Lightening Online

We’ve had lots of awesome experiences so far on our trip but the Great Barrier Reef would have to be top of the list so far as a favourite with everyone.

There are so many options up here for visiting the reef that it makes your head spin.  We were considering going on a sailing boat for a different experience but in the end it’s probably a good thing we didn’t as weather conditions are not their best at the moment.

Instead, we took the recommendation of the Visitor Information Centre staff who suggested Sunlover.  They were having a special on kids travelling with a paying adult going free so we only had to pay for 1 child.

It was an interesting start to the trip when the ship’s captain (? is that what they’re called) told us the conditions were rough and people could choose to hop off and transfer their tickets to another day if they wanted to.  He then went on to mention that the conditions were going to get worse throughout the week.  We decided to take our chances and brave it.

It was fairly rocky on the trip out there.  So many passengers were seasick.  Lleyton was the first of ours to feel crook, following by Singstar Princess.  I don’t think I’ve ever seen my kids take on a green tinge.  Farmboy and Trailer Boy were fine and I was borderline.

The staff were fabulous and very supportive.  They were quick to help the kids move around the boat when they needed to and one even gave Singstar Princess a piggy back when we were trying to get her out in the fresh air.  Now that’s service given she could have thrown up all over her!!!!

As soon as we arrived, everyone was fine.  In fact, the worst of it was only about half an hour so it wasn’t too bad.  None of us lost our breakfast so that was good!!!!

Riding on the semi-submersible was one of the first activities we did and it was AMAZING!!!  The Great Barrier Reef was passing right before our eyes as the boat slowly moved through the water.

At that point I felt completely satisfied with the day.  We’d come and we’d seen and we’d been there.  Whatever the rest of the day brought, I felt I could go home happy.

After a buffet lunch, we headed out on the glass bottom boat.  This time we were looking down on the reef and you saw different things from that angle.

Then it was time to snorkel.  We left this until last as we didn’t want to be changing in and out of wet bathers.  We figured the kids would last maybe half an hour in the water.

I’ve never snorkelled before and I’m not a strong swimmer so I wasn’t sure how I would go.  Most people were wearing life jackets which made it a lot easier to just float along the top of the water.

It was the most AMAZING experience I have ever had in my life.

We’d seen it all in the Reef HQ Aquarium and through the glass but to actually be swimming with the fish was an experience that words just cannot do justice to describing.  I evern swam over the top of a big clam.

The younger two wanted to go in the kids pool so I took them in there and we had a heap of fish come swimming around in there with us.  Feeling a fish’s tail brush against you in the water is just amazing.

I couldn’t take my camera swimming with me (the kids did have disposable underwater cameras) but here’s a couple of shots through the viewing window they have out there:

If you ever get the opportunity to go and see it, I highly recommend it.  It’s not a cheap exercise but in my opinion it was worth every cent.  I really hope I get another opportunity to go again one day.

Trailer Boy (our 5 year old) has nicknamed this place (Cairns) “Ugly Beach”.  We drove passed the beach yesterday and the whole way back to the caravan he sang a little ditty that he made up.  It went something like this:

“We are at ugly beach, ugly beach, ugly beach

We are staying at ugly beach, ugly beach….”  and over and over it went.

It was hilarious!!!!

I tried to take a photograph to show you what it’s like but I’m not sure it does it justice:

It’s like this big mudflat.  They do have a narrow strip of sand which I suspect has been trucked in!  And the shallow goes forever when the tide it out!  They do have a lovely Esplanade though with lawned areas, paths and heaps of playground equipment as well as a water play area.

Cairns Esplanade Waterplay

I think we must be spoilt for nice beaches back home because so far, Queensland has not really shown us a beach that we’d consider “nice”.  We’ve seen some nice water spots but not so nice beaches.  I just assumed they were all white sand beaches up here.  I was wrong.

I can forgive it it’s “ugly beach” though as the town is absolutely lovely and nestled into the hills.  It’s all very picturesque.

Tonight the park is having a pizza night in the camp kitchen right near where our caravan is so we’re looking forward to a social night out for that.  Tomorrow (Monday) we’re heading up to Kuranda on the skyrail (coming back on the train).  It should be a lovely day although I hope it’s not raining like it has been today.  At least it’s not cold though.

Our experience of Townsville was a strange one.  I didn’t like the town at first but it kind of grew on me by the end of our second day there.  It’s hard when you pull into a town and everything is unfamiliar.  Particularly when there are one way roads and split roads where you have to get on the right section depending on whether you wish to turn left or right at the other end.  Once you get used to it though, it’s okay.

REEF HQ AQUARIUM

This is the biggest attraction Townsville had to offer us.  I thought it would be a great introduction to the Great Barrier Reef.  When we first arrived, I was surprised at how small the building seemed to be.  However, they had a LOT of informative talks and tours which really made the entrance price worthwhile.  The kids had a wonderful time, learnt heaps and we weren’t worn out from a day full of walking (everything was fairly close togethers).  They had an interesting section upstairs for the kids as well.

We got there at 10am and the day was easily filled in.  We left just before 4pm but would have stayed longer other than Trailer Boy wasn’t really well enough for us to.  We’d seen everything but the kids would have happily played and wandered around for longer.

MUSEUM OF TROPICAL QUEENSLAND

I thought this sounded quite interesting and wasn’t hugely expensive ($33 for our family).  They did a mock canon firing and there was a large exhibit all about the Pandora Shipwreck.  They had a section of hands on activities a little like Questacon which the kids loved and also a section about Rainforests.  We expected to be there for 1-2 hours and ended up being there for almost 3.

By the time we had a late lunch, got the boys hair cut and went for a drive up the Castle Hill lookout, the day had been filled in.  So much for our quieter day after having been at the Aquarium all day the day before!!!

We’re not finding it difficult to fill in our days.  In fact, blogging and schoolwork and all the bits and pieces of life (washing, grocery shopping, haircuts, medical appointments etc) seem to be getting in the way of what we really want to be doing.  LOL.

We drove to Cairns today (Friday) and I’m already in love with the place.  I haven’t seen much of it yet as we needed to take Trailer Boy to the doctor this afternoon (and Farmboy had another Chiropractor appointment for his back).  Can’t wait to have a good look around.  The scenery is absolutely spectacular!!!!

Yes, we are in the Whitsundays.

Jealous Much? 

I’d love to upload lots of wonderful photo’s to show you but I haven’t taken any yet.

Now, don’t get all mad at me and demand photo’s.  I will take some eventually.  At least, I hope I do.

The thing is, I haven’t been going all that well.  All the effort of getting away and then dealing with the kids 24/7 without a break and long car trips has taken a lot out of me emotionally.  Not to mention all the stress with Farmboy’s back and the extra workload that put on me.

So, we changed our plans slightly and decided to stop in at the flash Big 4 caravan park here.  It’s way out of our budget at $77 a night but has heaps for the kids to do.   We’re hoping a few days here will give Farmboy’s back a chance to heal and me a chance to have some “time out”.

This morning I took all my gear (laptop, magazines etc) to the pool, thinking I might blog “poolside”.  But, I was so exhausted I just kind of lay there.  Even reading a New Idea took effort.  So, I didn’t.

Before long, a massage therapist set up there and I booked in for a 30 minute massage.  Honestly, that may well be the best $30 I spend this trip.  I couldn’t believe how much better I felt afterward!!!

Now, if I could get that every day, I might just come back more relaxed than I left!!!  LOL.

We were originally thinking we’d stay here for 4 nights.  Basically a long weekend of R&R (rest and relaxation for those not familiar with that term).  Instead, we’ve booked to stay a 5th night and will take a day out to visit one of the islands while we’re here.  It also means the kids can go to the kids club on Monday (they were booked out for today by the time we arrived) and give Farmboy and I a couple of hours together.

Hopefully, by the time we leave here on Tuesday morning, we’ll all be feeling a lot better for our stay.

INTERNET CONNECTIONS…

Suck!!!!  I had a post written a few days ago and when I went to save before publishing, I lost the lot as the connection dropped out.  *sigh*  Should have been using Windows Live Writer instead of typing direct to my blog.  It’s been days now since I’ve had connection and I’m going mad!!!!

FARMBOY HAS HURT HIS BACK

Some of the time he can’t even move.  So, we’ve made it to Rockhampton and went to a Chiropractor today.  He’ll squeeze in 2 more visits before we leave here in a couple of days time and fingers crossed he has more mobility then.  He can hardly walk at the moment which is frustrating.  Thankfully we were able to get an ensuite site here in Rockhampton so it isn’t far to the bathroom for him.

WE’VE CRACKED A HEAD….

Thankfully not in the vehicle we’re using for the trip.  Farmboy’s ute was being worked on by our mechanics and they’ve discovered the head is cracked.  :(  There goes a few grand in one phone call.

BUT…

IT’S NOT ALL BAD!

We’re in Queensland. 

The weather is beautiful!!!! 

We made it to Rockhampton despite Farmboy’s back and are now somewhere he can get help (trust him to do it when we’re in the middle of nowhere!!!!).

We’ve had a lovely time visiting old family friends on their farm (well, other than Farmboy’s back) and looking forward to sharing with some friends tomorrow evening.

Oh, and did I mention we’re in Queensland???

And I’m sitting outside with only a t-shirt on.

And the internet is even working.  Let’s hope it stays that way long enough for me to publish this post!!!!

There are always bound to be a few.

So far we’ve had a couple of minor repairs to do on the caravan, a laptop that the disc drive has decided not to work in (fortunately we decided to put a DVD on in the caravan last night and discovered it so we can take the other laptop - not ideal but better than nothing) and a wet bed.

We’re figured a few hiccups now should ensure a trouble free trip.  Sounds reasonable doesn’t it? 

It’s all been fixable and deciding to sleep in the van last night was certainly a good move.

The kids went to sleep pretty late but I’m hoping the “first night in the caravan” excitement is over now.

I slept well although woke up at 5.30am this morning so I’m still weary.  Not to worry, I think tonight will be an early night for all.

Running between the house and the caravan has been a little wearying at times but at least it’s made this morning a little smoother.

It’s now 9.45 and I’m spending a few minutes on the net while Farmboy does a couple of last minute things.  I think we should be away sometime in the next half an hour which gets us on the road in good time.

I like sitting in the caravan with internet access - maybe we should just spend our 100 nights in the backyard.  LOL.  Just kidding!!!

Both Lleyton and Singstar Princess have come up to me and given me a hug and said thank you for making this big trip happen.  Totally unprompted.  It’s enough to make a mother cry.  I’m so glad they appreciate it and no doubt it’ll be a highlight in their childhood.  At least, that’s the plan.

Well, I’d better sign off so I can pack up my netbook.  Catch you again when I can. 

Last night at the dinner table, Trailer Boy was saying “I wish we could go for 101 sleeps”.  Isn’t that just like kids?  No matter how much you give them, they always want more.  Hang on, sometimes adults are like that too!  LOL.  Anyway, I said to him “well, we ARE having 101 sleeps in the caravan”.

Tonight, the plan is to eat and sleep in the caravan.

There are a couple of reasons for this.

The first is that I need to wash up all the bedding so it makes sense to do all the washing today and as of late this afternoon, everyone needs to start wearing what we’re taking.  That way, everything left behind is clean (it’s not something I usually have to worry about when we’re going away for a few weeks).

The second is that by doing this, hopefully it’ll be glaringly obvious if we’ve forgotten something.  And we’re still at home to grab it.  At least we can’t forget the pillows this way!!!!

The third is that it gives us the 101 nights Trailer Boy is asking for.  LOL.  He has very nicely thwarted Farmboy’s idea that we could come home a day early and still have been in the caravan for 100 nights though.  LOL.  Clever kid!!! 

So today is all about cleaning and washing.  My poor washing machine has been working rather hard.  There are a few bits and pieces to pack but other than that, we’re pretty much ready to go.

Hopefully by dinner time tonight, it’ll feel like our holiday has started.

YIPPEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Our weekend was full of Goodbyes, as you would perhaps expect with only 2 days to go until we leave.  I have to admit that this is a part of going away that we never really thought about when we first planned the trip.

Back then, we were fairly newly married and didn’t really have any close friends.  We weren’t fully entrenched in a church family.  And winter sport?  Well, Farmboy pretty much gave up playing footy the first year we were married when he only managed to make it to a few games.  My dreams of playing netball had been shattered long ago.

Saturday was our last game of sport for this season (for us, not the rest of the team).  It was a lovely day.  The weather was good to us (we didn’t get wet) and I wasn’t rostered on to do any “duties” so I actually got to watch both my kids play (admittedly I had to watch Lleyton filling in for Senior Colts as his regular game is at the same time as Singstar Princess’s netball game).  I even got to watch half of Farmboy’s footy game because we were on the late game.

When it came my turn to play, I was pretty nervous because my parents were there to watch (they’d come over to collect our cats).  So nervous in fact that I thought I was going to throw up.  Our team captain made me honorary captain for the day which was a lovely gesture.

I won the toss!!!!  We were off to a good start!

The team we were playing anhialated us last time we played.  So a win wasn’t even really on my radar.  Even though we were all “right, we have to win for Jodi’s last game”.  I just wanted to play well and enjoy the game, no matter what the score.

In the end, we won by 1 goal!  It was a nail-biting game.  And plenty of pressure on me to keep running in that quarter.  I ended up in Centre because our regular Centre wasn’t feeling well.  Because it was so close, there was a lot of “quick, quick”, when it came to Centre passes.  Neither team wanted to run out of time before their score was up on the other team.

Fortunately for me, the other Centre had similar troubles to me.   We were both breathing pretty hard when we stopped at each goal end.

After the game, a few of us went for a “goodbye drink”.  That’s pretty unusual for our team.  We tend to be pretty fragmented and don’t necessarily “gel” off the court. Which is sad really.  Admittedly, you have a wide age gap between the “oldies” and the “young ones”.  It was lovely.  I just thought it was sad that we don’t do that sort of thing more often.

The same thing occured to me on Sunday.  Pretty much everyone in the church gave us a hug goodbye.  Which was wonderful.  And it left me wondering why we don’t hug each other more often????

All in all, I’d have to say I’m leaving feeling very blessed.  There is much in our lives that we will miss while we’re gone.  Yes, we’ll have a wonderful time and I don’t regret going for a minute.  But it’s nice to think that there are people and things that we WANT to come back for.  And it’s nice to think that we might actually be MISSED.  It wasn’t something I expected at all.

I’ve been trying to work out what to do about catching up with online friends while we’re on our trip.  On the one hand, it’s a perfect opportunity to meet some of my fabulous friends face to face.  On the other, I could do a trip dedicated entirely to that (now there’s a thought….”Lightening on Tour” LOL).

So, here’s what I’m thinking of doing and I hope you’ll bear with me in this.  If you live somewhere along our planned route (see below) and are interested in a catch-up if it works out, could you please email me your location (ie town) and a phone number (preferably mobile if you have one as that way I can text you).

What I want to do is take all that information with me and the arrange meet-ups where I can.

My hesitation in doing this is that it’s not going to always work out.  There are so many factors I’ll need to consider such as time, what we’re doing, the family’s needs and the fact that we’re travelling with friends some of the time.  I don’t want anyone to feel that it’s personal if we can’t see them.

I feel torn between not wanting to upset anyone if they get missed and not wanting to miss the opportunity to meet at least some of you.

Plus, or course, there’s the fact that we don’t really have a set schedule so some meets would have to be arranged last minute and I don’t want to put anyone under pressure if they’re not available when we’re there.

In the end, I figured perhaps I’d put all this out there and do what I can with the hope that you’ll understand my position in all of this.

Here’s a copy of our route:

In case it’s not clear enough for you to tell, we’re basically going Broken Hill across to Dubbo.  From Dubbo we’ll head North up the Newell Hwy  then the Leichardt Hwy until we get to Rockhampton.  The rest of the trip will basically be the coast from Port Douglas all the way to Sydney (with a brief interlude inland to the Atherton Tablelands).  Not sure which route we’ll take from Sydney to Port Augusta yet on our way home.

It would be good to organise an actual Sydney meet-up as I’m guessing by population that there are a few people in Sydney.  Is anyone interested in co-ordinating this?  I’m thinking possibly Friday 2nd October as a potential date, although it’s hard to be exactly sure at this time.

The best ways to get in contact with me are to email me at lightening at this domain name, use the contact form (tab in the header) or leave a comment and I’ll use the hidden email you leave your comment with to get in touch with you.

Now that we’re down to the final week, we’re starting to experience our “lasts”. We’ve already had a few but this week will see a lot more.

Today is my “last” piano lesson before we go.

Tomorrow will be our “last” training night at the club.

Saturday will be our “last” game.

Sunday will be our “last” worship service with our church family.

Monday night will be our “last” sleep in our own beds (yes, we’re leaving Wednesday but sleeping in the caravan Tuesday night so I can wash up all the bedding)

There’ll be “last” activities but there’ll also be a lot of “last” seeing people we love.

All of this comes with a certain bittersweetness.

Yes, we’re excited about our trip. There’s no doubt about that.

However, we love our life here and we don’t go without some understanding that it will be missed. People we love will be missed.

I feel very blessed to be feeling this way. To know that God* has blessed us with a wonderful place to live. A wonderful life. And wonderful friends whom we love very much.

Over the past decade, as our plans for this trip have unfolded, I’ve wondered what God has in store for us. Would we come back? Perhaps I’ve secretly hoped we wouldn’t.

How interesting that in the months leading up to this trip, I’ve had the most peace about living here that I’ve ever had.

I guess that even if God has something new in store for us, I can leave here with a sense of fulfillment that so much good has come from our time here, even our struggles.

I do think we’ll be back.  But I’m trying to remain open to whatever God has in store for us.

In the meantime, all these “lasts” are evidence that our trip is getting VERY close!!!!!!

*I don’t often talk about my Faith here on this blog. I made a decision early in the piece to write a separate blog with my deepest feelings about my Faith journey. Not out of a desire to hide my beliefs but out of an understanding that not everyone shares them. I wanted to feel free to say what was truly on my heart without concerns that people would interpret what I was saying as “bible bashing”. I wanted to give people the choice to share in my life, even if they didn’t feel comfortable sharing in my faith.  Still, it is a very real part of my life and I couldn’t write this post without mentioning it.  We do believe God has put it on our hearts to do this trip.  At this stage, we don’t know why or what he has in store.  I guess we’re about to find out.