ADELAIDE TO PT AUGUSTA

On 19th November we flew to Adelaide from Sydney and met our friends from Brisbane. Our Birthday Group had decided to join Ann on a tour to Lake Eyre for her birthday.

Here we are at the airport waiting for the tour guide. L to R Paul, Helen, Mary, Ann, Bill and George.

This is our tour bus, a Mercedes 4WD 26 seater. We drove north and stopped at a small town called Two Wells for a picnic lunch. The town got its name from early days when the aboriginal people camped here because there were two natural wells.

We stopped in a park where there were many roses but, unfortunately, very few seats for the passengers. Most had to stand up to eat their sandwiches. I thought this was poor organisation. The lunch had been set out on trestle tables stored in the bus. On our last trip with this company to the Kimberley, the guides provided us with fold up stools as well.

After lunch we headed further north to Pt Augusta. On the way we passed  some interesting scenery including this bright pink lake with a salt deposit on the bank. The pink colour is due to a bacteria which grows in the water.

Unfortunately the driver didn't stop for us to take photos. I was lucky to be on the right side of the bus to snap these shots as we drove past quickly. We arrived in Pt Augusta in the evening and went straight to our motel. Unfortunately no tour of the town. 

Pt Augusta is a seaport and railway junction city. The Ghan train passes through on its way from Adelaide to Darwin (south to north Australia). The Indian Pacific also passes through on its way from Sydney to Perth (east to west Australia). Pt Augusta was settled in 1852 and it was named after Lady Augusta Young the wife of the Governor of South Australia, Sir Henry, Edward, FOX, Young. Did you see that third name????

Birthday Bear arrived for dinner to wish Ann a happy birthday. Bear was dressed as a tourist who loves travelling around Australia, just as Ann does. She was wearing a purple shirt, three quarter pants and trainers just like Ann does. She also has a camera, binoculars, backpack, floppy hat, and name tags just like Ann.

Unfortunately there were not enough chairs for Birthday Bear on the veranda where we had a BBQ dinner, which didn't impress us very much either. (We were a little disappointed with Day 1, but thought it would get better.)

BONDI BEACH BABY

After a few days with our eldest daughter and SIL in Vaucluse, we went to Bondi Beach for a few days to stay with our youngest daughter, Sonya, her partner, Bernie and son Fox. Bondi is only a 5 minute drive from Vaucluse.

Fox likes yogurt.

"This is my daddy"

They are lucky to have a children's playground right in front of their apartment.

Fox gives Grossvati some exercise.

adorable

intelligent

artistic

Following in the footsteps of the Greek God Atlas.

We really enjoyed our time bonding with the little one, he is such a good baby. We also celebrated the news that Bernie and Sonya are getting married.  

A VAUCLUSE VISIT

After my reunion on the north shore of Sydney Harbour (its real name is Port Jackson), our eldest daughter and son in law collected us and took us to their apartment at Vaucluse, a suburb on the southern shore of the harbour close to the heads.

Carol and David outside their apartment block.

The view from the front of their apartment block.

They took us for a walk along the cliff tops it was a dull, showery day, but the view was still lovely.

Father and daughter enjoy rare time together. The next morning, Monday, Carol started work late and we went with her on the ferry from Watson's Bay to Circular Quay. It was pouring with rain. We said goodbye to Carol and then found a dry cosy restaurant in Custom's House. It was for young, trendy workers and our wrinkles and grey hair looked a bit out of place. However, the service and food was excellent. After lunch it was too wet to go exploring on foot so we went back to the Quay. We wanted to get a ferry down the harbour into Parramatta River to enjoy the sites of Sydney without getting wet and using our all day concession $2.50 ticket. Unfortunately, we just missed that ferry so we got on the next one that turned up and wondered where it would take us. We ended up at Darling Harbour and the maritime museum.

Rain over Sydney Tower

Darling Harbour

The Endeavour was the ship in which James Cook discovered the east coast of Australia in 1770. This is a replica.

240 years later the ships that come to Australia are a little bigger and the landscape somewhat altered, if only James Cook could see it now.

ASOPA REUNION SYDNEY 2010

On 12 Nov. we flew to Sydney for a 3 day reunion of the 1962/63 students from The Australian School of Pacific Administration, which is where I studied to be a teacher in Papua/New Guinea. Our first reunion was in 2002 exactly 40 years since we were at the school. That was a fun experience, trying to recognise everyone. Since then we try to get together every few years. It is a little difficult as we are scattered all over Australia and overseas now.

On Friday night we had a meet and greet session at the Mosman Hotel on the northern side of the harbour, it is the suburb where our school was situated.

After dinner we found a coffee shop to continue catching up with everyone. Wendy and I talk families.

On Saturday we met for more chit chat and lunch under this beautiful shady oak tree at The Oaks Hotel in Neutral Bay another northern suburb which was our stomping ground in the 60's as students. Many an anecdote was retold.

Henry is about to enjoy some of the great seafood sold at The Oaks. It was so good to see Henry here as it wasn't long ago since we visited him when he was very sick in hospital.

That evening we joined a Harbour Cruise for dinner.

The food was good, the company great and .......

...the views were spectacular. Well done to the organisers, Rod, (below) Keith and Dave. Unfortunately Dave couldn't attend as he was to have a big operation

On Sunday morning we finished off the reunion with a brunch at Chowder Bay overlooking the harbour. It is right next to the school where we studied but it is no longer ASOPA. After being closed for years and starting to deteriorate, it is now being renovated to be put into use again, but we are not sure what kind of a facility it will be. I'm glad it wasn't bulldozed. I had fun! Soon after this shot our Carol picked us up for a stay at their place.

LAKE EYRE, SOUTH AUSTRALIA

Lake Eyre is 15 m below sea level and is the lowest point in Australia. It was named after the explorer Edward John Eyre. It is the terminal point of one of the largest internal drainage systems in the world called the Lake Eyre Basin and it covers one sixth of Australia's area. There are parts of it in 4 states: Northern Territory, Queensland, South Australia and NSW.

Lake Eyre Basin

Lake Eyre is mostly empty of water and is covered with 45cm/18in of salt crust but occasionally it fills with water, usually when we have a La Nina weather pattern, ( like now) which brings more rain than usual to Australia especially Queensland and the Northern Territory. The rivers in these states flood and wash down through the channel country into Lake Eyre. This turns the desert into a wetland and brings thousands of birds, fish and other animals. The last time this happened was in 1974 and now in 2009/2010.

We are going on a tour of the area to see this amazing phenomenon. 

Our tour map. 

We fly to Adelaide then take a 4wheel drive small coach. It also includes a scenic flight over the lake and rivers.

APEX PARK ORMISTON

We belong to the Redlands U3A (University of the Third Age) Camera Club to try to improve our photography. We meet once a month in a church hall in Cleveland. We have guest speakers, we share our knowledge and sometimes we go on an excursions to practice what we have learnt. Later we display and discuss our shots. A few weeks ago we went to Apex Park in Ormiston. Ormiston and Cleveland are towns in the Redland Shire which is to the south east of Brisbane on the shores of Moreton Bay. It takes us about half an hour to drive there. Here are some shots I took in the park...still lots of room for improvement but I think I'm getting better.

An oasis in a city

I don't know the type of duck but he is pretty and I like the reflections.

Turtles sunning themselves.

U3A members enjoying Spring in the park.

Nice composition crappy depth of field focus...need to improve here.

A grandma and children feeding the ducks, puts emotion into the shot.

THE MELBOURNE CUP

The Melbourne Cup is Australia's major horse race, billed as: "The race that stops a nation." This is because it is a public holiday in metropolitan Melbourne and everywhere else in the nation and New Zealand people stop to watch the race at 3:00pm on the first Tuesday in November.
The race is for 3 Year old thoroughbreds  over 3,200 metres (2 miles). The first race was held in 1861 and today it is the richest "two mile" handicap in the world. The purse is $6 million.

The race is held at Flemington Racecourse in Melbourne. There are over 12,000 roses and 200 varieties of flowers growing at the racecourse. Over 110,000 people attend the race usually dressed in high fashion with hats and fascinators. Some dress in exotic costumes. There are prizes for the best dressed.

All over the country there are Melbourne Cup Day luncheons and parties, where people get dressed up in high fashion and have fun (and usually drink too much). Many people who don't usually bet on horses do on this day. 80% of the population place a bet or participate in sweeps. This is the first day that I haven't been working on Melbourne Cup Day but we didn't go out for lunch we decided to slum it at home.

We had BBQ chicken, coleslaw, Camembert Cheese, Gruyere Cheese, beetroot, cornichons, mango, yoghurt and red wine.

 Bill donned his leather hat and bow tie and I made a fascinator and we had a fun lunch together. (talk about a pair of idiots). Then we watched the famous race on TV.

 The favourite didn't win. Instead it was "Americain", a horse bred in America, trained in France, and owned by two Australians.

 The jockey and trainer are french.

 The silks are in American colours. The weather was typical for Melbourne, sunny one minute and raining the next.