The past few blog posts for me have been quite business/research/teaching oriented. And, as much as I want to get the last of the IFS experiments blogged about, I also had a desire to post something a little more personal. Not…um…personal personal….but more about the Australian adventure that I have launched with my wife and kids. I have been awarded a sabbatical from IU for the 2009-2010 academic year. The purpose of the year is for me to work with a fantastic team of researchers at the Interactive Television Research Institute at Murdoch University in Perth Australia.
For several good reasons, my wife and two kids came to Fremantle, Western Australia (a very funky Perth suburb) about 2 months ahead of me. So, they have gotten over jet lag by this time…as well as been able to scout out a number of interesting/beautiful/exciting/different places in this port town. The result is that I have had 2 weekends of fantastic tour-guided walks around the town. I have lot of impressions and observations and it’s hard to know where to begin.
So, I thought I’d kinda try to kill several birds with one stone with this entry by telling you a new hobby that I discovered as a result of preparing for my trip to Australia and that I’ve had a good time with on both continents.
I am really quite “directionally challenged.” I don’t remember street names at all. I walk a lot of places in Bloomington…and have to walk everywhere in Perth. Couple that with the fact that we realized that when we did rent a car in Oz I would need to focus on driving with the steering wheel on the wrong side of the car…and the car on the wrong side of the road!
The answer…a GPS which we could load up with an Australian map. Originally, the plan was to just buy one over here in Australia. But, after my wife got over here she told me that electronics were soooo expensive that I should just buy one in the US and bring it across. I reached out to the Facebook/Twitterverse for input and eventually decided on a Garmin Nuvi 255W. I just happened to post back on FB/Twitter that I had made a decision and one of my friends responded back asking if I had ever heard of geocaching. I hadn’t, per se. But I had recently seen several “I love geocaching” bumper stickers on cars in Bloomington. So, I Googled it and found this whole new world of people who spend time hiding little treasure chests (either military ammo boxes or plastic geocache containers) and then posting their GPS coordinates online along with hints for people to go hunting for them.
At the geocache website you can logon and find caches close to wherever you are. Then, you go hunting! And, once you find them you sign the logbook that is usually included in the container and (if you like) take one of the little trinkets from inside and replace it with one of your own. You can then log your hunt details and pictures and such on the website.
Geek paradise. And I’m a bigger Geek with every passing day. While my family was away was bored and I tried my first one—called Keep Out! Sinkholes—which was hidden in our Bloomington neighborhood in a place I thought I knew very well. But, I was embarrassed by walking around in the bushes with my GPS in my hand. And, then I was disappointed because I COULDN’T FIND IT! But, the whole concept intrigued me so much that I tried another one…
This one, called Scavenger Hunter’s Delight, was right near the IU School of Education. And I found it quickly before a farewell dinner at Annie Lang’s house. Here’s a picture of it…my first found GeoCache!
My First Geocache!!--Scavenger Hunter's Delight
So, after I changed locales I also changed my home coordinates on the Geocache website and found the hidden caches in the Fremantle area. My wife has patiently put up with my new interest and last Saturday—only my second on the new continent—my son and I went searching for the Freo Frolic –in the a beautiful park called Booyeembara nearby our rental flat. He was really excited to go on a treasure hunt with dad. But, again, unfortunately I couldn’t find it and I was a little skittish about poking around in the bush with all I’d read about Aussie snakes and crocs! Plus, it was raining in the intermittent squalls that I’ve come so used to in Perth. So, back home we went empty-handed.
But, then I checked the hints for the Freo Frolic again online…plus some pictures posted by other geocachers…and I was ready to hit the trail again. The next day, the sun came out and the four of us went back to Booyeembara. This park must have a history, but I can’t quite find any online. But it has a central wetland where there are several different types of birds. The birds also love to rest in the dessert flowerbrush. Plus, there are streams with underground-spring-fed waterfalls scattered throughout the park grounds. And…we found the geocache! It was a great day exploring the beautiful park and my inner geek. Hope you enjoy these pictures as much as I enjoyed the day. I’ll try to keep my geocaching details to a minimum on TAP blog…but it may not be easy!
Metallic Sculpture of The Rainbow Snake at the entrance to Booyeembara
There were more interesting birds on the lake but I like this picture!
Looking closely, you can SEE one of those more interesting birds and typical, lovely desert brush
Lovely (both to see and to hear)
My First Aussie Find--The Freo Frolic!
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