Last days in Oz

Following our busy weekend, I did not feel like doing much on Monday. But, since I don't get to be in Australia very often, I made sure I went to the beach in the morning. This was the first time I noticed a warning sign, which did not stop me from going swimming.

I met Priit for lunch and had my traditional sushi while he had donuts. Then I spent some time in the Sunshine Plaza soaking in the atmosphere and trying to find things that I might want to buy to take with me.

Shops were full of clothes and other items with Australian flags and patriotic sayings on them as it is Australia Day next week. Also, since school is starting up soon, there were tables with maths books and notebooks for kids in the middle of the shopping centre.

Henri and Eneken sent a message that they would have two free days. We decided to make bread on Tuesday and go to the local beach in Maroochydore and to take the car to Noosa National Park on Wednesday. So, Monday evening, I showed them how to take the leaven and add water and flour to it - not a difficult task in itself.

On Tuesday morning, we mixed the bread dough and left it to rise at home while we went to the beach. We had to be back around lunchtime to make the bread as Priit and I had plans for the evening. We were supposed to go and see Pille-Triin, the sister of our good friend, Pets. However, she sent a message to Priit letting him know that she was expecting a baby and was not feeling well, so we could not go there.

We went to see Priit's good friends Roland and Maret again. Priit got off work early and we took the scenic route to Brisbane.

There is a stretch of road that goes up a hill like a never-ending snake and later comes down hill the same way. It was a fun road to take and we stopped at the top to take some photos.

I just had to get a photo of the sign for Bruce Highway! :)

At Roland's place we helped to put cover paper on their daughter Kai's school notebooks, as she was getting ready to start school in a week's time and was really excited. I looked at her last year's notebooks and was amazed to find a subject called Social Skills. Kids in Australia are taught to express themselves, how they feel. The different feelings and faces are explained, what is and is not appropriate behaviour is explained, not just expected of the. And in year 3 at school, she has only one hour of homework per week. Most of her books and notebooks stay at school; she only has one homework notebook that she has to carry with her.

Kai reading a dictionary. :)

Priit and Robin - you can almost learn to fly when 

I didn't realise how difficult it was for foreigners without a permanent visa to have their kids attend school. Apparently, even though they work, and pay taxes, they still have to pay for their children's education, even though they attend state school. And it is not cheap. Only once they have permanent residency, are they eligible for education free of charge.

On Wednesday morning, after Priit had gone to work, Henri, Eneken and I drove up to Noosa National Park.

We were keen to see koalas in their natural habitat and we were not disappointed. The views on the coastal walk we took were spectacular and we saw two koalas during our walk. Some photos of the national park are below:

On our way back to Maroochydore, we stopped at a beach we had noticed on our way up to Noosa Heads. It had the most spectacular waves I have ever seen. These were also the most powerful waves I have ever experienced.

As I got home, I noticed that I had received a text message from my brother, Joel, advising me that he had taken his wife to the hospital and that he would let me know when my little niece was born. So, while out shopping, I got a little bottle of sparkling wine to celebrate me and Priit becoming aunt and uncle respectively. When Priit got home, he said that he was sure that the baby would not be born before midnight our time in Australia, and that he would celebrate the 21st of January as her birthday, not the 20th. We did get the message at 2am on Jan 21 (6pm Jan 20th in Estonia).


So, when I had finished packing in the morning, we had our half a glass of bubbly.

 Oh, and just in case you cannot see the name tag clearly, here is a zoomed shot of it:

Apparently, Priit is too difficult of a name for the locals to pronounce, so my brother is known here as Bruce. I can't wait to tell my little niece, Emily, that she has an uncle Bruce :) in Australia (who sent a giant jar of Vegemite as a present...).