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This week's special: spinnaker repair machine

All things Aldi. When we came to Down Under in 2002 we were surprised to find the German discounter Aldi, a trip down memory lane! In those days barely ten chain stores were spread all over Australia, but mainly the Sydney region. Whereas now, in July 2005, shop number 50 opened its doors, right around the corner of Peter's North Sydney office! Hence, he and some of his colleagues stop by on the opening day and have a deja-vu: Like in Germany most items are virtually sold out of the cardbox. Furthermore, the fact that using a trolley requires a one-dollar deposit is very unusual for Australians. Finally, those odd Germans even ask money for their plastic bags! Nonetheless, the shop is almost congested and long queues are waiting at the counters. BTW: Here at the cashpoints Aldi accommodates to common practice Down Under: The staff puts the items into the bags, and even credit cards are accepted (though on a 1% surcharge).

Despite the fact that we don't buy anything on this particular day, our household is not completely Aldi-free: We call an Aldi patio heater our own. And some weeks ago it was joined by an Aldi sewing-machine which Claudia already used to repair Roastbeef's spinnaker — it can be seen in last month's report — that got damaged in strong gusts a while ago.

On a side note: Considering Australia's geographic location it shouldn't cause a lot of surprise that all local Aldi shops belong to the Aldi South chain...

False alarm: This time it's "only" dolphins

Whales. Winter time is whale (watching) time in NSW. From June until August the whales migrate from Antarctica to Queensland's warm water, and between October and November they return south to the cold. We know the "recipe" how to spot them: Spending a lot of time on the water. Nonetheless, we notice that each time we go whale-watching we — remarkable enough — actually spot some of them. So the question is whether we are just lucky or if there are so many whales. On July 2nd, we launch our kayaks at Clontarf Beach and paddle out on the ocean. The headlands are not even a kilometre behind us when we recognise the characteristic fountains on the horizon. On the whale highway two of these ocean giants slowly migrate north. We clock eight minutes diving time between two consecutive breaths. It's uncommon that two fountains arise from each whale, an indicator that our encounters are Southern Right Whales (whereas so far we had "only" spotted Humpback Whales). More and more we are becoming experts in Australia's wildlife.

Red wine in the foreground (not quite completely in the picture)

Broughton Island. Similar to Sydney Harbour Port Stephens is a fjord-like bay in NSW's coastline some 200 kilometres further north. A spot where we already spent lots of weekends. The open ocean just off the its headlands is spotted with small islands which virtually were never accessed by anybody apart some fishermen. One of them is Broughton Island, a group of small islands, rocks, and reefs. A location that amongst sea kayakers still has the reputation of being a no-no for newbies. No wonder considering the 18 kilometres of open ocean you have to cross to get there. Many times we had planned to paddle there, and as many times we had to pull out in the last minute because of unfavourable weather conditions. But by end of July we finally make it: In absolutely benign circumstances Sue and Kevin, Claudia and Peter launch in the early morning and arrive on Broughton Island around lunchtime. Having set up the tents and eaten some sandwiches we go circumnavigating the islands. Perfect weather and sea conditions allow mucking about in the many gauntlets and exploring the tunnel through one of the islands, a natural wonder of approximately 100 metres length. Late in the afternoon, we are sitting on the beach, nibbling potato crisps, and drinking red wine. Around sunset, when the whole setting of mainland, ocean, and island turns into golden colours, some contours of dolphins show up in the small surf around the reefs. And once again we are absolutely amazed that we may have this on our own, completely for free, and barely two hours drive away from Sydney.

Do they have a "real" driving license???

Driver's training. Claudia's company is sponsoring a driver's training for their staff. After three years driving Down Under — since March even with a NSW driving license — this is our first official lesson on road traffic in Australia. And all our prejudices get confirmed: There is no real driver's training for beginners which would withstand a scrutiny. Once you are 17 years old you can drive a car as long as a passenger with a valid driving license is accompanying you. The log file you are supposed to maintain barely gets checked. And the objective of the concluding assessment is to let 95% of all applicants pass the exam. Hence, driving a car in Sydney is sometimes hair-raising. But wait, there is more to tell about this topic: For instance, that drivers get reassessed not until they turn 85. Come on, I mean, the average expectancy of life is 72 years for males and 83 for females, but your ability to drive a car is questionned only when you are 85! So for instance, there is this folk who was born in 1920. He learned to steer a carriage when he was young. In those days there were no traffic lights, no round-abouts, no streets with six lanes. After WW II he automatically gets a driving license, and he hasn't had any assessment since. Until June 2005 when he turns 85. Remarkable result: he passes the test...