Off To The Gold Coast!

Gold Coast ~ by Tejas

Gold Coast is a city on the East coast of Australia.  About 10.5 Million visitors come every year.  The Gold Coast is home to 530,000 people with beautiful beaches.  Also, home to the very painful Blue Bottle Jellyfish.  Oh yeah, I got stung by another Blue Bottle Jellyfish AGAIN!  The sting goes all the way down my forearm.  The Gold Coast gets 300 days of sunshine.  It stretches 57km across the coast of Queensland, Australia.  It’s only 60 km from New South Wales.  Gold Coast is known for its surfing beaches like Surfers Paradise, Broadbeach, and Miami.  It has Australia’s tallest building, Q1.  It is 322.5m above the street.  You can also go on a whale watch cruise to see the whales jump up above water and back down to the river.  Gold Coasts waves are very high, that’s why we rented a surfboard and went surfing.  Everyone did a great job, but it was hard because the waves came fast and rough, and we’re still learning the basics of surfing.  Gold Coast was an amazing place to visit with its Tambourine Mountain, Surfers Paradise, and Movie World. A lot of movies are filmed in Gold Coast because of the weather being so consistent including Thor Ragnarok, Peter Pan, Chronicles Of Narnia, Pirates Of The Caribbean, and Aquaman. 

Tamborine Mountain ~ by Nix

When we were in Gold Coast we went on a tour to Tamborine Mountain. Tamborine

Mountain is 525m tall. It is a plateau at the top so people live up there. Right now 7000 people live up there. We walked through Tamborine National Park  which is a Rain forest, we saw water dragon’s (a big lizard) we saw a enormous WATER DRAGON! We walked exactly 210 stairs in the Rain forest.

In the open area outside of the Rain Forest we saw kangaroos very close to us. 

Boomerangs! ~ by Jovan

In this blog post I will talk about the boomerang. Some countries may think that a boomerang is a dangerous weapon like America because one time they didn’t let a YouTuber take their boomerang with him, it was a hunting weapon for Indigenous Australians a long time ago but now used to play with or for sport fun. On our tour in the Gold Coast we actually learned how to throw a boomerang. It is very complicated but if you do it right it really does come back to you. There are two types of boomerangs; 1.The display boomerang to display and look nice, 2. The throwing boomerang. The the throwing boomerang has something that is like a section of different paint that you put your hand on and the other display boomerang does not. A long long time ago the first humans used boomerangs, but not to kill, to scare. There would be a front group and a back group the back group would have weapons and the front would have boomerangs the front row would throw the boomerangs so the animals would go back and then the back row would kill the animal. 

We all had a chance to practice throwing a boomerang after our lesson, and I bought one to take home and practice in my backyard. 

Learning New Things at The Sunshine Coast

Surf Lessons! ~ by Jovan

On Saturday January 4th, 2020 for the first time I went surfing. Tejas, Nix, Dad and I went on this surfing journey. Our teacher's name was Kara, she taught us the basics of surfing, and she taught us some things that we didn’t know about the beach. She taught us how to get on the board, how to keep your balance, and what to do if you fall off. If you have seen surfers on TV or in real life, you might see them put their hand up, you actually have to do that to keep your balance. 

Here's the basics to how to get up on your board, you start laying down with the tips of you toes on the tail of the board (the back of the board), next you have your hands at the sides of your chest like chicken wings. You take your kicking foot off the board and move it to the front of the board, next you push up with the knees still there.  Then you stand with your hands up. Now go to the water and try it. When you get it lift your hands up in the rock star form and yell...  SURFS UP DUDES!!!!!!!!!

Learning How To Play Cricket ~ by Tejas

Cricket is one of Australia’s national sports.  Cricket is also a little bit like baseball. Jovan and I learned how to play this game on one of the beaches at Sunshine Coast.  At first, I didn’t want to play, and I was a little shy because the kids playing knew how to play really well. After I started playing, I wasn’t that bad at it and I had fun, which is the most important part.  Cricket is a very complex game.  Cricket uses a bat like baseball.  The bat is thinner and longer than a regular bat that we use which is what I’m used to from playing baseball with my neighborhood friends.  It was fun because there were some funny moments such as when someone hit the ball into the bushes or when they hit it on the roof where you can rent kayaks and boogie boards.  I also had fun running from wicket to wicket and hitting the ball.  


We played for almost 4 hours, even after my mom wanted us to stop and go for dinner we wanted to keep playing, so we did and had dinner really late. Since that day, we have been watching Cricket on TV and following the Brisbane Heat, which is Brisbane's National Cricket Team. It is a pretty awesome game. 

An Unexpected Visitor at Coogee Beach

The Blue Bottle Jellyfish ~ by Tejas

The bluebottle jellyfish is common type of jellyfish that will usually washes up on shore of Sydney beaches.  The wind from the ocean is what makes the jellyfish get blown on to shores of beaches or in shallow waters.  On the Eastern coast of Australia during summer this jellyfish makes an unwelcome visit to the Sydney beaches with some other organisms.  The North East winds and warmer currents send these guys to the coast of Australia.  This type of jellyfish is not life threatening.  

While we were on Coogee beach by the Pacific Ocean I got stung by one on my left hand.  I thought what stung me was weird because it looked like a piece of cotton.  I picked it up and threw it into the ocean, which is totally wrong to do.  When you get stung by one it not only will hurt your hand but it will also hurt that entire arm.  I told my dad that my arm really hurts and asked him what was happening. He asked "where does it hurt?".  I said that it hurt from my armpit to the top of my left hand.  My mom is like "Arsh I think he got stung by a jellyfish!"  So my dad is like "Tej let’s go to the Medical Center where we can ask them what stung you." The lifeguard said it’s a bluebottle jellyfish and you can rinse it of in the shower, we’ll give you a ice pack, and you can go home and wash it of with hot water and it will heal by tomorrow.  So we went beck to the hotel and washed it off and watched a movie that night. It was pretty scary and cool at the same time. 

A Trip to Blue Mountains

Blue Mountain Tour ~ by Tejas

While in Sydney, we took a tour of Blue Mountains.  The Blue Mountains are on the outside of the famous city of Sydney.  The reason why it is called the Blue Mountains has blue in it’s name is because the oil from the Eucalyptus tree makes it look blue from a distance.  We booked a tour that went from 7:20 am to 6:00 pm.  The tour was run by Anderson Tours and our tour guide's name was Scotty, he was really funny.  At the tall Blue Mountains they have a spot called the Three Sisters originally called The Seven Sisters. It's three standing rocks that almost look like people. The Aboriginal people of Australia have a story the Three Sisters being members of the Katoomba Tribe. They fell in love with three men from a different tribe but marriage was not allowed in tribal law.  

There was another thing you could do called the cool Scenic World.  Basically you go on a ride and it shows you different parts of the Blue Mountains.  This is why it is called Scenic World.  There were four rides to do at the Scenic World,the long cable car ride where you would go up one of the mountains and view it, the scary glass floor ride where you would see the forest below you, the steepest roller coaster on Earth where you adjust your seat back to as far as you like and ride straight down part of the mountain, and the 30 minute walk through the forest where you will see the remains of the coal mines and see the forest under the trees.  Also the area was very smoky do to the harsh bush fires on the outside of Sydney. There was a lot of smoke and white air because of the fires here, we were not in danger, we were not even that close. 

We Saw Kangaroos ~ by Jovan

This week we went on a bus tour to Blue Mountain. On that tour we went to the Sydney Zoo. At the zoo we saw kangaroos. That is what my blog post is going to be on. Here are some facts about the kangaroo:

• The average full-grown red kangaroo is six feet tall.
  
• The average teen is about two feet
• The baby is one foot
• These types of animals are called marsupials. Marsupials are animals that have a pouch to put their babies in
• Here are some other marsupials,  opossum, wombat, wallaby, and koalas. 
• Kangaroos can run  hop up to sixty KPH clearing more than 8M with a single hop. 
• We were lucky enough to see two wild kangaroos they were both adults. Our tour guide told us no sudden movements, or they will hop away.

Hello Sydney!

About Sydney ~ by Nix

Sydney is the largest city in Australia. About 4 million people live in Sydney. The Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Sydney Opera House are two of its most famous landmarks. Sydney was a originally going to be  named “Albion” but it was changed to recognize Lord Sydney's work to authorize the colony. It was ranked one of the top 10 best cities world to live. Most people think Sydney is Australia's capital but it is not, Canberra is the capital of Australia. In 2000 Sydney hosted the Summer Olympics.

The Sydney Harbour Bridge ~ by Jovan

The Sydney Harbour Bridge is a half arch. It is the bridge that connects the north part of

Sydney to the Sydney districts. It is known as the Coat Hanger. It took 8 years to build  starting in 1929. At the opening ceremony of the bridge over 1,000,000 (one million) people came and the population was 1.256 million. To stop the traffic on the bridge they built the Sydney Harbor tunnel and only vehicles were allowed to pass through. During the construction sixteen people died making the bridge, and two of those people, died going down the bridge (not trying to make you scared). The total cost to make this bridge was 6.25 million Australian Pounds and about 150,000 cars cross the bridge everyday. 

The Sydney Opera House ~ by Tejas

The Sydney Opera House was designed by John Utzon.  He won a contest where architects from all over the world come and compete with their design and whoever wins will be funded to build their design for the Opera House. It was planned for four years of building, but it took 16 years of designing and construction.  The construction started in 1959 and ended in 1973. There are more than 1 million roof tiles covering 1.62 hectares over the house that were made in Sweden and shipped by boat to use. The plan was to spend 7 milllion dollars building it, but in the end the final cost was 102 million dollars.

The Sydney Opera House is like a peninsula on the Pacific Ocean.  There are many concerts, art shows, plays, and much more at the Opera House.  Each one has it’s own room in the Opera House.  The Sydney Opera House also holds choirs and symphonies, and recently will show movies like Harry Potter with the the live orchestra, and popular singers like Prince had performed there. Today more than 10 million people visit the Opera House every year.

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year from Down Under ~ by Mom and Dad

What a night! Australia sure does know how to ring in the New Year! We celebrated 2020 twice with a the small firework display at Darling Harbour which puts on an awesome firework display early for families at 9,10, and 11PM. Darling Harbour is a harbour adjacent to the city centre of Sydney. We were surprised by the amount of people there, and were second guessing our trek with the children to the Sydney Harbour fireworks which draws a over a million people. Was this safe? 

We hatched a plan should we get separated, with glow light stars, information cards, and how to identify people who can help. We started our trek at 9:30pm. We landed at Pirrama Park, a slightly raised open area with a perfect view of the Harbour. Two hours of passing time, and watching this small space fill with more and more people by the minute, it was time and definitely well worth the travel, planning, and wait. The show was spectacular! It was such a surreal experience to be here and see this in person, since we've watched Australia ring in the New Year first on television for decades. 

Happy New Year from our family to yours! 

PS: There are almost three seasons in a day over here. Most of the news coverage reads about Sydney's current heat wave but as you can see we're in sweaters, jeans, and hoods on. The morning is mild, mid day (12-5pm) is scorching hot, and last night from 9pm on was slightly windy and cool. Nothing us true Canadians couldn't handle! 

Singapore Zoo Night Safari

The Safari ~ by Tejas

One night in Singapore we went to a Night Safari Zoo.  We did this scary and exciting tram ride and saw two funny shows.  The night safari zoo opens 7:15 and closes at 11:30. On the

 tram we saw animals like the Indian Rhino, Indian Elephant, White Lion, Bearded Pig (My personal favourite), and more also, there was this guy who was talking about the night safari and its animals.  The long tram ride took you through the full land animal area.  One of the Elephants was saved by the night safari zoo, they said that the elephants in that area were being hunted for their strong tusks.  After the large elephant was saved, a few years later she had a small child.  Most of the animals are not caged so they could just run at you also most of the animals are highly endangered species which means there are very few left.  A lot of animals are hunted for their meat, tusks, and horns. The tram also had to make frequent and short stops so that you could take pictures of different animals.  At the end there were a lot of things to do after the tram ride you could explore the fish and cat trail, check out the animal show, and/or check out the fire show. 

Creatures of the Night Show ~ by Jovan

This safari is called the night safari because the safari opens from 7pm-11:30pm only. We

purchased the tickets and got on the bus. We got on two buses first a small one then a big

one that looked double decker but it wasn’t, it had steps to get to the seats.  A safari is when you get to observe animals in their natural habitat. We had a tour guide who told us a little about the safari on the bus. At the night safari we saw two shows: the first was the fire show, the second was a creature night show. The creatures at the night show were: a fishing cat, a raccoon, two otters, two owls, a really high jumping cat, and a huge snake. This is a whole recap of the show, we sat down and got settled in then the man came up and listed a few rules, one of them was please stay seated because the creatures only recognize the trainers face, so if they see some one moving, well we’ll have a dead body coming out. Then the show started. He put his hand in a trash can and pulled out raccoon food. A white raccoon came out and started to eat, this type was an endangered species. Then they brought out three recycling cans then the two otters came out, from the recycling bins came recycling things and the otters sorted the things. There were ten things one of the otters got two in and the other came out with eight. After the otters left from the forest behind a cat came out it was the fishing cat. He quickly put his head in the water and walked away with a fish in its mouth. Then a trainer came out, and took something out of the wood behind it was a stick with a dead fish on it. A cat came out and jumped high enough that it got the fish, that was the jumping cat. From the sides came two trainers on both sides with owls two of them and one owl scooped across the stage and landed on a branch. Then another trainer came out and said that there was a missing animal. He told every one not to move from their seats, while another trainer came out from back stage and said we found it but they needed two more helpers from the audience . They came out with a humongous snake in hand and that was the end of the show.  At the end the picked us up at 10:15 and went home and went to bed.

The Jain Restaurant ~ by Nix

We went to little India in Singapore. Little India is an area of restaurants and shops. We ate roti (also known as naan in Singapore), yellow daal, brown daal, and a chocolate milkshake. The food was spicy but the roti wasn’t spicy. ”oh” I forgot to mention, why we were at little India, well because we had to go to dinner. The dinner cost $30.00. But when we were coming in he said do you want any Jain food I said we are Jain’s. Jain food is no root vegetables, no meat, only vegetarian. Jain’s don’t eat root vegetables because your killing the plants.