Victoria Day and State of Origin

This past week we celebrated Victoria Day by going to the Canadian High Commission for a pancake and bacon picnic breakfast. There were activities scheduled for the morning such as a Canadian trivia contest and guided tours of the High Commission building. While we didn't do too well at the trivia contest (we didn't have our trivia buddies on hand to help us - you know who you are!), we did enjoy the tour of the High Commission building. Here are a few photos that we snagged of the event:

The Canadian High Commission

Victoria Day Breakfast on the back lawn

Pancakes, Bacon, and Maple Syrup!

Kids Road Hockey Game!

This past Wednesday night was the first of three State of Origin games. Blair watched the game with some Aussie friends so he could get up to speed on the rules of National Rugby League (NRL). The State of Origin games are an annual series of three NRL games between New South Wales (blue) and Queensland (maroon). The series is played strictly for bragging rights and state pride. In simple terms, it's equivalent to the all-star game (or pro-bowl) where the best players in the NRL play for the state in which they first started playing professional rugby. The series of games are among the most watch sporting games every year in Australia and New Zealand.

During the game there was a very controversial call where a Queenslander scored a try from forward contact by a New South Wales player. Without knowing the subtle variations in the rules, it's not very obvious as to why this is so controversial, but watch it for yourself to see if you can sort it out. We're looking forward to the next game (3 weeks from now), as this first game was pretty intense.  It's worth mentioning that Australia basically has three sets of rugby rules: NRL, Rugby Union (international rules), and Australia Football League (AFL). It's all very confusing, especially for someone who has never watched a game of rugby before.