Sunday, March 29, 2009

Perth Animal Park

After coming back from Hong Kong, we went to the Caversham Animal Park to pet indigenous Australian life.

Here at the Caversham Wild Animal part in Western Autralia, you aren't just feeding the animals. You are fattening them up!


This is a Wombat, 'nuff said.

This is an Emu. Emu's are equal parts unfriendly, curious, and unintelligent. This EMU snatched a lady's camera right from her hand. "Stupid is as stupid does." Fortunately, the lady called a volunteer who retrieved her camera and suggested a little payback below.


We went to the beach in Perth. Sean is sporting the latest sun protection. With the help of a little 30spf goo, we managed to avoid sunburn. The sun is brutal down under. The temperature was very mild - a little warmer than Socal.
Thus ends our little trip to the AU. This is one destination we would like to revisit. With Yermack help, organization, and drive, we really did accomplish a lot. Our Hong Kong mini-trip was really amazing and not something to pass up.
We also left a lot on the table like Ayer's Rock, Manly Beach, Barrier Reef, Blue Mountains, Melbourne, and the Perth Aquarium. The geographic scope is amazingly large. Doing these back to back would be the US equivalent of visiting Disneyland in CA and then the White House.
We made it back to the US fine. Now the challenge is to get the kids back on the right time. Sean was up all night - 27hours! Ok, gotta go wake them up and keep 'em up.




Tuesday, March 24, 2009

Dog police come for Wilson


So the Dog Police (SEAC) came to the house b/c Wilson has no license. They were going to fine Dad who is watching Wilson! Poor Wilson. I called them multiple times without success. They never called me back!

Hong Kong Trip part 3

Our last meal in Time Square HK. Kids are somewhat few and far between outside of a school. Our group withh 6 kids all under 10 is a unique thing we were met with acceptance such as in this case where we had our own private dining room, or we were given the brush-off. 3 hours after this picture, we were on a flight back to Perth. This meal was the best we had in HK. Each meal we had was better than the last. Everything is about 50% the cost in US. So we had many extravegant meals for reasonable prices.

Once on the Peak in the center of the shopping mall, we hit the stores and tourist shopped. The girl had a twenty minute meltdown that attracted the attention of everyone in a 100meter radius. Her fit was so violent that a Japanese tourist had to assist me with the stroller down the steps.

On the Peak, a sign outside the Burger King takes "mind the gap" subway warning to a new level. There are funny signs like this everywhere in the land of Engrish. This guy looks like he is about to take a digger.

So the girls went fabric shopping in Schenchen. That left David and I with all six kids. We are stuggling up the hill to the Zoo and the park by the Peak Tram. The kids make things a little more difficult with endless trips to the washroom and constant bickering; but they also live in the moment and really enjoy the smaller things that make the trip more fun.

Hong Kong Trip part deux

On the ferry the girls hang out the side and watch the boat wake. The weather was overcaste with the clouds touching the tops of the sky-scrapers. The weather was about 20C with 90% humidity. I was in a constant cold sweat.

Here we are standing on the elevated walkway to the Ferry to Kowloon and watching Hong Kong grow. The water front is being pushed out all the time. Nealy all the banks and buildings are insolvent, but the economic momentum still drives growth.


On the way back from the night markets we took the subway. Sean is watching a man play his PSP.

This is the primary park in Kowloon accross the bay from HK big island. Along the perimeter of the park are the tailors and markets most associated with HK shopping. When the kids would stray off the paths, the security would correct them faster than we could as parents. No sitting on steps or laying down on park benches. And keep off the grass!

Hong Kong Trip

The girl and I are waiting for the subway... We made an effort to use all the different forms of mass transit. I have been on subways in many different cities and countries.

HK has one too, but it is like no other. The trains are so long that the gradual curvature of the track prevents you from seeing one end of the train to the other. The train cars are connected seemlessly. Larger and more quiet, clean, fast, and efficient than anything I have ever experienced.

The is a 100 year old trolly system which is virtually free on the streets. The taxis are standardized and regulated. The expressways are all elevated. The buses have right of way. The ferries criss-cross the bay as if in some weirdly timed dance. All the while people stream to and from city orifices and buildings.

The insides of the buildings are as extreme as the outside. This is the inside of HSC bank building downtown. After all 11 of us going up the escalator and taking a few quick photos, we had to explain to police what we were doing seeing that we were not bank customers. 98% of the people in HK are Chinese. There are some ex-pats, but very few relative to the whole population.


There are many parks in Hong Kong. They are often not kid friendly and consist of paths and gardens with security and fences. At this fountain in the Charter Park we are trying to line up the kids for a group photo that never came together.

The architecture is absolutely astounding. Tall and slender is the starting concept. And there is construction going on all around all the time. Old buildings crumble in the 90% humidity while brand new building are constructed immediately next to them. There seems to be no regulation or plan. Pure capitalism unleashed and expressed



Here we hit the streets of Hong Kong mounted on our virtually indestructable family urban assault vehicle - the Pergo Peregonator. Hong Kong has over 20 Million people on a mountainous island the size of Rhode Island.

There is shopping mall after shopping mall and resataurant after restaurant. We could eat at a different restaurant every meal for a year and never see the same person twice!

Tuesday, March 17, 2009

Perth Day Two

Yesterday we went to the beach... twice! Actually, it was just the beach by the river. The water wasn't quit sea water and not quit fresh. Perth is in Western Australia. It is a semi-tropical climate with all the associated vegitation and wild inhabitants. The culture can be summed in two words - Wild West.

So we went to the Perth Zoo today. It was a great zoo. They had all the animals plus kangaroos that you can pet. It was just the Mahoney's out and about today as the Yerm's had school. Tomorrow we go to Hong Kong first thing in the morning.





Sunday, March 15, 2009

So long Sydney and hello Perth.

The Sydney run-down...

There was limited connectivity at the Hotel in Sydney, so I had limited time to write. And the internet is a little slow here in Perth so I won't be uploading many pics until I can get it working a little faster. I uploaded some pictures complete with smart remarks on my Facebook account.

Friday:
The girls left at 7am to go climb the bridge. The kids and I were up at 8 and, surprisingly, the Yerm's weren't. We went down by ourselves and had a great b-fast at Kaz's. Sean had a nutritious b-fast of hot chocolate, hash browns and a chocolate muffin. The girl had thick toast, bacon, and some eggs. I had (horns blare) - Big Breakfast.. and a "flat white". Awesome.

After a little exploring, we picked up the Yerms, breezed through the McDonalds for b-fast, and then on to the Aquarium. The aquarium is good but a little over commercialized with photo op.s and concessions trying to bilk you out small change.

The big tank has a number of different fish. Apparently, part of the exhibit is the demonstration of the food chain as some of the fish were eating and fighting over eating other fish in exhibit. Shocking! The kids found this added dimension very interesting. I have never seen a sea turtle eat a fish's head before.

We then waited until the girls finished the bridge tour and met up with us outside the aquarium. We lunched at the end of Darling Harbor and on to the touristy shopping mall there. Outside the mall we spent some time playing in the fountain. That of course ended badly as the children apply the rules of "something worth doing is worth over-doing until your parents yell at you."

Saturday:
David and I climbed the Sydney Harbor Bridge. It wasn't strenuous. But it was warm and we had to wear funky overalls. They were even funkier at the end of the 3 hour tour. While on the bridge, the James Craig Tall Ship we had toured the day before at the Maritime Museum sailed underneath us.

The Roch wasn't feeling well that day. So we hustled back to the hotel to find kids in various stages of punishment and isolation.

We gathered everyone up and went to Museum Station Cafe in Hyde Park for lunch. Then we proceeded through the park to the Barrack's Museum where the girl had a huge 20 minute meltdown in front of all the tourists on the street. I calmly cleaned my Oakleys and read a book. Then the storm passed and it was as if nothing happened.

The Police Museum which was closed during the week was open and we toured the Femme Fatale Exhibit. That last part might have been a little ambitious, as the adults could hardly keep their eyes open and the kids were running amuck. Then back to the hotel to gather enought courage to go to dinner.

Seeing that it was my birthday, the choice was left to me. I chose a place that nobody liked and was too far away. Silvia didn't even eat anything, the kids were tired, and we got caught in huge thunder shower which soaked us to the bone. Then to avoid the storm, I opted to take the monorail the two stops which cost $35aud! meh.

Sunday:
On Sunday was a large St Patrick's Day parade down George Street in Sydney. We'd gotten a late start. So getting to Manly or Bondi Beaches was a little ambitious. David describes it as "facing the tyranny of the clock." That left us with the lowest common denominator option of shopping at Darling Harbor. We had lunch in tourist packed food court there, made it back by 3:15pm, collected our baggage, and left for the airport about 3:30pm. No worries. We took our shoes off in airport security at the airport and received funny looks from officials there. Meh.

The girl slept most of the flight and only awoke to vomit all over mom and the lady next to her. But the flight crew descended on the scene like in Monster's Inc when they find that sock.

So we made it no problem to Perth. Did I mention it is 30 degrees here and the houses are made of brick? E-Z-bake ovens. The accommodations are great and the kids slept with mom. Bonus!

The Yerm kids are off to school and we are lazying around this morning. I want to go to the beach. It is expected to be around 32 C today with high humidity and sunburns eminent.

Friday, March 13, 2009

Australia Trip Days one and Two: Part B

So my first post was a little scattered. I was rushed. Everyone was waiting on me to go to dinner. We ate at Nando's which is the equivalent of El Pollo Loco but with varying levels of spiciness. So here is the run-down.

Day 1:
  • We landed at 7:30am, breezed through customs, and met the Yermacks at Sydney airport.
  • We got 6 kids and 5 adults plus all the luggage into a single vehicle and arrived 30 min later at the hotel around 9am and can't check in b/c it was too early.
  • So we drop off our bags and descended onto the Chinese Gardens down the street about 1Kilometer away.
  • A couple hours later we check in and go to lunch in China Town at "The Market" food court.
  • I ate sushi and sea food soup with fresh white rice noodles.
  • Then we went over to the Power House Museum and saw the Star Wars exhibit and the other various engineering contributions by famous Aussies.
  • Then we went to the Hanna's Meat Pies (fresh). I ate a beef and mushroom meat pie. Yum.
  • Then we went back to the hotel and rested.
  • Then we all went out and ate Spanish Tapas and great Sangria in the Spanish sector about 1/2 K away from our hotel.
  • Then we came home and I passed out from eating and drinking large quantities.
Day 2:
  • Silvia was up at 3:30am and was working. I was enjoying sleeping in a bed like a normal person as opposed to the economy plane seat for 14 hours.
  • Then she went and got a plug adapter to plug in the laptop b/c she ran down the charge.
  • I had to fix a client's backup which was failing. Internet access is $22aud/day. Meh.
  • We all got organized and made it to breakfast at the corner place around 9:30am.
  • Seating 11 people is sometimes a challenge but rarely an issue for these poor restaurants in the city. I must say though that the denizens of Sydney have been very gracious and accommodating.
  • For b-fast I had Scrambled Eggs, Sausage, Canadian Bacon, Mushrooms and Onions, Beans, Salad w/ roasted tomato, thick toast (two slices), and an Espresso. This was listed as the "Big Breakfast" on the menu. We were so jet-lagged it was hard to make decisions. The girl who missed dinner ate almost as much as I did!
  • After breakfast and several trips back to the hotel to use the bathroom we headed off to the Botany Gardens and the Opera House. I swear the majority of my time in restaurants is spent shuttling children to and from the bathroom.
  • After the Garden tour and the Opera House tour, we cruised the shops and then ate pizza at a nice restaurant on the water front. Sydney has a many wonderful water front eating and shopping areas. It is definitely an model that some US cities should emulate.
  • Then we walked around aimlessly and listened to Aboriginal music while we ate gelatto. Yum. I had Pistachio gelatto of course.
  • I bought a CD of Aboriginal music.
  • Then we came back to the hotel and rested.
  • Then we left again...wandered around looking for a place to eat. We found a food court underground somewhere and I had Doner Kabob.
  • Then we came home and I passed out from eating and drinking too much...again.







Australia Trip Days one and Two

We arrived in Sydney at around 8am after 14 hours non-stop from LA. These long flights get tougher every trip. We met up with the Yermacks in the airport. They had arrived an hour or so before us from Perth having travelled all night. The girls were glad to see each other. The trip from the airport to downtown was eventful as usual with 6 kids and 5 adults. But we made it in one van!

This picture was actually taken on our second day in the city. It was beautiful. I got sunburned. There is significantly less ozone in AU.


Our first excursion was to the Chinese Gardens by the convention center. It was very interesting and the kids ran around. There were lots of local school children on field trips.


Here is one of the Sydney locals... He looks poisonous. Let me tell you that the wild life in AU is very aggressive and not to be taken lightly. A single ant bite can more likely than not put you in the hospital here.
Here we are eating meat pies. Hmmm meat pies.

Meghan is at breakfast our second day. She is still a little jet-lagged.
I am eating Vegemite. I am very tolerant of new foods from around the world. This is one that is both sour and bad tasting in many respects. Clearly an acquired taste.
More from the Aquarium and the Maritime Museum tomorrow.