BEAUTIFUL BALLINA

It was time again for our annual reunion of friends who belonged to the Pt Moresby Judo and Scooter clubs in PNG over 50 years ago. Unfortunately 2 of our group, Dianna and Graham couldn't make it this year. However, we found another ember, Bev, recently and she will join us later. We all drove from our different towns to meet in Ballina, a beautiful seaside town on the north coast of NSW. Penny and Charles were the organisers this year and they found us nice cabins in a Holiday Park. 

It was fun catching up with Charles, Penny, Martin and Del. We had 'fivsies' on the deck every evening.

 The first morning we walked along the groin, a wall built along  the Richmond River to provide a safe entrance to the river. The river is on the right and Shaws Bay on the left and the ocean is straight ahead.

 Love is preening together. The bay was muddy due to recent storms and flooding.

 After our walk we drove to The Crystal Castle in the hinterland between Mullumbimby and Byron Bay. It is a privately owned botanical garden filled with extraordinary crystals, sculptures and subtropical plants.

The original building was built in 1980 by eccentric architect Edwin Kingsbury, who pioneered harmonious architecture. It is built where the earth's energy lines intersect and it doesn't have any 90° angles. The original owner went broke but it was bought by Naren King. He has imported hundreds of crystals and sculptures and developed the gardens. This is just one of the many rooms full of crystal displays.

Crystal Singing Bowls made from quartz crystal create a magical and powerful effect of sound and vibration. You just rub a special suede mallet around the rim.

 The Fountain of Peace. This is an amazing fountain. A 310 kilogram sphere of Rose Quartz rotates on 0.3 millimetres of water. 

 Naturally we had a coffee in the Cafe, where Bev (in blue) joined us.  It was fun catching up after not seeing her for 50 years.

After that we ventured into the gardens.

Where we followed many paths through the lush subtropical vegetation which was punctuated with sculptures connected to Eastern spiritual traditions.

 We did the Buddha Walk which went through a bamboo avenue and onto The Blessing Bhudda sitting in a Lotus Pool. It is the largest Bhudda in Australia.

 Recently a stupa has been added to the gardens. It is the Kalachakra World Peace Stupa. A stupa is a sacred monument built by Tibetan Bhuddhists to represent universal divinity. These structures are assembled under the precise guidance of a Tibetan Lama and every part of the design has a special significance. Inside is a treasury of sacred objects and the Tree of Life. It was built under the guidance of the Gyuto Monks of Tibet. This one is unique to the southern hemisphere and only the seventh in the world.
This was a beautiful, peaceful place to visit and we didn't want to leave. I would love to return and see more.