Rottnest take 2

I went to Rottnest back in 2011 for the first time, just for a day trip with two girlfriends. It was only a few months after moving to Australia. We had a good day riding bikes and having a swim - it was a nice time with good company. I knew I must be missing something - everyone who grew up in Perth LOVES Rottnest because they have so many memories from multiple family holidays and leavers (graduation) parties. Everyone said that you have to at least spend the night (or several nights) to really understand the charm of Rottnest, and I’d have to agree. Chris and I went for a long weekend back in June.

We took a Friday evening ferry for the 40 minute trip, which covers the 11 miles (18 km) between Fremantle and the island. There are no cars allowed so most people get around on bikes; we took ours with us. You wouldn’t think a 19 sq km (7.3 sq miles) island is that big, but with all the hills it can be pretty tough riding! (at least for this chick who doesn’t bike that often!)

Chris with our bikes

The main settlement at Thomson Bay

We stayed at the Hotel Rottnest which is near the main settlement in Thomson Bay. It was originally the Governor’s residence on the island and has now been recently redone, which was quite nice (and has a nice pub and a nice lawn drinking area where all the quokkas beg for food). There are multiple other settlements with modest cabin type housing (Longreach and Geordie Bays). You can also stay in the “Quad”, which used to be the Aboriginal prison. There are also tourist rooms available in the former boys reformatory dorms, and good plain old camping spots.

I wrote more about it in my original Rottnest blog, but the island also has a military history with several big guns installed to defend the port of Fremantle during the WWII. We spent some time at one of the guns on Oliver Hill (I had to walk my bike up part of that thing). It also has former military barracks, lookouts and bunkers, lighthouses, and a railway that used to supply the guns. 

The WWII gun at Oliver Hill

Goofing around with old helmets - who wouldn't laugh "with" that guy?!

One of the nice things about the setup is that you can get as involved in the island’s history as you’d like. There are signs and informative placards located in many spots that you can read or ignore at your leisure (I think I read most of them :) ), there are free walking tours with a guide, etc. You can be as active or as inactive as you’d like. You can swim, bike, snorkel, surf etc.; or just sit and read a book. You can go out for nice meals or you can cook for yourself or have a BBQ. You can have too many drinks at the pub with your friends or you can just take it easy. 

And the nicest part of all is the beautiful location – even in the “winter” when we went (I use the term “winter” very loosely…..Aussies think it’s winter anyway). After all, Vlamingh (the Captain who so aptly named the island “rat’s nest” due to the quokkas), described the island as “a paradise on earth.” And it’s 11 miles from where I live. I understand the sentiment a bit more now.

Crazy About Cairns and Chris

Obviously I haven’t written in awhile, and I’ve done some really amazing things over the last year that I haven’t shared. But this last trip to Cairns in August is a “must blog” event; Chris and I got engaged there, after all!

The whole reason for the trip was that my Aussie friends Amanda and Jason were getting married there, so it had been in the works for quite some time. I had been to Queensland (briefly) before, on an epic family driving journey from Sydney to Cairns way back in 1998. Honestly, I didn’t remember much of Cairns from that trip -- but to be fair, it was at the end of a very long three weeks trapped in a car with my mom, dad, sister, and grandmother. All my 19 year old self cared about was checking my grades from my very first semester at the University of Wisconsin (of course this was back when you had to call on a "landline" phone and listen to the automated robot voice! And FYI, it was all As and one AB…..GPA of 3.8…..not too shabby for a girl from a small town public school).

Chris and I flew out on the Thursday and the wedding was on Friday, which was absolutely beautiful. We stayed in Palm Cove (the location of the wedding) for two nights, and then stayed the following week in downtown Cairns. We stayed at the Jack and Newell apartments; they get excellent reviews on Trip Advisor and we really enjoyed it there. We had a beautiful apartment overlooking the inlet and harbour with rainforest mountains in the background. 

View from our apartment

Palm Cove Beach

I really can’t recommend northern Queensland enough – affectionately known as FNQ (...effin Q....I find it amusing). There’s tons to do, it’s easy to get around, there’s good service despite (or due to) being a backpackers town, and there’s beautiful scenery….beaches, tropical rainforest, mountains, winding switchback roads that will make you sick, the Great Barrier Reef, tons of animals to see, waterfalls, hiking, gorges, massive strangling fig trees….it pretty much has it all. Chris and I snorkelled the GBR, did some day drives (I had to add to my Australia map of course!). We took the Skyrail over the Daintree Rainforest to Kuranda where we went to a butterfly sanctuary, a bird sanctuary, and I got to hold a koala at the animal park! We then took the train back which winds through the beautiful rainforest. We had several nice meals, and Chris golfed one day while I had a massage and facial. We also spent a day finding gorges and waterfalls, and had lunch and laid on the beach in Port Douglas (I definitely want to spend more time here next time).

And, on the last night of an already fabulous holiday, Chris proposed and I said “of course!”

Butterfly Sanctuary....they were everywhere

Lazy koala in Kuranda

It was so amazing when they handed him to me and
he crawled over, snuggled in and just hung on like I was a tree!

Waterfalls in the Daintree Rainforest

Snorkelling on the Great Barrier Reef

A massive strangling fig (The Cathedral Fig), near Atherton

Winter Wonderland - I'll Be Home for Christmas (2013)

Well I can hardly believe that we've been back from the US for almost three months now. Not that I need excuses for not writing my blog, but since I've been back it's been a lot of work stuff and not much else! We've got a few fun trips coming up this year though so I'll be telling you all about them in due course.

My first week after leaving Perth was quite hectic...and it was a lot of fun! I flew Perth - Sydney - Dallas (that flight doesn't get any easier) and was greeted at the airport by Gram, Mom, Tracey, and Jackson (Grant was sick). Tracey made Jack give me a hug which was quite hilarious considering he didn't know who I was (I saw him last when he was about 15 months old).....he just knew his mom said he was supposed to be excited to see me. The boys both warmed up pretty quickly though since I was the newest person in the house....my mom didn't like the fact that I was their new favourite person :). Grant even sat outside the bathroom when I took showers. 

Tracey, "buddy, now Auntie Trisha is going to want a little privacy when she takes a shower."
Grant, "why?"
Tracey, "Well she's not used to having little people follow her everywhere."
Grant, "But me love her! And she loves me!"

Geez that'll melt your heart!
 

I spent 2 nights in Dallas and then flew to Minneapolis, where my dad and Robin picked me up at the airport and drove to Rice Lake, Wisconsin. I was so excited to cross the state line and finally be on my homeland! I jokingly asked Dad to honk the horn when we crossed the state line (a tradition for me on all those drives between Chicago and Crandon) - he just laughed (not knowing I was serious...he would have if I had really tried!) Even though I haven't lived in Wisconsin for over 10 years, I still consider it my home. I had a great 2 days / nights in Rice Lake with Dad and Robin, and then on my 35th birthday (yikes!), I drove from Rice Lake to Crandon (about a 3.5 hour drive). My dad kindly let me drive his Lincoln Navigator again the whole time I was home, which saved a ton of money on a rental vehicle! And this year I didn't even put a scratch on it, not like last time in Chicago in Kiley's parking garage (gulp). 

Finally! In C-town!! But not for long. I spent 2 nights, and had a great Thanksgiving with Mom and Nick, and then we got up early Friday morning and set out for Madison (about a 4 hour drive) in order to go to the last Badger football home game of the season. They lost a shocker of a horrible game to Penn State, but it was still fun and I got to see old friends at the Great Dane, had a great time tailgating, and saw the band do the Wisconsin Finale which still gives me chills thinking back to when performed on that field for nearly 80,000 people every football Saturday for 4 years. 

 

 

My favorite brewery in Wisco!

Finally, after 8 days of constant travelling, I made it back to Crandon for a relaxing few weeks. I hung out with Mom, Nick, Grandma and Bill....finished Christmas shopping.....wrapped gifts.....got myself acclimated to the freezing cold weather again.....saw friends......ran on the treadmill a bit knowing the next few weeks were going to be ALL about food......had one big night out with Joanne followed by one of my famous day-long horrible hangovers (I hid shamefully in the basement).......and then I WAITED very impatiently for the guest of honor to arrive - CHRIS!!! I was so excited for him to get there I could barely stand it. Let me just say that I won't willingly do 3 weeks apart again. I know, pathetic. I just threw up a little. And if you think I was impatient and excited to see him, you should have seen my mother! She could barely contain herself and she was VERY disappointed with me that I chose to pick up Chris in Chicago and then stay in Chicago for several days before bringing him north.

I really enjoyed showing Chris my favourite city....the City of Big Shoulders, the Second City, the City that Works...whatever you choose to call it, it is a great place and I loved living there for my 7 years. There were reasons for me to move away of course, but it was great to share it with Chris as a tourist. I actually drove down the day before he flew in and stayed with my friend Missey before checking into the Westin (and thanks Kiley for the gift of a night there!) While in Chicago I was able to share some of my favourite places to eat, took a trolley tour, went to a Blackhawks game, did an inspection and fixed a few things at my condo, went to see the Christmas lights at the Zoo, ice skating, checked out the view from the Top of the Hancock Building, saw a few friends and co-workers (Rickie! Keely! Missey! Ted!), and enjoyed the blues at Kingston Mines. Oh and did I mention we stimulated the US economy by doing tons of shopping? I don’t think Americans will ever realise (unless they live outside the US for awhile), how much cheaper the US is than almost every other developed country in the world. So we took advantage of that! Also Chris really enjoyed the snow and was taking all sorts of pictures that I found hilarious (snow on a bush, snow on a light, snow on a tree….) We also bought him a big North Face jacket so he wouldn’t freeze to death when he finally got up to the northwoods (it just takes “cold” to another level).

A few days before Christmas, Chris and I made the drive from Chicago to Crandon (I did the driving since I was used to the change already to the other side of the road). It was great to introduce him to my mom and Nick. In Australia, for a greeting people will do this “air kiss” and sort of give a little pat. Not an embrace. I had forewarned Chris that in Crandon, we HUG. Like a real hug. We don’t do it all the time…like if I just saw you recently, I probably wouldn’t hug you or even touch you at all (where in Oz, they do the air kiss like every time they see each other but it can feel a bit empty to me….it’s just something I’ve gotten used to now but it was hard when I first moved here)….but if I haven’t seen you in awhile, or I’m saying goodbye, we give each other BIG HEARTFELT EMBRACES. I miss that. Anyway, the point is, that Chris was forewarned and he got lots of hugs when meeting my family :)

Chris walking on a frozen lake for the first time (Lake Metonga)

The very next morning we got up early and drove to the Frozen Tundra......Titletown.....the home of the Green Bay Packers for Chris’ first NFL experience! It was a freezing cold day and pretty much snowed the whole game. We enjoyed a few cold beverages prior to the game, listened to a band in a beer tent and generally had a good day (although the Packers lost to the Steelers).

Chris and I at the Packers game...he has zero choice in what team to follow

Upon returning to Crandon, we were greeted by my sister and the family who had just arrived from Texas – finally my mom had us all together in one house!! This was really special to my mom…the poor thing has 2 children and 2 grandkids (soon to be 3)….3 are in Texas and the crazy one lives in Australia. I really hope we can all be together again in the future. It was great to spend those 5 days together – and “Uncle Chris” was a big hit with the little boys. It was a blast watching the boys who are at that great age for Christmas, but I think the grown-ups had the most fun on Christmas eve while preparing their remote-controlled helicopters. I can’t believe the boys actually slept through the racket we were making with their toys! Also can't forget to mention that Chris fired a gun for the first time! Guns are illegal in Australia (generally)....not looking for any discussion on gun control here....but let's just say we had fun with my Uncle Fred showing Chris and Craig what to do.

Christmas in Crandon

After Christmas and Tracey went back to Texas, Chris and I drove over to my dad’s for a few days. Chris had his first snowmobiling experience thanks to my step-sister Brenna and hubbie Jason, and also went on the Leinie’s Brewery Tour on one of the coldest days I’ve ever experienced in my life. We also took a tour of my dad’s mill, which was great for me to see all the progress as well, had a few drinks and a bit of Blackberry Brandy (a Wisconsin tradition). It went something like this:

Dad, “Chris you want a shot of blackberry brandy?” (along with about 4 other men)
Chris, “No I’m alright.”
Trisha, “Yeah of course he’ll have one!” (somehow I escaped having one though haha)

Anyway, back in Crandon for New Year’s Eve, and we spent the evening playing dominoes with Mom and Nick. This may sound boring to some of you younger folks out there, but it was one of my favourite nights of the whole trip. I had about 10 margaritas and everyone was very merry.  New Year's Day, the Badgers played in a Bowl game and mom and Nick had a viewing party. Chris got to experience the party that happens when the Badgers score, including jello shots and a whole bottle of blackberry brandy being passed around. And he got to meet some great people as well! Having him in Crandon really made his accent stand out to me. He just sounds normal to me now for the most part (I'm the one with the accent in Australia!), but having him in the US (and Crandon especially) really made his Aussie accent noticeable. After the game everyone stood outside and watched the Australian make his first snow angel! (others said they would do it too but then we all just stood there and watched him....hahahahaha)

Finally the time came for us to go back to Chicago for our flight back to Australia (with a few days in Hong Kong). Mom and Nick were so generous and drove us all the way to Chicago and drove back all in the same day (thanks so much guys). It was so hard saying goodbye to my mom. Being away from family – you get used to it – but that doesn’t mean it’s ever easy. I guess that’s all I can say about that.

We did some last minute shopping and spent our last night in the US at a Chicago Bulls game. The next morning we awoke to a “winter wonderland” which is wonderful most of the time unless you are supposed to fly. After barely making it to the airport with our five (FIVE!!) bags on horrible roads, our flight managed to still leave (albeit delayed several hours). This meant we had to make an unscheduled stop in South Korea to switch over the crew, en route to Hong Kong. The stopover in Hong Kong was quite good – we were already over jet lag by the time we got back to Perth (same time zone), and it helped me have a few days to separate emotionally from my family before coming back to work and life. We mostly just went sightseeing, shopping, eating, and generally relaxed. It was a nice end to my whirlwind 6.5 week vacation!!!

After being off work for 7 weeks, it was hard to adjust that first week. But it’s funny (and sad) how quickly you get back into the routine and after a few weeks, the trip home seemed like a lifetime ago. We’re already planning a few smaller trips for this year (Kalgoorlie, Esperance, Rottnest Island, and Cairns) and then hopefully will get to travel back home again in 2016 in the (US) summer. Can’t wait.