All’s well that ends well. By the time you read this, I will be well down the Gibb River Road in Western Australia, likely hiking a Kimberley Mountaintop, swimming in a freshwater gorge, or eyeing a crocodile from a safe distance, venturing forth to my next Adventure…
Okay, maybe it wasn’t a week, but eleven days to move my whole life from one end of the continent to the other isn’t too shabby. Captain John is a character to say the least and I’ve already got blackmail photos. The problem with discrediting our Captain is the discouragement of investors in our documentary project. Our plan is to go on a private journey and document the majesty of the Kimberley.
We will be looking at the anthropomorphic attributes (displays of human form or qualities) of the wildlife in the Kimberley and document the coast in the last 3.7% of earth least impacted by human activity. Continue reading Hello Darwin, Fair Dinkum, I’m Here!
As I listen to the Whooping Frog calling for his mate outside my window in Dunsborough, just south of Busselton, I am eating my favorite chocolate that has been discontinued, but we found some in a little IGA market in Busselton.
Video of the Ningaloo Reef on my YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=UUmUr_7XECBPT4U6fv4Eiv_Q
This beautiful Shark Bay Sea Snake (common name) is only found in Shark Bay, Western Australia, which means that it has a very small geographic range. Little is known about this species and this makes it difficult to assess the conservation status of this species. Blanche D’Anastasi is studying this species, and other species, also only found in Western Australia, to find out the conservation status of this species. She will use the DNA of the snakes to find out how far sea snakes travel to breed and will look at diet to find out how specialised sea snakes are in their feeding choices.
There’s not just sea snakes around here!
How perfect is this sign!
Loving the warm water and lots of sea snakes, turtles, rays, and gorgeous fish. It has been a lovely break from a stressful last two months. I didn’t realize how similar sea snakes are to terrestrial snakes and, oh yeah, ten times more venomous than the Australian Brown Snake. Lot’s of safety protocols in place and I was re-certified in Workplace First Aid, CPR, and oxygen administration in the event of decompression illness (DCI). No risk of DCI for us. We are just snorkeling. All this beauty is at a maximum of 4 meters. We just hold our breath and dive down to catch the snakes. We have caught four so far and are taking photos, measurements, genetics samples, and observing behaviour.
I will post more as time and internet access permits! Cheers to you all!
XOXO, Teresa
World Wrestling Federation, Dwayne Johnson, NOT! This is so perfect. The introduction ties in beautifully with the conclusion. WWF no longer exists! Who knew?!? My young readers will be baffled by this post. My experienced readers should get a chuckle.
I have been going non-stop since I returned to Perth. I moved. I moved again. Yes, that’s right I am no longer in Port Kennedy. I am in Cooloongup, an Aboriginal name if you hadn’t guessed. I care for two dogs and two cats, tutor four students, kayak as often as I can, attend lectures Tuesday evenings, and study at the Murdoch Rockingham Campus when I’m not sleeping or doing Yoga on Monday.
After kayaking through a storm and experiencing a towing rescue (yes, I was the one being towed), I redeemed myself by perfecting the “Diehl Roll.” That’s where you have your hands all out of position, but you come up anyway. My Coach says he’s going to see if he can master it tomorrow.
My housemate is gone and I found a video, not a DVD, of The Rock, with Sean Connery, Nicholas Cage, and Ed Harris. It was exactly what I needed. Two hours of all consuming entertainment. Not only that, but I have been completely accepted. Jackie and Jesse (resident cared for dogs) enjoyed the movie sitting on my lap. But the icing on the cake was rewinding the video. Remember that? For my young readers, let me explain. In the olden days, pre-Blue Ray, DVD, 3D, TiVo, and Internet, movies that you rented or bought used to come on a videotape that wound from reel to reel. Kind of like a large cassette tape, but you wouldn’t know that if you don’t know about videos and VCR‘s. The whizzing and whirring brought back fond memories of recording Star Trek and the actual occurrence of something going wrong and you didn’t get to see your show. There was no internet to watch any show at any time. We actually wondered about things back then. If you wanted to know something, you had to go to a library! I know, unimaginable!
Don’t get me wrong, I love my Internet and the clear crisp images now available, but there was value, I think, in wondering about something.
One year ago today, I set foot on Australian soil as an Australian Permanent Resident. As I write this, I am encrusted with salt, sand, and have sun cream smeared in my ears…wouldn’t have it any other way! How did I spend my day? Surveying the gorgeous ocean reefs and playing with Australian Sea Lions as I paddled my WestCoast 555, the kayak in which I will likely circumnavigate Australia.
I came back into society for a short stint (I’ve been off-grid, meaning no phone or internet for quite some time) yesterday as January 26th is officially Australia Day and today it is celebrated by a day off from work, one of the multitude of Australian holidays, oh and did I mention a full work week over here is 38 hours. Might I have heard an audible gasp from the Northern Hemisphere? I’m afraid Australia has a much better work/life balance. In fact, a lot of shops are closed on the weekend and if they are open, they close at 5 p.m. Fair Dinkum!
As it was my first official Australia Day as a Permanent Resident, I attended the Premier’s Active Citizenship Awards and Citizenship Ceremony at the Civic Centre. They were presented by His Worship the Mayor of Rockingham. All sorts of controversy abounded regarding how long you had to reside in Australia to apply for citizenship. Anywhere from two to six years was the range. I thought it was two years for my visa, but I found out it was four :(. I immediately went to the Australian Citizenship website and got 100% on the practice tests so I am ready! I may have passed the citizenship test, but I’m still working out the Aussie Day Checklist (see below). Don’t worry, I will still be a Yank, just an Aussie Yank. Hmm, I wonder if I will need to change my website name.
Here are a few recent photos. I hope to get everyone up to speed on the last four months with weekly posts (hope springs eternal). A big Thank You! to everyone who has kept in touch. It really means a lot to me to hear from you all. I may be Down Under, but each of you are in my heart All Over the World!
This is why I sea kayak. We had a wonderful opportunity by Seal Island just off the coast of Rockingham, Western Australia. My paddling partner and I came upon about twenty Australian Sea Lions basking in the sun. As we sat offshore the island, two Sea Lions entered the water and came right up to us. They frolicked and put on a display for about 15-20 minutes. The marine mammals dove under our kayaks and nibbled at our paddles. Suddenly, they would burst out of the water and slap their flippers. Deliberately approaching us, they would make eye contact and then perform some display. The pinnipeds would resurface and almost give us a wink as if they were checking our response to their antics. They chased each other and wrestled in the water. Clearly having a good time performing for us, their cheeky personalities came through in each of their distinctive dances. The video is available under Recent Uploads on my YouTube Channel: http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCmUr_7XECBPT4U6fv4Eiv_Q
DIEHL 