Visite du week-end

Les voyages et nos amities dispersees de part le monde nous ont deja reserve quelques surprises. La visite d’Anais ce week-end ne fait que confirmer que le monde est tout petit et les amis nombreux. J’ai connu Anais au Cap lorsqu’elle avait environ 1 an et que sa maman (Francaise) faisait des cours de gym “post-accouchement” et que j’etais enceinte de Victor et faisais moi des cours pour femmes enceintes. Anais a bien grandit depuis et est actuellement en Australie pour 6 mois.

Cette visite, combinee aux bonnes heures de marees et a une meteo favorable, etait notre parfaite excuse pour aller faire un petit tour dans la baie de Moreton et retrouver, vous l’aviez devinez, nos dunes preferees. Un peu de moteur a l’aller, toutes voiles dehors et meme un peu de spi au retour, du soleil, de la bonne humeur, des bonnes choses a manger et un air de vacances ennivrant etaient au rendez-vous. Je l’ai deja ecrit, l’effet est magique: instantannement on oublie les soucis et on se sent plus legers.

Les enfants ont demontre comment l’on pass notre temps a bord et Anais a du apprendre les regles de nombreux nouveaux jeux. Clea etait particulirement ravie d’avoir comme une grande soeur temporaire le temps d’un week-end. Nous sommes alles faire les fous sur les dunes et avons ensuite rince nos oreilles pleines de sable en plongeant de Merlin. Les coques sont a nouveaux bien lisses et, a nouveau, nous avons pu verifier que tout etait en etat de marche a bord.

Nos batteries sont rechargees a bloc et nous sommes prets pour demarrer une nouvelle semaine.

More sun, smiles and sand: http://merlinsvoyage.squarespace.com/australia/another-perfect-one/

Leadership

Victor completed his leadership camp this week-end. He was in charge of his own patrol, left alone to assemble tents, cook and have fun.

Felix was in another patrol doing the same as an assistant leader.

They both came back tired, dirty but very happy.

...by the way, I learnt today that scouts don't shower when they are on camp. I won't ask the question any more!

Prendre de la hauteur

Pour inciter a etre dynamique et actif ainsi que pour decouvrir de nouvelles activites (sportives, ludiques, creative etc) la ville de Brisbane offre plein d’animations gratuites ou, en general, il suffit de s’inscrire quelques jours a l’avance. Dimanche dernier, les enfants sont ainsi aller explorer les arbres. Avec harnais et cordes, ils sont alles grimper, comme de vrais professionnels, jusqu’a la canopie ou un hammac et un fauteuil les attendaient. Ce fut un regal que de les voir avec leur sourire a travers les branches. Les voici pares pour grimper au mat aisement!

Deux semaines bien remplies

Les vacances de printemps s’achevent ce soir. On va retrouver des demain nos habitudes ecole/travail/taxi-activites. Les temperatures de ces deux dernieres semaines ressemblaient plutot a celles d’une meteo bien estivale. Jeux electroniques et films ont occupe les enfants pendant mes heures de travail, mais on a evite la surdose. Certains après-midis, nous sommes alles nous refugier dans les endroits climatises, plusieurs fois a la bibliotheque pour faire le plein de lecture ou au cinema. Nous sommes aussi alles piquer des tetes a la piscine. Nous avons continue a faire travailler nos meninges en francais merci (tres cher Cned!). Et il y a bien sur aussi eu du temps passe avec les copains. Les enfants ont joue au cricket tous les matins de la seconde semaine. Cette fois-ci, Victor aidait Marc, l’entraineur, et s’occupait des plus petits - avec brio parait-il.

Notre week-end de camping acheve des vacances reposantes, sportives et stimulantes.

The joys of camping

Labour day this Monday means a long week-end for us. The westerly winds decided that sailing wasn’t a good idea, so we went camping to the Australian outback with some friends.

It is easy to argue the joys of camping:

Hours of preparation including shopping, carrying the food back to the boat, sorting out what we really take, repacking in convenient boxes and re-carrying to the car. Packing our clothes, our sleeping bags, our mats, our tents, the gas burner, some water etc and carrying everything  to the car too.  

Once back, we need to carry everything the other way again. Unpacking, sorting out the food uneaten (hopefully not too much), the camping cookery and starting with the laundry. (As I am writing the 3^rd load is starting).

Creepy crawlies and flying bugs. I am usually the target number one for this kind of creatures. Unfortunately it seems that I am quite sensitive to the Australian bites. Big hitches, big reaction and big red spots.

Early birds. The birds are always happy to share a little melody with everybody around, especially at dawn and even before and it seems that the “noisy” kookaburra is always one of them making sure everybody is listening. Other nights visitors (wombat? Possums?) are curious and it is not uncommon to have a little visit.

Simplicity. We like going to remote places and camping in the Australian National Parks doesn’t correspond to going to a fancy resort. There is usually not drinking water, just basic toilets and the camp sites can be a short walk away from the car park. Water restrictions due to carrying our own drinking water and taking back the rubbish are compulsory. The camp sites are not always a soft patch of green grass and the horizontal is not always the one we have in mind which doesn’t help neither to have a deep night sleep.

However, going camping is fun and every time we come back we declare unanimously that we should do it more often.

Family time and memories. Going camping brings some family excitement. We take some time preparing and deciding where we should go, what we should do. Everybody is involved. The kids are now packing their own gear and are helping carrying everything. When we camp, we always discover what’s around. We go for walks,

learn new things,

stop at local small shops, we listen to the songs of Mother Nature,

we go star gazing, we cook together. This time, in preparation of his scout leader camp coming up very soon, Victor got really involved with the fire and prepared one meal.

We are outside, breathing the amazing smells of the rainforest or of the eucalyptus, we enjoy the surrounding stillness, we are happy to discover new places and live new experiences. The boys are getting loads of camping experience with their scouting and are now in their element when in the bush. However, it is great to camp all together.

Simplicity. In fact, simplicity is perfect and nowadays we should go back to it more often and with more respect. Without a fridge, we can be creative with our meals. We can adapt to a hard floor. We go to bed when it is dark and can be happy to wake up with the birds as the light is then beautiful. The kids are imaginative and play hours with very little. This time, Clea and her friends spent hours building a trap to try to find out which animal came at night checking our rubbish. Victor went for a very early walk to check out the wallabies. Felix was working with his Leatherman on his walking stick. We (the parents!) enjoyed a cool beer around the fire and then became kids again when it was time to melt some marshmallows.

These simple family times are essential and bring us close together, tired from our short nights but with a smile.

(more photos http://www.merlinsvoyage.net/australia/moogerah-peaks-national-parks/)