Diving The Great Barrier Reef

So, in keeping with my sometimes-blogged-about observation: people generally more enjoy hearing about what went wrong on a trip rather than the "I loved this and that."  Truthfully, I even enjoy telling the travel-hassle stories more than the "I went here and saw this and that..." (well, except for Facebook which I consider to be mostly "bragging" anyway -- and I use it that way as well).

And, this diving experience did serve up a few of those stories that I'll lead with:

1.  On one of the dives, I led my buddy back to the wrong boat!  Humbled by the error, thereafter I relied more heavily on the superb underwater navigation skills of my diving "buddy" for the 11 dives - a 30 year old dentist from Argentina.

She sweetly shared in the miscalculations -- and the experience could not have been better in being reminded that sometimes we learn best from failure!  Of course we enjoyed many laughs about it -- including the reactions of the divers on the other boat who were also just coming in from a dive.  When one asked how we got there -- I just told 'em we swam in from Cairns (3 hours away)!  Also, we didn't hold the record for getting lost on our boat -- others had to be picked up more than once -- and we had some solid excuses as the boats were identical from the same company -- with the same name ScubaPro.  Ours just happened to be ScubaPro III instead of ScubaPro I and there had been some challenging current that affected other divers as well.  I couldn't help but think about all the platitudes about only seeing what you are looking for!

2.  I failed to realize that unlike Bali diving, this company did not provide "booties" to wear inside your fins -- and I ended up the 11 dives with toes that looked like they could be good shark bait. No long term damage -- and really quite minor in the big scheme of things -- but irritating nonetheless.  I won't be making that mistake twice -- but I may well end up on the wrong boat again someday!

That's it -- nothing else to add to the fun of difficult travel stories.  The rest was AMAZING!  Great people (24 divers from around the world), great staff (fun and talented), great training, great food, comfortable bunks (I was bunked with a mid-20's guy from Santiago), calm seas (no one got sea sick), and wonderful dives.  And I learned a ton -- not only because I decided to take the Advanced Open Water certification and the Enriched Air certification training -- but also because most the dives were not guided.  Don't get me wrong -- I greatly prefer guided as it eliminates much of the underwater worries regarding time and place, and makes for a MUCH more relaxing dive, but being totally responsible for ourselves (buddy and I) and all our own gear preparation took my diving capability to a new level.

These photos don't do the trip any justice -- but there was little time for photos anyway and it's an experience, like diving itself, that no photo can explain.

And yes we saw sharks (2) and many turtles of all sizes -- and lots of beautiful fish.  I even experienced my first ever night diving (did two of them).  But please don't ask me to compare diving here and in Bali -- every dive is amazing and like life itself, sometimes the "experience" depends on so many variables -- weather, mood, attitude, people you're with, comfort with gear.  I truly believe I could go diving in the exact same spot every day and have a truly unique and wonderful experience each time.  As I have gotten more comfortable in the water, I truly love the feeling of weightlessness -- and I love just taking a relaxed pace.  I do think it's a little like motorcycling in this way:  some people treat it as a search, and speed along looking for the next thing -- others enjoy the ride in the moment.  Every fish, every school of fish, every clam (and we saw some giants), every coral, is fascinating when viewed from the weightless state of diving.  I'm convinced that there is no "one best place."  The Great Barrier Reef did not disappoint and I'm happy to make this bucket list check mark -- and I will be delighted if I should have the opportunity to return!

Signs

Those who read my blogs know that I enjoy the unusual signs I see - and Cairns served up a few on my walk around the town.

And I saw another wickedcamper.com van like the one above -- but it was moving too fast to get a photo.  Liked the saying though: "Love is like a fart...if you have to force it, it's probably shit."

Another Lucky Choice - Cairns Accommodations

Arrival in Cairns went super smooth as the host of the guesthouse met me curbside at the airport and transported me to her place where I had booked two nights before and two nights after the live-aboard diving experience.

I quickly learned that this host, in addition to the private room that I rented (booking.com), provides longer term student housing for international students who come to Cairns to study English - arranged through the school.  She provides "host mom" type of connections for these students including breakfast and dinner.  She invited me to breakfast (included) and dinner (for a tiny fee), and I had great fun getting to meet and visit with these 17 to 25 year olds from Columbia, Japan, and France.  Once again I felt like I'd made a lucky choice in accommodations -- as it was clearly the best of what I enjoy: my own private room with great wifi, but in a hostel-like environment where my mind gets expanded and humbled by interacting with young people motivated to change their lives and future by both study and travel.  The second night she even invited me to go to a local pub where she -- and on this week, her one student from France, participate in a trivia game night.  We had great fun with lots of laughs -- as another Australian joined our "team."  I wasn't much help to the "team" on the questions -- but had a fun time learning about everyone.

The place was also a perfect spot to walk to the retail diving store where I needed to check in for my live-aboard -- and walk around Cairns picking up some last minute necessities.

Another lucky choice - indeed!

Wake Up America!

Waited for and rode on the rental car shuttle back to the airport with a couple who had flown to Australia from New Zealand just to attend the MotoGP motorcycle races.  As you might imagine, motorcycles and my booking in January to go to New Zealand made it easy to forge ahead with as much conversation as time allowed.  But the interesting tidbit that prompts this posting is a comment the young woman made about having learned from a friend who moved from San Diego to New Zealand: most Americans only get a couple or three weeks holiday time each year, not the 5+ weeks Kiwi's get.  I acknowledged, that, sadly, Americans continue to fall behind other nations in so many areas including holiday time.

The brief conversation prompted some reflection as I settled into my seat: Here I am enjoying the privileges that a career in Federal public employment allowed me, reflecting on how the USA could be so much better than it has become.  Short holiday time for most American workers even seems minor when compared to our other challenges: no single payer health care system (except for those over 65), costly college education, out-of-control gun ownership, religious intolerance, wall-building bigotry, increasing homelessness especially for the mentally impaired, inadequate/challenging child care funding, distant, meaningless wars that go on and on, as well as war words with North Korea -- just to name a few.  And embarrassingly, we Americans currently have a completely dishonest clown as President -- still supported by some 36+% of our electorate because of their ignorant bigotry, misinformed beliefs about immigration, abortion, gun rights, religious freedom, just to name a few.

Oh wait!  From the people I know who follow my blog -- I'm preaching to the choir!

Time to select Van Morrison's "Bright Side of the Road," lean back and let my earbuds coast me into taking a nap, and wake up in a better mood.  After all, I'm a lucky bloke -- headed to Cairns to accomplish yet another "bucket list" item - scuba diving the Great Barrier Reef.

So, I wrote all of the above before I learned that my seatmates -- Canadian citizens in their early 30's from Quebec are making a year-long world tour with their now 7 month old -- had sold their home and put everything in storage because the accountant mom gets a year off - half paid at 93% of her full salary - upon the birth of a child and the police officer dad gets a full year off at 50% of his salary.  Exactly the kind of benefit where Americans lag on the world stage - that I had just written about.  Of course I learned their blog site (all in French) and contact information and we snapped this photo as the conversation continued all the way to baggage claim. Oh America!  We could be so much better.

Wrapping Up First Week - Next Stop: Cairns

As with all fun travel -- the days passed too quickly as Bernie and I continued our exploration of family history (reviewing baptism and marriage records at the local Catholic Church, and finding the original 1873 marriage record of my paternal great grandparents - including the consent for my then 19 year old "spinster" great grandmother to marry my then 32 year old "miner" great grandfather).  We also visited another cemetery - always interesting, always sobering:

before heading to visit some of Bernie's cows on a pasture which overlooks the entire area:

The clearing between our heads is the homesite/property of Bernie's family -- including the original homesites of my great grandparents and my great, great grandparents.

And we capped off the evening with a traditional Swiss-Italian meal of polenta (thanks to my mom for teaching me how to make it) and "Bull Boar."   Interestingly, polenta was a huge part of my upbringing but not Bernie's -- and we never called Swiss Sausage "Bull Boar." Bull Boar was a favorite of Bernie's dad. Swiss sausage/Bull Boar is a red-wine sausage that is distinctively different from any Italian sausage primarily because it does not include fennel.  We fixed the Bull Boar both the way my mom used to fix it (in gravy) and the way Bernie's dad used to fix it (boiled) -- and celebrated a wonderful week of family connections and friendship.

And early Wednesday morning (Tuesday afternoon in the USA), I repacked

and drove back to Melbourne airport vowing "I Will Return" with credit to Arnold Schwarzenegger."

I am writing this in the Melbourne airport as I await my Jetstar flight to Cairns (pronounced "Cans" by Australians) for the second week of this three week adventure.

The Emails That Restarted The Australian Family Connections

After writing my prior blog posting about my first connection with Bernie, I searched for and found the original emails between us.  Bernie had written a condolence letter on behalf of his family after learning of my dad's passing -- and I responded.  Excerpts from these emails follow.  I couldn't help but notice that the emails were exchanged exactly 4 years ago to the days of this visit.

From: Noel
Date: Wed, Oct 23, 2013 at 9:04 AM
Subject: Re: Thoughts from Australia
To: bernie

Thank you very much for your thoughtful email.  It is heart warming to learn of my family connection to you and your family.  At age 62, I'm one of dad's four surviving sons.  I've had the good fortune to have enjoyed the global family connections that Dad started -- including with cousins in Switzerland and Holland.  I am delighted to learn of the connection with you and your family -- because by the time I asked Dad about potential family connections in Australia, he had not recalled any.

It would be my hope that I may be able to visit Australia and meet you and your family in person so that we may keep up the family connection -- and similarly, I welcome an opportunity to host you should you travel to the US. 

My mom is not doing well -- now living full time in an Alzheimer's Care Home in Morro Bay -- where she has nearly no memory except in the moment.  Her movement to the Care Home accelerated Dad's decline in spite of every effort the family tried.  As you probably know, Dad lived life on his terms -- and he never prepared for nor adjusted to the changes required by his aging.

I'd like to be in touch again soon.

Warm regards,

Noel 

From: bernie
Date: Tue, Oct 22, 2013 at 7:49 PM
Subject: Thoughts from Australia
To: noel

It is with sadness that I write to you to convey our deepest sympathies and condolences to you all on hearing of the passing of Wilmar.

We met Wilmar and Henrietta back in 1991 when Wilmar and Henrietta trekked to Australia to join in on a Family Reunion that I had planned for the Tomasini family. (My Great Great Grandmother, Maria Susanna Tomasini, was a sister to Wilmar's Grandfather Noe Tognazzini, and they all lived at Basalt near Daylesford.)

During the time Wilmar and Henrietta stayed with us we able to show them where Wilmar's Grandfather lived, and I remember Wilmar took a small stone home from the what remained of the stone house that Noe built. Oh how he loved his genealogical research work, and meeting his long lost relatives and working out who was related to who, where they lived and what they did!
We showed Wilmar some old family photo albums and he was able to identify some of the photos, which were otherwise listed as 'unknown'

We always looked forward to receiving letters and emails from Wilmar, they always contained so much, were a good read, and sometimes, much to think about. My Dad, Ron, would quite often ask me if I have had any correspondence with Wilmar, and when I did get something he was always happy to hear from the 'American contingent' of distant cousins.

About 12 months ago, I was able to inform Wilmar that my parents had successfully purchased the block of land that was originally taken up by his Grandfather Noe, and
I believe Wilmar was happy about this. Some may say it is meant to happen, that 'family land' will one day, return to family.

A very kind, thoughtful and generous man, who filled his life to the brim doing all the things he found enjoyable and gave him so much pleasure.
I am sure he will be deeply missed by many, many people.

Our thoughts are with you all at this time.

Warmest Regards

P.S. Mum has asked about Henrietta, and hopes that she is doing ok

Time For Living - Not For Blogging

As always happens with my trip blogs, I get busy living life with little time left over to write about it.  And, that's certainly been the case since I arrived at Bernie's on the afternoon of October 19.

I don't have the time to go moment by moment -- but suffice to say that I have been incredibly busy with:

1. Bernie: taking me to the home sites, other Swiss-constructed homes, visiting again with his mom (almost 80) and brother and one of his sisters, visiting/researching at cemeteries (including meeting with record holders), visiting the library and pouring over reference materials about Swiss Italian migration here, visiting the local history museum, sharing meals and brews at area pubs, and looking at and discussing his detailed research records.

2. With new friends/relatives: I spent an evening/dinner with a couple who had contacted me after finding me through an AncestryDNA connection as a potential 4th-6th cousin.  Their family connection is on my paternal grandmother's side -- who comprise nearly all my family contacts that I visit and stay in touch with in Switzerland.  It was fun to add new friends and family (they live in Melbourne) to my life:

3. On my own: As noted in a prior posting, I scheduled this trip to coincide with an annual Swiss Italian Festival here -- and have therefore enjoyed some of the activities associated with it -- including a local parade and community gathering.  In addition, I've spent some time visiting the local library, enjoying the community of Daylesford, even attending the rehearsal of the local community brass band.