Monday 9 March 2009

An Adventure



What an adventure! J1 and J9, our French friends who live in New Caledonia, came and picked us up. We had a short drive, about 20 minutes, and then drove onto a boat. This was one of the many firsts for me and I found it a bit strange but OK. After 40 minutes we drove off at North Stradbroke Island or Straddie as everyone calls it. We drove about another 20 minutes and went into a new house with unfamilar smells. It turns out we didn't know the owners but exchanged money to use the house. I found this somewhat discombobulating (thanks for the word Steph) but I soon got used to it. We heard there was a dog beach somewhere on the island but didn't know where. We wandered 100 metres down the road and there it was. I was running free on the beach. There was white sand, blue ocean and thousands of new smells to explore. Tim ran straight into the water. I followed but stopped at the shoreline. I was unsure about this vast expanse of water which came in and out with a mind of its own. Tim coaxed me in. Which was working until I was in to my shoulders and a wave came in, picked me up and dumped me on the shore. My first dumping. Oh my god! I didn't know what had happened. What did the wave have against me? It was a shock to the system so I ran around and around in big circles to come to terms with the new events. I wouldn't go near this unpredictable mass of liquid but I got my confidence back. I went into the water to half way up my body then did big leaps backward (good exercise by the way) lest another wave came after me. The beach was fantastic. Water, smells, a big expanse to run on and dogs to play with.

J1 and J9 were part of our pack for a few days but now we are home they have gone their separate way. It was great having them in the pack while it lasted. I was just starting to get the hang of French. I gave them big licks on the leg to let them know how I felt about their inclusion in the pack so they called themselves "ice cream." They were planning to go to Fraser Island but changed their plans so we could all go together. Dogs aren't allowed on Fraser Island. They have their own resident dogs; dingoes. There is a big cyclone at Fraser Island so they were happy they changed their plans.

I am now getting over the excitement of all the firsts and relaxing at home. We also saw turtles and dolphins.

Life is great when you are running free on the beach.

9 comments:

Suzuki said...

Wow! What an adventure Ruby :)
You must be really tired now!
Big licks to you
Suzuki
xxx

Minnie-Moo (Rescue Lab) said...

Oh wow Ruby Isabella, that sounds fantastic! We love the photo of you too - are there any more photos of your weekend away? It's a bit windy and cold here today, we could do with seeing someone else's sunshine!

Reading about your weekend adventure has made Muzzle want to move right over to Australia!

Minnie-Moo
xxx

Ruby Isabella said...

I'm a little tired and happy. There are more pictures and I'll show them this week. Please come to sunny Australia. We can run on the beach together.

skywind said...

Dog is one of our most intimate friends, is our friendliest friends. :)
Health is the Greatest Happiness
The World at The Present

Anonymous said...

Oh wow, Ruby - what an amazing adventure!! Now I really can't wait to come and live in Brisbane! I've been in the sea here but it's COLD!! And my humans never go in with me. They say they would like to take me somewhere warm enough where we can swim together! :-)

Please post some more photos of your trip!

Slobbers,
Honey the Great Dane

Juliet Colors said...

Wow, what a wonderful weekend! I love this beautiful picture of you, Ruby. :-)

Call Me Cate said...

Sounds like a good time! I wanted to thank you for stopping by my blog today.

Amber and Nala said...

What a fun trip! The scary water with a mind of its own is a bit scary for me too. :)

Ruby Isabella said...

Skywind- Yes we are humans friendliest friends.

Honey- You'll love it.

Juliet- Thank you. Mandy took this one.

Cate- It was a great time. I'm glad you stopped by here.

Amber and Nala- It's a bit scary but I'm sure you'd get over it.