Back to Culburra

Well, first off, happy Valentines Day to everyone. I know that for most of you reading this, it's not until tomorrow, but I thought I'd get a head start :-)

The multicultural festival was a lot of fun. We went back again on Saturday night, we meant to bike but about halfway to town, right by the student union, we realized my bike's back tire was flat so I couldn't ride it any further :-( So we parked and walked the rest of the way. We wandered sorta aimlessly looking for food, and the first thing I found was a stand for Zywiec beer, (which is Polish so naturally I had to get some!). Then we wandered to the Spain section to try paella, but they were out at that moment, so Simon went for a sangria. I found some Pacific Island food for dinner (I finally tried taro!), and Simon got Turkish pancake things. Both were really good.

The lineup for Simon's food was really long so I waited by one of the stages while eating my food. The dancing was South Asian, and it was really really good. The moves were pretty incredible, and the music was so vibrant and lively. I haven't got the pictures uploaded yet but will post a whole photo series corresponding to this post in the next day or so.

After dinner we decided to stand in an impossibly long line for Dutch Pancakes. While in line we started talking to some people who were really cool. Originally from Canberra but had just got back after 2 years of traveling. So when we were done our pancakes (wow were they ever delicious. The guy serving us could tell we were Canadian right off the bat, but I'm pretty sure we gave it away when ordering maple syrup on our pancakes!), we went for a beer with the couple we'd met. Turns out they left LAX 3 hours after us on the 29th and got in an hour after we did on the 31st, which was crazy. We spent a few hours talking with them, then headed home.

One thing that I found super interesting is that apparently the real danger here isn't the snakes and spiders like everyone has been telling us. Being hurt by one is about as common as being attacked by a moose or bear in Canada. What is a more real danger are the black and white magpies that we have LOTS of on campus and is Canberra. Apparently in September, our spring, they get SUPER territorial and will actually swoop down and peck at people that are close to their nests. So we've seen people on campus with spikey things coming out of their bike helmets, and that's why - to prevent magpies from swooping down and pecking at you. So come September I may have some crazy stories for you - hopefully not though!

Yesterday we headed into town in the morning because I wanted to buy a bike pump and we wanted to wander the multicultural festival again. Apparently this type of celebration only happens in Canberra once a year, so we had to get as much in as possible! We got the Turkish crepe-type things again for breakfast, then I got a bike pump and we headed back to campus to try to solve the bike problem. We got the bike back into the safe storage locker in our building, then packed and headed on the road for Culburra.

The drive was 3 hours almost on the dot. We took the highway rather than the back only-paved-in-sections road, and managed to get here without any problems, or losing our way, or me turning onto the wrong side of the road, which was good. The only part that was a little hairy was going through the hills and valleys, because there were a lot of switchbacks to ascend and descend as we got closer to Culburra, and it was foggy and raining so I went really slow, to the point of upsetting people behind me I think. I'dve loved to show you pictures but sadly as I was driving I couldn't take them, and Simon's response every time I asked him to take one was "of what?". Clearly he doesn't get this whole reporting-to-people-on-the-other-side-of-the-world thing. So I'll see what I can do about getting some on the way back :-)

We got here around 4pm, after grabbing some groceries. All of the cool birds were here to welcome us, which made me really happy. Love those guys! It was still grey out, so we took it easy and relaxed most of the night. This morning it's sunny, there are still some clouds in the sky but it's not as bad as yesterday. We went into town this morning to the Op Shop and for 5 dollars bought a whole bunch of good stuff that we need for the apartment.

Now we're going to go swimming and get some seafood for dinner. Will post with more pictures soon! Happy Valentines Day again!!