Ms . V. is Leaving for Australia on November 27th!

Hey everyone! Bear and I are taking off for Australia two weeks from today! I'll be there for about four weeks. Because I am crossing the International Date Line, I don't actually arrive in Australia until November 29th. Don't worry, I won't be in an airplane for 48 hours, just 14. In any case, because of the International Date Line, I won't get to have a November 28th. Perhaps you, dear reader, can tell me all about how November 28th goes for you. If you think that's strange, get this: I leave on December 23rd from Sydney at 1:30 pm. I get to Los Angeles, California at 8am on December 23rd! Ha!

Anyway, my two biggest goals while in Australia are to see a kangaroo and snorkel in the Great Barrier Reef. I'm sure that I'll get to do a whole lot more, though! It'll be such an adventure! I'll be staying with my good friend Steph in Brisbane. Brisbane is in Queensland, which is on the east coast of the continent. For the most part, I will be traveling in the east.

For the last week or so in Seattle, I've gotten to visit several classes at Concord Elementary School in Seattle and on November 14 I'll be going to Endeavour Elementary School in Mukilteo. Kids have been listening to me read the book, Are We There Yet, by Alison Lester. It's a great book about a trip that an Australian family makes in a car all the way around the continent. I won't be going all around the continent, but they do pass by some of the places that I'll be going.

I've included some cool websites about Australia here:

Fact Monster's Facts about Australia

Take a dive into the Great Barrier Reef

Rosie the Red Kangaroo

Read a book for kids by kids about Australia

For the moment I am still here in Seattle. In fact right now I am at the Seattle Public Library. As you may remember from an earlier posting, this is one of Bear's very favorite places to go. Why? It's pretty much the coolest place to be in Seattle. See, we've had about 12 straight days of rain, and here in the Reading Room on the top floor of this magnificent building, you kind of feel like you're outside even though you're warm and dry inside. Check out a picture of the reading room in "Ms. V's Favorite Pics".