Souvenirs

Just a word to those of you who are expecting souvenirs from Australia.  First of all, get over yourself, most of you are not getting souvenirs.  But for the family members who keep welcoming me into your homes at holiday times, I just want to say, please lower your expectations, because Australia just does not offer much in the way of souvenirs.  They are a byproduct of our own origins, they’re not that much different than us.  Nevertheless they do have a few things that are “distinctively Australian.”  You’ve got your kangaroos and koalas on everything from hot mitts to shot glasses, your Crocodile Hunter memorabilia, which was still creepy even while he was alive, your kangaroo and crocodile jerky (which could be dried muskrat in there and who would know the difference), your fake Aboriginal products Made in China, and your various I ♥ Australia items.  Basically, nobody wants this crap.  However, I want you to know I was thinking of you while I was here, so you will probably find one of the aforementioned in your Christmas stocking this year.  Or if you find some genuine Australian coins in there instead, I swear it’s not just because I had some change left over and didn’t get around to souvenir shopping – so I hope you appreciate them!

Flying Foxes and Cockatoos

Private Lessons

We finally get private swim lessons going for the kids in the hotel pool.  Wish I’d found someone earlier as J&G might be able to swim by now!  We used Tanya’s Tadpoles, recommended by an Australian friend and they travel and come to you.  Julia and Peter did great, and the fact that Graham released his vice grip from me and actually went along with another person in the pool was great progress for him (even if it was just in the hot tub…).

  

Photo Op

We’re headed to the Botanic Gardens today but I decide to swing by the Opera House on our way to show Peter and get some classic Sydney photographs.  Can’t head back to the States without these!

In hindsight, I probably should've given them the ice cream bribe for the photo shoot 

after the photos were completed.

Royal Botanic Gardens & Domain Trust

We head past the picturesque Government House and stroll through the park on a gorgeous sunny day.  The park runs along part of Sydney Harbour and is beautifully landscaped with many gardens and points of interest within the park, and there are some truly spectacular giant old trees, if you’re into trees. 

Around the Oriental Garden and garden shop and restaurant, we encountered trees loaded with flying foxes.  Now flying foxes is a euphemism designed to not frighten the tourists away, because what they really are are the largest bats (fruit bats, to be specific) you’ve ever seen.  Once you get over the creepiness of this (you won’t), you can relax and enjoy the spectacle. 

As we approached the southern end of the park near where the expressway marks the beginning of the Domain on the other side, we came across another animal surprise.  Cockatoos were flying in to land on people!  You invite them by standing very still and holding your arms out as a perch.  You can bribe them further with a bag of chips, as we discovered.  You’d think after our previous bird trauma we would’ve run, but it was actually pretty cool.  They are heavy with sharp claws, but with a borrowed long-sleeve top from mommy, even our five year old was thrilled to try it.

Hmm, nice trees, but wait, what is that hanging from it's branches....

Look closer.....

[insert shower music from Psycho here!]

Peter was a little skittish at first, mainly because the talons

were digging into several layers of his arm skin.

But once he got over the embarrassment of borrowing my hoodie,
he had more fun with it and got pretty comfortable with them. 

For the most part, Graham chose to observe from a distance.

Mommy had to give it a try, though.  It was actually quite thrilling!

Musical Beds

One unexpected advantage of Peter being here is the kids have started feeling more comfortable sleeping on the children’s wing, where they belong.  The layout of this apartment is such that Mommy and Daddy’s room is on one side of the apartment, and the two kids’ rooms are next to each other on the other side, whereas our bedrooms are clumped together in the same area at home.  Graham has been a fitful sleeper since birth, so now, at three-and-a-half years of age, just as the Ferber method instructs,* I am finally allowing myself to let him Cry It Out.  Actually it’s more like Whine It Out nowadays, but up until now I’d been quick to comfort him during the night because, well you know, he’s my child and I’m his mother and everything.

So everything was going along great, because Graham’s room was too far away for me to hear him wake from nightmares and whatnot (which these days usually involve him moaning, “No!  Julia, No!  Stop That!”).  So he was getting through the night all by himself at last.  But then everyone started getting scared that it was “too dark” in their rooms.  Despite opening curtains so the twinkling city lights shown in, and opening the doors to allow enough light in to do minor surgery.  (Not major surgery though, you would probably have to turn the lights on all the way for that.)

Soon young children started showing up at our bedside in the middle of the night, begging for entry.  They would come laden with props:  their pillow, sippy cup, blanky or stuffed animal, the forlorn look of Tiny Tim before the Christmas Miracle.  I could never turn anyone away, even if they were children I’d never met before and had no idea how they’d gotten in.

This was all fine and I kind of love having one of my kids snuggled safe in the space next to me in bed.  The problem is, if you could picture a high hurdler just as they’re going over the peak of the highest hurdle, that is sort of the position that is most comfortable for me to sleep in.  And the problem with that is, it tends to take up a lot of square footage in the bed.  Now according to the hotel literature we had a king-size bed, but apparently the kings of Australia were smaller people than the American kings, because this bed was much more like an American queen, like the size of RuPaul.  So things were tight with an extra body in there.

But then both kids started showing up to climb in bed with us, so many nights we would be lined up in our bed like hotdogs in shrink-wrap.  Not Australian hotdogs, they give their hotdogs much more room to move around and get comfortable, but the American-type hotdogs.  Besides needing room to stretch out, I also need to be able to flip around like a fish that’s just been thrown out of water or I wake up with a sore back, so it was definitely not a system that was working.  There were lots of struggles about who got to sleep where and gentle redirecting and lies that they could sleep one place and carrying back to their bed once asleep.

                                                           

When Peter arrived, he took the twin next to Graham and it became The Boys Room.  The Girl Room was right next door.  Julia and Graham seemed to be soothed by having their big brother nearby and almost immediately didn’t need to come trotting through the apartment at 2am so much anymore.  It’s been so wonderful to reclaim the bed, room to move around in, personal time with Darling Husband, and a good night’s sleep.  But, of course, I kind of miss them…

______________________

* For those of you familiar with the Ferber Method, you’ll recognize that that statement wasn’t true.  In fact Ferber recommends that as soon as the embryo becomes a fetus, if not earlier, if your baby seems to be crying, ignore it and turn the TV up louder.  This supposedly teaches the young child how to be a self soother and to not interrupt mommy and daddy when there’s a good program on.

National Maritime Museum

On our way back from our obligatory stop at the Travel Doctor for Peter we stop in at Dymock’s Books.  They had several floors with every category of book imaginable, including a giant children’s section.  It wasn’t long before my children found items of interest:  the Disney movie playing in the video room and the climbable toys.

Dymock's Books (yes, there were books there) 

We had lunch at a nearby urban mall.  They should have malls like this in Manhattan – cool architecture, pretty, sunny, with yummy cafés in the medians.  Sure they have good shopping in Manhattan, great stores, but if you could get a collection of great stores under one roof, this could be a step in the right direction to taking away its distinction of being The Most Inconvenient Shopping Experience On Earth.

Lunch. 

Next it was across the Pyrmont Bridge to the National Maritime Museum.  This stop was one of those rare venues that truly holds the interest of the entire age range of our group:  3 to 29 (or at least the age range I’m sure you would guess if you met us).  I highly recommend a stop here if you ever find yourself in Sydney.

We tour the destroyer and submarine, then make a pass through the free-with-admission museum when we’re through, and of course make a pit stop in the souvenir shop, where we buy some expensive nautical-themed junk that will last approximately 36 hours, if we’re lucky.

Next (yes, next!) we hit Kingpin Bowling, and then a fudge shop on our way home (what says vacation more than fudge?!?!).  A pretty full day today!!

Pyrmont Bridge 

National Maritime Museum overlooking Darling Harbour, as seen from Pyrmont Bridge.

Entrance to National Maritime Museum.

On the boardwalk in front  of the museum.

Graham overlooking the old schooner to tour; we chose the more modern vessels.

We toured the HMAS Vampire (HMAS = Her Majesty's Australian Ship, the designation for any Australian war ship), launched in 1959 and used in the Royal Australian Navy.

 It was quite interesting to see the men's quarters.  Obviously this was before Traditional Naval Home was available by subscription.

In the bow of the ship.

Everyone took a turn at the helm.  Fortunately we were docked pretty securely.

Next it was across the walkway to explore the submarine, the HMAS Onslow, launched in 1968.

Where the missiles go.

 

One of the things I loved about this museum was how hands-on it was for the kids.

Plus there were naps.

Definitely not a life for the claustrophobic though!

A light you do actually want to go toward. 

After we emerged, we headed back to the Vampire to see the rest of the ship.

This is the infirmary.

This is the ship store.  Kind of surprising to me -- you'd think with the service they're giving their country and all, these guys might be allowed free Snickers bars! 

Mess hall. 

Wonder if the naval officers enjoyed a game of footsies before dozing off at night.

Kids enjoyed manning the artillery stations above deck the most. 

 Fashion shoot, like they used to when the ship was operational.

Kingpin Bowling.

Photo shoot by Graham.