Big time stress

For all those that are interested in the Arabsat 4A launch campaign, the big event is set for 20:10 GMT on Tuesday, February 28th. This would correspond to 2:10 pm Winnipeg time (noon B.C.) on Tuesday afternoon. The webcast will likely start 1/2 hour prior to the actual liftoff. Here's the link.

A Proton rocket based out of the Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan will be the launch vehicle for the satellite. When in service, A4A will provide services over North Africa, the Middle East, and Western Europe.

The Usual Suspects

Sleeping past 6 am has not been much of an option this last week, at least if we intend on having the patio doors open during the night. These "Hair-Do's" have been causing a real racket in the parking lot next to the hotel.

Competing with the Cockatoo's for noise supremacy is the pink Galah's below. Being from Canada, we tend to find most of the animals here generally comical, and novel in the fact that we are used to only seeing these creatures in a pet store. It was strange then to hear a completely serious conversation on the news radio here on how to do "Roast Galah" on the barbie.

UV hits 11+

Tuesday was an absolute smoker here in Perth, with some thermometers registering 41 degrees. Sophie said the beach was perfect, and the wind off of the ocean made it feel rather refreshing. I, however, was working at the site which is well in-land, and basically resembles the middle of the outback. The wind had probably the most notable effect, making it difficult to breathe, and yet, if you went into the shade it almost became cool outside. Truth is, I'm loving the extreme heat, and can't seem to get enough of it as evident by my sunburn...Sophie prefers moderation and the benefits of using sun screen.

The day was marked with these ever-present thunderstorms that actually produced very little rain. I found myself constantly looking towards the sky for that signature "twirling" of the clouds and the imminent Tornado, but when the humidity is limited to 20%, not much really happens. (I've been told that Typhoons are the big threat here)

Sophie and I headed up into King's park in the evening to check out all of the crazy parrots, rainbow lorikeets, and cockatoos that play in the Palm trees. The residual heat from the day sucked out the smells of the Eucalyptus trees and the red needles from the conifers. There are also some fat Boab trees in the park, genetic remnants from the time of Gondwana, when Africa and Australia were one land mass.

I took some photos of the gum trees that line the entrance to the park, and got this great effect from the colored lights which are aimed up at the barkless trees.

This last picture looks through the trees, and down onto the Central Business District. On this evening, there were a large number of people setting up chairs along the high ridge of the park, sipping local wine, and getting the occasional sound clip carried through the wind of the concert below.

Long Days Journey into Night

I must say I had little apprehension last week when leaving the blizzardy conditions of Ottawa behind for the blistering summer heat of Perth. Although the 28 hours spent in the air is always a huge detterant, it was made much more tolerable this time around due to some free business class upgrades Sophie and I got through to Honolulu.

We did the Ottawa --> Toronto --> Vancouver --> Honolulu --> Sydney --> Perth connection again as it was familar to us, but the hassles in dealing with US Customs, and the terrible arrival/departure times in Honolulu are making me reconsider flying back via Hong Kong. The problem is that you arrive in Waikiki at 11pm, and have to check out of the hotel by noon the next day. Given the jet-lag, we wake up at 6am, check out at noon, and have to kill 11 hours on the streets of Waikiki before departing on the midnight flight for Sydney. So if you're an unlucky shlepp like me, and can't sleep on the plane, the +30 hours without sleep is pure torture. I have to keep reminding myself that travel involves two components, the flights which are to be endured, and the destination which is the reward. I guess I just think it absurd that none of the hotels in Waikiki can have flexible enough hours to cater to stopover guests as opposed to tourists.

I found it interesting that when we did this Ottawa-->Honolulu flight the last time, it was on June 21st, the longest day of the year. And as we were flying westerly with the sun, it surely must have been the longest day we will ever experience (30hrs).

It was good to go exploring with Sophie again, and we did this long walk around the base of Diamond Head crater. We eventually stopped at a small out-of-the-way beach, where a little memorial was erected in the trees for a lost surfer. I didn't recognize the name, but there were a scattering of sacrificed surf magazines layed over the grave stone - possibly a legend lost to the sea. On the way back down the hill, we took this funky fish-eye photo in a driveway mirror.

Sydney was phenomenal. The temperature hovered around 30 degrees as we took the bus downtown, and then meandered along the busy streets, relishing in the ability to stretch our legs. We visited the expansive botanical garden to the west of the Opera house, and felt dwarved by the size of the ficus trees. The odd visual display of plants and animals is one those marked events where you realize that "you've arrived". The harbour was packed, with restaurants and cafe's overflowing onto the sidewalks, and street performers every few metres. We checked out a small Italian restaurant in "The Rocks", a market-like neighbourhood filled with cobblestone streets, pubs, and buildings dating back to the original British settlements of the 1780's. After supper, we strolled along the boardwalk and took in the panorama of the huge "coat-hanger" bridge, the skyscrapers to the south, and a magnificent summer lightning show blowing in from the west.

Winterlude weekend

Every year for Winterlude, there is an international ice-carving contest held in Confederation park. The big event was actually scheduled for last weekend's +6 degree weather, but a few sculptors came out to take advantage of the much colder weather this weekend. This mermaid had an exceptional amount of detail, and looked ultra-cool with the changing LED lights.

The photo on the right is a zoomed photo through a series of 6 windows carved of ice. I wish I could have experimented more with the camera, but the cold eventually taps all dexterity you have left in your fingers.


The 4-5 days of sub-zero temps have also allowed the ice on the canal to finally smooth over. This is the scene that Sophie and I see entering the canal from our Neighbourhood in Old Ottawa South. The view is looking North towards the Queensway, with downtown and the parliament buildings in the background.


The view from Landsdowne Park (where the Renegades play) towards the steps coming down from Echo Drive. I once checked into some of the housing prices for these modest homes which, have the benefit of overlooking the canal and are located on a dead-end street with no thru traffic. Conclusion - 750k probably won't get you a basic 2 bedroom home.


Perched atop the Bank St. bridge, this photo looks westerly towards the setting sun and Dow's lake. I think that this is the best section of the canal, as the skateway gets much narrower as it winds its way through the high enbankments. A big hit with the romantics as well, as the Euro-style globe lamps lining the canal give it warm lighting at night.

The canal is filled with these beavertail and hot chocolate shacks all along the way. Nothin' like deep-fried dough sprinkled with sugar to warm the belly. What I find idyllic, is that Carleton University is at the end of this section of the canal, allowing students to commute to University by skates.



This photo is taken looking east towards Bank Street, with the football stadium on the left.

Winter doldrums

Haven't been in much of a mood to post lately. I always find this time of the year the most difficult, as the days don't seem to be getting any longer, and the novelty of winter has long worn off. The tendency to fall into a work, eat, sleep routine becomes very hard to break, and with the weather being nothing but rain, we're actually longing for the colder, clear sunny days that tend to lift your spirits.

So, instead of sitting in front of the TV, we've been trying to use the downtime to head to the gym at my work in the evenings. I've never stuck to a gym schedule for longer than 2 months, but this time is showing hope, as we have the place all to ourselves, get 24 hour access, and the facility is all around top-notch. I also joined a spinning class during my lunch hours in an attempt to get my legs ready for a hopefully productive summer on the bike, and Sophie's been working harder than ever on getting her second stripe on her orange belt. Exercise is working for us...it's not making the days any longer, but our optimism that the sun will reappear is getting stronger. I get the sense that it's been a strange winter right across the country weather wise.

(uhh..yeah..we didn't take that photo, but it's wicked nonetheless)

Sophie and I checked out a small exhibit at the Canadian Museum of Contemporary Photography. They were featuring some of the "Tree Planting Project" work of Sarah Anne Johnson . She uses a fascinating technique of combining her detailed miniature ceramic figures into real photographs which, when used with well-placed diffused lighting, give an other-worldy effect to the images. She did her BFA at the University of Manitoba, and much of the work is based on her personal experience tree planting up in Northern MB.

Last Saturday we got all fancied up and attended my annual company "Winterlude" Christmas party at the Chateau Laurier. It's a high-end affair, with loads of dancing, lots of wine, and the opportunity to finally get to know those people I pass by in the hallways at work. I attended this event solo last year, as Sophie was stuck with wrapping up our loose ends in MB. I recalled how foreign it felt to be sitting in that big ball room last year with a bunch of strangers, and how the vibe is so much different a year later.

It looks like we're off to Perth again mid-February, and have been planning on possibly tacking a week long vacation on at the end. Many Perth locals recommend the 4 hour flight north into Bali, although this destination is still viewed cautiously since the effects of the 2002 Bali bombings. We have a second option though, through a friend that owns some beachside chalets in a sleepy little town in Southern Australia called Denmark. Maybe he'll get us a sweet deal.