Koala Sanctuary
Written on 8:58 a.m. by My gratitude journal
Lil' shy wallaby...
Me, flirting with a bunch of Aussies...
What a big heavy boy!!! Mom, can I please bring him home? Pleaaaaaaaze?
Dive in Moreton Island
Written on 7:39 p.m. by My gratitude journal
Mom and Dad with Flipper
Perfect landing
The pelican is a much larger bird than I expected. I said it a couple of times before but I finally took a picture that gives a better idea of what I meant by 'big'. The person is an adult...
A praying manthis...
One of these swam right between my dad and me when we were snorkling but I wasn't fast enough to take a picture...
Lots and lots of small fishies...
This huge fish (Queensland Groper) was approximately 6 feet long and was just resting under one of the wrecks. I had to dive 4 times to get this picture of him... Glad I did!!! But apparently that this fish has been linked to several fatal attacks on humans: I'm not sure I would have a picture to show you now if I had known this fact then!
Swing at the Oasis
Written on 12:07 p.m. by My gratitude journal
The Oasis: an outdoor venue just like our 'Swing l'été' spot in Verdun, with a large roof over our heads in case of showers. In this case, the oasis is located in the middle of broadbeach (GoldCoast) in front of many restaurants, bars and pubs. Many pedestrians stop by when they hear the music and get more information about courses offered by Katz Korner at a table they set up before hand. Lots of kids jumping around, great variety of music, a bunch of cool dancers from the GoldCoast and Brisbane is the perfect recipe for success!
Here you can see some spectators as well as the registration table setup on the left.
Me and 3 friends from the GoldCoast. The guy on the left is a very good creative lead. I don't remember any of their names.
Rebecca & Craig from Brisbane
? & ? from Katz Korner Dance School on the Gold Coast. Both Jivers... (Jive here is called Rockabilly) the girl on the right knows Sophia Wolff from Viva Las Vegas.
? & ? from Brisbane
Tessa & Drew. What a lovely couple! Tessa's a sweetest girl I met while in Brisbane and Drew's by far the best lead & teacher! When are we going to invite him to Canada to show us his tricks?
Craig, ? from Sweden, Nate from L.A., Drew-the-amazing and Tessa.
At 11pm, it's time to pack up... and go for a swim at the beach...
Beware of the sharks. They are more active at nightime.
We all had a blast.... except for the poor Tessa who didn't bring her bathing suit because nobody told her about the beach. She took a couple of good pictures though ;)
Great effect! This photo is a courtesy of Tessa. Who can guess the name of the guy on that picture?
Sushi night - 1st Brisbane edition
Written on 10:47 p.m. by My gratitude journal
Those of you who know me best know very well how much I love sushi and know that I've now established a tradition to organise sushi nights at home and have everyone contribute to the preparation of this delicious meal.
Being in Brisbane did not stop this tradition. So my parents invited two of their best friends over for dinner and a crash course of making your own sushi! See how it went below:
Step 1 - Making the rice. You need sushi rice or Calrose rice. Cook it according to the instructions and then season it with a mix of rice vinegar, water and sugar. Spread the rice on a cookie platter to cool down...
Step 2: while the rice is cooling, prepare the veggies. For the tempura vegetables, slice sweet potatoes, onion rings and zuchinis. For the maki rolls, cut carrots, celeri, zuchinis and avocadoes into narrow sticks.
Step 3 - Preparing the tempura batter. A recipe can be found here. Once the batter's ready, throw the veggies in it and then in the fryer untill a nice gold colour appears. Let them sit on paper towels to absorb the excess in oil and serve with tempura dipping sauce. Good job dad!
Step 4 - The nigiris. Nigiri means 'hooked on' or 'hung on' in japanese and refers to the piece of raw fish hooked around a small block of rice. You will need a bowl of water to rinse your hands between every nigiri and stop the rice from sticking too much to your hands. Press a small quantity of rice really hard in your hand to make it stick together and then, hook a sashimi (slice of raw fish) onto it. Repeat. You can use a tiny bit of wasabi between the fish and the rice to add flavour and make them stick better.
Step 5 a) - Rolling the makis! For this, you will need to find Nori Roasted Seaweed which can be found in every chinese or japanese supermarket and a bamboo mat to roll it. Place the seaweed on the mat, spread the rice on the seaweed everywhere with the exception of the last part to be rolled (see picture above) so the seaweed can stick to itself. Then, line up a couple of veggies and fish of your choice on the rice portion closest to you. You can also add some seasoning like a mix of wasabi and mayo or a mix of seafood sauce and mayo or some sliced marinated ginger to your roll before rolling. Roll the seaweed with the rice on the inside and make it stick on the end.
Step 5 b) - Rolling it inside out or 'californian style' with the rice on the outside! I won't try to explain it here but if you look at the pictures you can see it involves a celophan film and putting the mat after the rice is stuck onto the nori seaweed... Good luck!
Good Job Paul!
Step 6 - Slicing the maki roll... make sure the roll is cooled down and the knife you're using is clean of any rice to make a nice cut.
Step 7 - Sit down, serve and enjoy!
Museum Time
Written on 11:57 a.m. by My gratitude journal
In front of Brisbane Museum
A braided palm tree inside the museum
Let's go to the top, says my mom... untill she sees the elevator that will bring her there!!!!
My mom and me at the top! She made it!!!
James Street Market
Written on 6:58 a.m. by My gratitude journal
Regardez-moi les comptoirs à poisson!!!
Que ce soit pour y acheter des fleurs d'Hibiscus dans le sirop...
... ou de l'encre de pieuvre en tant qu'assaisonnement...
...James Street Market est l'endroit par excellence!
Un excellent jus de fraises et bananes pour le prix modique de 7$
Un muffin aux asperges et fromage... pas mangeable!
Balboa Class
Written on 3:15 a.m. by My gratitude journal
Every Tuesday night, Swing Dance Brisbane offers balboa classes with Mark & Vicky in New Farm.
I didn't take pictures of that night but I learned a couple of new variations and moves that I'll have to try with the balboa dancers back at home.
Surf à Surfers' Paradise (Gold Coast) avec "Daddy"
Written on 11:56 p.m. by My gratitude journal
Bienvenue à Surfers' Paradise!
Panorama côté droit
Panorama côté gauche
Fins prêts!
On y est presque...
un 6 pour le style et un 10 pour l'effort...
Le trône de la reine de Surfers' Paradise
La reine de Surfers' Paradise
Surfers' Paradise: l'endroit où même les farfadets ont leur planche de surf!
Le Pub irlandais O'Malley où on a soupé.
Ici aussi on aime la Kilkenny! :D
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