Coral, Turtles, and Jellies–Oh My!

June 27, 2023 / Jana / Leave a comment

Overheard: “I know there are jellyfish everywhere, but you’re here on the beach with a snorkel on your face and, at some point, you have to ask yourself if you want to see the Great Barrier Reef or just sit on the sand above it.” I’m not sure how that boyfriend fared in future conversations with his girlfriend, but the speech worked on my kids and me, and we were off into the waters bouncing off the little blue jellies like we were Dory in Finding Nemo.

We made two snorkel trips while in Queensland: one to Frankenland Islands and one to several reefs on the outer edge of the Great Barrier Reef. As we had arrived at the beginning of an El Niño cycle, there was more rain and wind than usual. For both trips, the days started off with some rain and rough seas, so the visibility was not ideal, but the weather improved by mid-morning, and there was still quite a lot of amazing reef to see and pockets of really nice water on the leeward side of things.

I found the Frankenland Islands tour suggestion from another blog (Thanks Olly, and he has much better pictures on a better visibility day). However, not reading it carefully enough, I thought the boat left from Cairns, but it actually leaves 30-min south of Cairns or about an hour south of Trinity Beach. Since I didn’t want to miss the boat, we left super early and got some fun rainbows in on the way and we made friends with Cheryl, the other person who arrived super early. Being a semi-local from Townsville, she gave us the low-down on all the best snorkeling spots, and she was excited to try out Frankenland Islands. The trip out to the islands was a bit rough, but we got a spot up top that was out of the rain and plastered on sunscreen in optimistic anticipation. The islands were *gorgeous* and since it’s a national park, there was very little there to disturb them. Just a big shade and some picnic tables. All food, drinks, and water toys like kayaks, SUPs, and the like were brought in by the tour company with everything, including the dishes (no paper plates) and any trash packed up back with us when we left. With all the equipment and kids to get sorted, I didn’t take any underwater pictures here, but did get the girls to re-create the coral on the beach.

At the recommendation of the crew, we signed up for the second ‘snorkel safari’, which is basically a guided drift snorkel where they take you out in a smaller tender boat away from the beach and you swim with the current over the coral back to the beach while the guide shouts information at you. Since that one is farther offshore, they wanted the kids to get used to the snorkel gear first so we just headed off the beach to find what we could there first. What we did find was a lot of jellyfish right as you waded in. This is where a few of us, including that man’s girlfriend got a bit tripped up on if we really were supposed to swim into a smack of jellyfish. We had said yes to the wetsuits (protip: always say yes to wetsuits) and they assured us they were not the dangerous kind (“just little stings”), so that seemed better, but the idea of putting my face in a pile of blue stingy slimies was slowing me down a bit. In the end that man’s words really did help us, we struggled with some of the equipment and getting past the jellies into the water, but we were there to see coral and there was only a thin animal made mostly of water between us and it, so we dove in. By the time it was our turn for snorkel safari, we had worked out most of the kinks and C had invented a way of swimming so that her hands could be above water when jellyfish appeared and H had invented a game of bopping them to get them out of the way. The swell out there was rough and we almost put the snorkel on to protect ourselves from splash, but pretty soon it was time to jump in and it turned out to be the best snorkeling of the day. Because H is so skinny, she often gets cold in the water so we had already packed her own thin wetsuit, but as the pros tell you, you never say no to a wetsuit, so we just put another one over it and then slapped on a life jacket for good measure. As C and I jumped off the boat, getting our heads under and water in our snorkel, H solidified her Unsinkable Molly Brown status by jumping off the boat and just bouncing along the surface with a smile.

It did occur to us that this would be Barry’s literal nightmare with the cold-ish water, jellyfish, and big swell, but even with all that, it turned out to be a big hit with us girls. We saw the most incredible corals: bright blue staghorn, larger brain, and bright green fan corals, they probably all had names, but the choice on the snorkel safari was either head up to hear the guide or head down to see the turtles and school of purple parrotfish, so you will just have to go with my made-up names. And after a buffet lunch, I did a bit more snorkleing off the beach and found some more awesome coral, while C and H took turns sitting on the SUP while I swam and pulled them back to shore occasionally. Soon it was time to head back to shore; after two beers the kids promptly passed out. Good day.

Our second snorkle trip was off a fancy catamaran, the Calypso, leaving out of Port Douglas and taking us to three spots on the outer reef. The crew gave us a serious heads-up about rough seas and sold dramamine on-site, so we took that and were glad to have done so. They also warned of some small blue jellyfish, which we didn’t really see on this trip, but it was nice to have the heads up this time. While the trip out was again raining and a bit rough, once we got there the skies cleared and we found some amazing views on the leeward side of the giant coral banks. There was so many different corals and fish (again, names are mostly made up, but you get the idea): green coral, blue coral, giant brains, flattop coral, giant fields of staghorn coral, big fish, small fish, butterflyfish, squid, parrotfish, purple-dot fish, green-blue-purple fish, surgeon fish, sea cucumbers, and more. The last spot was definitaly the best, which might have been because we went pretty far, but the guy on the small tender boat told us not to go any farther, so we came back and ate brownies. Another good day.

While I certanly would have wished for better weather, we made the most of the days we went out and the coral was quite a bit better than I had been expecting given all the news about bleaching and cyclone damage, so that was nice to see. We’ve been hearing quite a bit about climate change the entire trip, which certainly is effecting the coral and other ecosystems we’ve toured. H is particularly concerned and would like me to write a grant to fix things this summer. So, I guess hit me up if you need help writing grants for mitigating climate change. It’s a real worry for all the amazing critters we’ve just seen and C, H, and I are in for helping. Next up–we meet Barry in New Zealand!

New Zealand: Please don’t feed/hug the birds and do obey all traffic regulations

June 22, 2023July 19, 2023 / Jana / 5 Comments

Whereas Australia’s unofficial motto is “Don’t touch anything—it will probably kill you,” New Zealand is more chill. There are no native land-based predators, so the birds here are also quite chill, and even the endangered ones let you get quite close, hug them, and put them in your suitcase. We are now the proud parents of three Keas, a breeding pair of Takahe, and a Kiwi. Fingers crossed, customs goes smoothly! (Please don’t arrest me, I’m kidding. Peep. Don’t pay attention to that—my purse just peeps when it’s hungry.)

The girls and I first arrived in Christchurch, where we were meeting up with Barry, renting a car, and then touring the South Island. As we eagerly awaited Barry, we found ourselves with several hours to kill at the airport since his plane arrived a bit later than anticipated. The shuttle driver recommended the nearby Antarctic center, and it did not disappoint. There we saw a 3D movie showing some glorious footage of the continent, complete with chairs that shake when you hit an iceberg, water spraying in your face as you face the ocean waves, and what I hope is also water spraying in your face when a seagull poops on the screen. There was even a room with an igloo you could go in that would simulate an Antarctic storm every 15 minutes, although our Colorado kids were unimpressed with the cold temperatures. “-5 ̊F? I walk to school in this.” Also found were blue penguins (PENGUINS!) and husky puppies (PUPPIES!) that you could pet (PET!), the puppies, not the penguins. I did try to put a husky in my purse, but we had to get to the airport, and I made a mental note to buy a bigger purse.

We picked up jet-lagged Barry with hugs and stories of all our adventures and then started driving to Kaikoura. I taught Barry my new driving mantra, “Left, left, lefty-left, left” and our new rental car added a new one. If you happen to go over the current speed limit, the nice lady that lives in our Toyota rental car computer system will gently tell you, “Please obey all traffic regulations.” If you continue to go over the speed limit repeatedly and without consideration of her warning, I can only assume she ups the ante with a “Hey, slow the f*&@ down.” I guess we’ll see.

The drive was gorgeous, with rolling hayfields, sheep, rocky outcrops, and ocean coastlines. It looked like we were driving through Settlers of Catan. It was raining, which apparently is a thing in winter here, and how everything stays so green. When we found a pizza joint upon arrival and told the proprietor of our plans for a whale watch the next day, he looked out and said, “Not great weather for whale watching.” But since the other option was not whale watching and since I don’t really register that as an option, we crossed our fingers for a break in the week of rain. The day turned out to be sunny and gorgeous, but the days of wind and rain had resulted in some very large swells. With all the previous boat trips, we were now a bit low on Dramamine, but we popped the last of the kids’ version we had left and hoped for the best. I’m glad we did, as many others on the boat did not fare so well, but I’ll spare you the green-faced details. For those of us who took Dramamine, we saw several fur seals, two sperm whales, which the unusually deep canyons in the area allow you to spot close to shore, as well as the tiny Hector’s dolphins, which are adorable and look like they were created by Disney. After lunch and lots of ginger beer, we headed into the mountains, trying to make our next stop before dark.

We did not make it before dark, but at least we made it through the scenic byways with their one-way bridges before darkness totally fell. Kidding; we didn’t make that either. Barry practiced his left-hand driving without angering the Toyota lady too much, and we pulled into a chilly Lake Tekapo at 9pm, welcomed by a dinner of TimTams and a nice toasty room with hot tea. We awoke the next morning to a beautiful lake and what I can only assume are beautiful mountains behind those rain clouds. Clearly, the best thing for this cloudy day was to find a giant outdoor hot tub complex and soak, which we did. It was awesome. We continued on our mountain driving up to the Hermitage at Mt. Cook/Aoraki, where Sir Edmond Hillary trained for his summit of Mt. Everest. Along the way, the clouds parted, and we got some great views of what all the fuss is about on the South Island. It was gorgeous.

Our first full day in Mt. Cook/Aoraki was H’s birthday, where we had an H “Yes Day.” She could do anything she wanted as long as it was: play games in the hotel, take a small hike, look around the visitor center, take in a planetarium show, or watch HGTV, as these are the main/only attractions open in the winter. She chose all of them, and we had a pretty awesome day. The wonderful staff even pulled out some candles, a balloon, and some singing at dinner to celebrate our adventurous kiddo!

The next day was a redo of Fathers’ Day since Barry missed his on the plane ride over. The same activity options exist from the day before, with an added 9:30pm star tour. We started off strong with a long, but mostly flat, hike along Hooker’s Valley Track to a glacier and view of Mt. Cook/Aoraki, and also fit in some games and a nice dinner. While the star tour was canceled due to weather, we did take their tip of driving to a nearby bridge to get some fantastic unobstructed views of the night sky, which around there is technically a Dark Night Sky Reserve with almost no man-made light and made even darker by not having a moon that night. Seeing the Milky Way, the Magellanic Clouds, the Pointers, and the Southern Cross was awesome. Amid our silent and dark reverie standing alone roadside, a line of emergency vehicles charged passed. We later discovered that a man in an inflatable kayak had gone on the glacial lake during the day, hit an iceberg, and was now stuck alone and cold on said iceberg in the darkest of night. Luckily we heard he was rescued with everyone safe by midnight. I didn’t know being an idiot was one of the other winter activity options available, but I’ll add it to the list.

Hooker valley hike (without the prostitutes)

After our mostly gorgeous weather days in Mt. Cook, we headed through some fog and rain to Wanaka. It wasn’t the best weather for exploring the lake, but we found a really cool puzzle/maze museum, and I found a boathouse with friendly rowers, so an overall win-win. While the rain and short days are a drawback to winter traveling in the South Island of NZ, the bonus was that there was almost no one around. Besides the Toyota lady getting increasingly angrier, we felt like we had the entire road and vistas all to ourselves.

Our next stop was two nights at the most gorgeous vacation rental on the Otago Peninsula. Does the AirBnB app have a ‘Buy Now’ button? Apparently, another perk to the off-season is that this amazing view was in our price range. I could have stayed on the deck all day, but we had a castle to explore, beaches to comb for seals, and penguins (PENGUINS!) to find. H really got into the story of Larnach Castle, which was built by a wealthy businessman for his family and may have been the source material for “Mo Money, Mo Problems.” After building the castle, his first wife died, so he married her sister. Then his business deals went shady, and he put all the property in her name so his business associates couldn’t come after it. Then she died, leaving the property to the now adult kids. He made them sign the property and all assets back to him using force, and I suppose you could say their relationship with Dad soured after that. The tale gets even worse, but this is a light-hearted blog, and I think what we can all learn is that maybe castles are not always the answer and perhaps also that HGTV could have a real drama hit on their hands with a History Channel crossover on “Building Castles and Calamity: Family Fued Edition.”

The next stops were a gorgeous beach, again all to ourselves(!), and then off to see if we could spot a penguin in the off-season. They certainly prepare you for not seeing anything, but after an informative lecture about their conservation efforts, an entire lawn of fur seals(!), a short hike through the camouflaged tunnels down to the beach, and the trying task of staying quiet for many minutes, we were not disappointed and got a terrific look at one of the very rare Yellow-Eyed Penguins coming home from a day foraging at sea. If a customs agent is reading this, I do *not* have one in my purse; it is just my new fish-based perfume—no need to ask any follow-up questions.

Milford Sound was next on our journey, and we got lucky and were able to book one of the few rooms for two nights in the Fjordlands and Milford Sound Park. There we hiked around beautiful overlooks and took a boat trip on the fjord, where we saw gorgeous waterfalls, learned about tree avalanches (where the shallow-rooted trees occasionally all slide down the rockfaces together, leaving the exposed mountain rock), and ended with sightings of a fur seal and what might have been a penguin (let’s call it a penguin). We also saw the extremely endangered (only 5,000 currently) alpine parrot, the Kea, just outside our door. Local lore talks of moose still inhabiting the area after 10 calves were introduced in the 1910s, the moose population grew, and then they were hunted down to almost extinction by 1952. The mythical few remaining moose seem to be like their local yeti. Barry blew their minds showing the locals our Colorado moose pictures just walking around the house.

Our last full day was in nearby Te Anu. We explored yet another lake they should really let me row on, and walked along the lake to a bird sanctuary. There we saw the super-duper endangered Takahe. I clearly learned all the correct technical terms, including an impressive factoid the girls wanted me to include: Takahe poop looks like cigars, and they can poop up to 6m (~19.6ft) a day! These birds were once thought extinct till they found a very small population of 30-50 birds in the 1950’s on a mountain near Te Anu, and with conservation efforts, the population has now rebounded to 400 birds.

We showed the locals pictures of moose in CO

The next day was a real trip highlight: the glow worms. We walked to the boat, took it across Lake Te Anu to a cave, ducked through the cave entrance to explore the underground river and waterfalls from the walkway above it, and finally boarded another small boat on the underground river to see the worms. They insisted on darkness and silence, which is how I like to roll anyway, and once inside, it felt like you were floating in space with stars all around you (not just above you). No cameras were allowed, but you can see some professional shots here. It was super-duper cool.

For our final night, we drove to nearby Queenstown, where we bee-lined for the Kiwi sanctuary. We arrived 30 minutes before they closed but could see many nocturnal birds housed in a reverse-daylight room. Again, no pictures allowed, but please trust me on how cute these fluffy, basketball-sized birds with long orange beaks were. We left with light hearts and a heavier purse. Fighting traffic to the hotel, we finally realized why so many hotels we tried to book were full. A winter festival was going on, complete with a fireworks display we enjoyed from our hotel room before heading to bed early. Good thing, too, as the fire alarm went off at 3am, and the entire hotel had to evacuate for an hour. While we stood outside in our pajamas and all the warm things we could grab quickly, I patted myself on the back for buying everyone a wool hat and gloves as our New Zealand souvenirs. After the all clear, we went back in for another hour of sleep and then off to the airport for the long trip home, dreaming of all the fun we had and our new feathered friends. Fingers crossed customs goes ok…peep.

They celebrated us leaving on our last night

All the Animals We Cannot See: Cassowaries, Tree Kangaroos, and Platypodes

June 21, 2023 / Jana / 2 Comments

*Our faces when we finally see a tree kangaroo*
*(kidding, we never saw one)*

“Did you all have fun? Was it scary?” Asked the woman waiting for her turn at the check-in counter.

“Yes to both! We really enjoyed it, and it wasn’t too scary; they have a whole system for making sure no one is ever unhooked. Unless you’re afraid of heights–”

“I am afraid of heights,” she interjected.

“Ah. Well, then perhaps ziplining through the rainforest isn’t for you.” I didn’t know what else to say, but I was searching for a positive. “You could just go up and look for the tree kangaroos?”

While, on the whole, this trip has been pretty amazing, there have been several moments where I feel like the entire country is in cahoots taking us tourists on one giant snipe hunt, and here I was perpetuating it to this poor woman whose so-called friends had convinced her to go zipping through the Daintree Rainforest.

“Drive carefully; cassowaries are right along the roadside,” they say. Sure.

“You just have to wait long enough behind this platypus blind. They are shy, but the platypus love this area. You’ll see them,” they claim. Uh-huh.

“Make sure to look up; that’s where you’ll find the tree kangaroos,” says the nature sign. Yeah right.

I’m sure the Aussies have collectively had a great laugh at our expense; good for them. I can take a joke as much as the next Sheila, and I’ve been in Australia long enough to appreciate a fair dinkum joke, but I’m not falling for it anymore. I’m happy to return the favor with some cow-tipping and jackalope hunting if they ever come my way, but I think I’ll focus on the cool plants and marine life for now.

“That heart-shaped plant over there will actively inject you with poison if you touch it. It’s technically classified as a venomous plant,” the rainforest tour guide explained. Oh, wow, that’s fascinating! I think, falling for it, hook, line, and sinker. When will I learn?

Cape Tribulation was our farthest trip, so we woke up extra early to make sure we made our 10am zipline appointment. This was C’s pick, and I thought it could be fun, but I was not quite prepared for the feeling I would have while seeing my 12-year-old firstborn fly through the treetops with nothing underneath her, not even a shock of cassowaries to break her fall. The part that made me feel better was the system they have in place where you don’t have a clip exactly, but your harness is attached to a carabineer with only one small flat opening. The opening is too small to come off the lines, but each connector piece has a flat bit that you wrangle the carabineer across to move along the lines. It’s sort of like an escape room puzzle and flying through the forest all in one. We really did have a fun time, and if you are not afraid of heights, I would totally recommend it. C and H said it was one of their favorite things we’ve done there. After two hours, the guide was letting us know it was our last run and H said, “But we just started!”

We also saw the beaches you are not allowed to swim in (saltwater crocodiles live there) and tasted the fancy flavored ice cream made nearby (salted caramel crocodile flavored) before making the long drive back.

*Looks fun, how come no one’s swimming?*

Our next day trip (interspersed with lazy days swimming at Trinity Beach and our igloo pool) was up to Atherton Tablelands. This fertile farming valley was really gorgeous, and we made several stops on our loop: the Barrine Teahouse, Lake Eacham, Yungaburra for shops and lunch, the giant Curtain Fig Tree, and three platypus sites.

*Giant Curtain Fig Tree. That’s what I love about plants they sit there and wait to be counted.*

The ‘main event’ for the day was the Crystal Caves on the edge of Atherton. Renee Something Somethingelse, now 80 years old, has been collecting crystals, minerals, and meteorites from around the world since his early 20’s. In his enthusiasm to share his passion with the world, he created a man-made ‘cave’ to display them all in, where people can walk through with headlamps to see (and touch!) all his awesome finds. H’s favorites were the mammoth jaw fossils, the luminescent globes, the largest amethyst geode, and the fact that you got to pick and crack your own geode at the end. A shiny crystal rock of your own–44 million years in the making!

We also had scones at the Lake Barrine Teahouse and walked around another crater lake, Lake Eacham, which placed a swimming platform right next to the sign saying there was one shy (freshwater) crocodile who lived there.

Our last land-based adventure was Paronella Park, which despite being out in the middle of nowhere with no signage, is pretty cool and very highly rated on TripAdvisor. José Paronella arrived in Queensland from Spain in 1913 to cut sugar cane and build castles, and by 1933 he was all done cutting sugar cane. Up went several castle-like structures to create a playground in the rainforest, complete with a movie theater, a ballroom with a mirror ball imported from the USA, a restaurant, tennis courts, waterfalls, and lakeside picnic tables surrounded by 7,000 tropical plants. Several cyclones, a fire, and three generations later, the park was purchased in 2009 and is now being historically preserved. The tour included history, eels, turtles, giant trees, and free use of some really excellent umbrellas. Also, coffee and ice cream were available. Five stars from us.

We arrive home late on these days. Good thing the next day is a sleep-in day. However, at 5:00 am I awake to a child screaming on our roof. After a quick look to make sure it is not one of my own, I double check Google and find what I’m looking for: “Australia is home to the Bush Stone-Curlew, also known as the ‘Screaming Woman Bird,’ which [for added fun] is nocturnal.” Good one, Australia. You got me again. This one is actually real. Hilarious.

Bonus Content: we also just missed this guy by only 65,000 years! Saw this at the Daintree visitor center. Do we believe them? The scientific name does not instill confidence.

Igloos on Trinity Beach

June 16, 2023June 16, 2023 / Jana / Leave a comment

“Mom, why are there igloos in Australia?”

“Because they are adorable.”

This doesn’t seem like a sufficient reason, but they are. Perhaps they also offer a cooler interior? Or an economical design with a retro aesthetic? In any case, we found them in Trinity Beach, just north of Cairns, and they are super fun. We arrived at Igloo #4 (also on Instagram) after saying goodbye to Western Australia and hello to Queensland on the northeast coast. This area claims to be “where the rainforest meets the sea” and hosts so many great things to do, so we decided to stay for almost two weeks so we could take our time with it. Our home base for the duration is a cute dome house right across the esplanade from a netted and life-guard-monitored swim beach, which turns out to be very important if you care about not getting stung by box jellyfish or eaten by saltwater crocodiles. And, it turns out, I do care about those things very much. We were intentionally out of season for the dangerous jellies and chose a beach where they remove any rogue reptiles. Sharks are apparently the least of your worries out here. From what I hear, you are less likely to be bothered by a shark than you are to find six one-dollar coins in time to do your laundry before you run out of underwear, so I guess I have bigger problems.

Given our previous experience with the regional flights, I was a bit nervous we were going to be delayed out of Monkey Mia and miss our overnight flight from Perth to Brisbane and then up to Cairns, but despite some very heavy rain, everything ended up early, and we even got several hours to practice our painting with our new watercolor pens.

We bought a papaya from a street vendor to aid our quest to gather 6 one-dollar coins.

Upon arrival, we grabbed some local delicacies at the store (TimTams, Nutrigrain, Malteesers, and a vegetable), explored our igloo compound, and then found the beach across the street. At the end of the esplanade, H and C found a local hike up into the jungle to yet another beautiful beach. The girls scanned for shells while I scanned for crocs. After dinner, it was time to get on the internet and book some fun adventures for the upcoming week. The locals keep commenting that the weather has been windier and rainier than normal for this time of year, so we keep checking the weather to find some calm sunny days for snorkeling trips.

H requested a SUP/FLOP tour, but since it was too windy to go in the ocean, we did a rainforest tour in Freshwater Creek to avoid the wind and crocs. It was a really calm river with tiny ‘rapids’ that the guide helped you down. With a choice of SUP or kayak, H took the SUP, and C and I agreed to trade off on a SUP and a kayak. I tried standing for a bit, but we spent most of the time kneeling on the paddleboard so we didn’t fall down when it got shallow or went over rocks. In addition to the excitement of the river, the scenery was gorgeous, the water cool and fun for a quick swim, and we even tried the local green ants that taste like lime citrus (the vegetarians just kissed them and let them go; I’m sure they’re fine). After an hour on the SUP, my core was on fire, but C decided she didn’t want to switch after all, so I held out for the rest of the 5km paddle, and now I’m wonder woman. H and I were feeling our abs and quads for days! In the end, the only person who fell off their SUP or kayak that day was our guide, Andy, while trying to take our picture. Maybe he was just trying to get us to smile?

On the river tour we meet a fun couple from Fort Collins, CO! They were too nervous to try the SUP, so opted for kayaks, but they were going cage diving with great whites next, so H and I are counting ourselves as pretty badass for trying it.

The SUP tour ended at a park with a playground, so we enjoyed our packed lunch there and then headed up into the hills to find the town of Kuranda. On the way there, we found a duck boat tour in the rainforest. As part of a military training during WWII, the US had shipped trucks/boats here to practice landing on Trinity Beach. Some of those stayed behind and for the last 80 years have been giving tours of the local rainforest from the land and lakes. Our guide was a local who knew a ton about all the plants, butterflies, and history. We managed to arrive alongside a tour company and were the only English speakers on the tour, so I felt extra compelled to laugh at every joke. I’m sure he thinks I’m insane. (Guide: “Over on the tree over there are some fungi, like me.” Me: “HAHAHAHAHAHA.” Guide: “Ma’am, have you been drinking?”)

After iced coffee, which they ask if you would like with ice cream (yes, please), we found Kuranda proper. Here we shopped the markets and gem stores, saw Barron Falls (in this dry season, it was only a ‘trickle’), and then went to look for this famous railway station. Using google maps has been pretty seamless so far, so when it told me to turn left into the jungle and down into a ditch, I did consider it. We must have missed any signage, but we eventually found the place where the busses parked and decided parking in one of their giant spots was better than a ditch and just went for it. The platform is covered in plants and also runs alongside a gorgeous river (I’m assuming populated with more crocs). We got some cheese toasties and smoothies and enjoyed the view before heading home and crashing into bed. Our new pattern is spacing out adventures every other day with a day to sleep in and go to the beach in between. So far, the new plan seems a lot better than a normal 40-hour work week; perhaps I should extend the sample size to better support the analysis. Next up for us is snorkeling the great barrier reef, exploring the Daintree rainforest, and a driving tour of Atherton Tablelands!

We’ve been rewatching a lot of The IT Crowd in the evenings 🙂

Roos on the Runway

June 14, 2023June 14, 2023 / Jana / Leave a comment

“Attention passengers, this is your captain speaking. As you know, we had a delayed start, and the headwinds have left us even further delayed.”

Bummer, I thought as I smiled out at the beautiful sunset over this incredibly remote part of the world, we’ll be late, but get to see dolphins in the morning.

Pretty sunset, closing the window on our opportunity to land in Shark Bay.

“And,” our captain continued, “because we cannot land at the Shark Bay airport after dark, we will be continuing on to Carnarvon.”

Wait, WHAT?!?

Apparently, as we learned later, it’s really hard to get all the kangaroos off the Shark Bay runway at dusk, and as bad as it would be for the roo to get hit by a plane, it is also not great for the small regional jet to hit one of them. So, for saftey’s sake, we fly on.

For those curious, this is the Shark Bay runway in daylight from our flight back home.

The sunset was not looking so pretty now. Carnarvon, despite being the closest town and home to ~5,000 people, was tiny and at least a 3-hour drive away from Shark Bay with no rental car services and only one bus that leaves a few days a week down the coast. There is very little in the way of people and services out in these remote parts of Western Australia. As I looked down, I realized we were currently flying over Shark Bay, and I waved goodbye to our trip there.

The captain left the 30 or so passenger’s questions to the flight attendant, who in turn left them to the lady at the front desk in Carnarvon, who in turn left them to the Regional Express Airline’s help desk, who let those questions go to voice mail as it was now after hours. What we were able to learn was that our options were to either stay in Carnarvon and sort ourselves out or (as they preferred) get back on the plane and fly back to where we just came from, Perth, where we might be able to hop on another flight up to Shark Bay when there was an open seat or three or thirty, maybe next week? They said there was no open place to stay in town, and they had no idea how we could get to Shark Bay. So, we made friends.

Lisa, traveling to meet her husband on holiday already in Shark Bay, quickly went online and booked us a hotel in town. Hakkey and Cathy, a couple also on holiday, nabbed us the only two taxis in town to take us to the hotel before they closed. And, Sarah, our new BFF from Shark Bay Care Hire found our angel Roger, who agreed for a fee to make the 8-hour round trip and drive us to Shark Bay in the morning on his shuttle. So with only a day shaved off our visit, we had a plan! And a “Dolphins or Bust” WhatsApp group chat with all our new friends.

We had a banana bread brekkie with our new friend Lisa on Carnarvon’s shorefront at 6am; the jetlag really worked in our favor while waiting for Roger.

As some of you readers may already know, I spent several months a year from 1999-2003 studying the small bottlenose dolphins that live in Shark Bay near the resort/camping site of Monkey Mia for my Ph.D. dissertation. I had not been back in the 20 years since, and I was super excited to show my girls what a magical place it is. Below is proof of how cute the dolphins and all of us were 20 years ago.

Jana and Bob collecting data off our little red boat, Maziwa.

Everyone I know who still works in Shark Bay told me how much it had changed, so I was half expecting the shoreline to be filled with a Ramada Inn and Embassy Suites, but I was happy to discover that this was not the case. Shark Bay is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and they don’t let you just build anywhere. There are only ~600 human residents in the entire bay, including the main town of Denham and the resort of Monkey Mia, where a few of the dolphins come close to shore to be carefully hand-feed by park rangers. Besides the small human-centered parts getting some nice upgrades and becoming more commercial, I was thrilled to see the landscape, beauty, and spirit had remained intact. As much as one might curse being abandoned by your plane in the outback, it was precisely this hard-to-get-to-ness that was responsible for keeping it so extraordinary.

Part of the original sign made of shell block is still here.

Since we had now been traveling for three days, our first day in Monkey Mia was supposed to be a chill one, but we had spent that day motoring through the bush to get here from Carnarvon, so now our first official day was an 8-hour 4WD tour with an old friend. Harvey is a sailor who runs one of the dolphin-watching cruises on Shotover out of Monkey Mia, and also does 4WD tours of the adjacent Francois Peron National Park. I booked a trip with his company not even sure if he would remember me, but he did, and as luck would have it, he was our guide for the day! In true Aussie fashion, his naturalist knowledge was well-sprinkled with jokes aimed at pulling our legs. So while we learned quite a bit, we were sure of even less information than when we started. We again made friends with a mother-daughter duo from Sydney, Nikki and Gail, and got the extended tour to all the gorgeous sites Peron is famous for with its red cliffs, white sands, blue waters, dolphins, birds, kangaroos, goats, and even a last-minute echidna just before dark!

Harvey said if we jumped we’d get ice cream.

The next day we slept in (it was glorious), saw one of the dolphin feeds off the beach and took a sail to find some off-shore dolphins. While it was super windy, we did manage to find ‘Dodger’ who I remember from 20 years ago! She has a fin like Captain Hook after an encounter with a shark, and uses a unique foraging technique employing a marine sponge as a tool to keep her rostrum protected as she scours the sea floor to rustle up fish for lunch. We ended the day finding H’s new favorite hobby, Stand-Up Paddle boarding. SUP, or as I like to call it FLOP (FalL Off Paddleboarding), was as easy as renting a board from Michael, heading to the shallows a few feet away, standing up, and then simply just keep getting back on.

I think word had gotten out that I was in town because everywhere I went I ended up talking to folks who were there when I was or knew that I had been a researcher there. I felt like an alumna from an elite private club. They were all abuzz with some recent news and debate about feeding calves (link to article) as well as about how much it’s changed over the years. While my old Ph.D. advisor, Janet, was not in the field, she introduced me to Vivien and Ellen who were conducting research there and their new crop of undergraduate field assistants. We had a lovely dinner where they were nice enough to let me wax poetic about my time in Shark Bay and tell me all the cool things they were working on.

Ranger giving a talk as the dolphins come in close to the beach.

Looking back, I wish I’d booked much more time here. There was so much more to see and even just to hang out by the beach watching for turtles, rays, and dolphins was a fantastic way to spend the day. Given the shortened stay we were not able to visit Shell Beach or see Stumpy the stromatolites; so I guess we will just have to come back!

Down Under and Out Back

June 13, 2023June 13, 2023 / Jana / 2 Comments

Flasback to fall 2022. I open my email, and that is when the swearing begins. I hear it first, then I realize it’s coming from me. The giant proposal I have been working on has changed its due date once again, this time to two weeks earlier. Who does that? Ugh. Immediately I need a break and begin scrolling Air BnB porn: modern chalets in the Italian Dolomites, beach huts on Maui, apartments above croissant shops in Paris…these are nice, but not quite far enough away. In my efforts to grow my consulting business, I had taken every job, and now my mental view of the sea was from under the water. Maybe success wasn’t measured in clients, projects, and dollars after all. Maybe I could measure it instead in terms of funds and flexibility to do some really fun things. Here is when I decided my business goal for this year would be to have enough flexibility and funds to take my girls on a month-long adventure. And I’d just scrolled onto the perfect, far-away spot, an ‘igloo’ dome in Queensland, Australia, open for two weeks in June. Click, click, click, and BOOKED. Now, I just needed to finish all those projects, and we’re on our way!

All our bags are packed. We're ready to go. — All our bag are packed. We’re ready to go.

Present day, summer 2023: We did it! Finished my projects and the girls finished school, sorted out the budget, booked the travel and accommodation, and packed the bags. Dreaming started in Sept, air and lodging nailed down in January, and then packing, seat selection on our regional flights, and electronic visas the day before takeoff (probably should have done that last one earlier…). Barry’s career goals continue to include “remaining employed,” so he was not able to take as much time off, but don’t worry, he will join us for the second half of the trip, and I’m sure add his unique flavor to the blog.

As we know, Australia is far. But if far is fun, wouldn’t so far you want to scream after traveling there be so fun you want to scream? The answer is yes on both counts. After booking the Queensland igloo, I thought it might be fun to also visit my remote field site from when I did dolphin research for my graduate work 20 years ago, show the girls, and see how much it’s changed. So after a two-hour delay in Denver, a nice jog through San Francisco Airport to get the blood flowing, and a 14-hour flight in economy plus (worth it), we arrived in Brisbane at 6am. Then we went just a bit farther, 4.5 hours on a flight to Perth on the west coast, with the plan of flying up to my old field site in Shark Bay the next day.

Economy plus stands for “plus a photobomer across the isle”

The negative of flying so long and so far is that you are cranky and tired, but the positive is that you end up in Perth, which is a wonderful city, and they immediately let you pet everything. Because I would not allow the girls or myself to go to sleep during the day for jetlag reasons, we needed something compelling to keep us up. Immediately after setting down our bags at the hotel, we blasted “No Stops Till Koalas” from the Beastie Boys/Men At Work collaboration albumn, and ubered over to Caversham Wildlife Park. Here we found just the distraction we needed: hugable wombats named Michelle, Eric the very photogenic koala, pretty pythons, and an entire garden of super chill kangaroos and wallabies. We had a blast, made it back to the hotel for a very early dinner, and then crashed. Hard.

In the morning, we had one more fun surprise to fit in before our flight up to Shark Bay. A good friend from 20 years ago, met up with us for breakfast at the hotel where we could catch up, gossip about dolphins we both know, and share pictures of our cute kiddos and husbands. I forgot to grab a photo, but here is one from way back. (It was so great to see you Holly!!). Thanks for reading this far and I hope you enjoy joining us on our Australia & New Zealand adventure for the next few weeks!

Holly and I are in the front row. Holly’s the cool one in sunglasses. I look like I bought my glasses off Ben Franklin.

Locarno, Switzerland (with kids)

December 6, 2022January 16, 2023 / Barry and Jana / 1 Comment

There are as many Swiss Fondue recipes as there are Swiss people you ask. We have found a previously undescribed method to add to the mix. First, gather all the ingredients from your local Migros: 1/2 lb. of Gruyere, 1/2 lb. of Emmenthaler, white wine, some garlic (to rub on the pot for flavor), cornstarch for thickness, and some kirsch because it is the law. Then, and this is where the method veers off into untraditional, place all of your ingredients in a pot and go to Locarno in July. The mixture will swiftly melt in the pot before you get off the bus in front of your Air BnB. You will, upon arrival, be sweaty and cranky, but if you are smart, you will have saved the additional kirsch to help you forget how sweaty and cranky you are until you can get yourself to a pool. That is the third and crucial step. You must get yourself to a pool right away. Eating the fondue you’ve made is optional at this point, but, given the temp, it will remain liquid for the duration of your stay, so there is no hurry there.

As we may have mentioned, it was hot. Damn hot. The kind of oppressive heat and humidity that makes you wonder whether Robin Williams has a morning radio talk show, here (Goooooood morning Locarno!). Like most apartments in Europe, the one we rented had no air conditioning. We realize this is a typical American problem, but perhaps we were not the only ones to have felt the force of the European heat wave of 2022. While the chance of us sweating to death was minimal, the struggle was real. Locarno is situated near the Swiss-Italian border and is much warmer and more humid than the rest of Switzerland. Our reason for booking four nights here was simple: Jana and the kids are obsessed with swimming and this place has a lake and a “Lido”, which is just a fancy word for a public beach and fancy pool complex.

Lake Maggiore, from the Lido in Locarno. The water was low, but inviting. Only 100 hobbling steps on stones to get waist deep and dive into perfection.

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A Weekend in London (With Kids)

July 24, 2022July 29, 2022 / Barry and Jana / 9 Comments

C & H Plans for London: Step 1: Find Buckingham Palace. Step 2: Scale the fence and take over the kingdom. Step 3: Give the people what they want: Candy. Step 4: Hand back the monarchy when they want you to sit quietly for too long.

Tour guide on phone: “Oh, no honey, you’re never going to make it.”

Jana: “We might be able to race over there right after we collect our luggage?”

Tour guide: “You haven’t even left the airport yet?! No, oh no, really, just no.”

In hindsight, it was a risky move to book our Harry Potter Tour For Muggles (is there a tour for wizards?) within three hours of our scheduled arrival into Heathrow. And how can they expect mere muggles to make it through Terminal 5 at Heathrow anyway? Especially during the summer 2022 travel-pocalypse. When we disembarked from our 90 minute-delayed flight there was still a shimmer of hope we might be at the London Bridge in time for the much-anticipated tour, but that hope faded when we heard the announcement in the baggage claim area apologizing for the further 40-minute delay, and went completely dark after talking to the person who schedules the tours on the phone.

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Saying Goodbye to Basel

December 4, 2019December 4, 2019 / Jana / 6 Comments

[Note: We’ve been home many many months now, but we had written a few draft blogs before we left. This is one of them.]

“So, what are you doing here exactly…er…why are you here?”

I hear this a lot. When I meet someone new here in Basel, or even tell friends at home what we’re up to this year, there are usually a few polite inquiries about where I’m from or going, and how I was able to arrange it all. A few minutes in, it becomes clear that we’ve put in an extraordinary amount of effort to plop our family down in a place it does not normally belong, and they want to know why.

It is a fair question and one I usually respond to with a slightly guilty, “because we’re privileged assholes,” in my head. Out loud I usually answer with, “Oh, lots of reasons. Mainly to experience new cultures and take time to do more as a family.” Continue reading →

Parenting on Sabbatical and the Power of Gummy Bears

November 11, 2018 / Jana / 9 Comments

[Note: We’ve been home several months now, but had written a few draft blogs before we left. This is one of them.]

“Honey, let me wipe them off. They are all over your face.”

The sadness of a mountain top without your boogers.

“NO!”

I wipe her face.

“MOM!!!!! Put them back! I didn’t want you to take them!! PUT MY BOOGERS BACK!!”

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Swiss Family Sabbatical

A family takes a break from their careers to travel to Basel, Switzerland for one year–hijinks ensue

Coral, Turtles, and Jellies–Oh My!

New Zealand: Please don’t feed/hug the birds and do obey all traffic regulations

All the Animals We Cannot See: Cassowaries, Tree Kangaroos, and Platypodes

Igloos on Trinity Beach

Roos on the Runway

Down Under and Out Back

Locarno, Switzerland (with kids)

A Weekend in London (With Kids)

Saying Goodbye to Basel

Parenting on Sabbatical and the Power of Gummy Bears