More on the Ozz Holiday - Leaving Queensland

The day after visiting the tablelands was our last day at the Silky Oaks resort and also our last day in Queensland.



The plan was to head towards Cairns and spend the day around there before going to the airport and catching our flight to Sydney.



We had our breakfast as usual at the resort in the open air restaurant and in typical fashion the sun emerged for us    



The Silky Oaks restaurant







The swimming hole where fish and turtle reside







The swimming pool at the lodge







Well fed and bags packed we loaded up the car and set off... Just outside of the lodge along the road through the rainforest we saw a kookaburra on a telegraph post... We stopped (of course) to try and get a last chance shot. We pulled over to the side of the road and McD jumped out camera in hand ....I stayed in the car. . Having taken a few shots McD decided she needed a bigger lens and walked back to the open car door ... AS she went past the back of the car I saw in the rear view mirror a sudden look of horror on her face and then she was gone momentarily as she shot into the air ..... Then down she came landing  shouting "Snake !!!! " ....



McD had managed to literally step over  a large brown snake to get the pictures she wanted ... then returning saw the snake as it moved amongst the grass and bushes..... 



"Well get a picture !" I said 



And She Did !!!  - can you see it beating a hasty retreat .... Nothing takes McD on :O)  



Curtesy of McDinzie







Of course we joked and laughed about it ...But it was a real reminder that we are closer to nature than we often think ....... A reminder that this could have been a serious event ....I was glad we were not too far from assistance ....Also glad that the snake looks to be a python (We don't know for  sure)..And probably sunning itself first thing in the morning ...... Who knows .... Pythons in Ozz can get up to around 6 metres by the way ...... 



And on we went ... Next stop was to drive towards cairns and turn off into the Great Divide to a small township called kuranda...Here was a crafts market and a Butterfly sanctuary. We spent quite a while at the butterfly place ...Eventually giving up on getting the 'perfect shot' and heading off to grab a pie and a drink at the market...It was getting hot .......













































McDs new hat accessory 







































We tired easily ...The heat of the day hit us hard (mid 30s) and so we drove back down into Cairns itself to have a look around .... 





Looking down on the plains around Cairns

































Well not really a lot to look at .. .We asked at the tourist information but they had no real suggestions for a few hours sightseeing... We hit the mall for some supplies and coffee... Then we drove along the beach esplanade...Well the beach was a river estuary !! Hundreds of sun seekers lay side to side on a grass strip between the road and the sands .... I was quite surprised by this as advertising always seemed to show the white sand beaches and palms ... Nope ..... We continued our drive around ... The espanade was ok ... not special .. .the rest of the town was just that - a sprawling town....  



So having drove through their botanical gardens stopping for a drink, we gave up and headed for the airport .... Next stop Sydney - our last in Ozz

 

Odd Sods and Degrees of Separation

Today's Photo's: Too cold for taking pictures .. .shots from the Botanic Gardens in Wellington NZ ... We visited them a few weeks back but I never posted anything .... I don't think anyway ....







Weather: The weather is pretty horrible and has been since yesterday. Effin cold southerly winds, rain, hail, and snow again in the high country ... Not looking to good for the rest of the week either which is tragic for me as this was the last week I can work on the garden before starting my new job at the bank ... Damned frustrating ....







Degrees of Separation: Fellow ODer and blogger GypsySpirit started an interesting discussion on degrees of separation between people around the world. KiwiChatter also gave a great example of the connects we have with each other through other friends. The idea that it is only 6 degrees of separation between someone in one part of the work to someone else in another is well known ....Within NZ (and I think with some pride) we believe that there are only two degrees of separation .... It's a cool idea as it does make all kiwis part of a relative close 'extended family' ....







I have a general example of the degrees of separation in the world. I'm on a site called 'Linkedin'. It's a professional network. "LinkedIn connects you to your trusted contacts and helps you exchange knowledge, ideas, and opportunities with a broader network of professionals."







I maintain contact with people I've work with since joining and have 107 immediate contacts ...People who know me directly ....







2 degrees away from me are 6,300 people ... I know someone who knows one or more of them.



3 degrees away from me and there are 595,700 people. I know someone who knows someone who knows one or more of these people ....



And that's with just 107 contacts .... There must be a huge number more I would have worked with over the years .... And that is only work contacts. Add friends, family, aquaintancies, fellow bloggers and its easy to understand the 6 degrees of separation .....







New Job: While concerned about the new role I have taken on, We can only be thankful that I will soon be back in gainful employment again. While the role isn't as senior as I'm used to, There has been little else opened up on the job market ...Had this not come by there would have been every likelihood of my not getting a role for some many month ahead. That would have sapped our resources far too much. It was also becoming apparent in interviews that being out of work too long was a negative against you .... So really it all worked out well and with good timing... I will have had a 3 months 3 weeks break. and much needed it was too .... I'm generally feeling better, healthier, have a bit of a suntan rather than that 'PC monitor radiation grey' IT workers are prone to have. And while I've a number of concerns about the new role I'm quite keen and full of ideas as to what can be done.......







Of course winning lotto and becoming a bread baking hippy would be better :O) But I still fully expect that to happen over the course of time :O)







Oh - did I say ? - the role is with an Australasian bank as an "ITIL Delivery Manager' ... What the Sam is that I hear you ask ...... well to quote from the job description - the role is "Responsible for establishing the ITIL Service Management capability within (bank) New Zealand and providing governance over the services that fall within the scope of IT Service Management."



But what that really means I'll let you know in the coming months ....









The gardening: Damn this weather ...Anyway, we are now filling up one of the new raised borders ...Pea straw and well rotted home made compost with plenty of horse manure, and a rich 'veggie garden' soil sold by living earth. All of it 'walked' up the hill and steps by bag and bucket....







Another two borders are close to finishing as I've pick axed out the rock/clay and laid flat sections into the hillside. I've another small border to put in and discussion as to adding yet another in the corner that will be a rhubarb patch .... love rhubarb :O)







3-months of working on this and other parts of the garden .... To look at the place you would not believe I'd been working so hard on the section ..... .







We've now got various seedling in pots and trays. some are getting too leggy and need to be potted on very soon ... its a lot of work and a little worrying as McD and I are going away next week for another break .....









I HATE BLACKBIRDS !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Little sods have raked over my seedlings of lettuce, carrots, and the like ... ruined them ......... I will have to plant again now. And then !!! I spent a while mounding up potatoes (its a pain in raised borders ) anyway - no sooner had I left to get more soil that the blackbirds there scratching feverishly levelling the soil again in search of worms....... They are far too tame of course ...







So now I have netting MWHAHAHAHAH ....MWHAHAHAHAHA :O) Though an air rifle was first in my mind - hell bent on a bloody revenge ........







Another Holiday: Does it sound that bad !! We decided we should have another short holiday before I start work ... It will probably be the last break for a while as I will have to build up my annual leave again ....







So we are going to pack the car and head north and east and visit Gisborne and the east cape - which is on the east cost of the north island. Hopefully the weather will improve. Snowing along the way there at present with people in cars having to be rescued...... Hopefully we will get to see the sunrise in Gisborne... The first city in the world to welcome the sunrise of a new day. Hopefully we will see lots of kiwi-ana and take lots of pictures to bore you all with over the next month or so :O)







The big event!! Of course this break also lets me go away and sulk... I have less than one week to go and then it is the end of my 40s ....Where did that decade go !!! Man, I thought the end of my 30s was bad !! So come Sunday and I will have actually made it to 50 years .... Been very touch and go along the way ... Still have yet to grow up and learn how to look after myself (McD Will vouch for that ....:O) But there you go ..... perhaps I should do a short write-up on this ....from zero to half-century in 10 minutes :O)

Australia Holiday - Atherton Tablelands Part 3

Welcome swallow, swallowducks, whip bird, whipbird

Curtain (Strangler?) Fig in the Queensland rainforest ...













































Click here and here to hear the Whip-bird described in the last entry ...What we didn't know was the other sound - the Choo Choo Choo Choo - that accompanied the feewww-whip was a female whipbird responding to the male song !! If you are a bird nut like us then there is a whole page of soundbites highlighting the regional differences in song of these birds ..... here



After the Stop off for the fig tree we headed to Lake Barrine for lunch. The lake is set in the forest. The tea house is an old 1920s style house. Very nice and with a beautiful and tranquil setting .. The small cafe was proudly displaying their Multi-award winnings for Scones ..>







Taken from that great site - http://www.lakebarrine.com.au/ A must see for great information and better pictures :O)



Well you have to try them don't you :O) We had a very nice salad and barramundi fish and then their award winning Devonshire Teas. they lived up to their accolades :O) We ate on the balcony of the charming 80+ year old teahouse while taking in the scenic & serene lake views.





































In fact I was so taken with the scenery I forgot to take a snap of the house itself !! Doh ...





Taken from that great site - http://rainforest-australia.com/ - A must see for great information and better pictures :O)







Taken from that great site http://rainforest-australia.com/A must see for great information and better pictures :O)



AS we sat and looked out we watched the Welcome Swallows around the only boat on the water.











I didn't realise what bulging eyes they have !! All the better to see flies with I suppose :O)

















We even got to see a cormorant - Pretty comkon throughout Ozz and New Zealand ... Initially though it might be a Grebe ...Then put my specs on :O\











The boat took people at a slow pace around the 4.5km lake edge... They took you to see a python snake as well as a resident turtle... We had settled down with our devenshire teas so took a pass on sailing ....



However as the boat set off we watched as a number of ducks, all in line, flew one by one out of the water to grab a piece of bread from the boat owners hand .... Each duck awaiting it's turn to fly and feed ....Now are Mallard Ducks everywhere in the world !!!!











As one duck descends the next is already in the air and approaching ... And no Air traffic Control !!! :O)



















Just like the planes landing at Wellington Airport !! :O)











We took a walk to see the two giant Karri trees in the forest nearby and then walked through the gardens for the car... And then we heard it !! "feeeeewwwwwww-Whip" !!! The bird was right beside us in the garden undergrowth ... Incredibly busy and seemingly in a bad mood he never stopped moving and shouting and all the time right on the ground beside us ...... Well I tried and tried and tried to get a decent shot of him .... he even came so close to me he touched by boot as I stood rock still !!! but these were as good as it got .. Of course McD has a better shot ...I'm sure she has or will share it on her blog ..













dammit - close....









I suspect this is a juvenile













The problem also was that in looking down like that It doesn't show it has a white throat !!! nor its crest !!! :o\



Visit here for a proper picture .......Whip Bird



And that was that ...A day almost gone already and a long trip back home