The Countdown is On

With 8 days left in Australia, the reality that we’ll be back in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada is starting to sink in.

There will be no more Clean Skins and feeling like the owner is our good buddy!

No more getting to work at 8:55am and leaving as the bell goes.

There will be no more outdoor movie theatres or sunsets at the beach.

No more fish n’ chips that make your mouth water.

No more Swan Valley down the road from our house.

No more Rose n’ Crown.

No more lazy weekends with nothing to do but golf or hit the beach.

No more walking over to our neighbour’s house at any time to for a chat.

No more Breakwater.

No more Freo.

No more Rotto.

No more Lancaster.

No more Sunday Session at Little Creatures.

No more tan lines.

No more racoon eyes that won’t go away no matter how much sun screen or how big of a hat I put on.

No more sunstroke.

No more waking up at 5:30am because that’s when the sun comes up.

No more rounds of golf that cost $18.

No more trips to New Zealand or Vietnam.

No more swimming and snorkelling on remote reefs or beaches.

No more fearing that a shark will come up and bite me!

No more “rat sack”.

No more cockroaches.

No more Margaret River.

No more lovely Aussie friends.

What a year!!

New Zealand

Okay, this was a while ago but it's been a little hard to get these pics up for those not on facebook. Here are a few pictures from our amazing trip to New Zealand.

We started in quaint fishing town of Wellington for the Rugby World Cup where we saw Canada take on the All Blacks. Although we knew we would be treated more like pets, than real hard core fans that posed a threat to the dominant New Zealand side,  it was still an unbelievable experience and Canada represented very well in red and white throughout the city. Even when Canada was leading the All Blacks in the first few minutes of the game, 3-0, we all knew it would be short lived. In any rate both teams played to the best of their ability and we saw some amazing rugby.

In Wellington and loving it

Canadian fans showing our true colours!

"Excuse me, can you hold my tail?"

All Blacks performing the Haka to a united Canadian front

Kleiburger after the game - had no idea where he was

After Wellington we hopped on the Overlander Train which took us on a very scenic 12 hour trip through the heart of the North Island up to Auckland. It is such a beautiful country and reminded me so much of Canada with the pine trees and mountains that for the first time in 9 months I was feeling very homesick.

Mordor  

Picturesque

In Auckland we only had two days to take it all in and decided on a "Waterfalls and Wine Tour".  My two favourite things in the world! We saw some spectacular scenery and finished with a visit to four of the nicer wineries in the region. Unfortunately the region we were in was known for it's Pinot Noirs and Chardonnays... but beggars can't be choosers!

Best part of the tour was when we sat down for lunch and our guide remembered he forgot to pick up someone and left us with two hilarious Americans in this winery for lunch. Let's just say a bottle or two or three was ordered and the rest is a blur!

Who needs photoshop!

Getting a grip on some of the local culture

A Waterfall

Pictures do not do this place justice

Pretending to be Asian tourists after a bottle too many!

Our trip to New Zealand was incredibly short and sweet and left us wanting to go back and explore it properly.

Next exchange... New Zealand!

Whale Watching

With only 6 weeks left we are on the count down to make sure we have done everything we can in Australia. One thing that we had been waiting for all year is the migration of the Humpback Whales down the Indian Ocean. So after finding a Scoopon (best invention in the world) we booked for a three hour, "unforgettable whale watching cruise".

And let me tell you, it was "unforgettable".

With 2 hours and 57 minutes spent holding onto the back of the boat trying to watch the horizon, and not look or listen to the guy beside us vomiting or the kids screaming in agony, we managed to survive the trip with our breakfast intact.

The three minutes of actual "whale watching" was fantastic and we did manage to catch these two shots.

All I have to say is, Thank God for Dramamine!!!!

That's what the Tourists do!!

Yep - sometimes we need to do the touristy thing! Last weekend we headed two hours north of Perth to see the wild flowers and WA's most popular tourist attraction, the Pinnacles.  When we started asking around with our friends and staff, no one we knew had been there because, "That's what the tourists do!"

Regardless, we took out the "big" camera and got some amazing pictures and had a lovely weekend exploring another one of Australia's beautiful sights.

At the Pinnacles

Oh boy...

Oh My...

Alberta?

One of the many wildflowers, "Grandma's Bonnet"

"Donkey flower"

Faith Renewed

Dave and I decided to do the exchange 2 years ago for the experience of doing something completely different. We wanted the challenge and change of living on the other side of the world to explore and teach. We thought about all the potential problems that could arise: the heat, the cost, transportation, traveller's insurance, medical insurance, destinations to travel to and of course those infamous shark attacks!

We had thought of it all.... except the one part that brings in the pay cheque... teaching. For some reason we thought that teaching in Australia wouldn't be THAT different to Canada. I mean it's not as if we're teaching starving or malnourished children in Africa... we're in Australia... the land of sun and surf.  How different could it be??

Well, after nine long months of teaching we can officially say, it is VERY different.

However, as things have ebbed and flowed, and we've become regulars at the local Clean Skins store, things have slowly but surely changed:

• Dave and I have gotten used to not having a computer and instead walk to our "pigeon hole" 3 or 4 times a day to get the news/ updates.
• Print out any funny emails and put them on colleague's desks instead of sending email forwards
• Realizing that if kids are swearing, but it's not at you, it's not the worst thing (ie. ignore it)
• Learning to run to the staff room during recess and having that cup of tea, regardless of what you need to do next period or if you even like tea!
• Putting on your neon vest for supervision in the school yard

However, as we've got used to how things are done here, the students have gotten used to Dave and I. After 3 very long terms of teaching, students are treating Dave and I with respect and go out of their way to say hi or talk to us. It is a complete 180 from where we were 9 months ago and this recent camping trip with 30 grade 12's was the icing on the cake.

Although I don't teach any of the grade 12's, I was asked to supervise the 4 day "bush" camp where we camped, did a world class high ropes course, kayaked down rapids, hiked and relaxed. It was by far the most relaxing and welcoming group of students I've ever met. Instead of sitting around individual camp fires, all the students would come over and sit with the teachers and wanted to hear stories about camping in Canada and of course... the bears! So I told one or two scary bear stories and it was pretty funny to watch the kids jump as the kangaroos jumped around our camp site in the dark! The worst thing these students have are the "wild ducks" that go through the garbage outside the tents while they sleep. DUCKS!! Too funny!

Not only have the kids improved and taken to Dave and I's style of teaching, we've discovered some really important things about the teaching profession and ourselves (I know... very deep and something to discuss over a bottle of wine not a blog!).

In any rate, we have had quite the amazing experience over the past nine months but more importantly, our faith in the Aussie student has been restored... for now! ;)

Walking along a tight rope using all core... didn't get far!

The Australian Bush

Messing around on the ropes course

Trying the climb

Now that's high!! 

Vietnam

Vietnam was amazing.

Hot, humid and amazing.

For 17 days we jet-setted around the country going from South to North and back again.

We did the classic cyclo tour and were ripped off royally.

Cyclo Tour of Ho Chi Minh

We saw temples, tombs and pagodas galore. We saw Ha Long Bay, Cu Chi Tunnels, the Mekong Delta and everything in between. We saw Hat Street, Shoe Street, Idol Street, Blacksmith street, Tin Street and even stayed on Bamboo Mat street.

Ha Long Bay

Great Cao Dai Temple

Tomb of Khai Dinh

We bartered, haggled and Dave even flirted in Vietnamese to get the lowest deal. We ate spring rolls, rice rolls, meat on a stick, meat in a bowl, and meat wrapped in strange leaves. We ate snails, clams, eels on a stick (see previous blog for that lovely picture) and Dave even ate a boiled "unhatched" duck egg.

Dave and Matt eating the "duck"

We met amazing people from around the world and connected with distant family which finally puts a face to many of the names and stories. We met the one year old daughter of Dave's cousin who is studying in Canada trying to bring her family over. We met her father, husband and saw the remarkable resemblance in this precious little girl.

Our motor bike tour to Marble Mountain

Our trip to Vietnam was nothing short of spectacular. We made fabulous friends and reconnected with family. It was literally the trip of a lifetime.

Taking in Ha Long Bay from a kayak

In Sickness and In Health

After 15 amazing days in Vietnam of sightseeing & cultural immersion, Vietnam finally claimed a Tran. Not the Tran that you were all thinking would go down... but Dave "Iron Guts" Tran.


But first we must back up two months when we went for our travel vaccinations. As I loaded up in $400 of shots, Dave refused to get all the vaccinations that I did because as he said, "I'm Vietnamese". 

Famous last words.


Actually Dave... you're Canadian!!


So needless to say Dave ate EVERYTHING in Vietnam and got sesame/ peanut poisoning only once. However, when we visited his family down in the Mekong Delta we were forced to try all the "local" delicacies. Things like snails (and the garden/ sludge kind), clams (not oysters or mussels), eels on a stick (with teeth and eyes still intact). 

Of course we both tried everything and felt instantly ill. However, in order to save face with the family we knocked back a Saigon beer and kept going. Finally, I couldn't do it anymore and stuck to the noodles but Dave was the show pony of the family and had to stick in there. After 3 days of eating like this in 38 degree heat and 99% humidity our bodies were hating us. 

After a painful six hour bus ride back up to Saigon, Dave crashed for two days and then we made the long 20 hour journey back to Perth. It turns out that he simply had a terrible case of traveller's diaaheria, which I was vaccinated against. (I highly recommend everyone get Dukoral before you travel!)

However, as Dave recovered I went down like a ton of bricks. With massive headaches and vertigo for a week, my body finally gave out and I decided to check out the Perth medical system.  Why not?? We have seen so much of Perth, why not meet a few doctors, neurosurgeons, and nurses. After CT scans, IVs and a fabulous  Spinal Tap, I was sent home with the diagnosis of "one hell of a migraine". With my plethora of pills in hand and the best bed side nurse a woman could want, I have recovered... for the most part. 

Looking back at the past month and our pile of medical bills, one thing I know for sure is that Dave and I have fulfilled our vows of taking care of each other in "sickness" this past month!