Camping and Australia Zoo

Posted on Monday, 29 July 2024, 15:58 by Alexandra

25-26 July

As soon as we got the opportunity, we took our new car out for our first adventure to try out the rooftop tent. It worked wonders! Super easy and quick to pop up and our sleeping arrangements for the night was secured in less than 5 minutes. We drove up to Bribie Island, which is a little bit south of Sunshine Coast and camped there for the night. We had bought a two person sleeping bag which was perfect. I wasn’t cold at all, even if it is winter now and not too many degrees during the night.

The day after was spent at the Australia Zoo in Beerwah, about an hour from our camping spot at Bongaree. Such a lovely zoo!

We first had breakfast at Alkemist Café, right around the corner from us. This was probably the best thing I ever had there so far.

Our Nissan is ready to go: It is so dark here (kinda reminds me of the US), so when it is a clear sky, you always see tons of stars.

Then we came to Australia zoo: Aldabra tortoise. Baby koala. Cassowary. Tasmanian devil. Robert Irwin going in his dad’s footsteps. The show was both birds and Bluey, the crocodile. We got a lesson in what to do if we get bitten by a snake and what to think about when being close to water.

If bitten by a snake: stay calm, bind the limb you were bitten on from the bite and up and get to a hospital or get help to you.

If you are close to water, especially fresh and murky water, where you can’t see anything, stay at least 4-5m away from the water and if you’re fishing, stay behind a tree, because salties (saltwater crocodiles also live in freshwater, don’t be fooled) are quick! They can also hold their breaths for up to 7 hours, so waiting 30-60min by the water before going in won’t help. They can also swim under the surface without making any ripples. Quokka. Very curious lemurs coming very close to us. Southern white rhinos. Giraffes, southern white rhinos, and meerkats. My favorite meerkat ❤️. There is a cheetah in this picture above. I did not see it when I took the picture, haha. Wombat.

Coombabah Lake Conservation Park

Posted on Saturday, 27 July 2024, 20:05 by Alexandra

24 July

This was the best day in Australia yet! Coombabah Lake Conservation Park was incredible. Such beautiful nature and so much wildlife.

In summary, we saw 5 koalas, two of which I spotted myself (people here are very friendly of pointing out where things are), 5 kookaburras and endless of kangaroos.

Can you spot the koala in the canopies in the picture below? This was our very first one, only five min into the park.

Here is a zoomed in one:

Our first kangaroos (except the one I saw lurking in the high grass beside the M1 a few weeks back):

Kookaburra number one:

Koala number two (this one was harder to spot but we got help):

Koala number three (this one I spotted all by myself): Zoomed in through my binoculars:

This could have been northern Sweden:

And in the same park there is practically a jungle:

Koala number four (also spotted by me, but pretty hard to miss):

Three different kookaburras (the last one was so big it was floating out on the branch):

And koala number five (we got help with this one, super hard to see):

A super pregnant roo:

Here you can see the joey’s feet sticking out of the pouch:

And also the face sticking out ❤️ (I got this on video and it is probably the best video I have ever filmed):

Review of “The Emperor’s Soul” by Brandon Sanderson

Posted on Wednesday, 17 July 2024, 21:30 by Alexandra

Title: The Emperor’s Soul
Author: Brandon Sanderson
Collection: Arcanum Unbounded: The Cosmere Collection
Genre: Fantasy
Pages: 136 of 831
Published: 2016, Tor Books (originally published 2012)
My Grade: 5 out of 5

GOODREADS’ DESCRIPTION

A heretic thief is the empire’s only hope in this fascinating tale that inhabits the same world as the popular novel, Elantris.

Shai is a Forger, a foreigner who can flawlessly copy and re-create any item by rewriting its history with skillful magic. Condemned to death after trying to steal the emperor’s scepter, she is given one opportunity to save herself. Though her skill as a Forger is considered an abomination by her captors, Shai will attempt to create a new soul for the emperor, who is almost dead.

Probing deeply into his life, she discovers Emperor Ashravan’s truest nature—and the opportunity to exploit it. Her only possible ally is one who is truly loyal to the emperor, but councilor Gaotona must overcome his prejudices to understand that Shai’s forgery is as much artistry as it is deception.

Brimming with magic and political intrigue, this deftly woven fantasy delves into the essence of a living spirit.

MY REVIEW

It doesn’t matter what I pick up from Sanderson, I know I will love it! I found a list online on reading order for the Cosmere books. This was not a book though, but a “short” 130-page novella set on the planet of Sel, the same as Elantris. I try to pay attention to details in books, but I’m not sure I will be able to catch everything Sanderson intended for his readers on the first read. But I went for this one before continuing with Mistbord era 2.

There were definitely things I recognized from Elantris, still my favorite of Sanderson’s books. But I don’t think there were any exceptional easter eggs yet. But like I said, I am new to the Cosmere in terms of re-reads.

The story is really captivating but a little complex. Well, not the story itself, but the magic system. I think I understood it at the end, but I wouldn’t be surprised if I was completely wrong as well. I wouldn’t have minded a deeper story about Shai.

Since it is taking place on the same world as Elantris, it did make me wonder how that was all connected? Time-wise? Magic-wise?

Easy read that was over too quick! Still well thought-through and complicated but written very well for that format. 5 out of 5.

Tallebudgera and Burleigh

Posted on Wednesday, 17 July 2024, 20:59 by Alexandra

Today we visited two parks in hopes of seeing Koalas (or just beautiful nature, but second to fluffy Koalas). I walked so slowly, always looking up, never mind those snakes (there were none), but not seeing a single one. Another day.

Tallebudgera Creek Conservation Park (Mangrove Trail)

The Mangrove Trail starts just at David Fleay Wildlife Park in Burleigh Heads and, as the name states, goes through mangrove swamps. At least a little bit. Then the path was up on the side of the hill, among tall trees and countless birds everywhere. It was magical! I’m so glad there are parts here which are untouched and unexploited. It felt like walking through the rainforest. No koalas, even though there were several warning signs of them being present.

Before reaching Burleigh Heads National Park, we had to cross through a neighborhood, and honestly, living centrally is amazing, but I could see myself living on Ocean Parade or Vantage Point Drive one day.

Burleigh Heads National Park (Ocean View Lookout Track)

There are three tracks in Burleigh Heads National Park and we have walked two of them now, the Ocean View and the Ocean View Lookout. The Lookout Track today, I feel like the name is a bit deceiving. We saw the ocean only at the Burleigh Hill Lookout spot because the forest was so dense. The trees were massive and some trunks were so big and weirdly shaped. No koalas here either. I’ve heard you can see them in this national park, but maybe our third time, on the Rainforest Track.

Before we even came to the park, we saw a sleeping frogmouth owl on a sign. It slept with its head up. I think this was the first one we saw, unless the big owl we saw one evening on our first week here in a tree 2dm above our heads was one. It probably was a frogmouth as well.