Rottnest Island

Lelle and I went to Rottnest Island today. We had to leave early to hit the Ferry in Fremantle at 8:30 am. When we arrived on the island we rented some bikes, grabbed some breakfast, took some pictures of the quokka's, and then headed out on our long ride around the island. It was so much fun. The water was beautiful. Rottnest has some of the only remaining guns (that could be used with some work) from World War II. We got a free tour of one considering we were the only ones who had ventured to them that day. We had a great time but were EXTREMELY exhausted by the time we made it all the way around the island. Anyways, I still haven't put those pictures on the computer, so they'll come soon. Maybe more details later as well. It's getting late and I have to get up to go eat at Miss Mauds for brekky (breakfast). Anyways, love you all.

The Pinnacles

Lelle and I drove up to the Pinnacles yesterday. It was an incredible site. The contrast of colors and the shapes of each Pinnacle is amazing. It was well worth the long drive north. On our way back we stopped by the beach really quick. Then we saw an Echidna cross the road. That's extremely rare since Echidna's are nocturnal. Lelle said she didn't think she had ever seen one in the wild before. So I feel really lucky to have seen one. He curled up into a ball and just hoped that his spikes would protect him from the big scary people. We didn't hurt him. We just wanted to check him out. Heh heh.

Go Eagles!

We're the Eagles, the West Coast Eagles! And we're here to show you why. We're the big birds, kings of the big game! WE're the Eagles. We're flying high! That's the song for the West Coast Eagles (Perth's Aussie Rules Football team). Lelle, Jess, Brian, and I all went to watch the Eagle's vs. St. Kilda AFL game. Unfortunately St. Kilda won. But it was fun all the same. That night we had a lovely dinner at Jess's house. I was able to visit with Jess's parents, brother-Luke, sister-Olivia, Kyla, Jemma (Kyla's sister), Brian, Jess, and Lelle. It was a lot of fun. For once I wasn't the ignorant Yank. I had learned to eat "properly" with a knife and fork. This time it was Brian with the so-called cave-man habits using "only a fork." Dread the thought! Sorry to my Aussie friends...I haven't picked up a knife since I've been back. Ha ha. However, I've only eaten sandwiches, pasta, and salad. So we'll see what comes of my manners. One of the favorite past times of the night was to shoot each other with Olivia's nerf gun. Whatever you do, keep it away from Luke!

Cinnamon Rolls and Hiking

On Friday, after we got back from Busso, Lelle and I made cinnamon rolls. They were a big hit considering all 20 or so were gone by the next day with the acception of a few we were saving for some friends, which ended up not making it to them anyways. Sat morning we went to Carmel for church. Then we went on a hike that afternoon with Kyla's family. That night we went to a church social at Fremantle Church (where Cherie goes). We played games and watched a movie. It was fun to meet some of the youth. Then on Sunday morning Lelle, her dad (Keith), and Shaz - the dog, took a hike to Lesmurdie Falls. It was a beautiful hike. We even managed to lose the regular trail and took a Kangaroo track. Great fun. That afternoon...AFL!

Busselton

Well, I know it's been forever since I've written a blog, but I've just been so busy! Last Wed Cherie, Kayla, Lelle, and I headed down to Busselton to enjoy a bit of caravan camping on the beach. It was a lot of fun. I will try to get more details up soon, but it's kinda late and I have another early morning tomorrow. So here are some pictures and you can check back later for details.

Ok - here are the Busso details. We stayed in a camper on the beach. It had beds and a stove, so it wasn't like we were roughing it any. We did a lot of fun things like watching Love's Brother (and Aussie movie about Italians living in Australia, starring Adam Garcia - Lelle's favourite), seeing the Margaret River Chocolate Factory, Cheese Factory, getting lost driving, having ice cream (name Lelle?), walking the jetty, visiting beaches, eating yummy food and chocolate of course, and my personal favorite...giving Kyla lessons on how to speak American and me failing miserably at my Aussie accent. Don't ask me to do it cause I can't. We all had a great time. The weather was a bit wild. The wind was blowing very hard and there were waves on the beach which is usually clear as glass...or so they say. I'm going to post the picture of the beach in it's current state and then I'll get my hands on a picture of it when it's beautiful. **I got the picture up of a beautiful Busselton. And I also put a picture up of one of the campers. It's not the same one we were in, but it's very similar!**

Cohunu

Monday Lelle and I had a look around Carmel. I saw where Lelle went to High School (Carmel Adventist College) and met some more of her family. It was a fairly relaxing day. That night I challenged the Marmite. Lelle fixed it up with a thick layer of avacado so that it wasn't too strong. It was actually not that bad except for one bite that the Marmite was a bit thick for me. But I defeated my fear! Sort of. Ha ha. Then we watched a couple Aussie movies. We watched The Dish and Bootmen. The Dish was about a satellite dish in a sheep paddock in Australia that received the pictures and video footage of Neil Armstrong landing and walking on the moon. It was a good movie. I enjoyed it. And bootmen was about a guy who tapdances. Not too descriptive I know. Sorry. Today we went to Cohunu Wildlife Park. We picked up Lelle's friend, Cherri, and went straight to the park. We saw all sorts of Australian animals. My favorite part was holding a Koala! He was sooooo adorable! I could have held it forever! Then we went to Miss Mauds for lunch and had ice cream on a fresh waffle at Gelare! It was yummy. Now I'm here watching The Man from Snowy River...another Aussie movie. I'm a bit lost since I've been writing my blogs. I'll have to have Lelle catch me up. Anyways, enjoy the pictures. Tomorrow I'm off to Busselton, or nearby. I'll be gone for 3 days, so there won't be any blogs for a bit. Enjoy your week!

Fremantle Markets, Aussie Farm, American Father's Day

Ok, I suppose it's time for me to write about the weekend. On Friday Lelle, Jess, and I went down to the Fremantle Markets to look around at the shops. Then we went and ate at a place called Fast Eddy's. I had some good potato wedges there. That afternoon the Hockley's and I packed up and headed to an authentic Aussie farm! It was beautiful at the farm. We arrived when it was dark and you could see the beautiful stars in the sky. I got a good look at the Southern Cross constellation that weekend. You can only see the Southern Cross in the Southern Hemisphere and it's also the Constellation that is on the Australian Flag. The next morning we went riding on the four wheeler. Josh Calais, the son of the owners of the farm, took me for a crazy ride, flying over jumps, doing donuts, etc. It was great fun. Lelle had an unfortunate accident when her and Josh went off a jump and he decided to let go of the bike causing both of them to fly off the bike. Josh had full padding and a proper helmet on for protection, but Lelle only had an inadequate helmet on, which protected her alright, but she had a splitting headache for a long while after. She also slid about 2-3 meters on the ground, which caused her to be a bit sore. That didn't stop her from having a good weekend though. Later that day we went for a drive around the farm. I drove the four wheeler and Lelle rode on the back. I was enjoying the beauty of the farm so much that I missed seeing a pile of sheep manure and drove right through it, which splattered all over Lelle and I. It was quite lovely. We smelled pretty aweful. But it was fun all the same. Good memories. And I'm sure Lelle is always happy to find something new to tease me about. Of course over here if I do anything stupid it's because I'm a "yank" or so they call all Americans. I learned the rules to Aussie rules football and learned to kick it Aussie style. Then I played with Josh and Locky for a bit. We played a little footy, soccer, and I even got to bat for a bit of cricket. That night we went Kangaroo Chasing. It was a lot of fun and none were injured, which is the way I like it. Usually they go Roo hunting. We got out the spotlight and rode on the back of a Ute to find and chase the Roo. It was great fun. We watched The Castle that night, which is an Aussie movie. There are quite a few take home quotes from that movie. Of course if I quoted it no one else would understand. So I'll just have to quote them to my Aussie friends. The next morning we drove to the Jumburra farm and Lelle and I went for a horse ride. I've always been a little timid on horses, but I have a little experience. Lelle gave me some really good tips and this is the most comfortable I have ever felt on a horse. We trotted a bit and even did a bit of cantering. It was so much fun! I want to go again...but only with someone like Lelle who knows what they're doing! Then we had some tea and I got to shoot off a gun. I'm terrible aim. I couldn't hit the bottle that they put out. I came close, but never actually hit it. Oh well. Then we drove the 3 hour drive home so that Lelle's mum could make it to work on time. That afternoon Lelle and I cooked up a storm so that we could surprise Lelle's dad with an American Fathers Day meal. We made Fajitas and spanish rice. Our desert was a failure because I burnt it. Oh well. We decorated the table with American Flags and stuff since it was an American celebration. But I didn't forget about my own daddy! Later that night I called him. I love you dad! Anyways, I'll write my latest blog under a new entry. Adios.