By the time we left Adelaide on Sunday afternoon, we were excited to be heading to Kangaroo Island for a whole week. Up to this point we had not spent more than 1 night at a single place! We were in need of a little battery recharging, a little laundry doing, and a lot of rest.
This was our car after our week long sweeping tour of Victoria and South Australia. Thank you, Flinders Ranges, for the crazy amount of red dust.We boarded the ferry to K.I. around 6:00 that evening. Yes, another ferry. Dramamine was again my best friend, and I found a nice spot on the top deck outside in the fresh air. I literally did not move this entire trip. Success! No seasickness and I got to see another beautiful sunset.
We spent ALL of Monday sleeping. Seriously. We slept in, had pancakes for breakfast, took a shower, and slept some more. I went for a walk with the family around 4:00 to see a little of the island. Patrick continued to sleep. We walked along the gorgeous coastline to the neighborhood playground where I met some of Carolyn and Andrew's neighbors and friends with their children. We made it back in time for a yummy dinner and then back to sleep again. We needed it!
Tuesday we were a little more adventurous! After a lazy morning and Patrick catching up on some schoolwork, we set out to do a little exploring. First, we hiked up the long staircase at Prospect Hill for a view that overlooked the American River and surrounding area.
Then we headed to a Honey Farm to try out pure Kangaroo Island honey and, my favorite part, the honey icecream!
We stopped by Pennington Bay, just to have a look. It's a BEAUTIFUL spot. The water is so blue it's unbelievable.
Finally, we visited the sheep dairy and tried some sheep's milk cheese and yogurt.
We actually really liked the yogurt and the plain kind was better than the kind with honey in it. Of course, the best part was the cheese! Our favorite was the haloumi. You slice it and then saute it in a pan (it browns but doesn't melt) and it's delicious! Carolyn bought some and we had it for breakfast on our last day on the island.
That was about the most we could pack into Tuesday. And that in and of itself wore us out! We did not realize how much we had worn ourselves out in all the driving from New Zealand to Australia. We headed home for dinner and tried to get to bed early, but we ended up staying up and chatting. The good fellowship was just too hard to beat.
Wednesday was netball practice day for my niece! We set out in the afternoon to do a little exploring and the plan was to end up in Parndana for practice around 4:00. We stopped off at one of my niece's favorite spots, an old schoolhouse on the north coast. She loves to play school and her favorite book at the moment is Little House on the Prairie so the history in the place is right up her alley!
According the rules, I would not be allowed to teach. I have broken Rule #6.
In case you can't read it, Rule #6 says, "Women teachers who marry or engage in unseemly conduct will be dismissed."
My niece had us all be her students while she taught us about the Australian flag. She was a very strict and serious teacher. Patrick was asked to stand in the corner because he wouldn't stop taking pictures during the lesson.
We were laughing so hard that we cried. Literally. Tears in eyes. She just could not get control of this unruly class.
After our lesson, we ended up at Stokes Bay. We were going to walk around on the rocks but the tide was higher than Andrew and Carolyn had ever seen it. We couldn't even get to the rocks. But it was beautiful!
We ended the day at netball practice and home for an American meal of hamburgers! Again we stayed up too late talking. Andrew brought a projector home from his office and we hooked it up and showed them pictures from New Zealand on the living room wall.
Thursday was Big Trip Day! We set out early in the morning and headed towards the west coast of the island. We did so much and saw so many amazing things that I'm going to have to make that day a post on all it's own. Next time!
Friday was our last full day on the island, so we wanted to get some rest before gearing up for the next leg of our journey. We had a lazy morning, did some laundry and schoolwork, and got ready leisurely. Carolyn and I went to the lavender farm (I could not talk Patrick into doing this for some reason...) and the eucalyptus distillery. Apparently eucalyptus is a Wonder Plant. It can get stains out of clothes, help sore throats, unstop your nose, help with asthma, clean your kitchen floor and many other things!
After lunch, Patrick, Andrew, my niece, and I went to Emu Bay and played in the water until it began to rain.
Then we headed home, ate pizza, and watched our first Australian rules football game! It was so interesting and I really enjoyed it! We cheered on the Adelaide Crows, who ended up beating Geelong. Andrew had the game on the tv and the radio at the same time and kept running back and forth between the two (not unlike a Vols game at the Herndon household...). Patrick actually took pictures of me engrossed in the game, but I will spare you since they are just me staring at the tv. 
Whales!
We spent ALL of Monday sleeping. Seriously. We slept in, had pancakes for breakfast, took a shower, and slept some more. I went for a walk with the family around 4:00 to see a little of the island. Patrick continued to sleep. We walked along the gorgeous coastline to the neighborhood playground where I met some of Carolyn and Andrew's neighbors and friends with their children. We made it back in time for a yummy dinner and then back to sleep again. We needed it!
Tuesday we were a little more adventurous! After a lazy morning and Patrick catching up on some schoolwork, we set out to do a little exploring. First, we hiked up the long staircase at Prospect Hill for a view that overlooked the American River and surrounding area.
Then we headed to a Honey Farm to try out pure Kangaroo Island honey and, my favorite part, the honey icecream!
We stopped by Pennington Bay, just to have a look. It's a BEAUTIFUL spot. The water is so blue it's unbelievable.
Finally, we visited the sheep dairy and tried some sheep's milk cheese and yogurt.
We actually really liked the yogurt and the plain kind was better than the kind with honey in it. Of course, the best part was the cheese! Our favorite was the haloumi. You slice it and then saute it in a pan (it browns but doesn't melt) and it's delicious! Carolyn bought some and we had it for breakfast on our last day on the island.
That was about the most we could pack into Tuesday. And that in and of itself wore us out! We did not realize how much we had worn ourselves out in all the driving from New Zealand to Australia. We headed home for dinner and tried to get to bed early, but we ended up staying up and chatting. The good fellowship was just too hard to beat.Wednesday was netball practice day for my niece! We set out in the afternoon to do a little exploring and the plan was to end up in Parndana for practice around 4:00. We stopped off at one of my niece's favorite spots, an old schoolhouse on the north coast. She loves to play school and her favorite book at the moment is Little House on the Prairie so the history in the place is right up her alley!
According the rules, I would not be allowed to teach. I have broken Rule #6.
In case you can't read it, Rule #6 says, "Women teachers who marry or engage in unseemly conduct will be dismissed."My niece had us all be her students while she taught us about the Australian flag. She was a very strict and serious teacher. Patrick was asked to stand in the corner because he wouldn't stop taking pictures during the lesson.
We were laughing so hard that we cried. Literally. Tears in eyes. She just could not get control of this unruly class.After our lesson, we ended up at Stokes Bay. We were going to walk around on the rocks but the tide was higher than Andrew and Carolyn had ever seen it. We couldn't even get to the rocks. But it was beautiful!
We ended the day at netball practice and home for an American meal of hamburgers! Again we stayed up too late talking. Andrew brought a projector home from his office and we hooked it up and showed them pictures from New Zealand on the living room wall.Thursday was Big Trip Day! We set out early in the morning and headed towards the west coast of the island. We did so much and saw so many amazing things that I'm going to have to make that day a post on all it's own. Next time!
Friday was our last full day on the island, so we wanted to get some rest before gearing up for the next leg of our journey. We had a lazy morning, did some laundry and schoolwork, and got ready leisurely. Carolyn and I went to the lavender farm (I could not talk Patrick into doing this for some reason...) and the eucalyptus distillery. Apparently eucalyptus is a Wonder Plant. It can get stains out of clothes, help sore throats, unstop your nose, help with asthma, clean your kitchen floor and many other things!
After lunch, Patrick, Andrew, my niece, and I went to Emu Bay and played in the water until it began to rain.
Then we headed home, ate pizza, and watched our first Australian rules football game! It was so interesting and I really enjoyed it! We cheered on the Adelaide Crows, who ended up beating Geelong. Andrew had the game on the tv and the radio at the same time and kept running back and forth between the two (not unlike a Vols game at the Herndon household...). Patrick actually took pictures of me engrossed in the game, but I will spare you since they are just me staring at the tv.Saturday morning, we ate breakfast, packed the car, and headed out to Adelaide. We were flying out of Adelaide on Sunday morning, so we were staying with the same brother of Andrew's and his parents again. I successfully navigated the ferry again, with only a few minutes of needing to lay my head down because of the rocking motion.
Since we had the whole day and didn't need to be in Adelaide until that evening, Andrew and Carolyn decided to take us on a tour of the south coast of Australia to their family vacation home in Goolwa. We stopped in at Victor Harbor and played on the playground there. We had heard rumors of whale sighting off the coast at Basham Beach so we went to check it out. Here is what we saw:
Whales!So cool!
We made it to Adelaide in time to have a yummy dinner of chilli and baked potatoes. We then had the honor of attending a 21st birthday party for two of Andrew's nieces. We learned that this is a big event tradition in Australia and usually families have big celebrations. The fathers of the two girls spoke about them and each provided his own daughter with a verse from the Bible that reminded them and encouraged them of God's work in their lives. Then the girls each stood and thanked everyone for coming. They spoke their lives about how God has been working to build personal relationships with them over the last years. Each of them had unique ways that they were learning about God's provision and love. It was truly a blessing to get to be a part of this family event.
We enjoyed meeting the rest of Andrew's family. We were also recognized by the family for traveling the farthest for the party!
Sunday morning, early early early, we boarded plane to Perth to begin the next leg of our journey. It was hard to say goodbye to family, but such a joy to have the opportunity of sharing part of our journey with them. It onlys means we will have to come back soon to visit again!
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