Flat Stanley's Down Under adventures: Our Flat friends visit Victoria, Australia.

Flat Adrianna arrives in Yarra Glen!
Hi Grade 3M,

Here is a sneak peak at Adriannas first day in Australia (Yarra Glen to be precise)

1st photo is meeting my cat Phoenix.

2nd photo is Adrianna hanging on the clothesline... let me know if I need to explain more about what a clothes line is for. I am keen for her to understand how kids (probably aged grade 3) would swing off the end... I actually used to dangle then jump into an old pool.

I can't wait to take her with me to a Grand Final party... I might dress her in a Hawks scarf, too ;-)

Love Kerry xx

September 24th:

Hi Mary and Adrianna,

Here are a few more photos of your trip down under.

The first photo is of a lovely afternoon we had on Tuesday, catching up with a few friends. Naomi says "Hi Mary".

Today, we went for a drive up to Winneke Dam (that is a water treatment/catchment area near Yarra Glen) and I took a photo of you overlooking my little town of Yarra Glen on our way.

The next three photos are showing you near some Kangaroos. These animals are always grazing on the lawns around the dam and I knew they would be there for you to see. Oh and you accidentally stepped in the kangaroo poo, too. Sorry hee hee hee.

I plan to go shopping tomorrow and then we will be attending a bbq for grand final day and I will forward a few more photos of you joining me before I post you back. I hope you are enjoying your trip. If there is any other experience you wish to have whilst here, please let me know and I'll see what we can organise...

Thanks,

Kerry Davies

Flat Adrianna is now on her way back home. She had some lovely last few days visiting Kerry. A highlight was watching the Grand Final in footy [that's Australian Rules Football] and Ms. Moore's team WON. Go the mighty Hawks [Hawthorn Football Club]. Thanks Kerry for making sure Adrianna was barracking for the right team!

Flat Adrianna visited Healesville High School. High School starts at Year 7 and goes to Year 12 in Australia.

Flat Adrianna enjoying a swim in Springtime, September, in Kerry's back yard.

GO HAWKS!!!!!!!!! AND THEY WON!!!!!

Flat Adrianna has arrived home with some souvenirs of her visit to Yarra Glen:

Flat Justina has arrived in Numurkah!

Here are some photos that came back with Flat Justina.

Flat Alessia has arrived in Wangaratta!

G'day from Wangaratta!!

Flat Alessia arrived in the post on Monday! We were so excited to see her! She had a very busy day Tuesday Checking sheep and cattle, feeding a calf, fencing and even weed separating! Here she is hanging out with Buddy the Murray Grey bull that we use as part of our beef breeding program on our farm.

Flat Alessia meeting some of our beef cows. These cows are used as part of our beef breeding program. They will raise a calf each until it is about 6-8 months old then will be sold for meat.

Today Flat Alessia is off to Henty Machinery Field Days which is a massive big event with thousands of exhibitors all showcasing new technology and agricultural products for farmers.

Tomorrow she will be going shearing with Nathan.

Flat Alessia checking a mob of Merino ewes that are lambing. We currently have around 700 Merino ewes we use for fine wool and fat lamb production.

Flat Illianor has arrived in Kyabram!

Hi Illianor, what a great time I've been having. My host (Nikki) took me to work with her. She works in a bank. The money looks very different to ours. I have taken a photo of 2 notes. I am staying in an area called the Goulburn Valley and the name of the town is Kyabram. This Goulburn Valley is also known as the food bowl because a lot of fruit and vegetable are grown here Yummy fruit like peaches, pears and apples. On Saturday Nikki and I went to a town called Echuca which is on the Murray River. The river divides Victoria from New South Wales. More than 100 years ago it was a very busy port with lots of paddle steamers transporting wool and other goods.
I have a few photos to show you and I will put them up soon so watch this space! :-)
Hi I have been having a lovely time here. I visited Nikki's work. She works in a bank and I had my photo taken with some money so you can see what it is like.

I have also been to a town on the Murray River called Echuca. It is a very pretty place which has lots of paddle steamers. One hundred years ago they carried goods like wool from one port to another. These days anyone can buy a ticket and go for a trip along the river. Kyabram is a farming area with lots of orchards which grow apples, pears and peaches. This area is part of the food bowl. A lot of the fresh fruit for Victoria is grown in here. There are also lots of dairy farms and I even saw a calf being born!

Check out the photos and video I took. Hope you enjoy them.

Flat Amelia is on holiday with Cecilia from Yarra Glen. She is currently in Queensland enjoying the theme parks and sunshine. Check out the photos on the Queensland page to see what Flat Amelia got up to with Cecilia.

Flat Sofia arrived in Warracknabeal, Victoria. She is now travelling in Germany and France with the high school students. Lucky Flat Sofia. Here are some pictures of her trip to Europe:

And now she is back home with Julie in Warracknabeal, Victoria:

My next door neighbours (and my dog)

The street I live on

My backyard

The flood (2012)

QUESTIONS:

· Where do you live in Australia?

I live in a small town in the Wimmera called Warracknabeal. This is in the north of the state of Victoria. We are about 4 and a half hours from the capital city, Melbourne and 40 minutes away from the nearest big town (and also McDonalds!) Our town has about 2750 people living in it. This includes the farmers that live in the area around the town.

· What are some special things about where you live?

Our region is the main wheat growing area in Victoria. We also grow barley, chickpeas and canola.

Can you tell us a bit about the history of where you live?

The first of the squatters to occupy land around the future Warracknabeal, were the Scott brothers, who in 1845 moved to a spot on Yarriambiack Creek which they called "Werracknabeal" after the Aboriginal word describing the gum trees shading the watercourse and established their "run" or station.

What sports do you like to play/watch/support?

The main sports played here are football and netball in Winter and hockey in the Summer. I don’t play any of them but I do like to train my dogs in obedience, agility and tracking. This keeps me pretty busy and on the go all year round.

What are the special geographical features of your area? [e.g. do you live near a beach, ocean, mountain, the outback, etc.]

When I first moved to Warracknabeal I couldn’t believe how flat it is. There are no mountains or even small hills. The nearest mountains are the Grampians which are about an hours drive away. We are a long way from the beach but we do have a large community pool as well as a lovely creek which is used for swimming and water skiing on.

What animals and birds are there where you live?

There are many animals where I live. In my own yard I have seen stumpytail lizards, geckos and bearded dragons as well as several snakes (yikes). I also have many cockatoos and galahs come to eat the pine nuts out of my pine trees. Around the area, we have kangaroos and wallabies as well as echidnas. There is stories that there is a platypus in the creek, but I have never seen it. There are also many hawks and falcons and even the occasional wedge tailed eagle.

What special events happen where you live?

Every year at Easter we have a big festival. This includes street performers and craft stalls as well as tours of our local agriculture museum. This festival finishes with a huge street parade. What makes this parade interesting is that it is mainly all the farmers driving down the main road on their tractors! I could not believe how many tractors are in this area the first time I saw this. It took 30 minutes for them all to drive past where I was standing. There were brand new tractors as well as really old ones which the farmers only drove on this one day of the year. I never realised how many different types of tractors there were before this.

Do you live in a rural, regional or city location? What are the names of some other main cities, towns near you and how far away are they?

My town is definitely rural. The next largest town which is 40 minutes away is Horsham. Then 2.5 hours away is Ballarat which is even bigger. Other small towns near us have some pretty funny names. They include Brim, Beulah, Waubra and Lah. Beulah is the next closest town to us but only has about 300 people living in it. It is 15minutes drive away from us.

What is the weather like where you live? What are the four seasons like and do you have snow?

Summer is scorchingly hot here. We have many days where the temperature is 40-45 degrees Celsius and when you breath it feels like your lungs are getting cooked from the hot air. I love the hot weather but so do the flies! You have to breath carefully or you will probably inhale a few. It doesn’t rain much at all in Summer, but we often get massive thunder and lightning storms which are spectacular, but often start fires.

Autumn is a lovely season. It is still pretty warm most days and there is a small amount of rain. The leaves on the trees change colour and drop, but the gum trees leaves stay on the trees.

Winter is nowhere near as cold as Canada. It never snows here but we do get a lot of early frost which looks very white early in the morning. The coldest night I can remember here was -6 but it rarely gets below zero. Most days are still cold (for us) at around 10-12 degrees. We get more rain during Winter.

Spring is a surprising season here. The days are beginning to warm up, but we can have a week where the temperature is over 30 and then the next week it is less than 20. This can get quite confusing when trying to decide what to wear each day. Spring is also often very stormy. We don’t have a lot of rain, but it can get very windy and there are always roofs and sheds getting blown around in Spring.

What are your favourite foods that you would call “Australian”?

The ‘classic’ Australian food would have to be a meat pie with sauce and I do like those. I have also eaten kangaroo which is not bad and emu which is terrible. Crocodile is delicious too. My absolute favourite Australian food would have to be pavlova though. This is a dessert and is really like a giant meringue filled with cream and fruit or whatever topping you like. I could pretty much eat this for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

What job do you do?

I work in a secondary college, which is for students aged between 12 and 18. I am one of the assistant principals here but I also teach English and Psychology.

Please can you tell us some things about Australia that are different to Canada?

We don’t have Thanksgiving! Although here in Warracknabeal we have a lot of Canadians so we do celebrate it at work. Our pronunciation is a bit different to yours which has given us quite a few laughs. We have a Canadian English teacher here and she asked the students to spell the word ‘aunt’. We say it like ‘aren’t’ but Canadians say it like ‘ant’. This confused our students quite a lot! The other thing is that we drive on the left side of the road.

· Anything else you would like to tell us?

We have many Canadians here and we have discovered that you guys are probably the people most like Australians that I have found anywhere!

Flat Rachel has arrived at Owen's place. Flat Rachel will feel right at home because Owen is from Canada. I wonder if he'll have some maple syrup for Flat Rachel.

Hi Rachel,

   Where do you live in Australia? I live in Bundoora, just North of the city of Melbourne.

·         What are some special things about where you live? We have wild kangaroos in the park. Much the same as some places in Canada have deer living in the parks.

·         What sports do you like to play/watch/support? I spend my spare time in the ocean diving and surfing. I really like and watch Australian rules football. I root for the Sydney Swans, the best team in the league. This is because they have a Canadian from Victoria British Columbia on the team. (I figured I have some creative authority ;)

·         What are the special geographical features of your area? [e.g. do you live near a beach, ocean, mountain, the outback, etc.] Unfortunately its a bit suburban where I live, like a small town outside the city. My family and I like to spend time near the beaches camping and playing in the ocean.

·         What animals and birds are there where you live? We have tons of birds all around our neighbourhood. There's isn't a waking moment you don't hear a magpie or parrot chirping away. I find this very different to Canada as I didn't always hear birds.
We have a large family of possums living in a tree in the backyard. At night they sometimes run across the roof. For an animal the size of a cat you would think it was the size of a polar bear. They make a ton of noise.

· What is the weather like where you live? What are the four seasons like and do you have snow?The closest city in Canada I can compare the weather to is Vancouver. Minus the snow and a lot hotter in the summer.

· What are your favourite foods that you would call “Australian”? I really like kangaroo! and Cherry Ripes, they are a chocolate bar.

· What job do you do? I have my own business, I fix things for businesses and schools. Kind of like a carpenter and a plumber. My wife Heather is a principal at an elementary school.

· Please can you tell us some things about Australia that are different to Canada?

You drive on the other side of the road in Australia

Kangaroos are like your deer in Australia

There is no NHL :(

Australians call sweaters...jumpers, toques...beanies, green peppers...capsicum.

Good maple syrup is very hard to find and cost a lot of money.

There are a lot fewer lakes and rivers.

· Anything else you would like to tell us?

Flat Rachel went on a camping and fishing trip to Lakes Entrance in Victoria. She saw some really neat animals. I have attached some pictures.

In case you didn't know I am Canadian and have lived in Australia for 4 years. I was born in New Brunswick and lived on both sides Canada. Even though I really like Australia, sometimes I miss my home country.

Owen

Wow... Flat Rachel went diving in Australia with Owen and Sandy:

The creature laying in the weeds is a banjo shark! I am sure they will be able to guess the other one. The fish is a leather jacket and the school of fish are old wives. Rachel's dive buddies are Sandy and myself.

Flat Rachel arrived back safely with some goodies to share. Even some money!!!

Flat Donato is loving his time in Shepparton with Cosimo.

Saturday 27thSept 2014 - Donato attended Saturday night Mass at St Brendans Catholic Church. It was a bit empty that night because of the AFL grand final!

Sunday 28th Sept 2014- Flat Donato helped out with some landscaping in my backyard, perfect warm Spring weather to do some gardening!

Monday 29th Sept - Around Shepparton, the Council Offices, Eastbank Centre (cow statues), Shopping (Riverside Plaza) and down Whyndam St

More to come still. Flat Donato is attending McGuire College for a couple of days.
Flat Donato has arrived back after being in Shepparton - solar capital of Victoria - and visiting Cosi's school:

Flat AC has arrived in Woodend, Victoria, Australia.

We are overjoyed to announce the safe arrival of Amelia-Cassandra to our home in Woodend, Victoria, Australia!

She looks a little apprehensive but we will make her feel like part of the family.

Spring is a great time to explore the area.

Talk soon,

Nadine & Eli

Hanging Rock (Mt. Diogenes) is a rare volcanic formation located near the townships of Woodend & Mount Macedon in Victoria, Australia. There are a lot of rock formations there. Names for some of the rocks are: Post Office: where passers-by tossed small stones into a hollow place. The Lovers Leap: a rock jutting out from the cliff, Queen Victoria's Monument: a replica of- Queen Victoria in her robes. McDonalds Look-out where McDonald, a Bush Ranger, was able to look out over the North-East between two rocks, while Morgan, another Bush Ranger, had his look-out Westerly from a hollow rock with an opening in it. Another rock is named The Cuss-Cuss Rock where the little native cats would spit at passers-by. The Squeeze was a tunnel from the top above Hanging Rock to the base. It meant clambering over and crawling through small spaces, until safely reaching the ground level. Here are some pictures of Hanging Rock in the Macedon Ranges.

Flat AC went to the Melbourne Zoo:

Hello Amelia and Cassandra,

Today Elijah, Nadine and I enjoyed a trip to the Royal Melbourne Zoo. Eli's dad, Rob, and his grandmother, Barb, also came along.

It was a perfectly sunny spring afternoon.

We saw elephants, orangutans, gorillas, seals, fairy penguins, meerkats, tigers, zebras, giraffes and even a pygmy hippopotamus. My favourite place was the Butterfly House, which was very warm like the tropics, and had hundreds of different coloured butterflies. It was interesting to see the caterpillars and pupae that form before the butterflies can start to dazzle us with their beauty.

Most of the animals have fantastic enclosures that have been made to resemble their natural habitats. They looked very relaxed and some were having snacks such as mixed fruit and vegetables.

I think it is great that there are signs all over the Zoo reminding visitors to look after the environment to help protect the world's animal population.

I've had a fun time but I'm looking forward to coming home. I miss pancakes!

Love Flat Amelia-Cassandra

PS: The reptile in the photo was not real, thank goodness, but it was still a little scary being close to it!

Hi Amelia,

You wanted to know about our jobs and hobbies.

I am a journalist but no longer work on a newspaper or magazine. Instead I write all kinds of things for businesses and groups needing to get their stories out to the public. I also promote artists and try to bring visitors into our area to see and support the artists. My project is called the Macedon Ranges Art Trail. Thanks to my contact with local artists I was able to get a job in an art store for two days a week. My goal is to run tours of the galleries and artists' studios around my area.

Elijah has just turned 5 and doesn't have a job but he does have lots of hobbies including: Lego building, drawing, football, climbing at the playground, movies, hide-and-seek, and playing with our little dog named Cleo.

I hope this helps give you a better picture of us.

Nadine

PS: I've attached a photo of Eli climbing a huge tree at the Royal Melbourne Zoo, as well as a photo of Cleo, who is a Jack RussellxPomeranianxChihuahua.

Hi Cassandra, please find some responses to your questions. Nadine x

Favourite Australian Books (kids)

Blinky Bill

Snugglepot & Cuddlepie

Wombat Stew

Animalia

The Day My Bum Went Psycho

Favourite Sports

Australian Rules Football (Ms Moore has probably told you all about the Mighty Hawks. But even though they have won the last two premiership flags, the most famous club in Australia is my club, Collingwod, the Mighty Magpies. Our players wear black and white jumpers and our club is the second most famous sporting club in the WORLD after England's Manchester United soccer club.)

Australians also enjoy Golf, Tennis, Netball, Basketball, Cricket, Fishing, Surfing and many other sports.

Flat AC has been partying with Barb and Nadine:

Photos taken at Barb's 77th birthday celebration including one of Lee and one of Josh with Flat Alissa-Cassandra. Flat A-C was almost left at the party!

It was a beautiful warm spring day with the temp. exceeding 30 deg. The next night Flat A-C was snugly tucked in her envelope as it snowed on nearby Mt Macedon.
Latest from Nadine to Grade 3, answering our class questions:

We live in Woodend!

Do you live in a rural, regional or city location? What are some other main cities, towns near you and how far away are they?

Woodend is a rural town in North-Central Victoria. It is about half way between Melbourne and the major regional city of Bendigo, and both can be reached in about one hour by car or train. Woodend is at the foot of Mt Macedon, which is not high or snowy enough for skiing but is popular with hikers and has beautiful old homes with very large and elegant gardens. Woodend is also very close to the Goldfields Region of Central Victoria, where some of the early European and Chinese settlers found gold.

What is the weather like where you live? What are the four seasons like and do you have snow?

Woodend is in one of the coldest parts of Victoria. Compared with Canada, however, it is mild for most of the year. If we’re lucky we receive a few days of light snowfall each year but very rarely enough to leave a white blanket. Having four distinctive seasons is one of the reasons we like living here. My favourite season is Autumn (Fall) when the towns are alive with colour and a lot of events happen in March because the weather is often just right. We usually have a couple of hot weeks in summer that remind us to make sure we have a Bushfire Safety Plan so we’re organized if fire threatens our town. Woodend residents enjoy cooler nights than people living in other areas, which is a relief in summer. In Spring thousands of flowering bulbs bloom. Kyneton, a town about 16km from Woodend, holds an annual Daffodil Festival with all kinds of art and gardening competitions revolving around the cheerful yellow daffodil.

What are your favourite foods that you would call ‘Australian’?

Vegemite on toast, Meat pies with tomato sauce, Fish & Chips with potato cakes from our local shop, Lamingtons, Pavlova, Fruit Cake etc.
We love Barbecues, whether they’re a simple Sausage Sizzle or a fancier affair with prawns and other seafood.
We are lucky to have a variety of fresh fruit & vegetables all year round. Our family’s favourites are Pineapple, Mango, Blueberries, Bananas, Apples, Avocado, Cucumber, Sweet Potato & Broccoli. Like many families, we enjoy shopping at Farmers Markets for the freshest and tastiest produce grown near where we live.
Australia is filled with restaurants specializing in foods from different parts of the world. Popular choices are Thai, Indian, Vietnamese, Italian and Japanese.

What job do you do?

Nadine: I am a former newspaper journalist. Now I work as a self-employed freelance writer, mostly writing business promotional material and publicity for community groups and events. I run the Macedon Ranges Art Trail, which supports local artists and galleries. Two days a week I work in an art supplies store as a retail assistant.

Please can you tell us some things about Australia that are different to Canada?

· We drive on the left hand side of the road.

· There is no Tim Hortons here.

· Not many Australians speak French.

· Many of us have tried waterskiing but most of us haven’t even seen an ice rink.

· Nearly everybody has an AFL team that they support.

· We don’t have bears in the wild!

· Lots of people living in rural towns find venomous snakes and spiders in their yards and even sometimes inside their houses.

Anything else you would like to tell us?

We feel very fortunate to live in a caring, safe community that pulls together during tough times and celebrates our achievements. We have clean water, comfortable homes, plenty of good food and lots of activities to get involved in if we wish.

Thank-you for letting us host Flat Amelia-Cassandra.
She was no trouble at all!

Elijah & Nadine

Flat Samatha has arrived in Chelsea, Victoria, Australia.

Hi Mary & Samantha

I've just returned from a holiday in Far North Queensland and flat Samantha was patiently waiting for me!! I am so happy to meet her!

I will complete all my tasks as quickly as possible and send her back full of local knowledge.... I hope she is not too tired when she returns :)

Regards

Elizabeth

Flat Samantha’s Australian journey

Hi, my name is Elizabeth Mackay and I have had a great time showing flat Samantha around my home town of Chelsea Heights. We also enjoyed a weekend away at our family holiday home on the Mornington Peninsula in Rye.

Flat Samantha arrived in Chelsea Heights while I was away on holidays in Far North Queensland. I have included some photos and information from my holiday – I hope you enjoy it too!!

I live in Chelsea Heights which is a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Chelsea Heights is 30 km from Melbourne along the beach on Port Phillip Bay. My house is 2 km from the beach which is about a 20 minute walk.

Some historical facts:

· Chelsea post office opened in 1907 and population in this area started to grow post WW2

· Prior to the 1870s, Chelsea Heights was known as the Isles of Wannarkladdin, being the only high land of the Carrum Carrum Swamp: more information on link below:

· http://localhistory.kingston.vic.gov.au/htm/article/191.htm

The special things about this area:

· The beach

· The Edithvale wetlands

· Bicentennial Park

The beach at Chelsea:

There is flat Samantha trying to get into one of the bathing boxes. I think she was cold.

Chelsea Beach.... it’s a bit too cold to swim!

The Edithvale wetlands: http://www.edithvale-seaford-wetlands.org/wetlands-information.html

Bicentennial Park in Chelsea:

I have played many sports over the years but my favourite by far was playing netball. That is how I met Mary – she was my first netball coach and we have been friends ever since! I played and coached netball from when I was in grade 3 at Primary school and stopped coaching this year. I also enjoy playing tennis, golf and when I was flat Samantha’s age I also did netball, gymnastics, little athletics and calisthenics..... I was very busy! I follow the Melbourne Vixens in our National Netball League.

In Australia we all love AFL (Australia Rules Football). I barrack for Carlton and Mary barracks for Hawthorn who just happened to win the grand final this year and last - I am sure she has already told you that! Flat Samantha had her photo taken with my friend Tom who is also a big fan of Hawthorn!!

Other popular sports in Australia are cricket, soccer, surfing, golf, tennis, basketball and swimming.

The weather:

Season: Month: Degrees Celsius:

Summer December – February 25 – 14

Autumn March – May 20 - 11

Winter June – August 14 - 7

Spring September – November 20 - 10

Favourite Australian Food:

Vegemite

Pavlova

Anzac biscuits

BBQ’s

Seafood

Have you tried any of these?

I am a Registered Nurse. I work for the Aged Care Assessment Service (ACAS). We assess people over the age of 65 and make recommendations to help them remain safely at home with support and assistance. We also help them if they need to move into supportive care like a hostel or a nursing home. It’s a great job and I really enjoy it! I always wanted to be a nurse - what do you want to do?

I have included some photos of my local area, Rye and included some information and photos from my holiday in Far North Queensland.

Here is Flat Samantha celebrating the Hawks victory with her new friend Tom in Rye, Victoria.

Flat Samantha at the beach in Rye

Flat Samantha playing in the sand at Rye beach.

Flat Samantha found an Octopus on the Rye foreshore.

Flat Samantha out for breakfast with her new friends Tom & Alex.

We had a lovely weekend in Rye with them over the school holidays.

This is the view from the pier at Rye

Tom & Alex wanted to give some facts about Rye too:

Rye is a seaside resort town 83 km from Melbourne.

It has a bay beach which is popular with swimmers, fishermen, yachtsmen and more recently kite surfers

It also has an ocean beach which is popular with surfers. Tom and Alex are both learning to surf at the Rye back beach.

Rye was proclaimed a town in February 1861.

There are many great things about this area:

Military ruins at Point Nepean, Cape Schank Coastal walks, many rocky coastal features, dunes and pockets of sandy beaches.

More information about Point Nepean:

http://parkweb.vic.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0004/315535/Heritage-story-Point-Nepean-National-Park.pdf

This is a photo at Point Nepean – you can see the ocean beach on the right and the bay beach on the left.

I have also included some information about Far North Queensland

Port Douglas 4 Mile Beach

4 Mile Beach Port Douglas

Sunset cruise on the Lady Douglas – there is a brochure about this

Can you see the crocodile in this picture? He was soaking up the last of the afternoon sun!

Daintree – World Heritage Area

We drove to Cooktown along the Bloomfield track. You can only do this in a 4WD. Look at the brochure I have included which tells you about the day trip we took. Here are some photos from the trip.

Safe travels back home flat Samantha.

It’s been lots of fun!!

Regards

Elizabeth
Flat Samantha arrived back home safely with lots of Aussie stamps and copies of the photos. Such excitement to share.

Flat Megan has arrived in Newstead...

G'day Megan,

I'm very pleased to tell you that Flat Megan has indeed arrived in Newstead ,Victoria, Australia. However, she is a bit of a scallywag and spends all her time taking 'selfies' which you will undoubtedly see in due course. Everywhere we go, it's out with the camera and "click"...yet another photo of Flat Megan. But I guess that's what happens when one visits a new place....click, click, click..."There are so many things I want show my cobbers back in Canada", she says.

I have been out and about introducing her to the wonderful township the is Newstead. Today she met the mayor of our local shire. Flat Megan reckons she is pretty posh after shaking hands with the mayor. He does have good hands the mayor, and he uses them very well when we play cards. That's the game of 500.

And...and, she has met the very famous Mr Curly...and she likes him very much. Wait till you see the photo. They are out in the garden, chatting about the warm weather and the plants that are breaking into flower. Such gentle activities. I reckon they could have got down and done a bit of weeding and digging instead of sitting around waiting for me to get them a cup of tea.

Of course Flat Megan has quickly made friends with Biddy, the wee dog from next door who spends all her time here.

There are so many things that we, that is Flat Megan, Biddy and I have been doing, that it's really hard for her to be thinking about coming home to Canada. But I guess I will remind her that Halloween is not that far away and that should get her excited. I reckon she will get more treats back home for Halloween than here in Newstead. From what I hear Newstead is quite famous for its Halloween tricks!!!...but not its treats.

It is interesting that for the last two weeks Flat Megan has been on the lookout for some hawks. We have seen some thrushes, magpies, ducks, sparrows and some rather sick looking swans...but no hawks. Perhaps they have gone away for a 'holiday', a sort of end of winter trip away'. This is a good area to see birds. Flat Megan says her favourite bird that she has seen in our garden is the New Holland Honeyeater. Have a gander on your computer and the internet to see why Flat Megan likes that bird.

Crikey Megan, it's time to get Biddy back home and for Flat Megan to stop watching repeats of 'Bellbird' on television and get off to bed. She really should be packing!

Take care...and stay bonzer

Gordon

PS Photos and more stories of The Ozzie Adventures of Flat Megan in due course.
Gordon replies to Megan's questions posted on the home page of the blog:
G'day Megan. In 2013 the population of Australia, the wide brown land, was 23.13 million peoples. How many sheep I hear you ask? I step outside tonight and start counting.

Now, about this pet koala you are asking about. You will be better off with a toy koala. In most cases it is prohibited by law to keep native fauna and that includes koalas. As a young 'nipper' we had a pet kangaroo. Somehow it broke a leg and my father mad a special splint for it...and Joey recovered and could hop again.

I know it's very important, but how many sleeps now till Halloween?

This tradition which is very much part of your culture, has in recent years gained a 'foothold' in Australia and is celebrated to a certain extent. As kids it wasn't part of our 'life', although I did know about it by reading Donald Duck comics. I guess that before long it will be well established as part of Australian folklife...whether us Baby Boomers want it or not!!!

Good to say hello.

Stay bonzer

Gordon
[Message from Ms. Moore - the Hawks are still celebrating their big footy win!. Can you find the words and references that are uniquely Australian in Gordon's note?]

October 11th:
G'day again Megan.

I've just had a gander at the Blog site and saw that another Flat 'person' has been visiting Echuca and had a ride on the paddle-steamer. Echuca is where I was born, so I know the Murray River very well. In fact both my paternal great grandfathers worked on the paddle steamers in the olden days. The river trade was an important part of Australia's history.

Now I've got that little plug in for Echuca, I thought I should let you know that Flat Megan, has packed her swag and is homeward bound. But not without a few tearful goodbyes to Biddy and all the pals she has met since arriving 'Downunder'. In fact she almost missed the plane, cos she just loved going down to the oval and kicking the footy around with some of the local kids. The football season maybe other and the premiership flag won by the Hawks, but kicking the footy lingers on as a 'filling in' activity till next season. I think Flat Megan hankered to see the Bombers play. She is very impressed that Dustin Fletcher who is nearly 40 years old has signed on for another season with the Bombers.

Now that Flat Megan has departed...and enjoying a beaker of Tarax Creamy Soda on the flight home, I can tell you about some of the mischief she has been up to during her stay in Newstead.

We had a BBQ one Sunday and had some Bull Boar snags (sausages). These delighted her somewhat, so I took her to meet Ross the local butcher who makes them. Bull Boars are made to a secret recipe that has been handed down over many generations from the Swiss/Italian settlers who arrived in the area back in the 1800s when gold was discovered around Daylesford. As I said the recipe is secret so I can't tell you what's in them but they are very tasty. Ross's Bull Boar snags are famous and people come for many miles to buy them. You can't beat a good snag , that's what I say! A good snag with 'lotsa dead horse'. :-D

On another day we hopped in the car and went to see Cairn Curran Reservoir. This was built in the early 1950s on the Loddon River to hold water for irrigation purposes. Many of the workers on the project came to Australia as migrants after WW2 and played a major part in the development of Australia...and had a large influence on our food culture. "Boy, are we glad they taught us about drinking coffee and eating lasagne, risotto, calamari and parmesan cheese."

The name Cairn Curran is a Scottish name and reflects the fact that many of the early settlers in this district were Scots...just like in Canada. Other Scottish names we see around the district are: Clydesdale, Loch Lomond, Waverley, Strath Lea and Campbelltown. Even Newstead is thought to be a Scottish name. In the nearby towns of Daylesford and Maryborough, Scottish Highland games are held each year.

On our way back we stopped off and sat by the Loddon River which flows through the town. This is a small stream which eventually empties into the Murray River. However it does flood after heavy rain, so the town is protected by a levee bank. In the 14 years that we have lived in Newstead, there has been three floods. I have seen a platypus swimming in the river, but not for some time now.

Genevieve took Flat Megan to the Newstead Community Garden to help get it prepared for the big fundraising dinner to be held later this month. Now that is Spring time a lot of the vegetables are coming to maturity and ready for eating. They will be on the menu for the dinner. Do you have a garden Megan?

Of course, Biddy went along for the walk. Biddy is an Australian terrier...and a bit of a terror as well. She can climb the fence to come and visit! :-)

There is but one main street in Newstead which is also the Pyrenees Highway. One of the buildings there is the Men's Shed, so we stopped off to have a look at it. The Men's Shed is where retired 'gentlemen' gather to make things and sit around drinking coffee and having a natter. There are now many of these around the country. They are good for body and soul! Men having fun...its a good thing.

I thought you would like to know about the local primary school, so I took Flat Megan there and naturally she took a selfie with the school in the background.

In our community we have many artists living. One of these artists is Roger who has constructed and developed Antares Iron Sculpture garden. Roger uses all sorts of found objects and scrap material to build his wonderful sculptures. Flat Megan was in awe of what she saw, so lookout when she gets home, you will have a garden full of old car bits, old farm machinery and even old treadlies (bikes). Biddy chased a rabbit that was sheltering under one of the sculptures! Naughty Biddy.

Anyway Megan, I hope your very good pal Flat Megan gets home okay. As she arrives, my very good friend and extra good fine woodworker Lachie, will be about to leave Ontario...to come home to Newstead. As they say in cricket, "Howsat!"

I have had a lovely time hosting Flat Megan. She was such fun. Any questions about her antics just let me know.
Stay bonzer
Gordon

Flat Megan has arrived back safely. She came back with some souvenirs and more photos:

Flat Tennyson has arrived in Badger Creek after staying in the Post Office for two weeks:
Flat Tennyson was left all alone in the Healesville Post Office for two weeks waiting for Nerae and Erin to collect him. They were on school holidays. Flat TT is soooooo glad to be able to stretch his legs and get out and about around Healesville and its two beautiful neighbours, Badger Creek and Chum Creek [Ms. Moore lives in Badger Creek when she is in Australia!]