While John continued to slave away at the job site, I decided to become a bit more ambitious and check out the scene in the Darwin suburbs of Alawa (al-ow-ah) and Casuarina (kazh-you-ree-na).

I walked a few blocks to the main bus terminal, asked a friendly gal named Katherine about the right bus to catch, and we both happened to go on the same bus. She told me where to disembark, and I walked another few blocks in the tropical heat to the only quilt shop in this entire region with aboriginal-designed fabrics.

I really enjoyed talking with the shop owner, and I have two more sewing projects now–pillow cases and a wall hanging. Check out the fabric!

After the quilt shop, I hopped another bus to the largest shopping mall in this area. Another friendly woman, Barbara, showed me where to go at the mall to catch the correct bus back downtown. But first I ambled through the mall, bought John a wall calendar with Australian nature photos, ate at the food court, then went outside to wait on the bus. There on the bench sat Katherine! We chatted again, and I decided to be brave and catch a different bus that would end up at the same bus terminal. I’m glad I took this bus, because this route had more interesting scenery than the first.

Before John returned, I swam in the hotel pool and then continued reading one of my Australian books, We of the Never Never. It’s an autobiographical account of a 19th century woman who married in Darwin and traveled hundreds of miles into the bush to homestead a ranch. The writing style is similar to Mark Twain’s but not as sardonic. The author has interesting personification (e.g. a train “whistling merrily with hands in its pocket as it trudges along”) and beautiful nature descriptions.

After John returned, we walked over to the wharf to try another restaurant, then walked back in the dusk through the lighted trees.

Another great day!

I had another lazy day–swimming in the morning, reading in the afternoon when the rain storm hit, and walking to the wharf with John. We ate a quiet dinner at water’s edge while watching a pair of dolphins swim nearby.

I finally saw the power plant, but it was from a distance across the bay. I’ll never be able to go to the site, so what I saw from our outdoor dinner table was it. I snapped a shot of John (actually smiling!) with the power plant far away in the background. The photo of the rippling water barely caught the dolphins, but I captured the sunset quite well.

Australia has been “a sustained outbreak of joyousness.”

[quote taken from a drama production ad at the Sydney Opera House–why isn’t “joy” sufficient?]

As I write this post, it is 8:00 in the evening. John has been up since 4:00 a.m. and is still at the power plant. He’s waiting for his ride back to the hotel from a hard-working group of colleagues who evidently don’t know that it’s past dinner time. Ah, well. John has three more days at the plant. Hope they’re not all this long for him!

I spent the day washing clothes, swimming in the hotel’s salt-water pool, eating lunch beside the wave lagoon, shopping at one store for an Australian trinket, reading about Australian history, and watching a Telly interview with the new prime minister.

It’s been a restful day–at least for me.

P.S. He arrived at 9:20.

Our agenda changed from the original plan for an afternoon flight to a morning one. So we used our Opal cards (pre-paid transport) one last time in Sydney for train access to the domestic airport terminal.

Security entails a more streamlined process than what we go through in America: no shoe removal, and only aerosols, sharps, and laptops removed from bags. Many of the airport shops seemed familiar–McDonald’s, Bath and Body Works, and even Victoria’s Secret! Boarding the plane was much quicker than we see in the States. The first half of the assigned seats go through the jetway and into the front door, and the last half of the assigned seats walk down and out onto the tarmac, then up a stairway into the rear door. We last experienced this system in Argentina. It makes sense if the weather is good.

The very smooth flight lasted four hours. We essentially crossed the continent from south to north. It really is a “sun-burned country” as Bill Bryson wrote. Kilometers upon kilometers of no civilization. It struck me how few plants and water could be seen–and no clouds in the sky. Much of the landscape appeared to be leftover from an ugly paint gun battle, with huge splotches of tans on a red-orange base. I took several photos from the airplane window. As we drew closer to Darwin, clouds began to appear in the sky, and greens began creeping into view. By the time the plane began its descent across the Timor Sea coastline and back around into the airport, bright greens and blues of the water stood in contrast to the small city buildings. I’ve attached two photos to show the contrast of the bush country and the more tropical setting of Darwin.

We rented a small hatchback, and what fun we had going clockwise around several roundabouts! I’m not sure I will adapt to “opposite” driving. The hotel seems nice, but not much time could be afforded to explore. I did take two photos–one outside our room window that looks across a park area to the community wave pool (beaches around here are not safe for swimming with all the dangerous/poisonous creatures), and one photo of a magnolia-type of tree by the sidewalk. We had to run to Woolworths before sundown. It’s the only grocery store in the area, and John has to carry a sack lunch the next four days to the job site or he will starve. I had to take a few photos of the unusual food products–one being a tuna-bean mixture.

The alarm is set for four a.m. the next four days. Fun!

Our third day in Sydney involved riding a ferry boat to the Taronga Zoo, walking across the Sydney Harbour Bridge, and more walking in “The Rocks” (old town) section of the city. We walked a mile more than we did yesterday (7 miles). We could lose a lot of weight if we made this much exercise a habit!

With continuing pleasant weather hovering in the mid-70s, we took a ferry boat across the harbour to the zoo. Along with the expected zebras, giraffes, elephants, and seals, we also viewed Tasmanian devils, quokkas, meerkats, and a plethora of poisonous critters. I mainly wanted to see the koalas and kangaroos, but all of these creatures were terribly lethargic, so much so that John suggested they must have been drugged. (He’s joking!) We learned that koalas take 20 hours to digest their standard fare of eucalyptus leaves, so that might explain their sluggishness. But I think the kangaroos were all lazy. Not a single one would hop for me. At least two saw me coming and flopped over on their sides. How rude! Grrrr.

After returning on the ferry boat, John and I walked up many flights of stairs to the end of the bridge, then proceeded to trek across it. He had wanted to walk up the bridge arch, but between my vertigo and parsimony, we stayed on the horizontal surface, passing several security guards along the way. We took the train back into the main part of the city and then wandered through rows of street vendors to purchase a few Australian-made trinkets. We heard and saw several street musicians, including one didgeridoo player.

A late dinner at a wonderful Italian restaurant capped our day. Of course, I’m bushed but satisfied with another adventurous day.

The last photo I posted yesterday* was of a ladies’ restroom in the Opera House. Notice the purposefully wavy sinks. Today we’re going on a harbour boat cruise, so photos will be added tonight. Today’s goal is to keep on the sunscreen and stay hydrated.

*oops! It seems to have disappeared. Try again.

After traveling through time zones, I’ve been told the best way to acclimate oneself is to “power on” and immediately merge into the eating and sleeping patterns of the locals. What better way to adjust than to go on a walking tour of Sydney’s most acclaimed building? Yes, we joined an hour-long walking tour of the Opera House. Little did I know that there is more than one auditorium. Actually, there’s a concert hall, a large theatre, a smaller drama theatre, a playhouse, a studio theatre, a reception hall, and even a restaurant. Our tour group witnessed a ballet rehearsal. I’ll share some of the many photos taken today before an early evening bedtime. I’m bushed.

Two plane trips and a lost day later, we finally arrived in Australia. Other than occasional turbulence and difficulty sleeping in an upright position, the long ride (almost 15 hours) from Los Angeles to Sydney turned out to be quite uneventful. I sat between my hubby and an Aussie grandmother who must have a bladder of steel–she only got out of her seat once during the entire flight. The first photo I took was in the airport/train station. I’m tired.