Light speeeeed!

Alicia’s official report on our trip to the police academy was most excellent; however, the day did not stop (or even begin) there! On Wednesday morning, the Rotary Club of Glen Waverly took us for an early morning coffee with David, the Park Ranger at gorgeous Jells Park (at the same restaurant where we were lucky enough to have lunched just the day before). Even though the park used to be a piggery, it is a most stunning retreat from urbanity. 🙂

After the park visit, we tried to stay out of trouble at the police academy and then went off to school, to Wesley College, a private school with one of the first desalination units used at an educational facility. Craig, the groundskeeper, showed us the verdure sports ovals very proudly and proceeded to explain the various steps involved in taking bore water from the ground and removing the salt.

It was a lovely K-12 school (with fees from $15-20,ooo per year, it should be!) with bright, inviting corridors and grounds. Hmm, wonder if Australia might be the place for me to teach… 😉

Kevin took a catnap right before our lunch with the mayor of Monash, Greg Male. Great lunch!

Ready for something punny? We then got in synch with the Australian Synchrotron…ok, yep, that was bad. But the Synch was so cool! Jonathan gave us a tour that left my puny brains depleted. He explained how electrons move through a linear accelerator that speeds electrons up to almost the speed of light, then off to a booster ring where they’re sped up the rest of the way, then into the storage ring to circulate the electrons and produce intense light. The radio frequency tube recharges electrons as they move through the storage ring. Had enough? 😉 Ok, but scientists from various fields use the light produced here to study very teeny tiny materials (that’s a technical term used at the synch…teeny tiny). Kevin got up close and personal with the equipment. (They use foil on some stuff! Haha. So sciency!)

Our day ended with a trip to the Monash Men’s Shed, a project completed and run by Rotary of Glen Waverly. A men’s shed is a place for men to collaborate and work side-by-side in a workshop setting to socialize with other men and to fight depression. I’m a little tired, so I can’t put it more eloquently than that, but it was quite a cool concept and really works! Thanks to Al Pilley, Bernie Edwards, and Peter Morgan for a wonderful day!

Eureka!

Standing at 300 meters tall, with 88 floors, as a residential building with 24 karat gold infused windows on the top 8 floors, Eureka Tower is an impressive sight.

Eureka Tower!

As we approached, I thought this was worthy of a panoramic photo. I began to ask myself if I really like heights that much, but I figured it was manageable. We got our tickets, got in the lift up to the 88th Floor and our hosts informed us that there was an optional “edge” experience that you could opt for, this included entering a retractable space that extends out from the building and it completely glass, frosted glass that with the flip of a switch clarifies and you are standing in a glass box 88 stories in the air! I didn’t have the fortitude to take the challenge, but Amy and David both ventured out there!

Amy and David on SkyDeck

I took this picture as I observed from the outdoor observation deck.

The Tower gave a great opportunity to view the city from above everything! The popular sites looked so small! I really enjoyed the experience Philip and Helen of the Moorleigh Moorabbin were our hosts and I thank you!

Police Academy…no kidding!

I know that there can be some jokes that immediately come to mind when you mention a police academy, at least for me, I think of the movie from the 1980’s and beyond and I giggle.

Gavan Bennett

On Wednesday, March 30th our group was hosted at the Victoria Police Academy and shown around by Leading Constable Gavan Bennett, pictured here, he was very informative and thorough, I feel as though I have partly went through the training for becoming a police person! We saw the training rooms for booking/interviewing/processing and courtroom. They have every scenario available to practice as well as a mock neighborhood course. We also had the privilege to view the shooting range, overall this experience at the Police Academy was very entertaining!

Watching police investigation interviews

Shooting Range at Police Academy

Investigation interview in progress!

I want to say a big THANK YOU our hosting Rotary Club for the day of Glen Waverly

David, Bernie, Al and Peter (L-R) of Glen Waverly Rotary Club

Wind tunnels and mobile kitchens…

The Rotary Club of Fern Tree Gully planned an event-filled day for us last week. On Monday, John Flemming, Enid Hughes, Stuart Vize, and Irene Yeats began their chauffeuring journey at Swinburne University of Technology where Fred Hellriegel, Department Manager of Horticulture and Environment, led us around campus and showed us some of the great programs in place for students pursuing further education in either academic or technical fields. We visited some graphic art, automotive, and electrical classes. Fred explained that there was a time just before my generation when university was free, but no good thing like that could last, could it?! Anywho, Fred’s colleague Martin spoke to us about the incredible sustainability efforts in place on campus as well. Carpet tiles for spot replacement, solar panels, water catchment systems (the last two are pretty standard in newer buildings in Australia, btw), etc. The Aussies are on a sustainability crusade that puts my light-switchings-off to shame. Switches on outlets so plugged in appliances don’t draw electricity while not fully operating, 3-minute sand timers for showers (given out by the govt during the drought), etc. Very impressive!

After school 🙂 we went to the Miller Homestead, a heritage home owned by the City of Knox, where we had a lovely outdoor BBQ in the sunshine and chatted with councilmen (and women). A few shades of pink on my arm later and we were off to Ecotech, a mom-and-pop company that manufactures and distributes air quality measurement systems (AQMS). Hans and Steve showed us around and Tim gave us a demo of the wind tunnel they use there. (The white things are thousands of drinking straws!!!)

Stuart and his wife hosted us for afternoon tea (at which I consumed far too many chocolate Tim Tams). Then we went to the Salvation Army’s mobile kitchen that has served thousands of hot meals to folks in disaster situations like fires and even plane evacuations. Alicia even said that it was better than similar mobile kitchens she’s sampled in the States! It was a great day!

Jaw-Dropping Glass and Performance Art

The Rotary Club of Boronia started Tuesday (March 29) off with a bang. We were led by Peter Malden back to his old stomping grounds – the Telsta Global Operations Center. We were lead upstairs where we were presented to a nicely produced video about the products and services Telstra offered. While it was interesting, many of us were wondering where exactly this “operations center” was. With a push of a button, all the opaque glass went clear and we soon realized we were overlooking the center the entire time. The place was really impressive! We learned what each group of rows were responsible for, what the different displays meant and how the warning systems worked. Did you know they maintain a backup site that is an exact duplicate of the GOC and 3-4 similar sites that only four people know the location of?

Next, we went to the Monash Gallery of Art which is in a beautiful space. We met with Shaune Lakin, the gallery director. He explained the history of the gallery and we learned about how it nearly closed. Actually, it did for a month but the public were outraged and protested. That was exactly the kick in the rear the gallery needed and since then they have worked hard to maintain and exhibit a world class collection of photos. Shaun was very candid, which I appreciated, as he walked us through the current exhibit “After Glow” which showcased exhibition and performance art. Then he took us into the storage room and we learned the optimal conditions that photos should be stored at to last (a minimum) of 150 years.

With a pretty busy morning, we were feeling hungry so the Rotarians carted us of to Madeline’s, at Jells Park. The venue and park were beautiful. We each found dishes we enjoyed and closed the mid-day meal off with coffee and tea.

The GSE team all headed back to Richard and Anne-Marie’s place to relax before our cluster meeting in the evening.

Thanks to Peter, Michael, Helen, Eddie, and the other Rotarians for planning and executing a educational and exciting day.

Penguins!!!

Not the kind of sign you see every day…

Making Merry in Marysville

On Wednesday of last week, Fran, Roger, and Allan of Ringwood Rotary took our team to visit Terry and Sharen Donavan of Marysville. They owned a B&B that burned down in the Black Saturday fires but are in the midst of rebuilding and are finally able to laugh about the craziness of the entire situation. Terry showed us some of his belongings recovered from the fire that are now in a mini-museum. Sharen made a poignant comment that day about being a survivor of the fires instead of a victim.

We got a tour of the CFA volunteer firefighters’ home as well as that of the SES (State Emergency Services) and the local newspaper!

David even got to play around a bit in the Tool Library donated by Rotary and Lions’ Club so that residents can continue rebuilding.

 

 

While Aaron snuck off to yet another winery ;), the rest of us met Bruno, an artist who was able to salvage and restore several of his pieces of art (sculptures and paintings). (That’s him with the weeds!) We had his blessing to explore the gardens and have a bit of fun.

10 points to the first person to figure out what’s weird about my pic. 😉  What a good day. Thanks, Ringwood Rotary!

Puffing Billy – Wandin Rotary Club

We had a great experience riding a historical steam engine train named the Puffing Billy. You get to hang your feet over the edge and take in the country side. It is fantastic. The Wandin Rotary Club John and Claire Sanders along with William Pond hosted us for the day and they were very hospitable. We finished the day visiting the Bulong Winery and sampling some of their wines. And Aaron shared with them some California wine that he brought with him. A good day all in all on the 21st of March. Thank you!

Nice View

Taking a stroll on Phillip Island before sunset.

Toolangi and Healsville Rotary host day

Tuesday, March 22 our team was hosted by the Healsville Rotary Club and we went to the Toolangi forestry centre to learn about wildlife and forest history, which one of our hosts, Stuart McDonald worked for a number of years. Thank you for the tour around the building that had some fascinating architecture!

Afterward, we were taken to a boardwalk area in the Wirrawilla Rainforest and it was beautiful! We were told to keep an eye out for leeches, so my eyes were peeled! Luckily all came away without any new friends!  There as a fog hanging in the air, and I can’t help but admit that the scene was really picture perfect. The bush (forested) areas of Australia are lovely!

The day wrapped up with a trip to the Healsville Sanctuary, which is filled with native animals! There was a siting of a Tasmanian Devil, many parrots and raptors, Kangaroos and even an Emu. We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves!

Thank you Healsville Rotary for showing us a lot of information, beauty and wildlife.