Sunny skies ahead

Ahhh......The past few days Sydney has been showing us the weather she is famous for.  The winter weather to this point has been fine, but I wouldn't say that it has been outstanding.  The sun does shine part of the time, but it has also had its fair share of clouds with quite a few rainy days in June.  Most days make it into the 60's (Fahrenheit), but that temperature is relative as it only feels warm when the sun is out.  If the sun goes under some clouds and the wind picks up, the temperature feels like it drops at least 10 degrees in an instant.

We are very excited that Springtime is right around the corner.  Here in Australia they consider that the change of the season occurs on the first day of the month.  So, the news will be reporting about the first day of Spring on Sept 1st.  That sentence sounds crazy to most North Hemispherians for multiple reasons.  It just seems to go against everything we know to be true since learning the seasons of the year in preschool/kindergarten.  I know we have been in Australia for 5 months now, but I just cannot get used to this.  I will apologize right now if I have been late to acknowledge any birthdays/anniversaries.  I am always shocked to see these dates on the calendar when I happen to look at it.  I am aware that the calendar says August, but deep down inside, I can't fully wrap my brain around it.  Nothing that I associate with the middle of August is happening in my life right now.  The weather is wrong and the kids are in the middle of their third term at school.  No dog days of summer or school shopping happening here.

I did miss the blog post last week.  We really didn't get out and do too much the weekend before and then last week was really busy for me.  I thought I would have all this spare time on my hands when I was no longer working.  I guess time is a little like money, there never seems to be quite enough.  

The weekend before last (August 11th) we went down into the city to the Australian Museum to see the Deep Oceans exhibit.  We have already been to the Australian Museum and got annual memberships (see post from June 14th).  The museum is very nice and has some interesting artifacts.  The Deep Oceans exhibit was really good.  It is really creepy to think of the creatures that live at the very bottom of the ocean and there is still so much we don't know.  We didn't get many good pictures in the exhibit though; the rooms were all darkened as if at twilight to give it an eerie feeling.  It didn't take long to feel a little scared when seeing specimens of things like the viperfish and fangtooth fish.  

A large model of a deep sea angler fish.  This is something that nightmares are made of.

This is probably Carter's favorite thing at the Australian Museum.  He is in a fuzzy suit jumping up at velcro.  It was hilarious to watch and he loved it.

Then, this Sunday, August 19th, we took a ferry to go the Cockatoo Island to see the 18th Annual Biennale.  Cockatoo Island is an island in Sydney Harbour that used to house convicts that worked on building and repairing ships.  Present day, you can go there and tour the island to see where the convicts were housed and to see all the industrial buildings where they worked. There are also some private historic houses on the island where you can take a holiday as well as a campground where you can spend the night.  Right now, the Biennale is happening on Cockatoo Island, which is where various artists create exhibits throughout the island.  So, we got to check out the spooky island while also enjoying some art.  Some of the exhibits were really cool and some of them kind of went over my head.  But, we had a great day; the weather was perfect and it is always a lot of fun to ride the ferries. 

A map to give you and idea where Cockatoo Island is located (the red pin)

The view when getting off the ferry

View of one of the old cranes and boat ramp, as well as the smokestack from the power plant that was located on the island

One of the walkways along the silos on the island.  We walked on it earlier in the day.  I was scared to death and could not even peek down at the ground though.  The smoke below the walkway is one of the artist exhibits.

This was so amazing; this was made with sand on the ground.  It was called "sand lace."

The sand lace led up to this - a shipping crate that had been cut up into this lacy pattern.  Aubrey is standing inside the crate.

This was one of my favorite exhibits.  It is hard to see, but it is made of lights and plastic feathers.  It is interactive and some of the lights are powered by human touch.

Aubrey and Carter walking through the exhibit

A different take on the meaning of a 3-D painting

Igloo coolers and lightbulbs to represent miners down in a tunnel

Panoramic view from one of the higher points on the island

It was a gorgeous day to just take a deep breath, relax, and take in the sights.

I always have to add a picture of the kids posing!

I think the ferries are one of my favorite things of living in Sydney.  Yes, it is just another mode of public transportation, but it feels a little bit like a vacation when the weather allows us to sit on one of the outdoor seats.  Plus, on Sundays you can get a Family Fun pass for public transportation.  With that ticket you can use any public transportation all day for just $2.50/person.  It makes it so much easier to get out and explore Sydney on those days.  We had great ferry rides this Sunday, but the best was the final ferry home from Circular Quay to Mosman at dusk.  It was a great way to end the weekend. 

This is one of Sean's favorites; he was really trying to get the moon and the bridge into the same shot.