The Glorious Sydney Harbour

We have internet...finally!  My goodness, it's good to be back!

A couple of weekends ago we ventured up to the Sydney Harbour and downtown area.  We took the train from Caringbah which is just a few minutes walk from our apartment, and rode for an hour before finally arriving in downtown Sydney.  This is the view we saw as we first stepped out of the train station:

YEEEAAAHHHH! 

The Opera House and the Sydney Harbour Bridge are within walking distance of each other, so we were able to see both sites in one afternoon.  Being that we didn't get out of the apartment very early in the day and the train ride took an hour, it was really convenient to only make one train stop downtown.

Ahhh, to be a tourist!

Under the Sydney Harbour Bridge, on our way to walk across the bridge!

View of the Opera House from the bridge.

Dang, this photo screams 'amazing!'

Downtown and Opera House.

Clarky posing on the bridge.

Yep. We done did that.

The Sydney Harbour Bridge in late afternoon.

Getting closer and closer to the Opera House.

Pretty downtown.

Oh, you know, just hanging out on the Opera House steps.

Chillaxin'.

Official tourist pose.

The only photo we took together this afternoon!  Clark's a poor-sport when it comes to asking strangers to take pictures of us.  That, or he just doesn't trust other people with our camera.

We can't wait to visit downtown again!  We had a blast and next time we'll be sure to start our day bright and early. 

We're leaving to go camping on the beach down in Jervis Bay tomorrow afternoon so we'll have to blog about our Australian wildlife experience later.  Let's just say that Clark got a little too friendly with a kangaroo and it tried to give him the 1-2 punch.  That's what he gets for trying to hug a marsupial. 

Oh Jeez

So I'm not sure why some of the pictures below are HUGE and incomplete...I'll have to figure it out when I have more time and faster/secure internet.  I apologize.  Man, just when I thought something would go right!

Dammit.

Sneak Peek!

I must preface this post by explaining that the following pictures were all taken with our 5 megapixel camera since loading all of our T2i pictures would take forever here at McDonald's!  

We're really loving Australia.  Sydney and the Shire (where we currently reside) is an awesome area with countless things to do; we're never hurting for an adventure or experience.  Even though I must admit that I don't necessarily like my job, that doesn't mean that I don't love where we are!  And my co workers are wonderful so really, I shouldn't complain.

So here's a little taste of what we've been up to.  Many, many more pictures to come in the near future as we should (finally!!) have internet next week!  Higher quality photos are promised.

Here is Cronulla (pronounced Crah-nah-lah) Beach.  A surfing reserve for sure.  Surfers abound in these waters!

Clark just soakin' it all in.

After four days of being in Australia, we finally made it to the beach.  We ended up staying at the Cronulla Beach Youth Hostel for nearly a week as we waited to be approved for an apartment.  Anyway, when we checked in the the hostel, the first thing we did was hit the beach.  And jellyfish were embedded in the sand everywhere!  We even heard a young Australian surfer girl say, "they jellyfish everywhere!"  Apparently this is not a common occurrence. 

Yay for us, getting shiz done and all!

Clark happens to be the blaring white body in the dead center of this picture.  The waves here are monstrous.  A bit intimidating, if I do say so myself.

Hottie sporting his zenni prescription sunglasses!  Oh, yeahh!!

Another of many self photos after playing in the Pacific!

We found Dr. Pepper at a random convenience stop near a train station.  We may have paid $3 a can, but it was well worth it.  Now I'm kinda wishing we had that money back as we have $32 dollars in our bank account and even though it's payday, we didn't get paid :(  Just another obstacle we have to maneuver around...but let me tell you, I'm getting sick of these obstacles!

The Opera House!  We have more impressive pictures coming :)

My professional photographer doing his thing.  

The Sydney Harbour Bridge.

We hope all of you are doing well!  We look forward to catching up with everyone via blogs/email in the future as we don't have much time lately and the wifi at McDonald's is super slow.  We miss America, family/friends, mexican food and The Office, but we're really enjoying our "working vacation!"

Stay Tuned

Hello all!

We are alive and well here in Caringbah, New South Wales, Australia, Planet Earth!  We have found an apartment and so a HUGE stress has been lifted off our shoulders.  For the last week we've been living in our one bedroom apartment, eating all of our meals on the floor or our mattress...which is on the floor.  It's awesome.

We should have internet in a week or two.  Companies here really aren't in a rush to install anything and/or sell you anything.  Until then we cannot upload pictures as we are using McDonald's Wifi and it is SLOW.  So once we get internet we'll have a gay old time uploading pictures of the things we've seen and done thus far in Australia.

Last weekend we took the train to the Sydney Harbour (Australians spell 'Harbor' as 'Harbour') and saw the Sydney Harbour Bridge and the Opera House.  Sydney does have a nice downtown feel; it is a really cool area.

Anywho, stay tuned for pictures in a couple of weeks!  We're excited to post them for yous guys.

Cheers!

We made it

Hi.

Did you miss us?  I swear we're still alive.  We just don't have the patience/desire to blog as of late.

We made it to Australia in one piece.  Plane ride was SAAWEEET!  We were the only two in our three person row, we had individual movie screens that allowed Clark and I to watch three movies apiece AND we got two free meals!  Our trip almost paid for itself!

And then we landed and s**t hit the fan.  Even if you do speak the language of the country you are moving to, stress still abounds when you don't know another soul other than your spouse, you end up in several dingy hotel rooms and the rental market is as fierce as...well, I can't think of a good analogy at the moment.  Not having an apartment or permanent accommodation has kept us stressed for days.  We have been looking for a rental since day 1 and, God willing, we will have an apartment by the end of the week.  That is, if Chase Bank doesn't screw up the international wire transfer and not send it through like they're supposed to...my goodness I sound pessimistic lately.  I knew we should have brought cashier's checks.  We could have paid our bond (security deposit) and first month of rent without any problems.  I am just so tired of being homeless.  And let's face it, sleeping in youth hostels and dingy hotels is not good for your love life.  It's our 3rd Anniversary today and we're stuck sleeping in bunk beds.  Lame.

We've taken very few pictures thus far.  I would post them but I just don't have the energy.  Maybe when we get our own apartment and my stress level falls to a more normal range.  In case you're wondering, we haven't even seen Sydney Harbour yet. That is how hard we have been apartment hunting!  We have seen the beach though, and since we're staying in a youth hostel down by Cronulla Beach it would be a shame if we hadn't seen it yet.  But we have.  Phew.  We've seen something noteworthy.

Please, pray for us, if you think we deserve it.  Hell, even if you don't think we deserve it, we could use all the prayers/good karma you can send our way!  We need a place to live!  The sooner the better, or I may just have to come home.  I'm serious.  Homelessness and living out of suitcases is not fun.

Hopefully in the next week or so we'll feel capable of posting some of the few pictures we have taken so far.  One picture is even of the bathroom at our first hotel.  Get excited!  Peeling paint and mildew!

Oh, and Vegemite is...not tasty.  Like spreading bouillon onto bread.

Worth storing?

Ok fellow blogging friends.  I need your honesty and advice:

Should I store my wedding flowers or toss them?  Though this dried bouquet holds sentimental value, it's going to be difficult to store these flowers without potentially ruining them.  I'm not sure what to do?  Keep them or toss them? 

Our getaway to Vegas and Pasco

Just recently Clark and I made a quick getaway to Vegas and Pasco.  Anticipating our future move to Australia back in January, we requested a week off from work in February to make the rounds and see the 'rents.  Lucky for us, Vegas has direct flights to Pasco via Allegiant Airlines.  Though this airline really sucks, at least we didn't have a layover anywhere. 

In Pasco we celebrated my sister's recent--and kind of secret--marriage to her long time love!  Here's the "wedding cake" my Mom made for her.

My Mom, sister and I spent an early afternoon thrift store shopping (with successful purchases) and having high tea.  

Though I am convinced that no tea will ever compare to Good Earth's Sweet and Spicy herbal tea, the snacks and sandwiches served with our tea were tasty and quite filling.

Clark kept Cole and Chase entertained with his tricks and whistling skills.

Sweet little Taya loves the camera, and I think she loves her Aunt Rachel, too.

Cole was intent on combing Clark's hair with a toy...

We got to witness Taya's baptism on Sunday morning.

Her vintage baptism gown was so precious.

Later that Sunday morning Dad took us out and let us shoot his 9mm.

I can't wait until we own one of these.  They're so fun to shoot.

Then, later in the afternoon on Sunday we drove out to Palouse Falls.  I had never been and it was so impressive.  I don't think pictures do this waterfall justice; the fall is actually 190ft. Ty, Clark and I ended up walking along the grassy rim right to the top of the falls.  Exhilarating.  Side-note: If we move to Pittsburgh one of the first trips we'll have to take is to Niagra Falls.   Here's a video of a world record being set at Palouse Falls.  

Beautiful canyon views.

Sweet little Taya; she's always in a happy mood.

Monday before we flew back to Las Vegas we spent time with Katie, Ty and the kids.  Apparently when Katie put Cole down for a nap, she forgot to remove gum from his mouth (dang Valentine's candy) and this is how he woke up (you may have to enlarge the picture to get a good look):

Right before leaving for the airport.  Awwwwww!

Tuesday Mom and Dad Tobler, Clark and I spent a good part of the afternoon hiking around Red Rock Canyon.  Here's my professional photographer testing out Mom Tobler's camera.

Taking a load off after 400m.

Gotta love the self timer feature!

As I was taking photos of Mom and Dad Tobler, I pushed the shutter button and realized that the self timer was still on and was still set to 8 consecutive shots.  Here is one of the successive shots.  Way too funny.  

Our awkward prom pose in the canyon.

So in this picture below we have two hats.  They are identical, only one is severely outworn.  Jake was kind enough to give Clark a brand new Rainbow Bar & Grill hat! Thank you, Jake! This restaurant no longer exists so this hat is pretty special.  It was extremely hard for Clark to relinquish his outworn hat that he's had for 5 years and has "been all over the world."  The outworn hat is currently in Mom Tobler's possession as there is sentimental value associated with this hat.  Perhaps we should have a burning hat ceremony in the future...

Thank you to the Ellisons and the Toblers for allowing us to come visit, sleep in your homes and eat your food.  You guys rock and we love you all.

Our Adventure Awaits!

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THE BEST (WORKING) VACATION EVER!

After months of paperwork and notarizing every document that proves we are who we say we are and paying ridiculous fees for just about everything... our visas and nursing registrations have cleared.  We're going to Sydney, baby!  We leave the end of February and start early March or middle of March...we'll play it by ear.

Though I feel overwhelmed with boxing up all of our earthly possessions and tying up loose ends here in the states, the thought of eating one of these makes everything ok.  Tastes like chicken???

Truly a Gift Receipt

Somehow I have neglected (forgotten??) to cash this in.  When we were in Hawaii back in November, my birthday rolled around.  Clark got all clever and romantic on me and basically wrote me an I-owe-you birthday gift on the back of an ABC store receipt.  I did request a manicure and a massage for my birthday, but I was hoping for gift certificates.  Naw, that would be TOO romantic.  I found this little gem stashed away between papers as I was organizing unruly piles of bills.

Sorry, Clarkman, you're not getting off that easy.  Now that this receipt is posted, it must be cashed in.  

My new best friends

Move over Clark, Flu Relief Therapy is in the house.

I have run once since Friday (and that might be the reason I'm not feeling better yet).  I want to scream out of frustration but even that seems like it will take too much effort.  I've never missed running so much.  I've never missed being productive...and working so much either.  Man, I feel useless and weak.  Flu Relief Therapy, please work your magic so I can get back to my normal life.

Three sick calls into work and no vacation time left...GO AWAY SICKNESS, I HATE YOU!