It's been awhile

Hello!! I am back!! As pointed out both Kyle and Crystal it has been awhile since I have made a post. So, I am back. I am currently living and working in Perth (yes, this is a work holiday visa. Yes, I have thoroughly enjoyed the holiday part. Figured i should give the work part a try.) So, this first post is on my adventure to the Bell Tower. A magnificent engineering feat which houses the bells and can with stand the force as the bells are rung. One bell weighs 340 kgs. I EVEN GOT TO RING ONE!! The woman ringing the bells was an 80something and she was magnificent.
The view was that overlooking Perth and the Swan River.

February 17th, 2012

So this post clearly took place before some of the posts that are up. But I know Kyle will want to see these pictures, so better late than never. Credit goes out to Ry for the pictures. We were lucky enough to go over to Manly Beach and see the Australian surf open. Beautiful day, so we enjoyed the beach and swimming as well.

Adelaide Fringe

Well, I arrived safely in Adelaide (not that anyone was worried) for Fringe. A quick stop over on my way to Perth to work, I figure it's about time to give it a second go here. So, here for fringe. As per some wise advice from my brother 'say yes to things, even things you wouldn't normally do.' so when a street performer sat down and started talking to me at breakfast and asked if I wanted to go to some fringe, I said yes. This lead to meeting and talking to several street performers. The best of the lot was probably the 9 year old escape artist and with a line like 'I am nine years old, single and I have a job...that's better than most guys' how could you not stop and watch!!! He was quite talented. I also went and saw the fringe variety and walked around the gardens, both the garden of unearthly delights and the garden of gluttony. Even went into the artists bar!! That's what happens when you say yes Kyle!!

Canberra

After Ryan left, I headed inland for a bit to enjoy Canberra. I was able to accomplish a lot here, including learning to make money. Okay, what I actually mean is how coins are made... Sigh, if only it was so easy as to show up in the Australian capital and learn how to make money. I was also able to tour the parliament buildings, take in a couple of museums and catch up with the Martins before making my way to Adelaide. It was lovely to see them and catch up.

Cradle Mountain

Okay, so in one of twenty days a year, Ryan and I hiked, climbed and bouldered to the summit of Cradle Mountain. The skies were blue bird blue, there was not a cloud in sight and besides a very gentle breeze at the top, there was no wind. We could not have asked for a better day. We completed the whole journey in about 5 hours, with our first picnic at Marion's Lookout and the second picnic right at the top. At the summit, on the top of the world.

Probably only Amy sympathizes

In what would be the third mountain we climbed (the first being the Nut in Stanley,the second of course Cradle Mountain) we climbed yet another to go to the look out at Wineglass bay before climbing down to go play in the water. Of course for those of you that have put two and two together, that meant we had to climb back up and down to get to the car. I think Amy feels for Ryan as my motto in Vegas was if we can see it, we can walk to it. Not always the best motto in a Vegas heat wave. I would like it to go on the official record that Ryan never complained. Can you see the kookaburra eating the lizard??

Ryan and Ashley Climb a Bridge

For those of you that live under a rock, Sydney has this very famous bridge. The bridge is the heaviest in the world, though there is one 63cm (that number may be off) longer than it. The bridge is also designed to move (as the heat contracts and expands it) up to 18cm. It was built during the depression to generate work. The four pylons are there merely for decoration and at some point in the 1970s there was a cattery atop one of them. Okay, enough talk I know. You want pictures and no more history lessons.