First Spider Encounter (Details included)

Well - we made it through our first "warm" Christmas...I really don't think I could get used to it.
Of course, I know, you are all cursing me right now when I say that but it truly doesn't feel like Christmas when it is 60-70 degrees outside...it feels like a summer holiday (of course I realize this isn't the worst thing in the world). If it makes you feel any better, we were in Melbourne for NY's Eve and it was the hottest NY's Eve day in over a century (42.2 Celsius) - yes, that is a whopping 110 Farenheit....still jealous of the hot weather?

I had my first "Real" spider encounter during our 9-day journey from Sydney to Melbourne. We were about 1/2 way through our trip and we stopped in a little coastal town to check out a few sites...I proceeded to make my way in to the outside public toilet (they are everywhere at least and pretty nice) but outside toilet areas are the prime locations for a few of these lovely creatures.

So I made my way in and I wasn't even 2 steps in to the doorway when I spotted it high up on the wall; just staring at me. It was right next to the sink and there was a young girl standing there washing her hands. Of course I couldn't help that my normal reaction was to go "Holy S*&*" It was just the natural thing to do at that point. Well I startled the girl more than anyone as I pointed just above her. At that point her mom came out and all 3 of us pretty startled by it, but yet everyone else was able to still go in and use the bathroom like it was no big deal :) Not me!

After the girl took her flip-flop off to try and kill it (here, they call them thongs..and think we are crazy for calling them flip flops) she decided very quickly that she just couldn't do it....well, I still had to go to the bathroom. So I came out and told Dale the entire story and of course he told me to quit being a sissy and to go in and use the bathroom. I made him come in and see this lovely spider with his own eyes, just so he knew just how large this spider was...I think it freaked him out a little too but he would never admit it.

So for all of you that are there chuckling at me now, because you know just how scared I am of spiders...I have included a close up photo of this little sweetheart just so you all know how brave I was that I went back in and used the bathroom...knowing that this thing was just outside. Funniest part is that everytime I had to use an outdoor bathroom after that on our trip, I certainly checked all of the walls when I entered.