On the road again!

Tomorrow afternoon I'm back on the train, headed up to Airlie Beach. Then I'll head up to my next host near Cairns.

This past weekend Kath took all the helpers to the Mothar Mountain rock pools, just a five minute's drive from her home. The area was very similar to the Whian Whian Falls that I visited on the tour I took when I was in Byron. It was a very cool, calm, relaxing place. It would have been a great place to go swimming, were it warmer that day.

Rolling thunder over the horizon prompted us that it was time to head home. The storm chased us all the way back, and the skies that were clear five minutes before looked like this when we stepped out of the car.

The pictures don't do it much justice, but this was one of the darkest and most sudden, fast moving storms I'd ever seen. Ten or fifteen minutes later, the whole thing passed right over us.

*Now that I'm actually seeing these pics on a computer, I can see they didn't turn out well. I was experimenting with   different settings on my camera to try and capture the light and darkness differences in the clouds, but it just doesn't look right.*

Another thirty minutes later there were pools forming in the yard and it sounded like the tin roof of the house was going to come down on us any second from the rain. Apparently this was all part of a very large and unexpected storm system. Brisbane took the brunt of it, and is still cleaning up the after math.

Found this little guy creepin' while I was planting some palms.

Diggin' holes! That day left me sore all over. (Insert "Holes" theme song here)

This is a recently added zen garden in the front yard. I helped plant the rows of young trees along either side of each path.

Kath, who is a masseuse and healer, gives each of her helpers a free massage before they leave. I just had mine a few hours ago, and it was absolutely wonderful; probably the most relaxing thing I have ever experienced. I had never had a proper massage before that. Who knows when (or if) I ever would have done, or be doing things like this, had I not come to Aus?

I'll be on the overnight train to Airlie Beach tomorrow night. I'm going to stay in a hostel for a day or two and check out the area. Then it's up to Cairns, which is getting into crocodile country. I take a bus from there to my next host, so I may arrive there a day early and spend the night in the city.

Mothar Mountain critters

I managed to get some pics of one of the possums. Turns out there is one friendly one that will pose for a picutre out of the group. The ironic part is, the friendly one also lost half his face in a fight. Poor guy.
Also included are pics of a small Green Tree Frog, an unknown toad, and an unknown leaf bug.

I never knew Pelicans were so big...

I've made my way into Queensland, the hot, humid, and tropical north eastern state of Australia. The working and accommodation situation here is fairly similar to my last stay, in Belingen. On the 36 acre property that I'm staying on there's a large pole-barn, and fully renovated shed with a kitchen, which is where I'm staying, and the host's house, where the other 3 helpers stay. I get this entire building to myself, including a 60" TV :)

The garden...

We get two days off every weekend here, and I was lucky enough to arrive on a Thursday night, thus only having to work Friday, then getting two days off. That weekend Kath took all the helpers into Tin Can Bay for the day to see the dolphins and Rainbow Beach. The rangers that work at the bay saved a wounded dolphin years ago, and now he returns every day. Over time the dolphin, who is the alpha male of it's group, started bringing other dolphins into the bay with him.

It was here that I saw a Pelican for the first time in person. I never would have guessed they were as big as they are. Also plenty of other birds hanging around, the names of which I forget.

Every Friday Kath treats us to fish n' chips, and every Friday a family of possums (not opossums) waits outside the backdoor for the left over chips. They're pretty scared though, and I haven't been able to get a good picture.

This weekend we went to Eumundi to go to the Eumundi markets and to visit the Ginger Factory. Of course, I decided it wasn't a trip worth taking my camera on. The markets were more or less like any other open market, yet rather unique as well. Many of the stall operators and  market-goers were very hippie/alternative. There were stalls selling everything from handmade leather bracelets to paintings to hand carved marble statues to natural healing remedies. There were enough stalls offering massages that you could go to a different one for each part of your body. There was a group playing new-age psychedelic music with keyboards and didgeridoos. There was also an entire produce section, as well as a hot food section. There was even a few stalls that were, for all intents and purposes, an info-mercial in a market stall. One was selling a re-branded "Slap Chop", and another was selling some kind of magical miracle pillow. I bought some very fragrant goat's milk Orange Blossom soap. And the best part is that it cost me less than a bar of soap would in any store.
The Ginger Factory was pretty neat. It's like the Hershey's Chocolate World (or whatever that place is called) on not so big of a scale. It was really touristy, but I enjoyed taking a quick tour and learning about the history of the place, and how they process the ginger, etc.