Due to popular demand, this blog is being revived. I didn't know people still read blogs. Well, the following will be for my travels for the next few months and just whatever is on my mind.
Thanks for reading,
Jonathan
Sunday, September 06, 2009
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
Off to the Deep South
Been travelling down to the States for the past four weeks, and I've stayed down there every other week because the flights coming home are at odd times. It's hard being away from home living out of the suitcase, but it's also been a blessing being able to travel more in parts I have not seen before.
My first weekend I went to New Orleans. It was the last weekend of Mardi Gras and so I decided to go check out what it was all about. I did a little bit of research into what the purpose of Mardi Gras was, and to my surprise it had a religious background. It was first started as a celebration before the season of Lent. So Lent is where you usually give something up as a means of "fasting" for the fourty days before Easter. Well Mardi Gras is a season where they celebrate before the fast. Now, I guess I can't say whether it was like religious personalities who started it, or was a means to get it out of ones system before giving things up.
I kind of feel Mardi Gras gets a bad reputation from all the bad publicity it gets on tv. On TV all you see is yes the parades, but you mostly see the beads and the girls flashing themselves. Yes, that does exist, but there is a lot more to it. It's definately more of a family thing than most people realize, and if you attend the parades, those are very clean for the most part. I found it very fun just seeing all these parades go by me, and see all the effort and themes that these people put into it. There are about 6 parades a day and about 60 floats each. It was crazy how long these parades went on for.
Getting the beads require no luck nor the need to flash to get them. It's definately easier to get them if you are a girl, but it's just as easy being a guy. All you gotta do is stand there, yell for the beads as the parade goes by, and if you really want them, they will be thrown to you. There is more than enough to go around. You gotta keep watching though, because one look away and you might be pegged by a whole bag of beads. I found that perhaps the people on the floats had too many beads or not enough time, because they ended up throwing the whole bag at you instead of single strands. Although not a written goal, generally you want the nice beads. There are too many of the plain small circle beads going around. What you want are the flashy ones, many have flags on them, some have different designs. Though many of those you have to buy, you may be lucky enough to be thrown one from the floats.
Also, each parade celebrates a "krewe" which is sort of like a clan/family. Actually, it's interesting to note how similar it is to the word "crew" which can also have the same meaning I guess. Each parade distributes a doubloon which is a little coin with a symbol on it showing the krewe. I found it the most fun to try and collect these, they are much easier to carry.
Many people asked me whether I found that things were cleaned up after Katrina. I can't say for sure, because my impression of it was that everything was more or less clean. I was told that many parts of where I went was never directly hit with the massive floods you see on tv. But I also cannot be sure that was everywhere I went, because well there is no more water, nor any signs of "this is where the flood hit". What I can say is there are some run down parts that don't look to great, for example there was this hospital I walked past that was on the main street but was completely closed down. So I wonder, was this hospital hit so hard that it had to close? Or was it closed before?
One of the most interesting things I saw was the division between black and white. I get this mostly from the parades. Between each float is generally a school marching band and cheerleaders. I found it great to watch these marching bands because I don't think we have anything of that level in Canada. But what I saw were the bands/cheerleaders were either mostly black or white. Sometimes you saw one or two of the other race, but it was hardly an even distribution. That got me thinking that whether schools in the South (most of the schools were from the South) are that divided.
The second weekend I was down there I went to Florida. I was hoping it would be warmer, but it was generally in the 20-22 degree area. This was warm enough during the day for me to go to the beach. I wasn't prepared to go to the beach, but when I saw it I had to go. Luckily I had my boardies on, but no towel. As I laid on the beach soaking in a little bit of sun, I watched the Gulf of Mexico and the (big enough) waves come in. I stepped into the water to test the temperature, it was what I expected, cold. As I sat down the sand, I wrestled with myself because I wanted to just jump in the water, but it was cold. I went in and came back out at least twice before I finally gave in and just jumped in. Swam out a little and swam back (by little, I mean very little). It was cold, but it was just something I wanted to do. Like I said, no towel, but it did not matter. I quickly gathered my stuff, walked back to the new Pier Park (it's an outside mall, very nice). I walked in the bare feet throughout the whole outside mall because I had sand all over my feet and they were wet. I got a few odd looks, but surprisingly not as many as I'd thought.
City Beach, where I spent a good hour just sitting there. And I went into the frigid Gulf of Mexico here.
Pier Park, walked up and down this strip in bare feet afterwards!
I went to Panama City, this is a city where apparently there is a big spring break crowd. But I was a few weeks early. Nevertheless, I was not the only one of the beach, and it was nice just going there. I stayed at a nice resort while there, gotta be comfortable. The inside pool was so hot you could easily mistake it for a spa. It was easily more hot than the outside temperature. The coast line up at the top of Florida was very nice, almost as nice as the Eastern coastline in Australia. In fact I saw some kite surfers that reminded me of Australia a lot.
This kitesurfing totally reminded me of driving along Oz coast.
I stopped by Pensacola, this is the home of a Naval Air station. I went to the museum there and the planes in there were just amazing. It's home of the bluebirds, the planes that do air shows across North America I guess. But they had a few planes (including the blue bird) for you to get into. The seat is really cramped actually, but really cool to get in.
Bluebird, the cockpit is so small!
So I am working in Mobile, Alabama. And in week three I found out there is this list published a while back named "100 Must Eats in Alabama before you die". So I've been on this mission to try as many of these places as I can, and let me tell you it's been truly delicious. From the brownies that have been made since 1918, to the key lime milkshake in a shop that's been there since the 60s, to the wonderful crab soup with so much crab in it was a meal in itself. The food is so good, and I haven't even had any fried chicken!
This is Royal Red Shrimp. They were good, but I didn't totally enjoy the seasoning.
This is my last trip down here, so about 9 days left, can't wait to try more good eats!.
My first weekend I went to New Orleans. It was the last weekend of Mardi Gras and so I decided to go check out what it was all about. I did a little bit of research into what the purpose of Mardi Gras was, and to my surprise it had a religious background. It was first started as a celebration before the season of Lent. So Lent is where you usually give something up as a means of "fasting" for the fourty days before Easter. Well Mardi Gras is a season where they celebrate before the fast. Now, I guess I can't say whether it was like religious personalities who started it, or was a means to get it out of ones system before giving things up.
I kind of feel Mardi Gras gets a bad reputation from all the bad publicity it gets on tv. On TV all you see is yes the parades, but you mostly see the beads and the girls flashing themselves. Yes, that does exist, but there is a lot more to it. It's definately more of a family thing than most people realize, and if you attend the parades, those are very clean for the most part. I found it very fun just seeing all these parades go by me, and see all the effort and themes that these people put into it. There are about 6 parades a day and about 60 floats each. It was crazy how long these parades went on for.
Getting the beads require no luck nor the need to flash to get them. It's definately easier to get them if you are a girl, but it's just as easy being a guy. All you gotta do is stand there, yell for the beads as the parade goes by, and if you really want them, they will be thrown to you. There is more than enough to go around. You gotta keep watching though, because one look away and you might be pegged by a whole bag of beads. I found that perhaps the people on the floats had too many beads or not enough time, because they ended up throwing the whole bag at you instead of single strands. Although not a written goal, generally you want the nice beads. There are too many of the plain small circle beads going around. What you want are the flashy ones, many have flags on them, some have different designs. Though many of those you have to buy, you may be lucky enough to be thrown one from the floats.
Also, each parade celebrates a "krewe" which is sort of like a clan/family. Actually, it's interesting to note how similar it is to the word "crew" which can also have the same meaning I guess. Each parade distributes a doubloon which is a little coin with a symbol on it showing the krewe. I found it the most fun to try and collect these, they are much easier to carry.
Many people asked me whether I found that things were cleaned up after Katrina. I can't say for sure, because my impression of it was that everything was more or less clean. I was told that many parts of where I went was never directly hit with the massive floods you see on tv. But I also cannot be sure that was everywhere I went, because well there is no more water, nor any signs of "this is where the flood hit". What I can say is there are some run down parts that don't look to great, for example there was this hospital I walked past that was on the main street but was completely closed down. So I wonder, was this hospital hit so hard that it had to close? Or was it closed before?
One of the most interesting things I saw was the division between black and white. I get this mostly from the parades. Between each float is generally a school marching band and cheerleaders. I found it great to watch these marching bands because I don't think we have anything of that level in Canada. But what I saw were the bands/cheerleaders were either mostly black or white. Sometimes you saw one or two of the other race, but it was hardly an even distribution. That got me thinking that whether schools in the South (most of the schools were from the South) are that divided.
The second weekend I was down there I went to Florida. I was hoping it would be warmer, but it was generally in the 20-22 degree area. This was warm enough during the day for me to go to the beach. I wasn't prepared to go to the beach, but when I saw it I had to go. Luckily I had my boardies on, but no towel. As I laid on the beach soaking in a little bit of sun, I watched the Gulf of Mexico and the (big enough) waves come in. I stepped into the water to test the temperature, it was what I expected, cold. As I sat down the sand, I wrestled with myself because I wanted to just jump in the water, but it was cold. I went in and came back out at least twice before I finally gave in and just jumped in. Swam out a little and swam back (by little, I mean very little). It was cold, but it was just something I wanted to do. Like I said, no towel, but it did not matter. I quickly gathered my stuff, walked back to the new Pier Park (it's an outside mall, very nice). I walked in the bare feet throughout the whole outside mall because I had sand all over my feet and they were wet. I got a few odd looks, but surprisingly not as many as I'd thought.
City Beach, where I spent a good hour just sitting there. And I went into the frigid Gulf of Mexico here.
Pier Park, walked up and down this strip in bare feet afterwards!
I went to Panama City, this is a city where apparently there is a big spring break crowd. But I was a few weeks early. Nevertheless, I was not the only one of the beach, and it was nice just going there. I stayed at a nice resort while there, gotta be comfortable. The inside pool was so hot you could easily mistake it for a spa. It was easily more hot than the outside temperature. The coast line up at the top of Florida was very nice, almost as nice as the Eastern coastline in Australia. In fact I saw some kite surfers that reminded me of Australia a lot.
This kitesurfing totally reminded me of driving along Oz coast.
I stopped by Pensacola, this is the home of a Naval Air station. I went to the museum there and the planes in there were just amazing. It's home of the bluebirds, the planes that do air shows across North America I guess. But they had a few planes (including the blue bird) for you to get into. The seat is really cramped actually, but really cool to get in.
Bluebird, the cockpit is so small!
So I am working in Mobile, Alabama. And in week three I found out there is this list published a while back named "100 Must Eats in Alabama before you die". So I've been on this mission to try as many of these places as I can, and let me tell you it's been truly delicious. From the brownies that have been made since 1918, to the key lime milkshake in a shop that's been there since the 60s, to the wonderful crab soup with so much crab in it was a meal in itself. The food is so good, and I haven't even had any fried chicken!
This is Royal Red Shrimp. They were good, but I didn't totally enjoy the seasoning.
This is my last trip down here, so about 9 days left, can't wait to try more good eats!.
Sunday, January 06, 2008
Since I've been back
Been back in Toronto for about 2 weeks now, and been feeling a bit weird. One thing is I almost feel as if everyone is very surprised that I am not going back. You know, went there, did what I had to do, and now I am time for change here. My time there has finished and passed, it shouldn't be that much of a surprise that I am not going back.
I've been feeling very weird since I've come back, I wonder if I have changed that much. I haven't been doing anything different since I've come back from the time before I left. But I definately feel I think differently, and I am more aware of many things. I have been going back to the same churches that I went to prior to leaving, and I think that's been the more of an odd experience.
Going back to Westside, it's been feeling very odd. The small group I was apart of and that I really enjoyed stopped meeting after I left, and that was a surprise to me. And I'm not sure what it is, but just going to service I am feeling like I am starting all over again there, and that I am trying to meet people all again. Granted I didn't know too many people prior to leaving, but it feels I know them even less now, often times people who I talked to a little before just walk passed me (or I walk passed them?) and it just feels like I am lonely there again. When I go there, I'm not sure, but I think I sometimes feel sad. I don't know if I show it in my facial expression, but after I leave I feel a little sad I think. perhaps it just because I was hoping I had met more people, and maybe after leaving I realize to myself I hadn't met many people? And I'm not finding it that easy to meet them either. I walk in there and it seems everyone is so busy, running around doing things here and there, it almost looks like nobody can talk to them because people are so busy. That makes me think though, are people there too busy? Too busy even to build relationships?
I'm not sure, but I'm not sure I'm ready to get into the whole Bible game again. So many messages of "join a small group", "go to a Bible study" etc, it didn't appeal to me as much as it did before. Before when I started going to Westside, it's exactly what I was looking for and I was all ready to join a small group, go to a bible study, but now I'm not sure I even want to. What has happened?
One thing that I have learned and grown more aware of since my time in Australia, is to ensure that new people are welcomed warmly and follow up'd on regularly and as soon as possible, and as much as they are willing to be "cared" for. This goes especially for new people in the country who don't know many people. Since I went to Aus, I didn't know many people there and I really looked towards my church to find friends and there were groups of people who did reach out a lot and make me feel like I was part of their family. And then in some situations I felt there was something lacking in the friendships I had. So my goal when I feel more at home somewhere is to ensure that people feel at home in this country/church as much as possible, and I strive to go out of my way to ensure it.
Many people ask me how was Australia? I'm not even sure how to answer that question anymore. Or "so what is so great about Australia that makes it different from Canada?" I must say, those are not easy questions to answer. Yes I had a great time being there, mostly because I got to meet new people who has grown up in an entirely different place than I have, that I haven't grown up with, that has done different things than I. That in itself is what made Australia so great. Is there anything or anything you can do that you can't do anywhere else in the world? No? Unless you could kangaroos and koalas. But do those two animals make the place great, no. It's a fiest world country, that was a colony of Britain just like Canada. So that in itself can say it's similar. Do they like differently, well they are more relaxed people, but it doesn't make the place better/worse. I still think it's a great place, there are many things you can do there that you may not do here. It has many beautiful things to see, but there are beautiful things to see all over the world. I lived there on my own and that in itself was one of my best experiences there, it was fun for me. But many people may not find like "going rock climbing on a cliff" or "kayaking" or "surfing" a 'fun' thing, but I did. In short, Australia has things you can do in other places in the world, but it's Australia! And that in itself is enough.
I do miss my friends since I've come back more than when I was over there. Since I have come back I really want to see my friends, and even past friends as well. I want to know what they are up to, what they have been doing, what kind of problems they are facing, anything. but I'm also not sure how to approach certain questions. I hope that I can meet up with more people since I have come back, I really want to approach friendships differently, but so far not going so well I think.
I've been feeling very weird since I've come back, I wonder if I have changed that much. I haven't been doing anything different since I've come back from the time before I left. But I definately feel I think differently, and I am more aware of many things. I have been going back to the same churches that I went to prior to leaving, and I think that's been the more of an odd experience.
Going back to Westside, it's been feeling very odd. The small group I was apart of and that I really enjoyed stopped meeting after I left, and that was a surprise to me. And I'm not sure what it is, but just going to service I am feeling like I am starting all over again there, and that I am trying to meet people all again. Granted I didn't know too many people prior to leaving, but it feels I know them even less now, often times people who I talked to a little before just walk passed me (or I walk passed them?) and it just feels like I am lonely there again. When I go there, I'm not sure, but I think I sometimes feel sad. I don't know if I show it in my facial expression, but after I leave I feel a little sad I think. perhaps it just because I was hoping I had met more people, and maybe after leaving I realize to myself I hadn't met many people? And I'm not finding it that easy to meet them either. I walk in there and it seems everyone is so busy, running around doing things here and there, it almost looks like nobody can talk to them because people are so busy. That makes me think though, are people there too busy? Too busy even to build relationships?
I'm not sure, but I'm not sure I'm ready to get into the whole Bible game again. So many messages of "join a small group", "go to a Bible study" etc, it didn't appeal to me as much as it did before. Before when I started going to Westside, it's exactly what I was looking for and I was all ready to join a small group, go to a bible study, but now I'm not sure I even want to. What has happened?
One thing that I have learned and grown more aware of since my time in Australia, is to ensure that new people are welcomed warmly and follow up'd on regularly and as soon as possible, and as much as they are willing to be "cared" for. This goes especially for new people in the country who don't know many people. Since I went to Aus, I didn't know many people there and I really looked towards my church to find friends and there were groups of people who did reach out a lot and make me feel like I was part of their family. And then in some situations I felt there was something lacking in the friendships I had. So my goal when I feel more at home somewhere is to ensure that people feel at home in this country/church as much as possible, and I strive to go out of my way to ensure it.
Many people ask me how was Australia? I'm not even sure how to answer that question anymore. Or "so what is so great about Australia that makes it different from Canada?" I must say, those are not easy questions to answer. Yes I had a great time being there, mostly because I got to meet new people who has grown up in an entirely different place than I have, that I haven't grown up with, that has done different things than I. That in itself is what made Australia so great. Is there anything or anything you can do that you can't do anywhere else in the world? No? Unless you could kangaroos and koalas. But do those two animals make the place great, no. It's a fiest world country, that was a colony of Britain just like Canada. So that in itself can say it's similar. Do they like differently, well they are more relaxed people, but it doesn't make the place better/worse. I still think it's a great place, there are many things you can do there that you may not do here. It has many beautiful things to see, but there are beautiful things to see all over the world. I lived there on my own and that in itself was one of my best experiences there, it was fun for me. But many people may not find like "going rock climbing on a cliff" or "kayaking" or "surfing" a 'fun' thing, but I did. In short, Australia has things you can do in other places in the world, but it's Australia! And that in itself is enough.
I do miss my friends since I've come back more than when I was over there. Since I have come back I really want to see my friends, and even past friends as well. I want to know what they are up to, what they have been doing, what kind of problems they are facing, anything. but I'm also not sure how to approach certain questions. I hope that I can meet up with more people since I have come back, I really want to approach friendships differently, but so far not going so well I think.
Sunday, November 25, 2007
Almost done...
Been just over 7 months now, my how the time passes so fast. It's almost unreal to me that I say I have only a few weeks left. I've been really struggling getting to know people here in Perth, I think it's starting to change a little, but perhaps not as well. Nevertheless, I do hope even those who I don't know very well I will keep in touch with for longer time because distance should not be a factor, it makes things harder, but the greatest factor is our own initiation in breaking the distance gap.
The money shot. Joey and mama-Kanga. I saw the joey get in the pouch.
It's really starting to heat up here, but it's been a beautiful heat with hardly any humidity. I woke up earlier yesterday specifically to go to the beach. I got there, many families but in comparison to later on in the day there were not many people. I just sat down to get my tan, dove in the water to cool down, and enjoyed the surroundings. We need better beaches in Toronto! and closer too!
I've had some good times whilst here. Two weeks ago I went to the 70s! That's right, I went to a 70's party! I tried to find some clothes that reflect the 70s, but I was not even close to matching some of the outfits others had. Mind you, most of them rented, but not like I spent very little money in comparison either. Basically KC (the host) was having a birthday, her husband and her had just sold the house, so they decided why not hold a 70s birthday party before leaving the house! what a great idea! They each hired costumes, rented a light that spun around the main room like a disco ball, catered for food, and lots of fun! Anyways, pictures for your enjoyment.
KC and Darrin from Frisbee Team.
The winners of best dressed female and male and Me.
This past weekend at my church here in Perth I spent three days seeing the same people. Friday night I was invited to one of the pastors house to have Thanksgiving dinner. It was American Thanksgiving, and there are a lot of Americans at the church, so they hold one each year, and invite the Canadians too. They watched football (taped from the morning), had turkey, and just great conversation. Then Saturday I went to their Annual General Meeting. I wanted to go to the actual meeting but when I got there I got caught up in helping out with various things, that when I had a chance to go, I think I'd rather help out more than go. Anyways, they had a celebration dinner afterwards where they had about 200 people for a potluck dinner. it was really good, but very well organized. Then of course Sunday rolled around and I went to church.
This weekend was a special weekend for the church as well. They call it their "Whole Hearted Followers" Sunday. This is their mission as a church, to be Whole Hearted Followers and they have this elaborate survey and commitment that they give to the whole church to devote their life each year to our Lord, and make a commitment each year on areas of growth. This of course is a good idea, and it seems to work very well in this church. I was thinking of filling it out myself, but forgot to bring the pamphlet and so figured didn't want to take another package. They make everyone fill it out, hand it in, so that the church can be involved in furthering each person's relationship with Christ. I'll probably still fill it out, just not hand it in since I won't be around very much longer. It's good to know that this church has a direction it wants to head, and are taking steps to moving towards it.
A few weeks back I went to Melbourne for a week for some training, and what a great week to go. It was Melbourne Cup week, this is basically Melbourne's biggest week of the year. It's a horse race, and many people from around the country come to Melbourne to go to the races, and basically to dress up. You got all the guys in the suits (this year's common theme is the gangster look apparently, so white hats, white shoes, black suit). But the true highlight is seeing the ladies dressed to the 9s. And the big thing here is the hat, you gotta have your racing hat. But the funniest thing (and this is what I am told, I didn't see it first hand) is that all these girls get all dressed up in their fancy dresses and hats, and get pissed drunk. So much so you see girls sprawled on the grass just pissed drunk. oh yeah, very classy!
A week of working there pretty much reaffirmed to me why I like Melbourne the most. The European inspired town with the alleys of surprises (the best stuff are down alleys), the restaurants/shops/food stores that actually open late (passed 6PM), and the variety of things to see. And I went to Great Ocean road. It was actually quite fascinating to see the 12 apostles. Basically these structures are free standing rock formations in the water. They are there because at one point in time they were attached to the mainland but over time the middle section had eroded giving rise to what looks like something that arose from the ground, but actually is something split from the mainland. Some have fallen over the years, but really an amazing sight to see.
Torquay, NSW. Home of all the major surfing labels and big surf competition each year. I went surfing here!
And the 12 apostles. Oh, there aren't actually twleve.
oh, I started taking golf lessons. Have four lessons, have taken two. I went golfing the last day I was in Melbourne, and the week after I found out close by my home in Perth golf lessons were taking place, so I signed up. I saw immediate improvements compared to my time in Melbourne. But the second time I went I found I wasn't improving or had gotten worse I think. Anyways, this is a good start I think, I've wanted to do this for many years now, and so this ought to be a good start to golf. It was a shame already I left for Oz the summer before I was going to learn with some mates, but now I am starting to learn and I am hoping I can play more! Now if only I can play some rugby and footy before I leave, I'll be happy.
The money shot. Joey and mama-Kanga. I saw the joey get in the pouch.
It's really starting to heat up here, but it's been a beautiful heat with hardly any humidity. I woke up earlier yesterday specifically to go to the beach. I got there, many families but in comparison to later on in the day there were not many people. I just sat down to get my tan, dove in the water to cool down, and enjoyed the surroundings. We need better beaches in Toronto! and closer too!
I've had some good times whilst here. Two weeks ago I went to the 70s! That's right, I went to a 70's party! I tried to find some clothes that reflect the 70s, but I was not even close to matching some of the outfits others had. Mind you, most of them rented, but not like I spent very little money in comparison either. Basically KC (the host) was having a birthday, her husband and her had just sold the house, so they decided why not hold a 70s birthday party before leaving the house! what a great idea! They each hired costumes, rented a light that spun around the main room like a disco ball, catered for food, and lots of fun! Anyways, pictures for your enjoyment.
KC and Darrin from Frisbee Team.
The winners of best dressed female and male and Me.
This past weekend at my church here in Perth I spent three days seeing the same people. Friday night I was invited to one of the pastors house to have Thanksgiving dinner. It was American Thanksgiving, and there are a lot of Americans at the church, so they hold one each year, and invite the Canadians too. They watched football (taped from the morning), had turkey, and just great conversation. Then Saturday I went to their Annual General Meeting. I wanted to go to the actual meeting but when I got there I got caught up in helping out with various things, that when I had a chance to go, I think I'd rather help out more than go. Anyways, they had a celebration dinner afterwards where they had about 200 people for a potluck dinner. it was really good, but very well organized. Then of course Sunday rolled around and I went to church.
This weekend was a special weekend for the church as well. They call it their "Whole Hearted Followers" Sunday. This is their mission as a church, to be Whole Hearted Followers and they have this elaborate survey and commitment that they give to the whole church to devote their life each year to our Lord, and make a commitment each year on areas of growth. This of course is a good idea, and it seems to work very well in this church. I was thinking of filling it out myself, but forgot to bring the pamphlet and so figured didn't want to take another package. They make everyone fill it out, hand it in, so that the church can be involved in furthering each person's relationship with Christ. I'll probably still fill it out, just not hand it in since I won't be around very much longer. It's good to know that this church has a direction it wants to head, and are taking steps to moving towards it.
A few weeks back I went to Melbourne for a week for some training, and what a great week to go. It was Melbourne Cup week, this is basically Melbourne's biggest week of the year. It's a horse race, and many people from around the country come to Melbourne to go to the races, and basically to dress up. You got all the guys in the suits (this year's common theme is the gangster look apparently, so white hats, white shoes, black suit). But the true highlight is seeing the ladies dressed to the 9s. And the big thing here is the hat, you gotta have your racing hat. But the funniest thing (and this is what I am told, I didn't see it first hand) is that all these girls get all dressed up in their fancy dresses and hats, and get pissed drunk. So much so you see girls sprawled on the grass just pissed drunk. oh yeah, very classy!
A week of working there pretty much reaffirmed to me why I like Melbourne the most. The European inspired town with the alleys of surprises (the best stuff are down alleys), the restaurants/shops/food stores that actually open late (passed 6PM), and the variety of things to see. And I went to Great Ocean road. It was actually quite fascinating to see the 12 apostles. Basically these structures are free standing rock formations in the water. They are there because at one point in time they were attached to the mainland but over time the middle section had eroded giving rise to what looks like something that arose from the ground, but actually is something split from the mainland. Some have fallen over the years, but really an amazing sight to see.
Torquay, NSW. Home of all the major surfing labels and big surf competition each year. I went surfing here!
And the 12 apostles. Oh, there aren't actually twleve.
Monday, October 08, 2007
Fiji, and off to the WA
(this was written on Aug 30th, but I only got time to post it now)
So I have moved to Perth. I got back from Fiji on Sunday, moved to Perth on Tuesday, went to work on Wednesday. It was a bit rushed for what I really would of liked, but I'm here now so no point in dwelling. What has Perth been like? well it has rained everyday since I arrived, and today was the first day that it did not rain. I hear great things about it, but have yet to experience it. I miss Brisbane.
I moved into a new apartment as well, took me just under a week to get a place. I could not wait to get out of the hotel, after living in my own place for a while you gotta feel like you live in a home.
My first apartment in Perth. (I've since moved, stay tuned for more)
I talked to my mom for the first time in a while tonight, I was telling her that every Saturday I used to get out of the house by 7:30 so I could get to the farmers market. She said I have become a "see lai". And I guess it's true, I mean I try to find the best deals, save money where I can, and all I do is things for the home. But I actually quite enjoy it, going to the markets in the morning. I wish Toronto had more of these.
The Subi Markets. Where I do my shopping on weekends. This is right across from my apartment.
I had a friend stay with me for two days after I got back from Fiji. I met her in Fiji and since she was headed to Brisbane, I offered my second room to her. Anyways, she mentioned something that made a lot of sense. It's that when you travel for a long time, if you make a stop at someones house for a day or two, clean all your clothes, and just take some rest, when you get back to the travelling it's like starting all over again. Makes so much sense, I seriously think it has to do with the clean clothes. But this is something that every long traveller should think about, when you relax at home watching tv and have clean clothes, it's like you are at home. So if you can do this whilst travelling, it'll be like starting all over. Good Tip.
Fiji, this was at our first accomodation stay. Mango Bay Resort. they call it resort, but it's all dorm style.
Going to Fiji really gave me a lot of energy and it was such a great experience. I did this tour called FeeJee Experience. It's a hop on hop off tour bus that has a circuit around the main island. It takes a minimum of four days to travel around, and you can stop at any of it's stops for more days, you just take the next bus in a few days. The great thing about this tour is it takes you to places you may not be able to get it. They took us to Fijian villages to have a real Kava (Fijian drink) ceremony. They took us on rainforest hikes, mud pools, river tubing and sand boarding. There is no way I could of arranged all of this, just made things so much easier. And I travelled around with a group of about 10 people for the whole time, we really built a good friendship and get to know one another. I did some things that I never thought I'd do, and even though I was not a strong swimmer I still did heaps of snorkelling. Yes, I did a lot of shallow snorkelling, but I also went out deep water snorkelling, and was truly amazing. I saw so many fish and coral, I wish I had a camera. And one thing i realized, I think having fins help so much. I don't get tired nearly as fast.
Our 8k walk crew.
Kava Ceremony. Kava is traditional Fijian drink. That on the left is the village chief.
Hot Mud Pools!
Beachcomber island. Nice way to end it all.
Another thing I found was I get bored when not doing anything. I stayed at this beach hostel for three days, and the majority of the time was lying by the beach. I was so bored, I did not have a book so you can only sit in the sun for so long. And so I said to some of the fellow travellers, "I can't believe we're gonna sit by the beach for three days". And they took this as if I didn't want to be there, and that I couldn't wait to leave. And while I did feel bored and needed to do something, I was happy where I was too. But really, there is no difference with me saying that and them always asking me "what time is it?" Why is there a need to know what time it is? Unless you are in a rush to get somewhere or do something, you don't need to know. when you are hungry, you eat. When you want to get out of the sun, you go swimming. If you are tired, you go sleep. Why keep track of time?
Volivoli Beach. Spent 3 days here just soaking in the sun.
One thing I really enjoyed about this tour was that we saw a lot of what Fiji really is. Many people who come to Fiji stay at some nice resort and that is their only perspective of Fiji. That is as far from what Fiji is as you can get. I would hate to only have that perspective. I wish we stayed over night in a Fijian village, even if it's sleeping on floor mats, going to outhouses. It gives me the experience I want. There is a lot of poverty in Fiji as well, but they get by and are happy. I have not seen a culture so happy to see people. As our bus drives by, everyone that sees it waves. That is just great, they welcome you with open arms. Such great people. There is no way you'd see the same thing in Canada or America.
What the fijian villages really look like, not the best of conditions.
Totally off topic, but just came to mind. Whilst I was in Brisbane, many of my coworkers called me JC. Then one day the PM was talking to a coworker and I, and she goes: "I take offense to people using the term JC because it offends my religious belieds." My coworker and I were a little taken by surprise, we did not know what to say. My coworker, he calls me JC and I respond. Then later she came back over and said she was joking. Both my coworker and I found it a little odd, and we weren't really sure if she was really joking or not. But anyways, I thought about it afterwards and I don't find any offense to it, even as a believer of Jesus Christ. Yes the term "JC" has been used as a reference to Jesus Christ, but it's more of a common term that someone made up. It's not something that is in the Bible or anything, so you really can't take it with any seriousness I don't think. In fact if someone were offended, they should probably be more offended when people use the name "JC" to reference Jesus Christ.
So I have moved to Perth. I got back from Fiji on Sunday, moved to Perth on Tuesday, went to work on Wednesday. It was a bit rushed for what I really would of liked, but I'm here now so no point in dwelling. What has Perth been like? well it has rained everyday since I arrived, and today was the first day that it did not rain. I hear great things about it, but have yet to experience it. I miss Brisbane.
I moved into a new apartment as well, took me just under a week to get a place. I could not wait to get out of the hotel, after living in my own place for a while you gotta feel like you live in a home.
My first apartment in Perth. (I've since moved, stay tuned for more)
I talked to my mom for the first time in a while tonight, I was telling her that every Saturday I used to get out of the house by 7:30 so I could get to the farmers market. She said I have become a "see lai". And I guess it's true, I mean I try to find the best deals, save money where I can, and all I do is things for the home. But I actually quite enjoy it, going to the markets in the morning. I wish Toronto had more of these.
The Subi Markets. Where I do my shopping on weekends. This is right across from my apartment.
I had a friend stay with me for two days after I got back from Fiji. I met her in Fiji and since she was headed to Brisbane, I offered my second room to her. Anyways, she mentioned something that made a lot of sense. It's that when you travel for a long time, if you make a stop at someones house for a day or two, clean all your clothes, and just take some rest, when you get back to the travelling it's like starting all over again. Makes so much sense, I seriously think it has to do with the clean clothes. But this is something that every long traveller should think about, when you relax at home watching tv and have clean clothes, it's like you are at home. So if you can do this whilst travelling, it'll be like starting all over. Good Tip.
Fiji, this was at our first accomodation stay. Mango Bay Resort. they call it resort, but it's all dorm style.
Going to Fiji really gave me a lot of energy and it was such a great experience. I did this tour called FeeJee Experience. It's a hop on hop off tour bus that has a circuit around the main island. It takes a minimum of four days to travel around, and you can stop at any of it's stops for more days, you just take the next bus in a few days. The great thing about this tour is it takes you to places you may not be able to get it. They took us to Fijian villages to have a real Kava (Fijian drink) ceremony. They took us on rainforest hikes, mud pools, river tubing and sand boarding. There is no way I could of arranged all of this, just made things so much easier. And I travelled around with a group of about 10 people for the whole time, we really built a good friendship and get to know one another. I did some things that I never thought I'd do, and even though I was not a strong swimmer I still did heaps of snorkelling. Yes, I did a lot of shallow snorkelling, but I also went out deep water snorkelling, and was truly amazing. I saw so many fish and coral, I wish I had a camera. And one thing i realized, I think having fins help so much. I don't get tired nearly as fast.
Our 8k walk crew.
Kava Ceremony. Kava is traditional Fijian drink. That on the left is the village chief.
Hot Mud Pools!
Beachcomber island. Nice way to end it all.
Another thing I found was I get bored when not doing anything. I stayed at this beach hostel for three days, and the majority of the time was lying by the beach. I was so bored, I did not have a book so you can only sit in the sun for so long. And so I said to some of the fellow travellers, "I can't believe we're gonna sit by the beach for three days". And they took this as if I didn't want to be there, and that I couldn't wait to leave. And while I did feel bored and needed to do something, I was happy where I was too. But really, there is no difference with me saying that and them always asking me "what time is it?" Why is there a need to know what time it is? Unless you are in a rush to get somewhere or do something, you don't need to know. when you are hungry, you eat. When you want to get out of the sun, you go swimming. If you are tired, you go sleep. Why keep track of time?
Volivoli Beach. Spent 3 days here just soaking in the sun.
One thing I really enjoyed about this tour was that we saw a lot of what Fiji really is. Many people who come to Fiji stay at some nice resort and that is their only perspective of Fiji. That is as far from what Fiji is as you can get. I would hate to only have that perspective. I wish we stayed over night in a Fijian village, even if it's sleeping on floor mats, going to outhouses. It gives me the experience I want. There is a lot of poverty in Fiji as well, but they get by and are happy. I have not seen a culture so happy to see people. As our bus drives by, everyone that sees it waves. That is just great, they welcome you with open arms. Such great people. There is no way you'd see the same thing in Canada or America.
What the fijian villages really look like, not the best of conditions.
Totally off topic, but just came to mind. Whilst I was in Brisbane, many of my coworkers called me JC. Then one day the PM was talking to a coworker and I, and she goes: "I take offense to people using the term JC because it offends my religious belieds." My coworker and I were a little taken by surprise, we did not know what to say. My coworker, he calls me JC and I respond. Then later she came back over and said she was joking. Both my coworker and I found it a little odd, and we weren't really sure if she was really joking or not. But anyways, I thought about it afterwards and I don't find any offense to it, even as a believer of Jesus Christ. Yes the term "JC" has been used as a reference to Jesus Christ, but it's more of a common term that someone made up. It's not something that is in the Bible or anything, so you really can't take it with any seriousness I don't think. In fact if someone were offended, they should probably be more offended when people use the name "JC" to reference Jesus Christ.
Sunday, July 29, 2007
Whitsunday Coast
Lots has happened last few weeks. Last weekend I went to the Whitsunday Coast. The Whitsunday coast is a protected area that is great for sailing. So many sailing trip adventures take off from there. It's protected by the Great Barrier Reef, so sailing is supposed to be more smooth. I spent three days two nights aboard the British Defender, where we slept, ate, and lived for all that time. I was really looking forward to this because how often can I saw I sailed in the ocean!
The boat was quite big, it was a former racing boat. We had about 19 people on board including crew. The food was actually really good, I did not expect it to be this good. We had steak, we had curry, we had pasta. Hardly something you'd expect to eat at sea. The accommodations were compact but surprisingly comfortable enough to sleep. It could be because we were just all tired, and so we had no troubles. I went snorkeling for the first time. I had some trouble at first but the second day I did it again and really enjoyed myself. I think I was breathing a little hard, but it still worked. This was probably the highlight of my whole trip, seeing the vast ocean floor and the living creatures that live there. The fishes, the coral were just amazing sight, and I really wanted to go back down. Whitehaven beach was also nice, but it was way too cold to sit on a beach (at least for me). However, by the end of it I was ready to get off. The rain, the winds, the strong tides took a toll on me and I had to get off. Also, not showering for two days also takes a toll, but i would of done more if I was on the boat for longer. The reason is because the boat only has so much fresh water, so they asked everyone to shower for 30 seconds max. And the compartment to take a shower was just the room where you go to the washroom, so I didn't bother. Once we got off, I went back to the park I was at before we took off, and took a shower in the park. I never felt so good taking a shower and putting on some dry clothes. it was funny because I took my time in preparing myself to shower, had everything off to the side, and brushed the cold water on me. Then I went over and was drying myself and this little kid walked by and just stared at me. I had to encourage him to move on, rather than just stare at me. What, he's never seen someone shower/dry themselves in public?
I also may be moving. The project I am on is at a standstill and so there is work to do on other projects. So I may be moving/travelling somewhere else. I'll let you know when I find out myself. But it's taken some time for me to swallow that I may have to move again. It has not been easy to find friends here in Brisbane, and now I have to move away not being able to further develop the friendships into something more lasting. It's a shame really, kind of sad about it but I have been praying for a better work environment. It hasn't been easy working here on this project, so I've been praying constantly for improvement, challenge, and change. We'll see what happens in next two weeks.
Yesterday i went to Lamington National Park. This park is huge, and so nice. We did two bushwalks, the first one was so easy. It's a tree top trail, about 100m above ground level. The second one was to see some falls, and though it wasn't easy, it was so worth it not only to see some of the falls, but to just challenge ourselves in some trails. We didn't see any animals, except some bush turkeys. They were everywhere, kind of funny to see these turkeys in the forest. To me, they look out of place.
The boat was quite big, it was a former racing boat. We had about 19 people on board including crew. The food was actually really good, I did not expect it to be this good. We had steak, we had curry, we had pasta. Hardly something you'd expect to eat at sea. The accommodations were compact but surprisingly comfortable enough to sleep. It could be because we were just all tired, and so we had no troubles. I went snorkeling for the first time. I had some trouble at first but the second day I did it again and really enjoyed myself. I think I was breathing a little hard, but it still worked. This was probably the highlight of my whole trip, seeing the vast ocean floor and the living creatures that live there. The fishes, the coral were just amazing sight, and I really wanted to go back down. Whitehaven beach was also nice, but it was way too cold to sit on a beach (at least for me). However, by the end of it I was ready to get off. The rain, the winds, the strong tides took a toll on me and I had to get off. Also, not showering for two days also takes a toll, but i would of done more if I was on the boat for longer. The reason is because the boat only has so much fresh water, so they asked everyone to shower for 30 seconds max. And the compartment to take a shower was just the room where you go to the washroom, so I didn't bother. Once we got off, I went back to the park I was at before we took off, and took a shower in the park. I never felt so good taking a shower and putting on some dry clothes. it was funny because I took my time in preparing myself to shower, had everything off to the side, and brushed the cold water on me. Then I went over and was drying myself and this little kid walked by and just stared at me. I had to encourage him to move on, rather than just stare at me. What, he's never seen someone shower/dry themselves in public?
I also may be moving. The project I am on is at a standstill and so there is work to do on other projects. So I may be moving/travelling somewhere else. I'll let you know when I find out myself. But it's taken some time for me to swallow that I may have to move again. It has not been easy to find friends here in Brisbane, and now I have to move away not being able to further develop the friendships into something more lasting. It's a shame really, kind of sad about it but I have been praying for a better work environment. It hasn't been easy working here on this project, so I've been praying constantly for improvement, challenge, and change. We'll see what happens in next two weeks.
Yesterday i went to Lamington National Park. This park is huge, and so nice. We did two bushwalks, the first one was so easy. It's a tree top trail, about 100m above ground level. The second one was to see some falls, and though it wasn't easy, it was so worth it not only to see some of the falls, but to just challenge ourselves in some trails. We didn't see any animals, except some bush turkeys. They were everywhere, kind of funny to see these turkeys in the forest. To me, they look out of place.
Tuesday, July 03, 2007
Am I being hypocritical?
So I have been trying to put in as many travel plans as I can while I am here in Australia. But it got me thinking as I was talking about it to some people at church, am I being irresponsible by spending my time and money on all these different vacations? Why it got me thinking is because I know how much God has blessed me, and how much help my money and time could be used to help others. So am I being a hypocrite when I say I want to help people and then go around and just go on vacation every couple of weeks?
Here is how I justify it to myself irrespective of the above. I am here in Australia, pretty much as far as I can get from Canada as you can get. Being here gives me a great opportunity to see the world around here, which will take much more money and time to explore than if I left from Canada. How else can I go to Fiji, Great Barrier Reef, New Zealand, and the many places around Australia? Whereas here I am in Australia and so close to these places, why wouldn't I take full advantage of my time here and see all these amazing places?
But then if I think about it, if I wasn't spending so much time travelling I could use the travel time to build community with those around me. I could spend the extra time developing relationships with those I meet. And I can save the money for other things, more "responsible". And it doesn't make it seem like I only care about what I want and not what might be best for the people overall. I could be just thinking too much into this small thing, but it does bother me.
What I do on weekends. Shopping @ Markets
Some real pretty trees here in Brisbane.
My New Apartment.
It's very white it seems.
Here is how I justify it to myself irrespective of the above. I am here in Australia, pretty much as far as I can get from Canada as you can get. Being here gives me a great opportunity to see the world around here, which will take much more money and time to explore than if I left from Canada. How else can I go to Fiji, Great Barrier Reef, New Zealand, and the many places around Australia? Whereas here I am in Australia and so close to these places, why wouldn't I take full advantage of my time here and see all these amazing places?
But then if I think about it, if I wasn't spending so much time travelling I could use the travel time to build community with those around me. I could spend the extra time developing relationships with those I meet. And I can save the money for other things, more "responsible". And it doesn't make it seem like I only care about what I want and not what might be best for the people overall. I could be just thinking too much into this small thing, but it does bother me.
What I do on weekends. Shopping @ Markets
Some real pretty trees here in Brisbane.
My New Apartment.
It's very white it seems.
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