Autumn

Just as it's getting warmer at home, the temperatures in Australia are starting to dip, which can only mean the beginning of Autumn.  Not fall, Autumn.  And I suppose since the temperature change isn't drastic enough to make any leaves fall from the trees, using the proper name of the season is appropriate for Australians.

It's still hot out during the day, but for the first time this season we were able to sleep without the air con last night, and actually needed to bundle up for the game last night.  It felt very refreshing to uncover my long sleeves and be able to bundle up in a scarf.  Even after a Boston summer we welcome sweater weather, so you can imagine how nice it is after a tropical summer.  Although the summer is by no means over - yesterday I made the mistake of sitting on the beach without sunblock, and am nursing a severe sunburn now.

One frustrating thing about the change of seasons is that the days are beginning to get much shorter.  Even on the longest day of the year, the sun sets at 6:40, since Brisbane is fairly close to the equator and doesn't have day light saving's time.  Now, it is getting dark at about six o'clock.  There's hardly any twilight here - again because we're close to the equator - so it only takes about ten minutes difference between the sun starting to set, and darkness. 

One group that doesn't mind the earlier evenings are the flying foxes.  Every night when the sun begins to set, these bats emerge from the trees and set out for their night flights.  Along the river there are literally hundreds of them, swooping and screeching to welcome in the night.

All Bundled Up

Flying Foxes

Aussie Rules Football

Last night was the season opener for the Lions, Brisbane's Australian Rules Football team, and I was right there to see the start of the season.

Aussie Rules is a pretty intense game, but luckily I was able to grasp the basics enough to follow the game.  Walking into the stadium the first thing you notice is the shape of the field, or pitch.  Unlike most sports, the field isn't a rectangle, but an elliptical.  That keeps things interesting, because instead of just worrying about the opponents in front of them, players have to consider  being tackled from all sides.  Add to that the fact that the players don't wear any safety equipment besides a mouth guard, and it makes for a very physical, fast-paced game.

Aussie rules players have been been scouted by the NFL as kickers, and watching a game there's no question why.  To move the ball, players almost exclusively kick - while running, watching their opponents on all sides, and trying not to be tackled.  It makes kicking field goals look like little league.

Have a look at the Aussie Rules Action here.

Enjoying the Game

Surfers Paradise

Looking at the beaches in this city south of Brisbane, you'd think that God himself named it Surfers Paradise.  Not so.  However, I'm sure the man who renamed the city Surfers Paradise from Elston in 1933 thought he had been struck by a bit of divine intervention.  Surfer's Paradise - who could resist a visit?

Instead of supporting the outrageously expensive and otherwise sub-par Australian dining scene (but that's another post) to celebrate our engagement, Mark and I got an apartment on the coast with his family for a night.  It was great - the beach really is where Australia shines!

It's such a change to go to a beach where you can actually stay in the water!  Even at the best of times, the ocean around Boston is cold.  Here, the water was like bathwater.  We were able to splash and surf all day.  But first, Mark needed to educate me on some Aussie Beach etiquette, which I'm glad to pass on to you.

When hitting the beach here, the first thing you've got to do is slip, slop, and slap.  Slip on a shirt, slop on some sunscreen, and slap on a hat, as the public service campaign goes.  There is no shame in applying sunscreen on an Australian beach.  The higher the SPF the better, since the Queensland sun really has bite.  Although there were plenty of speedos, full-body sun-protection swim suits were quite fashionable on the beach.

Once you're sun safe, you've got to find a place to swim, and in Australia, that means between the flags.  Beautiful Aussie beaches can stretch for miles, but those refreshing waters are actually harboring a world of dangers like sharks, jellyfish, and rip tides.  Luckily a group of volunteer life guards, or Surf Life Savers, patrol the beach each day, and evaluate where it's safe to swim.  Australians have a very healthy respect for the water, especially the ocean, so nearly everyone sticks between the red and yellow flags that denote a safe swimming area, where you can splash under the watch of some of the best life guards in the world. 

If you're still feeling a bit unsure about venturing into Jaws territory, have no fear - you're covered from the land, the water, and now, the air.  You already met the Surf Life Savers, and seen the orange buoys that hold the shark net bobbing in the surf.  Next, you hear a familiar whir and look up to see the shark patrol helicopter - the one that spends days flying along the Gold Coast, looking for any unwanted predators in the clear blue waters.   

But nevermind all that.  Just take a breath, dunk into that clear water, and be thankful to be in Paradise.

Shark Patrol Chopper

The Ocean Horizon

Surfer's Paradise