The Falcon has landed
Photo of the Hayabusa spacecraft burning up over South Australia
If successful, it will be the first time a spacecraft has returned with samples from an asteroid or planet other than Earth's moon. Scientists hope the probe will give them information about the formation of asteroids. The mission has also been a test for new technology which could be used to return other space samples to Earth in the future.
The capsule has been found and retrieved at the Woomera Prohibited Area in South Australia and the sample will now be sent back to Japan for analysis.
Facts:
- The probe weighs about 510 kg - the size of a large fridge.
- The potato shaped asteroid, Itokawa, is only just over 500 meters long.
- The probe landed twice on the asteroid, broke down, came back to life after two years, and headed home with failed or malfunctioning engines.
- The probe has been travelling more than 4 billion kilometers.
- The container with the sample is only about the size of a basketball and weighs 17 kg.
Adelaide and back
While in Adelaide we stayed at a house Simon's dad organised for us through his work (he's a police officer). The house is located in the suburb Glenelg close to the water.
Friday May 21
It was a nice sunny day so we took Nick and Maria for some sightseeing, went downtown to the CBD, walked around for a bit and took the Popeye cruise on the river down to the zoo.
After the sightseeing we went back to the house and relaxed a bit before heading down to the Marina in Glenelg for dinner at a Greek restaurant, Zucca. Nick and Maria had their anniversary on the Thursday so we thought we would celebrate that. Simon's sister came along too. The dinner was really nice, don't think I've ever been to a Greek restuarant before. We finished of the night by having a couple of drinks at the Sunset bar and another place I can't remember the name of before we headed back home.
Saturday May 22
Another day of sightseeing. Since the weather was nice we decided to go for a drive down to Victor Harbour located about 80 km south of Adelaide. We visited a Farmers market there and had some lunch but didn't walk out to Granite Island home of a large colony of Fairy Penguins. The island is connected to the mainland by a short tram/walkway but since it was very windy and a bit chilly we decided not to go out there. Still got to see some really nice views around the area.
The jetty in Port Noarlunga
A quick stop at Simon's parents on the way back to the house and then we had a family dinner with parents, siblings, grandparents, cousins, aunties and uncles. Most of them were people I've never met before so it was a bit nervous to meet them all at once. They are all very nice though and I think I'm considered to be one in the family now :)
After dinner we went to the Jetty bar down in Glenelg to meet up with a couple of Simon's old friends (at least I'd met most of them the last time we were in Adelaide) and we spent the rest of the night dancing and partying away.
Sunday May 23
Had a bit of a sleep in on the Sunday before Simon and I went over to meet his grandparents. After the visit we went to pick up Nick and Maria to go to Westfield Marion shopping centre located on the way to Simon's parents house. We were invited there for dinner so we thought we pay the shopping centre a visit on the way. After spending a couple of hours there we popped in to see Simon's cousin Steven and his girlfriend Bec too. It sure is a busy schedule finding time to go see everyone. We would have loved to spend more time with Simon's family but it got a bit hard since we had Nick and Maria with us too and had to entertain them a bit. I also know Simon would have wanted to spend more time with his Nanna since she's not feeling too well.
But at least we did spend the evening at Simon's parents house and Mel came too. Had a nice Sunday roast with veggies. Yummy!
Monday May 24
The forecast said that it was going to be a rainy day in Adelaide in the afternoon so we decided to drive to Port Melbourne in the morning. Once we got there we made the decision to go on a dolphin cruise up the river. It was a bit chilly once the sun hid behind a cloud or two but all in all a nice little cruise. Even got to see a couple of dolphins on the way.
After the cruise we went back to Glenelg and payed the BeacHouse a visit. It's an arcade/amusement park right next to the beach. Played a game of mini golf (which I sucked at) and played around in the arcade for a couple of hours. The boys were like kids in a lollie shop!
The storm was getting closer and while we had dinner in the bay it really hit hard. Started to pour down and there was thunder and lighting. It had to be an indoor activity on the schedule so we went to Westfield Marion for a couple of rounds of ten pin bowling (which I totally ruled).
Tuesday May 25
And yesterday we basically just spent in the car driving back to Melbourne. It rained when we left Adelaide and then it got a bit better on the way but I guess we caught up with the rain and we arrived in a rainy Melbourne last night. Nice to be back "home" though even if Adelaide was nice too.
Today I'm at home doing washing and cleaning up a bit while Simon is working. It's sunny so I can dry the clothes outside. I love the smell of clothes that have been dried outside in the wind, it smells so fresh! The sun makes me long for the Swedish summer. I haven't experienced one since 2008 so I hope it will be a good one. Not that I want to go home yet I really don't. Time is flying and I just love spending time with S, can't wait for him to move to Sweden in August.
The Picasa album is now updated with more photos from Adelaide. Go and have a look!
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| Australia (2010-05-13 to 2010-06-03) |
Adelaide
Another eventful weekend has past this one spent in Adelaide visiting Simon’s family. Since the flights were so expensive we decided to drive there which in real life means 8 hours in the car covering a distance of about 730 km. We had Friday off so we left straight after work on Thursday, stocked up on lollies and drinks and arrived tired in Adelaide around 1.30 am.
A wine tasting tour with family and friends through McLaren Vale Wine Region was on the schedule on Friday. We had a beautiful sunny day and visited five different wineries: Rosemount Estate, d’Arenberg Winery, OliverHill Winery, Settlement Wines and Coriole Vineyards. We had some dinner at Simon’s parents house, watched the sunset and then we met up with some of Simon’s friends at a place called the Highway.
That’s my weekend people, eventful as always :) I really did enjoy the weekend getting a chance to meet Simon's family and friends and see where he grew up and I'm glad Simon brought me with him to meet them. I feel pretty tired today though and I feel like I could sleep for days. I have so much on my mind right now being torn between being excited about my upcoming holiday and sad about leaving Simon. It’s only for a couple of weeks you might think, what’s the big deal. That’s true but I only have a couple of days left in Melbourne once I do get back again, then I have to leave Australia and go back home to Sweden. Something I’m excited about because I can’t wait to see family, friends and my animals again but at the same time I will miss Simon soooo much. I have no idea what I’ll be doing at work once I get back which doesn’t exactly help the situation and my future seems very blurry at the moment. I wish someone else would come up with a master plan that magically would solve my dilemmas but I guess that’s not going to happen. I just have to take the days at they come, allow myself to be excited and happy about my holiday and enjoy it to the max, cherish the days I can spend with Simon before I leave and hope that the rest will work out in the end too.
So enough whining, the road of my life has always been winding full of challenges ready to be overcome so why would this be an exception. I think I’ve done pretty well so far so I believe this will work out in the end too!
Challenges are what make life interesting; overcoming them is what makes life meaningful.
Pictures from the weekend can be found in the Picasa album namned Adelaide.
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| Adelaide (2009-09-17 to 2009-09-20 ) |
The countdown has officially begun - only 9 days until my holiday!
