Originally uploaded by Heather and Rob.
Spring is here in Melbourne.. :) This photo is from the Botanical Gardens, just across the river from the business district in Melbourne. It's gorgeous. Eucalyptus (called gum trees here) are everywhere. And palm trees. The botanical gardens are full of plants I've never seen. And the herbs are amazing. Pineapple sage, green lavender, mmm... the scents are everywhere.
Well, with Rob away at his new job, I have plenty of time for the full biking commute into Monash. I bike the 22 km each way into Monash on Monday, Wednesday and Friday... and take the train the other days. It's pretty ride... there are many bridges that cross the stream and the freeway. And there are plenty of riders headed the opposite direction as me. So I can check out the latest in biking fashion. Wednesday was Victoria's Bike to Work Day. So the trail was absolutely overflowing with bikers. Not actually the safest of days to cycle to work. But speaking of safety - who knew about the real danger of cycling in Victoria? The magpies are ferocious. Apparently, every spring after the magpies have babies, they are intensely protective of their young. So, they try to scare away predators by 'swooping' them, a procedure that is somewhat similar to the age old Top Gun fly-by of the control tower. However, in this case, they actually hit the 'control tower', i.e. the cyclists' helmets. Or... in some cases, the cyclists' ear, or face. It's a scary experience. I've only been swooped once, but I've seen two people with bloody ears after the whole mess. So, on the web you can find a pair of printable eyes to tape to the back of your helmet, so that they think you're looking at them and thus don't swoop. But they don't work well. I think the eyes are just some sort of joke to get people to like me to look ridiculous on their bikes. :) Instead, I have to resort to waving my hand wildly above my head. Or dangerously swerving in an evasive maneuver somewhat similar to outrunning a heat-seeking torpedo. I've recently seen some of the most serious cyclists with plastic zip-ties protruding from their helmets, presumably to look like sharp, bird-unfriendly spikes. Alas, you can only imagine how silly I'll look soon enough.
New Australian vocab: Ambo - an ambulance driver (obviously!); brekkie - breakfast; bikkie - cookie (short for biscuit); jug - pitcher; and my favorite expression - no dramas mate (same as no worries)
The Australian rules football grand final was last weekend (held here in Melbourne). Footy is an amazing game of running, dribbling, kicking and punching a football. It's a complicated mixture of many different American sports, and actually originates from an aboriginal game. But, there are no safety pads and it gets a bit confusing at times. The Western Australians won the game... in a tight match (by only one point). Surprisingly, if it had been a tie, they would have had to come back the next week to play another game. Personally, I was rooting for this option. With all of the publicity surrounding the game (think Superbowl), I couldn't possibly imagine doing the whole thing over again the next week.
The following day was the national rugby grand final. Melbourne lost... but the city itself was still wrapped up in the footy (australian rules football) game from the day before. Footy started in Victoria and is most popular here. Rugby, on the other hand, is really popular in the north. So. Rob watched the rugby grand final in Queensland. I watched the footy game from Melbourne.
Oooo... I saw my first wild wallaby - off the side of the bike track. Check out the pics to see.
