| It only took 4 days but I finally maade to Australia. I am going out on an island today and then to a wildlife sanctuary and petting zoo. I will write nmore when there is nothing else to do. Jody Down Under1 Now I am waiting on my bus to leave in an Hour. I have gotten some email thank you. I started on the 26th at midnight I signed out on leave. I then went to the airport to get on the list to leave on a direct flight to Australia. I got there at 1 they opened the terminal at 3:40am I signed up for the trip, only one there. I slept till they woke me to get on the plane. I got out to the flight line to a C5 that can carry over 70 ton payload. I got on sat down buckled up and a LTC Maupham (i think)came and told me that I put the airplane over weight and I must get off. I was very discouraged. I offered to buy him a steak dinner to take me and he said nope. The AMC people that gave me the seat were as irritated as I was about the matter. Anyway I signed up for the next flight to get to AUS. It was supposed to leave at 11AM but ended up leaving at 7PM. I had to take it to Kadena AB, Okinawa. A soldier I met in the terminal at Osan offered me a bunk in his room so I took it. He had a car and drove me back to the airport the next day. It was very considerate of him. The next day (27th) we left Okinawa at 6-ish-pm and arrived in Anderson AB, Guam at 9PM everyone got rooms I met a girl stationed at Hickam AB, HI(she was married:(. We ordered pizza and then went to our rooms and slept. The next morning (28th sat) we at and caught a ride to the airport to find out the broke our plane to fix another. The next plane going to Hickam was on 30th mon. I asked if there was anything going to AUS and the AMC airman found that there was one but there were no seats open to space available passengers which was me. He did say I could talk to the crew and they would prob let me on. I thought yeah I did that in Osan, but he said he would call for me. He called CPT Touey and she said sure if he is active duty I will add him. Yippe hoooaaa awesome great Yes!!!! I was happy but knew I could still get booted. I slept the part of a night (29th sat) at the hotel. Then got up a 5:30am on the (30 sun) grabbed a ride to the terminal and waited for the crew to come in. They did and I waited with them. We finally boarded at 11am and took off at 12:45. AAAAHHHHHH I was away and no turning back. I was the "Army Guy" and the only one in civilian clothes. The airforce was bringing some CH-53 helicopter, Jolly Green Giant, to do training in Australia. The plane I we were on was part of the same mission I go kicked off of at Osan. When we finally (5hours) got to Townsville AUS there was guess who LTC Maupham. He said so you did make it! Yeah no thanks to him... After clearing customs I moved out got a cab and went to sleep at a Backpackers. The next morning I went to Magnetic Island. I settled in went to the beach (partially nude:). That night I went to see wild Koalas' with a Canadian girl that was here with a college group. We saw two Koala's went back and partied with my roommates and then called it a night. The next morning (tues 1may) I went to the Great Barrier Reef with Pure Pleasure Cruises. The reef is truly a Hidden city. I saw the most beautiful coral and fish tool a role of underwater film. Today I went to Billabong Sanctuary. I held snakes, Koala's, and Kangaroos' our guide was much like the Crocodile Hunter. He fed wild crocs and it was awesome. I am going to Airlie beach now and it should be a great time. Other than all the sites the people are nice and very cool to be around. They are always helping plan giving tips and they some of the most cheerful people to be around. Other than Australian I have met Canadians, English, New Zelanders, French, and other Americans. Ready to here real emails from everyone. Jody Down Under 2 Rity oh! I will try to start off where I left off last time. After leaving on the the bus I read a little about where I was going and decided to stay in the Airlie Beach Waterfront Hostel. I stepped up and they fixed me up with a bed in a "loft". We had a community kitchen, bathroom, game room and a balcony. I got all settled in and got some supper from a Cantina next door. They served superb Mexican food. Then I went back to the front desk and booked a rain forest tour for the next day. I headed to bed after a brew that is the way they do it here. Why should I change there ways. I got up the next morning and got breaky and waited for my tour mini-bus to pick me up. At 10:30 he stopped I paid and we were off. The first stop was a beautiful waterfall. It was like the one on Survivor. We then took off to the rain forest. Upon arrival we got our "Gourmet meal" sandwiches. Then we took off on what the guide said would be a 25 kilometer walk. I asked him if this was going to be like the Crocodile Hunters hikes where he find stuff under everything. He said Steve Irwin is a "TOSSER". He said most Aussies think he is full of --it. Anyway along our walk we stopped about every 20 meters and he would talk about plants, mushrooms, leaves, vines, birds, trees and ect. He had pranks set up along the course like a spider that comes out of the tree a rubber snake and a boomerang. We saw a strangler fig that was 1300 years old. It was growing from 3 points on the ground and about 30 meters above ground they all grew together. It was awesome. He had a story to tell about everything and knew the scientific name of each plant and there common name. I got most of it on video. The next day I went para-sailing in the morning about 10:30am. I had a great view from way above but it was kind of boring. They dipped me in the water and then brought me in. Yesterday was the most fun so far. I booked a trip with a ocean rafting group. We went to a white silica sand beach and played games and ate a dinner. That is also where I got my introductory dive lessons. They offered a one day dive and I was the only one on the trip that wanted to do it. So I had a one on one instructor. After getting all the basics out of the way in the shallow water. We took a boat ride over to the dive spot. We jumped in and it was underwater from then on. We got to see many of the fish and coral that you can't see from above the water. I got to hold a sea cucumber in my hands. It was a little uneasy at first going under and breathing but was very relaxing swimming with the fish like a fish. Great day!!!! We finished our air off and then I did some regular snorkeling. Later on we headed home. I grabbed a bite to eat and caught the bus to Hervey Bay. I am going on a two day one night trip to Fraser Island tomorrow. It is a all sand island and it has natural fresh water lakes on the tops of the hills on it. Down Under 3 My trip to Fraser Island was a very nice one. The bus picked me up write in front of the Hostel. I climbed on and he picked up the rest of the people going. We proceded to the ferry and when it got there we loaded on and took the short ride across the pond and as the guide (Graham) said leaving Australia. We hit the shore and unloaded then climbed on Grahams 4x4 bus. He took us on a sandy island 4x4 road rage tour. I was sure he was going to run over some people that wouldn't pull over to the side of the road when we met them or followed them. The first part was a unguided tour of the rain forest on the island. I actually remembered many plants and trees. It took our movie camera toting group about 35 minutes to go through. We then fought the traffic agian with Graham talking about the tree and any thing else of interest. He had been doing the same tour for 29 year on the same island. We pulled up to the resort and they gave us room keys and we took our bags in and then ate. After lunch we ate saw some coloured sands and a boat wreck and a fresh water stream. I also took an airplane ride half way through and got to see the whole 75 km beach. The group before us saw 12 sharks patrolling the waters. We landed and hung out a bit and then headed back for supper. We had a quiz on the table and the funniest answers would win a jug of beer at the bar later that night. Me and 4 others ended up winning a got our beer at the bar. They had a Karoke machine there and were giving shirts to the first two people that sang. A girl from Wisconsin asked if I would sing with her and we sang Hotel California and got our shirts. I sang a few more songs with other people that night and then retired to bed. I woke up before 7 for breaky and then prepared for the hike across a sand dune. Our bus took us to the trail and then we headed out and got across the dune and saw 1 of the 45 freshwater lakes on the island. I hiked passed it to a look out point and I could see the forest the lake the sand dune and the ocean in the back. It was beautiful. We sat around the lake then hiked back to the bus and then ate dinner and after that napped for 30 minutes by the pool and then went to Lake Makenzy it was the most beautiful of all. It was 15 meters deep 80 meters above sea level and about 30 acres of water. It was crystal clear even in the middle. After that we had to catch the ferry back to Australia. We saw dolphins on the way back. Then back on the 2x4 bus we saw wild Kangaroos on the way home. Tomorrow I am going to see the Crocodile Hunter. After this the letter will get boringer Down Under 4 I caught my bus to Brisbane from Hervey Bay at 7 AM and it was a 4 hour trip to get here. I got off the bus and called the hostel I wanted to stay with. It took about 30 minutes for them to get there and then they took me to the hostel down in what was the ghetto of Brisbane. I got a room for 1 night only. They showed me to my room it was like going through a maze. We passed through a kitchenette and by a window that had underwear hanging on it to dry. Then up a flight of stairs. I looked out the window and then looked at it and there was a bra hanging on it. I thought What the ---- is this. Well I put some short on and went to eat. Lucky enough I found a Subway. I had a ham and cheese and sat down and a nice lady gave me the run down of where to go and what to see and where to stay away from. Which was basicly where I was staying. I walked around and did some shopping. I went to a few back-packing stores and then that night I went to the XXXX brewery. It is like Budweiser in the USA. That tour was pretty cool. They had about 16 tanks that held so much beer if you drank a 6 pack of stubbies(bottles) a day it would take 500 years to empty one. After it we got to do some sampling. I made my way back to the hooch that night and played some Australian pool and slept. The next morning I packed my bags. I left them a the train station while I went to see the Australian Zoo home of The Crocodile Hunter, which 99% of Australians can't stand. They curse when you mention his name. The zoo was pretty nice. They had an albino Kangaroo there and lots of crocs. It wasnt quite as good as the one at Townsville. I left there at 3pm and got a room at the Palace in the heart of Brisbane. That night I called a friend of Cody's that goes to school here and we went partying. The rest the time in Brisbane I took a boat ride down the river and watched to stupid movies and shopped. I am ready for Sydney. I have a 17 hour bus ride there. Yuck!!!! Did anyone get the last email I sent? Jody Down Under 5 Ok where did I leave off. 17 hours bus ride. It sucked!!! It is hard enough trying to sleep in one of those seats but stopping at every little town about the sixe of Binger that isn't on the way and the Aussie are have been drunk when they built the rode because there wasn't a straight part in it. We got about half way here and the AC broke on our bus which was cool enough without it. So they took all of with 2 seats a piece and filled another bus all the way up. I told the driver all of the passenger would rather ride on the broke a/c bus(which they did). He said no the bus company wants you on a a/c bus. Another battle I lost with the transportation people. 17 hours made it to Sydney. YES! I walked 100 meters and got a room in the nicest hostel I have found. We have credit card keys. No underwear hanging. Very nice next to train/bus station and the heart of Sydney. That day I met my Canadian Army roommate from Bosnia and we went to the Opera House and Harbour Bridge. Somehow we made it to Darling Harbour. We went to a nice aquarium rode the monorail around the city and ate supper. We took a bunch of pictures and did alot of walking. It started getting dark on the way home and we stopped at Cheers. Then Planet Hollywood. Then on to ScruffyMurphys everyone has heard of it right! I am not sure what time we made it HOME. I woke up a 10ish and went to the travel desk to see what to do since I had already seen all the important stuff. They talked me into the "Bridge Climb" that is the Harbour Bridge. I agreed and booked on for 1PM I ate and caught a cab there. On the way I got to see the company I would be joining after climbing the bridge. They were Nicole Kidman, a 100 year old lady, Mat Louer, and the beatiful X first daughter Chelse Clinton. They said the place was packed with CIA when was there. Mat Louer had 3 helicopters filming him with 10 other camera's. A little history! The climb idea came up 12 year ago and after $20 million and 9 year of red tape the first climber went up. That was 2 1/2 year ago. During the Olympics 1300 people a day climbed it. My ticket number was 631,254. They have cleared the 20 million and ++++++++. They made up wear a special suit with no pockets one piece with zipper in back and a safety harness. Nothing in pockets they clecked us with a medal detector! The climb was 1400 step and real high. There was a great view from the top. It was a great experience. The next day (today tues 15may01) I went to Olympic Park it was 100 times better than the one in Seoul. They built everything so that it could be used after the Olympics left. They were taking cement bleachers down still. They were very thought for the games. After that we went to a sheep farm and watched some Kelpy dogs work sheep. The guy was very keen with a wip too. I got to through an authentic boomerang and it came back. You don't catch them though. We went to another zoo after that. Watched some sheep sheering there. Then ate and to the Blue Mtns. The Gum trees give off a blue fog that if seen from a distance looks and is blue. That is how all things in Australia are named. A color then what it is. Or aboriginal named. We saw water falls over 1000 ft tall that were gourgeous. Blue mtns are the Aus Grand Canyon. We did alot of hiking and videoing and then to Olympic park again and on a City Catameran. We saw the Harbour Bridge at night and the Opera House. They were like post cards. I cant wait to get my pictures developed. Down Under 6 Well it has been a bit since I have shot an email. So that last couple days I have been shopping and seeing different parts of Sydney. I went shopping on wednesday and got a few souviners. I bought some boomerangs that are suppose to return. Thursday I was was going to finish shopping and head out to the Airforce Base that I would be flying out of, but when I called to see when my flight was leaving they told me it was cancelled. I thought oh s--t. I could catch another one that is leaving on wednesday to Hawaii and then one to Korea but who knows how long it would take to get home. I don't want to be late/awol. I could extend my leave but that pisses people off. So I started looking for flights. I figured go to the airport and get a stand by ticket I still have a week to get home. The airling lady said we don't do that in Australia, but a ticket from here to Korea is only 2050 A$. I thought I will live here before I spend that money! I got on the net and checked around and found some flights considerably cheaper. One for A$650 that landed in Vietnam and Singapore and took 24 hours. I finally got one for A$835 straight through to Korea Inchon Itnl Arpt in Seoul. I splurged and bought it. The bright side because that is always more fun to look at is I get to spend another week in Australia. So 400 us dollars and another week I guess that is ok. Well it has to be, because that is my only choice. Since I found out this info late in the day I couldn't get back in the hostel I was at so I had to move to another one out of town. The next day I moved again next to the beach and it started raining only the second time it has rained since I have been here. I watched two movies "Save the last Dance" and "Traffic" they were both pretty good on a rainy day. Today Saturday I moved back to Sydney Central. It is like home. Although at the beach they had eggs and bacon just like Grandmas. I almost stayed out there for that. Today I finished shopping at a small market close by. Tonight well it a guy thing! I am starting scuba lesson on monday to get my PADI license. I may lay on the beach and well another guy thing! Down Under 7 It has only been a short while since I wrote last but tonight is my last night in Australia! :( I have been busy this week getting back into getting up early not b/c I thought I would need to but b/c I was taking a SCUBA Diving course. I had to get up at a sun rising time of 7AM to get breaky and make it to the pick up point for the class. The first day I set a new cool clock that has world time and other junk on it to wake me up at 7 and I woke up went down stairs and checked out of my room, so I would be able to get to a lower level, I asked about getting breaky and the guy said not at this time I said why not at 7AM? He said it is 3AM. I looked and it was. I went and slept on a couch until 7 then ate and made to the bus. After about 1 1/2 hours I got started answered health ?s and had to do a 250 meter swim and right after that tread water for 10 minutes with the last minute with no hands in the water. After that I had to watch some videos and take tests and then a physical. I passed! After lunch we got in the pool and did regulator exchanges took the mask off under water swam under water, ect. The next two days we went to the Ocean and did all of the same things there. We did a bunch of diving too. I saw blue groupers, sting ray, octopus, shovel headed ray, penguin, and many other little fish. We also swam by a guy baited hook and all the fish were eating everything from around it. I altogether have been under water for over 3 hours in 4 dives. Usually you can stay under for about an hour a dive. The deeper you go the more air you use. Although diving is fun it is also very dangerous. Not for running out of air but decompression sickness (DCS) also known as the "Bends". There is a whole theory behind it. I am now a certified Open Water Diver. I think I can add it towards college credits. I know I could add to a resume. Well I hope everyone has enjoyed my down under visit almost as much as me. I have taken over 6.5 hours of video, 60 digital pictures, and almost 8 rolls of film. See you soon or in 4 months. Sept 23 sentence in Korea ends!! Jody Back Home I think the last email I sent was Down Under 7. I made it to the airport at 0630 and got checked in bought a couple last minute souvi's and flew through customs got my passport stamped and waited for my flight they finally gave the boarding call and I went through the line and the last thing I did before getting on the plane was take one last big deep breathe of the freshest air in 9 months. The flight back was 10 hours long they did unlike space A show a movie. Actually two but one was Korean and I didn't get the point of it. At the end of the flight they put on an "Airplane Aerobics/Self Massage Film". They were doing aerobics in the seat and rubbing their necks and all kinds of different stuff. I had never seen anything like it so I busted out my video camera and caught a little of it on film. We landed at their brand new Inchon Airport (everyone knows it right) it was really nice. I made it though customs once again and got another stamp in the old passport. Then it was time to figure out how to get home. I had taxi drivers beating me up to take a ride with them $60 to Seoul. Seemed high. I knew the USO had a bus that I could ride on the thing was finding it. As luck would have it it was at the opposite end of the airport. I hiked 3 bags (now) down there and getting hit up by cabbies the whole time. They told me the next bus leaves in 3 hours. Who want to sit in the Airport for 3 hours? One AAFES(Army Airforce Exchange Service) taxi driver told me $25. By th way AAFES seems to rip soldier off anyway they can. You can't do anything if you leave there credit card unpaid. I said 25 ok he maybe little bit more. So we were off. and about half way there we pass 25 and I start getting PO(ed). We finally got to Youngsan and the fare was $43.75. I argued with him about his quote and he threatened to call the MP's and I finally paid him, but I wasn't happy. I gave him a piece of my mind before he left. Then I forgot my ATM card in the machine. I canceled the card immediately through this wonderful email system and a great customer service representative at MY bank. WOW Koreans sometimes maybe just some people! I got a $4 bus ticket home and slept in on Friday while everyone else was running 4 miles. Then I signed back in to the unit off leave. I got back home just in time to celebrate Memorial Day (4 day weekend). I called my cousin and we met up and went to a dodgy theme park. The roller coasters were slow and boring. I did win a teddy bear in the Archery contest. Something else for the resume. We did a ride called the sky coaster. It is like a Giant swing set. You fly through the air like a bird. Quite fun!!! I also went to see Penny Gilley she sang pretty well and was good entertainment, but I think Grandma, it would have fit in better at the Jamboree. Today I went to work. I was the new guys guide around post. Lots of walking. "Well there just isn't anything to do around here." Who said that? Jody |