Covered in 'Keets
Trip Start
Dec 07, 2007
1
9
34
Trip End
Jan 08, 2008
Currumbin, Australia
Friday, December 14, 2007
get to Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary in time for the lorikeet feeding. A
short bus ride about 20 km south got us to the sactuary, which is
basically a zoo, and we left our packs with the desk. When Emily came
here 15 years ago it was called the Bird Sanctuary, and has since
expanded to become a Wildlife sanctuary. But the primary reason we came
was to feed the rainbow lorikeets. To do this, a worker handed us a pan
and filled it with a milky sweet liquid. At this point, about a dozen
lorikeets would come land on the pan, your hands, arms and head, and
try to get at some of the "nectar". Their claws did hurt a bit and they
were very loud, but it was a really great experience to have them all
over you. (I'll post pics when I can.)
Past the lorikeets, which was right at the entrance, we found a pretty
large zoo. We found a ranger talk just about to happen at the edge of
the river, and listened in. She was feeding pelicans and eels. The
pelicans were really massive, much bigger than the Florida pelicans I
have experience with. They were about the size of an emu but with a
beak that must be three feet long. There were eels at their feet,
waiting their turn to get fed. These eels were also massive, an they
were being fed chicken feet and other bird parts (so that they wouldn't
eat the local waterfowl, which the ranger said, they like to keep
around since they're so cute). We found the ranger talk to be fantastic
so we found out when the other talks were and saw the wombat, koala and
dingo talks as well. The wombats were great because they were up and
moving, which is strange since they're nocturnal. The staff had
conditioned one to feed at 10 am every day so that people could
get a look at them. They're very round furry animals with a big snout
and no tail, almost like a furry pig. They've got short little legs and
burrow in the ground. The koalas were also moving, which is amazing
since they sleep 19 hours each day. One even had a baby crawling on its
back. The kangaroos were much like at Lone Pine, in a big open area
with wallabies and emus. It was still great to feed and pet them
though. We also saw a bird show with a native eagle, cockatoos and
gullahs, and some birds of prey.
After currumbin we were headed to Uncle Phillip and Aunt Rhonda's farm
in Fernvale. We took a bus, then two trains to Ipswitch, and then
Phillip picked us up to drive the last bit to Fernvale. In all, it took
about 4 hours. So the first half of today was the wildlife sanctuary,
and the second half was travel. I did manage to get a nap in on the
first train, which was good.
We pulled up to the farm a little before sunset and caught up with
Phillip and Rhonda. I had actually met them, as they came all the way
to Upstate New York for our wedding. After the sun had gone down Rhonda
remembered their christmas lights and turned them on, at which point I
asked if many Aussies do christmas lights. I didn't remember seeing
much in Brisbane, but we weren't walking around at night either. Well,
the answer was an emphatic yes, and they were going to prove it. We all
piled into the car and headed down the road and around a corner to a
house (seemingly on a farm in the middle of nowhere) that had lights
around the whole yard. It was a massive display with blinking and
moving parts, one that I've rarely seen in the US. Then, we went to two
more houses done up. The last was the most amazing sight. If Americans
think they've got the world crown in gaudiness, I think they have a
serious competitor here in Oz. This house was a Clark Griswold house,
with every square inch covered in lights. But it also had a yard full
of animated, lit, and musical santas, nativity scenes, snowmen, and
just about everything else. It was a real spectacle. There was a sign
by the street hailing passersby to come up and see it, and the kids
were all out to receive the neighbors with lollies (candies) and have a
chat. It was a neighborhood attraction. The owner said he'd gotten 70
to 80 cars pulling up last weekend.
With that, possibly the most exciting part of the day, we headed back
to the farmstead and after a chat (mostly about our mutual genealogy
efforts) we went to bed, exhausted.
Comments
mom in scny,usa,
your descriptions are so detailed that i can picture everything you're seeing. i can't tell you how much i am enjoying this. it almost feels like you are a little closer to home, but i'm really thrilled for both that you have gotten the opportunity to be on this amazing adventure (and share it with us). please tell phillip and rhonda hello from dad and me and we hope that they have a wonderful holiday. we're about to get some big snowstorm starting this evening (saturday) and going through monday, about 2' an hour they say, i'll let you know how much we get. otherwise all is well here. please keep your entries coming and thank you so much for doing so. love mom.
Eel food
The eels were being fed day-old chicks. -Emily