Tuesday
Aug172010
our australian Adventure - Part 1 - The Big Picture
Tuesday, August 17, 2010 at 04:40PM 100818 Brisbane Australia
What the world does not need now is another travelog. So stop reading, just to be safe.
Google says we are 15,037 kms and 14 hours on the timezone clock away from our beloved Toronto. 'Beloved' because we left it mid-summer rather than mid-winter.
We are here in Brisbane for a month for three reasons.
1. Family vacation - Will, our son, is 16 years old now and we wanted to get a big family holiday on the books one last time (maybe second last if we're lucky).
2. Lynn had the good sense to, long ago, gain sabbatical eligible employment at the University of Toronto and as such she has arranged to lecture and liaise with colleagues here down under.
3. And finally, I am putting my theory to the test. We have worked very hard over the last few years to create a work environment that is completely locationless. We are completely paperless, we provide remote access to systems and data via the web for all functions of the firm, our phone system is virtual and allows callers to connect to anyone in the firm wherever they are and how ever they want to take the call. So it falls to me to 'take my model out for a spin'.
So the travelog you have so foolishly decided to continue reading will focus on the work / life balance of a work anywhere vagabond. Good luck to you.
I'll report what works and what doesn't. I have pretty much the latest tech to help me, and my secret weapon, a super tech savvy and willing 16-year-old. So if we can't do it, nobody can.
Warning - Boring details ahead:
We left Toronto 100806 to arrive in Sydney 20 hours and two calendar days later on 100808. Tip - get an emergency exit row at all costs - leg room is king!
We stayed in Sydney for three days. Well 'nights' really, overcoming the jet lag was a torment! I love getting up early but falling asleep at 4:00pm and waking 'refreshed' at 1:30am is a bit early even for me.
Sydney is a wonderful city. Cosmopolitan, great architecture, the harbour...oh the harbour! We travelled around a lot on the ferry system around the harbour. While I know, in a city of 4.5 million, it's not so, it certainly appeared that everyone lived with a view of the harbour.
William was hooked, he started investigating real estate prices. We all agreed we could happily live in Sydney at the drop a hat.
We did find the restaurant prices expensive relative to downtown Toronto prices. Our CDN buck is maybe 1.05 of the AUS buck. So we expected a little sticker shock which would be mentally adjusted down by the 5%. But there was the added sticker inflater of their goods and services tax which unlike ours is embedded in the price. For the benefit of my other reader I'll explain that in Canada we buy something for $1.00, but at the cash register the bill is $1.13 because a 13% tax is tacked on. The truth is when you shop if you don't have unlimited cash in your pocket you need to always mentally be adding in the tax that will be revealed at the register. (do you follow that Ron? Yes reader now you know Ron is my other reader - you are not alone). In Australia they honourably include the tax in every sticker price. If it says 1.00 then you need 1.00 in your pocket to walk out of the store with the item. Simple. But the taxes are still there so things appear more costly.
Despite these Herculean feats of high finance and tax policy laid bare at your feet, the cost of 'stuff' does feel higher.
I am trained in economics so maybe later I'll review 'purchasing power parity' (and all that other shiny stuff as William refers to it).
From Sydney we flew thru Brisbane to Gladstone.
Gladstone is an industrial place. I counted 19 ocean freighters outside her harbour waiting to deliver or collect cargo from the various processing plants. But the obvious attraction of ore processing facilities was not what drew us to Gladstone. It also happens to be 'close' to the great barrier reef.
At Gladstone we took a large catamaran launch (35m monster) off shore for two hours to Heron Island. (The pictures in the lined site are typical - this place is amazing). This little island, I mean little, no more than 1 km long and perhaps 3 km all the way around, it part of the southern end of the great barrier reef. It is also one of a small number of islands where you can stay on the reef. Most reef tourism is done from the mainland. You are shuttled out on a big boat, you day trip the reef then at night fall you return to the main land.
Heron is a resort. We had a ground floor normal hotel suite with a front porch looking thru the foliage over a perfect beach of coral sand and the flats of the reef.
Great resort, great food, great service staff, oh yeah and the reef, it was a wondrous place. (see every other comment written about the reef elsewhere for more details)
Snorkeling, scuba diving on training wheels, nature walks, bird watching walks, sitting by the pool, eating and eating....
The one thing that stood out for me was the walking out onto the beach that first evening and hearing ..... Nothing. Quiet, real quiet.
There was lapping water sounds, the odd bird sounds, but nothing else. It was very loudly quiet. I loved it, despite my life long tinnitius.
The other element of Heron that was unique in my experience was it's lack of connectivity. No connectivity in my pocket for my IPhone4 or iPad. No email, no skype, no cell phone, maps, no look it up on google. Only GPS but no map data.
It's been years since I have been disconnected like this outside an airplane.
We were at Heron Island for four days.
Walking the island, reading and the reef was how the time passed. It was wonderful, restful and rejuvenating.
It made me wonder about connectedness, here smack dap in the middle of my great 'work anywhere' experiment. More on that in subsequent posts.
Departing Heron Island was like graduating high school. All the things you loved and were used to were going away, not likely ever to return. Ok well perhaps that wasn't my high school experience (ok perhaps it was exactly the opposite of my high school experience) but some people tell me that's how they felt...
A quick flight back to Brisbane and an hour long train ride from the airport to a twenty minute taxi ride to our final destination in the Gold Coast.
We are in a community called Broadbeach. It is south of Surfer's Paradise on the south side of Brisbane.
At the shoreline you have the typical Miami beach 40-50-60-70 storey condos, restaurants, blah blah stuff (Will had an 'oh no we are trapped in Tampa' moment). But the beach! It is corral sand soft like talcum powder, solid at the shore line to it's easy to walk on and it runs uninterrupted for perhaps 15k.
Our home for the three week house exchange was inland about 3k. It is a monster home perhaps 4k sq ft that backs on an artificial water concourse. It is very comfortable. Here is the google map location of the house.
My blogging chair is in the family room beside the patio doors that lead out to the back yard porch in front of the dock on the waterway. Yeah it could be worse.
This place does have a Florida feel. To get around you really need to drive. You can bike around, there are great bike lanes, but the traffic is serious a lot of the time.
The shopping malls are interesting. The cars park in covered multiple-storey parks and the stores are placed beside the parking complex on ground level separated by open air walk aways.
I am getting used to driving on the other side of the road. For a mild dyslexic the change of sides means I need to maintain a lot of concentration and never let myself slip in to 'automatic' driving mode. It has reminded me what I felt like as I was learning to drive, and it will make me more sympathetic (perhaps) to William as I sit in the passenger seat at home while he gets his G1 driving experience.
Monday we wandered and taking the home owner's advice we bought Lynn an extravagant membership in a surf club call Kurrawa Surf Club. $10.00 per year, gives you a 10% discount on drinks at the bar, access to the $12.00 lunch and dinner specials which include a draft beer if you want one, and you can bring guests. (Will and I are the guests). Oh yeah it's restaurant is right on the beach so your $12.00 meals overlooks the breaking waves, the surfers and the beach walkers. She also never fails to flaunt her membership privilege which gives her free access to all the other life saving surf clubs up and down the beach. Such a deal!
Yesterday, Wednesday, we started to feel settled here. We walked from Broadbeach to Burleigh along the beach, about 8k. We went to Burleigh to buy micro-roasted coffee beans from Quest Coffee. It was worth it! We took the bus back to our car.
A quick note about our holiday home. Lynn cleverly joined (she is the joiner in the family) a web site called InterVac.com which supports people wanting to do house swaps around the world.
So while we are enjoying this house in Broadbeach, the owners of this house are enjoying our home in Toronto.
We are novice home exchangers, this is our first one. But our hosts are working on their 60th! Exchange. They are travelled all over the world temporarily trading their house for places everywhere. I think we are hooked on the concept.
Ok, so you have endured the boring bits (relatively boring bits I hope) now my plan is to post updates that relate my experience working while disconnected from the office in my virtual world. Well after breakfast, after a walk, after exploring, after a nap.....
Google says we are 15,037 kms and 14 hours on the timezone clock away from our beloved Toronto. 'Beloved' because we left it mid-summer rather than mid-winter.
We are here in Brisbane for a month for three reasons.
1. Family vacation - Will, our son, is 16 years old now and we wanted to get a big family holiday on the books one last time (maybe second last if we're lucky).
2. Lynn had the good sense to, long ago, gain sabbatical eligible employment at the University of Toronto and as such she has arranged to lecture and liaise with colleagues here down under.
3. And finally, I am putting my theory to the test. We have worked very hard over the last few years to create a work environment that is completely locationless. We are completely paperless, we provide remote access to systems and data via the web for all functions of the firm, our phone system is virtual and allows callers to connect to anyone in the firm wherever they are and how ever they want to take the call. So it falls to me to 'take my model out for a spin'.
So the travelog you have so foolishly decided to continue reading will focus on the work / life balance of a work anywhere vagabond. Good luck to you.
I'll report what works and what doesn't. I have pretty much the latest tech to help me, and my secret weapon, a super tech savvy and willing 16-year-old. So if we can't do it, nobody can.
Warning - Boring details ahead:
We left Toronto 100806 to arrive in Sydney 20 hours and two calendar days later on 100808. Tip - get an emergency exit row at all costs - leg room is king!
We stayed in Sydney for three days. Well 'nights' really, overcoming the jet lag was a torment! I love getting up early but falling asleep at 4:00pm and waking 'refreshed' at 1:30am is a bit early even for me.
Sydney is a wonderful city. Cosmopolitan, great architecture, the harbour...oh the harbour! We travelled around a lot on the ferry system around the harbour. While I know, in a city of 4.5 million, it's not so, it certainly appeared that everyone lived with a view of the harbour.
William was hooked, he started investigating real estate prices. We all agreed we could happily live in Sydney at the drop a hat.
We did find the restaurant prices expensive relative to downtown Toronto prices. Our CDN buck is maybe 1.05 of the AUS buck. So we expected a little sticker shock which would be mentally adjusted down by the 5%. But there was the added sticker inflater of their goods and services tax which unlike ours is embedded in the price. For the benefit of my other reader I'll explain that in Canada we buy something for $1.00, but at the cash register the bill is $1.13 because a 13% tax is tacked on. The truth is when you shop if you don't have unlimited cash in your pocket you need to always mentally be adding in the tax that will be revealed at the register. (do you follow that Ron? Yes reader now you know Ron is my other reader - you are not alone). In Australia they honourably include the tax in every sticker price. If it says 1.00 then you need 1.00 in your pocket to walk out of the store with the item. Simple. But the taxes are still there so things appear more costly.
Despite these Herculean feats of high finance and tax policy laid bare at your feet, the cost of 'stuff' does feel higher.
I am trained in economics so maybe later I'll review 'purchasing power parity' (and all that other shiny stuff as William refers to it).
From Sydney we flew thru Brisbane to Gladstone.
Gladstone is an industrial place. I counted 19 ocean freighters outside her harbour waiting to deliver or collect cargo from the various processing plants. But the obvious attraction of ore processing facilities was not what drew us to Gladstone. It also happens to be 'close' to the great barrier reef.
At Gladstone we took a large catamaran launch (35m monster) off shore for two hours to Heron Island. (The pictures in the lined site are typical - this place is amazing). This little island, I mean little, no more than 1 km long and perhaps 3 km all the way around, it part of the southern end of the great barrier reef. It is also one of a small number of islands where you can stay on the reef. Most reef tourism is done from the mainland. You are shuttled out on a big boat, you day trip the reef then at night fall you return to the main land.
Heron is a resort. We had a ground floor normal hotel suite with a front porch looking thru the foliage over a perfect beach of coral sand and the flats of the reef.
Great resort, great food, great service staff, oh yeah and the reef, it was a wondrous place. (see every other comment written about the reef elsewhere for more details)
Snorkeling, scuba diving on training wheels, nature walks, bird watching walks, sitting by the pool, eating and eating....
The one thing that stood out for me was the walking out onto the beach that first evening and hearing ..... Nothing. Quiet, real quiet.
There was lapping water sounds, the odd bird sounds, but nothing else. It was very loudly quiet. I loved it, despite my life long tinnitius.
The other element of Heron that was unique in my experience was it's lack of connectivity. No connectivity in my pocket for my IPhone4 or iPad. No email, no skype, no cell phone, maps, no look it up on google. Only GPS but no map data.
It's been years since I have been disconnected like this outside an airplane.
We were at Heron Island for four days.
Walking the island, reading and the reef was how the time passed. It was wonderful, restful and rejuvenating.
It made me wonder about connectedness, here smack dap in the middle of my great 'work anywhere' experiment. More on that in subsequent posts.
Departing Heron Island was like graduating high school. All the things you loved and were used to were going away, not likely ever to return. Ok well perhaps that wasn't my high school experience (ok perhaps it was exactly the opposite of my high school experience) but some people tell me that's how they felt...
A quick flight back to Brisbane and an hour long train ride from the airport to a twenty minute taxi ride to our final destination in the Gold Coast.
We are in a community called Broadbeach. It is south of Surfer's Paradise on the south side of Brisbane.
At the shoreline you have the typical Miami beach 40-50-60-70 storey condos, restaurants, blah blah stuff (Will had an 'oh no we are trapped in Tampa' moment). But the beach! It is corral sand soft like talcum powder, solid at the shore line to it's easy to walk on and it runs uninterrupted for perhaps 15k.
Our home for the three week house exchange was inland about 3k. It is a monster home perhaps 4k sq ft that backs on an artificial water concourse. It is very comfortable. Here is the google map location of the house.
My blogging chair is in the family room beside the patio doors that lead out to the back yard porch in front of the dock on the waterway. Yeah it could be worse.
This place does have a Florida feel. To get around you really need to drive. You can bike around, there are great bike lanes, but the traffic is serious a lot of the time.
The shopping malls are interesting. The cars park in covered multiple-storey parks and the stores are placed beside the parking complex on ground level separated by open air walk aways.
I am getting used to driving on the other side of the road. For a mild dyslexic the change of sides means I need to maintain a lot of concentration and never let myself slip in to 'automatic' driving mode. It has reminded me what I felt like as I was learning to drive, and it will make me more sympathetic (perhaps) to William as I sit in the passenger seat at home while he gets his G1 driving experience.
Monday we wandered and taking the home owner's advice we bought Lynn an extravagant membership in a surf club call Kurrawa Surf Club. $10.00 per year, gives you a 10% discount on drinks at the bar, access to the $12.00 lunch and dinner specials which include a draft beer if you want one, and you can bring guests. (Will and I are the guests). Oh yeah it's restaurant is right on the beach so your $12.00 meals overlooks the breaking waves, the surfers and the beach walkers. She also never fails to flaunt her membership privilege which gives her free access to all the other life saving surf clubs up and down the beach. Such a deal!
Yesterday, Wednesday, we started to feel settled here. We walked from Broadbeach to Burleigh along the beach, about 8k. We went to Burleigh to buy micro-roasted coffee beans from Quest Coffee. It was worth it! We took the bus back to our car.
A quick note about our holiday home. Lynn cleverly joined (she is the joiner in the family) a web site called InterVac.com which supports people wanting to do house swaps around the world.
So while we are enjoying this house in Broadbeach, the owners of this house are enjoying our home in Toronto.
We are novice home exchangers, this is our first one. But our hosts are working on their 60th! Exchange. They are travelled all over the world temporarily trading their house for places everywhere. I think we are hooked on the concept.
Ok, so you have endured the boring bits (relatively boring bits I hope) now my plan is to post updates that relate my experience working while disconnected from the office in my virtual world. Well after breakfast, after a walk, after exploring, after a nap.....
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