Category: Australia New Zealand May 2007

June 1, 2007

We crossed the ditch, as they call the Tasmanian Sea, to New Zealand, last Friday. We are in Christchurch, the largest city on the South Island (NZ has two islands–they jokingly call Australia their third), and the oldest in the country. I remember when I was here a decade ago; I told Carolyn I was not sure I ever wanted to go to London, because ch-ch as they call it, was built in 1850 to be the most English of cities. It looks like it, with the church dominating the square and Gothic revival architecture around the city. We are across from what used to be the University of Canterbury; it was designed in England to face south–which captures the sun in the northern hemisphere, but not here. We were told this is one of the warmest Mays on record, but it is around 4 Celsius in the morning and there is snow at the higher elevations (will get to that in a minute). The Avon River flows through town and you can get a punt ride if you wish, play lawn bowls, or sit in Victoria Square, honoring the 4 million people who live in NZ. The Aussies consider the Kiwis their Appalachian cousins, and after Sydney, we do seem to have stepped back a bit in time. At least it looks like fall here, because they transplanted lots of trees (we’re across from the botanic gardens) and the trees they brought in, unlike most of the native flora, are deciduous.

I sometimes think I am in the Rockies, too, since one of our trips was to the Alps (they think they are closer to England than they are) we had the foreign minister tell us (last time I was here) that NZ is Britain’s last, least and most loyal colony. They still talk of “going home”—second and third generation–for a visit to England. They are also leaving NZ to work in Australia, where salaries are higher and home costs are lower, at the rate of 600 a week.

Back to the Alps. We took a trip to Arthur’s Pass, the major tramping center and the main route to the west coast. It is at about 3500-4000 feet, so was cool and spectacular. Along the way, we passed some of the 45 million sheep that are also one of the features of New Zealand, making it a good place to buy wool, and to eat lamb. Anyway, we tramped for about an hour and a half to a huge waterfall. On our free day, Ruth Ann and I wound up in a hot springs in the foothills, a reminder that NZ is part of the rim of fire around the Pacific–volcanoes.

Yesterday, we were supposed to swim with dolphins in the Pacific Ocean, but rough seas reduced that to a more simple tour of the harbor, (created by volcanic explosions) of Akaroa, which was originally settled by the French, whose government decided too late to claim South Island (GB took it over in 1840). The town has some French names left, and supposedly some French people, too.

Sometimes you find some rare treats when you travel. I did. On our way to the Alps, we stopped at Springfield, New Zealand, which advertised a Rewi Alley park. I recognized him from my Chinese history days. Edgar Snow introduced him to communism in China in the 30s. He then worked with the government cooperatives, and stayed in China after the “liberation.” The exhibit noted that he had sent artifacts back to the Canterbury museum, which is right across from the YMCA where we are staying. The museum was not on my must-see list–until i realized that Rewi Alley probably sent back lots of items that were available in the old days.

Indeed, he did. The museum had great exhibits, including a helmet from the armies of the Great Khan (Genghis), who overran most of the world, from Beijing to Budapest in the 14th century.

We are off to visit with the largest exporter of electronics goods here this morning, then have free time to explore this wonderful and beautiful city in a wonderful and beautiful country. New Zealand has stood for environmental purity (100% pure is the country’s tag line), which makes it a mecca for backpackers. Unlike our version of backpacking, backpackers here travel using backpacks instead of suitcases, and stop in hostels and other cheap lodging. They are all over Asia, mostly Empire kids who graduate college, then wander for a year. The government even gives training in bartending so its young people have a trade to ply as they travel.

Have a great barbie today [for Memorial Day]. We had two before we left Australia. One was at ICMS, a management college that purchased a seminary on a hillside overlooking Manly Beach. I took many pictures to show President Wilson what our campus might look like. The other was our farewell dinner in a building built in the late 18th century to house criminals. They are gone now. I hope.

May 22, 2007

We are still in Sydney, where we have been for the past few days (33 parallel for those who like the GPS). Nearly a fifth of all Aussies live here, and I’m beginning to realize why:

1) Setting of the city. Sydney is on a spectacular harbor. Lots of seashore property, with a view of the Opera House (probably the best-known view in Australia) and the harbor bridge, which I remember from my old stamp collection. It really is an attractive place, clean, and well maintained, rather like Toronto, for those who have been there.

2) Climate. It’s finally fall here, but you would not know it. Cool temperature, but the local trees do not change colors. They are evergreens, with one or two exceptions. The oaks etc. in the cities that change are transplants. I guess it gets warm here in December (that is summer!), but there are great beaches nearby. We are going to one this morning (Manly beach, so called because the British landed at it and were met by naked aborigines, who looked, well, Manly!).

3) Culture. We did (some of us anyway) get tickets to the Symphony in the Opera House, which was spectacular. Great sound and a piece that was new to me–Rossini Stabat Mater. When we left, there was a Japanese wedding (there are many Asians here, resident and especially tourists) which had purchased a firecracker boat, so the harbor was lit up. 4th of July.

4) Proximity to the mountains. We went on an eco-tour (tourism is the biggest business in the world) to the Blue Mountains, about an hour, 25 degrees, and 3000 feet away. With a guide, we went through a rain forest (not tropical–it can snow), a hanging swamp, and about for our five other eco environments. It was like scout camp, but the plants were unfamiliar, and we had a glimpse of a dinosaur footprint. It was good to realize that Australia is mostly NOT big cities, but great expanses of emptiness, much of it desert. We were told you could go one-hundred miles in either direction and not see anyone. That’s wilderness.

5) Great wines for those of drinking age. Australia is a large producer of wine (not enough population to drink all they produce, so exports are important). We talked with the senior winemaker at one of the farms, about two hours from here as one of our visits. He said it sometimes gets up to 52 C (about 115 degrees). No wonder one of the Australian football teams is the Cowboys.

6) Interesting history and neighborhoods. Sydney was settled by convicts who could no longer be shipped to the United States (interestingly, the country is younger than the US, first settled in the 1780s by convicts who used rum as currency). There is also a fabulous aquarium where I took all the pictures I should have been able to take at the Great Barrier Reef.

The economy here seems to be healthy. Its biggest export is coal, mostly to East Asia (Korea, Japan, and China), and we were told that the Korean government has purchased some of the coalmines. The stores are familiar–there is a Target, and the Woolworth is one of the largest food retailers in the country. There is no Wal-Mart. Yet.

Funny story. Someone here purchased the name Burger King in the hope of shaking down Burger King when the company tried to come here. BK offered $3 million for the rights. The guy held out for $30 million. BK here is known as Hungry Jack consequently. There is a scoutmaster minute in that.

May 16, 2007

Good morning from Brisbane.

We’re in the capital of Queensland, a city of over 1 million people that represents the past, present, and maybe future of Australia.

It is the past in that it was one of the capitals of the six states that federated in 1901, to become Australia. It has some old architecture, of the governmental kind that are impressive and massive and reflect well on Britain when it was the ruler of the world. There are even a few older homes etc., that are pretty neat and reflect as much the tropics (covered porches) as the British heritage (Tudor).

It is the present because Australia has become more multicultural. The country had an exclusion policy for a long time, as our host at the hotel noted; her name is Ming (Chinese for first name), and her parents were brought from Taiwan to develop a Chinese program at the University here. She was the only nonwhite in her class. It is quite different today, and much more Asian.

It is also a glimpse of the future because there is a major water shortage in Australia. For a variety of reasons, the country is very sensitive to the environment, but here the lack of rainfall has caused a level 5 alert. People are cautioned to spend no more than 4 minutes in the shower, and there are warnings on the street about washing cars and other needless activities. The ferry we were on stated it does not wash the boat but once a week. There is below 20% capacity in the reservoir, and they are talking about the next level of crisis within a month or two. And it’s national.

What that means for us is sunny days, in the sub tropics (about the 23rd parallel south). After a talk from the Australian Trade group (helps exporters), we took the train to the Gold Coast.

The students went to Surfer’s Paradise (name of the place), and Ruth Ann and I visited a former ISU faculty member who is Australian, and owns a $1 million condominium (only about $830,000 US) overlooking the Pacific.

Today, among other things, I am visiting an old friend who I met over 30 years ago.

Isn’t the world a small place?

MAY 13, 2007

Hope you all had a great Mum’s Day (as it is known here).

We have done the kinds of things you can do in this tropical setting. Let me document at least three.

First is the Great Barrier Reef, to which I was about to set sail when I last wrote. It is about 2 1/2 hours off the coast here, and for size and sheer beauty is like the Keys in name only. We did some snorkeling off a reef, one with an island, and saw lots of fishes and corals and…you name it. It is one of the areas known for its biodiversity. It is also, like much of Australia, a potential weathervane for climate change. The pull of tourism is balanced by the need to protect the coral, plus all the changes in climate and pollution, etc. Australia has a very fragile ecosystem, which Europeans, travel, and trade have challenged. To take one example, rabbits were introduced by an Englishman who wanted to shoot them for sport. They got away, and rabbits being rabbits, proliferated the countryside and drove away many of the marsupials, killed the grasses, etc.

Cairns being in the tropics also has rainforests nearby, and, of course, we had to see them. We took a bus ride into the mountains (about 350 meters high) and walked around a national park that had a rainforest. The forest contains many deadly animals (Australia has the most venomous snakes, the most venomous spiders, etc.), but fortunately we saw them only in a zoo. The guide told us that the rainfall has been below average for the last five years here, with the exception of an occasional cyclone, but everything is lush and green. We also went to a zoo, which had most of the indigenous animals (joeys are young marsupials, not just kangaroos, we learned) and they had koalas for picture taking, and a great croc show. There are actually two kinds of crocodiles in Australia. Freshwater do not eat people or dogs. Saltwater ones do, but I am sure I would not want to see either in the wild.

The third thing to do in Cairns is to visit an Aboriginal village. The original settlers (before British convicts in the 1780s) came from somewhere about 30,000 years ago. The Brits treated them pretty much the same way we treated Native Americans. The Aborigines did not become citizens until 1967 (there were some celebrations marking the 40th anniversary); we went to a village where the students were taught how to throw a boomerang and to play a diggeridoo.

Of course, there are Fred things to do here. I ran yesterday, and then went to the Coral Sea to do yoga. Picture it: yoga beneath a statue to the Aussies who died in the Great War (WWI for those of you younger than your Scoutmaster!), watch the sun come up over the Coral Sea, listening to Gilbert and Sullivan on my iPod! Not much better than that.

Well, off to breakie (as they call it down here), which includes the British delicacy of stewed tomatoes. Good thing the Brits had an Empire. Otherwise, they’d probably starve on fish n chips.

May 10, 2007

Hello from Cairns, which according to my GPS (yes, Sondra, I did bring it!) is at 16 South and 145 East. That means it’s a long way from home–8811 miles as the GPS flies.

It seems longer after the plane ride. I used to think Chicago-LA was a long ride.
That was leg one of our trip, a 3 1/2 hour ride on a cramped domestic plane. We were supposed to leave at 5:20, but got to the airport and discovered we’d missed the 12 o’clock plane they had put us on. Fortunately, we had room on the 420 to LA, which left us with about 4 hours at LAX for the 14 1/2 hour ride to Sydney and the 2-hour layover there, then the 3-hour ride to Cairns. The Pacific is a big place, and so is Australia. Australia fits roughly into the US, but has the population of Shanghai (21 million), which is to say there is room for lots of kangaroos.

Cairns is as far north as we are going–as I mentioned 16 degrees from the Equator. It is tropical forest, or would be if we could see the forest for the construction. We are booked pretty solid here–today at the Great Barrier Reef (a prelude to the Keys?), the only natural object visible from the moon (I’m gonna have to check that out sometime). We are going on a catamaran, which means possibly some sailing. I guess the one thing I keep being reminded of the few times I’ve been in the tropics is that the days are only 12 hours long (of daylight anyway) at most. And since it’s fall here, the daylight is even shorter. It is hot and humid though!

Well, we are about to depart. Hope you have a great weekend, and a great mother’s day to all the mothers reading this.