Oliver of Otterburn in Western Australia

Oliver of Otterburn in Western Australia

I have been spending some time in the huge state of Western Australia and there is quite a diversity of things to see, so I thought that I should report in on a couple of interesting places that I have been to recently. Firstly, I know that Australia is well known for its beaches so I took myself off to Scarborough Beach to the north of Perth.

 
It was a warm sunny day and the water looked very inviting. Then I saw a sign that listed all the things that I needed to be wary of

– large waves
– strong currents
– sandbars
– snakes.

Now, I don’t know how a simple Northumbrian sheep is expected to cope with all of that. I just settled for looking at the nice blue water.

 
Then, in the country town of Wagin I came up against another huge sheep. I had already met with the Big Merino in New South Wales so I wasn’t totally surprised. I think that these things are designed to give other sheep an inferiority complex – well, anyway it didn’t work because I have a gorgeous distinctive black face and that big sheep doesn’t.


 Further to the north of Perth I was able to visit The Pinnacles in the Nambung National Park. Regarded as one of Australia's most unique landscapes, these incredible limestone spires rise eerily out of the sand, some several meters tall. It's believed the Pinnacles were created millions of years ago as seashells were broken down into sand and then eroded by water and wind.

 
 You can get up close to the Pinnacles on a scenic drive and walk trail, and that is where you can see me, happily sitting on top of the Pinnacles.

Hermie in Barcelona

Hermie on a City Break in Barcelona

Well I’ve certainly had an energetic time since I arrived at The Hermitage Academy; numerous training walks and runs in Northumberland in preparation with the team going out to India in July; skiing in the French Alps; abseiling off the Transporter Bridge, Middlesbrough; Ceilidh dancing; New York and dry land triathlon!

I was so pleased to hear that the summer half term holiday was approaching and that I was being packed up in Gill’s bag to visit Barcelona. I quite fancied a warmer climate and some relaxation.

I might have known better, Gill’s idea of a holiday was totally different to mine!

As you can see from the photographs, I was a typical tourist for a few days. This involved lots of cycling and walking for miles around Barcelona. Our cycle tour, with a lovely group of people from all over the world lasted about 5 hours. They were very interested in me and wanted to know where I came from and what was I doing so far away from home. I could have said the same about them!! We rode through Barri Gotic, the Olympic village, Port Vell stopping for lunch on Barcelona beach.

Riding a bike was an excellent way to take in the sights of this amazing city and our Australian tour guide shared loads of interesting facts. The most famous sight in Barcelona, Antoni Goudi’s Sagrada Familia and look at me in the foreground – I was well impressed with this Cathedral, started in 1882 and still incomplete.

Next port of call Arc del Triomf - a triumphal arch built with colorful brickwork. The arch, designed by the Catalan architect Josep Vilaseca, is adorned with a large number of statues. I thought I would view it from the traffic lights, incase someone trod on me as they crossed the road!

Next stop Parc de la Ciutadella - After the War of the Spanish Succession ended in 1714, a large fort was constructed on this site to keep the city in line. The fortress was demolished in 1869 and redesigned as a park containing a zoo, a boating lake, gardens and a large fountain worked on by the young Gaudí. In this park there is a life size mammoth, look at me on his trunk- don’t worry Sue he’s not going to eat me!

Our time in Barcelona was almost over and our final evening wouldn’t be complete without indulging in some sangria and tapas!

Unfortunately, all the cycling and walking was thirsty work and I got a little carried away!

Oh well I think I deserved some liquid refreshment, but it was all too much for my little body and sleep soon took over.

Adventures of Maarissa the sheep (Part1)

Maarissa the sheep has had a busy Lambing Season 2011 in Shropshire.
On the dash board of the Stapeley Farm Animal Vet Van, she has seen it all.
Lambings, Caesarians, nursing sick lambs and ewes. She is now a very experienced sheep.
She also has the ability to bring a smile to the face of even the most tried and weary farmer.

Here are some Pics of our Easter with Maarissa the Sheep....

Activites included...
Hill walk to the Stone Circle....pose on top of centre stone.

Kite flying

..... perfect for sheep Paragliding!

Picnic with the Robson / Gooch family

(Go to Part2)

Adventures of Maarissa the sheep (Part2)

Sheep sneaks into shot behind Willows head

Back to the Hovel (home of Marissa the Vet)

to meet new arrivals ....

Please note the box the lambs arrived in!

Feeding orphan lambs with Lorelei, Willow and Emily

Lots of Love,

Marissa (The Vet)

Gilbert of Hethpool is found

Dear Sue,

My name is Linda Perea and I live in Phoenix, Arizona. Tippy Mueller is my sister-in-law.

To continue with Gilbert's adventures. I understand that he set out for the Grand Canyon and got lost. I found him wandering the beach in Southern California and brought him safely home with me.

Included is a photo of me and Gilbert where I found him at Dana Point.

Gilbert has been a wonderful guest, wanting to explore the deserts of Arizona where Saguaro cactuses grow. They only grow on the Sonoran desert and nowhere else in the world.

Here is a picture of Gilbert in front of one.

I taught school for 35 years here in Phoenix in grades kindergarten and first grade. My favorite activities with the children were languages and arts.

Stories like this of Gilbert's travels were always a delight for the children.

Talk with you soon,

Linda Perea

Lady Maairy's visit to Jersey

Lady Maairy of Corridge has been visiting Linda Lowseck on the island of Jersey, where she hopes to make friends with this Jersey heifer.

This evening she tried her hoof fishing for sea bass on the incoming tide without success.

Maairy may go to the Jersey Spring Fair this weekend, then she might decide to go to Chile in July and back to the USA again in August with Linda's brother.

Decisions! Decisions!

Watch this space!

Oliver of Otterburn meets some locals

I think that it is about time that I reported something about the local wildlife.

Australia is an island continent and was cut off from the rest of the world for many many thousands of years. From the time of its discovery by Europeans, it has been known to possess animals and birdlife that are distinctly different from those found in other parts of the globe.

I went along to the Caversham Wildlife Park near the city of Perth in Western Australia. It is a very good place to see a number of the
locals collected together in the one place. Parents like to take their children there to let them enjoy the experience of close contact with the animals.

Firstly, of course, I trotted along the see the iconic Australian animal, the kangaroo.

I was just browsing on some nice green grass
when a kangaroo came over to say hullo. He was a very inquisitive fellow and we got along quite well until I felt that he was getting a
little too familiar, especially as he was getting familiar with the wrong end of me.

My next visit was to see a koala. Everyone knows these cute cuddly little blokes. But that is only when they are awake, and that is not
a lot of the time. I couldn’t find one that would wake up to say hullo to me, they all just kept sleeping away the day.

Well, it is a nice way of life if you can get away

with it.

One of the smiling bird handling lassies introduced me to a sooty owl.
He is very big bird and very wise as we all know, but he didn’t have a lot of time to pass on much of his wisdom before I was taken to meet a gang gang cockatoo.

He is a very handsome bird with a mottled grey body and a contrasting pink head. All he cares about is eating any kind of fruit or berries that he can get his claws into. He squawked and cackled a bit but he was not interested in me at all, just a mere sheep and totally inedible.

Finally, on a road outside the park I found a

shingleback lizard.
These fellows do like to lay on a warm surface in the sunshine. One
large warm surface that is easy to find is a road. Now, even I can see
that it is dangerous to lay down on a road to sunbake. So, I took some
time to explain this to the shingleback. I am happy to say that he did
take notice of my words and waddled off into the bush. That made me
feel good.