It’s Raining Again!

Hello there from Rain Soaked Australia,

It is our hope that this blog update finds everyone healthy and in good spirits. We would like to send a prayer of good health and comfort to Cathy’s Grandmother in Vicksburg. Granny we hope you start feeling better soon and that the doctors can correct whats causing the problem.

We are all doing well. The kids have started back to school this past week and we are now with 3 kids at the senior school. Tori is now in 11th, Matt is in 10th and Lizzie in 6th. WOW!

Starting Middle School!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Its been a little over a year ago that Southeast Queensland, Brisbane and surrounding areas, suffered its worst flooding in nearly a century. As we entered summer, people looked forward with bated breath to the approaching rainy season. So much turmoil, government spending, investigations, pointing fingers came of that flooding. It still lingers so much that they are going to open another inquiry into the management of one of the larger dams to see if criminal charges can be brought against someone. Needless to say, this past week has put new awareness into the the thoughts of individuals with regards to flood waters. In the past several days, areas in the Southeast Queensland area have suffered some of the most torrential rainfall amounts one can imagine. In a span of 24  hours starting Tuesday afternoon there were rainfall totals anywhere from 10″ to 15″. And over the last several days some areas have had totals over 20″ or more. Most areas will surpass last years record rainfall amounts for January quite easily. Matter of Fact a few places will more than triple their totals. Some weather forecasters say we are still not done yet. I guess that is why they make umbrellas and boats for…. Given all the recent rains we are still managing to get out and around. A little wet but still going about business. Below are some photos or our drive to Byron Bay last Thursday (Australia Day), we didn’t anticipate what we came across.

 

Near Tweed Hill

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Rising Water Near Tweed Hill

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Rough Surface

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Cars Being Diverted do to Water on the Road

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Okay, I will try to get another update into the system soon. Need to put a slide show in the next update with pictures of our trip this past December.

Remember, please be safe, be healthy and most of all smile! It is probably one of the easiest things we can do!

The Madoregang

 

Back Home in Australia!

Hello to all,

Yes its been a awhile but it wasn’t without good intentions. The Madoregang was off on another one of their family adventures and this time it took us to 2 countries, four cities and a host of frequent flyer miles.

The last 3 weeks have been packed filled with excitement, old things, new things and some things not so good. We head off from Brisbane on December 16th to London. Of course getting there would take 2 plane rides and 22 hours of sore butts. When we landed in Singapore on the first leg, Cathy came down with a case of the trots (self-explanatory) which started the trip off on a sour note. We landed in London on Saturday the 17th at 5:30 in the morning and after clearing customs headed to the apartment we rented. The apartment was located in the West End section of London in close proximity to a lot of stuff to see. Let’s just say that no city in America can come close to the number of people and the wow factor that London has. London is a hustling, bustling city with a lot of locals and throw as many visitors on top and boom-yow baby, instant mad-house!

London was fabulous Harrods, 10 Downey Street, West Minister Abbey, Big Ben, Trafalgar Square, Scotland Yard, etc, etc, etc… We also took side trips to Rochester and Rochester Castle, White Cliffs of Dover, Dover Castle, Windsor Castle, Eton College, and Stonehenge. Lets say 4 days in London we were on the move. Of course we had to deal with Tori getting sick, Lizzie and myself at the end. Of course mine took hold and last 2 days in London, 4 Days in Venice and 2 Days in Florence. However, we still managed to get a bunch done.

We left London on Dec 22nd and headed to Venice Italy. Venice, lets just say is one of a kind. No cars, just boats. We thought about a Gondola ride but they have become extremely expensive, especially for 5 people. Needless to say there was a tremendous amount of stuff to see and do in Venice. The Old Churches (Santa Maria Glorioso dei Fieri & San Marco unbelievable), the buildings, statues and Piazzas are fabulous. Matt began his initiation into eating as much pizza as possible during our whole Italy trip. Lizzie end up suffering one full day of a stomach problem but was fine the next morning. I continually struggled with my issue and wasn’t as able to get around Venice as I would like. But we managed. We enjoyed a truely wonderful meal on the banks of the Grand Canal for Christmas. We thoroughly enjoyed every minute.

We left Venice and headed to Florence on the 26th. The apartment we stayed at would make most 5-star hotels look like a dump (our hats off to Tiziana for how she re-remodelled the place) awesome. When we arrived, again we hit the ground running. The Galleries of the Uffzi and the Accedemia were phenomenal. The churches of the Il Duomo, Santa Croce, and several others are something to behold. Statues are everywhere and the building the surround them are awesome. We took a side trip to Pisa to see the Tower and the church there.Lets just the say that the church (also called Il Duomo) is truely an experience to behold. New Years in Florence was spent listening to a symphony in the Piazza della Signoria and having fireworks, lit by the locals, exploding all around us. WOW!

New Years Day we head to our final city Rome. Lets just say unbelievable, there are few words to describe that which we visited, saw, and roamed across, amazing. I will have to spend another whole blog writing of just that portion alone. But to give you a taste, the Colosseum, the Forum, the Capital, St Peters, the Sistine Chapel, San Giovanni, The Trevi Fountain, Piazza San Popolo and more. And let us not forget our trip to Pompeii and our guides Pietro & Antonio made it even more enjoyable.

All-in-all it was a remarkable journey. It is one of those trips, if we could inspire anyone else to take, it will truely change how you look at life. Awesome!

Okay, here are some pictures. I will explain more about some of them in the coming blogs.

 

Until then be safe, stay healthy and most of all smile.

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From the Madoregang.