Getting from A to B courtesty of Virgin Blue

I felt a little sad leaving the white house; staying in motel after hotel for weeks on end, it’s been nice to settle down and unpack. No 73 had become our haven, our home from home, and yeah, I was sad to leave. We had a very pleasant ‘last supper’ with Jean and Graham but I felt a little sorry for Graham when Phil ordered a second bottle of wine because Graham, our driver, had to get up early for work the next day. Jean and Graham have had quite a lot on their plate but next week they off for a 10 day break on Fraser Island where hopefully they can relax, chill out and forget all their worries.



Talking of worries, we received some bad news from home. Phil picked up an email from Jim who returned from his holiday to find that Aunt Daphne suffered a heart attack in the hospital last week. She has been moved to another ward which apparently she is happier in as she has access to a TV and there are other people she can talk to. The doctor’s have yet to decide what treatment Daphne needs but the heart attack will no doubt have been a set back to her recovery. Thank goodness she has Jim because we feel pretty useless out here. We have our flight booked to LA on the 19th Feb which we will confirm in the next couple of days but Phil has decided that we won't book anything or make any plans until for the US until we’re are actually there. For now all we can do is send positive thoughts and sit and wait to hear from Jim.

As Phil said, Tuesday was cleaning in the morning and then the cinema in the afternoon. I was pleased that I woke up early yesterday morning because it gave me time to strip the bed, put the sheets in the washer and get them dried and ironed before we left. Just in the nick of time and I turned off the iron just minutes before Jean arrived to take us to the airport. Townsville airport was small, efficient and civilised and we enjoyed a very good flat white coffee with Jean before saying our goodbyes. Our flight to the sunshine coast was with Virgin Blue, plenty of leg room and we landed at Coolangatta at half past twelve. Lunch was a beer and a Hungry Jack’s and then in no time we were back on a Virgin Blue flight to Sydney. It was a shame that we couldn’t get a direct flight but the 90 minutes flew by and we reached Sydney at 4.30pm. We collected the backpacks and jumped in a taxi which took us the ‘The Oaks’ at Darling Harbour. Our room wasn’t as good as last time and Phil phoned reception to see if we could change but just our bad luck, they were fully booked so we were stuck in room 245. It wasn’t so bad but we were slightly miffed that we are paying double the amount that we paid at Christmas for an inferior room.

After dumping our stuff we headed to the harbour for a drink and then went to the little back streets at the back of The Oaks away from the harbour to get some supper. We stopped off at Mum’s Thai restaurant which is a restaurant in the lonely planet. We had tried to eat here at Christmas but the restaurant was closed for the holiday period. Phil went for the house special dish of drunken duck and I went for my usual, green curry. Phil’s dish was tasty and hot but mine was a little bland. I am going to have to be more adventurous and try some other dishes. I am becoming tired of my own palette! After dinner we popped into the Chinese supermarket for some breakfast supplies, and then it was back to cell block 245 for some TV and some shuteye. Weird, we had a whole day in transit, mostly spent sitting our backsides and we were completely knackered.

Good to Go

It made a pleasant change to wake up to clear bright blue skis this morning after all the rain in Sydney. Don’t get me wrong, I loved Sydney but it was a little soggy and we would have enjoyed it much more had the weather had been fine. I would have liked to have walked barefoot on Bondi beach and visited Manley island, but never mind. I always say I will never return to a city once I have visited it, but Phil says “never say never” so knows maybe one day. Anyway, I diverse, back to Canberra we go. We had a little drive around late yesterday to get our bearings but didn’t get time to get a feel for the place because we were tired after the drive from Sydney and wanted to get an early night. But as I said, the weather was lovely and we were keen to get in the car. The complimentary breakfast was good, the restaurant was busy and I think they were slightly understaffed but we were soon fed and watered and out the door. Phil had to sort out the internet connection because we had a few things that needed sorting so it was nearly 11 o’clock before we left the hotel. We headed to the city hill because we wanted to see Parliament House and do the cultural Parliament square walk which I’d seen in the Lonely Planet book.

In retrospect, it was probably wasn’t the best idea to walk 5 or 6 kms in the midday heat, but determined not to be beaten, we persevered. We started out at the focus of the triangle, Parliament House on Capital Hill. Phil had especially wanted to see the art gallery but because we were late starting out, the queues were gigantic. Phil doesn’t do queues so in the end we didn’t get to see the art, and again, because of the crowds, we also didn’t get to see inside any of the attractions. Still, no worries, it was a lovely walk for a while along the Lake Burley Griffin and we saw the grand high commission buildings, the Old Parliament House, the National Library and the High Court of Australia plus a few more monumental buildings along the way.

It was baking hot by the time we got back to the car and we decided to head to the Black Mountain Tower. It was a gentle drive up the mountain and it was well worth the 7 dollar fee to go up to the outside viewing area. Formidable views across the city of Canberra and I was glad we went. Phil was keen to go to the National Museum of Australia but I was thirsty and hungry. We were tempted to go the Hyatt for lunch but in the end we went back to our hotel for lunch in the beer garden because the menu was good and it was inexpensive. We’d have probably paid more for lunch at The Hyatt than we’ve paid for our room at Olims so probably a wise choice.

Phil had the house special steak and I had fish and chips. I was sorely tempted to go for the chicken and avocado salad but I can never choose anything healthy when I’m famished. Still neither of us was unhappy with our choice and both enjoyed our lunch. The idea was to get back in the car and go and visit the museum but it was really hot by this time so we decided to ditch the guidebook and walk into the civic area of Canberra. It wasn’t far away, only a 10 minute walk and we were soon in the Canberra Centre. It was quiet and some of the shops weren’t open. The plan wasn’t to shop, but to sit outside a café and do some people watching. Trouble was, there weren’t many people to watch, the place was fairly deserted. I questioned the concierge about this when we got back and he said that most of the locals, head either out to Sydney or to the coast.

I think the many hours of driving have caught up with Phil and he took to the double bed with his book as soon as we got back to the hotel. It was too warm for him even to sit on the balcony. Hark at us pair, we moan about the lousy weather and as soon as it comes hot, we complain! Typical Brits, I hear you say to yourself! I read in the Australian Daily Telegraph today that the bad weather is all down to the cyclone. The headline read “Drought and Floods”. The cyclone has swirled the country hitting the west quite hard and causing many floods. Apparently there has hardly been any rainfall over the winter in Oz so the floods have made the farmers very happy.

Canberra is a city with wide sprawling roads and is fairly spread out. I like it; it’s gentle and so much more relaxed compared to Sydney & Melbourne. Without going into all the history stuff (mainly because I don’t know it) to me, Canberra feels like its a place to showcase Australia History, architecture and symbolises her identity and aspirations as a modern nation. I’m sure there are loads of things that we have missed but after only a 2 day visit, I feel that I’ve got the gist of the place.

This morning Phil phoned JetStar and brought forward our flight from Melbourne to Brisbane. On our original schedule we were booked to fly to Brisbane on the 10th Jan but now we are flying out on the 4th January instead. Or at least we think we are, we haven’t received the email confirmation even though Phil has phoned twice to chase. It’s costing more than we wanted to pay, but we’ve decided it’s worth it. Six weeks in Victoria has been a couple of weeks too long and we feel it’s time to leave town. Phil had been looking at flights so we can visit our friends on the gold coast but it’s worked out slightly cheaper to fly to Brisbane and then hire a car and drive the 3 hour journey to see them. I suggested we hire a campervan but Phil isn’t keen and actually I guess it will be fairly expensive. I think Phil remembers the last time we hired a campervan and it was a bad experience, or nightmare from hell as Phil would recall!

Tomorrow we leave Canberra and are heading back towards Melbourne, driving for a few hours on the highway and then getting back on the coastal road. We’re may do it over a couple of days with only one overnighter. I’m not sure; we’ll go with the flow I guess. I’m pretty certain if it’s boiling hot when we get to the coast road then the temptation will be to book a motel and head to the beach. We’ll see. The only fly in the ointment with that idea is that Phil has been sniffing all day and I suspect he is coming down with a cold. Not great when we have such a long road ahead. Other than that, we’re good to go.

"No Worries"

I’m getting to feel more at ease in Australia as the days roll by. I can’t say I’ve fallen in love with the country yet (well Victoria to be more precise) or she with me, but we are both working at it. Six weeks in one place is far too long and already I’m looking forward to moving on. It’s only been 2 weeks since we landed so I shall leave my final impressions until we leave, or maybe even, until we return to the UK and I have had some time to reflect. So far, not so great but not so bad either. I still feel slightly ashamed about my lack of research and the mixed weather bag continues to confuse and annoy me. The last 2 days and we have been given bright sunshine with the temperature rising today to 39 degrees. Today we have listened to constant bush fire warnings on the radio and we have seen that there is a total fire ban. To us Poms, this means no BBQ’s and I guess no smoking?

The weather forecast predicts lows down to 18 for tomorrow with a high likelihood of rain. How can this be, I ask myself? How can the weather change so dramatically??? Confused? Yeah so am I. The one constant and positive thing for me about Australia, is the people, they are great with an awesome sense of humour. Their mantra of “no worries” is one that I’m determined to take back home with me if nothing else, along with a sense of chillness and hopefully a much lower blood pressure.

We’ve adapted to sharing a house with Jeremy, Arlene’s lodger and friend and, over the last two weeks we’ve seemed to have found a way of living together that suits both parties. Well, I say that, I can only speak for me and Phil; maybe secretly we are driving Jeremy mad but he is being so polite and not saying anything. Jem seems to sleep all day and stay up all night and I guess I did him no favours this morning by setting off the car alarm at half past ten! Whereas Jeremy is nocturnal, we, on the other hand, are in bed by 9pm and usually up at the crack of dawn. The other morning, Jem left a note to say that he opened the kitchen fridge door at 1am at the same time he heard Phil had stop snoring and apologised because he thought he had woken Phil up! I told him Phil’s snoring is so loud that a particularly loud blast and he wakes himself up! Jeremy replied that, he thinks if I can sleep through Phil’s snoring then nothing will wake me up! And he is right; apart from the Pakenhamn train line just outside our bedroom window which starts around 5am.

Never mind, you’ve got to take the rough with the smooth and I simply delight each morning coming into the kitchen to make tea and seeing to Jem’s plates left out from his midnight snacks! It’s like having Harriet back at home again! My fault for being so anal but next we're off to Sydney and I am really looking forward to that.

I want to talk about the local food but I hesitate because when Phil spoke to his mum on the phone, she mentioned that Auntie Daphne had read the Blog and said that it was extremely boring. She told Bet (Phil’s mum) that all we talked about was food and drink. And I guess she is right, food and drink, for us guys takes up a lot of our thought processes and time. Whilst I am still certain that pizza is still the main staple diet for Victoria folk, I think we may have been a little pre-judgmental about the Oz nosh. There is a lot of fast food out there along with the tourist crap, just like you get back in the UK but we have sampled some good, high quality food and some of the menus out here, are very sophisticated.

However, that said, you pay for what you get, well that is how it seems to me, whereas back home you can get some really decent freshly cooked grub at reasonable prices. Maybe we are just taking tourist steps in such a vast country and not getting to the real heart of Melbourne. I dunno; all I can say is that we are trying very hard to sample and taste as much as we can without breaking the budget and spending all of the kid’s inheritance.

Phil says I mustn’t moan and is refraining me from posting a Blog as much as is humanly possible, but I’m sorry folks I make no apologies, I can only give you my take and my impressions as I find them. Anything other would be a total lie and a total load of bo***cks. That’s not just not me, although you may disagree with a glass or 10 of wine inside of me but I never break my rule which is ‘never drink and click’ (or rarely ever) so what you read is actually what is going through this crazy blonde mind of mine!

We’ve had some really pleasant days lately. I really enjoyed the Sunday market in Berwick with mad Kezza and her mum and dad. I got some slightly damaged but authentic Ugg boots for Harriet and nearly got some for Georgina but thought I’d better get Phil to call her and check for size and style. Good job I did, because it turned out that she’d just ordered some for herself on line; just a shame we didn’t get there beforehand. Phillip Island was a dream to see and I thoroughly enjoyed the wine tasting. I do appreciate good wine when I have it (which isn’t very often) and I’m looking forward to the crisp and expensive Pinot Grigio & Chardonnay which we are saving for a special occasion. Today we drove back to the south side of the Mornington Peninsular, stopping off to take a look at Hastings, & Somers & Balwarring beach. We then drove to Red Hill South to have lunch at a winery called Red Hill Estate http://www.redhillestate.com.au/.

Boy, was it expensive and I felt ill at ease dressed in my faded denim tattered shorts and t-shirt. Phil had the duck and I had the fish of the day which for me was slightly under-cooked but brilliant views across the Bay of Phillip Island. The glass of Red Hill wine was delightful but we both came away famished. Way too small portions for me and Phil but the ambience was cool and would have been fine dining and a treat if hadn’t looked such a tramp.

For some bizarre reason, of which I have yet to fathom out, I feel homesick. Why I don’t know? Normally we piss off from the UK at Christmas normally heading for South East Asia and I don’t give a fiddly squat for folk back at home bar from when we make the calls to family on Christmas Day. Neither Phil nor I are vaguely religious, and hate with a passion, the commercialism of Christmas. Crowded shops from the end of November, lack of car parking spaces, not to mention all the hype, leaves us both stone cold and we’re much happier with a cold tin and feeling the sand between our toes. But emails from home of late and I’m wishing to be back there.

Christine emailed to say Buffy, the pup, had a lump but thank god it’s benign. She also tells me Jan is still off with a cracked rib so I’m worrying about her. Harriet got a telephone line and the internet installed in her flat so called us twice over the weekend. She managed to crack SKYPE and was really hyper to see her mum on the web cam. Unfortunately the time difference meant that it was really early for me (7am in the morning Melb time) and HH remarked that I looked rough. Well what did she expect? It was so early I hadn’t had time to put my teeth in or make a cup of tea. Bless her, it was good to chat but I really wasn’t in the wide awake club. BTW, thanks to Jim & Shirley, & Shirley’s brother for taking her out to lunch (and paying for her, I might add). Harriet had a really nice time so thank you for that, it was really kind of you.

Jane & Ian arrive tomorrow on a detour from Sydney and we are both really looking forward to seeing some familiar faces. Not sure really if we know the city of Melbourne well enough to show them round but aside from that, we shall do our darn best, as hosts, to show them the local delights. Phil is preparing a gourmet feast at home. While Phil gets busy with the cooking, yours truly will get stuck into the cleaning and hopefully a good time will be had by all. As the Aus folk would say “No worries”.