• Category Archives australia
  • Stewart Island Wildlife Park

    Our daytrip out to Philip island started with a visit to Stewart island and a wildlife park. Everyone else was checking out the koala so we went to the kangaroo and wallaby enclosure. Although we found it wasn’t much of an enclosure, but rather a walk where they come to check you out. Kerri took the opportunity to pet the kangaroo.

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    Most were just chilling out in the morning sun.

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    But others were more interested in us and Kerri got to pet them all.

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    These are the eastern grey kangaroos.

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    After more people showed up we moved on and found some more cool looking birds.

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    We double backed, but the koala after hard work of posing for pictures was fast asleep.

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    The dingoes were also just chilling out.

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    Inside there were a few reptiles.

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    Including pythons.

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    And a couple of small tanks. This was a blue crawfish.

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    The roos and wallabies were always interested when we walked by.

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    Although sometimes they were a bit more skittish and would hop away.

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  • Sydney Opera House

    So yes, we actually took some normal pictures of the Sydney Opera House. They just got lost in the backlog.

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    It looks cool from both sides.

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    There really is no bad angle to view it from.

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    Even right up close it looks really cool.

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    At sunset it starts to catch the light.

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    We were lucky enough to go to a show in the big theatre (the comedy festival closing gala) and while we were waiting we got to hang out on the balcony.

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    In the shop they were selling Lego models of the opera house. It actually looks like a pretty cool set.

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    And if you haven’t seen it enough here’s one more picture for you.

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  • Sydney Aquarium

    Since it would be a long time before heading into the ocean we had to go check out an aquarium. They had lots of different cool animals. This is just a very big lobster.

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    Here’s a water dragon that was in their freshwater enclosure.

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    They had lots of different fish.

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    As well as many coral tanks. Here you can see some anemone.

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    These anemone are a bit fatter looking. 

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    There were also really cool animals attached to the side of the glass.

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    The pictures don’t really capture it but they pulsate to circulate water around to collect food.

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    This is a stone…..fish. You may be able to see why people step on them by accident. This is why Kerri wanted steel bottom water shoes, as these guys are also very deadly.

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    Back outside the scary tanks there were several types of frogs chilling out.

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    As well as more fish that don’t kill you.

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    We got to see cuttlefish as well and this one had just laid a clutch of eggs. Those are all the weird blobs hanging down.

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    Much to our surprise and delight they have dugongs. These are related to the manatee but live over here.

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    They have a tale more similar to a whale or dolphin.

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    They look really funny while they eat.

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    And they have to eat a lot. every 15 minutes more food is tossed in.

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    Nom nom nom.

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    What we didn’t realize is that rays will also eat lettuce and would dive in to get some too.

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    They would only take about 10 minutes to clear out the tray.

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    But then a refill would come on down shortly after.

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    We managed to pull ourselves away from the dugongs and were treated with different species of seahorses.

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    And more funky looking fish.

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    As well as additional types of anemone.

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    There were some big cod in other large tanks.

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    In those tanks were also sharks. I think this is a nurse shark. It may be a lemon.

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    Kerri got some interesting pictures of the inside of mouths. You can see rows and rows of teeth.

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    There were also sawtooth sharks.

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    They use the long projection to shift up the sand and they eat the animals hanging out on the ocean floor.

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    The tips are very sensitive which allow them to find lots of food.

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    This is the other type of shark in the nurse shark vs lemon shark. Again you can see lots of rows of teeth, but both these species are not dangerous to people. Unless you try to pick them out of the water.

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    They look odd compared to the sharks we’ve seen previously.

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  • Barracks Museum

    Over the years Australia was a prison colony, 166,000 prisoners transported from Britain. They lived at the barracks, which is now a museum. Their punishment was unpaid labour to build the new colony. They weren’t considered prisoners and were mostly free and allowed to work for money on evenings and Saturdays. They did have a curfew when they had to be back in the barracks though. And the barracks weren’t a very nice place.

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    They had to wear ridiculous uniforms during the day so that they wouldn’t be confused with free people.

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    They were fed gruel and bread at the barracks.

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    They slept in hammocks, which were comfortable but crowded.

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    The rooms had spyholes in the walls so that the guards could make sure the residents didn’t get into any unapproved activities.

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    They have the stories of many of the prisoners in the museum. Some of them were murderers, but most were pretty minor crimes. One 6 year old boy was deported for stealing some boots. The length of time they laboured had nothing to do with their crimes. There were murderers pardoned after 3 years and petty thieves that were kept for life.

    One man was a slave in Jamaica who participated in a revolt and was sent to Australia in 1836. Which basically means he was punished for trying to escape slavery with less severe slavery. He was pardoned in 1845 and allowed to live free in Australia.

    After the prison colony closed, the building was used for immigrant women while they waited to find work or for their families to pick them up.

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    They probably didn’t wear socks, but Kerri was lazy.

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    Matt was even lazier and refused to dress up, so Kerri beat him with a cat-o-nine-tails.

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    He did not appreciate it.

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    But Kerri is mean.

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