Good Bye!!

Good Bye Australia!! I will remember you for the rest of my life. I had such a wonderful time and so many amazing adventures. Here are just a few of my favorite times:
The koalas in Kuranda
Feeding the elephants at the Australian Zoo
Making pasties with my Grandma and Jennifer
Exploring the Great Barrier Reef
The Daintree Wild Bed & Breakfast
Holding the baby dingos
Petting the kangaroos
Ayer's Rock
Driving a land rover
Riding a motorbike

I am back in America now and can't wait to see all of you.

Motorbike

The last few days that we were in Australia, we stayed with some family friends. Vince, Jen, and their 3 boys, Sam, Ben, and Nate let us stay in their house. While I was there, Vince taught me how to ride a motorbike. The helmet was too small for me because their kids are all younger than me, so I wore Vince's helmet. It was really fast and I only crashed once. The ride was bumpy however, I loved going fast. I got the hang of it pretty quick and spent several hours on the bike. I took turns with Ben and we had a blast. Learning how to ride a motorbike was rather fun.

Australian Zoo

Steve Irwin, Crocodile Hunter, created a wonderful zoo in Queensland AU. It is the best zoo I have ever seen! The animals are so happy there because their enclosures are not behind glass or bars. They are very natural and spacious. Some animals have waterfalls in their homes. Some roam around the zoo free. The Crocoseum of course is well protected because the crocodiles are big and dangerous. We saw them feed big freshwater and saltwater crocs. I fed some elephants fruit and vegetables. They picked up the food from my hand by curling their trunk around it, then bringing it up to their mouth. They were very gentle and big. The Tiger Temple is in the South East Asia section of the zoo. The Bengal tigers have all been hand raised since birth. It was one of my favorite places. The handlers played with the tigers in the water and threw toys to them. The handler told us that if we keep living the same way we are now, the tigers will become extinct in about 10 years. We need to stop buying products that come from their forests.
Another cool enclosure was for the Tasmanian Devils. They have pups and even though they are not one of the prettiest animals in the zoo, they are cute. The baby tasmanian devil kept chasing and fighting with the others.
The African section was the newest. It had a family of rhinos including a baby, a giraffe and a chettah. One of the neatest things people can do at the zoo is have a one on one encounter with their favorite animal. Some choose to have a half hour with the tigers or 15 min. with a rhino and the money goes to helping save animals in the wild. You can read about this on the Australian Zoo website. www.australiazoo.com.au

Bindoon Fair

There were lots of things to do and see at the Bindoon Fair. Kabobs are a favorite things to eat in Australia. The fair had a kabab stand and a baked potato stand and ice pops, which are frozen fruit. The fair was set up on a large green lawn in the little town of Bindoon, WA. It was divided into sections. Grandma enjoyed the lace making, quilting,the childrens' penmanship, creative writing and art areas. Grandpa liked the vintage cars and tractors. The Shallcross family that we were staying with showed and sold their cattle. There were kids' projects like raising healthy chickens, cattle, horses and sheep. In Australia kids can go to Agriculture Junior High and High School, if they are more interested in farming than in college, so they had animals and project to show. My favorite things were watching the auctioneer call out the bidding for the cattle sale, the sheep sheering, sheep dog and falcon demonstrations, the food (of course) and the bungy chord flyer. At one point there was a parade of cattle, young horse riders, camels and a Scottish Bagpipe Band. There were many fun and interesting things to see and do at the Bindoon Fair.

RED DOG

Red Dog was about a dog who became a legend in West Australia because of his loyalty to a man. The movie is based on a real story of Red Dog. It's a sad movie but it's a movie I'll never forget.

picture's of me actually making it

pictures of step 1 , step 2 ,step 3,step 5 and step 6 and if you get sticky

How to Make Pasties

INGREDIENTS-
3/4 lb. ground beef

1 or 2 carrots

1 cup of peas

1 potato

1 onion

some squash and sweet potatoes (about a cup each if you want)

thyme , salt , pepper , seasoning

METHOD- 1. chop onions very small

2. dice vegetables

3. mix into ground beef

4.place a 6" bowl on top of a sheet of a sheet of puff pastry and cut around it

5.place about 1/2 cup of beef mixture on one of the pastry rounds

6.moisten the edges with water

(repeat steps 1-6 until all of the meat is gone)

7. bake in a 350 degree oven for 15 min. then 325 for 15 more min.