I'm still here.

Last weekend (or is it?) at Floreat Beach

Well, I was supposed to leave Perth this past Monday. But I'll be darned if the aggravations from my first flight didn't follow me right to the end! Alas.
When I headed to the airport to check in my luggage, I was told that while my name was on the fly list, my return flight to Toronto had been cancelled. Why? Because I had missed my connecting flight with Etihad from Dublin--the plane that was 9 hours behind schedule. Apparently it's policy to cancel returning flights if the first one was missed for some reason... But nobody cared to mention that to me back in July. 

So, because of someone else's error in not reissuing my returning ticket after switching around my flights, I've been left without a flight back home. Now, it's been three days of back and forth calls between Etihad and Aer Lingus, and I'm still waiting on whether I will be granted a flight back by one of them. The option given was that we pay for another flight and maybe get reimbursed. Um, no?? Not if the flights to and from Australia were already paid for, and that the first missed flight wasn't even my fault. 

While it certainly is frustrating to not be able to fly out when I was supposed to and deal with all this garbage, it's not terrible having to stay a few more days either (if not longer, ho-hum). In fact, it has given me the opportunity to properly wrap things up on this blog: it's been a whirl wind trip of giggles, tears and numerous nappy changes. Before this visit, I hadn't had much experience in looking after kids age four and lower; I wasn't sure how I would be with H, and whether I'd be any good at the whole parenting gig. But since I've been staying with him, I've grown much more at ease in my role as "Auntie," and of course, much fonder of him. 

At the same time, I've also had the chance to familiarize myself with a city/country that I had never visited before. Perth, otherwise known as the most isolated city in Australia, is a neat place. Perhaps it's not as grandiose as Sydney or Melbourne, but it still has a certain... Je ne sais quoi. It's got the beaches, the ocean, the wineries, the kangaroos... And it wants you to come visit. Desperately. 

It's so very lonely.

It's also no secret that I've grown considerably addicted to the coffee culture around here. It is amaaaaaaaazing. Not only that, but it has forever raised my standards of iced coffee; if it doesn't have either ice cream and/or whipped cream, then sadly it's a deal breaker. (The other two things I became addicted to was the yogurt, the cheese and the Connoisseur Ice cream.)

The other deal breaker would be to stay in a place with no dance classes. But thankfully, Perth has the amazing Western Australian Ballet! (see: Cinderella.) It only was for a few months, but I enjoyed taking a weekly intermediate ballet class with a delightfully witty instructor.

Viewing my first-ever live cricket match with Australia facing New Zealand

My time in Australia also coincided with some big events: 

-The big election where everyone welcomed Malcolm Turnbull, and said farewell to Tony Abbott by leaving onions on their doorsteps 

-The Grand Final of the AFL (Hawthorne triumphed)

-The Melbourne Cup (Prince of Penzance!)

-The Australia vs New Zealand cricket tournament (ongoing as we speak)

-Prince Charles' visit to Perth with Camilla. (See the exclusive footage of his drive-by below.)

We also visited the Perth Zoo a few weekends ago; it was nice, but it was later in the day, when the animals were settling down for the evening, and the park was getting ready to close.

There you have it. I didn't end up meeting a Hemsworth brother (sadly), but I didn't come across any dangerous insects (outside of the zoo), so that's a plus. If I'm still here next week (I might be), I'll be sure to update. But as of late, I've been delving into the depths of my imagination with this thing called NANOWRIMO (National Novel Writing Month), in an attempt to achieve the impossible: writing a novel of 50,000 words by the end of the month. I'm not at the halfway point yet, although I probably would be if I had been on a plane with nothing to distract me. Whether I will succeed is a matter of time, determination and chutzpah.

Thanks for a thrilling time, Australia! I know you want me to stay, but never the less, wish me luck in getting back to Canada (and getting this novel done by the end of the month).

Day at Rottnest Island

Hello November, my old friend. For some of us, that means the impending descent into winter madness, while elsewhere in the world (like here in Australia), November means both summer. Oh, and Christmas. Still can't get my head around that one. I mean, it's warm! In November! And they're already preparing for Christmas here! Oy.

Anyhow.

This post is a few weeks overdue. I mean, zeesh. The four of us finally ventured out to the famed Rottnest Island the previous weekend, and spent the day roaming about. It was a good day to visit--not too cool and not too warm. It was a bit overcast in the morning, but it brightened up nicely by the afternoon.

We got an early start; we took the 8:45 am ferry down the Swan River through Perth--a journey that took an hour--all the way over to Fremantle. From there, we carried on across the bay to Rottnest, which made for a nice bumpy ride on the waves. Harrison, meanwhile, did his toddler duty of providing the entertainment on the ride--he wandered around with his bouncy ball, and made friends with other passengers, both young and old. (No matter where he goes, he always attracts attention.)

I didn't know what to expect when we arrived, but I was pleasantly surprised by how pretty a place it was--lots of scenic views, turquoise water, and craggy cliffs. It was even warm enough to go snorkelling, although we didn't do that. Instead, we took a bus and had a brief tour of the island. You could also bike around the island if you wanted to.

There was whale watching available, but with Harrison being too young to go on the boat, we had to settle for watching them from land. Not that we minded it, because it made for some spectacular scenery. Plus, we could see them spouting off in the far off distance. (If I had been able to get a great shot of a whale breaching, I would have definitely come up with a caption like this.) 

We saw a ton of seals swimming around in one bay, but I sadly could not get a close enough focus on them with my camera. Lucky enough, there was a binocular stand to get a closer look at them.

In the afternoon we stopped off at the restaurant to have lunch before heading back. There was a peacock around, just struttin' her/his stuff, so naturally I had to get a picture of it.

Someone was clearly enjoying themselves.

The island was overrun by quokkas, known for being one of the happiest creatures on earth. Not to mention probably the cutest. We saw plenty along the side of the road (alive, I should note) and people petting them, because they are quite tame. I wanted to get up close with them, and I did, but only before we had to leave.  

Overall, a really nice day! It was great to get out and visit Rottnest and experience the coastal beauty. 

Happy Halloween

Since they aren't huge on celebrating Halloween here in Oz (*sob*), here's some Bette Middler to get us in the spirit from my favourite Halloween movie.

Amok! 

Gif from here

Weekend outings, part 1

My time in Australia is narrowing down to two weeks.

Two weeks.

Where oh where does the time go? I guess when you're watching a toddler, things tend to go by fast. I've been rather lax with the blogging this month, so it's time to update. But before I begin, allow me to speak of a subject halfway on the other side of the world....

Can I take a moment to breathe a sigh of relief/give praise to the universe for a new Canadian PM??

BEHOLD.

All it takes is this one election, and suddenly the rest of the world is having to do a double take on our swaggerific Justin Trudeau. "Hot damn, Canada!" the world is exclaiming.

Hot damn, indeed. 

They were even talking about him on the Perth morning news show last week. Nobody ever talks about Canada--not in the most positive sense these days, anyway--so you know this is a fairly big deal. With all said and done, it's about time that a new government took the reigns on the country. Let's hope he follows through on helping restore Canada's former glory. (I personally think he will.)

Now, back to me--aside from time at the beach, we've taken a few outings these past few weekends to various locales. The first from a few weekends ago was a trip to Serpentine Falls National Park, which was a pretty place; the falls themselves weren't huge, but that was only because of the low precipitation levels in the region. I was surprised by the big turn out in people that wanted to see it.

Reminds me of a place you'd see in Muskoka.

The closest I'm probably ever going to get to one of these guys/gals.

The place was also apparently a kangaroo hangout (likely because visitors give them food), but we only saw the one just a few feet (or metres?) away. It brings my tally of kangaroo sightings up to 6--which means I've seen more of Australia's most popular animal than I've seen Canadian moose in my entire life. How does that figure!

The weekend afterwards (or the one after that one, can't remember), we visited the city of Fremantle, which happens to be the port where everything heading to Perth is shipped to. Most recently it was branded as one of the top ten cities to visit in 2016. Exciting! By the sound of Fremantle, I first thought it to be seedy, but after spending an afternoon there, I decided that it's a rather fun place (although still seedy in some parts). Lots of historical architecture to admire, live music, and lots of people milling about. 

We watched a street performer from Adelaide (or so he claimed) perform tricks on a unicycle, all while juggling fire batons. He also cracked jokes that no one seemed to find funny (haha), and gave some child helpers from the audience swords, which scared their parents. Then he practically begged the audience for money afterwards.

Entry to the Fremantle market

Bigger on the inside than you would have guessed.

Casual weekend dining.

After walking the main drag once or twice, we stopped by a brewery/restaurant known as Little Creatures to whet our whistles with pizza and beer. The beer was good, and we got a free plate of clams with one of our pizzas. (May or may not have sent off a drunkenly-written postcard addressed to home from the place afterwards.)

Our most recent weekend excursion was to Rottnest Island... Coming soon to a blog post near you. 

P.S: Speaking of beer, a recently published article says that the Australian accent was born from drunken colonial settlers. (Well, in that day and age, if you were cut off from the rest of the world and living in a ridiculously hot climate, what else would you want to do??)

Image from here

Dear Harrison

Well, we've made it to October. It's been three months since I arrived; it has gone by incredibly fast, but it feels as though I've been here much longer! You and I have gotten to know each other considerably well.

First, allow me to extend my congratulations to you on your walking; it took a few steps, collapses and a lot of hand holding, but you did it! Now you barely crawl at all, and you're much quicker at getting from place to place. Isn't it glorious? It's rather funny watching you walk, because you're still a bit wobbly and tend to stumble around like you've drunk a little too much.... Milk. Not only can you now reach the tops of tables to grab whatever's closest to the edge, but you are at exactly the right height to bump your head on the corners of tables! That means we have to keep close tabs on you, mister.

Having long since forgotten what it was like to be a year old, it's been interesting to revisit it through your eyes. Everything is a new discovery for you! You want to point everything out, explore, learn what that thing is... And of course, now that you can walk, you want to go everywhere, too.

You haven't mastered the art of talking just yet, but you love to chatter anyway. (Wonder who you get that from.) Right now, you can say anything has two syllables: monkey! doggy! button! They all sound more like, "ackoo" or "acky-nacky", but it's a start.

Getting some splash time while on a recent trip

We've stuck to our weekly schedule of visiting the library for rhyme time and the toddler gym. The weekends, however, are more spiced up with visits to the beach and other places. I've said this before, but you love the beach; and now that the weather is warm enough, we take you to the shoreline and let you kick around when the waves come up. Some other things of note that you've taken a fancy to while I've been here include, but are not limited to:
-Imitating the birds
-Dogs
-flopping on to pillows or cushions and cackling
-Any object that jingles, or makes a shaky noise
-Taking things out and putting them back in (take my bag, for instance)
-Taking a mouthful of food, and then promptly spraying it everywhere
-Dropping anything on the ground and making verbal commands until the accompanying adult picks it up again
-Bananas

As I've since discovered--and have continued to discover--while I've been here, you're developing quite the personality! I'm slowly beginning to see what of person you're starting to become. Having said that, it also seems that behind that cherubic face of yours hides a little rascal who has taken a liking to stirring up mischief! (see above.)

Speaking of looking cherubic, you wouldn't believe how many people want to make friends with you while we're out and about. And true enough, you're pretty darn cute: you tend to win others over with your baby blues and blonde head of hair... Especially the little girls!

Well, Mr. H (as I call you), I'll only be here for another few weeks, but I hope you've enjoyed our time together these past few months! I know I have. It's been a learning experience for me like no other, and a pleasure to get to know your 1-year-old self. The next time I see you in person, you'll be a bit older, taller, and probably will be talking a mile a minute. I cannot wait to hear what you have to say, and I hope to have plenty of silly conversations with you!

Til then, young grasshopper...

Your doting/nutty auntie,

Maddy

The quintessential Aussie Playlist

I have a theory that to every life-altering event, there is usually a soundtrack to go with it. When I think of the music I've been listening to the past few months, my first thoughts will either go straight to the songs that Harrison likes to listen to on repeat, or Pandora--that glorious Oceania central iPhone application where you can listen to various music stations based on your preferences. My personal favourites came from 60s', with maybe some show tunes thrown in there, along with some of today's stuff. Here's my official compilation of musical hits:

1. Headlights, Robin Shulz
2. Mama Said, the Shirelles
3. Wildest Dreams, Taylor Swift
4. You Really Got a Hold on Me, Smoky Robinson & the Miracles
5. What do you mean/Where are U now, Justin Bieber
6. Someday We'll be Together, Diana Ross & the Supremes
7. Will You still Love Me Tomorrow, the Shirelles
8. Peeno Noir--Unless you've watched The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt series on Netflix and understand the premise, there are really no words to describe it.
9. Almost any Disney song that you can think of
10. Shut Up and Dance, Walk the Moon (but only because they were playing it all the damn time)
11. Locked Away, R. City (featuring Adam Levine)
12. Cheerleader, Omi
13. Love me Like you Do, Ellie Goulding

Items I've been carrying around in my bag lately

Opened bag of fruit flavoured rice cakes

Crumbs

Loose wet wipes

Rogue Australian coin

Near empty bottle of hand sanitizer

Full bottle of hand sanitizer

Mini emergency kit

Kobo reader

Two loose bandaids

Sony Camera

Sand

Sunscreen

Baby sun screen

Traveling bag (including freshening wipes, advil, lipstick, more band aids, Nivea spf 30 lip balm)

I celebrated my 26th last weekend and here's what happened.

It was a long time coming, and highly anticipated. This past weekend it arrived, and then... It left.  

Drinks for the birthday girl? You bet. (No, not all of them in one sitting... Sorry to disappoint.) 

 I am now officially 26... Over the hump! (And that much closer to 30). I would never have guessed I'd be celebrating my "champagne birthday" in Australia, but I did, and it was an awesome way to spend it. My birthday also coincided with the long weekend, which was nice.

I didn't take a picture of Yelo, but this is what it looked like. Duuude.

The first order of the day was to get coffee by the ocean. We visited the Yelo Cafe by Trigg Beach, a nice place with a very chilled-out vibe to it. Whether it was the location or the people, there was something about this spot that reminded me of a California setting... Or what I believe California to be like. After taking our coffee, we sat on the beach and watched dogs run amok, like the hooligans they are.

 Later, we went out for drinks (as demonstrated above), and then J&P and I went for dinner at Jamie's Italian. (Harrison had to politely decline on coming because it was passed his bedtime). We didn't get a table until 8, but that was fine with us. We passed the time with a few games and more drinks because... 26.

Dinner was pretty good; no, it was really good. But of course, when it comes from the Jamie Oliver empire, you can expect nothing less. We had a bunch of appetizers to start, and for my main course I had a gourmet burger with fries. I would have taken more pictures, but it was all too beautiful to live.

The lasting proof that I ever ate at Jamie's. This was my baked ravioli starter with a killer chilli pepper. Eat one, and your mouth will and throat (and possibly stomach) will burn for 5 minutes after consumption. You have been warned.

The rest of the night passed for us in a drunk/eaten-too-much stupor, and we stumbled home shortly after 11.

On the Sunday after, we ventured out to the Swan Valley. We first visited a place called the Cheese Barrel; they had a variety of cheeses from all over the globe, and you could order a selection of cheese and wine off the menu. We got a cheese plate of cheddar*, edam, blue cheese and brie, and ate out on the patio, because it was such lovely weather. Harrison, meanwhile, had some fun in the sandbox. (Yes, it had three gigantic sand boxes for children.) 

*I got myself some aged cheddar cheese. It was finished by the end of the week.

When we were finished with our cheesy indulgences, we headed up the road to the House of Honey for a sweeter level of indulgence. It was a very pleasant and welcoming place, with flowers galore. It was also a surprisingly busy place--people love their honey, it would seem. (And so do I.)

All sorts of pretty.

Winnie the Pooh would be overwhelmed.

They had an amazing variety of honeys, and honey/beeswax products...  There's also a cafe, where they use honey in all of their homemade goods. Needless to say, I'll be coming back here before I have to go home.

The famous Australian iced coffee. This one's particularly special, however, because there's honey ice cream in it!

My newest obsessions.

As for holiday Monday, we went back to the beach and enjoyed the sun. And that concludes my birthday weekend! Next year I hope to be spending my 27th at the casino.

Yelo cafe image from here

RIP bookshelf. 

Last week I had to put blogging on a hold because a certain someone was waking up at the crack of dawn to babble to himself in his crib, therefore throwing off his napping schedule, and leaving me to keep him amused throughout afternoon hours. Ah, 1 year olds.

If I wasn't taking him to Rhyme Time in the mornings (because he fell asleep on the way), I would be spending time in the Subiaco Library reading up on a bio of Edith Head. 

Trees... In dresses.

The other spot I spent (and continue to spend) most time was around Kings Park, getting some sun and tree gazing sorry, make that Harrison gazing. This past weekend the four of us took a morning walk over to the lookout point of Swan River, then through the botanical gardens. (The majority of pictures on here have seem to have been taken at King's Park. But that's ok, it's scenic.)

Aside from the more modern developments, not much has changed along here since the 1890s.

Last week, I heard through the grapevine that Australia got itself yet a new PM. Welcome, Malcolm Turnbull! Be good to your fellow country men and women, otherwise they might leave you an early going away present at the end of your term. But lucky for you, you seem to be the most popular Prime Minister Australia's had in five years!

(ps: Canadians, please do this sort of thing before the election.)

In other news...

• Warmer temperatures on the rise, yahoo! Usually it's iced coffees* I would drink on hot days, but I'm harbouring a growing addiction to the smoothies at Boost Juice. Possibly even more dangerous than Starbucks and its iced Caramel Macchiato. (And much healthier, for that matter.)

• Since staying here, I've been enjoying the wonders of Netflix, mainly for the tv shows; it has made me realize what a gaping hole there has been in my life without it. Not that getting Netflix at home isn't impossible, it just tends complicate things for the tv system we currently have *cough cough, ROGERS.* Because Netflix gives me a vast amount of power at my finger tips, I've started watching tv shows such as The Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, Orange is the New Black (finally!) and Narcos. The latter show is based on true events (with a bit a fiction thrown in) about Columbia's drug war during the late 1980s. Wasn't sure if I'd like it upon first learning about it, but it's pulled me in. 

• I started an intermediate ballet class at the beginning of the month... Naturally, because I couldn't resist the pull of the dance. (And where I find the opportunity, I go for it.) The class is good and the instructor we have is quite good as well; he gave some sage advice to the class on my first session when we find ourselves struggling to perform a particular exercise. "Don't talk yourself down. Talk yourself up." 

• Birthday in t-minus three days. Being 25 went by waaaaay faster than I expected it to.

*Having said that, I don't think I'll be able to go back to having my iced coffee the same way again; I've been spoilt by the painfully delicious addition of ice cream and whipped cream. (Thanks, Australia!) 

And last, but not least....

Our guy living it up in the toddler gym this week.

Weekend in Margaret River

View of the ocean from the dining room window of Pullman Bay Resort

 If I could sum up last weekend's trip to Margaret River, I would describe it a pleasant little excursion of wining, eating, and romps along the beach. Oh, and driving. 

On Friday night the three of us drove three hours outside the city to stay at the Pullman Bunker Bay Resort. (On the drive up to the resort, I could see the stars in the sky like never before. It was gorgeous.)
It's a scenic place with a maze of villas(?) by the beach. I call it a maze because without a map, you would never find your way back. (Or maybe you would, I just have a crappy sense of direction.) Our own little villa was nice; it came with a kitchen and two bedrooms, and for the first time in my almost 26 years of life, I got my own bathroom. That being said, I think that my room was haunted, because a) it was always freezing in there, and b) on the second night, when I had a small heater put in, I turned it off before I went to sleep, and when I woke up in the middle of the night... It was back on again. *cue creepy music*

It quickly became obvious that the breakfast at the Inn was turning into the highlight of my weekend... 

Obligatory breakfast shot. Muesli with fruit, which I never have, and it was delicious, along with everything else I had that morning. But sadly enough, I didn't take any other food pictures beyond this one. 

The beach was only five minutes away, so that's where we would head after breakfast....

There be whales here! Or so I'd hoped.

The beach life suits him, no? 

A shot of yours truly.

On Saturday afternoon afterwards, we visited some wineries...

The Vasse Felix Winery was the nicest looking.

Then on Sunday, we finished up our weekend getaway with a visit to the Busselton Jetty, known as the longest pier in the southern hemisphere. 

... But not before having one last pint for the road.

Stay classy, Busselton.

All in all, a fun weekend. 

(Bonus points to the Pullman Bunker Bay Resort for giving us brownies to take home with us.)