more April in Australia

Week two:

I should mention, we finally saw some kangaroos our last night in Bright at dusk. Several grey kangaroos including one big fellow; the biggest we've ever seen!

After crossing the Snowy Mountains, we enjoyed a few days in the resort town of Jindabyne, which is near the ski resort of Thredbo. Can you believe they ski in Australia? I don't know about you, but when I use to think of the land Down Under, I thought of beaches, The Great Barrier Reef and the dry Outback, not snow skiing. Well, there might only be a hand full of ski-able mountains but the Aussies love it.

We took the ski lift at Thredbo to the top of a mountain to hike near the the highest mountain in Australia: Mt. Kosciuszdo 2,228 km (7,310 ft). We had out run the "curse" and it was a beautiful warm, sunny day.

Since neither one of us are skiers, we had never ridden a ski lift before so that was a first and very fun :) I find it a little amusing, with the Aboriginal names all over the country, that the highest mountain in Australia was named by a Polish explorer, Count Strzelecki after a grave of Polish officer back home in Krakow. Now here is something you don't see coming down a hiking trail everyday..... LOL! Yes, that is a bagpiper!

Roy had another good day fishing near Jindabyne while I finally found an Internet cafe with free WiFi. Letme tell ya, they were few and very far between over there; we are very spoiled here in the US.

Unbeknown to me, Roy thought it would be fun for long time horse-loving me to also ride in the Snowy Mts. so he booked

me a morning ride. It's been 30+years since I have been on a horse but Bella and I got along ok. Actually I did very little steering; she knew her job and I let her do it. It was wonderful to just sit

back and look at the beautiful eucalyptus forest.

Needless to say, I paid the price and was very sore for several days afterwards, but it was worth it:) We sadly bid the mountains good-bye and headed north to see some of the Australian capitol city of Canberra in the Australian Capital Territory.

This is the 'new' Parliament House opened in 1988 costing a cool $A1.1 billion. We wandered around inside for an hour and it is beautiful with lots of native woodwork and a stunning wall length tapestry. Like our Capital, it has a House of Representatives wing and a Senate wing, each with it's own color.

We continued north to Orange,

Cowra, and Armidale. We stopped to see the beautiful Dangar Falls and met a few friends along the way. I think the dark one is a Bearded Dragon, and the other is a Water dragon.

We also saw our first poisonous snake - a red bellied black snake. I feel bad, but thankfully it was dead on the road. Isn't this a beautiful little chapel we found out in the country?

It was great to arrive back in Brisbane and see the Storey bridge. We were lucky to see a replica of The Endeavor (Cook's ship) that is currently touring Australia as it entered the Brisbane River. On Sunday we enjoyed seeing many dear friends at our beloved Chermside Ward as well as our wonderful former neighbors, Juelle and Ken. Thank you for an absolutely delightful lunch.

It was a beautiful Easter Sunday and reminded me what a great gift Jesus Christ gave us with his death and resurrection. Because of him, we will be able to have many happy reunions just like this one.

Monday was Anzac Day (like our Veterans Day); a day to

commemorate when the armies from Australian and New Zealand fought together in the Great War. We got really lucky and were able to grab some standing space with a great view to see the Brisbane parade. Since every veteran or active military can march, it is a very long parade. There were also several school bands and many other groups (i.e. Scouts) marching but our favorite was the Brisbane Taxi Drivers Brass Band

with their black shirts and orange tires.

It was hard to part with Roy at the airport as he flew back to Gladstone and I to cross the Pacific. It was such a great trip from start to finish; Roy had planned our itinerary so well. Thank you My Love, it was a fantastic anniversary present; our 35th.

Many, many thanks to my sister and favorite brother-in-law, Marilyn and John, who kept Rio while I was gone. Also a thank you to my young neighbors and friends, Brittani and Ciara who daily looked after the kittens here at home.

I flew into Nashville just behind those killer tornadoes; it was a bit bumpy the last several minutes and we applauded the pilot when we landed, albeit with a hard bump.

I give a heart felt thanks to my Heavenly Father for another safe flight (s) (I hate flying over water!), 1600 miles driven in safety here in the US and 3939 km (2400 miles) in Auz.