thelonghaul

Update

2008-06-03T15:01:00.002-04:00

This weekend, being the dreary and rainy affair it was, allowed me to completely overhaul my website and add new work to it. It is, as always, still a work in progress, but check it out and let me know what you think.

Chemin Privé Photo Exhibit

2007-06-19T15:05:00.001-04:00

Chemin Privé Photo Exhibit, originally uploaded by thelonghaul.

Good day ladies & gentlemen,

Consider yourselves cordially invited to come down and check out my photo exhibition.
The show will be up at Papeterie Nota Bene* as of next Monday the 11th, through to the 29th of June. (Nota Bene* - 3416 ave. du Parc just above Sherbrooke).
There will be a vernissage on Thursday the 14th from 6-8pm.

I look forward to seeing you all there !

Alexi

ps: feel free to forward this invitation on to anyone you think might be interested
www.nota-bene.ca/
www.flickr.com/photos/thelonghaul/collections/

The Stones

2007-01-27T12:16:00.000-05:00

Curling

2007-01-27T12:03:00.000-05:00

The Windshield Factor vs The A Team battling it out over thin ice.
Fortunately, this deathmatch ended in a tie, so both teams had to purchase
the proverbial beer.

Country

2007-01-27T11:45:00.000-05:00

"Johnny let's go out riding
to a place outside of town
i go there every sunday
to watch the sun go down..."

D. Jurado

Waitin' for 5

2006-12-08T12:56:00.000-05:00

Sortie

2006-12-08T11:04:00.001-05:00

Viva La Bamba

2006-11-14T22:22:00.000-05:00

good times last saturday, lots of this stuff. i think i am still paying for it today.
photo by marc-andre.

Rosebowl Sunday

2006-11-07T16:21:00.000-05:00

The Champ

2006-11-07T15:39:00.000-05:00

Sam won every single game...

Marc

2006-11-07T15:18:00.001-05:00

2006-11-04T10:08:00.000-05:00

for those of you interested, i am back at work, at Guez Communication & Design thus ending a 7 month period where i had no job. it is nice to be making $$ again. thanks, marc, for the pic.

2006-11-04T10:01:00.000-05:00

Sam saw a recipe in Gourmet at p's a few weeks ago and made it her mission to make it. Here is the result.

2006-10-29T21:19:00.000-05:00

ah, halloween...

Back In Montreal

2006-10-23T12:00:00.000-04:00

And it has been raining for almost 2 weeks straight. good thing i got a job two weeks ago...

The End: Sydney

2006-10-05T14:43:00.000-04:00

gone full circle, back to where we started. sydney was us playing the waiting game now, waiting to get on the plane, waiting to sell the car, waiting to pack and get rid of the stuff we accumulated during a year here. we kept most of the camping gear. we stayed at Ben & Bree's (thank you so much guys...) and watched footy and aussie movies. and then it was time to go.

and that's it mate.

The Last Leg

2006-10-05T14:41:00.000-04:00

during the last three months of our trip, we traveled i don't know how many thousands of kilometers and camped the whole time. the longest we went sleeping in a tent was 9 weeks straight. it was weird to have a real roof and four walls around us when we decided, "fuck it, let's get a cabin", in Wagga Wagga.

2006-10-05T14:37:00.001-04:00

the one person who kept me going throughout this whole crazy year. sam. thanks.

ps: sorry for posting a picture of you before you did your hair...

2006-10-05T14:37:00.000-04:00

good old bert, where are you now, i wonder?

2006-10-05T14:35:00.000-04:00

and then we were back in civilization...and the leaves were falling. i can't believe we drove 60 000kms around this whole continent. i will never get over it. driving back to sydney, leaving the outback and that whole crazy world was rather depressing, as most real-life endings are.

2006-10-05T14:33:00.000-04:00

nothingness.

2006-10-05T14:32:00.001-04:00

leaving coober pedy.

2006-10-05T14:32:00.000-04:00

this is as autumn-ish as it gets.

2006-10-05T14:29:00.000-04:00

driving to Port Augusta

Bert Breaks Down But We Survive

2006-10-05T14:24:00.000-04:00

so our deal old bert ended up breaking down, just once, but once is enough. we broke down 50 kms outside Coober Pedy, otherwise known as the middle of nowhere. it is one of the only places in australia with absolutely no phone reception WHATSOEVER. the rest of the country gets satellite phone coverage, if not regular phone coverage. not where we were though, nope. the highway would indicate the next land line about once every 70 or 100 kms. so there was no way of calling for help. how great. thankfully, i had passed a 4x4 on the highway about 25 kms back and so when this guy drove by sam and i waved our hands and did everything we could to make him stop for us. he didn't. but then 1 km down the road, perhaps noticing that sam and i were still waving and screaming our heads off, he decided to stop, turn around and come back. you have no idea how thankful we were. we told them what had happened and they said they would drive into coober pedy and call someone as soon as they had phone coverage. then they left. we were left with only the hope that these complete strangers would fulfill their promise and that help would come. the following hour and half were the longest of the whole trip, or so it seemed. eventually, a tow truck showed up on the horizon and sam and i stopped praying (HA!). the man at the garage told us our battery was completely dead because the alternator was not charging it and so the battery had just exploded. it ook a few hours to fix everything and we were ready to hit the road the next day at noon. i have to congratulate the NRMA here (aussie auto insurance) for their speed and professionalism. if you ever plan to travel extensively by car in oz, be sure to get at least their minimum insurance coverage, it's worth every penny.

2006-10-05T14:09:00.000-04:00

this is what the odometer read, at the moment the car broke down. 666. need i say more?

2006-10-05T14:02:00.000-04:00

this is what surrounded us, as we waited in the car for help to come. huge eagles feeding off dead kangaroos and rotting cow carcasses. it was all very surreal and a little unnerving.

2006-10-05T13:59:00.000-04:00

2006-10-05T13:54:00.000-04:00

underground church.

2006-10-05T13:53:00.000-04:00

can you see the chimneys sticking right out the earth ? that's because a large portion of this crazy town lives underground, in what they call dugouts. we visited the underground church, it was the only place open to the public that was free...

2006-10-05T13:52:00.000-04:00

Coober Pedy is like nothing else.

2006-10-05T13:51:00.000-04:00

she's a shiela mate !

Kata Tjuta, aka The Olgas

2006-10-05T13:49:00.000-04:00

2006-10-05T13:48:00.000-04:00

2006-10-05T13:46:00.000-04:00

kata tjuta are like uluru little sisters, although they are by no means "little". i'd say this site is just as interesting and dumbfounding as uluru, really worth the 50km drive, even in the dark, just watch out for them roos mate !

2006-10-05T13:42:00.000-04:00

2006-10-05T13:38:00.000-04:00

miss moon

2006-10-05T13:37:00.001-04:00

this gives an idea of the scale.

2006-10-05T13:37:00.000-04:00

way to the kata tjuta gorge walk.

2006-10-05T13:35:00.001-04:00

2006-10-05T13:35:00.000-04:00

ULURU

2006-10-05T13:30:00.000-04:00

uluru is stunning. it's all hyped up everywhere and everything, but once you are there it is just better than all the hype. it's incredible and everyone should go once. but they shouldn't climb it (sorry gab), it is against everything the aboriginals believe and i personnaly am not the kind of person to go abroad and shit on the customs and culture of the people whose country i am visiting. it's like taking off your shoes in your neighbour's house, ya know, you wouldn't walk in with big muddy boots and drag them all around the house, would you.

2006-10-05T13:27:00.000-04:00

2006-10-05T13:24:00.000-04:00

following are the different shades of Uluru.

2006-10-05T13:23:00.001-04:00

2006-10-05T13:23:00.000-04:00

2006-10-05T13:22:00.000-04:00

2006-10-05T13:21:00.000-04:00

here is something you don't expect to see in this part of the world: water. aboriginal people were pros at finding it.

2006-10-05T13:20:00.000-04:00

wounded monolith

2006-10-05T13:19:00.001-04:00

alexi vesus uluru.

2006-10-05T13:19:00.000-04:00

2006-10-05T13:18:00.000-04:00

red red red

2006-10-05T13:16:00.000-04:00

uluru and sunnies and tourists.

2006-10-05T13:15:00.000-04:00

too many bugs.

2006-10-05T13:13:00.000-04:00

being tourists.

Alice Springs, aka The Alice

2006-10-05T13:11:00.001-04:00

Alice Springs, aka The Alice

2006-10-05T13:11:00.000-04:00

Anzac Hill Lookout. A memorial paying tribute to the Australian and New Zealand soldiers who have lost their lives in war. You can also take in the stunning views of the East and Western Macs along with a 360 degrees view of Alice Springs. especially nice at sunset and sunrise.

2006-10-05T13:09:00.000-04:00

Anzac Hill Lookout 2. do you see the slight opening gap in the ridge. well, that's called Heavitree Gap and it is the only way out of town to the south, right through the MacDonnell Ranges next to which the city is built.

2006-10-05T13:04:00.000-04:00

sam, happily overlooking The Alice, from atop Anzac Hill. taken for Auntie Coco.

Desert Crazies

2006-10-05T13:02:00.000-04:00

this is serious.

2006-10-05T13:01:00.000-04:00

2006-10-05T13:00:00.000-04:00

this is a petrol station somewhere in the middle of nowhere. the area claims to be one of the most visited by extra-terrestial beings. which might explain the dream i had the night before.

2006-10-05T12:58:00.000-04:00

can you believe this place is for real ! I BELIEVE

2006-10-05T12:57:00.001-04:00

a sighting.

2006-10-05T12:57:00.000-04:00

the desert is full of crazy people and it makes you crazy.

2006-10-05T12:56:00.000-04:00

Aileron. I dare you to google it.

2006-10-05T12:55:00.000-04:00

blushing heavily here.

The Devil's Marbles

2006-10-05T12:53:00.000-04:00

2006-10-05T12:52:00.000-04:00

this is where we camped, next to the road. we were almost killed by a wild pack of dingos who were attracted by the leftover hamburgers.

2006-10-05T12:51:00.000-04:00

2006-10-05T12:50:00.000-04:00

we all know sam is little right ?

2006-10-05T12:49:00.000-04:00

it was actually cold that morning. so cold and windy in fact that we couldn't boil water for our tea.

I'm Here Now

2006-09-21T14:43:00.000-04:00

Manyallaluk and its People

2006-07-24T15:20:00.000-04:00

after Kakadu, we headed down to the small aboriginal community of Manyallaluk. the inhabitants have put together a kind of "get to know our culture" tour. i don't like tours, so it was good that this was very un-tour-like. it was informal and we just kind of hung out with this guy john and he told us about what his ancestors used to eat, how they communicated, hunted and cooked. it was really fun.

2006-07-24T15:15:00.000-04:00

desert rose...

2006-07-24T15:13:00.001-04:00

bush plum mate. good for hydration. tastes a little sour.

2006-07-24T15:13:00.000-04:00

these green ants are full of citric acid and taste like lemon. you can make a tea by boiling the nest. then, just add honey to taste !

2006-07-24T15:11:00.000-04:00

mmmmmmmmm, kangaroo tail...

2006-07-24T15:10:00.000-04:00

2006-07-24T15:08:00.000-04:00

there was time set aside to teach us the very basics of their basket weaving technique.

2006-07-24T15:04:00.000-04:00

sam was the only able to split the pandanus leaf, that is used to make the "wire" the baskets are made with.

2006-07-24T15:02:00.000-04:00

i needed all the help i could get...

2006-07-24T15:01:00.000-04:00

2006-07-24T14:58:00.000-04:00

we were taught how to paint, using natural ochres.

2006-07-24T14:57:00.000-04:00

i sucked hard.

2006-07-24T14:55:00.000-04:00

how to start a fire.

2006-07-24T14:54:00.000-04:00

a true firestarter. right after this picture was taken, that little bunch of dry grass exploded into a ball of flame. apparently, many an eyelash is lost at this step of the process.

2006-07-24T14:53:00.000-04:00

all i could get going was a little smoke action. it looked a lot easier when they did it.

2006-07-24T14:51:00.001-04:00

samantha, firestarter.

2006-07-24T14:51:00.000-04:00

2006-07-24T14:49:00.000-04:00

we were taught how to throw the spear, using a woomera. it's like really hard.

2006-07-24T14:48:00.000-04:00

hunting kangaroo. sort of.

2006-07-24T14:47:00.000-04:00

sun setting on manyallaluk lookout.

Kakadu National Park, Northern Territories

2006-07-24T14:40:00.000-04:00

2006-07-24T14:35:00.000-04:00

can you spot the croc. his name is blackie, he's an old 4m salty.

2006-07-24T14:31:00.000-04:00

frangipani girl.

2006-07-24T14:30:00.000-04:00

boat cam.

2006-07-24T14:29:00.000-04:00

billabong in the making.

2006-07-24T14:27:00.000-04:00

buffalo grass. there used to be over 300 000 water buffalo roaming through here, churning everything up and trampling on all sorts of native plants. now, after many a government initative, they number no more than 1000. water buffalo is one of too many introduced species now considered pests threatening the fragile australian ecosystem...

2006-07-24T13:51:00.000-04:00