we made a decision to visit Richmond an historic village a little out of Hobart on our final day. Avoiding a tour after indulging one more time at the buffet breakfast we checked out and made our way to the bus stop. The bus we took was a normal service full of business people so after they all got out at the Hydro Plant we continued another 14km to Richmond. This quaint village is home to Australia's oldest bridge built in the 1830's and also the oldest Catholic Church which had been visited by Pope John Paul in the 80's. It was a role reversal to be able to take Anja somewhere where there was some history and we truly enjoyed wandering the streets of Richmond and time flew before we had to catch the only bus back to make it back to Hobart to catch our flight back to Sydney. Hobart was really a place we found to be very interesting but also very different to how we thought it may be. The landscape was so dry and a contrast to when I had only thought of it being a lush green land so that was eye-opening indeed. We both found the people so welcoming and loved being able to walk the streets especially in Salamanca as the history has been embraced there and kept for the future. Also these two keen travellers know we will want to visit the Apple Isle again to explore it more as we are sure we have only had a brief taste and want more!

For more photos click here: http://www.flickr.com/gp/80037206@N00/z9CtTy


Jason

Fiji Time!

“Bula” is the common greeting of a smiling Fijian and trust me Anja and I discovered you cannot say it without smiling! Recently we indulged and ventured to a little bit of paradise in the South Pacific and booked in for five nights at the Fiji Hilton.
Our flight over to Fiji involved leaving behind a rainy Sydney and boarding our Air Pacific flight with a mural painted on it bringing the first sign of sunshine. Upon arrival in Nadi International Airport we encountered our first example of the classic “Fiji Time” awaiting our luggage but we soon became accustomed to this great way of life.
Our BMW transfer to the resort was great as it was the first time we had been referred to as Mr and Mrs Dean! The apology that followed was symbolic of the kind nature of these beautiful people. Anja and I arrived in our room and immediately started taking photos as these two budget travelers were indeed living it up. A first sample of Fiji Bitter that evening whilst on our balcony was the ideal start to our adventure.
A beautiful day arrived and Jason eagerly made his way to the full buffet breakfast being reminded to not overdo it J Whilst Anja enjoyed the fresh fruit Jason couldn’t eat enough bacon and soon enough we both had had our fill. After exploring the resort Jason booked himself a massage and we made our way to the activities desk to see what we could do.

Jason is having brekkie

Long deliberation followed but a Sailing Adventure appealed to us both and the decision was made to indulge in this. We boarded the “Whales Tale” on a beautiful sunny morning and were greeted by a very friendly crew and we immediately looked for a shady spot on our ship. After sampling a delicious breakfast we were told by the Captain that this was “our” boat today and lucky for us it normally held 75 people but today there would be only 30 of us.

Anja on board the Whale's tale

As we sailed out we could see our resort from a distance and we coast along the mainland through the beautiful clear blue waters. The hospitality was unbelievable and I had to knock back the rum on offer as I wanted to snorkel later! We were even treated to crewman playing a few tunes on their guitars as we soaked in the beauty of our surrounds. After only an hour we could see on the horizon an amazing small secluded island which to our astonishment we were told was also “ours” for the day.

"Our" island

Upon disembarking a kava ceremony took place where Anja and I sampled a “tourist” mix but you could feel a slight numbness in the face all the same.
Soon we hit the water to snorkel through the shallows near our island and get up close and personal with some of the life underwater. Both of us had worked up an appetitite from this activity and after drying off a scrumptious smorgasbord awaited us as well Jason sampling another local brew of “Fiji Gold”.
The rest of the group played some beach volleyball but we walked hand in hand around our island exploring the uniqueness of the South pacific and this little bit of private paradise. Although some more snorkeling was up afterwards the less than safe gear made us more up for a ride in the glass floored boat under the impression of trying some hand fishing!
Luckily for us nothing was caught and I couldn’t really say there was even one that got away but still this was another interesting perspective. Our cruise back was even more relaxing as more tunes were played and afternoon tea enjoyed and finally one glass of a very strong rum and coke. The nature of the crew and their genuine warmth made the day our most memorable part of our Fiji trip and if anyone can go on one of those tours we highly recommend it!

Whale's Tale

To be able to go back to our resort and lay back on the recliners watching another beautiful sunset was the icing on the cake of a perfect day. Even being in our room was luxurious and a very relaxing experience. Another great adventure we had was taking a Highland tour in a 4wd where again there normally is six people but we were fortunate enough to be on it by ourselves.
This was a stark contrast to our sailing cruise as we drove up into the nearby highlands passing locals working the sugar cane fields as our guide told us of the area. Our guide had lived for a while in Australia but again the sincerity of his nature was very welcoming to us both. As we moved higher and higher above sea level above the clouds the view was breathtaking and unlike anything we had seen before. Near the summit we visited a small rural village and saw the small bare footed children playing with broad smiles. Walking through it was a sharp contrast to all of the ease of the western world and it was an eye opener to say the least.

Highlands

A schoolteacher was in need of a lift to Nadi and we were able to ask him questions whilst we drove to the summit to stop for morning tea and soak in the tranquility of this special spot. To see these two very different perspectives of Fiji Life was great and made you appreciate even more what we all take for granted. During our time in Fiji we also visited the nearest town being Nadi and walked around amazed of how crazy the drivers and shopkeepers were. Every second car seemed to be a taxi and the cars were old and rusty.
These two white faces were very welcome in every shop we walked past but we maintained a civil approach to which ones we entered into. Our resort was located on Denarau Island separate to the normal Fiji area so it was still very important for us to see the true Fiji. Our last afternoon was greeted by torrential rain but these two crazy travelers actually enjoyed kayaking and swimming in the rain as all the other guests made for cover!

Breakfast Point

Overall we are both very happy and grateful our travel agent made us able to get to Fiji and we both take away memories for the rest of our lives. The smiling welcoming gentle nature of all the Fijian people was I think the most amazing thing we found and that alone made the trip unforgettable.

So just remember if you are feeling down look into the mirror and say Bula!
I promise it will put a smile on your face!

For more photos simply click here: http://www.flickr.com/gp/80037206@N00/8Lf1bp

Jason

Zurueck in Australien

Wahnsinn, jetzt ist schon wieder einige Zeit ins Land gezogen und Jason und ich sind seit vier Wochen zurueck in Australien. Und wer geglaubt hat, dass wir die ganze Zeit an einem Ort bleiben wuerden, der hat sich gewaltig geschnitten.

Am 18.03. gings relative frueh aus den Federn, in ein kleines Cafe zum Fruehstueck und dann ab zur Haltestelle, um den Airbus (Shuttle Bus in Auckland) zum Flughafen zu nehmen. Der hatte erstmal prompt Verspaetung. Weiter gings am Flughafen... die gute Dame am Check In Schalter hatte Schwierigkeiten mein Visum in meinem Pass und vorallem meine Pass-Nr. im System zu finden. Letzte Ziffer ist eine “null” ... dachte ich zumindest immer... dieses Mal war’s ein “o”.... zum Glueck konnte sie mich finden. :) Nach dem Einchecken gings zum “Departure tax” bezahlen. Jeder der Neuseeland verlaesst muss $25 zahlen – egal ob Staatsbuerger oder nicht. Und dann gings auch schon langsam gen Gate... wir sassen da – und mit uns einige andere Leute und nichts geschah. Boarding time rueckte naeher und verstrich, wir sassen immer noch da und wunderten uns ein wenig bis wir auf eine wartende Menschenmenge auf der anderen Flurseite aufmerksam wurden und einer Durchsage, die unseren Flug nach Sydney betraf. Also alle Leute von unserer Seite aufgestanden, Treppe hoch, ueber den Flur und Treppe runter zum richtigen Gate.... mit dem Resultat, dass wir weitere 20 Minuten warten mussten. Wie durch ein Wunder sind wir aber wie geplant in Sydney gelandet... da frage ich mich natuerlich: was da denn schief gelaufen ist oder eher welche Verspaetung ist eingeplant?
In Sydney angekommen bin ich dann mit Jason zum Australian citizen/resident Schalter und habe meinen Einreisestempel erhalten. Keine Fragen. Alles kein Problem. Weiter gings zum Gepaeckband und dann zum Zoll – Einreisekarte abgegeben – gefragt worden, ob wir was zum Verzollen haetten (noe!) und dann durften wir ohne weitere Kontrolle durch den Zoll und damit waren wir dann also wieder voll und ganz in Australien. Per Shuttlebus gings zum Domestic terminal und da mussten wir dann nochmal einige Zeit warten bevor unsere Flug nach Dubbo ging.

Flugzeug: 36 Sitzer – Flug bei Dunkelheit.
Kein Kommentar.

(Da wusste ich noch nicht, dass ich bald in einer noch kleineren Maschine sitzen wuerde.)

Schliesslich und endlich sind wir dann in Dubbo angekommen und genossen eine entspannte Woche bei Jason’s Mutter und ihrem Partner. Soblad wir morgens wach waren gab Belle (Schaeferhund) Laut und fing an zu “heulen” bis wir mit ihr spazieren gingen. Jaja, so nen Hund haelt einen auf Trapp... und das war nicht einmal unserer...

Nach einer Woche packten wir zusammen, setzten uns mit Di und Kerry ins Auto und begaben uns auf eine 9stuendige Autofahrt gen Queensland. Crows Nest war unser Ziel. Der Wohnort von Kerry’s Sohn und dem Ort seines anstehenden 40. Geburtstag. 9 Stunden geradeaus.... trockene Felder... Kuehe.... Schafe... trockene Felder.... Baumwolle... trockene Felder.... geradeaus.... Zwischenstop am Truckstop in Goondiwindi (Weltstadt!).... trockene Felder... rote Erde.... geradeaus... gruene Baeume... geradeaus... Crows Nest. Raus aus Crows Nest, 5 km geradeaus, rechts abiegen, 1 km, dann links die Auffahrt hoch, ein Haus, riesiger “Garten”, Busch drum rum. Sonst nichts. Ruhig. Vogelgezwitscher.
9 Loch Golfkurs im “Garten”, aber das ist eine andere Geschichte.


on the road














Stop in Goondiwindi

Und am naechsten Tag gings dann mit den Vorbereitungen fuer John’s 40 los: Karotten Kuchen, Bananen Kuchen, Bananen-Annanas Kuchen, Hedgehog Slice, Mamorkuchen usw usf.
Und zwischendurch gings zum sogenannten “ Bush bashing” – ab in den alten Jeep und querfeldein in den Busch. Fuer alle Spinnenliebhaber ein Paradies – fuer alle wie mich: Kreisch! Ich habe noch NIE in meinem Leben so viele Spinnen und vor allem so grosse gesehen. Und meine Frage, ob die denn gefaehrlich waeren wurde auch irgendwie nie so eindeutig beantwortet. Gut. Also irgendwie missachten, weil die Australier (6 an der Zahl) so gar nicht unruhig waren geschweige denn beeindruckt von der Groesse der Spinnen.


Sieht jemand die Spinne?


Anja und der Brick










Brick im Busch

Naechster Tag, Freitag. Der Tag vor dem Partymarathon (Sa-So). Zwiebeln schaelen, schneiden, Kartoffeln schaelen, schneiden, Eier abkochen, Tomaten schneiden. Kartoffelauflauf vorbereiten (2 riesige, die am Ende 3 Stunden im Ofen gebraucht haben, aber ein voller Erfolg waren) usw usf. Essen fuer 50 Leute... und dann haettet ihr mal die Fleischmengen sehen sollen. Von Freitag Abend bis Sonntag Mittag war jede Mahlzeit ein leckeres Australisches BBQ. Danach konnte ich kein Fleisch, keinen Speck und keine Eier mehr sehen.










Zeltdach-Aufbau


Jason beim Grillen


Kartoffelauflauf

Freitag Abend/Nacht kamen die ersten Gaeste und Samstag wurde dann mit Golf spielen auf dem Hauseigenen Golfkurs, Bush bashing und grillen verbracht. Abends ein kleines Lagerfeuer und wenn Ihr Euch gerade fragt, wo die ganzen Leute geschlafen haben, dann lautete die Antwort: die haben alle gezeltet.
Sonntag war’s dann leider ein wenig windig und das Zeltdach (zum Schutz vor Sonne/Regen) hob ab und das Mittel-Metal-Stueck senkte sich unsanft auf meinen Kopf. Das wars dann Partymaessig fuer mich. Lag dann nen bissl flach.










Reste vom Feste

Ab Montag ging dann das etwas schoenere Leben los und das Resteverzehren und gefrieren... Fleisch, Fleisch, Fleisch. Ich denke, dass Nicole und John fuer den Rest des Jahres kein Fleisch mehr kaufen muessen. *grins*

Dienstag sind Jason und ich dann durchs Hinterland an die Sunshine Coast gefahren. Schoen. Wasser, Strand und “Underwater World” – immer einen Besuch wert. Abends gings dann zurueck, bzw. Nachmittags, um ja vor der Dunkelheit wieder zurueck zu sein. Hat leider nicht ganz geklappt und wir hatten das eine oder andere Kaenguru auf der Strasse. Zum Glueck haben wir keins gerammt.










Sunshine Coast

Mittwoch nochmal schoen das Hinterland erkundet und auf unbefestigten Strassen gefahren. Ein weiteres Mal Bush bashing zum Wasserfall (leider etwas verkuemmert) und natuerlich auf alle Faelle den Spinnen aus dem Weg gehen.


Hinterland


Hinterland

Abends gings dann in den Pub von Crows Nest. Als Fremder ist man ja immer eine Attraktion, egal wo man auf der Welt ist. War aber umso schoener, weil so richtig schoen Australisch!
Donnerstag – 9 Stunden Autofahrt.

Dann hatten wir noch einige Tage in Dubbo bevor es letzten Dienstag nach Sydney ging. Ab gings zum Flughafen und auf dem Rollfeld stand eine kleine Maschine. Nee, ist ja nicht unsere... also wir checken ein und die gute Dame am Schalter sagt: links und rechts vom Gang gibts nur jeweils 1 Sitz. Toll. War doch unsere Maschine. 18 Sitzer.
Irgendwelche Fragen?
Hoffe nicht.

So und nun sind wir in Sydney und auf der Suche nach ner Wohnung/Haus und Arbeit. Gestaltet sich anders als geplant, aber es ist noch zu frueh ums ins Detail zu gehen. Werde spaeter mehr berichten.
Es fuehlt sich super gut an wieder in Sydney zu sein und als ich heute durch die CBD spaziert bin bin ich aus dem Staunen nicht mehr rausgekommen. So viel hat sich in dem einen Jahr veraendert und das macht es gleich nochmal spannender. Ist einfach ne super Stadt!
Mehr Fotos gibts demnaechst, wenn ich wieder einen anstaendigen Internetzugang habe.

Anja










Sonnenuntergang in Crows Nest


Rote Erde

NZ Photos

Latest photos.... click onto link below.

Die neusten Fotos - einfach auf den Link klicken!

http://www.flickr.com/gp/80037206@N00/394714


Jason and Anja

Goodbye und Auf Wiedersehen!

Mensch, wer haette gedacht, dass die Zeit am Ende dermassen rast und wir - ehe wir uns versehen - aus NZ ausreisen. Morgen ist es soweit: Wohnung geputzt, Strom das letzte Mal abgelesen, ein leckeres Abendessen bei Wencke und Christian genossen, Schluessel abgegeben, ein letztes Mal ueber den Viktoria Markt gelaufen und noch schnell eine Kette gekauft. Mit Faye zum Mittag getroffen, letzte Stromrechnung bezahlt und nun gehts gleich zur Bank Konto aufloesen. Und dann, ja dann wird die Sonne genossen und die Freiheit des "Arbeitsfreiem Leben". Haha... nicht fuer zu lang natuerlich!

Melden uns wieder - wenn wir in Oz (!!!) angekommen sind!

Anja

Up Close and Personal with the Lemurs

For the preceding months before Christmas Anja was very secretive and even sometimes even more confusing about my Xmas pressie. I could tell it involved an actual task and of course things like bungying and skydiving passed briefly through my mind but I knew she had no desire to see me scream like a girl. :)

Besides it didn't need to take an even like that to have that happen but the intrigue and my sheer confusion built till Christmas day. I even had applied for a Tuesday off in late January but could only tell the boss I needed the day off but not why! However when I opened my Christmas card and I spotted a great photo we took of a Meerkat at Taronga Zoo I knew something good was round the corner.

Unbeknowinlgy to me upon our arrival in Auckland back in June during one of our often brochure grabs at the Tourist info centre I had remarked that Auckland Zoo conducted behind the scenes tours and how cool that was. So Anja hid any brochures from the Zoo and any time for the next six months when I suggested we visit the Zoo she somehow took me off on another tangent.

My present was to be a Primate tour giving me the chance to feed some lemurs as well as cotton top tamarins in a small group. The sheer uniqueness of this present knocked me off my feet and I started to count the sleeps till my day on January 29th arrived that I would take this tour. It was a bonus that January 28th was Auckland anniversary day so we gave ourselves a four day weekend which was to be rounded off with my first visit to Auckland Zoo.

We arrived bright and early awaiting for the Zoo to open at 9.30am and with school back we only had the pram convoy to contend with on what weather wise was to be a truly spectacular day. Anja went and purchased her normal admission ticket and we entered together for me to be ushered to the information area. To our delight the only other person booked on the tour was an older lady from Aberdeen, Scotland (where my great grandparents hail from) so Anja was able to come along at no extra charge as well as the Aberdeen ladies husband and grandchildren.

So we gleefully walked hand in hand listen to the tour guide who was a lady with a fountain of knowledge and not too shy to offer it gave us a rundown of this zoo. We were fortunate to come across some staff getting the first glimpses of some baby meerkats making their first time out into the open and this was just the start of a magnificent day.







The Meerkat-Babies


We headed to the back of the lemur enclosure to see some of the zoo keepers areas and then we got our first plastic gloves for the day ready to feed these friendly creatures. Upon entering the enclosure it was obvious we were expected and they don't do the tour daily so as not to make the lemurs complacent. After being reminded not to walk on their tails we crouched down as they came to us and knew what we had!







Seemed like the Lemurs were quite hungry...








... no more food?








She has food.... he might, too!


Their paws were so cold and they were so trusting and it was truly a mid blowing experience and to share that with Anja was extra special. We were told to feed them the raisins one at a time and hide the rest in your other hand but they knew that trick! Luckily our tour guide took plenty of photos during these moments but in your mind it is easy to recount how lucky you were to be in this environment.







Yeah - Lemurs!!!








Hungry!!!!








That's it - I am full - I am done!


Sadly it was time to leave and bid our new friends good bye but once we were out of supplies I think the friendship was over...at least for them. Still though we continued to walk through the Zoo with our guide who was never short for a word and we arrived at the spider monkeys. One of the best things of these tours is that the keepers understand how you are and the spider monkey keeper held off feeding till we arrived. So the normal would be at a zoo to try to catch a glimpse of them but we had the fortune of the whole gang coming to us! We even caught glimpses of the babies and this view was another thing to make this day and my Christmas present even more special to me.










Spidermonkey Mum and Baby


We made it to the cotton top tamarins after fetching their truly disgusting feed of worms (still alive). Again on came the plastic gloves but no complaints there for this one. These guys are so small but also very attentive to anyone feeding them and again we found this quite a lot of fun.







Cotton Top Tamarin








These guys were quite hungry, too!








Yum, worms!








Bah!


The tour was meant to take about ninety minutes but after two and a half hours our guide had to go and we really found this to be a great experience. We even scored a CD of photos documenting the day and apart from the slight confusion upon trying to pick this up we spent the rest of the day seeing what Auckland Zoo had to offer.










One happy visitor!


They were enduring a slight upgrade but after making our way around this zoo it stacked up well against what we had seen already but after enduring our tour we knew it was time to go home and let soak in what was truly a remarkable day. Makes my task of thinking up something unique for Anja's birthday all that more challenging but well worth it!

Jason

Fußball in Neuseeland!

Well Anja and I have a thing for going to obscure sporting events in countries that we are in. Put that down to the fact that Jason is a very typical Australian male and loves his sport but he can at least justify sometimes the occassion. Early into Anja's stay in Australia we attended the Oceania championships for men's handball out in remote western Sydney and of course it was a slight difference to what she had seen back home. However whilst in Germany Anja's father Hans discovered that a Rugby Union game was on in Hanover so that was also an interesting experience for all parties!

So keeping to form Jason discovered that New Zealand were hosting the u/17 women's soccer world cup later this year so they were having a small tournament as a test involving Australia, USA, New Zealand and yes Germany! On the last day of the tournament USA was to play the also undefeated Germany and Australia and New Zealand faced off for the third place after not winning a game yet. Sadly Australia were well beaten by Germany during the week so Jason was spared that.

After reading the paper we realised it was in Northern Auckland so it involved a bit of a bus ride but also a new Westfield had been recently opened there so Anja could enjoy some retail therapy. It was at North Harbour Stadium but once we found out the tickets were only five dollars we discovered it was on an outer oval. Still this was good as the first game was the USA versus Germany and we could sit quite close on the sidelines. For this age group the game was quite physical and to our amusement the German girls were criticising the Americans not realising Anja understood every word!

The Germans started well and scored early and the pace was quite frantic. As I said the girls were quite physical and I think the NZ ref was out of her depth. At the main interval they held onto their slight one goal advantage but whatever the USA girls had at halftime worked very well. Within minutes somehow the USA was up 2-1 and it took a while before the Germans after repeated attacks slotted in the equaliser.
A draw would have been a fair result and the crowd that was increasing in numbers for the main game were being treated to an absorbing show of skill.Sadly the USA were awarded a free kick just outside the box and that was converted to allow them to win overall but both sides were applauded equally.

Then it was time to renew the trans tasman rivalry Anja has now seen up close and personal. You would have thought with this involving girls under the age of seventeen it would have been pretty amicable on the sideline. However the psyche of the average Kiwi shows a terrible dislike of their closest neighbour. Still we enjoyed the game and even more so when the Aussies were granted a penalty shot by the NZ ref and the crowed booed!
It was stopped but much to the distaste of this crowd it was re-taken and much to the delight of these two travellers it hit the back of the net! So Australia once again triumphed and we had another day of interesting sporting entertainment. I was soon to try to educated Anja on the subtlety's of the gentleman's game being cricket with a match between England and New Zealand but I will blog that unique experience later!

Jason