You know you are in Australia when....

You know you are in Australia when:

• Everyone around you speaks with an accent.  

• Everyone is a "mate" (friend). 

• You call a guy a "bloke" 

• You get asked: How're ya goin? meaning: How are you doing? 

• The most common answer to a comment is: No worries. 

• You drive on the left side of the road. 

• There are more roundabouts than traffic lights. 

• There are few traffic signs and speed limit signs. 

• You can go 100 km /hr on a country road. 

• You can get a speeding ticket for going 3 km over the limit. 

• You "hire" a car. 

• You fill a car with petro. 

• They "coal" you for supper. 

• A "wok" is what you do when you sightsee. 

• You are the only one that sings: The law of God. Everyone else sings: The low of Goad. 

• You take "lollies" to church - that is what they call candies.  

• You get served instant coffee. 

• A cup of coffee at a restaurant costs $5.00. 

• Groceries are double the price of groceries in ON. 

• Minimum wage is about $17.00 an hour. 

• When you ask to use the washroom, they show you the laundry room. Ask for the toilet or loo instead. 

• You "shift" into a new house rather than move. 

• You leave your shoes on inside the house. 

• You never see snow. 

• You never have a snow day. 

• Children wear complete uniforms to school. 

• School lockers are outside.

• You have a "heap" of books. 

• You can get all 4 seasons in one day. 

• A southerly wind is cold!

• By 6 pm it is dark. Strange feeling when it is warm out. 

• Houses do not have central heating or AC. Bathrooms are cold in the winter. 

• A guy wears a jumper (a sweater), 

• You have a "mobile" instead of  a cell phone. 

• You ring a friend rather than phone him.  

• Cars do not get rusty. 

• Paved roads do not get cracks and holes from frost. 

• You could hit a kangaroo with a golf ball on the golf course.

Final thank you to Australia

As we are about to leave Australia for Timor, Indonesia, for a week, it is time to say farewell. We want to thank the Deputies for Theological Education for inviting us and organizing so many aspects of our stay here. It has been delightful!

Here is picture of them on one final evening.

Richard Heerema, Jim VanderPlas, Gerhard Visscher, 

Rev. Ed Rupke, Mark Hoogerdijk

The Deputies presented us with a wonderful gift just before leaving: 

a vase handcrafted from Jarrah wood by FRCA's own world-renowned Jack de Vos

We were so impressed with the gift that we took the time to visit Jack and his wife Ina.  

Here he is at home with one of his many pieces.

And here he is in his workshop, busy with yet another.

You can see more of his work on www.jackdevos.com

On our last Sunday, May 25, it was a privilege to preach in Armadale FRC (above).

Afterwards, the church organized a coffee fellowship to bid us farewell. 

A couple pics of the farewell social.

We want especially to thank Alwyn and Anne Terpstra. During our Western Australia time, we were privileged to stay in the flat behind their house. Even better than that, we were privileged to enjoy their hospitality and build a meaningful friendship with them and their two daughters, Tanya and Melissa. 

It has been a pleasure to be here, to speak, to meet so many of the brothers and sisters, to dialogue about matters related to CRTS on so many fronts, and to encourage future students. We feel like we have gained a lot of new friends and that we have a much better understanding of the context in which the Free Reformed Churches serve our one Lord and Maker.

Fun times with friends in WA

We have so appreciated the hospitality many people showed us during our stay in WA.
Here are a few pictures of some fun times we had with new and renewed acquaintances.
Great memories!

 Jerry and Hank Olde's discussion at the round table

The other side of the grape vine always looks greener

Kristen Alkema with her children Avery, George, Judah, and baby Emily

 A special greeting from Elsina Ten Haaf

A Supper where only Canadians were welcome: Dave and Lydia Winkel, 

and Ted, Cathy, Jessica, and Zoe VanSpronsen

 Joyce VanDuyn with her boys Ryan and Elijah

A special time with Alwyn and Anne Terpstra and Arthur and Hilda Kleyn.
Many thanks to them for hospitality and generosity.

Sightseeing on our last days in WA

In our last few days in the Perth area, we did a little bit of sightseeing, and Jerry enjoyed another game of golf. We have so enjoyed spending time with new friends and sharing talks and laughs together.

Petrie Heerema and Teny at Hillarys Boat Harbour north of Perth

At Aqwa, the Aquarium of Western Australia, an underwater aquarium 

with sharks, turtles, stingrays, and many varieties of fish

A shark

A sea turtle

Stingrays in an outdoor pool

A huge variety of fish in a lovely aquarium

Surrounding Champion Lakes in Armadale is a 5 km walking path, great for some exercise.

The path to Serpentine Falls

Melissa and Teny at Serpentine Falls

Sightseeing from Albany to Busselton

From Albany we returned to Armadale via Augusta and Busselton. Here are some pictures of the spots we saw, including some more from Albany. So many spectacular beaches, coasts, rocks, and forests!

Little Beach, close to Albany - a little piece of paradise!

The Alkema children loved walking through the beautiful sand at Little Beach

Huge red tingle trees at Walpole

Many red tingle trees are hollow because of forest fires.

The Giant Tingle Tree is the largest known eucalypt in the world

William Bay: the weather was too cool for swimming, since it is autumn, though the water stays about the same temperature all year. Always be aware of sharks when swimming!

 Salmon Holes: a famous spot for fishing for salmon from the shore

 The Gap: an impressive rugged granite channel carved by the waves of 
the Southern Ocean, forming a sheer drop of almost 25 metres - in Albany.

Standing on top of the rocks at the Gap

The lower rocks near the ocean by the Gap

 Gnarabup Lookout: the Indian Ocean along the west coast of Australia

 The Canal Rocks were amazing!

 Watching the waves dash against the rocks at Canal Rocks

 The Canal Rocks from a different spot

 Cape Leeuwin south of Augusta is the most southern tip of southwestern Australia. 

It is the place where two oceans meet, the Southern Ocean and the Indian Ocean. 

This lighthouse was used for 100 years to warn ships of the many rocks near the shore.

 Cape Naturaliste is the northern tip of southwestern Australia. 

This is a great spot for whale watching, but that won't be till September.

 Jerry, Cathy, and Ted walking at Cape Naturaliste

 Geographe Bay: in the distance you can see the famous Busselton Jetty, 
almost 2 km long

Beautiful Norfolk Island pines by the Busselton Jetty

Sightseeing in Albany

Everyone told us how beautiful the Albany area is, so we were looking forward to doing some sightseeing there. We have shown pictures of the places where Jerry did his presentations both in Albany and in Busselton, but now we should pick a few pictures of the beauty of God's creation in southwestern Australia. Indeed, it was beautiful there! We went out every opportunity we had to visit the coast and beaches, so we will let you have a glimpse of the places we saw.

 View from Mount Clarence in Albany overlooking Princess Royal Harbour

 Teny and Gerda walking along Ocean Beach, south of Denmark

Jack and Teresa VanDuyn took us 4-wheel driving through the woods and dunes of West Cape Howe, close to Albany. We had a marvellous day. The weather was beautiful. Thank you, Jack and Teresa!

We met some fisherman on the shore fishing for salmon, but since 

salmon season was just over, they didn't catch anything.

Climbing gingerly around huge rocks at West Cape Howe to get to the beach

You just don't tire of watching the waves dash over the rocks. Majestic!

Lots of pretty shells and and a variety of rocks on the shore

Yes, that is Jack's truck parked on top of the rock! At one point we couldn't get up a hill, so Jack had to let some air out of the tires of his truck, and then we got up.

Another gorgeous spot!

 Enjoying a picnic lunch on the rocks with Jack and Teresa

After driving along this beach, we stopped at the parking lot to put air back in the tires.

Beautiful white sand! Notice the orange rocks and roads. 

How majestic is God's creation! Psalm 8