Hi everyone,
We have arrived in Sydney this evening after 2 exciting and busy days in Adelaide and in the Outback.

In Adelaide we went to Cleland Park which is an animal preserve. The kids and us were just blown away by the indigenous animals in the park. There were many, many kangaroos, wallabies, emus, tasmanian devils, an assortment of water foul and koalas. And the best part was that you could walk around and feed and pet the kangaroos.

They feel something like rabbits. At one point I was confronted by a large, somewhat agresive Roo who went right into my jacket pocket for the food I was carrying. I pushed him away and pulled out the bag. As I was taking some food into my hand he stood straight up and wrapped his paws around my wrist and attempted to wrestle the bag from my hands. Someone took a picture I will be able to share with you. At one point I had 7 Roo's standing around me begging for food.

Barry was just blown away from all of this. We got to hold a koala and have our pictures taken.

The boys performed in Adelaide that evening in a beautiful old town hall. They performed well, but we could tell they were tired from their day in the animal park.

It was off to Ayers Rock at 4:15 AM yesterday. Ugh. Some of us had to fly to Sydney and change planes while some of us flew to Alice Springs and then changed planes. It was like going from Atlanta to Philadelphia to get to Chicago. When we arrived we were directed to our camp ground accommodations. Barry stayed in one camp and I in another. My three boys and I had lovely accommodations. two rooms and a kitchen between us. In my double bed I could almost reach the walls on either side with my arms stretched out. Need I say anymore. Barry's wasn't much better. The best part was that you had to go outside and down the road to get to the bathhouse. For those of us who need to use the facilities in the middle of the night this was a challenge. Especially with signs posted around the camp to watch out for Dingos at night. (Large wide dogs). I told my boys to use the tree outside if they needed to go. I was more creative. I will leave that story for another time.

We drove out in our bus to watch the sun set on Ayers Rock and then had a bar b que on the resort grounds. Most of us dined on Kangaroo and Emu sausage. The male chaps took care of the barbie. Barry was in his glory having to grill the boys food. He always wanted to be a short order cook and now his dream had come true.

There was live music in the eating area while we all sat at picnic tables eating our food. For my Florida friends, it reminded us of Woody's River Roo transplanted to Australia.

Up again at 5 am to see the sun rise on Ayers Rock and then it was off the camel farm. there we met some Aboriginal people who spoke to us in their native tongue about the food they eat and how to throw spears. Several of the guides interpreted. We were then all treated to a ride on the wild camels. did you know that Australia has the largest population of wild camels in the world?

We all chose not to shower today and everyone is looking forward to showering tonight. But first we are headed to the harbor for a nighttime cruise. the chaps have off tomorrow to tour Sydney. The boys have two concerts and we are going to a football game on Sunday.

That brings you up to date. More later.