Mozzeenet

In August we took 2 weeks to seek out warmer climes further north and our mission was accomplished, arriving in Maleny to a 27 degree day after our 5 day journey via Yass, Newcastle and Byron Bay! What a contrast to an endless stretch of days of around 13 degrees max. in Melbourne.  It has been a very cold Winter here – coldest I’ve experienced since moving down in 2005. It really tested my endurance being very much a Summer person.

We discovered an amazing B&B in Yass, The Globe Inn, on the first night of our journey.  The old building is decorated with antique and rustic furnishings throughout and the reasonable price includes a full cooked breakfast. The bedrooms are upstairs with a stunning communal guests area which you can see in the picture where there was a range of sweet treats like cakes and muffins laid out for guests to help themselves.

Next was 2 nights in Newcastle catching up with friends and Andrew’s Dad followed by 2 nights at Dad’s near Byron. Note the bowl of coffee Andrew indulged in at 3 Monkeys Cafe in Newcastle! We thoroughly enjoyed a long walk along Main Beach at Byron soaking up the sun and beginning to thaw out. So good to be able to wear t-shirts again.

We stopped and relaxed at Maleny for 5 nights catching up with Mum and other family and friends. As always it is a real holiday being there. We ate enough cheese to sink a ship every night and Mum and Andrew got into the reds!  Mum’s hospitality was as usual impeccable and I did enjoy the odd one or two (or 10) of her shortbread biscuits.  We also managed to fit in a lunch with Pat and Karen from Brisbane at a great restaurant at Flaxton (Flaxton Gardens) with a view over the Sunshine Coast as well as a visit to Montville to catch up with Andrew’s Aunt, Uncle and cousins.

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On the Queen’s Birthday long weekend, we travelled to Lakes Entrance with some friends for a couple of days.  Lakes Entrance is in Gippsland on the Victorian coast, heading towards the NSW border.

As expected, traffic on the Friday night of a long weekend was crawling out of Melbourne but we stopped for a bite to eat and pushed on to arrive at our accommodation around 10.30pm which wasn’t as bad as we thought it might be.

The Saturday was bleak and very cold and I wasn’t thinking much of Lakes Entrance at that point and wondering if it really was going to be a “long” weekend.  They had a Hot Rod car display on so the main street was closed off with hundreds of old cars parked along the side.  Can’t say I was overly enthusiastic but there were a couple of interesting antique vehicles to admire.  I like some of the 60s and 70s ones with “interesting” colours (aka purple, bottle green) and some with painted designs on the doors and bonnet.

Our dinner at the Central Hotel in Lakes Entrance that night was a disaster.  The man taking our order was very rude to Andrew about his request for a modified meal due to allergies and when I got my schnitzel and took a bite, I realised it was burnt underneath so they had just served it with the good side up hoping I wouldn’t notice!  Another meal of seafood stirfry was not served with rice, just a bowl of seafood with a soupy sauce!  I wouldn’t recommend it.  On the other hand, the bowling club the next night was fantastic – definitely the better pick.

I enjoyed Sunday better with a trip to Buchan Caves, about 40 mins away.  We did a 45 minute walk through the Royal Cave.  The limestone formations including stalactites and stalacmites were beautiful.  I was a little nervous because I do get claustrophobic but after the inital walk down into the cave and a few minutes of beating heart and slight light-headedness I adjusted and thoroughly enjoyed myself.

On the way back we also visited Lake Tyers and took a short walk on the 90 mile beach which was great.  I’m a big fan of a deserted beach with the waves crashing in and a lone fisherman on the shoreline. It always reminds me of childhood growing up in Port Kembla beside the sea. There were lots of shells in the sand too.

We stayed in a cabin at a caravan park which was adequate for the four of us, a good kitchen and large bathroom.  The bed was hard and the pillows lumpy so we ended up with slightly sore necks.  We are too used to our pillow-top bed and osteopathic pillows!

As we departed Lakes Entrance on Monday, I finally got a glimpse of why Lakes Entrance would be appealing in Summer.  The sun was out and driving up the hill we had a beautiful view of the water dotted with a number of islands and boats.  We hadn’t seen these views when we arrived because it was dark.

Struggling  to think of what to give Andrew for Christmas, a friend suggested an “experience” from one of the online gift sites. I had a look and decided he would really enjoy a scenic helicopter ride over Melbourne.  Every time Andrew sees a helicopter, fire-engine, ambulance or police car he is mesmerised and it’s no use trying to carry on a conversation with him at that point.  Typical boy!

So one Saturday morning towards the end of March we headed out to Essendon airport and along with another couple of guys, Andrew had his 15 minute ride over Melbourne.  I happily stayed back in the terminal and watched as the blades started up and they flew off and when they landed again.  It’s pretty amazing how they can just lift up into the air and hover in the one spot.

Some interesting shots were of the Fitzroy and Treasury Gardens which are in the shape of the Union Jack, not something you realise from the ground and testament to our British allegiances!

The view over the Yarra including Southbank and the Eureka tower is spectacular.  You can also see a photo of the new soccer stadium being built which is now virtually complete, just in time for the World Cup in South Africa.  It should be an exciting couple of weeks of soccer with a few tired people at work after watching the games.  Ian will be attending a few parties also when Australia plays Ghana!

Preparations are definitely under way here for celebrations. They have moved the city viewing venue to Birrarung Marr which is a large park area on the north side of the Yarra instead of Federation Square where it was located last time.