After a Long Quiet

If anyone is still reading, it's been about 5 weeks since my last post. I hadn't intended such a long period of tranquillity but events move rapidly and I was unable to continue blogging. My intention was to do a sort of live travel blog but due to the intermittency of internet access over the last month, I had to abandon that idea. However, even though much has passed since the last missive, I shall endeavour to give a comprehensive synopsis, if such a thing is not a contradiction in terms, of my goings on.

Just before my exams ended, my parents arrived in the country via a wonderful stay in New Zealand. They travelled many thousands of kilometers and then found themselves on a tour of the North Island. Form what they described, it seemed a perfectly pleasant outing. Unfortunately, they didn't spend as much time in Napier as I think they should have but perhaps it was enough. At the end of their Kiwi adventure, my parents flew to Australia to visit me. Although I was glad to be finished my exams, I wa snow caught in the unenviable era between the end of exams and the release of results. Even though I was fairly certain I had done well enough to pass, I slept uneasily for the 11 or so days before the results were released. This was made especially trying as this was to be my last semester and my parents, and indeed my brother, had travelled so far to see me graduate that I did not wish to disappoint them. All I wanted was to be done with this.

In the interim, my parents, or more accurately, my mother, had planned a very detailed excursion of southeastern Australia. The first stop was Tasmania; the only state I had not yet visited. As my brother, for logistical reasons would be joining us later, this was just a trip for myself and my parents. Our first port of call was the venerable metropolis of Hobart. It is quite a pleasant little city, and although a state capital, it is considerably less populated even than Canberra. We took in the sights, including the IXL Jam Factory, now a series of shops and condominia on the waterfront, that particularly impressed my mother. I think what impressed my father the most was Hobart's imposing bridge. I will also mention that as the resident Australian, I was the one given the all important task of vehicle conveyance (driving) for the entire duration of our Australian adventure. What I particularly remember, though, is having high tea in a Hobart hotel. We were wandering the city and every eatery seemed shut until we happened upon a bustling hotel restaurant. We were informed that high tea was being served but that if we were patient, we would be seated. We were served by a very likable waiter who explained the logistics of high tea to us. It's not just a matter of drinking tea and eating cakes. There were scones, cakes and something like apple crumbles all served on a series of stacked plates. I had hot chocolate ut my parents had tea and possibly cappuccino later. It was my first high tea and quite the experience.

On our second day in Tasmania, we visited the old penal settlement of Port Arthur and although it was probably not as welcoming as it now seems, in the sun it looked rather pleasant. It is actually a fascinating open air museum that must be visited. From Hobart, we drove up the Tasmanian east coast on the one truly sunny and warm day we had on that trip. I had chosen the route because of the supposed beauty to that part of Tasmania and I don't think we were disappointed. The one drawback is the constant presence of lumber trucks who must travel uphill very slowly, and there are many hills in Tasmania along this 2 lane highway. More than once we got stuck behind a truck, unable to pass for many kilometers. But we did see some pleasant little towns like Orford, where we had wonderful sandwiches, St. Marys where we had fish and chips and Bicheno where we stopped for gas. Along the way, my mother even found a vineyard she enjoyed. We eventually arrived in Launceston but only spent a short time there as the next day we drove past Devonport to Burnie where we stayed a few nights at a fabulous Best Western. The hotel restaurant served generous portions and the wireless internet was free; life can't get much better than that. We did have a short side trip to Stanley, a small town to the west where my father and I went to the top of a rocky outcrop called The Nut. I went off exploring for a bit and found an echidna (spiny anteater). It is a relative of the platypus in that it is a mammal that lays eggs. I can't imagine how it got up the sheer sides.

On our way back to Launceston, we stopped in the little town of Deloraine, home to a sort of hippie counter-culture movement. It's sort of like San Francisco but 1/1000th the size. We stopped for some lunch there and it seemed pleasant enough. Back in Launceston, we visited the Victoria and Albert Museum, a museum built on an old rail yard. It has science, art and history components and was quite good for being in such a small place. Returning to Hobart via central Tasmania, we stopped in Richmond, a small town with much Georgian architecture to use the internet and get some ice cream. Around that time we stopped at the Palmara Wine Estate where my parents sampled the products and had a very pleasant and wide-ranging discussion with the owner. It turns out that the white flowers you see all along the highways are specially bred poppies, opium poppies to be precise. They are harvested and sold to drug companies to make morphine and whatever else. For such a small island, Tasmania has quite a lot to see and I think my parents and I enjoyed the trip immensely.

From tiny Tasmania to metropolitan Melbourne. This is where my brother joined the trip and we all went down to St. Kilda and Acland Street to have a feed. I remember this day being quite cool with a strong sea breeze. I remember it because that was almost the exact same condition I last visited St. Kilda in. We walked along Acland Street admiring the many cakes and pastries before finally having some. They were no doubt fattening beyond belief but the taste was divine.

The next day we set out for Ballarat, a town founded when gold was discovered nearby. Along the way we pulled into a McDonald's where I accessed the wireless internet to obtain my final results. I held my breath but when I found the courage to look at my marks I breathed a sigh of relief and the weight of the world was lifted from my chest --- I had passed all my courses. It was over. I had finally achieved what I had set out do to so long ago. Every day had seemed like an eternity and those 3 years were now a to be a memory. All those tense moments in exams, all those times I worried about my assignments were now I think I could look back on and either laugh or cry. My mother made me send an e-mail to my aunt and my grandmother to pass on the good news. The best part for me was that I cold now enjoy a good night's sleep knowing that my family's trip had not been in vain and I would be graduating.

In Ballarat we stayed at the Sovereign Park Motor Inn, a reasonable hotel except parking was difficult in the confined space. We wandered a bit of Ballarat before returning to the hotel to celebrate my impending graduation. The Red Lion Restaurant, adjacent to the hotel, served an excellent meal. The next day we spent at Sovereign Hill Park, an open air museum that recreates the atmosphere of Gold Rush Era Ballarat. The most interesting thing, though, was the school program that takes place over several days. Students and their teachers stay on site and dress in period costume. I think it is a remarkable idea. Sovereign Hill has many fascinating demonstrations such as gold pouring, wheelrighting and musketry. I even peeked in on a school group doing something in the reconstructed school house. That night, we returned to see the story of the Eureka Stockade, a sort of rebellion where gold miners, in 1854, set up a stockade on Bakery Hill to protest the heavy-handed tactics of the local police, who were often corrupt former criminals themselves, and the licence system. The "rebellion" was crushed when a few days after the stockade went up, the army and the police stormed it, however reforms did follow and the licence system was abolished. The Eureka Stockade has become ingrained in the Australian psyche as the start of the labour movement and the heart of Australia's fighting spirit. It's actual importance is debatable but if an event is to be judged by its consequences, then the Eureka Stockade is seen now as a watershed moment in Australian history, if nothing else. I will also mention that the leaders of the stockade included a Canadian who was killed when it was stormed, an African-American and Peter Lalor, who lost his left arm in the fight. All were acquitted of treason.

The next little trip we had planned was a quick drive up to Bendigo, a town to the north of Ballarat whose fortunes also turned on gold. However, it seems that unlike Ballarat, Bendigo is still producing appreciable quantities of that metal. Along the way we stopped in the little town of Castlemaine to visit Buda, a large property with a garden built by a Hungarian immigrant in the 19th Century. The family lived there for about a century and it's now a public trust and museum. In Bendigo we went to the Chinese Museum where my mother got a detailed history from the very pleasant curator.

Before returning to Melbourne, we stopped into the cities of Geelong and Queenscliff. Geelong is Victoria's second largest city and I took my family there to show them but also so that they could sample the ice cream at Lic, an ice cream parlour with excellent ice cream. We wandered the foreshore in very fine weather. Queenscliff, a little to the east, is Geelong's coastal getaway town. It sits almost at the entrance to Port Phillip Bay and we just sort of stopped in to see the town. We returned to Melbourne and spent the next day wandering the city before meeting up with an acquaintance of ours on Lygon Street, the home of Italian Melbourne. We had an excellent pizza meal at one of the finer establishments. From Melbourne, we took off to Adelaide.

Upon arriving in Adelaide, we were greeted by sunny skies and scorching temperatures. Australia was playing England in the Ashes Tournament at the time so it was something of a miracle my mother found accommodation. It was very easy to get to and surprisingly close to Glenelg, Adelaide's fashionable beach district. We spent a good portion of the day walking in the area. The next day, we drove out to McLaren Vale, one of the area's many wine producing regions. After sampling some local wines, we stopped in a vineyard restaurant where we had an excellent lunch. The final course of my parents' meal was pork belly glazed with some sauce. It was absolutely delicious. My mother asked me what pork belly was and she would not believe me that it was exactly what it said until I went on Wikipedia and proved it. This particular cut took all the meat but only a small layer of the fat. Whatever they did, it worked and my mother has been raving about it since. Not content with just one wine region, the next day we travelled to the Barossa Valley to sample some wines there. First, we stopped in the little town of Hahndorf, founded by Germans in the 1830s, that still retains some Germanic feel. I had an excellent sausage there. On our final day, we visited Port Adelaide and had a quick look at a local gallery before catching our flight --- and that's when the fun began.

At first, our plane was late coming in from Brisbane due to storms up north. And now there was a line of storm cells approaching Adelaide. After quite a long wait we were put on the plane and then had to wait another long time for the storms to pass before it was safe to takeoff. On getting closer to Canberra, we were told that there had been a fire alarm and the terminal had been evacuated, however, it was cleared by the time we landed. After all that we were about 2 hours late and quite tired. I remember getting back and sleeping well.

The next few days were spent getting ready for my graduation although we did find time to go to the National Film and Sound Archive which so greatly impressed my mother that she went back not once, but twice. I had to pick up my gown, hood and motorboard as well as finalize a few other things. On the 9th of December, at 17:30, the graduation ceremony started. There were a few short speeches but soon enough it was my turn. The ceremony took place in the very imposing Llewelyn Hall in the School of Music and even though I knew I was graduating, I was still nervous. Finally, as I stood on the stage, the Dean of the Law School called my name and I walked towards the Pro-Vice-Chancellor who was handing out the diplomas. If it ever comes up, I will say that I was the first person to be given a Juris Doctor from the ANU. Following the ceremony, we had dinner at Charcoal, an old Canberra restaurant. I was so relieved to be done and pretty proud of myself. 2 days later, our final leg was a trip to Sydney.

In Sydney, we stayed at the Hyde Park Inn. With the euphoria of graduation still clinging slightly in the air, we walked around Circular Quay. The next day we wandered the city center some more before taking in Handel's "Messiah" at the Opera House. Oprah Winfrey was in town at the time and I suggested that they rename that famous structure the Sydney Oprah House. The next day we travelled to Katoomba to see the famous 3 Sisters rock formation and later that evening my brother and I took a night time bridge climb of the Sydney Harbour Bridge. Although you're fastened in you're very high up and you go to the very top. It's something that has to be experienced firsthand. The next day we went to Manly Beach by ferry with the Motykas, our good friends from Newcastle who graciously hosted us for the day. The following day, my family and I parted company as they returned to Canada and had a few aerial adventures of their own. I returned to Canberra. I hope my family had a pleasant time in Australia and I am so glad they could come down for my graduation. I found the vacation most enjoyable and I hope they did too.

But there is no rest for the weary. The day after I returned I took part in an overnight hike in the southern reaches of Namadgi National Park. The Canberra Troop of Plast had a hike planned and I helped with supervision. The day started out ominously with thunderstorms but it cleared up to a beautiful sunny day and off we went trekking. We saw much native bush along the way including long abandoned homesteads. We camped just off the trail and although the day had been quite pleasant the night was almost bitterly cold. The next morning we were picked up and returned to our various abodes. From what I've heard the scouts enjoyed the experience and apart from nearly freezing, so did I.

So that's what's occurred in the last 5 weeks. Now that my degree is done, I'm feeling a bit lost. I have my diploma to do but that's a little while away yet. I have to apply for a further visa, which I hope I will get but it's just something else to be nervous about. At any rate, after an exciting 5 weeks, it's good to be back. I wonder what new adventures await me just beyond the horizon.