DAY 7 - 9: KANGAROO ISLAND

Monday, Jan 27 Day 7 - Wednesday, Jan 29 Day 9

Kangaroo Island - Adventures, Magnificent Scenery and Food

Note: Kangaroo Island (KI) is truly in the bush -- no phone service, TV and very weak and sporadic internet service(all of which is not necessarily a bad thing).  So, excuse the lack of communication!

Day 7 was a travel day.  We flew from Melbourne to Adelaide (hour and a half flight), then from Adelaide to Kingscote (20 minute prop plane). Kingscote is on the NorthEast side of KI and we drove an hour and a half through the bush land (only passed one small general store!) to the SouthWest side of the island to our resort, Southern Ocean Lodge.

A few fun facts re KI:
* KI has a land mass of 4,400 square kilometers (same size as Long Island, NY)
* There are 2,500 km of roadways (majority dirt)
*  Population of 4,000 (and only 4 policemen)
*  Population of Kuala's: 30,000(18 Kuala's were brought to the island in 1920 so now they need to control the population -- some poor females are being sterilized)
* Population of kangaroos and wallabies: approx 1 million
* Have Ligurian bees -- our meals frequently involved honey and I always needed to have Steven's Epipen close by
* The residents show their creativity by having very unique mailboxes -- we saw a refrigerator, a barrel and an oven.






Fun facts about Southern Ocean Lodge (SOL to us)

* Opened in March 2008

* The Great Room has floor to ceiling glass which overlooks the ocean and magnificent coastline.  Also features a fully stocked bar which is available at all times (a fan favorite)

* Lodge consists of 21 suites that snake down a long and hilly hallway which lines the coast (if you ever come to SOL request a room at the top of the hallway!)
* Meals and snacks are constantly served and all meals feature the KI's fresh produce -- and they were excellent

We added to our Aussie vocabulary:
"Was-a" which translates to "road kill" ie "was a" kangaroo" :(

Over the course of our time at SOL we were very busy (camp for adults). Below is how we filled our days.

Kangaroos & "Kanapes":  observed kangaroos in their natural environments while sipping on Australian wine and eating a canapé (a potato ball designed to represent a kangaroo turd -- the chef has quite a sense of humor) 

Half day excursion exploring KI's wildlife and the stunning coastal landscape.  Climbed the "Remarkable Rocks" where the forces of nature have carved modern sculptures out of granite (rivals Stonehedge).

Admirals Arch, an ancient limestone formation on the ocean which creates a perfect home for a colony of New Zealand fur seals. Due to a 12 month gestation period, it is breeding and mating season so we saw many young seal pups playing around (they were born between January-March)


Seal Bay, which is home to Australia's third largest colony of Australian sea lions. We went on the beach and got real close to the sea lions. 

We all became very attached to a baby sea lion, approx 3 months, who was sadly looking for his Mom (the females go out to sea for 3 days to feed and then come back to feed their baby). It must have been the end of the third day because our little friend seemed hungry and lonely.  We watched him wander into the sea alone.  We left the beach unsure of his fate but want to believe that there was a happy reunion.



One afternoon, we "took a wander" and set out to find Hanson Bay beach, which we were told was a 30 min walk from our lodge.  We were not told that we had to climb the cliffs and trudge through the bush land. But we are adventurers and miraculously found the beautiful and secluded beach. Unfortunately, the water was too cold to snorkel -- we missed seeing the 25 varieties of fish.

Despite all this activity, we managed to find time to relax, go for a jog and get massages.

Now that we are off KI and have access to internet, we will post more frequently.

Miss you all ,
The Sisselbergs (via Karen)

DAY 5 - 6: KOALAS, KANGAS, AND A NEW GRAND SLAM CHAMP

Saturday, Jan 25 Day 5

Melbourne

Our guide, Paul, picked up the Goodsisselbergs (the 6 of us) at our hotel and drove us to the You Yang Sanctuary, land of eucalyptus trees and the only animal conditioned to eat eucalyptus--poison to every other living being.  On the way to the sanctuary, after stopping briefly at a cricket match we were told might last three days...

Paul schooled us about the adorable marsupials (which are not bears at all), including the fact that koalas live a solitary life, only seeking other koala company during mating season. The male koala mates with as many females as he can, while the females only mate until they become pregnant. It was around this time the men in our group were thinking the life of a koala is not so terrible. The girls were on the fence--gestation period is only 35 days, after which time the babies crawl on out and suck on the mother's teat for the next six months. For about ten days, there's this icky thing called "papping" in which the babies eat something really nasty produced by the mother's waste system. So...it's a mixed bag! But dang, are those little marsupials CUTE! They didn't much mind our presence so we were able to get some pretty good pictures, especially when Paul put his binoculars right up to Larry's iphone and took the photo that is now the screen saver on my phone.

 Here's Steven, aka Ranger Rick, sniffing the scat (which our guide lovingly picked up and broke in half!) to prove that the eucalyptus does indeed go right through the animals!





We happened to see this little wallaby hopping along the road, and he was kind enough to pose for us so we could share him with you!








We also spotted some "jolly magpies" which was a confusing concept since Paul had already told us that animals did not feel emotion (in response to a probably rhetorical question about how the female koalas felt about the males mating with anything in heat). Somehow our guide talked us into picking weeds- apparently the tourists are cheaper labor than the locals! Here we are with the evidence of our hard labor.

Next, we visited the Serendip Sanctuary, where kangaroos run "in the wild" between rows of carefully planted trees that seem to serve as super highways for bouncing kangaroos. 

After our hectic day of chasing kangaroos, we were happy to sit down for a five-course dinner on the Colonial Tramcar, where we ate on a moving tramcar as it rode both forward and backward through the streets and neighborhoods of Melbourne. The highlight was a "selfie" photo the chef took with us when they finally let us off for a breath of fresh air. (It did not smell particularly good while they were steaming the broccoli, and we shared one of those "Did you do it?" moments until the distinct cruciferous odor broke through and we all giggled for a bit.)

The last night in Melbourne was happily spent at the men's finals of the Australian Open, where we clearly had more fun than Nadal.

Most people in the stadium on Sunday night were just hoping for a good tennis match, but I was looking for this guy... That's him giving us a pre-wink "I see what you're up to over there" after we tried taking a not-so-not-obvious selfie with cutie in the background on Friday night. (See him in the background there?)

Sadly, he was not on duty Sunday night, or perhaps he got fired for fraternizing with the silly patrons. Sigh... and even more unfortunately, I took a major bird crap to the back during the match, which got a good groan from most of our section. So much more than tennis! Anyway, Stan was a good man, and Nadal was courageous. It wasn't what anyone expected, but it was a good show.

Today, we're on to Kangaroo Island and we'll see you there! 

xoxo -The Sisselbergs (via Beth)

DAY 4: HOT AIR & TENNIS

Friday, Jan 24  Day 4

Melbourne

Note: Beth and Karen are taking turns blogging. Karen wanted the Nadal day, so this one is hers!

We woke at 4am to find that our hot air balloon ride was cancelled (I certainly do not want to be in a hot air balloon if it is lightning!).  It was a bummer but the good news was that we were able to sleep later and have a very leisurely breakfast.  Since it was raining, we went to the Aquarium, which is a short walk from our hotel.


We were amazed by the huge stingrays.  See their under bellies -- they look like they are smiling.
 

Larry was part of the exhibit.

But my favorite were the penguins.  We watched them waddle around, slide into the water and belly flop down the slope.




After the aquarium, Beth and Larry met a friend of Beth's and her son for lunch while Steven and I walked around with Denise.

Then it was time to head to Rod Laver Arena, which is a ten minute walk from our hotel.  Rod Laver Arena is a much smaller venue than Billie Jean King Center (US Open).  Bad news, no good apparel stores and poor food options.  Good news, small intimate setting with great viewing for the tennis (Arthur Ashe seats over 22,000 and Rod Laver stadium only seats 15,000.)  We had excellent seats -- front row slightly right of the umpire's chair.   First, we watched the women's doubles finals match -- very exciting with the Italians beating the Russians in three sets.  Then the main event: Federer vs Nadal.  Fabulous tennis -- great to watch two of the best players battle it out.  Our only regret was that it didn't go to four or five sets.  

My man Nadal was too strong and tough to beat (regardless of how hard Larry rooted for Roger!).


It was a beautiful night and incredible experience.

                                                                                 

                                                  

DAYS 1 - 3: GETTING THERE BETTER NOT BE HALF THE FUN!

I'm gonna be honest. I have no idea what day it is at home, what time it is here, or which way the toilet water swirls. We've eaten at least five breakfasts since we left ...was it yesterday? I'm on yogurt strike today. We haven't had much time to stop and blog but wanted to make sure you all know we got here in one piece--well, four pieces, actually, which brings me to my next point. 


Karen and Steve Sisselman are awesome travel companions! Look at these two lovebirds holding hands through the airport! Awww! 






And here they are in their cubbies settling in for the long flight from San Francisco to Auckland...

After two long days of travel together, when we finally went our separate ways as couples to take that blessed first shower in the Land Down Under, I believe we were all just a little sad to say goodbye...at least, I was.

The girls at lunch

We weren't separated for long though, because Larry was hungry, and it was lunch time somewhere! We met Denise (half of the Goodmans, good friends of Karen and Steve- and now us!) for lunch in Southgate along the beautiful Yarra River. 

Larry got pretty adventurous with "mutt crab" or did he say, "mud crap"? I swear I cannot understand these people down here. They're nice and they smile a LOT but no idea what they're saying!

Steve found his new dream car after lunch- not quite sure how he's getting it home...

This was a cool little "pop-up" party where people were sitting outside in big cushy pillows on astroturf watching the Open on a huge screen. Festive! 

Here are Andy and Denise in their new place- the 17th floor of Eureka Towers (so-called for the gold rush. They were such great hosts, treating us to the Skydeck on the 88th floor of their building. Great views of Melbourne, including the tennis center and cricket field (MCG)

Tennis Center and MCG

Panoramic view from Larry's phone!

Dinner at Gingerboy was an adventure. We decided to let the waiter decide for us. 

This is the dessert assortment after we finished with them (Sorry, next time I'll try to remember to photograph first, eat second!)

BATMAN AVENUE! (We'll look for Robin today)

Outside the tennis, there's a big concrete "beach" where the Aussies were out watching Wawrinka and Berdych's match last night. 

LOVED this--pianos all around the city labeled "Play me. I'm yours." 

Sunset over the Yarra River

We thought this bird might have been a kiwi lost from home (you know, New Zealand is a different country, mate!)...

but no. Just to be sure, I took a picture of these kiwis at breakfast.

We all turned in early for our 4:30 am balloon ride, but it was canceled for rain and lightning (our third attempt, but we're trying again on Sunday!). Today, I'm meeting one of my "writer friends" from Melbourne (I don't think Flippy is her real name) and it's men's semifinals at the Australian Open tonight. Our group is split 3-1 for Nadal. Cheers!