Queensland Disaster Heroes 2011

So the reason I have been crazzy busy and absolutely shattered recently is because I have been working for the Queensland State Government in the Department of Premier & Cabinet as a project co-ordinator working on the Queensland Disaster Heroes programme.

It has been a great couple of months and fantastic to get back into the events industry, properly organising events and all!

The programme has been to recognise all those people who have been nominated by their peers for their work during the floods and cyclone that have ravaged Queensland over the last couple of months.

There have been 10 events which have coincided with Queensland Week and I have been looking after 4 of them in Lockyer Valley (Gatton), Townsville, Emerald and Toowoomba. They are fairly straightforward ceremonies but have meant so much to so many people that it has been an absolute pleasure to be involved in them.

Lockyer Valley was the first event and the most nervous I have been about work for about 4 years, which is the last time I stage managed an AV event! It all went super smoothly and I spent much of the ceremony dancing around backstage doing the victory dance with no shoes on when it all went right. We then moved on to Townsville where the event was held in a marquee (I can't believe I came to the other side of the world and one on the first events I did had a marquee involved!!) which again went really well, then it was off to Emerald (inland Central Queensland) where the event went well for the people viewing it but wasn't quite as smooth for me when I had to run round the outside of the venue to pass on a vital piece of information to the choir! We then moved on to Toowoomba for my final event and I was so pleased with how it went (although there was less dancing as I had regained my professionalness by then!).

Although all areas that had ceremonies were hit hard by the disasters it was really amazing to see see how they have bounced back since January and the strength and resilience of the people was phenomenal. Many people said how they didn't think they were a hero and part of our job was to explain that someone thought they were and that was the most important thing!

For those that I spoke to before I left about what I could do to help when I got here, it may not have been aid work or anything like it but recognising those people that went above and beyond the call of duty was a fantastic thing and I am so glad to have been involved!

I, of course, met some lovely people both out at the events and also in the office where I worked and I will be sad when my contract ends on Friday to not be working with them all everyday. A truly lovely group of people!

Just the one shot to show our silliness on the event with Kate and Prue....this is the one from our first event in Lockyer and I have 3 more of the team at each event that I did....definitely one for the photo album when I get back home!

Territory and Outback - Litchfield & Darwin

So our last 2 days of tour - we got up bright and early and jumped on the bus and headed off to Litchfield National Park to see the termite mounds....I know it sounds weird but they were cool - 2 types of mounds can be found here - cathedral (or castle - can't remember!) and gravestone - I will let you figure out which is which!!

It was a very quick stop before getting back on the bus and heading to the beautiful Florence Falls for a swim in the lovely cool water and watching the boys climb and jump off like the crazy fools that they are!

A quick bite to eat and then back on the bus to head towards Darwin with a quick stop to make a small purchase..



(which is now safely installed in Mr & Mrs M's house in London!) before getting to our lovely hotel and preparing for our night out of general drunken debauchary (and a slightly moody half an hour from me because I didn't want the tour to end!). It all started so well and then ended up as a bit of a sweaty mess!!

Next morning it was up and off to a museum and a quick city tour of Darwin before heading out to get some lovely shots looking over the bay...

Then back into town and it was a fond farewell for some, whilst others disappeared without a trace! Caroline and I then pretty much walked the city before heading back to the hotel to meet up with the remaining crew to head out for dinner and say our goodbyes.

Contiki Territory & Outback it was a pleasure (and an experience) to spend 2 weeks with you guys and I have very fond memories that are going to last a lifetime! That bloomin swag is definitely one of them!!

Territory and Outback - Kakadu National Park

So I need to finish off the blogs about the NT Tour, been crazy busy with work but will fill you in on that one later!

Last time I blogged we had arrived in Kakadu at the lovely Aurora Kakadu South Alligator Hotel and had hit the hay for the night after getting the boys to remove the dead frog from our room...I really need to learn to

The following morning we got up and headed off the first of 2 cultural centres that day. The first was the Bowali Visitor Centre and mainly focused on the flora/fauna of the area and after we had spent some time here it was back on the bus for a short ride before another hike to see some aboriginal art work in situ.

It was great to see the real thing on the rocks and get a better understanding of what the different art stands for. I have probably said this before (but I can't remember and can't be bothered to go back through the blog!) but we only ever get the children's version of the aboriginal stories as the elders of the traditional people don't communicate the full stories to many people. It is still fab to see it in real life though - amazing that it has lasted so long!!

A few pics from the art near Namanjolg's Feather - Daberrg...

I can't remember which way round it was but I think we then headed to the Warradjan Aboriginal Cultural Centre for more information on the local area and the importance of it to the locals. It was then back on the bus and off for lunch at a hotel before our fab crocodile cruise around Yellow Waters.

We saw quite a few crocs on the cruise as well as seeing the amazing wetlands that they live in. The ones we saw were pretty much sunbathing and we learnt information about them from the guide such as they can't open their mouths very quickly so they tend to sit in wait with their mouths open ready to snap at anything that might get too close....it was not going to be me!! One of the crocs was maHOOsive and we could only see half of him half his body and tail was underwater and the guide reckoned he was a good 4m long...eek!

Pictures of the beasts and the birds that inhabit the Yellow Waters area...

After the croc cruise we headed back to the hotel for a chilled night in the hotel and a dip in the pool...which whilst hanging around we were all fairly surprised but pleased to see a kangaroo hop through the garden area of the hotel (didn't have my camera on me). Another lovely dinner of caesar salad (with a cold poached egg which I still don't understand!) and then off to bed as another early start in the morning as we headed on the final leg of our journey to Darwin.