November 13, 2002 (Lake St. Claire and Strahan)

Last night was fun. I think I need to incorporate Lemon Ruski to my evening meals from now on...hahahaah. Yes, so today we were driven to Lake St. Claire National Park, Australia's deepest lake at 190 meters (623 feet). I would like to say that I enjoyed the scenery in this lake; unfortunately, I cannot do that. You see I was not all prepared for this muddy, wet, cold and drizzly weather that welcomed us. So there I was, in my t-shirt and capris, freezing my buns. Where did all the sunshine from the east coast of Taz go? And where did all this water come from? Hahahahahah

I knew I should not have walked away from that waterproof parka in Hobart, but no, I decided to buy something else. Now I am freezing, wet, and miserable. The weather was grim inside and out. But, as I am a sweet and charming chick (yeah, more like a pathetic loser!) Bob took pity on me and lent his fleece jacket and yellow raincoat. And what a difference those warm clothes made. The walk to Lake St. Claire became bearable and I even managed to smile for a few photos. Hahhhaha Now I believe Natalie when she said that there is no such thing as crappy weather, only crappy clothes. Hahahahah

I miss Natalie. She is one adventurous soul. She has been living abroad for the past six years. She had designed an English teaching curriculum in Japan. She also had a teaching gig in Thailand and was in and out of Edinburgh for odd jobs. She made me envious of her accomplishments and international living lifestyle. Only now, she is ready to go home. She is ready to get to know her family once again. After years of living in Japan and thinking and dreaming in Japanese, she decided to take a vacation. She is on this trip to re-learn English and to assimilate once again to western culture. And oh, would you believe me if I tell you that Natalie has the most amazing hazel/cobalt/blue eyes I have ever seen on a human being? I mean, her eyes are those of Elija Wood when he played Frodo Baggins, hobbit. Natalie has hobbit eyes and she walked barefoot most of the time, so I greatly suspect she is really from the Shire. Hahhaahaha

Anyway, where was I? Oh yes, Lake St. Claire. Leeches. There were leeches there. Not very appealing. But, I survived. Well, I did squeal once. But I am not going into details on that. Suffice it to say, there was a leech making its way towards my blood-rich ankle. Yech...auch...ewwww...leeches! I hate them! Blech...

After Lake St. Claire, we headed off to Franklin River where Phil briefed us on the importance of this river. The Franklin River is the most sacred place in Tazmania as this place galvanized an entire country to preserve natural resources in the face of advancing industry. There was a plan to build a dam on the Franklin River, which would destroy an entire valley eco-system. The plan to build this dam started in the 70's and only in the late 80's did the High Court of Australia ruled in favor of the Federal Government suing to block the Tazmanian State Government from building the dam. Phil was a part of the naturalist group, which camped and created human barricades. The world needs more people like Phil.

So, after the Franklin River walk, we headed off to see yet another falls - Nelson Falls. Nothing spectacular, but I did get the chance to gather more Sassafras, hug a giant tree and spot (thank you Aaron "eagle-eyes") a wild Wallaby with her joey.

Over night stay at Strahan, a quaint seaside village. Ocean Beach promised to be a brilliant site for a sunset. But as the weather was not cooperating, our group just managed to snap a couple of parka-clad tourist photos. Dinner was Chicken Thai Curry with white rice! Yes! Finally, I can assuage my rice hunger. And yes, I did cook the rice just perfectly. Phil was impressed, so was Bob ...hahahah my after dinner drink of course was Lemon Ruski. And the after dinner entertainment was provided by Phil and pictures of the day slideshow displayed on my laptop. He played the guitar and I just had to request a JT song. He sang "Fire and Rain". Thanks Phil. And since he will be guiding the rest of the tourgroup to the west coast and Maria Island, I am sure he will entertain them with an impromptu concert inside the cement silos where the acoustics is lovely... now I am envious again...hahahaha

I think I managed to convince Aaron that he needs a digital camera and an iPod. And that traveling with a laptop is not such a bad thing after all. Hahahaha Yes folks, the instant gratification factor of carrying all my electronic toys did not escape a fellow American.

I am Mary Grace, techie chick according to Stephen and I am an under-dressed, unprepared hiker as far as Bob is concerned.