a cast of a kansas mosasaur skeleton at the auckland war memorial museum.28.11.08
26.11.08
driving on a flat
well i've touched down in canada safe and sound!
not that it wasn't a flight without its pains... mind numbing boredom.
watching the little pixel plane fly the world really makes me want to bite the person who coined the phrase it's a small world (and my bite is a LOT worse than my bark).
anyways arriving in calgary airport i wasn't going to be staying in cowtown long for now. i do plan on returning here (if even just to catch my flight back "home" to new zealand), but today i was going to get the point of this return back home...
drumheller.
cause i mean look at em. the prairies are pretty darned flat.
of course there is a good reason for this. for about one million years during the ice age this whole area was underneath a huge sheet of ice that was 2 kilometers thick. seriously picture that in this picture. it'd be nothing but ice (which isn't helped by my being at the bottom of the glacier). with this much frozen water on top of you, you'd be as flat as the prairies too! (good thing i DID take this picture well after the ice age!!!)
not that i'm complaining. their kind of pretty. it's just strange to be able to see land as far as the eye can see, kinda like the ocean. new zealand isn't a flat place at all. even its "boring" farmland is hilly.
of course the iconic red blub water tower alerted me to the fact i was pretty much back "home". as it is the marker of where the prairies give way to the drumheller valley. more to the point when it pops up on the horizon it also means that the highway is going to turn into the valley as well...
meaning i was in drumheller. a place i hadn't been to in 2 years...
i wondered how much people here had missed me? had anyone missed me? in fact would any of them remember who i was?!?
the answer had to be a of course they do, as someone had bought me the ticket here... but still i worried. especially given the last time i'd been back.
given that i didn't know who had brought me halfway across the world, that alone what they wanted me to do now that i was over here, i was going to have to figure out who'd gotten me the present.
the safest bet was to hit the place that it had all started... when i say all started i mean everything. the first 3 years of my life were there. my greatest failure and hardship occurred there. the beginning of my new life in new zealand started there...
the royal tyrrell museum.
now as the museum was on the other side of drum from where you enter it (at least coming from calgary) i was going to have to drive through my old hometown. man what a trip down memory lane that was going to be, but yet a few changes and surprises were in store for me too!
not that it wasn't a flight without its pains... mind numbing boredom.
watching the little pixel plane fly the world really makes me want to bite the person who coined the phrase it's a small world (and my bite is a LOT worse than my bark).
anyways arriving in calgary airport i wasn't going to be staying in cowtown long for now. i do plan on returning here (if even just to catch my flight back "home" to new zealand), but today i was going to get the point of this return back home...
drumheller.
of course that meant i had to get there first. to do that you have to drive for an hour and a half across the prairies. man it felt kinda weird after so long away.
cause i mean look at em. the prairies are pretty darned flat.of course there is a good reason for this. for about one million years during the ice age this whole area was underneath a huge sheet of ice that was 2 kilometers thick. seriously picture that in this picture. it'd be nothing but ice (which isn't helped by my being at the bottom of the glacier). with this much frozen water on top of you, you'd be as flat as the prairies too! (good thing i DID take this picture well after the ice age!!!)
not that i'm complaining. their kind of pretty. it's just strange to be able to see land as far as the eye can see, kinda like the ocean. new zealand isn't a flat place at all. even its "boring" farmland is hilly._
as the drive went on it made me feel kind of happy. it was like a blanket of comfort. not as in lying down comfort. more like relaxed and confident in your surroundings comfort... i was feeling like i was back home.
of course the iconic red blub water tower alerted me to the fact i was pretty much back "home". as it is the marker of where the prairies give way to the drumheller valley. more to the point when it pops up on the horizon it also means that the highway is going to turn into the valley as well... meaning i was in drumheller. a place i hadn't been to in 2 years...i wondered how much people here had missed me? had anyone missed me? in fact would any of them remember who i was?!?
the answer had to be a of course they do, as someone had bought me the ticket here... but still i worried. especially given the last time i'd been back.
given that i didn't know who had brought me halfway across the world, that alone what they wanted me to do now that i was over here, i was going to have to figure out who'd gotten me the present.
the safest bet was to hit the place that it had all started... when i say all started i mean everything. the first 3 years of my life were there. my greatest failure and hardship occurred there. the beginning of my new life in new zealand started there...
the royal tyrrell museum.
now as the museum was on the other side of drum from where you enter it (at least coming from calgary) i was going to have to drive through my old hometown. man what a trip down memory lane that was going to be, but yet a few changes and surprises were in store for me too!
NEXT: The Dinosaur Capital of Canada
24.11.08
vote for the tyrannosaur chronicles... PLEASE
i just discovered through my traffic tracker that my blog is in a poll for canada's best sci/tech blog. cool!
so pop over there and check it out. there's lots of great blogs to check out, and vote for the one you think is the best (which doesn't have to be me. afterall i only have a brain the size of a peanut and all!)
also please head over and vote for my good buddy glendon the flying trilobite for the photo-art category (and DO vote for him please because its the only palaeo art out of the lot, and he is the dude!)
so pop over there and check it out. there's lots of great blogs to check out, and vote for the one you think is the best (which doesn't have to be me. afterall i only have a brain the size of a peanut and all!)
also please head over and vote for my good buddy glendon the flying trilobite for the photo-art category (and DO vote for him please because its the only palaeo art out of the lot, and he is the dude!)
a really long flight! (homecoming part 1)
man oh man things are going fast!
i was in australia only a week ago, than dunedin for the last few days, now i'm on my way to canada! not that i'm complaining.
hopefully the mystery of who bought me this plane ticket for my 5th hatching day present will be solved soon.
my only problem with my first visit back home in 2 years... the flight.
considering just how unusual and uncomfortable my flight INTO new zealand was (not that i had any part in my getting there!) you'd think this one would be a breeze... no way.
grant my last flight was worse. being that i was packed tightly in a suit case. which was than packed tightly in with other tightly packed suit cases. so in addition to be squished being the the cargo hold it got rather cold (good thing i was wrapped up in a bunch of clothes!) and it was hard to breath at times.
now that i was in the plane you'd think i'd have nothing to complain about. which i guess shouldn't be... yet
my only problem is it takes FOREVER to fly between new zealand and canada! and it is sooooooo boring!!!
at least on the last flight i had a lot to take my mind off the long time... "oh man my tail is going numb" "either i'm not getting enough oxygen or mr. t just gave me a high five in this suitcase" "i sure hope craig didn't need his hiking boot cause i just ate part of it!" etc.
i know this is a cliche, but when do we get there?
i was in australia only a week ago, than dunedin for the last few days, now i'm on my way to canada! not that i'm complaining.
hopefully the mystery of who bought me this plane ticket for my 5th hatching day present will be solved soon.
my only problem with my first visit back home in 2 years... the flight.
considering just how unusual and uncomfortable my flight INTO new zealand was (not that i had any part in my getting there!) you'd think this one would be a breeze... no way.
grant my last flight was worse. being that i was packed tightly in a suit case. which was than packed tightly in with other tightly packed suit cases. so in addition to be squished being the the cargo hold it got rather cold (good thing i was wrapped up in a bunch of clothes!) and it was hard to breath at times.
now that i was in the plane you'd think i'd have nothing to complain about. which i guess shouldn't be... yet
my only problem is it takes FOREVER to fly between new zealand and canada! and it is sooooooo boring!!!at least on the last flight i had a lot to take my mind off the long time... "oh man my tail is going numb" "either i'm not getting enough oxygen or mr. t just gave me a high five in this suitcase" "i sure hope craig didn't need his hiking boot cause i just ate part of it!" etc.
i know this is a cliche, but when do we get there?
23.11.08
home sweet home...
after being away for so long it is sort of nice being home again. i'd forgotten how nice dunedin can be. mind you it helps that it is the middle of spring here.
one of the places in particular that was really nice around here was my actual home (an outdoor version of a house you might say) the dunedin botanic garden.
in particular the rock garden by the leith (aka aqua duct... or is it duck, being full of ducks and all?) is really pretty at this time of year.
in the nice bright sunlight (which is a lot rarer during the fall and winter due to constant rain) the place is really spectacular.
man i have the best living room ever!
it was nice to get out and enjoy a good solid day of spring now while i could. i was going away again for a while (so soon too). tomorrow i'm off to canada, and a return to old home...
one of the places in particular that was really nice around here was my actual home (an outdoor version of a house you might say) the dunedin botanic garden.
in particular the rock garden by the leith (aka aqua duct... or is it duck, being full of ducks and all?) is really pretty at this time of year.
in the nice bright sunlight (which is a lot rarer during the fall and winter due to constant rain) the place is really spectacular. man i have the best living room ever! it was nice to get out and enjoy a good solid day of spring now while i could. i was going away again for a while (so soon too). tomorrow i'm off to canada, and a return to old home...22.11.08
a new look...
it was a fun outing while it lasted, after the rather long museum quest and my work trip to australia, but finally i've made it home to dunedin...
_
not that i'll be staying long. i have a flight in a couple days to catch... back home. back to canada.
though i have to say people of the innerweb i'm not sure if this is a good thing or not. my emotions are all over the map. on the one hand i'm very excited. it'll be awesome to see everyone and the tyrrell museum again. on the other hand it might not be all fun and games.
the last time i went back home after being fired from the museum was not such a fun experience. not that this time will be the same. i've made a new life for myself down here in new zealand. i'll be going back to drum as my own dinosaur. i won't need anything from there anymore.
what has me the most uneasy about the trip is the fact that the purchaser of this hatching day present is still a mystery. i have no clue who thought flying me home would be a good present. it sounds great at first, but i have made a few enemies in recent time (in particular the pack of the primordial feather) so getting brought back into the middle of dinosaur packed alberta might be some sort of trap.
i'm trying to keep optimistic though. it would seem to me that the pack could plan something a whole lot simpler than flying me halfway around the world. larry came to me afterall. i'm pretty sure if the pack wanted to do something they'd have done it by now...
_
that and despite the way things ended at the tyrrell, i DO have a lot of friends back in drumheller. i'm hoping it was one of them. two years is a long time, and i'm sure many of them miss me as much as i miss them!
so i'm trying to stay upbeat and positive about the trip as i can.
i'm also wanting to impress everyone with the new and improved me... not that i know how to do that. or if i really am new and improved. they just say it on commericals alot, and it makes the stuff sound really cool.
so if i want to impress people i have to look my best. one thing i realized was that i haven't EVER washed my old tyrrell staff uniform... if i was going to impress i was going to have to change that.
the STUPID washing machine had somehow shrunk my staff shirt!!!
oh no!
_
not that i'll be staying long. i have a flight in a couple days to catch... back home. back to canada.though i have to say people of the innerweb i'm not sure if this is a good thing or not. my emotions are all over the map. on the one hand i'm very excited. it'll be awesome to see everyone and the tyrrell museum again. on the other hand it might not be all fun and games.
the last time i went back home after being fired from the museum was not such a fun experience. not that this time will be the same. i've made a new life for myself down here in new zealand. i'll be going back to drum as my own dinosaur. i won't need anything from there anymore.
what has me the most uneasy about the trip is the fact that the purchaser of this hatching day present is still a mystery. i have no clue who thought flying me home would be a good present. it sounds great at first, but i have made a few enemies in recent time (in particular the pack of the primordial feather) so getting brought back into the middle of dinosaur packed alberta might be some sort of trap.
i'm trying to keep optimistic though. it would seem to me that the pack could plan something a whole lot simpler than flying me halfway around the world. larry came to me afterall. i'm pretty sure if the pack wanted to do something they'd have done it by now...
_
that and despite the way things ended at the tyrrell, i DO have a lot of friends back in drumheller. i'm hoping it was one of them. two years is a long time, and i'm sure many of them miss me as much as i miss them!
so i'm trying to stay upbeat and positive about the trip as i can.
i'm also wanting to impress everyone with the new and improved me... not that i know how to do that. or if i really am new and improved. they just say it on commericals alot, and it makes the stuff sound really cool.
so if i want to impress people i have to look my best. one thing i realized was that i haven't EVER washed my old tyrrell staff uniform... if i was going to impress i was going to have to change that.
so i went to a laundry mat... which isn't the best name. its hardly a flat thing in front of a door welcoming you in. its more of a room full of washing machines. maybe i missed the mat when i came in.
anyways as it is the only piece of clothing i owe i took off my uniform and put it carefully in the machine.
its been a long while since i haven't worn any clothes, like since i was a hatchling long while! though it felt a little weird, at the same time it felt kinda natural. i guess i still do have some tyrannosaurian instincts left in me. afterall we kings of the cretaceous never would have worn a staff shirt while stalking the prehistoric landscape.
man do these things take a while though. i had no idea you had to wait this long... kinda glad i hadn't washed my shirt before. think of all the time i'd waste if i did it all the time!
when the machine finally came to a finish i was in for a very big surprise... or more like a real small one!
the STUPID washing machine had somehow shrunk my staff shirt!!!oh no!
for a few minutes i was really upset and alarmed. how was i going to look my best in a smaller shirt?
than it occurred to me as i moved around with ease in my sized clothing. it was perfect fit!
forever now i'd been wearing a shirt that was a million sizes too big for it. the sleeves in particular. though supposedly a short sleeve for a human, they were way too big for me! now suddenly i had a true short sleeved shirt. short for even a t-rex.
you know i couldn't look much smarter for my return home. with a shirt that looks like a real shirt. the funny part all i needed to not know how to do was use a laundry machine!
21.11.08
high up
so today is my last day in melbourne before i head back to dunedin. the fact i haven't been back home in dunedin in a VERY long time is itself a kinda big thing, but the fact that my VERY eventful melbourne trip draws to a close is another biggish thing.
i decided to end my down under experience with something both fun and more important low key!
a trip up a sky scrapper to have a look around the WHOLE city. now i have to say i'm more than a little bit excited by this prospect. i haven't done this since the calgary tower (which was before i had a blog or camera sadly)...
don't believe just check out these photos.
not only do i enjoy looking at the city from a new point of view, but it was fun to use my imagination.... now i know what melbounre would have looked like to my childhood hero godzilla!
that or a pterosaur cruising the sky above the town...
it was definitely a great waste of the afternoon.
looking back on the city i was kind of sad to be leaving it. at the same time due to the museum quest i hadn't really been back home in dunedin in a LONG time. i was sort of looking forward to going there. if even just for a little while...
i decided to end my down under experience with something both fun and more important low key!
a trip up a sky scrapper to have a look around the WHOLE city. now i have to say i'm more than a little bit excited by this prospect. i haven't done this since the calgary tower (which was before i had a blog or camera sadly)...
my destination was the eureka tower just across the river from downtown and the aquarium. the first thing that one notices about this building is the fact it is covered in GIANT bees!!!
my first thought, perhaps strangely (i blame my tiny brain), was this was where all the bees from new zealand's parliament building the beehive had gone!
now not that i'm really scared of bees, but seeing insects that big gave me a momentary startle!
once your inside there aren't really any more problems.
though this place has the fastest elevator i have ever been on! your ears and stomach feel really funny and almost sick (but in the most fun way you've ever been sick before) for the mere 20 seconds it takes to go up or down the 88 floors to the observation deck!
once your up in there its just cool as!
the views are amazing...
don't believe just check out these photos. not only do i enjoy looking at the city from a new point of view, but it was fun to use my imagination.... now i know what melbounre would have looked like to my childhood hero godzilla! that or a pterosaur cruising the sky above the town...it was definitely a great waste of the afternoon.looking back on the city i was kind of sad to be leaving it. at the same time due to the museum quest i hadn't really been back home in dunedin in a LONG time. i was sort of looking forward to going there. if even just for a little while...
in a few days i was going to have to use my hatching day present, a plane ticket back to canada. my first time back home in 2 years... i wasn't sure if i was really excited about that or dreading it...
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