Movin' on down...

So we left Bowral Friday morning (with tears as I'm really going to miss John and Virgina) and made our way to Cooma. It is a pretty smal town south of Canberra. We were met by the local club's President Cheryl and one other Rotarian and his wife. I was supposed to stay with this man and his wife but, unfortunately, it was not the best fit after one night (for those who know how bad my back is, the bed was EXTREMELY uncomfortable) so I ended up moving to stay with Cheryl and her husband Colin (who is also hosting Kay, my team leader). They have been great people and I just enjoyed a great dinner of lamb and vegetables (first time I've ever had lamb...very tasty!)

Over the past few days, we've seen some great sights including Nattai National Park in the Berrima District (had a great time laughing with our escort, Rotarian Allen) and saw some of the most beautiful sights. We then had a GREAT dinner at the Surveyor General Inn in Berrima, Australia's longest continuously licensed inn. We cooked our own steaks on a grill and I partook in some local wine :) Our first night in Cooma, we attended a mayoral reception with the mayor (duh) and some local dignitaries and other Rotarians. I have to say that after Steve gave his introductory speech, I really felt bad about the fact that he is our only male team member and Carrie and I decided not to pick on him as much...not sure how long that will last though ;)

Our first full day in Cooma was today and we spent most of the day driving around and seeing Lake Eucumbene and Adaminaby, a town that was basically covered by water once a dam was built and then moved to a new location (pretty interesting story but I won't get into the details right now.) Tomorrow we are going to the Fest of Poetry, followed by a historic train ride. Then Sunday night we will be having an early Halloween Party! We figured Sunday would be the best night since we will have "official" business at a Rotary meeting on Wednesday.

Finally, I have to stay the highlight of our day was when we were out driving and we saw some more kangaroos in the wild. Kay, Carrie and I got out of the bus and walked to within 20 feet of them! We saw a mom with her joey in her pouch and also some males that other actvites in mind. Let's just say that we witnessed some "rooting" going on for those that speak Australian ;)