Monday, 1st January 2007 - Day 668 - Gladstone New Years Day
A nice day and not too hot. I wonder what the new year will bring? Do we have any New Year’s resolutions to break? Not at the moment.
A note on the ‘Water Cure’ and Celtic Salt. Since we have been doing it Geoff’s fingers have been really good with even some wrinkles coming back into the top of the fingers and his blood pressure has been perfect. My thumbs are now down to the occasional yelp. So we will keep going with it...what have we got to lose? A normal day and nothing out of the ordinary to report.
Tuesday, 2nd January 2007 - Day 669 - Gladstone
Another nice day but windy again. Since leaving Paynesville last year we have had nothing but strong winds after strong winds. A most strange situation with boats having trouble making their way south. Went up to the laundry and did a bit of ironing. Shirt and shorts for Geoff’s interview tomorrow at Bunning's. For 20 cents you get 10 minutes ironing time which is more than ample for me these days. Gone are the days when I used to spend the Sunday morning doing all the ironing. These days its fold straight out of the dryer. We then decided to wander up the marina fingers to see what boats were in and whether we knew anybody. At the very end of one of the fingers was a large, shiny cat called Cattalic. The owners saw us looking and invited us on board for a look around. It was 20 metres long (65 foot) and 7.87 metres wide and had just been launched in June and they were still finishing the interior off. It was more like a small house than a sailing boat. A large galley, large dining area, large lounge and 4 queens size bedrooms with pedestal beds and en suites. I bet it cost heaps. They were already looking to sell it as I think the builder had talked them into building a boat bigger than they wanted making it more expensive and harder to sail. I think they had actually run out of money as well. But a nice couple and not ‘Up’ themselves. Back to ‘little’ 2AB and make a pattern of the front windows ready for getting either Perspex or lexen cut to replace them. Geoff had another play with his boat and Rick had a play with his yacht for a while but the frequencies are the same so they interfere with each other. Rick’s yacht had many ‘knock downs’ so he thinks he will have to re-think his technique.
Wednesday, 3rd January 2007 - Day 670 - Gladstone
Geoff borrowed Brenda’s car to head off to his interview with Bunning's as it was raining. He thinks it went ok so we shall see. We then got a call from Kristine and Peter off of ‘Pure Magic’ who were coming through Gladstone on their way north back to their boat in Laguna Quays. We offered them a bed for the night which they accepted so it was a quick change of bed linen and a clean up before they arrived. When they arrived we had a good natter over a cuppa and caught up on all their news and then walked to the yacht club for tea. I had fettuccine which came in one of the largest bowls I have ever seen. Consequently, I couldn’t eat it all. It was delicious, so much better than the cheap buffet. Hopefully we all walked it off on the walk back to the marina. It then started to rain and was blowing quite hard so Geoff had to do some modifications to the sun/rain shade to stop it banging against the mast and keeping us all awake all night.
Thursday, 4th January 2007 - Day 671 - Gladstone
Up at 07:30 as Geoff had a doctors appointment today and he is going by bike. After he headed off I walked Kristine and Peter to their car. They have kindly offered to lend us their cars for the next three months. They were going to drive them back down and then one of us was going to drive them back but I said I would check on how much it would cost us to go up by train to pick them up saving them a double trip. Once they had left, I checked my emails and received some bad news from home that one of my cousins (John’s brother) had passed away. I rang my dad as I needed to talk to someone and Geoff was not here. Losing people through their decision that they have had enough with life has happened to us more often than we care to think about. The despair that the person suffers is transferred to the friends and loved ones that they leave behind. It could be easy to condemn their actions but you have to be in their shoes to know what they are going through. When Geoff returned I gave him the sad news and then asked how his doctor’s appointment went. Well - blow me down - the x-rays showed that he had mild pneumonia. He had been feeling tired but had no cough etc and was actually feeling quite well so it was a bit of a surprise. Anyway, he has some antibiotics for it so it will be fine. The doctor was quite happy with his blood pressure so he is off the blood pressure tablets and only has to take medication for the Scleroderma. During the afternoon he got a call from Bunning's who were checking up on one of his referees which is a good sign. I have also booked the ‘Sunlander’ train for Proserpine on Sunday night which gets in at the ungodly hour of 3.52 in the morning. Geoff gets the fare for half price with his Qld Seniors card but, unfortunately, they didn’t accept my National Seniors card or health card so I was full price.
Friday, 5th January 2007 - Day 672 - Gladstone
I slept ok but the cut on my foot has flared up again due, probably, to the fact I walked to the yacht club and back and my Teva sandals have a ridged insole which would have rubbed and inflamed it. My thumb is also playing up again. What a croc! I have put my volunteer work on hold for another week because of it and may have to get another medical certificate for Centrelink. The doctor had offered me a 6 months certificate last time I was in which I declined thinking it would come good. Now I’m not so sure. After lunch we got the bikes ready and headed off to The Valley and the railway station to pick up our train tickets, post some mail, go to Medicare. There was quite a headwind on the way but it was ok and a good ride back. Nothing much else to report for today.
Saturday, 7th January 2008 - Day 673 - Gladstone
Geoff played with his new boat after sealing it up and it looks like it is not leaking now. Plus this remote control works on 40 mhz so does not interfere with the other yachtie’s boys toys in the marina. Worked on a calendar of sunsets we have taken over the last two years but, apart from that nothing to write home about.
Sunday, 8th January 2007 - Day 674 - Gladstone to Proserpine by train
Rang my sister, Glynn, in the UK who I haven’t managed to get hold of for quite a while. Also rang Sally and had a really long natter and caught up with all the gossip. We then decided to treat ourselves to a bought, cooked brekky and wandered along the walk to the café and found it was closed for the Christmas break until Monday. Bumma! So back to 2AB, defrost the bacon and cook up bacon and eggs. Today is washing day so that was dutifully done then it was a quick pack of overnight things ready for the off at 17:30. Brenda kindly drove us to the station and we boarded at 18:10. The seats were comfy and big enough for my generous derriere but the train seemed to go quite slowly.
We were soon overtaken by the tilt train which would do the same journey to Proserpine in three hours less but was just under twice the price. Lights out was at 21:00 but there were a lot of kids on the train who were a bit whiny plus a load of teenagers who had no intention of sleeping. There was also the normal amount of coughers, sniffers and snorers to make up the compliment. Geoff said he got no sleep at all but I managed quite a few zzzzzzzzz’s. Still, we were in cattle class so we expected it. Oh….one good thing was that I had to pay for my ticket on the train and the conductor took pity on me and gave me it for the seniors price. Rippa.
We were soon overtaken by the tilt train which would do the same journey to Proserpine in three hours less but was just under twice the price. Lights out was at 21:00 but there were a lot of kids on the train who were a bit whiny plus a load of teenagers who had no intention of sleeping. There was also the normal amount of coughers, sniffers and snorers to make up the compliment. Geoff said he got no sleep at all but I managed quite a few zzzzzzzzz’s. Still, we were in cattle class so we expected it. Oh….one good thing was that I had to pay for my ticket on the train and the conductor took pity on me and gave me it for the seniors price. Rippa.
Monday, 8th January 2007 - Day 674 - Laguna Quays
Clickety clack, clickety clack until, eventually, we pulled into Proserpine at 04:05 and there was Peter dutifully waiting for us. We stopped off at the service station and he filled up five containers with ULP for his engines (big outboards) and then headed off to Laguna Quays. Once there we all headed off to bed where we stayed until 08:30 when the heat made us get up. ‘Pure Magic’ is quite a hot boat without any flow through ventilation like 2AB so it was a warm night. Peter will give us a fan for tonight. Laguna Quays was very hot with no air, plus we were still tired so it was, once again, a laze around day. We caught up with Ralph and Jeanette on ‘Wairangi’ but really didn't do much but natter. Geoff did a bit of work on Kristine’s laptop and showed her how to do a few things differently but it was mainly doze and early to bed.
Tuesday, 9th January 2007 - Day 675 - Laguna Quays back to Gladstone by car
Up at 06:30 as Peter and Kristine started washing the boat down as they are leaving on the tide today. We had a shower, packed and then they walked us to the cars and gave us a run down and we were off at 08.15. We hadn’t gone far when we turned off the main road to buy a tray of Bowen mangoes for $10. Yum! Next stop was McKay to fill up and then we stopped at a Truck stop out of town for brekky. I had scrambled eggs on toast and Geoff had eggs on toast. Being a place where trucks stop we should have know better as the scrambled eggs was enough for the two of us. At $5.95 you wonder why we ever bother with McDonalds. I hate to think how many eggs went into my scrambled eggs, maybe five or six. You could also have as much coffee or tea as you wanted for $2. Great value for money. As we progressed further south the day got hotter and hotter. The air conditioner in the car Geoff was driving was almost non existent so he drove with both windows open all of the way. I offered to swap cars for a bit but he was a martyr and put up with it. We had another stop for a cold drink and ice cream before heading on towards Rockhampton. By this time Geoff was dripping so he pulled off into a big shopping centre where he knew there would be air conditioning. We were soon poorer, of course. I bought him a new leather wallet and we also bought a case of Riesling. This was the bargain of the day. They were on special for 99 cents a bottle if you bought twelve. Why it was so cheap we have no idea. Maybe we will find out when we drink it. We eventually arrived back in Gladstone at 17:30, nine hours after leaving Laguna Quays. If we hadn’t have needed to keep stopping due to the heat we should have made it back in seven hours. It was a distance of 650 kms. 2AB was very hot as she had been closed up for two days so it was open all the hatches, fans on and a cold drink. Brenda popped by and said the last couple for days had been really hot and they had been having their Air Con on. We will have to see how we go without one.
Wednesday, 10th January 2007 - Day 676 - Gladstone
A warm night so we both slept with our cabin fans on plus the big mistral fan on the saloon table pushing the air through the cabin windows. This made for a reasonably comfortable night so we will see how we go. Most live-aboards have small air con units and they are not expensive, around the $250 mark. It is more of a problem when there is a light northerly or no breeze at all. No different from living in a house without air con, if there is such a thing up here. After brekky, we headed off into town to get our prescriptions, shopping and to pick up a new laptop for me. Mine was getting very old, slow and the battery charging part of the laptop was kaput so I could only use it on power all the time. Lose the power and lose all I had been working on. Tricky Dicky (Dick Smith) had a Toshiba Satellite notebook for $899 with a cash back offer of $100 so, in reality, was only $799. You can’t really get any better than this price and it has everything I need as I didn’t want anything flash as we already had a top of the range laptop.
It is very hot today and we haven’t moved very far from the fans. Wade rang and said they had made it to Devonport in Tassie and I think they are very chuffed with themselves. It is great that they have made it this time and expect a new journal from Chris soon.
It is very hot today and we haven’t moved very far from the fans. Wade rang and said they had made it to Devonport in Tassie and I think they are very chuffed with themselves. It is great that they have made it this time and expect a new journal from Chris soon.
Thursday, 11th January - Day 677 - Gladstone
Another warm night but tolerable, just, with both the fans. Geoff is still working setting up my new laptop but I have managed to do my banking and reconciliation etc. Glen from ‘La Boheme’ rang to touch base and there was also an email from Erica on ‘Ovide’ who we had met at Lizard Island in 2005. She has been working on the boat and is about to start cruising on her own. She said it had been almost a year since Andy had died. I think she has a lot of guts to go it alone. Good luck to her. We thought the fridge had died today and couldn’t get anyone to look at it until late next week. It was showing 12 to 13º all the time. I borrowed a Waeco electronic thermometer from Rick on ‘Low Profile’ in the vain hope that it was the thermometer that wasn’t working and that the fridge was fine. Eureka….it was just that and the fridge was, in reality, 4.8º, which is the best it will ever do in this heat. Phew! Too hot to do much today but we really must pull up our socks tomorrow.
Friday, 12th January 2007 - Day 78 - Gladstone
We have decided we need to get our “A into Gear” so Geoff went off to try and buy a new ultra violet globe for our bug zapper without any success and then he went up to the VMR to say he was back and to sign in. He was back in a jiffy saying that he was going out on a call out. Once again he has jinxed the VMR by going in. Every time he goes in they have a call out. As soon as they got the first one in they were off again. The first was a yacht that had problems with its motor and the second one was a small tinny who had lost their motor and were way out at sea. Way past the tanker parking lot, about 12 nm out. Brave! So he was kept busy. I headed off for the Conservation Volunteers Australia to get a form signed for Centrelink so I can start with them Monday. I have been waiting for my thumb to come good but It hasn’t so I have told them I will do what I can. Whilst I was there I had an even closer look at the Mt Buffalo ‘Clean up Australia Day’ notice she had on the board. Not only was Darin on it but also Ross and Chris. So there you go. Flic (boss from Buffalo) says it is a good omen and that I was destined to help out there. Onto Centrelink and straight in with no queues so that is now all done. Then onto Kin Kora Shopping Centre to go to the post office, get some fruit and veggies and sign up for the Tony Ferguson diet program. What, again? I hear you cry. Yes...once again. Its amazing how a trip back to UK to visit the family gives you a lot more incentive. Back to 2AB and put the shopping away and have a cheese and bacon topped roll for the last time for a while. Sigh! No bread, no potatoes, no pumpkin and no pasta….all the things I love. Ah well, what the heck. Rang Sally to wish her happy birthday. She turns (no, I had better not say) and is the first of quite a few of us this year. I’m next...ho hum. Geoff eventually turned up tired but fulfilled and only wanted to nibble for tea which suited me, of course.
Saturday, 13th January 2007 - Day 679 - Gladstone
A warm night but overcast and then a tad of rain which cooled it down a bit but increased the humidity. Geoff had to get up early as he had VMR training at 08:00. In fact we both got up at 07:00 as it was too hot to linger in bed. He hadn’t been gone long when he returned and said he was about to go out on a call out. Well...he has done it again ….jinxed them. In fact as of 14:00 they have been out to tow three boats back in. I managed to get some photos this time.
During this time I thought I would take advantage of the cooler weather and clean the inside of the boat. Even with all the fans on the perspiration was soon dripping off the end of my nose. Who needs to diet…..at this rate I will sweat all the excess away. Anyway, it was soon done and I was able to relax. Geoff got back around 17:00 and had chicken pie whilst I had a ham salad as I had started my diet. My trouble is trying to fit in all my fresh veggies in the fridge. Bit of TV and then Geoff was off to bed as he was knackered.
During this time I thought I would take advantage of the cooler weather and clean the inside of the boat. Even with all the fans on the perspiration was soon dripping off the end of my nose. Who needs to diet…..at this rate I will sweat all the excess away. Anyway, it was soon done and I was able to relax. Geoff got back around 17:00 and had chicken pie whilst I had a ham salad as I had started my diet. My trouble is trying to fit in all my fresh veggies in the fridge. Bit of TV and then Geoff was off to bed as he was knackered.
Sunday, 14th January 2007 - Day 680 - Gladstone
A little muggy overnight but better than it has been which meant a bit of a lie in. I had a shake for brekky whereas Geoff had his bacon and eggs. After brekky, Geoff said ‘Tsunami’ was about to dock and he was going to give him a hand. We first met Lloyd in McKay in 2005 and went out to dinner with him. He was also embarking on life onboard that year so we felt an affinity with each other. He is a sole hander with a Seawind 1000. After we had helped him dock Geoff cycled up to the VMR to check in and to get his time worked out for Centrelink tomorrow. I gathered all the washing together and headed off to the laundry and shower. When I returned Geoff was back and he and Fergus had been playing with Geoff’s boat and Fergus had crashed it but there wasn’t any damage to talk about. Then just on 18:00, with a roast dinner just minutes away from being ready, Geoff got a call from the VMR to go out on a rescue so I suppose I will be dining alone. I don’t think I will be able to keep his warm as I don’t know how long he will be. He came back at 21:00 and I fried up his roast potatoes, warmed up his veggies but the chicken had to be eaten cold. The boat they towed in had run out of fuel (for the 2nd time). How can people be so negligent. I asked Geoff how he went and he said it was unsettling traveling over 30 knots at night as we only manage the sedate speed of 4 to 5 knots and navigation markers and navigation in general has less urgency about it at that speed.
Monday, 15th January 2007 - Day 681 - Gladstone
Up at 07:00 to shower and have brekky and head off to Conservation Volunteers Australia for an 08:30 start. I will be working with the lady who is the ‘Clean Up Australia’ state co-ordinator (except Brisbane) for the whole of Queensland. I didn't do much for a lot of the morning except read up on ‘Clean Up’ day but later started on a database spreadsheet of all the Rotary Clubs in Queensland ready for an email out and mail merge when it is finished. It was a slow and painstaking job as there were no complete lists of email addresses and mailing addresses and you had to go into each website, if they had one, to find all these details. Geoff came in lunchtime and was a bit down as he didn’t get the Bunning's job. He didn’t know why as it looked so promising as they were checking his referees. Perhaps he had been too honest with them by telling them we were off to the UK in May. Whilst I was at CVA he worked on my new computer transferring files over from the old one. We also got a new GPS back from Garmin stating the old (but new) GPS would be too expensive to repair but with no explanation of what was wrong with it. Geoff rang them but they were unable to say what was the problem. Strange. We also received the photos of the bush fire crisis at Sally’s and they were great and showed just how close it got. When I got back to 2AB we made our way to ‘Tsunami’ for drinks at 18:00. We had a good natter but then Lloyd invited the two guys over who were drinking on the trimaran next door. They were both called Lee and one was very nice but the other Lee we had met before and he was a loud and obnoxious bloke so spoilt the evening a little bit. Nobody seems to like him much but never mind. Still it was good catching up with Lloyd again.
Tuesday, 16th January 2007 - Day 682 - Gladstone
Up at 07:00 again after a nice, cool and breezy night and off to CVA. Worked most of the day on finalising the Rotary database and it is ready for sending out. There were about 180 clubs on the spreadsheet and it was a time consuming job. I have said I will go in again tomorrow to do an email out (and wait for the bounce backs) and then do a mail merge to send the rest out by mail. Geoff spent a lot of the day checking out the Gladstone Library. It has a great assortment of books, CD’s and DVD’s and we can join as a family for $40 (we get it back when we leave Gladstone). At 19:00 Geoff headed off to the VMR for a briefing on the S&R training that will be held on Saturday. He said the water police were there and they were very interesting to talk to. When he came back we spent quite a bit of time applying, on line, for a job for him as an IT installer. This job sounds good as it is only for the short term, which is just what he wants. We will wait and see. Mostly, companies never contact you to tell you that you haven’t even got an interview.
Wednesday, 17th January 2007 - Day 683 - Gladstone
Up early and off to CVA to compile the Rotary database and send out the emails. Once I had received most of the bounce backs, which weren’t many, I did a mail merge and got them ready for posting later that day. The rest of the day was spent doing mundane things like bulk photocopying. All their equipment is old and slow, probably due to the fact that they are a voluntary organisation and funds being short. I finished at 16:30 and when I got back Geoff had been organising prices for the Perspex on the front windows from Windows O’Brien at a cost of around $250. He had also visited Lloyd on ‘Tsunami’ to see how he had done his and pick his brains. After dinner, he went to the VMR for the weekly Wednesday night training.
Thursday, 18th January 2007 - Day 684 - Gladstone
Not much to report today except that I entered the last bit of my budget data that I lost when we trashed the last computer when we were watching the Sydney to Hobart Yacht race in 2005. Plus we made a cardboard pattern of the front window ready for Windscreens O’Brien.
Friday, 19th January, 2007 - Day 685 - Gladstone
A lazy start to the day. We headed off to the Kin Kora shopping centre as I had a hair appointment at 10:30. Geoff dropped me off and went to pay the boat registration using his seniors card for the first time. It cut nearly half the price off the rego. After my hair cut I went into Terry White Chemist and got weighed and measured. I had lost 2.6 kgs and 1 cm off my waist so it is a good start. The diet, so far, has been easy to manage. The shakes and soups are tasty and the allowed veggies and 2 allowed fruits are more than ample for me. Brekky and lunch has never been an awe inspiring meal for me and I think I may continue with the shakes and soup for quite a while if/when I lose enough to make myself happy. They are cheap and convenient. My only other problem is finding room in my limited cooking space to cook things that suit the both of us. We have also found a cheap butcher and spent $39 on meat which costed out at $1.22 per serve. To give you an idea - Loin chops are normally around $15 kg but they sell them at $7.99 and the same with chicken breast. Their meat is good but they have no finesse. If you want a specialist cut (maybe lamb steaks) you won’t get them there. They are a bulk, wysiwyg (what you see is what you get), a get it out the door type of butcher. It is always very crowded with at least 6 people serving at all times. But you can’t knock the price, especially when you are on a budget. Back on 2AB and I worked on my journal to send out in the next few days. I went ot visit Brenda and Vicky on Low Profile and Geoff worked on networking our two computers using Bluetooth.
He then saw he had access to some files on a cat called ‘Alice’s Restaurant’ on another arm so notified them their security needed looking at. Jasmine came round to see what files Geoff could see and how she could rectify the problem. After dinner we watched 90 minutes of the Hornblower series. A great series. We have the entire Hornblower series on one DVD which Geoff ‘backed up’ from another cruisers copy and it is really good quality. Geoff says he doesn’t know how they are able to cram so much onto one DVD.
He then saw he had access to some files on a cat called ‘Alice’s Restaurant’ on another arm so notified them their security needed looking at. Jasmine came round to see what files Geoff could see and how she could rectify the problem. After dinner we watched 90 minutes of the Hornblower series. A great series. We have the entire Hornblower series on one DVD which Geoff ‘backed up’ from another cruisers copy and it is really good quality. Geoff says he doesn’t know how they are able to cram so much onto one DVD.
Saturday, 20th January 2007— Day 686 - Gladstone
Another lazy start to the day but it was soon up to the laundry doing the washing. I visited Brenda and Vicky on ‘Low Profile’ for a while and then surfed the net investigating a costing and time schedule for us to work around Centrelink and our volunteer work to visit Longreach. After lunch Geoff went off to the VMR to participate in their search and rescue exercise. He even got to take the helm on the boat, Gladstone One, and was the one to actually spot the dummy/body in the water. He said the seas were quite uncomfortable as they bounced from one wave to another at a speed of 30 knots. When we are sailing at a sedate 5 knots we would ride out those same waves and be quite comfortable. Eventually they had to cut the exercise short as it was getting very late in the day. At the briefing it was decided that the exercise had been set too far out to sea and it would have been better to have had it closer in, cutting the time travelled down. He eventually got back to 2AB around 21:00 to his dinner which I had been keeping warm in the oven. A long day but an enjoyable one, he said.
Sunday, 21st January 2007 - Day 687 - Gladstone
We have booked the ‘Spirit of the Outback’ to Longreach for the 31st of this month and returning the following Monday. We have treated ourselves to a first class sleeper berth (the economy sleeper berths were three to a room and gender specific, which we didn’t fancy) on the way up but an economy seat on the way back as it is during the day. It is a 15 hour train journey, so will be a long trip. Practice for the flight back to the UK. We also visited Helen and Ken on the yacht ‘Sea Wife” for a late morning tea. Ken had built the boat himself from scratch (literally as he made everything himself) and from his own design. It had taken him eight years to complete and was two years old. We actually thought it was an old ship as it looked like it was showing its age. Ken admitted that he was no craftsman and it was certainly not finished off as well as other home built boats had been, such as Low Profile, Pure Magic and Mandalay but a mammoth effort non the less. Especially as he was around 60 years old when he started it.
Monday, 22nd January 2007 - Day 688— Gladstone
It is getting warm again and humid. Lynne from CVA rang and I said I may go in this afternoon as I had things planned for this morning. Off we went to the Gladstone Library where we joined for $40 (actually a deposit that you get back when you leave). It is a good library with a large assortment of books, CD’s and DVD’s etc so we are now set for the next two weeks. On to the shops to pick up some more fresh produce and rush back to 2AB to put the perishables away, grab lunch and then Geoff dropped me off at the CVA for the afternoon. Then he picked up the Perspex for one of the windows he had got cut. He had got one cut at a time just in case he stuffed it up. I doubt he will as he always plans ahead but you never know. He also cooked dinner, Cottage Pie, good lad! When I checked my emails I had got one from Sammy, John and Gill, which was nice. After dinner we watched one of the DVD’s that we had borrowed from the library. It was called ‘Super Size Me’ and was about a guy who experimented with only eating McDonald’s all day for a month and how his body reacted. He went from 185 lbs to 210 lbs and had a lot of medical problems so it just goes to prove that fast food is not good for you. We all know this anyway but this is the final proof.
Tuesday, 23rd January 2007— Day 689 - Gladstone
I went into the CVA for three hours this morning. I will be doing my own hours to suit to makeup my 30 hours a fortnight for Centrelink. We worked out that 30 hours a fortnight equates to being paid by the government at $13 an hour so I think they do ok out of us an we feel we are pulling our weight. When I got back, Geoff had pulled out the port window and prepared the old surface and put the double sided tape (bedding) on the new window and was waiting for my return. We then got stuck into the very messy job of sticking it in with a special silicone designed for the job. Apart from the mess (and it seems to get everywhere, no matter how careful you are) it all went well. Geoff then went inside and squeezed the silicone in from the inside to fill up all the gaps then he put holding screws and washers to keep it in place. It has to stay in place for five days before we can do any more to it. When he took the paper off from the inside it was just amazing at how clear and good it looked. We hadn’t realized how badly the old one was scratched. We will only use Plexus cleaner on it from now on which is designed for plastic and Perspex.
A little R&R and then I went below to cook dinner. Oh no and yuk! When I took out the oil container to refill my smaller oil jar I found that the container I used for old oil, that I reuse again for chips, had sprung a leak and about 600 ml had found its way into the cupboard and had spread itself along the whole length of the cupboard. Oh bliss, what a mess! I cleaned it all up whilst I was cooking dinner and it was a real messy job and back breaking in the tiny, confined space. BUT - I have learnt a big lesson - DON’T KEEP OIL IN PLASTIC CONTAINERS (especially old milk bottles)!. KEEP IT IN GLASS!
A little R&R and then I went below to cook dinner. Oh no and yuk! When I took out the oil container to refill my smaller oil jar I found that the container I used for old oil, that I reuse again for chips, had sprung a leak and about 600 ml had found its way into the cupboard and had spread itself along the whole length of the cupboard. Oh bliss, what a mess! I cleaned it all up whilst I was cooking dinner and it was a real messy job and back breaking in the tiny, confined space. BUT - I have learnt a big lesson - DON’T KEEP OIL IN PLASTIC CONTAINERS (especially old milk bottles)!. KEEP IT IN GLASS!
Wednesday, 24th January 2007 - Day 690 - Gladstone
Late getting up! I spent some time on the internet looking for jobs and researching air conditioners. We could buy a cheap house A/C but they are so big and weighty. Most yachts have them but they are mostly bigger than us. We found a caravan one that is small and light for $399 so we have ordered it. It will fit neatly on the top shelf of one of our saloon cupboards that has its back facing the back deck. Geoff will cut the fibreglass (it’s not structural there) for the vent and get a plastic hatch cover to seal it from the elements when it is not in use. He will fit it flush in the cabin so it will look like part of the furniture and cut the cupboard door down so it becomes a smaller cupboard under the unit. It should look good. It only weighs 26 kgs so we have decided to not quite fill our water up to compensate for the weight gain. It will cool 12 sq mtrs which will be more than ample for our little boat. We discussed the money we were spending and may have to live and work in Gladstone for the next year to get more funds. This way we can apply for permanent jobs when we return from the UK or go sailing for a few months and then settle down for a years work. There are plenty of jobs here, just not contract or temp jobs. After lunch I went off to CVA for three hours whilst Geoff fitted two small computer fans in the cavity under my saloon seat where the fridge backs onto. This is to circulate the air and try to help the fridge remain cool. I have had my personal fan in there for the last week or so but I took it back to help me sleep at night. Then, just as I was about to start cooking tea, Geoff got a call from the VMR to go on a rescue so I’m not sure how long he will be. Shall I cook tea or not. I will see how hungry I get. I listened to the radio and the yacht in distress was having trouble steering as his propeller shaft had separated from the engine gearbox and had hit the rudder. Geoff said he also had a Siamese cat called ‘Valium’ and Valium was a stress reliever for the skipper. He was a steel ketch on his way from Weipa to Bundaberg and had got this far in 22 days. Not bad going. His position was just a little south of the entrance to Gladstone and ‘Gladstone 1’ got there quite quickly but the journey back with the ketch in tow was what took the time. Geoff eventually got back five hours later, hungry and tired but stayed up for a while to wind down.
Thursday, 25th January 2007 - Day 691 - Gladstone
The power went off this morning at 06:45 so no mains fans, only the 12 volt fans were left. So it was up early for a shower, which I took cold-ish to refresh the body. Rumour has it that the ‘powers that be’ occasionally turn off the power to various locations to conserve energy as Qld is having a problem keeping up with demand. They deny this, of course, but it is strange that the power came on exactly 2 hours after it went off. Another 3 hours spent at CVA today. Boy, is it humid today! When I got back Geoff was busy installing a 240 volt power point in my cabin for my little personal fan. As you can guess, the boat was a pigsty with tools everywhere. I had some lunch and decided to head back up the street to the Op shops to see if I could pick up a 2nd hand, cheap electric frypan for our stay here. I don’t want to buy a new one as I will be leaving it behind when we sail again. I didn’t have any luck but did manage to pick up a laptop bag for my old laptop for the grand price of $2.50. Geoff was still working when I got back and then he got a call from Drake Industrial about the IT installer job he had applied for. It is changing the chip in the Eftpos machines for the Coles of the local district and is only a weeks work, which is a shame. He had to fill in a simple IT questionnaire and has sent it back so we shall see. He also picked up the perspex for the starboard front window but said it was just too hot to install it at the moment. We will have to wait for the next southerly to come through and cool everything off. Just before dinner he had another play with his power boat (boys toys) and let some of the kids watching have a go.
Friday, 26th January 2007, Australia Day - Day 692— Gladstone
A very warn night and a very restless one for me. I hope the Air Con comes swiftly. As I said before, its not the heat but the humidity that gets to you. You live in a constant drip. I visited Brenda and Geoff went to do some work on Ken’s laptop. Cleaned a bit but very little else. Much too hot to exert yourself.
Saturday, 27th January 2007 - Day 693 - Gladstone
A bit more cooler overnight so a reasonable sleep. Off early to get some fresh food and get weighed. Only lost half a kilo & 2cm off my waist. Still, better than nothing and every little bit adds up. Got back and Geoff had taken the starboard cabin window out ready to put the new one in. I had some lunch and as I was getting his ready I heard a thump and a yell so I rushed outside. Geoff was laying on the dock with the large perspex sheet still in his arms and intact but had hurt his foot. He had trodden on the dock cleat where 2AB was tied to and rolled his ankle or done something, he wasn’t sure what. We put ice on it and he sat with it elevated for a while and then we put ice gel on it and wrapped it up. He was in a lot of pain and I was wondering if I would have to tape plastic over my window hole if we couldn’t get the window in. Kristine, from ‘Pure Magic’ rang and Geoff talked her through the process of downloading her photos without using the photo program that came with the camera. Later, Geoff managed to hobble to the front deck and we, carefully, put the new window in.
He left the paper on it as it wasn’t finished on the inside and I was not able to put my curtains back up and needed the privacy. After a shower we headed off to a BBQ. Lynne, from Clean Up Day, had invited us and we met her son, mum and dad and friends. Lynne has a mildly disabled son and her friends had a disabled daughter and there was one other disabled guy there. They were all in their mid twenties and all worked at the same place, the Endeavour Foundation, which is a self funded organisation that pays their mildly disabled workers from the proceeds of the sales of the work done.
Sunday, 28th January 2007 - Day 694 - Gladstone
Three hours spent in the Emergency Department at the Gladstone Hospital today Getting the x-rays done was not a long wait, the waiting for someone to have a look at them took absolutely ages. The coffee machine and cold drinks machine was out of action but there was iced water, luckily, but in stupid tiny paper cups. There was a snack vending machine which was ok for Geoff but no good for me so I had to put up with my rumbling tummy. The only good thing about it all was that it was air conditioned as it was another hot day. Geoff was about to hobble out and leave when he was called in and the x-rays showed he had fractured a bone in his foot. The fracture clinic is only held on a Tuesday and a Thursday so we will remember, next time, to not break anything unless it is Tuesday or Thursday. At least he now has proper crutches as he had been using a broom, upside down, to get around. I will ring and cancel the train and accommodation tomorrow as I don’t think going to Longreach is a good idea at this early stage. Plus, half of Longreach is in flood at present. Geoff did manage to finish off the sealing of the inside of the front window so I was able to put my curtains back up. His foot is still very swollen but he says it doesn’t give him much pain unless he tries to walk on it or knocks it by accident.
Monday, 29th January 2007 - Day 695 - Gladstone
I managed to defer the train booking and cancel the accommodation for Longreach. I booked Geoff into the fracture clinic for Thursday to see how his foot is going and whether he needs to get it plastered. He may not need to but we will find out then. I rang the Air/Con people and they said they are sending it out today and it should take a couple of days. I went off to Centrelink and stood in the queue for 45 minutes to put my fortnightly form in which took a whole 2 minutes. I still can’t fault the staff here and things seem to go smoothly enough, touch wood. Onto CVA for more data entry. Worked for 90 minutes putting a whole heap of new registrations in and then found the Access program was having a funny five minutes and was changing the data once it had been entered. I had to leave poor Lynne with it as I wanted to get back to my patient. He was fine and was watching Dad’s Army on a DVD he had borrowed from the library and having a good chuckle. A bit of light comedy will do him good.
Tuesday, 30th January 2007 - Day 696 - Gladstone
Very little to report today. I slept in till 9 am but I had 9.30 appointment with my Job network provider, which I made in time, and then I did three hours work at CVA re-entering all of yesterdays corrupted data. When I got back to 2AB I did some washing, once the heat had died a bit. Boy was it hot. Ty Caling rang. Ty is ex Parks Victoria and is now a ranger here in Gladstone. He will visit us on 2AB in a week or so.
Wednesday, 31st January 2007 - Day 697 - Gladstone
Cool, southerly breeze and overcast this morning so a little relief from this heat. Before I headed off I popped into the marina office to inform them that I was expecting an air conditioner and it was there already. Adam, one of the guys from the office, carried it down to the boat for me. It is very slim being only 45 wide x 35.5 high x 31.5 deep and is a 1 hp unit. Off to CVA for another 3 hours work. I did a lot of writing today and now my thumb is playing up. I may have to let he know that I can’t write too much. After work I changed into some old togs and took the car to the car wash. It had been parked under some trees in the marina car park and these trees had dropped seeds that actually burst and covered the car with sticky brown juice. I got as far as the foam brush stage and it would not come off which got me a bit panicky, as it was not my car. I found a cloth in the glove box and then looked around and saw some twine on the ground so put that inside and eventually, 45 minutes later, got it clean. So, no more parking under the trees, put up without the shade. Quick shop and back to 2AB. Geoff had cut out the space where the Air/Con was to go but not much else as he needed a hand from me. The southerly winds came in during the night bringing the rain and it rained quite hard and I had to get up and close the front clears but it was nice to see and really cooled everything down.
Thursday, 1st February 2007 - Day— Gladstone
White rabbits! It rained quite hard during the night and today is overcast, raining and cool, a nice change. A very full day today. After a leisurely breakfast it was off to the fracture clinic where his foot was prodded and poked and the doctor got a 2nd opinion. Perhaps he was only an intern. They said that there was no need to plaster the foot as any plaster wouldn’t support it due to the fact of where it was broken. They said to try to get a good, supporting shoe on (even one from the Op shop one size too big), if he could, as it would give it as much support as anything and to slowly try to put the foot gently to the ground and try weight bearing in about ten days time. Other times he was to keep it elevated to help the swelling go down and he can’t go back on the VMR rescue boat for another eight weeks. Keep the foot elevated???? Fat chance as he started putting the air conditioner in as soon as we got back. He worked feverishly all afternoon with me running around like a hairy goat holding this, getting that, lifting the A/Con and pushing it in. Oh my back! It is basically in, I say basically as there is a lot of fiddly trim to do and a massive clean up, put things away and finding homes for the stuff that has been displaced by the A/con unit. It rained hard all day and was cool, which was good for working. We still had the A/Con on overnight to test it even though we didn’t really need it and it worked well.
Friday, 2nd February 2007 - Day 699 - Gladstone
Dull, overcast and still raining but not so heavy as yesterday, as yet. The A/Con worked well overnight but we still need to have the fan on the saloon table at night to push the cold air into the cabins. Now that we have it working it won’t get stinking hot again! Brenda and Vicky came for a visit so the clean up was put on hold for a while. After she left I vacuumed the cupboard out and put back all the wet weather gear, large first aid kit, life jackets etc. Brenda told us that the marina staff were not working from out of the marina office at the moment as a disgruntled nutter had threatened to ‘blow them all away’ with a gun. There is only a security guard keeping tabs on the office so people can collect their mail. Apparently, this nutter had left his mother’s boat anchored up near the fisheries in a no anchoring area and it had been there for yonks. The Port Authority had given him many notices to move it, which he ignored, and it was finally confiscated. This is when the threat happened to the marina staff, as if it’s their fault! Anyway, they haven’t taken it lightly, hence their non attendance in the office. A young, local female real estate staff member recently got shot and killed by a disgruntled customer up here, so these things do happen. This nutter is well known in the local community and everyone says he is a bit of a schitzo. In the afternoon I dropped Geoff off at the local library to get him off the boat for a while and picked him up after I had done a couple of hours at Conservation Volunteers Australia. It has rained all day, on and off, and is lovely and cool still, and should stay so for a couple more days yet.
Saturday 3rd February 2007 - Day 700 - Gladstone
A little warmer today but no stinker. I went off to Kin Kora to get weighed in and, once again, had only lost .3 kg and 1 cm off my waist even though I am really sticking to the diet. It is very disappointing. I was told to try and drop the midday shake and just add a little protein to my salad to see if this helps. I feel that I am probably eating almost as much as usual with the shakes so I said I will give it one more week before I swap to a diet that is more suited to my metabolism. I would like to at least lose half to a kilo a week otherwise I get very disheartened. I mean, I haven’t eaten bread, potato, rice or pasta for three weeks now and my dinners are very plain and, oh how I love my gravies and sauces. I probably wouldn’t worry about the slow progress if I didn’t want to lose it quicker for May and the trip to the UK. Back to 2AB and Geoff was cutting down the door to fit the, now, smaller cupboard under the Air/Con so I was, once more, the gofer. At one stage I was sent off to Bunning’s to try to find a certain router bit, to no avail, so he did the routing using his dremel tool, by hand. Sally rang during the day and her foot is a tad better. Then it was off to ‘Low Profile’ for a nice roast dinner of lamb and we had a really nice night. The Air/Con was on overnight.
Sunday, 4th February 2007 - Day 701 - Gladstone
I was a little warm overnight and when I got up I found out why. Geoff had gone to bed later than me and had forgotten to put the fan on the saloon table to push the air through the cabin windows. You can’t trust a man to remember these insignificant little things, can you? Received an email from Baza and Helen (previous owners of 2AB) and they have finally got their visa’s through and will be heading to Oz in about eight weeks time. We will try to catch up with them sometime, somewhere as they are going to tour Oz, starting from Perth, once they get here. Geoff is banging and dremmeling outside, still working on the cupboard door, and I am about to start doing a few things around the boat. After he had finished sawing and making a mess I pulled the carpet up from the back deck and put it on the dock. I then washed the back deck out and cleaned the seats and sides down. I then scrubbed the carpet, moaning all the time as to why he hadn’t put a tarp down to stop the mess. Once the washing down was done we oiled both the bikes and put them in their bags as we hadn’t been using them much as we now have a car. We filled the water up and then I put the nearly dry carpet back down in the back deck. Geoff then completed cutting down the door for the now, smaller cupboard, and only has the trim to do around the actual air conditioner unit itself.
Monday, 4th February 2007 - Day 702 - Gladstone
Geoff did some work on John’s (Shoreline Song) laptop and sold my external internet antenna to him that I used with my old laptop. Whilst he was doing this I went off to CVA and did some more data entry. Nothing much to report. We left the Air Con off overnight as it was pleasantly cool.
Tuesday, 4th February 2007 - Day 703 - Gladstone
I received a call from Downing Teal today (an employment agency I had registered with) saying there was a 4 to 6 week job going with the Central Queensland Ports Authority and would I pop in for a chat. Got dressed up and headed in for an informal interview and they said they would send my resume on to them. I then went and did my normal duties at CVA and that was it for the day.
Wednesday, 5th February 2007 - Day 704 - Gladstone
Did the washing then got a message from Downing Teal saying I didn’t even get an interview for that job so what did I do wrong? Maybe they were shocked at how old I was, The job was getting their electronic filing system up to date and some date entry so the job wasn’t exactly challenging, to say the least. Maybe they thought I was over qualified. I will give them a ring and find out more. Ah well, on to CVA for three more hours work. After dinner I drove Geoff up to the VMR as there was classroom training on that night that he could participate in. John ran him back and Geoff said it was very boring. Graeme, their training officer, is no good at livening up training sessions and was dull and bland. Most of the stuff he was teaching, most of the guys already knew as most of them have boats and have the hands on experience of radio communication and chart work. I have been trying to get a photo of all the Flying Foxes leaving for their evening forage for food against the backdrop of some of the beautiful sunsets we get here but the sunsets and the Flying Foxes have not played ball as yet, so, I am sorry, you just have a photo of one of the sunsets alone. I will persevere and expect I will eventually be rewarded for my efforts.
Thursday, 8th February 2007 - Day 705 - Gladstone
Had to get up and close all the front clears this morning as the rain was just pelting down and I got absolutely soaked. It was a good job it was time to get up anyway and I now have my pj’s drying. At present, there is a cyclone forming out to sea between Townsville and Hayman Island in the Whitsunday’s so we are keeping a diligent eye on it. They said it will be moving E/SE and, hopefully, it will move more east than south east. Here at Gladstone we have a strong wind warning from tonight on.
Friday, 9th February 2007 - Day 706 - Gladstone
Well, the cyclone didn’t eventuate so that is a relief. Today was life as usual with nothing out of the ordinary to report on until late at night. As I went up for my late evening shower I noticed there was a lot of activity on the marina service road and a lot of red and blue lights flashing everywhere. I counted four ambulances and at least that many police cars. Someone said they thought a car had hit a tree. Not good and I didn’t linger. I expect I will hear all about it tomorrow on the marina grapevine.
Saturday, 10th February 2007 - Day 707 - Gladstone
We were off out today so I drove past the scene of the accident from last night and a very substantial light pole is no longer in existence. We found out later, from John, that some youngsters had been skylarking on a bit of vacant land adjacent to the road when they got out of control and hit the light pole. Nobody knows how they all are. A high price to pay for a bit of skylarking! After viewing the accident scene we headed off to Bunning's where I got a refund for the incorrect router bit and Geoff bought some wood to finish off the trim around the Air/Con. Poor Geoff’s foot is still swollen and it has been two weeks today. I then dropped Geoff off at the library and went on to Kin Kora to get weighed in. A little better this week and I had lost .6 kg. As long as it stays over half a kilo I will stick with it although I am tempted to try a low carb diet of my own making. It’s not as if I don’t have the expertise as I must have tried every diet under the sun at one stage. Picked Geoff up and he decided he wanted to have a hamburger for lunch so what could I have. I opted for a small fruit salad and water until I got back to the boat. Geoff’s foot was aching so he went for lie down and to put his foot up so I relaxed with a book. VMR rang later and he is working the radios next Saturday afternoon.
Sunday, 11th February 2007 - Day 708 - Gladstone
A very lazy day but the Air/Con was very nice. Geoff has partially finished the trim finish for the Air/Con and I cleaned the boat.
During our evening TV viewing we got hit by a huge squall, thunder, lightning and torrential rain coming from the west. This meant that the weather was coming straight into the back of the boat and everything was saturated within minutes, plus we were bouncing from side to side. It was quick lived and over within the hour but came as quite a shock. We hadn’t checked the weather for a few days so we had no idea that a thunderstorm was imminent.
Monday, 12th February 2007 - Day 709 - Gladstone
I spoke to Brenda this morning and she didn’t get her hatches closed in time last night and they got quite a bit of rain inside. They clocked the wind at 45 knots but said they had spoken to a guy that was just outside the marina on a mooring and they had 75 knot winds. It just shows you how protected we are where we are docked, inside the marina on one of the front berths. When I went up for my shower late last night I saw the wheelie bins were all over the place and one of the small trees had been uprooted. It’s now raining again but not hard. It was then time to head of to Centrelink and it was relatively painless. They still haven’t got my voluntary work lodged but they later phoned and said it was sorted. I may have to go into Minnecon and Burke to change my activity agreement. I dropped Geoff back off at 2AB and headed off to CVA for another three hours. Later, it looked like another storm was on the way so I closed up things. There was a lot of thunder and lightning in the distance but it never got to us this time, apart from the rain and wind. I received a lovely big email from Polly, which was nice. Geoff took the Air/Con out today as it is leaking a tad and sealed up all the holes he could find and varnished the base of the shelf it rests on. It’s nearly finished and looks really good. Now we have sealed all the vents it works better.
Tuesday, 13th February 2007 - Day 710 - Gladstone
Nothing to report today. Replied to emails, did banking and paid the boat insurance (ouch). Surfed the web and went to CVA for another three hours work. Geoff sanded and varnished the trim that goes around the inside of the cabin windows that still needs putting back after he replaced the perspex. Another job to be done!
Wednesday, 14th February 2007 - Day 711 - Gladstone
Geoff prepared the fixing points to finish off the air conditioner trim. He has attached the side bits of wood trim with Velcro as we need the ease of getting the unit out occasionally and it can’t come out the back as the hatch is smaller than the unit. He also gave the cabin window trim a final varnish in preparation for putting it back up. I went to Conservation Volunteers Australia for a full day today as Lynne had gone to Toowoomba for the Qld Launch of Clean Up Australia Day and I asked her if she wanted me to hold the fort here in Gladstone and I got a lot done. Apparently, at the launch, they were worried as Ian Kernan (Founder of Clean up Oz and well known round the world yachtsman) hadn’t arrived and it turned out he had broken his ankle on the way (I think it was on the way) and that is why he was late. He had a second launch to attend the next morning in Brisbane, poor thing. A cool day today and quite windy. Received an email from Noriko, a Japanese paraglider friend from the early days at Bright Hikers Backpackers. She said she was coming over and would like to spend some time with us. We emailed back asking when and telling her the best months for sailing. It will be great to see her again as it must be at least seven years since we have seen her although we communicate occasionally by email. She’s still single guys and would make a great wife if any one out there reading this is interested.
Thursday, 15th February 2007 - Day 712 - Gladstone
Received another email from Noriko and, blow me down, she is coming next month after the 13th. Not good sailing weather but we will see. We have asked her if she is interested in coming to Longreach with us as I’m sure she will find it very fascinating. If she says yes, maybe we can change our first class sleeper berth to an economy sleeper berth which sleeps three. We will wait and see. Sally kept texting so I eventually gave her a call and had a really long natter. They were on their way to Melbourne as it was Zali’s 1st birthday and Sally also had an appointment about her foot. I don’t believe the foot is healing as quickly as mine, but then I am a good healer. Sally also said that the purchase of Acropora is finalized tomorrow and she is feeling quite sad about it. Martin went out and test sailed a Roberts 28 footer which, despite its size, was quite roomy, although a bit beamy inside. I have looked at photos of these Roberts on the web and they look a nice little boat and Roberts have a good name. Off to work for the morning to take advantage of the computer being free as Lynne was not back from Brisbane until after 1 pm and got a lot done again. When she arrived back she said that the organization was talking about putting a second person on in Gladstone next year as it was too big a job for one person. I told her to keep me in mind please, and she said she would. If it eventuates, and I’m not holding my breath, the job goes from November through to end of April which would be just perfect for me. Another wait and see. When I got back to 2AB, Geoff had put the cabin window trim back up and it looks very nice as it was just raw wood trim before. It looks so much nicer varnished. I also received an email from TK today, a previous work colleague at Parks Victoria, and he had attached a photo of himself with the PM, John Howard at the fires. What a star! Its great to get these emails so keep em coming folks. It has been very windy with torrential rain and people are walking around with jackets on as it is a bit cool. Not me though. The temp is about 27º which is quite cool for February. I think it is nice as I like it cool, especially overnight. I had my cabin hatch open all night and the breeze was very nice, thank you.
Friday, 16th February 2007 - Day 713 - Gladstone
It rained overnight and is nice and cool this morning. We headed off to town and spent more money! We bought a blue tooth mouse for my new laptop plus a hand held VHF radio for when Geoff goes out in the tender alone when we are at anchor. We were finding it hard to obtain a battery pack attachment for the one Sally had given us but we can always keep it as a spare for 2AB, just in case. Onto the library where we stocked up on books, DVD’s and CD’s which should keep us going for the next couple of weeks. Once back on the boat Geoff loaded the drivers for the blue tooth mouse for me. In the afternoon we had our daily visit from Vicky with Brenda in tow, of course. Later that evening we watched another full episode of the Hornblower series. What a great series it is.
Saturday, 17th February 2007 - Day 714 - Gladstone
I noticed the tide was very high today and found out it was a king tide. It looked quite amazing as it was the highest I had ever seen it here in the marina. When you are at anchor in a bay somewhere you have nothing to compare it to as a tide is just a tide for the few days you are there (the photos were included in the last journal). Off to get weighed in at the Central Shopping Centre for a change and, low and behold, I had lost .9 kg so that’s 5 kgs now. So - it seems that having your main meal at lunchtime really does kick start your metabolism. This means I’m a happy bunny this week and will stay on this diet. I am still tempted to change the diet a tad occasionally just to get a little bit more variety as the regime gets a little boring. It was then time to drive Geoff off to the Volunteer Marine Rescue where he was the radio operator for the afternoon so I wondered if he would jinx them again as the morning had been very quiet. Because it had been quiet I was sent to The Valley to grab him a paper and then I left him to it and went back to 2AB. Listened to the radio and there was hardly any radio traffic at all. Perhaps it is just too strong a wind for any boating activities. I spent the afternoon giving the galley and saloon a big clean and giving the head and shower a quick once over as we haven’t been using it much. Picked Geoff up just before 6pm and then he spent the rest of the afternoon working on his laptop as he had stuffed the registry up. Silly bugger but its fixed now after an hours work, but in time for me to watch ‘The Bill’.
Sunday, 18th February 2007 - Day 715 - Gladstone
Still a little overcast and coolish and now raining plus there is a strong wind warning out for the next few days. It’s Sunday so it is bacon and eggs today, even for me, but it becomes my main meal for the day so its just veggies and a shake/soup tonight. Today was washing day and that was dutifully done and the rest of the day was spent mucking around on the boat. Geoff did roar at some kids throwing stones into the water once they started to get too close and one hit the dock. They certainly scurried off when the big bad ogre yelled.
Monday, 19th February 2007 - Day 716 - Gladstone
We had a visit early from a couple of cruisers, Kelly and Darren off Saryon, who were having trouble with their GPS talking to their computer. I left Geoff to it as Lynne had rung and asked if I could come in early as the other computer was free so I went in for four hours. Geoff rang later and asked if I could be back by 2pm as he had promised to take Kelly and Darren looking for a special antenna for their GPS. After lunch we all set off for a tour of the shops and four shops later we found where we could order an antenna but it was over $250. Kelly and Darren decided they would buy a new, cheap Garmin GPS as they had seen ours work on their computer and knew it would work, which it did. Just as we arrived back another cruiser came to see Geoff about a faulty sound card so that’s a job for another day. Go-go-go! We had also picked up another 250GB external hard drive for our back ups and the computer shop is buying our two smaller ones for $90, which is good We were finding we had too much data to back up for the smaller drives to cope with plus this new one is much faster.
Tuesday, 20th February 2007 - Day 717 - Gladstone
Rain and a lot of it! Everybody loves it. Off to work for a 9am start. Poor Lynne is pulling her hair out as she has so much on her plate at the moment and there is only one of her. I felt bad about leaving after 4 hours but I am not being paid so don’t really want to put in a full day everyday. Back for lunch and then Kelly and I went off for a shopping spree (well just looking for me). Three hours later we returned and
I had managed to not spend anything other than on essential items. Kelly is over 45 years old but I’m not sure how much older, has a good body and good looks. But—I found out that five months ago she was over 90 kgs and is now 58 kgs. Apparently she eats whatever she likes as long as it is not white. That means no bread (even wholemeal but does eat pumpernickel), potatoes, rice, pasta, sugar, But, to her, white also means apples, pears, bananas, onions, cauliflower etc. I surfed the web and only came up with little bits of info. Apparently it is only a ‘word of mouth’ diet and people seem to be losing heaps so maybe I should give it a go for a week and see how it goes. Kelly reckons she was losing 6 kgs a week but I can’t really believe that. Still, I suppose she is living proof. Oh - she doesn’t eat much meat either. She says she has a splurge one day a week as long as it is under 10 gms of fat. McDonalds or Subway or similar. She popped back later with some great books for me on her little motorised scooter. They have one between them. It’s sweet but very heavy.
I had managed to not spend anything other than on essential items. Kelly is over 45 years old but I’m not sure how much older, has a good body and good looks. But—I found out that five months ago she was over 90 kgs and is now 58 kgs. Apparently she eats whatever she likes as long as it is not white. That means no bread (even wholemeal but does eat pumpernickel), potatoes, rice, pasta, sugar, But, to her, white also means apples, pears, bananas, onions, cauliflower etc. I surfed the web and only came up with little bits of info. Apparently it is only a ‘word of mouth’ diet and people seem to be losing heaps so maybe I should give it a go for a week and see how it goes. Kelly reckons she was losing 6 kgs a week but I can’t really believe that. Still, I suppose she is living proof. Oh - she doesn’t eat much meat either. She says she has a splurge one day a week as long as it is under 10 gms of fat. McDonalds or Subway or similar. She popped back later with some great books for me on her little motorised scooter. They have one between them. It’s sweet but very heavy.
Wednesday, 21st February 2007 - Day 718 - Gladstone
Off to CVA today for another four hours. I takes all this time just to enter all the new registrations on line that have come in the previous afternoon and file them into their council files. We received Chris’ journal of her and wades trip to Tassie today, so something to look forward to reading. We also went on the internet to look at upgrading our CDMA phones to the NextG system whilst there were free upgrade offers and went on the Telstra chat site for information. The chat site is the quickest way to get info as when you ring Telstra up you normally get stuck in a long queue. I can keep my capped plan and get a top of the range phone if I want to. Spent the rest of the afternoon picking out the anti slip rubber from the underside of my dinner plates as it had started to disintegrate into a gooey, sticky mess. A combination of salt and heat I would surmise. I will buy Corelle when I eventually replace them.
Thursday, 22nd February 2007 - Day 719 - Gladstone
Up early as Geoff has a 9:15 appointment at the fracture clinic today. Had a mocha shake for brekky and found 2 large and coarse white hairs in it. YUK, it put me right off. Sent off a quick email to the Tony Ferguson website to have a whinge. Left for the hospital and grabbed a newspaper on the way, just in case they were running late. Good job we did as we got in an hour later with the paper nearly read from back to front. I had taken a book so I was engrossed and didn’t notice the time. The doctor took Geoff’s crutches away as he said he was relying on them too much, which Geoff knew. It was then time to head to the Telstra shop and 2 hours later we emerged with two new NextG phones. I have a top of the range phone (more like a palm pilot really with MS Windows programs) as I am on the $80 capped plan and Geoff has the bottom of the range as he is on the lowest plan of $20. But, and this is the good thing, they both take Sim cards which means we can always swap the cards and phones if we ever need too. I’ve got the good phone as I am more likely to answer the bloody thing than Geoff plus I use all the features I can find. They both also take reasonable photos as we tested it in the shop. Not that we wanted a camera but they all come with them these days.
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| Taken on the new phone |
Continue on to the computer shop where they are still testing one of the external hard drives they are going to buy (hopefully), so we just picked up the USB HDV-8 TV unit for the Quosmio laptop. Got back to 2AB and read the rest of Chris’ journal and found it very entertaining with many similar thoughts, themes and experiences between her journal and mine. Whilst I was reading the journal Geoff was busy putting the phone blue tooth software on the laptops. Once he had overdosed on computer stuff I started having a look at it to work out how it worked and its features etc. I think I am going to like it as the phone side of it seems easy to pick up. I then rang Sally and was on the phone for absolutely ages. They had gone off in their caravan for a camping weekend to - wait for it - Beechworth. For those of you who don’t know where Beechworth is, well it is only 45 minutes drive from Bright. But a change is as good as a holiday and she was enjoying herself even though her foot was still giving her pain. Her daughter, Sammy, and friend Megan were there with them so great company too. Both Martin and Sally are coming up to Mooloolaba on the 3rd March to try to sail Acropora south and deliver her to Geelong. I hope these strong southerlies desist so they can get going south with the boat. We are hoping to drive down and see them but it is about 500 kms. Still, we could visit Marlene and Corrine at Tewantin and Bernie and Henry at Coolum Beach on route which would be nice. We will see how we go and what our commitments are for Centrelink before we make a decision.
Friday, 23rd February 2007 - Day 720 - Gladstone
Off to CVA for a 9.30 start and back at 12:30.
Geoff was up until way after midnight last night fiddling with the USB high definition TV unit for the laptop. He got some great pictures with just the little antenna. Eventually I growled at him to go to bed so that I could get some sleep. When I left this morning he was still fiddling with it and said the antenna really wasn’t good enough and he would have to think about what to do. When I came back from work he was working on the computers trying to get the blue tooth working for the phones and not having much luck. It works with the USB cord so I’m not particularly worried. He has been looking after Vicky today, she is such a sweetie. Rick and Brenda are going to Rockhampton for the weekend to visit Rick’s brother who may have to have his leg amputated due to a nasty infection. The strange thing is that his father also had a leg amputated, but for another completely different health reason. What a coincidence. Not a nice thing to have happen to you. Brenda’s son, Phil, came by in the afternoon to pick Vicky up so it was bye little girl. She is so sweet. Off to pay another months berth fees and we are back on the normal rate as we don’t want to pay for three months up front. Then I had to get another Rent Allowance form from Centrelink to get our rent allowance increased. We then decided to watch the news and the HD TV was only receiving a poor signal so it was back to standard definition until we sort out or replace the antenna. The antenna we have up the mast has been there for quite a while and is probably stuffed with the elements as our track record with TV antenna’s is abysmal. By 10pm Geoff had got the blue tooth working to transfer general files between the two phone units but has to use the cable for phone to laptop. But, he is getting there and understanding it more and more. How would a dummy like me get it working, I wonder.
Saturday, 24th February 2007 - Day 721 - Gladstone
We have had 2AB two years today so ‘happy anniversary’ to us! Time to head off to the shops. First stop was Nixon Communications to get a new connector put on the patch cable to allow our new phones to connect to our mast antenna. We left it with them and headed off to The Telstra Shop to dump my old CDMA phone. We are keeping Geoff’s for the moment just in case we need to convert it to pre paid CDMA for a while if this NextG doesn’t work out at sea. We checked on transferring our internet card over to NextG but the internet cards are not available yet and will be changed over free of charge when they are. On to the computer shop to pick up our $90 for the two small external hard drives we had sold them and promptly spent $69 of it on a blue tooth ear piece for the phones. Continue on to Terry White’s Chemist to get weighed in and I had only lost .2 kg so that has made my mind up to try something new. What to try…..might as well try that ‘no white stuff’ diet. What have I got to lose as it can’t be any worse than the one I have been on and more variety. It was then sit Geoff down at a café with coffee and a sandwich whilst I did some shopping at IGA. His excuse was that he couldn’t walk around the supermarket with his sore foot! That excuse will wear thin eventually! Back to Nixon’s and pick up the cable and back to 2AB. By this time it had started to blow hard and I was wondering how far Kelly and Darren had got. They had left a note in out cockpit that morning saying they were taking advantage of the lull in the weather to head south. They are probably anchored up in Pancake Creek or the Town of 1770, I would guess. Geoff worked, once again, on the laptops to try to get his head around the blue tooth settings to get the computers and phones to talk to each other. By 5pm he had got my laptop working. I had gone for a lie down as I had a slight headache and also couldn’t keep my eyes open. Filled out the new rent allowance form and fortnightly Centrelink Newstart Allowance form ready for putting in on Monday. I worked out that I worked 36 hours at Conservation Volunteers Australia this past fortnight, which is 6 hours more than I need to so Centrelink can’t complain. The fortnightly Newstart Allowance is $404 which works that I am earning $11 an hour so I think they are getting the better end of the deal so I don’t feel guilty. Well, that is a bit of a fib, as I do feel a little guilt as I am not one to bludge on the system and that last sentence is really justifying the Newstart Allowance, isn’t it? Why I feel any guilt is beyond me as I started work at the age of 15 and didn’t stop until the age of 55 - but there I go again, justifying my actions! I must stop doing it!
Sunday, 25th February 2007 - Day 722 - Gladstone
Up late. Whoops, the bacon is still in the freezer so it is now defrosting. Where is a microwave when you want one? A late brekky coming up. Geoff has already been working on the laptops again and thinks he has the blue tooth worked out. You can link 2 computers but can only use one at a time and only have one blue tooth device on at one time. The blue tooth ear piece doesn’t sit around my little ear lobe very well and wants to fall off all the time. It is fine on Geoff’s big ear lobe. He was a bit miffed when I said he had big ears but he does but they lay flat to his head so look neat enough. During the morning a passing yachtie asked Geoff if he had a net as there was a box jellyfish (stinger) in the water. They scooped it out to kill it, against my protestations that it was probably a native in its own environment. Their argument was that if a kid fell in the marina on top of it, it would be fatal. Ok, I agree, but I have yet to hear of a kid falling in the marina and the odds of them falling on the one stinger in that marina would be a million to one. After a bite to eat it was off for the afternoon and we headed to the Maritime Museum that was only open on Thursdays and Sundays. It cost us the massive price of $3 per head as we were over 55 years old. It was quite interesting, for a rural museum, but it was displayed in a big shed and it was very hot inside as there was no air conditioning.
One interesting thing we did find out was the name of the wreck that was sunk around 1943 at Heron Island to make a bit of a breakwater. It had three names during its career in the Australian Navy. 117 years ago it started out as the Protector, then HMAS Cerebus and finally HMAS Sydney.
We then decided to go for a little drive as we were taking Kristine’s car out for a spin to boost its battery. We ended up at Reg Tanna Park where Geoff took some stitched photos to make up the front page banner for this journal.
On the route back to the boat we dropped into the cinemas to pick up a flyer on what was on and may treat ourselves during the week. We enjoyed our day out as we don’t do it enough. Geoff drove which was a nice change as I have been doing all the driving since he broke his foot.
Monday, 26th February 2007 - Day 723 - Gladstone
Up reasonably early to get my rent allowance form signed off at the marina office and drive to Centrelink. In and out in 12 minutes which allowed me to get to work by 9am. After work I headed off to The Valley to buy some soup ingredients etc. Back to 2AB and get some lunch and then chop, chop, chop and make up 2 saucepans full of soup. I cooked them for ages to try to soften up the veggies as I didn’t have a blender on the boat. Used a potato masher and the mixer but it was hard work. The consistency is good for me but I’m not sure how Geoff will find it. We then headed off to try to find info on TV antennas for boats but didn’t manage to find much yet, apart from the fact that the low and high tide also has an effect. Geoff did some more work on the laptops and the TV and he is almost there now.
Tuesday, 27th February 2007 - Day 724 - Gladstone
As usual I worked from 9am to 12:30 pm. When I returned I found that our spare printer had arrived from Wynn and Ann's so we are about to try to sell it. We will see how we go. In the afternoon I visited Brenda and Vicky on Low Profile but it was a really nothing day for me today. I have just asked Geoff if he had anything interesting to report but he had a nothing day as well. So, to turn a nothing day into a something day I rang my dad in the UK and had a nice long natter until we suddenly got cut off
Wednesday, 28th February 2007 - Day 724 - Gladstone
Worked for three and a half hours, as usual. Whilst I was at work I got a call from Geoff saying he had sold our little, spare VHF radio already, so that was good. All we need to sell now is our spare Canon printer. It is still new and in the box although the warranty runs out next month. The recommended retail is $449 but you can get them on Ebay for $350 so we thought we would ask $290 for it. We will see how we go. After work I needed to get some more fruit so I headed off to IGA and whilst I was there I thought I would check my weight to just ensure that my self structured diet was not actually doing the opposite and putting it on. Imagine my surprise when I got weighed and found I had lost a kilo in four days, rippa. The chemist has no idea that I am doing my own thing when I get weighed. As far as they are concerned I am still on the Tony Ferguson diet. They don’t need to know and I need to use their scales each week. Back to 2AB for a bite of lunch and do the washing whilst Geoff worked on somebody else’s computer for a change. After dinner we watched a DVD with Anthony Hopkins in it called ‘The Fastest Indian’ and it was very good, enjoyable and a true story.
Thursday 1st March 2007 - Day 725 - Gladstone
Tuesday, 17th February 2007 - Day 769 - Gladstone
Worked at CVA this morning and then back for lunch. Geoff had been busy. He had checked up on TV antennas, picked up the gas and taken my green eggshell mattress top into the upholsterers to be glued to a new 3” HD foam mattress. We went off just before 5pm to pick the mattress up and it was a slow drive back with it secured, precariously, to the roof. I was helping carry it back to the boat when I remembered I had left some eggs boiling on the stove, so left Geoff to it. When I got to the boat there was just the minuscule amount of water left. Phew! How lucky was that. We then had the job of swapping the mattresses over as Geoff was having my older one as it was harder than the new one and he likes hard beds. Then we had to make the beds so by the end of it all the perspiration was just dripping off us. I am looking forward to sleeping on my new, thinner mattress with my two eggshell tops on top. We watched the news and there is a monsoonal low just north east of Mackay which has a high probability if forming into a cyclone so we will be keeping an eagle eye on it.
Friday, 2nd March 2007 - Day 726 - Gladstone
Received an email from Wyn and Ann wishing us happy 39th wedding anniversary. Oh yes, it’s today isn’t it? I had remembered a couple of days ago but had not remembered this morning but would have eventually remembered. Geoff, of course, would have to be reminded but, as they say, “you don’t count the years, you count the memories”. Headed of to CVA for an hour this morning and then back to the marina, picking up the marina ‘Cyclone Contingency Plan, from the office. The monsoonal low is now a category one cyclone and is presently 530 miles NE of Mackay and is almost stationary. I hope it stays that way. We have read the ‘Cyclone Contingency Plan’ and are now getting our head around how to secure the boat. We would have to take down all the sails, covers, binimi and stow any loose items inside. We would have to lash the tender in an inverted position on the deck, put out extra fenders and use extra ropes to secure the boat to the dock using the mast, anchor winch or anything more secure than the actual boat cleats. I hope it doesn’t come to this as it will be a lot of work. SO - we are watching it very closely. In the afternoon I went back to CVA to help Lynne understand the Access database we will be using in the ‘Tally Room’ (office) tomorrow during Clean Up Australia Day as she hadn’t used it before. I am going in from 8am to 2 pm (depending on this cyclone). We have to ring sites at random and get details of their progress, enter it on the database and send the results to Sydney every 1.5 hours. We have some students coming in from the local high school to help out as well. What fun! I then picked Geoff up and we headed off to the library and then on the embroidery shop to ask some questions about the 2Abreast T shirt logos we are thinking of having done for T shirts.
Geoff had also taken the foam from his old mattress to the upholsterers to get cut and put into out saloon cushions as it was in better condition than what was already there and was too good to throw away. Back to 2AB for a shower and then it was off to an Indian restaurant (An Indian Affair) for dinner to celebrate our anniversary ( a good excuse to eat out for a change). Once again, the food was delish and I tried to be good without being boring. Back to 2AB and check up on Cyclone Odette and she still hasn’t moved much. Good girl! I thinks she will be dominating our thoughts for the next day or so.
Saturday, 3rd March 2007 - Day 727 - Gladstone
A R&R day today. We rang Sally and Martin and they have made it to Mooloolaba and said the boat looked very spick and span. The new owner is pushing them to get Acropora down to Geelong but Martin won’t go unless the conditions are okay, which I don’t blame him. They have a quick weather window Sunday and Monday but, unfortunately, they have business in Caloundra on Monday so will miss it as more strong south easterlies are predicted from Tuesday on. We are still keeping an eye on Cyclone Odette but she is still just sitting there and slowly drifting northward away from us. Geoff has made a little shelf attached to the wall under the table to store our laptop power sources as they were just junking up the table. We decided to join the yachties for a BBQ for once (we always forget they are on) but didn’t stay for too long. Later that evening Geoff tested the navigation lights he has put in his remote controlled power boat. What ever next!
Sunday, 4th March 2007 - Day 728 - Gladstone
Well - Clean Up Day has eventually arrived and I worked for 6 hours today in the ‘Tally Room’. This consisted of ringing up site coordinators at random and asking how many hours it went, how many volunteers they had, how many bags of rubbish they collected, most unusual find (my best one was a red G string), the 3 most common finds etc and then entering it all onto the database. We had three computers going but Lynne couldn’t get the database downloaded from the intranet so I managed to get it loaded as stand alone data bases and I will have to merge them later and then Sydney will have to merge them into the federal database. We couldn’t get anyone on the phone at Sydney to help us out - so be it. Because we cover all of rural Qld a lot of the mobile phones were out of range so we didn’t get more than 50 odd sites entered between us. Geoff popped in just after 1pm as he had been doing the morning shift on the VMR radio. He is working Easter too. I finished at 2 pm and it was back to 2AB where I chopped and cooked up another large batch of soup and it is now frozen in portions in the freezer. It doesn’t last as long as it should as Geoff also likes this soup. I don’t complain as it means he is getting his veggies, which he is not too keen on, I might add.
I used my little manual food mixer/blender that I bought at the Bright market before I left and it worked very well so I now have a less lumpy soup. Geoff had another play with his power boat and later I got a call from Kristine and Peter on ‘Pure Magic’ who had been sitting at Hamilton Island with the weather and couldn’t get a detailed weather report and asked if I would go on the web for them and give them the low down as another yachtie had told them the winds were easing and they were trying to head south. Well, the winds were easing north of them but not in the direction they wanted to head so they will be stuck in the Whitsunday's for a few more days yet. One good thing is that Cyclone Odette is now ex Cyclone Odette and is now just a tropical low and still slowly drifting north. That’s a relief although southern Queensland was hoping that she would bring some much needed rain. Watched the ‘Kylie’ Showgirl Homecoming tour on TV and it was very good.
I used my little manual food mixer/blender that I bought at the Bright market before I left and it worked very well so I now have a less lumpy soup. Geoff had another play with his power boat and later I got a call from Kristine and Peter on ‘Pure Magic’ who had been sitting at Hamilton Island with the weather and couldn’t get a detailed weather report and asked if I would go on the web for them and give them the low down as another yachtie had told them the winds were easing and they were trying to head south. Well, the winds were easing north of them but not in the direction they wanted to head so they will be stuck in the Whitsunday's for a few more days yet. One good thing is that Cyclone Odette is now ex Cyclone Odette and is now just a tropical low and still slowly drifting north. That’s a relief although southern Queensland was hoping that she would bring some much needed rain. Watched the ‘Kylie’ Showgirl Homecoming tour on TV and it was very good.
Monday, 5th March 2007 - Day 729 - Gladstone
Didn’t wake up till 9am which was a nice lie in. Off to CVA to merge the data from yesterday ready for Lynne to send it off. Got back and Geoff was doing the preparation on the front windows ready to put the finishing seal around them to make them look neat, tidy and professional. I then cooked bacon and eggs for Geoff’s lunch as he had missed out on them yesterday as I had to leave so early. He was sulking so it had to be done! By mid afternoon he had finished the windows and they look so much better than the old ones. Brenda and Vicky popped by. Brenda to say hi and Vicky for a cuddle. Had a call from the upholsterer and they said they can’t cut down our old foam as it is too difficult to cut it cross ways so we will have new heavy density green foam put in.
Tuesday, 6th March 2007 - Day 730 - Gladstone
Day off from CVA today. Fancied a lay in but my back was bad so I had to get up. It must be from sitting without a back saloon seat cushion, perhaps. Another hot day again. I went off and got weighed but, alas, only 100 gms has gone, which was a blow. Still, I had lost that 1 kg in 4 days so really I have lost 1.1 kg in 9 days so it is ok, I guess. Did the shopping at IGA and then it was back to 2AB where we realised we had left the ice cream and milk behind. It was me that was sent back to pick it up because Geoff said his foot was aching. Hmmmm! That excuse is wearing thinner and thinner. Now I am sitting in front of the air conditioner cooling off again. Later, Geoff went off to buy some paint brushes and said he would pop into the upholsterer’s to see if the saloon cushions were ready. Just after he left they called on his phone (yes, he had forgotten it again!) and said the seats were ready and I said he was going to pop in anyway. When he returned with the paint brushes - no seat cushions - he had forgotten to pop in so it was me, once again, who had to go out and get them and get hot.
Wednesday, 9th March 2007 - Day 731 - Gladstone
I worked for a couple of hours today putting in the Clean Up surveys that were coming in from the councils. The work is slowing down a bit more now so more leisure time to be had. When I returned to 2AB, David and Fran from the yacht Melric had come round with their computer and had brought morning tea with them so Fran and I nattered whilst the boys worked on David’s laptop. After they had left Geoff waited until it had cooled down a bit and then painted the window surrounds on the front deck and now wants to paint the front deck again as it got a little marked when he put the new windows in. I booked the train for the 17th March to Longreach, once again, so let’s hope we make it this time. There were no first class sleepers available on the way up so I booked an economy sleeper for the three of us so that meant that Geoff and I got a refund off $99 and Noriko has to pay me for her fare when she gets here.
Thursday, 8th March 2007 - Day 732 - Gladstone
Up reasonably early to head off to the hospital for ‘fracture clinic’ and we dropped Fran and David at the plumbing shop en route. Geoff’s appointment was for 9 am and he was supposed to be the first appointment but we were still sitting waiting at 10:15 and then when we did get in, the doctor sent us straight off to physio as Geoff’s appointment there was 10:00 so we were already 15 minutes late. Sally rang whilst we were there so I went outside to take it and we had another long natter (what on earth do we find to talk about). When I got back inside I just caught the tail end of what she was telling Geoff. She has given him exercises to do for the foot but she was more concerned as to the state of his flat feet and the problems it was causing him. She recommended he go and see a podiatrist but first we had to go back to the fracture clinic to see the doctor and get signed off. Luckily we didn’t have to wait long this time. Found the podiatrist and went in to make an appointment and he was lucky that there was a spot available right then. He said Geoff’s foot beds, that were over 10 years old, weren’t doing the job and that he really needed good ones made and that his boat shoes were not giving him the support he needed. They supplied him with a good pair of runners for $99.95, which I didn’t think was too bad. Plus the consultation was $64 so we came out of there $150 lighter and knowing that once the foot beds were made we would have to part with another $450. Ouch! But not much you can do about it, if you need them, you need them. He has to get a cast made of his foot tomorrow and the foot beds will be ready in about three weeks time as they are made in Western Australia. Next stop the embroidery shop to give them the go ahead for the logo and then on to the computer shop to take back the ext hard drive we had bought that had already failed. They have to order another so we will pick it up next week. Next stop was the train station to pick up our tickets, organise our refund and pay for Noriko’s ticket. Back to 2AB for lunch and then Geoff went off to ‘Melric’ to do a bit of computer work. Whilst he was away John, from ‘Shoreline Song’ popped by to say they would buy the spare printer we had for sale, so Geoff headed off there to set it up once he had returned. So, all in all, quite a hectic day. Got a text from Peter and Kristene on ‘Pure Magic’ saying they had managed to get away from Hamilton Island and were heading south and doing an over nighter to take advantage of the northerlies. They said they may keep going south whilst the going is good so we may not see them in Gladstone if the weather stays good for them.
Friday, 9th March 2007 - Day 733 - Gladstone
Rang Lynne this morning at CVA and she said there wasn’t too much to do so I will go in on Monday and have a nice long weekend. Geoff headed off to the podiatrist to have his cast made. I worked on the laptop doing my budget stuff and then I booked a 2 bedroom cottage at Longreach for our 4 night stay. They had a special on of pay for 3 nights and stay the next night free. Geoff came back and we had lunch and the rest of the day was just mucking about on the boat. Sally rang and we had another long natter (still finding heaps to talk about). Apparently Martin had found a cheap kayak but when he was transporting it in the loan car it just slipped a tad but enough to break the windscreen. So that cheap kayak turned into quite an expensive one. I think I can hear him cursing from here! Gary arrives tomorrow and I think they are hoping to head off tomorrow with the tide and get as far as they can before the next strong southerly comes in Monday evening. After dinner we tried to watch the DVD ‘Mercury Rising’ with Bruce Willis which we had borrowed from the library but, like most DVD’s from the library, it fouled up in the most crucial places. So now we will probably have to hire it as it has got us interested. Rang Kristene and Peter and they have reached Keppel Bay Marina so they have done well. They will head off again early tomorrow and keep going as far as they can so we won’t be seeing them here at Gladstone.
Saturday, 10th March 2007 - Day 734 - Gladstone
The phone got me up this morning and it was Peter and Kristene to let us know that they were on their way again and currently heading towards Cape Capricorn. I then went off to Barney Point area to an Op Shop that is only open on Fridays and Saturdays, as Brenda had said she had seen a couple of electric frypans there. Only found one at $6 so I grabbed it. Then on to Millers as they were having a sale and had tops for $5 to $8 so I grabbed eight of them as my old ones were getting a bit stained (yes, because I’m a messy grub) and were getting to the stage where they were not good enough to wear off the boat. Onto Woolies for a few more fruit and veg and back to 2AB for lunch. Geoff had been to the VMR and had done a few chores that arose whilst he was there. He came back with a fridge fan from the caravan place that runs on batteries that last about a month. The fridge has been good whilst we have been in port but he thought it would help when we go out by circulating the air and helping it to stay cooler. Before lunch I put all the food away and meat in the freezer and the after lunch started cleaning the boat as it was looking a little messy. Whilst we were cleaning up we came across a disc belonging to Dave on ‘Melric’ who had left to go south earlier. Luckily we were able to contact him on the radio and get an address to send it to. Just as we were about to turn the radio off we heard a boat calling us and it was Peter and Kristene giving us a progress report and they were currently heading towards Clew Point off Pancake Creek. Then it was time for a bit of R&R with a nice brewed coffee (Decaf but you wouldn’t know it by the taste) before Irene and John from ‘Shoreline Song’ came for sundowners at 4 pm. John has a “still” on his boat so we were drinking G&T’s until the tonic ran out and then they (not me) switched to dark and stormy’s. I had made some nice nibbles and we had a great time and they left at 7pm. Geoff had drunk and eaten too much so we just had soup for tea. I then watched ‘The Bill’ but I’m not sure how much Geoff watched as he was snoozing on and off and went to bed at 9;30 pm. Seems he can’t hold his liquor in his old age. Received a text from Sally and Martin and they are making good headway at an average of about 7 knots.
Sunday, 11th March 2007 - Day 735 - Gladstone
Bacon and eggs (poached for a change) today as it is Sunday. Received a text from Peter and Kristene saying they had made it to the Great Sandy Straits, Fraser Island so they are also doing well. Boy, is it hot today, or what? The Air Con is struggling. We turned it off for a couple of hours in case it needed de-icing and it seemed a little better. Did two loads of washing and cut up and cooked 2 batches of soup. I cooked it in the electric frypan on the back deck to keep the heat out of the cabin. The frypan works well but has one major problem and that is it has a glass lid with no handle and the lid gets very hot. You have to lift it off with oven gloves and it makes it very clumsy. Geoff spilt the soup once on the back carpet so it was an excuse for him to hose it off and the boat as well to see if it cooled it down any, which it did. Speaking to other cruisers we have found that Air Cons are not very efficient on boats due to the lack of insulation and thickness of the outer surface plus the warmth of the water it is sitting in. Still, it is certainly better than without it, for sure. Before tea we visited ‘Low Profile’ for a quick drink and nibbles and a natter. Back on 2AB we had received an email from Chris and Shoo about organising our Scotland and Ireland tour whilst we are in the UK. They are thinking of renting a cottage in Ireland which sounds good in late May or early June as we are spending one week in May with Glynn on Humbug in the May holidays.
Monday, 12th March 2007 - Day 736 - Gladstone
Another “B” hot day. First it was off to Centrelink to put our Newstart claim forms in. In and out really quickly. Then on to the optometrist to organise to have our eyes tested and to get our free pair of glasses as we both have Queensland Low Income cards and Geoff has a Seniors card. Might as well get them for free than have to pay for them. Geoff then dropped me off at CVA where I put in a another couple of hours before he picked me up again. Back to the boat for lunch. It is so hot today and it is supposed to be Autumn and cooler. Picked up the mail and we had received a hand written note from Marlene which was nice. You don’t get many actual letters these days in these times of emails etc. Ty rang and we made arrangements to have brunch/morning tea at the end of this month. Rang Sal again and had another long natter. I cooked dinner outside in the frypan again and it is working well although I did take the big fan out with me to circulate the air around me whilst I was out there. Watched the news and found out why we felt so hot. Gladstone had just had its hottest day on record at 42ºC. Not only was it 42ºC but coupled with the humidity it was making life very uncomfortable.
Tuesday, 13th March 2007 - Day 737 - Gladstone
A little cooler this morning but still humid. Brenda had gone out early so I picked Vicky up and she stayed with us until 10:30 when we headed out. Picked up the mail on the way out and there was a letter from Geoff’s job network provider saying he had an appointment whilst we were away at Longreach so we popped in to change it and they had a vacancy for 1pm so we took it. We then went to the library to pick up some more reading matter and read the papers and then back to The Valley for a bit of lunch and then it was off to Geoff’s appointment and he seemed to be in there absolutely ages. On the way back to the boat we decided to pop into the Art Gallery and Museum which consisted of a few paintings and a big display of Gladstone Life Saving Club memorabilia. Glad we didn’t have to pay as it was a bit disappointing but a little interesting. The video store was opposite when we came out so we decided to see what they had to offer and came out with four DVD’s for the next three days. Checked the emails when we got back to 2AB and found I had a Telstra bill for our new mobiles which was a lot higher than usual. Rang Telstra and found that it was for 2 months but it looked like I was being charged for my capped plan and a repayment for the phone. She never said in the Telstra shop that I had to repay the phone as it was supposed to be a free change over and I repeatedly asked her if I could get this phone on the capped plan for a free change over. Geoff says that is what he believed too so she didn’t explain it very well so I hope I can sort something out. Trouble is, you sign a contract with them, don’t you. A job for tomorrow. Geoff finished grinding a hole through the top of the glass frypan lid and then went about looking for a suitable handle, to no avail. Then, whilst he was looking, there was a tap on the hull and it was Helen from ‘Sea Wife’ who works in an Op shop part time. She had seen Geoff working on the glass lid and had found an old saucepan lid in the Op shop with a bakelite knob and had grabbed it for us and it fitted perfectly. It was really good of her to think of us. Before, during and after dinner we watch 2 DVD’s. One was John Saffron vs God and the other was called The Great Raid and was based on the true story of the raid on Batan to release over 500 POW’s from the Japanese as the USA advanced towards them. The Japanese had been killing POW’s as the allies advanced. We had read the book about a month ago and it was a very true account of the book. It was filmed, mostly, on Bribie Island up here in Queensland and was very good. Late to bed.
Wednesday, 14th March 2007 - Day 738 - Gladstone
The southerly has arrived and it is now cool and windy - luvverly - so the Air/Con is off for a while. Irene from ‘Shoreline Song’ came round at 11am for Geoff to show her a few things on the computer and I went off to the Telstra Shop. It got a little heated but I took a deep breath and tried to calm down as you don’t get anywhere when you lose your cool. She said she had told me I had to pay the phone off as well as paying for my plan and I said she hadn’t as I would never had chosen that phone. It seems we might have been talking at cross purposes when we bought it. But, as I said previously, I had signed that contract. She rang Telstra and tried very hard to sort something for me and they did help a little. They allowed me to go to a $49 capped plan which gives me $250 of calls for the $49 plus I still have to pay the phone off. Still, it is better than nothing and it is a great phone. I will have to be more aware of the calls I make now. Popped into the embroidery shop and she said that the sample of the logo will be ready tomorrow afternoon. On to the chemist to get weighed and I had only lost .4 kg but had been on a couple of boats for sundowners during the week. When I got back Irene was still on 2AB and after she left we started a big clean up ready for Noriko’s visit tomorrow. Geoff then had a little sleep whilst I cooked dinner, once again in the frypan outside.
Thursday, 15th March 2007 - Day 739 - Gladstone
Warm day again but not so hot. Spent the morning getting ready for Noriko, like changing the bed etc and then had some soup for lunch and then we were ready to head off. First, drop off the DVD’s then check on the embroidery logo sampler which was great apart from a couple of minor alterations and then head off to the airport. We were 40 minutes early so we decided to check out the new Centro shopping centre as they had a marine and fishing shop there. Bought a new 12 volt fan for the saloon as our old one had stopped oscillating. The Centro is not completely open and is mostly bigger shops like Bunnings and Harvey Norman. Then onto the airport where we had time for a quick coffee before Noriko’s plane landed and there she was. She was nine years older but still looked the same. We hadn’t realised it had been so long since we last saw here. Time flies, doesn’t it?
Back to 2AB and the first thing she wanted to do was check her emails then it was catch up with all her news, look at her photos, have dinner and then chat some more. It’s good to have her here.
Text from Sally and they are just near Newcastle so are doing well. Not so late to bed as we were all pretty tired.
Friday, 16th March 2007 - Day 739 - Gladstone
Another warm day but very pleasant. Noriko had miso soup and rice for breakfast which she offered to us too. Bleh - politely refused thanks. We then introduced her to Brenda and Vicky and then it was off to buy Noriko a phone card and take her to the bank to change some travellers cheques. Whilst we were out we also bought some cheap tops and took them to the embroidery shop to get the logo put on them as testers.
I also bought two polyester shower curtains and will either hand sew them together or sweet talk Brenda to do them for me on her sewing machine. We then did a tour of the town and the lookout area and then had lunch out which probably blew my diet, even though I tried to choose wisely. As we were walking back to the boat we met up with Fergus and family. Apparently he said he was too busy these days to come and see us much. Cute!
When we eventually got back to the boat Geoff showed Noriko how to take movies on her digital camera so off she went to experiment while it was snooze time for “the old man”. Later Noriko and Geoff went off to buy fish and chips for their tea whilst I had soup to try to compensate for my lunch. After dinner Geoff showed Noriko some photos and movies and then it was time for a shower and bed.
I also bought two polyester shower curtains and will either hand sew them together or sweet talk Brenda to do them for me on her sewing machine. We then did a tour of the town and the lookout area and then had lunch out which probably blew my diet, even though I tried to choose wisely. As we were walking back to the boat we met up with Fergus and family. Apparently he said he was too busy these days to come and see us much. Cute!
When we eventually got back to the boat Geoff showed Noriko how to take movies on her digital camera so off she went to experiment while it was snooze time for “the old man”. Later Noriko and Geoff went off to buy fish and chips for their tea whilst I had soup to try to compensate for my lunch. After dinner Geoff showed Noriko some photos and movies and then it was time for a shower and bed.
Saturday, 17th March 2007 - Day 740 - Gladstone to Longreach via the ‘Spirit of the Outback’
Today was mainly spent packing up the boat, taking down the covers, turning off the stop cocks and packing our clothes. We had an early dinner before heading off to the train which came in 20 minutes early. The economy sleeper berth was just about big enough but with big seats and plenty of leg room. Once the three bunks were in place there was just enough room in between them to sleep but not to sit up in bed and read. There was also a fold away sink. Geoff looked into the first class berths and the only difference was that they had a very small wardrobe and more room between the bunks so we are glad we didn't pay for the extra. We were all in bed by 10:30 but it took a while to get accustomed to the feel of the rocking and the noises as people passed our cabin outside. We were all in bed by 10:30 but it took a while to get accustomed to the feel of the rocking and the noises as people passed our cabin outside.
Sunday, 18th March 2007 - Day 741 - Gladstone to Longreach
Woke up after a reasonable but broken sleep. The noises and motion of the train was enough to rouse you at times. We were booked into the 8 am breakfast and most other people had been booked into the 7 am breakfast so it was off to the shower whilst they were gone. It was a good sized shower with a good shower rose and a hole in the floor for the water to drain. What had shocked me earlier was that anything that went down the toilet, and you know what I mean, also goes straight out onto the railway tracks. I suppose I expected, in these days of health awareness, that it would go into a holding tank like it does on 2AB, but evidently not! Off to brekky at 8am and there were only four off us as we were the overflow from the 7am sitting as we got on the train later than most. What a nice dining car it was. It was tastefully decorated in the style of the outback and very reasonably priced.
We spent most of the rest of the trip sitting in the comfy chairs of the Stockman's Bar, also tastefully decorated. Here you could read the paper whilst drinking either alcoholic or non alcoholic drinks. Much more civilised than just sitting in your cabin looking out of the window. We got out to stretch our legs at Alpha, Barcaldine and
Ilfracombe. Barcaldine is where the ‘tree of knowledge’ is and is the tree that the Qld shearers sat under whilst involved in the famous shearers strike many years ago. From this strike the Labor party was born and a shearer was the first member and leader of the Labor party. This tree has recently been poisoned by an unknown person (liberal person perhaps???), for whatever reason, but a shoot has been propagated and it will be replanted once the shoot is established. Even though it is now dead it is still an interesting looking tree and I think they should leave it there.
We met some nice people on the train and the rest of the trip went by very fast as we all sat in the Stockman's Bar and chatted non stop.
We got into Longreach early and grabbed a taxi to Gunnadoo Caravan Park and Cabins where we had booked a 2 bedroom cottage. We settled into the cottage (basic) and then headed for the swimming pool nearby. As it wasn’t the main pool we had it all to ourselves which was nice. Then, once it had cooled off, we walked into town and it was a good 25 minute walk and it was the first long walk Geoff had done since he broke his foot and he struggled just a little bit. We decided on the Happy Valley Café which was a Chinese Restaurant as the prices were around the $10 mark and the food was quite tasty. Then it was the long 25 minute walk back to the cottage along a pretty walking/bike track. This track was built alongside the Matilda Highway and there were heaps of road trains constantly passing us which made me think of Steve, my truck driver ex-bro-in-law in the UK. Time for bed.
We spent most of the rest of the trip sitting in the comfy chairs of the Stockman's Bar, also tastefully decorated. Here you could read the paper whilst drinking either alcoholic or non alcoholic drinks. Much more civilised than just sitting in your cabin looking out of the window. We got out to stretch our legs at Alpha, Barcaldine and
Ilfracombe. Barcaldine is where the ‘tree of knowledge’ is and is the tree that the Qld shearers sat under whilst involved in the famous shearers strike many years ago. From this strike the Labor party was born and a shearer was the first member and leader of the Labor party. This tree has recently been poisoned by an unknown person (liberal person perhaps???), for whatever reason, but a shoot has been propagated and it will be replanted once the shoot is established. Even though it is now dead it is still an interesting looking tree and I think they should leave it there.
We met some nice people on the train and the rest of the trip went by very fast as we all sat in the Stockman's Bar and chatted non stop.
We got into Longreach early and grabbed a taxi to Gunnadoo Caravan Park and Cabins where we had booked a 2 bedroom cottage. We settled into the cottage (basic) and then headed for the swimming pool nearby. As it wasn’t the main pool we had it all to ourselves which was nice. Then, once it had cooled off, we walked into town and it was a good 25 minute walk and it was the first long walk Geoff had done since he broke his foot and he struggled just a little bit. We decided on the Happy Valley Café which was a Chinese Restaurant as the prices were around the $10 mark and the food was quite tasty. Then it was the long 25 minute walk back to the cottage along a pretty walking/bike track. This track was built alongside the Matilda Highway and there were heaps of road trains constantly passing us which made me think of Steve, my truck driver ex-bro-in-law in the UK. Time for bed.
Monday, 19th March 2007 - Day 742 - Longreach
Reasonably good nights sleep but with the air conditioning on low all night. Up at 8:30 and toast and marmalade for brekky on the verandah then a shower. Head off to the Stockman's Hall of Fame, a 15 minute walk away. The Stockman's Hall of Fame was interesting and a well thought out building and displays but we thought it was a little disappointing for the price. The adult price was $22.50 and there were no dioramas or hands on stuff.
It was interesting though but the audio visual slide show left a lot to be desired. A lot of it was slides of the Vic Alps and excerpts from the film “The Man from Snowy River” and the slides were getting old, distorted and out of focus. Geoff spoke to the manager, but nicely - as only Geoff can, and told them their audio visual was really letting them down and said if they wanted to see a good one they should get a copy of the Parks Victoria one in Bright. The manager agreed that it was not good and said that Village Roadshow had been commissioned to do another one so all is in hand. By this time it was lunch time so we walked back to the road to cross to the Qantas Founders Museum to their café where the food was more reasonably priced. Geoff had wedges, Noriko chips and I had the ploughman’s lunch. Into the museum, full price $18, still a bit steep but interesting and we can go back in tomorrow if we want to. Noriko left us then and went back to the cottage for a beer. We had paid extra to go around the 747 that was on display there. We were shown the cargo hold, cockpit, upstairs (which was economy seating in this plane) and lots of other things you wouldn’t normally see. Then all the rest of the tour group left and Geoff stayed behind as he had paid extra to go on the guided tour of the area underneath business class where the computers, spare air etc are housed and then went out onto the wing. Just up Geoff’s alley.
He had about another hour’s tour and I was able to take some extra photos. By this time it was nearly 5pm so we started to walk back to Gunnadoo where Noriko was patiently waiting for us. Time for a swim in our ‘private’ swimming pool for a cool off and then drinks on the verandah before heading just across the road to the truck stop for another cheap dinner.
Geoff and I ordered the roast beef and, once again, it was a huge meal as all meals at truck stops are for the huge cost of $10. Whilst we were eating, Noriko quizzed us on how we had met and then we reminisced on the folk back in Bright that we all knew. We had recently had an email from Lisa and a big email from Christy, and Noriko remembers them all well and I forwarded their emails to Noriko so she can reply when she gets back to Japan.
It was interesting though but the audio visual slide show left a lot to be desired. A lot of it was slides of the Vic Alps and excerpts from the film “The Man from Snowy River” and the slides were getting old, distorted and out of focus. Geoff spoke to the manager, but nicely - as only Geoff can, and told them their audio visual was really letting them down and said if they wanted to see a good one they should get a copy of the Parks Victoria one in Bright. The manager agreed that it was not good and said that Village Roadshow had been commissioned to do another one so all is in hand. By this time it was lunch time so we walked back to the road to cross to the Qantas Founders Museum to their café where the food was more reasonably priced. Geoff had wedges, Noriko chips and I had the ploughman’s lunch. Into the museum, full price $18, still a bit steep but interesting and we can go back in tomorrow if we want to. Noriko left us then and went back to the cottage for a beer. We had paid extra to go around the 747 that was on display there. We were shown the cargo hold, cockpit, upstairs (which was economy seating in this plane) and lots of other things you wouldn’t normally see. Then all the rest of the tour group left and Geoff stayed behind as he had paid extra to go on the guided tour of the area underneath business class where the computers, spare air etc are housed and then went out onto the wing. Just up Geoff’s alley.
Geoff and I ordered the roast beef and, once again, it was a huge meal as all meals at truck stops are for the huge cost of $10. Whilst we were eating, Noriko quizzed us on how we had met and then we reminisced on the folk back in Bright that we all knew. We had recently had an email from Lisa and a big email from Christy, and Noriko remembers them all well and I forwarded their emails to Noriko so she can reply when she gets back to Japan.
Tuesday, 20th March 2007 - Day 743 - Longreach
Up just before 8am. We decided to have bacon and eggs for breakfast but it took us a while to work out the hotplate to get the eggs to cook so we missed the morning tour of “The School of the Air” so decided to go tomorrow. Noriko and I decided to relax on the verandah as Geoff wanted to go back to the Qantas Museum as we hadn’t seen it all yesterday. When he came back we had a bite to eat and then walked into town to have a look at the shops when they were open. We popped into the information Centre whilst we were there and found that the tours of the School of the Air were not happening at present as the lady that runs them had broken her arm. We then thought we would look into hiring a car for the last day and go to Winton. Avis said they only had a Camry at $79 a day but it needed washing but if we were not worried about it we could pick it up straight away (it was now 3pm on the Tues) and leave it at the railway station at 8am Thursday for the $79. Sounded like a good deal so I rang for a taxi. When it hadn’t arrived 15 minutes later the info centre rang the taxi to see where it was. Of course it arrived a few seconds later and then the info centre realised they had rung the other taxi company to the one I had rung. The other taxi came as we pulled away and she chased our taxi up the road and abused our driver as she passed. Fun and games in a small outback town! We picked up our car from the airport and its front grill was thick with locust squash but who cares. We decided to do a tour of the outer reaches of the town in case we had missed anything when we were walking, which we hadn’t, and then it was back to the cottage for a nice rosé on the verandah. We had bought 3 bottles of assorted wines from the office. They were called Van Vino, as in caravan wine, and were made in South Australia and were surprisingly good. At 5:30 a taxi arrived to take us to the Thomson River to board the double decker catamaran the ‘Longreach Explorer’ for a dinner cruise. There were only five passengers and it was very peaceful. The Thomson River is really just a very long billabong and is fed by rain water only, coming from the Artesian Basin water catchment. We saw about 50 Whistling Kites and quite a few turtles and also saw what Coolabah trees look like. The river was as flat as a tack and it was a nice, if not exciting, experience and we were back at 8am.
Wednesday, 21st March 2007 - Day 744 - Longreach to Winton and back
Up early, eat brekky and leave for Winton at 7am, a 165 km drive away. We drove through flat, savannah type country that never seemed to end and eventually got into Winton just before 9am. We went into the Matilda Centre and found that the drive to the Dinosaur Trackways was an hour and a half’s drive so we wouldn’t make it for the 10am tour so we decided to wander around the Matilda Centre Museum and displays. It was a good exhibition, perhaps more enjoyable than the Stockman's Hall of Fame as they had more interactive displays. The theme was mostly Banjo Patterson and Waltzing Matilda as Winton was where Banjo Patterson penned the words of Waltzing Matilda to a tune he heard from a Christina McPherson. By 10:30 we hadn’t finished but had to make a move to drive the 110 km to Lark Quarry and the Dinosaur Trackway. As we drove along the never ending dirt road in very flat country the colours slowly started to change from yellow to a deeper ochre colour.
As we neared our destination the terrain also changed until we were driving through red mesa type country. It was stark but surprisingly beautiful. We were hoping the long drive would be worth it. And it was, although I’m not sure Noriko enjoyed it but I was enthralled by it all as I’m really interested in rocks, fossils and this type of thing. They had built a rammed earth building for temperature control to house the tracks to stop erosion as they had been left uncovered for 15 years when they were discovered due to lack of funds. It wasn’t until the Stockman's Hall of Fame was built that the tourist potential came to the fore and the govt put in some money to build the structure to protect the tracks forever. Luckily the tracks had not been eroded too much and they were still clear to see. I could visualise the stampede in my minds eye. It was very fascinating. Lark Quarry is the world’s only recorded dinosaur stampede and features some 3300 fossilised dinosaur tracks. From the tracks they believe that 95,000,000 years ago a Therepod, slightly smaller than a Tyrannosarous, was stalking about 150 of the smaller Ornithopods and even smaller Coelurosaurs who were drinking at the muddy lake shore. A stampede followed and the tracks were made in the mud. In the next few days, run off from heavy rains caused the lake to rise and a fresh layer of silt covered the tracks, preserving them until they were discovered over 20 years ago. much and they were still clear to see. I could visualise the stampede in my minds eye. It was very fascinating. Lark Quarry is the world’s only recorded dinosaur stampede and features some 3300 fossilised dinosaur tracks. From the tracks they believe that 95,000,000 years ago a Therepod, slightly smaller than a Tyrannosarous, was stalking about 150 of the smaller Ornithopods and even smaller Coelurosaurs who were drinking at the muddy lake shore. A stampede followed and the tracks were left in the mud. In the next few days, run off from heavy rains caused the lake to rise and a fresh layer of silt covered the tracks, preserving them until they were discovered over 15 years ago.
After we had gazed our fill, Geoff decided to go on a quick self guided walk but us two girls turned back as it was very hot and we had sleeveless tops on and didn’t want to get burnt. On the drive back we filmed the clouds as they were very beautiful, sitting like cotton wool in the pure blue sky. We arrived back in Winton just before 3pm and made our way to the Corfield Emporium which now housed a fossil and dinosaur museum. They had a full scale display of what they envisaged the dinosaur stampeded to have been like.
It was not air conditioned and was very warm inside and needed a bit of TLC but it had been done well, especially for a small outback town, They had a great fossil display and even had a meteorite that had crashed into the outback near Winton in 2004 and was not found until 2006. It was then on to the Opal Museum and an old theatre next door and this was a shocker. Definitely a small time display and was in desperate need of some TLC and a lick of paint, maybe. So we left there in a hurry and made our way to the North Gregory Hotel where the song Waltzing Matilda was first performed. It’s not the original hotel as it and quite a few buildings in the main street had been destroyed by fire in 1938. We had a look around and, boy, you should have seen the state of the backpackers accommodation out the back. Terrible! We had walked past it to visit Arno’s Wall as we have a friend called Arno back in Bright. Arno’s Wall was built of everything including the kitchen sink and was very strange. After a quick drink in the hotel it was back to the Matilda Centre to finish off looking at the museum displays and to buy a few souvenirs. I then drove back to Longreach and we got in around 6:30 pm so stopped off at the RSL Club for a bite to eat (once again large) then back to Gunnadoo for a glass of wine, touch of TV and bed.
As we neared our destination the terrain also changed until we were driving through red mesa type country. It was stark but surprisingly beautiful. We were hoping the long drive would be worth it. And it was, although I’m not sure Noriko enjoyed it but I was enthralled by it all as I’m really interested in rocks, fossils and this type of thing. They had built a rammed earth building for temperature control to house the tracks to stop erosion as they had been left uncovered for 15 years when they were discovered due to lack of funds. It wasn’t until the Stockman's Hall of Fame was built that the tourist potential came to the fore and the govt put in some money to build the structure to protect the tracks forever. Luckily the tracks had not been eroded too much and they were still clear to see. I could visualise the stampede in my minds eye. It was very fascinating. Lark Quarry is the world’s only recorded dinosaur stampede and features some 3300 fossilised dinosaur tracks. From the tracks they believe that 95,000,000 years ago a Therepod, slightly smaller than a Tyrannosarous, was stalking about 150 of the smaller Ornithopods and even smaller Coelurosaurs who were drinking at the muddy lake shore. A stampede followed and the tracks were made in the mud. In the next few days, run off from heavy rains caused the lake to rise and a fresh layer of silt covered the tracks, preserving them until they were discovered over 20 years ago. much and they were still clear to see. I could visualise the stampede in my minds eye. It was very fascinating. Lark Quarry is the world’s only recorded dinosaur stampede and features some 3300 fossilised dinosaur tracks. From the tracks they believe that 95,000,000 years ago a Therepod, slightly smaller than a Tyrannosarous, was stalking about 150 of the smaller Ornithopods and even smaller Coelurosaurs who were drinking at the muddy lake shore. A stampede followed and the tracks were left in the mud. In the next few days, run off from heavy rains caused the lake to rise and a fresh layer of silt covered the tracks, preserving them until they were discovered over 15 years ago.
After we had gazed our fill, Geoff decided to go on a quick self guided walk but us two girls turned back as it was very hot and we had sleeveless tops on and didn’t want to get burnt. On the drive back we filmed the clouds as they were very beautiful, sitting like cotton wool in the pure blue sky. We arrived back in Winton just before 3pm and made our way to the Corfield Emporium which now housed a fossil and dinosaur museum. They had a full scale display of what they envisaged the dinosaur stampeded to have been like.
It was not air conditioned and was very warm inside and needed a bit of TLC but it had been done well, especially for a small outback town, They had a great fossil display and even had a meteorite that had crashed into the outback near Winton in 2004 and was not found until 2006. It was then on to the Opal Museum and an old theatre next door and this was a shocker. Definitely a small time display and was in desperate need of some TLC and a lick of paint, maybe. So we left there in a hurry and made our way to the North Gregory Hotel where the song Waltzing Matilda was first performed. It’s not the original hotel as it and quite a few buildings in the main street had been destroyed by fire in 1938. We had a look around and, boy, you should have seen the state of the backpackers accommodation out the back. Terrible! We had walked past it to visit Arno’s Wall as we have a friend called Arno back in Bright. Arno’s Wall was built of everything including the kitchen sink and was very strange. After a quick drink in the hotel it was back to the Matilda Centre to finish off looking at the museum displays and to buy a few souvenirs. I then drove back to Longreach and we got in around 6:30 pm so stopped off at the RSL Club for a bite to eat (once again large) then back to Gunnadoo for a glass of wine, touch of TV and bed.
Thursday, 22nd March 2007 - Longreach to Gladstone
Up at 6:30, brekky, shower and head off to the station. Drop the Camry at the station and find our seats in cattle class. The train left on time at 8am and we headed off for some breakfast.
We didn’t stay in our seats for very long as it was off to Starlight's Café for coffee and then onto the Stockman’s Bar to sit and relax in the comfy seats. AND this is where we stayed for most of the day having a few drinks during the day, mostly non alcoholic I might add, but I will add I said mostly! A most civilised way to travel on a train. We ended up snoozing for about an hour before we were rudely awoken by a child and her mother (the mother was noisier than the child). We then watched the never ending flat landscape go by until the train ground to a halt to, apparently, engage the brakes for a steep and slow (to stop the train derailing) winding descent through a deepish gorge and then the landscape went back to flat, flat, flat again. At 6:30 it was off to the Dining Car for dinner. Noriko and Geoff had the rib fillet steak at $14 whilst I had the lamb stew at $12. The food was reasonably priced and beautifully cooked and the veggies were fresh and the meals were all washed down with a glass of bubbly. We then decided we had better make our way back to our seats in cattle class and were quite surprised to see how full it had got in the meantime. By this time it was dark so I read my book until we got into Gladstone over 45 minutes late. It felt like a much longer trip this time as it was all in the daylight whereas we slept a lot of the time away on the way up. It was 15 hours for us but 25 hours for those going on to Brisbane. All in all, with the trip to the Dinosaur Trackway we estimated we had done a round trip of over 2070 kms. By the time we got back to the boat it was nearly midnight so we all headed off to bed. As I took my glasses off they actually fell in two so it is a good job I have an appointment at the opticians next week.
We didn’t stay in our seats for very long as it was off to Starlight's Café for coffee and then onto the Stockman’s Bar to sit and relax in the comfy seats. AND this is where we stayed for most of the day having a few drinks during the day, mostly non alcoholic I might add, but I will add I said mostly! A most civilised way to travel on a train. We ended up snoozing for about an hour before we were rudely awoken by a child and her mother (the mother was noisier than the child). We then watched the never ending flat landscape go by until the train ground to a halt to, apparently, engage the brakes for a steep and slow (to stop the train derailing) winding descent through a deepish gorge and then the landscape went back to flat, flat, flat again. At 6:30 it was off to the Dining Car for dinner. Noriko and Geoff had the rib fillet steak at $14 whilst I had the lamb stew at $12. The food was reasonably priced and beautifully cooked and the veggies were fresh and the meals were all washed down with a glass of bubbly. We then decided we had better make our way back to our seats in cattle class and were quite surprised to see how full it had got in the meantime. By this time it was dark so I read my book until we got into Gladstone over 45 minutes late. It felt like a much longer trip this time as it was all in the daylight whereas we slept a lot of the time away on the way up. It was 15 hours for us but 25 hours for those going on to Brisbane. All in all, with the trip to the Dinosaur Trackway we estimated we had done a round trip of over 2070 kms. By the time we got back to the boat it was nearly midnight so we all headed off to bed. As I took my glasses off they actually fell in two so it is a good job I have an appointment at the opticians next week.
Friday, 23rd March 2007 - Day 746 - Gladstone to Graham Creek
Up reasonably early after a good nights sleep. A shower and then Noriko and I went to get a few groceries, alcohol, a cheap pair of reading glasses and onto the embroidery shop to pick up our tops with the logo on it. They look good. Had to wait for the bank to open so Noriko could change some money and then it was back to 2AB. Geoff had filled up with water, washed the boat and taken down the covers and we ready to cast off. It took a couple of hours to sail to Graham Creek after a small stuff up with the sails as our sailing skills had got a little rusty. After we anchored, in went the rods. It didn’t take long before my rod was doubling up and I had caught a small Hammerhead Shark, maybe 50-60cm. A strange but beautiful creature that went back in to grow up to be a killer.
And that was it for the day, not another bite. It was the first time that Noriko had ever gone fishing and it was a shame that she didn’t catch anything. Geoff took her out fishing in the tender but still no fish so they went ashore at the little sandy beach close by and watched the sunset.
Not a very nice day, windy with some rain but Noriko was enjoying herself. Fried rice for dinner as Noriko just loves rice, of course, she’s Japanese. Tried out the TV on the high definition PC card and it worked really well and then we watched the movie ‘Mona Lisa Smile’ with Julia Roberts, not the best movie she has ever been in.
And that was it for the day, not another bite. It was the first time that Noriko had ever gone fishing and it was a shame that she didn’t catch anything. Geoff took her out fishing in the tender but still no fish so they went ashore at the little sandy beach close by and watched the sunset.
Not a very nice day, windy with some rain but Noriko was enjoying herself. Fried rice for dinner as Noriko just loves rice, of course, she’s Japanese. Tried out the TV on the high definition PC card and it worked really well and then we watched the movie ‘Mona Lisa Smile’ with Julia Roberts, not the best movie she has ever been in.
Saturday, 24th March 2007 - Day 747 - Graham Creek
It rained on and off all night but seems to be clearing up. No fish so Geoff decided we will head up the creek some more and also for a change of scenery. What change of scenery? These mangrove creeks all look alike. Once we had anchored Geoff and Noriko went off again in the tender, ever hopeful, with the rods. Luckily, this time, Noriko caught a small Moses Perch and Geoff didn’t have the heart to tell her it was probably a bit small and not the best of fish, however it was cooked and enjoyed by Noriko. It was nice that she managed to catch a fish.
It had also turned out a nice day and the wind had died. John and Jan from the green ketch ‘Walk Tall’ are anchored a bit further up the creek. They are the ones we shared Christmas lunch with at Yellow Patch in 2006. Just before sunset we had a game of boat darts and I won the first game even though I was very late starting. Geoff won around the board, of course, as I am useless at that game. Then we all fished off the back step as the sun slowly slipped below the horizon making a beautiful sunset with the hills in the background and with the water as calm as could be. Geoff cooked ham steaks and Noriko’s fish on the BBQ and I made a nice salad to go with it. We all thought it was an idyllic day until the sun had gone down and the wind had died and we got inundated with sand flies and mozi’s. Bloody things!
It had also turned out a nice day and the wind had died. John and Jan from the green ketch ‘Walk Tall’ are anchored a bit further up the creek. They are the ones we shared Christmas lunch with at Yellow Patch in 2006. Just before sunset we had a game of boat darts and I won the first game even though I was very late starting. Geoff won around the board, of course, as I am useless at that game. Then we all fished off the back step as the sun slowly slipped below the horizon making a beautiful sunset with the hills in the background and with the water as calm as could be. Geoff cooked ham steaks and Noriko’s fish on the BBQ and I made a nice salad to go with it. We all thought it was an idyllic day until the sun had gone down and the wind had died and we got inundated with sand flies and mozi’s. Bloody things!
Sunday, 25th March 2007 - Day 748 - Graham Creek to Gladstone
Bloody mozi’s and sandflies! That’s the trouble with mangrove creeks, especially when there is no wind. We’ve all been bitten almost to death. I should have put the mozi net up as soon as we got here. Never mind, we are off today. Geoff put the genny on this morning to test whether it would run the air conditioner. The genny was at full revs but it did manage to run the A/Con with it oscillating so we are impressed. You could only have the A/C on if you were the only ones in the anchorage as the genny would probably drive people nuts, even though it is one of the quietest ones around. Another nice day but we have to leave the anchorage just after lunch to catch the tide back to Gladstone and due to the fact that strong winds are forecast late tonight or early tomorrow morning plus Noriko flies to Sydney tomorrow afternoon. Bacon and eggs for brekky and then Geoff and Noriko went out in the tender for one last fish but to no avail. Veggie soup for lunch and then it was up anchor and motor back up the creek heading for Gladstone. The wind was on the nose all the way so we were bashing into it a bit. We got in about 4:30pm and docked perfectly even though there were quite a few people watching. We put all the covers up and then went for a nice long shower before heading to the Thai Restaurant for a last good meal with Noriko. It was the same Thai people who used to run the Thai Restaurant in Goondoon St that was a French Café during the day and a Thai Restaurant at night. We had tried to find it before but couldn’t but had since been told it had moved to Tank St down by the railway station. Still cheap, still good food and still the same friendly Thai owners. Afterwards we drove to Kin Kora to McDonalds to buy three chocolate sundaes which we ate in the marina grounds under a starlit sky and watched the peaceful marina scene in front of us. Early to bed as we were all very tired.
Monday, 26th March 2007 - Day 749 - Gladstone
Good night’s sleep although Noriko had more bites on her overnight even though she sprayed. Maybe it was when we were eating the ice creams last night. Geoff and I then headed off to the opticians to get our eyes tested and organize our Qld Health free glasses. Well, I thought it was too good to be true as when she showed me the frames available through this system I nearly died. Coloured plastic frames and so old fashioned that only people who no longer cared would wear them. Plus you could only have bi focals and not progressive lenses but the good side was that this optician had reasonable frames at a good price and the total for frames and progressive lenses came to $200 a pair whereas I had paid over $350 in the gold coast for the lenses alone as I supplied my own frames. What a rip off, they must have seen me coming! So we have both ordered progressive lenses, Geoff for the first time so we will see how he takes to them. I suppose I should have ordered a free pair as spares but I can always do that later. Onto the computer shop and the external hard drive has only just arrived in Brisbane so will be up here at the end of the week. Then we headed to The Central Shopping Centre and bought some more cheap wine from the bottle shop, 3 Jacobs Creek wines for $20, a bottle of Rose for $3.99 and 2 white wines for $1.99 (yes, we are suckers for punishment as we still have heaps of that terrible 99¢ wine left) then to Domino’s Pizza and bought 3 large pizzas using the Shopper docket for $15.95 which we took back to 2AB for lunch where Noriko was patiently waiting. We left just after three to take Noriko to the airport via the chemist where she bought something to help her stop scratching her bites. Time for a coffee and then it was time for her to leave us. A teary Noriko, a teary Geoff and a dry eyed me, as usual. Why I find it hard to cry is beyond me as I am probably feeling just as sad as the others. A defence mechanism probably.
Back to 2AB and a glass of Rose … hmmm … not bad for $3.99. A winner! Oh - we sold our old digital set top box today for $30 so that’s got rid of that. Ate the rest of the pizza for tea so the diet will definitely have to get back on track tomorrow.
Back to 2AB and a glass of Rose … hmmm … not bad for $3.99. A winner! Oh - we sold our old digital set top box today for $30 so that’s got rid of that. Ate the rest of the pizza for tea so the diet will definitely have to get back on track tomorrow.
Tuesday, 27th March 2007 - Day 750 - Gladstone
Back to Conservation Volunteers today for three and a half hours. Clean Up Australia Day has finished for another year and Lynne finishes up this week but Carl is working on some projects to keep me busy until I go, which is good. Roderick brought in a fattening cream cake for morning tea as a thank you to Lynne for all the work she has done so there goes the diet again. When I got back to the boat I rang Qantas and managed to cancel the Gladstone to Brisbane out going leg of our flight to Sydney and rang Kristene to let her know we were definitely able to bring the cars down for them. Geoff had got some prices for the haul out and storage of 2AB whilst we were in the UK from the other boat yard here in Gladstone so we will compare prices and decide who to book with. I had emailed HBA (our health insurance provider) to find out how we cancelled our health insurance for three months and they emailed back saying it was all now done. (Thank you Sally for letting me know about this as it has now paid for our travel insurance). Popped into the Library to take the books back and then went shopping for some more cheap tops. Rippa … a sale …. So we got quite a few tops for a reasonable price which we dropped off at the embroidery shop. After tea Geoff rang Marlene to tell her we would like to visit on the way through to Brisbane and found that she was very sad as her grand daughter, 16 years of age, had been killed in a car accident down in Victoria a couple of weeks ago. Our hearts went out to her as it is so sad and she was so young. Why do these things have to happen? Marlene and Corrine have just come back from Victoria. Anyway, she said she would be pleased to see us, as we will be to see her, Corrine & William and hopefully Bernie and Henry at Coolum Beach as well. Tried the $1.99 wine & it’s good too!
Wednesday, 28th February 2007 - Day 751 - Gladstone
Off to CVA again for another 3 hours. Lynne was given a Zen Garden as a going away present today. We spent the morning un stapling McDonald’s Big Mac vouchers from letters to send to schools as they run out next week. Geoff popped in just before midday and then we decided to head off to Macca’s so he could have a Big Mac for lunch and I had the chicken salad. Get some groceries and then looked around the shops for pirate gear. Gladstone is holding their Harbour Festival over Easter and they want locals and visitors alike to dress up as pirates during the street parade to get into the Guinness Book of Record as the largest gathering of pirates. So far we have got a pirates hat, hook, sword, eye patch and eye glass for Geoff plus some striped pants of mine. I have only got the hat so far and we are going to troll through the Op shops today to see what we can come up with. The minimum requirement is an eye patch. There is also a yacht race from Mooloolaba to Gladstone and the marina is going to be crammed full with boats in any spare spot. The marina asked us if we were going out for Easter as once the boats are all crammed in there will be no way we will be able to get out. Geoff is working at VMR so we will be here and I am dreading the noise. After dinner we decided to go to the cinema, first time since we’ve been here, and decided on Hot Fuzz. This was a British comedy based on an over achieving cop who is sent to a little country town. I don’t know what I expected but it was very gory in a very funny way, a bit sad also Blending comedy, sadness and violence as only the poms can do to make a hilarious film. We can recommend it to anyone but maybe it is just our weird sense of humour. We didn’t get back until after 11:30 so it was straight off to bed for me although Geoff dangled his line in as there are some humungous fish in this marina at times.
Thursday, 29th March 2007 - Day 752 - Gladstone
Got my journal up to date and then headed off to Minnecon and Burke for my appointment and I was out within 20 minutes. Off to CVA but not much to do now that Clean Up is over so mostly chatted with Lynne for 90 minutes. Karl isn’t in till Monday and he is working on some projects for me to do until we leave on the 20th April. We have decided to put 2AB on the hard stand from then at the slightly dearer ship yard as the cradle to pull her out is a bit more secure and the yard a lot more professional. Back to 2AB for lunch and then we headed off to the Op shops to see what pirate gear we could find. I managed to find a low cut dress that I managed to SQUEEZE into as I am going as a pirate wench. Geoff got a few more things and then it was back to the boat to make them up. Geoff decided to do a practice run and really made Brenda laugh but Vicky growled at him. Then it was off to the marina office where he asked them if they had room for a 65 foot Galleon. The answer was no and not a smile was cracked. Whoops. We found out after that they were having a bad day. We found this out from one of the workers who was leaving the office as we went in. The worker had a good laugh as did the water police that Geoff accosted as he walked down the walkway to the boats. Apart from these few things it was a non eventful day.
Friday, 30th March 2007 - Day 752 - Gladstone
Big clean up of the boat today plus a big load of washing. I also made up another large batch of soup in the electric frypan. Later we received text messages saying the our new glasses were ready so we popped into town to pick them up. They look ok but I’m not too happy with the reading aspect of mine. The only bit of the page that is in focus is right in the middle with the outer edges fuzzy. Geoff’s are good for the TV but the long distance is not so good as his old ones. I have made an appointment to have mine looked at next Thursday if they are still no good. Geoff will think about his. On the way back to 2AB we popped into the library but that was all we really got up to today.
Saturday, 31st March 2007 - Day 753 - Gladstone
Brenda popped by with my new shower curtains that she had joined together for me and Geoff put them up and threw the old, tatty ones out. Great. I vacuumed the boat and then made pikelets. Just after 9:30 Ty, Justine and their two year old daughter, Charlotte, arrived for a visit. Justine had baked a batch of monte carlo type biscuits and they were very good. She says she is still learning to cook but these were just fine. Charlotte was a very cute looking girl and certainly looked like her dad. Whilst we were sitting on the back deck drinking coffee Dick and Brenda off ‘Chalwyn’ arrived. They were the ones who put us onto the Celtic salt and Water Cure and had come down from Rocky to Gladstone to sort out a problem with their phone at the Telstra shop. We invited them on board so 2AB’s little back deck was getting a little crowded. Ty and Justine left just after 11:30 and then Brenda said they would shout us lunch so we wandered up to the café in the marina complex near the info centre. Nice, and then it was back to the boat for coffee. They eventually left around 3pm. Helen from ‘Sea Wife’ then popped by and asked us if we wanted two free tickets to go and see the amateur production of ‘No sex please, we’re British’ that was playing at the Gladstone Entertainment Centre. We got there just before 7pm and there was a short farce called ‘Last Tango in Little Grimley’ on first which we thought was quite clever. Unfortunately ‘No sex please, we’re British’ was an extremely amateurish affair and was disappointing with bad timing and wooden acting. It would have been worse if we had paid $22 a head to see it. The Alpine Actors in Bright leave them for dead! Geoff couldn’t wait to get out of there but I thought it was at least a night out and free. Back to 2AB just after 10pm and found there was a big moth in the boat. Of course, it made a bee line for my cabin and I had to grab it in a tea towel and get it out of the hatch. I really don’t like insect especially moths and spiders. Bleh!
Sunday, 1st April 2007 - Day 753 - Gladstone
First of the month today and only 30 days before we fly out to the UK, 20 days before we put 2AB on the hard stand and 22 days before we leave Gladstone to drive down to Brisbane. Geoff went into the VMR today for an hour. I saw a job vacancy on a job vacancy website recommended by Centrelink for Relief Managers for Village Life Retirement Villages which are all over Australia so sent in a covering letter and our resumes for when we return in August. The work reads like exactly the sort of work we did at Noonameena. Meals, grounds maintenance and admin work. It would be the ideal sort of job for us so it is worth going for. You never know unless you give it a go. When Geoff came back it was bacon and eggs time then he had a laptop job to look at. I rang Sally and they were just about to cross ‘The Rip’ into Port Philip Bay, so they are almost there. The rest of the morning and early afternoon was spent just pottering around the boat until it was 3:30 pm and time to dress up as pirates for the parade.
We wandered up to the info centre with Rick and Brenda to watch the parade from there. Geoff had Brenda and Rick in stitches with his pirate antics as he gave out gold doubloons (choc money) to the little kids if they had “been good”, as he put it.
And to the big kids as well. I kept forgetting to take photos as I was laughing so much. The parade was ok but not as good as the Autumn Festival Parade in Bright but we still thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. I had ‘squeezed’ into my wenches dress and it showed a great deal of my ample cleavage, as wench dresses do! After the parade we partook of the free sausage sizzle and then it was back to 2AB to change as I refused to wear my wenches dress to the fun fare and free concert.
We wandered up to the fun fare and had a bite to eat and then found Rick and Brenda, where we shared their rug in front of the sound shell where we watch Dean Vegas perform his ‘Tribute to Elvis’. He won the world title of the Elvis Impersonation last year in the states. He was a good performer and we had a good ‘free’ evening that was thoroughly enjoyed by all. See http://www.deanvegas.com/ All in all a great day and the fun fare even finished up by 11pm, which was good.
We wandered up to the info centre with Rick and Brenda to watch the parade from there. Geoff had Brenda and Rick in stitches with his pirate antics as he gave out gold doubloons (choc money) to the little kids if they had “been good”, as he put it.
And to the big kids as well. I kept forgetting to take photos as I was laughing so much. The parade was ok but not as good as the Autumn Festival Parade in Bright but we still thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. I had ‘squeezed’ into my wenches dress and it showed a great deal of my ample cleavage, as wench dresses do! After the parade we partook of the free sausage sizzle and then it was back to 2AB to change as I refused to wear my wenches dress to the fun fare and free concert.
We wandered up to the fun fare and had a bite to eat and then found Rick and Brenda, where we shared their rug in front of the sound shell where we watch Dean Vegas perform his ‘Tribute to Elvis’. He won the world title of the Elvis Impersonation last year in the states. He was a good performer and we had a good ‘free’ evening that was thoroughly enjoyed by all. See http://www.deanvegas.com/ All in all a great day and the fun fare even finished up by 11pm, which was good.
Monday, 2nd April 2007 - Day 754 - Gladstone
Brenda has just dropped by to tell us there is a Tsunami warning for the east coast of Australia and is supposed to affect Cooktown by 9.30 and then travel down the coast. We have the marine radio on plus the local radio station. There’s not much we can do but we are quite a way inland in the marina here so, hopefully, it’s effect will be minimal. Let’s hope it is a non event. Well, it was a non event. I don’t think even Cooktown saw any rise in the sea level at all. So all is well. I rang Sally, or did she ring me, and they are on their way back to Bright and Acropora is no longer theirs. Sad. It was then head off to get our hair cut as it was Seniors Day and was the huge amount of $12 each and they did a good job, better than the one I went to before. Back via the library to read the newspapers and then some lunch. Later Geoff went out to get his foot beds and so we are now another $500 poorer. Getting old is the pits! My sister, Glynn, sent a text to ask how we managed with the tsunami so I gave her a ring and we chatted for a good 20 minutes, which was good. After a light tea we wandered up to the sound shell to watch the hypnotist, Shane St James, perform his show. I had a good laugh but Geoff was very sceptical. It’s funny what one person will laugh at and the other finds not at all funny. Just towards the end of the show it pelted down with rain so it was run and shelter under the Navy Recruitment tent and wait until it stopped and then hurry back to 2AB. Then Geoff had to do some work under his bed as his water bladder had leaked. The last thing you want to do last thing at night.
Tuesday, 3rd April 2007 - Day 755 - Gladstone
Didn’t wake up till 8:45, which was nice. Got up and cooked a quiche whilst Geoff pulled out his water bladder to see what had happened. He found an O ring laying loose so believes he may have forgotten to put it back in when he last did work on it, just before Noriko came. This is better news than a puncture. Around noon Lynne, from Clean Up Australia Day, arrived so we had quiche and salad and Geoff showed her some short movie clips and some photos. After a nice chat she left around 3pm after saying she would bring her dad down to see the boat over Easter. When she had gone, Geoff put his water bladder back in under his bed and relaxed. After dinner we, once again, headed for the sound shell as we thought that Cirque de Carnivale was on but found that I had got the wrong night and it was the Talent Quest. We stopped to watch it anyway and some people were very good and some were atrocious and you got embarrassed for them. Still, they didn’t have to get up there on stage, did they? We were only in T shirts and it got quite cold so we left before the ‘Battle of the Bands’ at 9:30 pm and headed back to the marina proper.
Wednesday, 4th April 2007 - Day 756 - Gladstone
Sorted through the food storage areas and freezer today to see what stocks we needed to eat before we leave here on the 22nd. This took quite a while and was warm work. Once I had compiled my list I made a list of menus and we have at least 16 meals we can eat, even though we were getting low. We still have this ‘out at sea’ stores mind set and are paranoid about running out of tucker whilst still out of the marina. Then it was a big bed linen wash as I had Noriko’s linen plus ours. Onto IGA to pick up a few fresh supplies. $91 and the trolley is only a quarter full. Money doesn’t go anywhere in the supermarket these days. When we started sailing I budgeted for around $130 to $140 a week but now its closer to $200. Small town buying maybe but I don’t think so. I then cooked up two bread puddings with the stale bread I had in the freezer for that very purpose. We then had tea and headed off for the sound shell again. This time we took our bikes to save our legs and tonight I had got it right and Circe de Carnivale was on. It was mostly directed towards the kids but there were some good fire juggling acts and the trapeze was also good (no safety net). It was finished by 9:30 so it was an early night.
Thursday, 5th April 2007 - Day 757 - Gladstone
Up early as ‘natures calling’. Downloaded our emails and found Bob and Polly can’t open our attachments. Geoff did some research on the web and found that the people who were having the problem were not using Microsoft Outlook as their mail client. So we now have to send our attachments to them as plain text so hope the journals download ok with all the photos etc. So far, it seems that only Bob and Polly are having the problem. We are ‘dog sitting’ today and Vicky has settled down with us. Brenda had to go to Rocky today and will be away too long for Vicky to stay on Low Profile without a toilet stop. Received an email from the ‘Village Life’ people saying that they had looked at our covering letter and resumes and thought we would be ideal as relief managers and for us to give them a call on our return to Oz. She said the recruitment process takes about two weeks so we didn't have time to do it all before we left Gladstone. It sounds very promising. After lunch it was off to the optician again to have her look at my new glasses. She checked my eyes again and the prescription was the same as she had previously done so she is sending the glasses back to get them checked again. Geoff went to pick up the tops from the embroidery shop and then we went onto Centrelink (no queue) and put in out fortnightly claim and cancelled Newstart from the 20th with Larissa. Must remember her name in case they stuff up. Decided to go to the ‘all you can eat” Chinese Restaurant for $9. Bought a cheap, soft sided suitcase for the UK as mine is back in storage in Bright. Back via the library and then pick Vicky up again and then Rick picked her up around 4pm. Only a light tea tonight and decided not to go to the sound shell tonight but watched the 8:30 fireworks from the dock. We will probably go and look at the Saturday fireworks display.
Good Friday, 6th April 2007 - Day 758 - Gladstone
Up late, Replied to a lot of emails this morning which took a bit of time. We then headed off on our trusty steeds to the market . It was a reasonably sized market and we bought a couple of small things for the UK and then headed back. The Brisbane to Gladstone Yacht Race is now under way so we will start seeing them arrive from Saturday morning on. It should be quite a quick race as the winds are strong southerlies out there. The marina staff are on overnight on Saturday as it should be a busy night. The yachts will be crammed into every small space available. We also spoke to a lady on the dock that we had seen up on the stage during the hypnotist performance and we shocked her when we told her what she had got up to on stage. She said she thought she remembered everything but she really only remembered a small amount of what went on. Plus her partner had not told her what she had got up to as he thought it would embarrass her but I’m afraid we spilled the beans. I’m now a believer. Not sure about Geoff, I think he is still a sceptic. It was a tribute to the Pop Diva’s tonight (Cher, Tina Turner and similar), which we didn’t fancy so we didn’t go to the sound shell. All in all, a relaxing type of day and a reasonably early night.
Saturday, 7th April 2007 - Day 759 - Gladstone
Last peaceful night for a while! Raw Nerve (belongs to a dentist, would you believe) and Ichiban came in quite early but were still 2 hours off the race record. There has been a strong wind warning for the last couple of days with no end of it in sight, as yet, so it was a fast race. A race that has not been without it’s dramas! Two multihulls flipped and the twelve crew had to be rescued by participating race yachts. Plus a guy on another yacht broke his leg. Lynne, her son Mark and her dad came for a visit around 5 pm and stayed for a while and we made arrangement to meet up with them Monday for a trip out with a picnic lunch. Geoff asked me if I wanted to cycle up to watch the fireworks but I said no thanks as I was thinking of that 30 knot headwind all the way to the sound shell area. Slacko! But what a ride it would be on the way back! Once Geoff had returned we were listening to the VHF radio and heard that a cat ‘Touche’ had lost its steering towards Bustard Head (Pancake Creek area). They eventually got towed into Pancake Creek by VMR Round Hill but that was after we couldn’t stay up any longer as our eyes were getting heavy. Being cruisers we were worrying about them as we went off to bed. By the time we were off to bed there was a trimaran tied up in front of ‘Low Profile’ but the boat to tie up behind us had not arrived. We had hoped that it would have arrived before we went to bed
Sunday, 8th April 2007 - Day 760 - Gladstone
We were woken up at 3am by a large noisy racing yacht coming in on the other side of ‘Low Profile’ and they let their headsail flap for absolutely ages and they were shouting at the top of their voices. Then, when I got up at 7:30 I saw that the yacht ‘Mondo’ was tied up behind us and I hadn’t heard a thing. Apparently, they came in at 5am and had to be towed into place as their batteries were flat and they couldn’t start their engines.
I then walked up to the last arm to deliver some Easter eggs to Fergus and Sasha telling them that the Easter Bunny couldn’t find their boat because of all the confusion in the marina with all the race boats coming in. I don’t know whether Fergus really believes in the Easter Bunny as he really quizzed me on whether I had bought them or not. Mind you, he wasn’t slow in taking them off me and he already had a suspicious brown mark around his mouth which was probably from an already devoured egg! Geoff and I then decided to wander up the fingers with all the other rubber necks and have a look at all the race boats. The biggest by far was Ichiban with Raw Nerve a close second. Because of all the rubber necks I have been having my galley curtains closed as everyone peers in as they walk by. I don’t think they realise that some of the boats in the marina are actually people’s homes and you feel like you are in a goldfish bowl at times. After a bit of lunch Geoff headed off for his stint on the VMR radio and was kept quite busy as the rescue boat had been sent to Pancake Creek to tow ‘Touche’ up to Gladstone Marina. When they got back I wandered up the far finger to see if they needed a hand berthing as they were to raft up to ‘Purrfect’, another cat, of course. I should have known that there would have already been cruisers there as they were also monitoring the VHF radio the same as me. It was interesting to note that the people who had gone to help were all cruisers and not one race crew personnel was to be seen. There is probably a lot more camaraderie between the cruising community than the racing community. Life threatening events accepted, of course, when anyone would come to someone’s aid, I would hope.
I then walked up to the last arm to deliver some Easter eggs to Fergus and Sasha telling them that the Easter Bunny couldn’t find their boat because of all the confusion in the marina with all the race boats coming in. I don’t know whether Fergus really believes in the Easter Bunny as he really quizzed me on whether I had bought them or not. Mind you, he wasn’t slow in taking them off me and he already had a suspicious brown mark around his mouth which was probably from an already devoured egg! Geoff and I then decided to wander up the fingers with all the other rubber necks and have a look at all the race boats. The biggest by far was Ichiban with Raw Nerve a close second. Because of all the rubber necks I have been having my galley curtains closed as everyone peers in as they walk by. I don’t think they realise that some of the boats in the marina are actually people’s homes and you feel like you are in a goldfish bowl at times. After a bit of lunch Geoff headed off for his stint on the VMR radio and was kept quite busy as the rescue boat had been sent to Pancake Creek to tow ‘Touche’ up to Gladstone Marina. When they got back I wandered up the far finger to see if they needed a hand berthing as they were to raft up to ‘Purrfect’, another cat, of course. I should have known that there would have already been cruisers there as they were also monitoring the VHF radio the same as me. It was interesting to note that the people who had gone to help were all cruisers and not one race crew personnel was to be seen. There is probably a lot more camaraderie between the cruising community than the racing community. Life threatening events accepted, of course, when anyone would come to someone’s aid, I would hope.
Monday, 9th April 2007 - Day 761 - Gladstone
A broken night as my back was playing up a bit and it was also a bit noisy. The festival finishes up tonight and I have quite enjoyed it. The race yachts that want to head south will probably be here a few more days yet as the strong southerlies still blow. Lynne’s dad, Colin, picked us up at 10:30 and we headed off for Lynne’s place and then on to the Awoonga Dam. The Awoonga Dam is 30 kms out of Gladstone at Benaraby and is Gladstone’s water supply and a good spot to fish for Barramundi and Mullet as it is stocked regularly with fingerlings. Lynne had cooked up two large quiches and made a nice salad and brought along a nice fruity white wine.
It was a very pretty spot and very peaceful and too soon it was time to head for home. At Lynne’s place we had coffee and cake and then Colin ran us back to the marina. Geoff then went off for a little snooze and I chatted to Brenda and cuddled Vicky as they passed by.
Tuesday, 10th April 2007 - Day 762 - Gladstone
Still very windy and no end in sight of the strong winds abating. Hope the boat tied up behind us leaves before the 20th when we have to leave our berth! Off at 9am to CVA for the day. Just data entry. Geoff picked me up for lunch and we went off to “Subway” at the Valley. Got back to CVA and a little later Karl had to pop out for 10 minutes so I had to go out for a little walk as he was not allowed to leave me alone in the office as I was only a volunteer. I finished at 4:30pm and went back to 2AB and did some alterations to my new PJ pants (made for a 6 ft woman) and took my waistband in on my brown pants. I still have to take up my new pants which were also made for that 6 ft woman. Whilst I was at CVA Geoff prepared the boat, ready for taking it out next week, and backed up the Qosmio laptop and still has mine to do. Later, Geoff rang Sarah and David on Baybird, Marlene and Bernie and everything has slotted into place and we are able to catch up with them all on the way down to Brisbane. Even Wyn and Ann are in Brisbane on the 28th but we will probably miss them but will try to catch up for a quick one hour visit in Sydney, if that’s at all possible. It was a good bit of viewing on TV and then it was off to bed. At midnight we were woken up by a drunk yelling at the top of his voice from the marina promenade. I asked him to quiet down but was told to “F” off for my troubles. He kept yelling for a Mark and yelled that his child, which was in his arms, had been bitten by a dog. Geoff then asked if we could be of any help and he said no, he had come from the hospital and wanted this Mark to give him a lift home. Why he had come from the hospital all the way to the marina is beyond me, and how did he get here if he didn’t have transport. Thirty minutes later and he was still yelling at the top of his voice so Geoff decided it was time to call the police as he was worried about the welfare of the child as much as anything else as it was a weird situation. It was quiet after this so we don’t know what happened. Anyway, at least we were able to get some sleep at last.
Wednesday, 11th April 2007 - Day 763 - Gladstone
Didn’t even stir until 8:30 so we must have been tired. Other people in the marina had heard all the kafuffle last night and heard Geoff call to him. They were also shocked he had a young child with him. Received an email from Gunter, an Austrian paragliding friend from the backpacker days and one from Erica on ‘Ovide’ up in Cairns. Headed off to CVA for another days work of boring data entry and left at 4pm. Whilst I was away Geoff fiddled around on the boat. So a bit of a nothing day today, really.
Thursday, 12th April 2007 - Day 764 - Gladstone
We left reasonably early this morning as Geoff had an appointment at the doctors to get his prescriptions updated ready for the UK trip. Whilst we were there I asked her about a small spot I had on my neck that seems to come up like a boil every six months or so. I got quite a shock when she said she was quite sure it was a skin cancer. She prescribed some cream for it that cost $44 (ouch). This cream makes it look much worse before it starts looking better so I should look a sorry state when we head off to England. How annoying to get something like this when I have never been a sun bather. Bumma! Then it was some further shopping to buy Geoff a long sleeve shirt and some new and dressy shorts for the UK. His best shorts had eventually died on him. He thinks Sally bought them for him at Birkenhead when he helped them bring Acropora down the coast on that first trip. That was a good few years ago. Plus we needed to buy an Aussie to UK plug adaptor from the Leading Edge store. We also popped in to the smaller IGA in Toolooa St and found it a very friendly little store. Back to 2AB and put the washing into soak and later do all the washing. When the dryer stopped I went to get it all out and it was still wet as the heat element was not working. Left a note on it so it will be interesting to see if I get my $4 back. Now I have quite a bit of ironing to do ready for packing. Might as well start off without creases as I’m sure they will get more creased in the suitcases. Whilst the washing was in the machine I went and visited Brenda and Rick and
whilst I was there the race yacht ‘Too Impetuous’ left its berth to refuel. When it was trying to get out it hit the trimaran ‘Tritheum’ behind it and put a small puncture hole in one of the hulls. We helped them tie back up after they had refuelled and they even had a hard time doing this. Good to see others stuff up but must say, in their defence, the wind was blowing quite strongly. Note: Geoff told me today that the girl who was a passenger in the car crash at the marina quite a while ago died yesterday. Such a shame as she was only a young teenager.
whilst I was there the race yacht ‘Too Impetuous’ left its berth to refuel. When it was trying to get out it hit the trimaran ‘Tritheum’ behind it and put a small puncture hole in one of the hulls. We helped them tie back up after they had refuelled and they even had a hard time doing this. Good to see others stuff up but must say, in their defence, the wind was blowing quite strongly. Note: Geoff told me today that the girl who was a passenger in the car crash at the marina quite a while ago died yesterday. Such a shame as she was only a young teenager.
Friday, 13th April 2007 - 765 - Gladstone
Friday the 13th today so beware! Brenda popped by as she was on her way out as she had a card for the office from ‘Too Impetuous’ saying that they had hit the trimaran ‘Tritheum’ so at least they have done the right thing. I then went and picked Vicky up so she could have company whilst Brenda was out. I then prepared and precooked some Beef Olives for dinner as Rick and Brenda are coming tonight. Brenda came and picked Vicky up and I headed up to the laundry to do some ironing. Brenda said I could use her iron and ironing board on the back deck of ‘Low Profile’ which was great as the laundry can get pretty hot sometimes. Geoff had been to the library for a mammoth newspaper and magazine read and came back about 3pm and vacuumed for me and then Brenda, Rick and Vicky, of course, arrived just after 6pm. Drinks and nibbles to start and then I served dinner. We ate inside and then adjourned onto the back deck for coffee and brownies. A very enjoyable night.
Saturday, 14th April 2007 - Day 766 - Gladstone
Up latish, 8:30. Geoff went off to VMR for a couple of hours and then has a laptop to look at later, some time that has got wet. He doesn’t hold out much hope but at least it was fresh water. I replied to some emails and did a few chores. Fergus, Sasha and Chris popped by whilst Geoff was out. I think Fergus was hoping to have a play with Geoff’s motor boat . I told him to come back in the afternoon. Geoff came back after a couple of hours and had a quick play with his remote controlled motor boat. There were a couple of people in their dinghy rowing back out to their boat on a mooring and Geoff got the power boat to circle them and they raised their arms in surrender. They had a good sense of humour. No sign of Fergus!
I had been watching a large marquee being put up in front of Sailors Restaurant and just before dusk the wedding party arrived and the wedding started in full swing. The bride and groom went down one of the arms with the photographer and I wouldn’t be surprised if they had wedding photos taken in front off, or maybe even on, ‘Raw Nerve’ which is still here after the Brisbane to Gladstone Yacht Race. The wedding wasn’t too noisy and they stopped the music just after 11:30 which I thought wasn’t too bad. I went up for a shower just before 11pm and on the way back I saw that the trimaran ‘Akimbo’, tied up in front of ‘Low Profile’, was making preparations to leave. Geoff helped push them away from the dock as they left and to make sure they didn’t bump ‘Low Profile’. I expect they are taking advantage of the weather window at the moment and the fact that the winds die down over night. Now that they have left it means it will be easier for us to get out on Friday if ‘Mondo’ is still tied up behind us as it can now be walked into the space vacated by ‘Akimbo’.
I had been watching a large marquee being put up in front of Sailors Restaurant and just before dusk the wedding party arrived and the wedding started in full swing. The bride and groom went down one of the arms with the photographer and I wouldn’t be surprised if they had wedding photos taken in front off, or maybe even on, ‘Raw Nerve’ which is still here after the Brisbane to Gladstone Yacht Race. The wedding wasn’t too noisy and they stopped the music just after 11:30 which I thought wasn’t too bad. I went up for a shower just before 11pm and on the way back I saw that the trimaran ‘Akimbo’, tied up in front of ‘Low Profile’, was making preparations to leave. Geoff helped push them away from the dock as they left and to make sure they didn’t bump ‘Low Profile’. I expect they are taking advantage of the weather window at the moment and the fact that the winds die down over night. Now that they have left it means it will be easier for us to get out on Friday if ‘Mondo’ is still tied up behind us as it can now be walked into the space vacated by ‘Akimbo’.
Sunday, 15th April 2007 - Day 767 - Gladstone
Up late at 9am...nice! Geoff went off to look at the laptop that went swimming. He will either be back really quickly if he thinks it is “cactus” or will be ages if he thinks there is a glimmer of hope. Well, two hours later and he is not back. Now he has another quick job to do for John on ‘Shoreline Song’ who can’t get marinanet to work and thinks it may have something to do with a Windows update he did. Geoff eventually came back and said the laptop that got wet was definitely stuffed and that he had popped in to see John as well and the Windows update has definitely over written something so he will be looking at that in the afternoon. When John dropped of his laptop I decided to get to with the oven and have now scrubbed it and the shelves and she now looks sparkling clean and ready for the shut down of 2AB. The freezer is also getting quite low too so it is all getting there. Nothing else to report today. I spent most of the morning adding photos to yahoo photos so remember, if you would like to look at the new ones or any of the old ones, go to
Sunday, 15th April - Day 767 - Gladstone
Up late at 9am. Good. Geoff went off to look at the laptop that went swimming. He will either be back quite quickly if he thinks it is ‘cactus’ or will be a while if he thinks there is a glimmer of hope. Or, knowing Geoff, I might be wrong on both counts as I know he can get talking sometimes and be absolutely ages. Two hours later and he is still not back and now he has another quick job to do as John can’t get Marinanet to work and thinks something happened when he downloaded a recommended Windows update. Yes, that’s what happened and Geoff had to take off Service Pack Two to get it working again. The laptop that got wet was well and truly stuffed, as thought, so he will be buying a new one. I then decided to clean the oven sp now it is sparkling clean ready for the shut down. The freezer is also getting low ready for a scrub. We are lowly getting all the things ready to finish up.
Monday, 16th April 2007 - Day 768 - Gladstone
Off to work at 9am and finished up at 11:30. Said goodbye to Roderick and Karl and left my business card with them in case they are looking for someone to work (for $’s) when I return. Back to the marina and visit Rick and Brenda and then did some small chores and did some computer work. Geoff had a job doing some work on a new laptop with Vista but couldn’t find any drivers for the GPS hardware on the net so couldn’t do any more work on it. Then he found the water bladder under his bed was leaking again so it can’t be that O ring and he will replace it on our return. He wandered up our arm and came across a new yacht that had recently been launched and had been built to look like a Viking boat and was quite eye catching.
Tuesday, 17th February 2007 - Day 769 - Gladstone
Off to The Valley this morning to get tips put in my hair and to try to hide the grey. Afterwards I pooped in to the opticians to see if my glasses had arrived back. The optician wasn’t there and the assistant found them still sitting on her desk and they hadn’t been sent back yet. She said they had to go back as the prescription was too strong so there was something wrong after all even thought he optician had said there wasn’t. Makes you wonder if she had any intention of sending them back at all. The assistant said she had been a way so I will give her the benefit of the doubt and say she just forgot. Because
I was leaving Gladstone on Sunday the assistant rang the manufacturer and said she would get a new pair made for me before Friday, fingers crossed, At the moment I am using my very old prescription glasses and a cheap pair of readers which is a right pain in the ‘A’. Bought some sushi rolls for me and a pie for Geoff and headed back to 2A. After lunch we headed off and picked up three more embroidered tops, on to the doctor to get letters stating the prescription drugs we were carrying for the Dubai authorities as some prescription drugs are illegal in the UAE. Geoff thinks that it is all a waste of time and they won’t even check them but it is better to be safe than sorry. Anyway, Geoff nearly always goes along with anything I say, in the end. Back to 2AB and rummage around for something to eat for dinner. Ah—ham steaks and then there is only beef burgers (yuk) and fish fingers left!
I was leaving Gladstone on Sunday the assistant rang the manufacturer and said she would get a new pair made for me before Friday, fingers crossed, At the moment I am using my very old prescription glasses and a cheap pair of readers which is a right pain in the ‘A’. Bought some sushi rolls for me and a pie for Geoff and headed back to 2A. After lunch we headed off and picked up three more embroidered tops, on to the doctor to get letters stating the prescription drugs we were carrying for the Dubai authorities as some prescription drugs are illegal in the UAE. Geoff thinks that it is all a waste of time and they won’t even check them but it is better to be safe than sorry. Anyway, Geoff nearly always goes along with anything I say, in the end. Back to 2AB and rummage around for something to eat for dinner. Ah—ham steaks and then there is only beef burgers (yuk) and fish fingers left!
Wednesday, 18th and Thursday 19th April 2007 - Days 770 & 771 - Gladstone
The last two days were spent doing odd chores like taking in my blue pants, cooking date loaf, picking up my new glasses, taking the books back to the library, packing and making lists of things to do. I also had to re enter half of February and all of March on my budget spreadsheet as the data got deleted from my memory stick somehow. The marina staff came down and moved ‘Mondo’ so we could get out tomorrow. The ship yard rang and said they were running behind and would give us a ring on Friday when they were ready to take us. Lloyd from ‘Tsunami’ popped by on his way north to Darwin. He is going on the Darwin to Ambon race and is having trouble finding a crew member. He says he prefers a female but only because he gets on better with the fairer sex. At 6pm we headed up to the cruiser BBQ with Rick and Brenda and John and Irene and a few others for a last goodbye BBQ, which was very nice.
Friday, 20th April 2007 - Day 772 - Gladstone
Had a call from the ship yard and they are still having trouble with the travel lift and will give us a call when it is up and running again and they are ready for us. We told them we would do a few chores in town that we had scheduled for the afternoon so we headed off to Centrelink and ensured everything was finalised with Larissa there. In and out quite quickly again. We then took one of the cars around to the ship yard and popped in to see how they were going and were told we could bring her around straight away. Back to the marina and disconnect the power cord, take down the canvas sides etc and head on over. Got to the travel lift and eased her into the channel where the staff took the lines and eased her all the way in and positioned her over the straps. As she was being lifted I took some video and then we got off and they lifted her completely out and gave her a power wash to get the marina growth off of her.
She was then driven into the storage yard and put into place in her ‘parking lot’. Geoff let the tender down and tied her out so we could get up and down the swim steps to get on and off. Later we decided to drop a couple of photos into Brenda and Rick and John and Irene that Geoff had taken at the BBQ and doctored. When Geoff had taken it Rick had stuck two fingers up behind Brenda’s head making her look like a rabbit. Geoff removed them and then put them on Rick’s head making him look like a devil. Geoff gave him the devil photo plus a good one.
She was then driven into the storage yard and put into place in her ‘parking lot’. Geoff let the tender down and tied her out so we could get up and down the swim steps to get on and off. Later we decided to drop a couple of photos into Brenda and Rick and John and Irene that Geoff had taken at the BBQ and doctored. When Geoff had taken it Rick had stuck two fingers up behind Brenda’s head making her look like a rabbit. Geoff removed them and then put them on Rick’s head making him look like a devil. Geoff gave him the devil photo plus a good one.
21st to 31st April 2007 is missing … sorry
I expect it was shutting the boat down and doing our final preparations for our three month trip to the UK
I expect it was shutting the boat down and doing our final preparations for our three month trip to the UK
Tuesday, 1st May 2007 - En route Dubai
Got up early, one hour before I needed to as I read my watch wrong. We didn’t leave the motel until 10 am and then grabbed a Macca’s for breakfast. We then followed our GPS route to where Kristene was staying and she drove us to the airport. Of course, I was the one at the airport who got randomly selected for an explosives check. Needless to say but I came out squeaky clean. Got into Sydney around 2.30 pm and went straight to Emirates and checked in and the queue wasn’t bad at all. The flight was full so there was no chance of changing our seats and we were in the centre aisle as the plane had originated for Auckland in NZ. The time went quite quickly although I wished I was a smaller person as it was hard to get comfortable and I didn’t get much sleep. Watch a stack of movies instead including Music and Lyrics, The Queen and The Pursuit of Happiness. We had a quick stop at Bangkok and then, to our relief, it was only another 5 hours to Dubai.
Wednesday, 2nd May 2007 - Dubai
Once again, on this next leg, I couldn’t sleep much although I did nap a couple of times. Watched another couple of movies, Bobby and Happy Feet, which took my mind off the tedium of long distance flying. Its great having the individual screens in the back of the seats and 200 movies to choose from when you want them. Got into Dubai at 5.30am and Al was there to meet us. Back to her place and Al and Dave headed off to work and we headed to bed and there we stayed for most of the morning. At 5pm our eyes were still heavy so we had another nap until Al and Dave returned home. We then went off to the supermarket with Dave to pick up some BBQ stuff. We found that the pork products were housed in a separate room for us westerners so as to not upset any Muslims. Dates were dirt cheap but the avocados and mangoes from Oz cost a small fortune.
Thursday, 3rd May 2007 - Dubai
Slept well and didn’t wake too much during the night so not much jet lag. Geoff had a really bad cramp just before he went to bed that made him feel really faint. Up at 6.30 am and we went off with Dave to help him move a shed for his dragon boat stuff. We parked at Miri Sehyahi Meridana Marina (hope that’s the right name) and had a look at all of the really posh boats there. From here you can see The Palms which is reclaimed land in the shape of palm trees. Very impressive from the air but not so crash hot from sea level. There are a lot of private houses on these palms and a very large hotel being built called Atlantis and it is 6 km from the main Dubai shoreline. The hotel isn’t finished yet but they already have 10,000 staff for it being trained up at their other hotels. To house the staff they have leased a cruise ship as it was their cheapest option. Dave and Geoff walked up the beach to pick up 2 dragon boat trailers to move the shed when it arrived. The truck soon arrived with 2 other friends of Dave’s and then it was the fun and games of getting it to sit squarely on the trailers to be man handled down the beach back at the boats whilst I did the filming.
Dave later dropped us off in town and we walked to The Creek where the souqs (markets) were situated which took us a good hour in very hot conditions. The sun was quite high so there wasn’t any shade on route. We took an Abra (water taxi) over The Creek (more like a wide river to us) to the textile souq for one dirham each (33¢ Oz). It was like Fiji where you get hassled, hassled, hassled to buy, buy, buy. Geoff bought a belt , for $5 which he thought was a bargain. It wasn’t as two weeks later the imitation leather (it looked like real leather) had worn through. I bought a sun hat for $4. After a bit of lunch we took the Abra back to the other side to look at the spice souq but by this time it was around 2pm and they were starting to close up. They don’t trade during the hottest part of the day.
Our feet were aching as were my hips so we decided to call it a day and go to the gold souq another day. Back across the river, once again, and grab a taxi back to the unit. Everyone blows their car horns here and the traffic is quite mad. Near the unit there is an air conditioned bus stop which they are trialling at present - what ever next?
Also, in the underground parking for the units, you can see Alfa’s, Mazzerati’s, Porsche's, Hummers etc. God, there is some money in this place although the overseas workers such as the Pakistanis, Indians, Filipinos etc don’t live or get paid so well. But well enough to send money back to their family in their home countries. Dave got in just after us and Al got in around 6pm and said she had organised a tour around the famous 7 star Burj Al Arab for 7pm so it was a mad dash to freshen up, on with a bit of make up and change into something suitable for a place like that. You can no longer get into the Burj as a plain tourist to have a look anymore as you must be a guest or booked into dinner or be invited like us so we were privileged to be able to do so.
Some people book dinner just to be able to have a look at the place but I think even dinner would be out of our league. One of the Assistant House Keeping Managers, Suzanne, showed us around. We looked at one of the one bedroom suites (they are all suites and a on two levels), probably their cheapest suite and it was awe inspiring and they had a policy of a minimum of two nights stay. In each bathroom they have Hermes perfume in large expensive bottles worth around $300. No more pinching the little guest soaps for me. The same perfume was available in the public toilets in the foyer. The bedrooms had their own sitting areas with magnificent views over the sea or over Dubai. Downstairs in each suite was a full and complete business centre complete with its own laptop, printer, scanner, fax etc. The bathrooms were something else again. All - oh so plush!
Everything was extravagance plus without being tacky and each level had its own concierge and butler. Geoff’s thoughts were “What a fantastic engineering achievement, especially in the area of designing a building with features that require large areas for the hidden service e.g. the fish tanks that bordered the sides of the elevators and the waterfalls. There was no sign of any water pipes or external wiring. There must be huge areas behind every part of the building that are hidden from view without you realising that you are not seeing the whole picture”. In the grand lobby there were cascading waterfalls and on the second floor lobby there was a dancing water display, all computerised with a water spout flying high to the top of the open area of the sail at random times. Of course we missed it with the camera. There were 54 floors and the suite we looked at was on the 15th floor (30th really). The view down to the lobby from this level was fantastic. After this jaw dropping experience we headed to the Jumeirah Beach Hotel for the buffet dinner there. This hotel also belongs to the group that Al is the HR Director for so she has a pretty high powered and, I would think, stressful job. Now I have just mentioned a buffet dinner which has probably conjured up in your minds a selection of 4 to 6 main courses etc. Wrong! This was not your ordinary buffet but was more like 15 international restaurants combined in one offering you 15 different cuisines of the world including Thai, Indian, Chinese, Arab, European, Japanese, French, Italian and probably a few I have forgotten. They had a large range of dishes to choose from each cuisine. Some foods were cooked for you straight away like the salmon crepes or risotto but most were self service. Then it was dessert time and how you could have pigged out. There was a molten chocolate waterfall (Chocofall) that you could dip various things such as mini muffins, marshmallows, strawberries and much more. There were lots of cakes, gateau's, bread and butter puddings, Arab sweets, cheese cakes etc etc etc. Al and Dave eat for free and we, as her guests, eat for half price. How cool is that? And Al and Dave went halves with us which was really good of them. Another experience we will never ever forget.
Dave later dropped us off in town and we walked to The Creek where the souqs (markets) were situated which took us a good hour in very hot conditions. The sun was quite high so there wasn’t any shade on route. We took an Abra (water taxi) over The Creek (more like a wide river to us) to the textile souq for one dirham each (33¢ Oz). It was like Fiji where you get hassled, hassled, hassled to buy, buy, buy. Geoff bought a belt , for $5 which he thought was a bargain. It wasn’t as two weeks later the imitation leather (it looked like real leather) had worn through. I bought a sun hat for $4. After a bit of lunch we took the Abra back to the other side to look at the spice souq but by this time it was around 2pm and they were starting to close up. They don’t trade during the hottest part of the day.
Our feet were aching as were my hips so we decided to call it a day and go to the gold souq another day. Back across the river, once again, and grab a taxi back to the unit. Everyone blows their car horns here and the traffic is quite mad. Near the unit there is an air conditioned bus stop which they are trialling at present - what ever next?
Also, in the underground parking for the units, you can see Alfa’s, Mazzerati’s, Porsche's, Hummers etc. God, there is some money in this place although the overseas workers such as the Pakistanis, Indians, Filipinos etc don’t live or get paid so well. But well enough to send money back to their family in their home countries. Dave got in just after us and Al got in around 6pm and said she had organised a tour around the famous 7 star Burj Al Arab for 7pm so it was a mad dash to freshen up, on with a bit of make up and change into something suitable for a place like that. You can no longer get into the Burj as a plain tourist to have a look anymore as you must be a guest or booked into dinner or be invited like us so we were privileged to be able to do so.
Some people book dinner just to be able to have a look at the place but I think even dinner would be out of our league. One of the Assistant House Keeping Managers, Suzanne, showed us around. We looked at one of the one bedroom suites (they are all suites and a on two levels), probably their cheapest suite and it was awe inspiring and they had a policy of a minimum of two nights stay. In each bathroom they have Hermes perfume in large expensive bottles worth around $300. No more pinching the little guest soaps for me. The same perfume was available in the public toilets in the foyer. The bedrooms had their own sitting areas with magnificent views over the sea or over Dubai. Downstairs in each suite was a full and complete business centre complete with its own laptop, printer, scanner, fax etc. The bathrooms were something else again. All - oh so plush!
Everything was extravagance plus without being tacky and each level had its own concierge and butler. Geoff’s thoughts were “What a fantastic engineering achievement, especially in the area of designing a building with features that require large areas for the hidden service e.g. the fish tanks that bordered the sides of the elevators and the waterfalls. There was no sign of any water pipes or external wiring. There must be huge areas behind every part of the building that are hidden from view without you realising that you are not seeing the whole picture”. In the grand lobby there were cascading waterfalls and on the second floor lobby there was a dancing water display, all computerised with a water spout flying high to the top of the open area of the sail at random times. Of course we missed it with the camera. There were 54 floors and the suite we looked at was on the 15th floor (30th really). The view down to the lobby from this level was fantastic. After this jaw dropping experience we headed to the Jumeirah Beach Hotel for the buffet dinner there. This hotel also belongs to the group that Al is the HR Director for so she has a pretty high powered and, I would think, stressful job. Now I have just mentioned a buffet dinner which has probably conjured up in your minds a selection of 4 to 6 main courses etc. Wrong! This was not your ordinary buffet but was more like 15 international restaurants combined in one offering you 15 different cuisines of the world including Thai, Indian, Chinese, Arab, European, Japanese, French, Italian and probably a few I have forgotten. They had a large range of dishes to choose from each cuisine. Some foods were cooked for you straight away like the salmon crepes or risotto but most were self service. Then it was dessert time and how you could have pigged out. There was a molten chocolate waterfall (Chocofall) that you could dip various things such as mini muffins, marshmallows, strawberries and much more. There were lots of cakes, gateau's, bread and butter puddings, Arab sweets, cheese cakes etc etc etc. Al and Dave eat for free and we, as her guests, eat for half price. How cool is that? And Al and Dave went halves with us which was really good of them. Another experience we will never ever forget.
Friday, 4th May 2007 - Dubai
Today was the holy day and the start of Al and Dave’s weekend so they were not working so took us into the desert to Hatta, over 100 kms away. We went via the camel training areas but were, alas, too late to see the camels training for the races. But we saw plenty of camels anyway on our journey. We passed many Arab villages on the highway and left the glitz and glamour and noise behind us. To get to Hatta we had to go though Oman but, luckily, we didn’t have to cross the border which can be quite a hassle, apparently. When we got to Hatta and visited the dam, Al and Dave said it had the most water in it that they had yet to see but it was still nowhere near full.
We then drove up a nearby hill for the views and as it was Friday and the holy day we could hear the call to prayer to many different mosques in the valley, six of which we could see. On the drive to Hatta the desert was flat and barren most of the way until we got near our destination when the colours started to change to red and then changed from flat to craggy mountain areas and very different from what we had been driving through.
By this time we thought it must be time for a drink at the Hatta Fort Hotel but since the last time Al and Dave had visited they had started to charge an entry fee of 50 dirham per person ($16 each). Admittedly you could redeem it for meals and drinks for lunch but the decision was made to give it a miss so we didn’t linger. By this time I had a cold developing which I probably caught on the plane. Geoff told me that when we were at Hatta we were only 162 km from Iran and 1000 kms from Iraq. On the way back we managed to get Dave to screech to a halt at some highway stalls selling genuine hand made ceramic pots. Al bought a large and small pot for herself and a medium pot for her sister in the UK. We bought 3 medium pots, one each for my sisters and one for ourselves. They look really pretty in the garden with tea lights inside of them. They have a real rough and handmade look about them which makes them more appealing as you know it has been made by hand and are authentic Arab products and not mass produced. Note: We found ours had broken when we got to the UK.
Nearly back in Dubai and we stopped at an authentic furniture shop which was very interesting also. One thing I have noticed in Dubai is that adult men often hold hands together. It is just their custom but seems strange, at first, to the western eye. It is nice to see, actually, and it is a shame more men can’t show their affections this way. It was quite hot today at around 36°C but Al assures me it is not as it can get to 48°C. Hmmmm! Back to the unit and Geoff went in for a swim and said the water was great. Snooze time and then the ‘gang’ arrived. Al and Dave have a group of ex pat friends that meet at each other’s homes on a Friday as, of course, Friday is the first day of the weekend. There was Collette and Bill, Maureen and Graeme and Josephine. Collette had brought a trifle so that made Geoff really happy.
We then drove up a nearby hill for the views and as it was Friday and the holy day we could hear the call to prayer to many different mosques in the valley, six of which we could see. On the drive to Hatta the desert was flat and barren most of the way until we got near our destination when the colours started to change to red and then changed from flat to craggy mountain areas and very different from what we had been driving through.
By this time we thought it must be time for a drink at the Hatta Fort Hotel but since the last time Al and Dave had visited they had started to charge an entry fee of 50 dirham per person ($16 each). Admittedly you could redeem it for meals and drinks for lunch but the decision was made to give it a miss so we didn’t linger. By this time I had a cold developing which I probably caught on the plane. Geoff told me that when we were at Hatta we were only 162 km from Iran and 1000 kms from Iraq. On the way back we managed to get Dave to screech to a halt at some highway stalls selling genuine hand made ceramic pots. Al bought a large and small pot for herself and a medium pot for her sister in the UK. We bought 3 medium pots, one each for my sisters and one for ourselves. They look really pretty in the garden with tea lights inside of them. They have a real rough and handmade look about them which makes them more appealing as you know it has been made by hand and are authentic Arab products and not mass produced. Note: We found ours had broken when we got to the UK.
Nearly back in Dubai and we stopped at an authentic furniture shop which was very interesting also. One thing I have noticed in Dubai is that adult men often hold hands together. It is just their custom but seems strange, at first, to the western eye. It is nice to see, actually, and it is a shame more men can’t show their affections this way. It was quite hot today at around 36°C but Al assures me it is not as it can get to 48°C. Hmmmm! Back to the unit and Geoff went in for a swim and said the water was great. Snooze time and then the ‘gang’ arrived. Al and Dave have a group of ex pat friends that meet at each other’s homes on a Friday as, of course, Friday is the first day of the weekend. There was Collette and Bill, Maureen and Graeme and Josephine. Collette had brought a trifle so that made Geoff really happy.
Saturday, 5th May 2007 - Dubai
Not a very good night, what with my cold. Hope I don’t give it to Al and Dave. Al and Dave decided to take us to Karama where you can get cheap copy watches and bags etc but we got stuck in a traffic jam and the traffic was horrendous so by the time we got there we were all frazzled and it wasn’t what we expected as we were expecting an open Market. We were then so hot and bothered that Geoff and I didn’t feel like been hassled to buy so it was a wasted journey for Al and Dave but still interesting for us as we saw the inner city for what it was away from the glitz and glamour. Anyway we headed for the financial district for lunch as Al knew it would be deserted due to the weekend and we would be able to eat in peace. We went to an up market noodle bar owned by Al’s firm so, once again, they ate for free and us at half price. And it was yum. Back to the unit to relax before we headed off on our desert safari which we had booked earlier in the day (discounted, thanks to Al). Al dropped us off at the Jumeirah Beach Hotel where we were picked up by our guide Mohammed. We were the last guests to be picked up in his group and had to sit in the 2 rear seats of the 4WD which was quite uncomfortable as you had to have your knees up as there was no leg space, plus you couldn’t hear what the driver was saying in the front and he only seemed to talk to the front seat passenger. We thought ‘Ah, this is going to be fun” but the two young girls in middle seat saw our discomfort and took pity on us and swapped seats with us. From then on in the trip became better and better and the whole experience was well worth it. We headed off into the desert and had some great fun flying up and down the sand dunes.
The American girl sitting next to me had never been 4WDriving before so there were a lot of squeals and “Oh my gods” and laughter. First stop was the camel farm (authentic) where we cuddled and photo-ed the placid (luckily) camels. Here we also had our photo taken with falcons.
It was just a quick stop and then it was on to the Bedouin camp (fake) where you could ride the camels, have henna painting and smoke the hubbly bubbly (water pipe). I had henna dolphins painted on my leg and a butterfly on my arm whilst Geoff had a Cobra painted on his arm. The Cobra was great as was the butterfly but the dolphins looked very strange. Maybe they had never seen dolphins.
Dinner was held in open Bedouin tents where you sat at low tables with cushions to sit on. The food was tasty and good and the Arab sweets were deliciously sticky. Before dinner we both had a go at the shi sha (hubbly bubblies) and it really made me cough. It was supposed to be apple but I’m not so sure but then I haven’t smoked for 35 years now. Geoff didn’t cough though! After dinner a belly dancer came out and gave us a great show. She didn’t stop and must be really fit. She then pulled people out of the audience and Geoff was the first one she managed to persuade to come up and after that she got about 12 people to come up and they were soon trying to gyrate their bodies the same as her. Not being too successful, I might add. Once the show was over they turned off all the lights for us to see the stars. Northern hemisphere stars for a change. It was then time to drive back through the desert to the highway. The driver was kind enough to drive us to the Umm Seuqeim Mosque so we could take a photo of the Mosque with the Burj Al Arab and Jumeirah Beach Hotel in the background. (see front banner picture). The mosque was lit by floodlights and looked absolutely beautiful and the American with us were bowled over by it. They had only one day in Dubai so seeing this mosque was an added bonus. We then wandered back to the unit without getting lost
The American girl sitting next to me had never been 4WDriving before so there were a lot of squeals and “Oh my gods” and laughter. First stop was the camel farm (authentic) where we cuddled and photo-ed the placid (luckily) camels. Here we also had our photo taken with falcons.
It was just a quick stop and then it was on to the Bedouin camp (fake) where you could ride the camels, have henna painting and smoke the hubbly bubbly (water pipe). I had henna dolphins painted on my leg and a butterfly on my arm whilst Geoff had a Cobra painted on his arm. The Cobra was great as was the butterfly but the dolphins looked very strange. Maybe they had never seen dolphins.
Dinner was held in open Bedouin tents where you sat at low tables with cushions to sit on. The food was tasty and good and the Arab sweets were deliciously sticky. Before dinner we both had a go at the shi sha (hubbly bubblies) and it really made me cough. It was supposed to be apple but I’m not so sure but then I haven’t smoked for 35 years now. Geoff didn’t cough though! After dinner a belly dancer came out and gave us a great show. She didn’t stop and must be really fit. She then pulled people out of the audience and Geoff was the first one she managed to persuade to come up and after that she got about 12 people to come up and they were soon trying to gyrate their bodies the same as her. Not being too successful, I might add. Once the show was over they turned off all the lights for us to see the stars. Northern hemisphere stars for a change. It was then time to drive back through the desert to the highway. The driver was kind enough to drive us to the Umm Seuqeim Mosque so we could take a photo of the Mosque with the Burj Al Arab and Jumeirah Beach Hotel in the background. (see front banner picture). The mosque was lit by floodlights and looked absolutely beautiful and the American with us were bowled over by it. They had only one day in Dubai so seeing this mosque was an added bonus. We then wandered back to the unit without getting lost
Sunday, 6th May 2007 - Dubai
Up at 8.30 and Geoff and Dave worked on Dave’s laptop this morning moving music files. After that Dave took us to the Gold and Diamond Park where we looked at the beautiful jewelry and Geoff bought me a beautiful 18 carat box chain for my birthday and I had some chains repaired that they didn’t charge me for. Dave then dropped us off to the Mall of the Emirates (shopping centre) at midday. We should never have gone there as we emerged $450 poorer. Geoff bought a 8gb memory stick, Colorado shorts and shirt, a 2gb memory card for the camera. I bought a Casio watch - quite stunning for a waterproof everyday watch - plus a myriad of small souvenirs and a stuffed camel which I named Mohammed after our safari tour driver. We walked around the whole complex finishing up at Ski Dubai which is a huge indoor snow ski slope. Geoff said if he didn’t feel so tired he would have given it a go.
By this time the feet and knees and back were starting to complain so we grabbed a taxi back to the unit and had only been back a few minutes before Dave came in. The boys then did some more work on Dave’s computer while I did the online check in and got the seats we wanted this time plus I did the budget to check to see what damage we had done to our wallets. Al then came home and prepared dinner. We then freshened up and changed and Al and Dave took us to the Jumeirah Madinat Hotel/Resort (three resorts in one) where we were met and greeted by 7ft Kenyans in traditional dress. It was themed on Arabian style houses and palaces and had 3.7 km of man made canals which you navigated by Abra’s. Al met the duty manager, who she knew, and before you knew it we were on an escorted tour of places the normal tourist wouldn’t see. One was a terrace for certain guests only that overlooked the whole complex of beautiful buildings and canals all lit by strategically placed subtle coloured floodlights and fairy lights. A really magical scene which, unfortunately, the camera didn’t pick up on hence no really good photos. Never mind.
He then put us on an Abra where we navigated the canal fairyland to the souq. The souq was a replica of the real souq but you would think it was the real thing but without the hassle of haggling. Geoff bought himself a designer T shirt which was 75% off. Mind you it was still $47 reduced from $230 …. For a T shirt would you believe. Sally, you would be proud of him. Al told him it was a world top brand, not that we mere mortals would have a clue. It goes well with his £5 jeans that Dad gave him once we got to England.
By this time the feet and knees and back were starting to complain so we grabbed a taxi back to the unit and had only been back a few minutes before Dave came in. The boys then did some more work on Dave’s computer while I did the online check in and got the seats we wanted this time plus I did the budget to check to see what damage we had done to our wallets. Al then came home and prepared dinner. We then freshened up and changed and Al and Dave took us to the Jumeirah Madinat Hotel/Resort (three resorts in one) where we were met and greeted by 7ft Kenyans in traditional dress. It was themed on Arabian style houses and palaces and had 3.7 km of man made canals which you navigated by Abra’s. Al met the duty manager, who she knew, and before you knew it we were on an escorted tour of places the normal tourist wouldn’t see. One was a terrace for certain guests only that overlooked the whole complex of beautiful buildings and canals all lit by strategically placed subtle coloured floodlights and fairy lights. A really magical scene which, unfortunately, the camera didn’t pick up on hence no really good photos. Never mind.
He then put us on an Abra where we navigated the canal fairyland to the souq. The souq was a replica of the real souq but you would think it was the real thing but without the hassle of haggling. Geoff bought himself a designer T shirt which was 75% off. Mind you it was still $47 reduced from $230 …. For a T shirt would you believe. Sally, you would be proud of him. Al told him it was a world top brand, not that we mere mortals would have a clue. It goes well with his £5 jeans that Dad gave him once we got to England.
Monday, 7th May 2007 - UK
Up early to say goodbye to Al and Dave. Finish off the washing, iron and pack. Geoff went for a final swim whilst I relaxed and then it was time to take our bags down to reception where our taxi was patiently waiting. Had a good talk to the Indian taxi driver who was a Muslim and we solved the woes of the world between the three of us. Pity it can’t be all solved that way. It was quite a way to the airport and took about 45 minutes but only cost 75 dirham's ($26) plus we gave a 15 dirham tip. The check in line was quick and we headed for the duty free where we picked up 2 bottles of 1 litre Bailey at $13 each plus a litre of Whiskey and Rum for around the same price. We also picked up some Daim chocolates. On for a coffee which was served in cups the size of soup bowls. By this time we didn’t have long before we boarded. The plane had quite a few empty seats so we were able to get plenty of seats to ourselves once the seat belt sign came off. It was not such a new plane and didn’t have movies you could call up on demand and there wasn’t much I wanted to watch. The plane was late taking off due to a passenger falling ill before take off so she had to be off loaded along with her luggage. Then, during the flight, the cabin crew had to deal with an unruly passenger who was giving them grief. The flight was seven and a half hours and passed quite quickly and we had a great view of London as we came in to land.
It took about 45 minutes to get through customs and then we couldn’t find the family. But they were there we just couldn’t find each other. Hugs all round and then Glynn, Laura and Tim went off home and we headed for Hailsham with Dad, Kay and Dave for coffee and then headed to Hampden Park and bed.
It took about 45 minutes to get through customs and then we couldn’t find the family. But they were there we just couldn’t find each other. Hugs all round and then Glynn, Laura and Tim went off home and we headed for Hailsham with Dad, Kay and Dave for coffee and then headed to Hampden Park and bed.
Tuesday 8th to Tuesday 15th May 2007 - Eastbourne
These days were filled up with visiting friends and relations.
Tuesday, 15th May 2007 - Gibraltar
We had decided a couple of days ago, on the spur of the moment, to take a five day trip to Gibraltar to get away from the cold and the wet of the UK. We left for Gatwick on the first train out of Eastbourne at just after 5am and got to Gatwick 45 minutes later. We must admit that the trains in the UK leave Oz for dead as they are mostly 4 facing seats with a table in between. We got to Gatwick just on 6am so had 90 minutes to get checked in and get through security. Not much of a hassle and quite quick. Two and a half hours later we arrived at Gibraltar to warm temperatures around 26°C.
As we started our descent we were told that the cruise liner the Queen Mary 2 was in port and Geoff was able to get a photo of her.
Our room at the Queens Hotel wasn’t ready so we dumped our bags and had just a 2 minute walk to Main Street and the shopping district. The streets were very narrow and there were a lot of picturesque historic buildings and ancient guns around and the place seemed more British than in Britain with English Fish and Chip shops and pubs abounding.
The were more English fish’n chip shops per square mile than I have ever seen anywhere before! We then went back to the hotel to book in, change into lighter clothes and then walk down to the marina which was close by. We then hopped on a local bus and went to Europa Point and back to the lighthouse to look at the views.
A day ticket for the buses was a meager £1.50 each so was very good value for money. They took either pounds or Euros but pounds were better value Early we had found a nice restaurant at the marina so we went back later and ordered lobster paella and a nice bottle of wine as a special birthday treat for me. We had a nice chat to an older single lady here and the food was great and the atmosphere good. It cost a small fortune but was well worth it and we will be buying cheap from here on in. At 9.30 pm the sun still hadn’t gone down and it was still pleasantly warm outside.
We found the sun set around 10pm at night with a long dusk. Such a change from Queensland and a 6pm sunset with hardly any dusk at all. We had forgotten how long it took for the sun to go down over here. Back to the hotel for a nice long sleep.
As we started our descent we were told that the cruise liner the Queen Mary 2 was in port and Geoff was able to get a photo of her.
Our room at the Queens Hotel wasn’t ready so we dumped our bags and had just a 2 minute walk to Main Street and the shopping district. The streets were very narrow and there were a lot of picturesque historic buildings and ancient guns around and the place seemed more British than in Britain with English Fish and Chip shops and pubs abounding.
The were more English fish’n chip shops per square mile than I have ever seen anywhere before! We then went back to the hotel to book in, change into lighter clothes and then walk down to the marina which was close by. We then hopped on a local bus and went to Europa Point and back to the lighthouse to look at the views.
We found the sun set around 10pm at night with a long dusk. Such a change from Queensland and a 6pm sunset with hardly any dusk at all. We had forgotten how long it took for the sun to go down over here. Back to the hotel for a nice long sleep.
Wednesday, 16th May 2007 - Gibraltar
First off today it was a trip up the cable car to the top of The Rock where we took in the spectacular views of Spain and, across the Straits, Africa. The Rock has Barbary Apes galore and there is a £500 fine if you are caught feeding them. One lady was feeding them raw pasta and another visitor gave her a hard time about it. They said it made them become more aggressive and territorial, which I can believe.
A quick visit to the gift shop where we bought the obligatory small souvenir and then we walked 800 metres down the road to St Michaels Cave. This cave was filled with spectacular stalagmites and stalactites all lit with muted coloured flood lights, of course, to make it even more spectacular. In the main cavern there was also a large theatre with a huge stalagmite/tite in its centre.
It was time for a bite of lunch so we had soup and roll in the adjoining café and witnessed a bit of light entertainment. The entertainment was an obnoxious customer who was accusing the café owner of ripping him off when he wanted to pay by Euros'. The going rate from the bank was 1.41 Euros to the pound but most places, such as cafes and shops, were charging 1.60 Euros to the pound. This guy was complaining that he was being ripped off wherever he went. The stupid thing was that he had British money and was just being annoying by wanting to pay by Euros. Anyway, he eventually got chucked out and the owner came over to apologise to us as the ‘F’ word had been used during the heat of the argument. As the owner said “ Sterling is the currency here and they get charged for changing Euros at the banks”. We said it was light entertainment and not to worry about it. I think the whole argument added up to a difference of 20¢ at the most.
We then went on our merry way and this is where we went wrong! In hindsight we should have ridden the cable car down to the lower level and walked to the Great Siege Tunnels but the signage was very poor and we ended up walking all the way down via a very zig zagging road. It was a hell of a way down and by the time we got to the tunnels our calf muscles were starting to complain badly. The Great Siege Tunnels were built around 1788 which was quite a feat for those days. Luckily this section wasn’t too long and we managed it without much more effort. They were very interesting and quite an eye opener.
We then continued walking down the road and it seemed to take forever. We passed the WW2 tunnels but we were to knackered by this time to visit them and decided to save them for another day. The Rock is riddled with over 30 kms of tunnels and some of the tunnels can take heavy vehicles and trains. A city within The Rock. We eventually got down to the town level and found a little shop where we bought water and ice creams and had a good natter with the shop owner. Eventually we made it back to the hotel where we collapsed on our beds and had a little siesta before limping out, once again, to get some dinner. Luckily they eat dinner late here, around about 8pm so places stay open late. We went to The Angry Friar and ate some fish’n chips. Well, you just have to partake of the local delicacies sometime, don’t you!
A quick visit to the gift shop where we bought the obligatory small souvenir and then we walked 800 metres down the road to St Michaels Cave. This cave was filled with spectacular stalagmites and stalactites all lit with muted coloured flood lights, of course, to make it even more spectacular. In the main cavern there was also a large theatre with a huge stalagmite/tite in its centre.
It was time for a bite of lunch so we had soup and roll in the adjoining café and witnessed a bit of light entertainment. The entertainment was an obnoxious customer who was accusing the café owner of ripping him off when he wanted to pay by Euros'. The going rate from the bank was 1.41 Euros to the pound but most places, such as cafes and shops, were charging 1.60 Euros to the pound. This guy was complaining that he was being ripped off wherever he went. The stupid thing was that he had British money and was just being annoying by wanting to pay by Euros. Anyway, he eventually got chucked out and the owner came over to apologise to us as the ‘F’ word had been used during the heat of the argument. As the owner said “ Sterling is the currency here and they get charged for changing Euros at the banks”. We said it was light entertainment and not to worry about it. I think the whole argument added up to a difference of 20¢ at the most.
We then went on our merry way and this is where we went wrong! In hindsight we should have ridden the cable car down to the lower level and walked to the Great Siege Tunnels but the signage was very poor and we ended up walking all the way down via a very zig zagging road. It was a hell of a way down and by the time we got to the tunnels our calf muscles were starting to complain badly. The Great Siege Tunnels were built around 1788 which was quite a feat for those days. Luckily this section wasn’t too long and we managed it without much more effort. They were very interesting and quite an eye opener.
We then continued walking down the road and it seemed to take forever. We passed the WW2 tunnels but we were to knackered by this time to visit them and decided to save them for another day. The Rock is riddled with over 30 kms of tunnels and some of the tunnels can take heavy vehicles and trains. A city within The Rock. We eventually got down to the town level and found a little shop where we bought water and ice creams and had a good natter with the shop owner. Eventually we made it back to the hotel where we collapsed on our beds and had a little siesta before limping out, once again, to get some dinner. Luckily they eat dinner late here, around about 8pm so places stay open late. We went to The Angry Friar and ate some fish’n chips. Well, you just have to partake of the local delicacies sometime, don’t you!
Thursday, 17th May 2007 - Gibraltar and Morocco
Up early today to get picked up at 7am by our tour guide to go on our tour of Tangiers. Our driver picked up 4 more people and drove us to the border where we had to disembark and walked across the border with a customary glance at the passports. Our driver then took us to the Euro Ferry terminal at Algeciras in Spain, to cross over to North Africa to go to Morocco. At the ferry terminal we were told our ship, and therefore our trip, had been cancelled but were offered another trip that went to Ceuta, a Spanish enclave surrounded by Morocco, then the Moroccan town of Tetuaun and onto a quick trip of Tangiers. We all chose to go on this one so we boarded the ferry for the crossing to Ceuta where we met up with other people and climbed aboard our coach. Our first stop was the town of Tetuaun which translates into ‘White Dove’ and visited the market in the medina (old town). It was very interesting and colourful but, unfortunately, we had to follow our guide so we didn’t all get lost so we didn’t have time to linger over the local market stalls but just visited places the guide decided we should see and where he, probably, got a back hander.
We went to a large carpet shop but I didn’t see anyone on our tour buy a carpet although we were taken to the roof here where we were able to get some good photos of the architecture and views.
Back into the market and play Follow my Leader. Luckily for us some stall holders were wise enough of these tour guides and followed us around with some of their wares and we were able to haggle and buy some local stuff on the run. I was able to buy a gift for my sister Glynn’s birthday in July so I was quite happy. By this time it was time for lunch so we were taken to a Moroccan restaurant in the centre of the market place. Here we partook of traditional Moroccan fare along with a myriad of other westerners on tour.
Then it was change into a smaller minibus (cramped) and onto the market at Tangiers. Here we were followed, once again, by street vendors and one was selling a variety of thunder eggs. I rather fancied one that looked like it had garnets inside with a sprinkling of some other twinkling mineral. He started out offering me it for 40 Euros but I wasn’t interested at that price. As we got to the bus he offered it to me for 10 Euros ($16) I just couldn’t resist so I am now the owner of a lovely thunder egg for my rock collection when/if we ever settle down on land again. Back on the cramped bus and drive back to Ceuta via the coast road and catch the ferry. Geoff thought The Euro Ferry looked Australian and after wandering around found that it was indeed made in Western Australia. Nice looking boat.
Got back to Gibraltar around 8.30 after putting our watches forward one hour. Dinner at the hotel this night as we were to tired to go out looking for somewhere to eat. Food was okay but nothing flash.
We went to a large carpet shop but I didn’t see anyone on our tour buy a carpet although we were taken to the roof here where we were able to get some good photos of the architecture and views.
Back into the market and play Follow my Leader. Luckily for us some stall holders were wise enough of these tour guides and followed us around with some of their wares and we were able to haggle and buy some local stuff on the run. I was able to buy a gift for my sister Glynn’s birthday in July so I was quite happy. By this time it was time for lunch so we were taken to a Moroccan restaurant in the centre of the market place. Here we partook of traditional Moroccan fare along with a myriad of other westerners on tour.
Then it was change into a smaller minibus (cramped) and onto the market at Tangiers. Here we were followed, once again, by street vendors and one was selling a variety of thunder eggs. I rather fancied one that looked like it had garnets inside with a sprinkling of some other twinkling mineral. He started out offering me it for 40 Euros but I wasn’t interested at that price. As we got to the bus he offered it to me for 10 Euros ($16) I just couldn’t resist so I am now the owner of a lovely thunder egg for my rock collection when/if we ever settle down on land again. Back on the cramped bus and drive back to Ceuta via the coast road and catch the ferry. Geoff thought The Euro Ferry looked Australian and after wandering around found that it was indeed made in Western Australia. Nice looking boat.
Got back to Gibraltar around 8.30 after putting our watches forward one hour. Dinner at the hotel this night as we were to tired to go out looking for somewhere to eat. Food was okay but nothing flash.
Friday, 18th May 2007 - Gibraltar
Today we decided that it was time to head back up to the WW2 Tunnels. We grabbed a taxi this time and got their at 10.15. We had a personal tour with ‘Smudge’ of a small portion of these tunnels which had only been opened to the public for the last 2 years and was privately run. This company has grand plans to open up more of these tunnels once they get a bit of their capital back. It is hard to believe that there is a complete city under The Rock with over 37 kms of large tunnels, rail tracks, living areas etc. There were Nissan huts housing over 200 men at a time using the hot bed system plus large mess halls. It is huge.
The tour took about an hour and then we had a nice coffee and bought souvenirs at their gift shop before we were given a lift down to the bus stop. The No 2 bus picked us up at this stop and is a minibus due to the narrow streets it has to navigate. We got off at the museum and found a real little gem. It was only small but had heaps of historical artefacts and stories and had the archaeological remains of some Moorish Baths, probably from before the 1400’s. They were very well preserved and we found them fascinating. We then decided to Catch the No 2 bus again to visit the 100 ton gun but we missed the stop so stayed on to complete the round trip, We stopped off at Safeway to check whether they sold any interesting Spanish goods. We bought scotch eggs and pork pies and a thick shake for lunch there and ate them in the car park. At least it was cheap.
The tour took about an hour and then we had a nice coffee and bought souvenirs at their gift shop before we were given a lift down to the bus stop. The No 2 bus picked us up at this stop and is a minibus due to the narrow streets it has to navigate. We got off at the museum and found a real little gem. It was only small but had heaps of historical artefacts and stories and had the archaeological remains of some Moorish Baths, probably from before the 1400’s. They were very well preserved and we found them fascinating. We then decided to Catch the No 2 bus again to visit the 100 ton gun but we missed the stop so stayed on to complete the round trip, We stopped off at Safeway to check whether they sold any interesting Spanish goods. We bought scotch eggs and pork pies and a thick shake for lunch there and ate them in the car park. At least it was cheap.
Saturday, 19th May 2007 - Gibraltar
Saturday was really a wasted day as we had seen all the good bits of Gibraltar. We wandered up to the Ameda Gardens (botanical gardens) and went into a little zoo there that cared for animals that had been rescued from being smuggled in or out of the country. It was tiny and was run mostly by volunteers and donations so at least our money was going to a good cause. We met a zoo keeper there who had flown over from the UK and who had originally set up the facility. He was a little disappointed at the way it was going to neglect and said it was almost back to the condition it was in when they did it up.
We then caught the bus back to the 100 ton gun. The exhibition was closed for renovation but we managed to look at the gun amid the rubble. Bit of a let down really. We then caught the bus back in to town where we looked at the American War Memorial and had a last wander around.
Dinner was at The Piccadilly, a restaurant just across the road from the hotel, with a Spanish waitress who hardly spoke any English. Bed early but we didn’t get much sleep as a gale blew up and a window was slamming badly nearby. We rang the concierge but, alas, the wind died whilst he was looking for it and blew up again once he was gone. Eventually it died down and we were able to get to sleep.
We then caught the bus back to the 100 ton gun. The exhibition was closed for renovation but we managed to look at the gun amid the rubble. Bit of a let down really. We then caught the bus back in to town where we looked at the American War Memorial and had a last wander around.
Dinner was at The Piccadilly, a restaurant just across the road from the hotel, with a Spanish waitress who hardly spoke any English. Bed early but we didn’t get much sleep as a gale blew up and a window was slamming badly nearby. We rang the concierge but, alas, the wind died whilst he was looking for it and blew up again once he was gone. Eventually it died down and we were able to get to sleep.
Sunday, 20th May 2007 - Gibraltar to England
Up at 6.30 and check out a grab a taxi to the airport for 7.30. Took off at 8.30. The main road to the border cuts right across the airport runway and has to be closed when a plane comes in or takes off. Quite an interesting sight.
The trip was just on 2 hours which seems so short to us, and we got breakfast, and then we were back at Gatwick. We were through customs very quickly and were soon waiting for the train to Eastbourne. The train terminated at Lewes due to rail maintenance so we were bused back to Hampden Park and got back at dad’s around 12.30 pm. Got ourselves a bite to eat and put some washing on and basically relaxed. The weather was not so bad and was improving for a couple of days. Lovely!
The trip was just on 2 hours which seems so short to us, and we got breakfast, and then we were back at Gatwick. We were through customs very quickly and were soon waiting for the train to Eastbourne. The train terminated at Lewes due to rail maintenance so we were bused back to Hampden Park and got back at dad’s around 12.30 pm. Got ourselves a bite to eat and put some washing on and basically relaxed. The weather was not so bad and was improving for a couple of days. Lovely!
Monday 21st May to Friday 25th May2007 - Eastbourne
Most of these days were spent visiting friends and relations (Kay and Dave, John G, Chris and Shoo, Aunty Silvia, Gerry and Dave, Cousin Dave G and Sue etc) and organising the hire car for our trip away with Chris and Shoo. The weather during these days was really nice with temperatures in the mid 20’s. Friday afternoon we headed off to Glynn’s, forgetting it was a bank holiday weekend, and ended up in the traffic snarl of the M25 Motorway. Eventually we extricated ourselves out of this jumble and navigated to Glynn’s and settled in.
Saturday, 26th May 2007 - Iver in Buckinghamshire on Humbug
Of course, the weather started to deteriorate once we were on Humbug. Glynn had to go to help organise a kid’s birthday party so Geoff connected her 12 volt system up to her fridge. Glynn’s boat is moored on the Slough Arm of the Grand Union Canal and we went for a walk along the tow path of The Cut (as it is called).
We chatted to a lot of the Liveaboards as we wandered along the tow path and came back about an hour later and Glynn turned up a few minutes later. We then went off shopping and visited 4 hardware stores to try to find a lock for her front doors so she can lock up from the outside when she exits this way. We couldn’t find one so the hunt is now on. Back for a pizza, watch the news and bed.
We chatted to a lot of the Liveaboards as we wandered along the tow path and came back about an hour later and Glynn turned up a few minutes later. We then went off shopping and visited 4 hardware stores to try to find a lock for her front doors so she can lock up from the outside when she exits this way. We couldn’t find one so the hunt is now on. Back for a pizza, watch the news and bed.
Sunday, 27th May 2007 - Humbug
Raining! Why am I not surprised. It can only get better, can’t it? Dad, John G and Aunty Marie arrived just after 11am. It was the first time that John and Aunty Marie had been on Humbug and they were pleasantly surprised with the room and comfort of it.
Around noon we all headed off for the pub, the Malt Shovel, for lunch. We all had main meals and they were a huge size and I couldn’t eat all of my turkey roast. Tim and Laura met us here after we had eaten and then we all went back to the boat. Dad, John and Aunty Marie left at 4pm and Laura and Tim stayed on and we watched the Aussie movie ‘Kenny’. Tim and Laura enjoyed it but I don’t think Glynn enjoyed it much but she said she wasn’t much of a film lover. Bacon sandwich for tea. Very English!
Around noon we all headed off for the pub, the Malt Shovel, for lunch. We all had main meals and they were a huge size and I couldn’t eat all of my turkey roast. Tim and Laura met us here after we had eaten and then we all went back to the boat. Dad, John and Aunty Marie left at 4pm and Laura and Tim stayed on and we watched the Aussie movie ‘Kenny’. Tim and Laura enjoyed it but I don’t think Glynn enjoyed it much but she said she wasn’t much of a film lover. Bacon sandwich for tea. Very English!
Monday, 28th May 2007 - Humbug
Raining hard and ‘B’ cold! Did a check list, started the engine and did a few things on the boat to get ready for the off.
Tuesday, 29th May 2007 - Iver (Slough Arm, Grand Union Canal) to Paddington Basin
Finished getting the boat ready. We had a little time stuff up with Carol due to a misunderstanding and crossed wired so we eventually headed off around 11pm. We had to head up the Slough Arm to the Winding Hole to be able to turn Humbug round before we could really set off in the direction we wanted, a total of 40 minutes in all. A Winding Hole is an area in a narrow canal that has been widened to enable the boats to turn around otherwise you would be forever going in the same direction. Geoff executed it perfectly on his first try, well done. Glynn was impressed and blew out a sigh of relief. Once back at the marina (these are tiny little marinas) and there was a boat alongside pumping out so we were unable to moor up and get water and diesel so decided to push on and get it at the next marina, which was the Packet Boat Marina. Once we had done this we had to, once again, turn round to continue up the Grand Canal with Glynn at the tiller under instructions from Geoff. But, as soon as he left her, she took us into a bank and under a tree managing to break the boat pole and one of the back supports of her directors chair. Plus, mind you, giving me a nice souvenir bruise on my upper arm as I dived through the saloon door to escape the branches. We told her not to worry - all newbies stuff up at some time. As it still Spring, although getting towards the start of Summer, there were heaps of swans, ducks, geese, moorhens etc with their young and they were a delight to see. It wasn’t long before we had to turn into the Paddington Arm off the Grand Union Canal under a tiny wee white bridge.
You wonder how you will be able to turn and go under such a small bridge but it was done with no trouble at all. By this time it was my turn at the tiller and it took quite a bit of getting used, I can tell you. I had to think more of where I wanted my back end to go and push the tiller accordingly. If I thought where my front end needed to go I invariably pushed the tiller the wrong way. It all seemed back to front to me. No crashes, thank goodness! The weather wasn’t so good with periods of heavy showers and it was cold at times. Luckily it didn't rain continuously as the person at the tiller has no protection from the elements at all. It was quite a long day as we really hadn’t left early enough but we pushed on through Kensal Green (Graffiti Capital of the suburbs) and then on to Little Venice which was picturesque with houses right on the water. I mean the house walls are right in the canal, just like the real Venice. By this time it was getting toward 7pm and when we got to the Paddington Basin we were lucky to find a free mooring. We had just settled down to a glass of red wine when ‘BANG’ and the another ‘BANG’. We went outside to find a working barge had given us two glancing blows but no damage as these canal boats are tough old birds. Chilly, so on went the pot belly stove and it was soon as warm as toast. It takes a bit of getting used to - having a proper wood/coal fire on a boat. Glynn cooked a nice quiche for tea which we had with salad.
You wonder how you will be able to turn and go under such a small bridge but it was done with no trouble at all. By this time it was my turn at the tiller and it took quite a bit of getting used, I can tell you. I had to think more of where I wanted my back end to go and push the tiller accordingly. If I thought where my front end needed to go I invariably pushed the tiller the wrong way. It all seemed back to front to me. No crashes, thank goodness! The weather wasn’t so good with periods of heavy showers and it was cold at times. Luckily it didn't rain continuously as the person at the tiller has no protection from the elements at all. It was quite a long day as we really hadn’t left early enough but we pushed on through Kensal Green (Graffiti Capital of the suburbs) and then on to Little Venice which was picturesque with houses right on the water. I mean the house walls are right in the canal, just like the real Venice. By this time it was getting toward 7pm and when we got to the Paddington Basin we were lucky to find a free mooring. We had just settled down to a glass of red wine when ‘BANG’ and the another ‘BANG’. We went outside to find a working barge had given us two glancing blows but no damage as these canal boats are tough old birds. Chilly, so on went the pot belly stove and it was soon as warm as toast. It takes a bit of getting used to - having a proper wood/coal fire on a boat. Glynn cooked a nice quiche for tea which we had with salad.
Wednesday, 30th May 2007 - Paddington Basin to Camden
A quiet night which was a surprise as the Paddington Basin is, as you would think, in Paddington in the heart of London. Glynn and I went off in one direction to get some supplies whilst Geoff went off in the other with the camera. Glynn and I found a Tesco and then met up with Geoff back at the boat. A better day today, luckily, and we were soon leaving the Paddington Basin. When it started opening out Geoff put Humbug in reverse for the practice and to see how she behaved. He then went back and forth with people probably wondering what we were up to. The boat probably weighs over 25 ton so she doesn’t respond so quickly as 2AB does. We then turned right into the Regents Park Arm and through an area of large and impressive Victorian houses.
We then entered the Maida Vale Tunnel and as soon as we entered it the torch died as did the horn. Murphy was back! Glynn used the flash on her camera to signal to the two boats about to enter from the other end whilst I rummaged around in the dark in the saloon for our little LED torch.
Once through we headed on past Regents Park and the London Zoo and found a lovely seven day mooring just before Camden Town. This mooring was on a section of the canal that the gates get locked at night so it was quite secure. Glynn, being a boater, had a key for these gates so we were able to come and go as we pleased. It was only a couple of minutes walk to Camden Town which was brimming with funky markets, colourful people (well, weird actually) and noise. It was bucketing down with rain at this point of time but there were people sitting outside at tables with sun (rain) umbrellas eating El Fresco style without a care in the world. Back to Humbug for a nice glass of red and watch the tourists taking photos of the narrow boats. We got talking to one young guy called Joseph who was from Brazil and we invited him on board. He was around 30 and was traveling the world for a year. He was amazed at Humbug and couldn’t stop taking photos and stayed for a couple of hours at least before we needed to head off in search of some sustenance. Fish’n Chips for Geoff and I, no less.
We then entered the Maida Vale Tunnel and as soon as we entered it the torch died as did the horn. Murphy was back! Glynn used the flash on her camera to signal to the two boats about to enter from the other end whilst I rummaged around in the dark in the saloon for our little LED torch.
Once through we headed on past Regents Park and the London Zoo and found a lovely seven day mooring just before Camden Town. This mooring was on a section of the canal that the gates get locked at night so it was quite secure. Glynn, being a boater, had a key for these gates so we were able to come and go as we pleased. It was only a couple of minutes walk to Camden Town which was brimming with funky markets, colourful people (well, weird actually) and noise. It was bucketing down with rain at this point of time but there were people sitting outside at tables with sun (rain) umbrellas eating El Fresco style without a care in the world. Back to Humbug for a nice glass of red and watch the tourists taking photos of the narrow boats. We got talking to one young guy called Joseph who was from Brazil and we invited him on board. He was around 30 and was traveling the world for a year. He was amazed at Humbug and couldn’t stop taking photos and stayed for a couple of hours at least before we needed to head off in search of some sustenance. Fish’n Chips for Geoff and I, no less.
Thursday, 31st May 2007 - Camden Town
This morning Geoff managed to find an unsecured wireless network so we managed to book our tickets for The London Eye on line. We then wandered up to Camden where Geoff bought a really nice leather pirates hat. We then caught the underground to Waterloo and wandered along the embankment to the London Eye where we picked up our tickets. After an English Breakfast (for lunch) we queued up for the London Eye and were soon on board, in not much time at all. We took some great photos whilst we were on the 30 minute trip but just as we were one carriage short of disembarking the whole Eye ground to a halt. A mechanical fault and there we stayed for over 40 minutes or more whilst the engineers fiddled around trying to get it going again. The UP side of this little drama was that we got all of our money back so saved $100 (£39).
We then decided to head towards Trafalgar Square and passed the Cabinet War Rooms and the newly opened (in 2005) Churchill Museum. This was too good an opportunity to miss so in we went. It was brilliant and we thoroughly enjoyed the whole thing and were there until closing time. It made our day.
On to Trafalgar square to have cake and coffee. Three drinks and cakes cost £12 ($30) Wow - we didn’t want to buy the whole café! Back on the subway to Camden, buy some takeaway and back to Humbug.
Friday, 1st June 2007 - Camden to Wembley area (First day of Summer)
Slow start to the day. Cast off and motor to Camden to the winding hole where Glynn attempted to turn the boat for the first time under instructions. She actually turned it well but we had a minor bump after she straightened her up. Still - not bad for someone who still has her “L” plates, even though she wasn’t happy with it. She says she really doesn’t like being at the tiller and doesn’t enjoy it as yet. This will change as she gets more experience, I am sure. Me too! It is 55 ft long and 6.6 ft wide, made of steel and very heavy (over 20 ton probably). Not a quick stopper. We berthed at Paddington again to empty the portaloo but were unable to get water as there was a big boat in getting all the services. We have enough and will fill it later.
We then headed further back along the canal to moor (not such a good area) near Portabella Road which was about a 10 minute walk away.
We wandered around the market stalls buying a few small things here and there before having lunch at a local Thai café. The food here was really delicious and looking around we believe that the film “Notting Hill” was filmed here and we checked out all the doorways so we can check them out on the actual film when we get back to Oz. Back to Humbug and she was ok apart from the fact that two of her mooring stakes had been pulled out. Yahoos, we wondered???? Glynn says that in certain areas it is not unusual for boats to be untied or broken in to and she was worried the whole time we were away at Portabello Road. So, we moved further up the canal and moored near Wembley and walked up to have dinner at the pub that night. A Burger and chips was £6.95 each ($16+ Oz). So expensive to us but it was pleasant sitting in the garden overlooking the canal.
We wandered around the market stalls buying a few small things here and there before having lunch at a local Thai café. The food here was really delicious and looking around we believe that the film “Notting Hill” was filmed here and we checked out all the doorways so we can check them out on the actual film when we get back to Oz. Back to Humbug and she was ok apart from the fact that two of her mooring stakes had been pulled out. Yahoos, we wondered???? Glynn says that in certain areas it is not unusual for boats to be untied or broken in to and she was worried the whole time we were away at Portabello Road. So, we moved further up the canal and moored near Wembley and walked up to have dinner at the pub that night. A Burger and chips was £6.95 each ($16+ Oz). So expensive to us but it was pleasant sitting in the garden overlooking the canal.
Saturday, 2nd June 2007 - Wembley to the Slough Arm
The weather was still good and it was a quiet night. Around 9.30 we headed off and pointed Humbug’s nose for home. Glynn took the helm for a lot of the way and she seemed a lot more relaxed and happy at the tiller today. Saw a small terrapin on route and Geoff managed to reverse the boat up so she could get a photo of it.
We stopped at a small marina further up the canal to fill up on water and empty the portaloo (again) and to buy a new boat pole. Couldn’t get our stern close enough to fill up on diesel but Geoff dipped it and it was still full-ish. As we went further & closer to the Slough Arm of the Grand Union Canal the countryside definitely got more rural and there seemed to be a lot less rubbish. This was the one thing that really disappointed both Geoff and myself - the amount of rubbish in the canal. A lot of people in the UK still believe it is ok to dump garbage when and wherever they want. There seems to be heaps of it everywhere. They need to have a ‘Clean up Britain Day’ same as we have in Australia. The message has definitely not sunk in over here yet. Received a text from Sally, Wyn and Michelle, which was nice. When we got to the Grand Union Canal we turned left towards Southall to the winding hole there so Glynn could have more practice turning Humbug without anyone watching. This time she did it perfectly.
We then tried to get lunch at two canal side pubs but the first one wasn’t cooking and the second only had pizzas so we continued up the canal and moored at the big Tesco there and bought a crusty French stick and had it with butter, ham and tomato. Yum - their bread seems to be so much more crispier than ours in Oz. Glynn did her fair share of duty at the tiller on the way back and was starting to relax and look happier doing it.
Got back to the marina and had to let the boat out that is normally moored on the outside of Humbug and steer the nose in, all the time letting the other boat out with a centre line. Tie up and then tie the other boat to Humbug and we were in and could relax. It was easier than we anticipated, which is always the way. Glynn’s fridge didn’t seem to be working on 240 volt so Geoff had a look at it and found it was working but didn’t have a compressor and worked on a heating coil. Not the most efficient system. Most narrow boat owners have their fridges on gas when they are out cruising. Time for a long and hot shower - BLISS! Roast chook and veggies for tea followed by a nice slice of Bakewell Tart.
We stopped at a small marina further up the canal to fill up on water and empty the portaloo (again) and to buy a new boat pole. Couldn’t get our stern close enough to fill up on diesel but Geoff dipped it and it was still full-ish. As we went further & closer to the Slough Arm of the Grand Union Canal the countryside definitely got more rural and there seemed to be a lot less rubbish. This was the one thing that really disappointed both Geoff and myself - the amount of rubbish in the canal. A lot of people in the UK still believe it is ok to dump garbage when and wherever they want. There seems to be heaps of it everywhere. They need to have a ‘Clean up Britain Day’ same as we have in Australia. The message has definitely not sunk in over here yet. Received a text from Sally, Wyn and Michelle, which was nice. When we got to the Grand Union Canal we turned left towards Southall to the winding hole there so Glynn could have more practice turning Humbug without anyone watching. This time she did it perfectly.
We then tried to get lunch at two canal side pubs but the first one wasn’t cooking and the second only had pizzas so we continued up the canal and moored at the big Tesco there and bought a crusty French stick and had it with butter, ham and tomato. Yum - their bread seems to be so much more crispier than ours in Oz. Glynn did her fair share of duty at the tiller on the way back and was starting to relax and look happier doing it.
Got back to the marina and had to let the boat out that is normally moored on the outside of Humbug and steer the nose in, all the time letting the other boat out with a centre line. Tie up and then tie the other boat to Humbug and we were in and could relax. It was easier than we anticipated, which is always the way. Glynn’s fridge didn’t seem to be working on 240 volt so Geoff had a look at it and found it was working but didn’t have a compressor and worked on a heating coil. Not the most efficient system. Most narrow boat owners have their fridges on gas when they are out cruising. Time for a long and hot shower - BLISS! Roast chook and veggies for tea followed by a nice slice of Bakewell Tart.
Sunday, 3rd June 2007 - Iver, Slough Arm of the Grand Union Canal
Lazy start to the day. Tim Snr and Laura came over at 11am and stayed until 2pm. Geoff then took out Glynn’s cabin window, cleaned it off, resealed it, re-screwed it and, hopefully, it is now waterproof. We will wait and see.
It was a very hot and humid day and Geoff got up quite a sweat whilst he was doing it. We had forgotten how humid the UK could become WHEN it does have sunny days. A relaxing day afterwards with reading and relaxing. All in all, a great week was had by all. We thoroughly enjoyed the slow travel, scenery, wildlife, attractions and the leisurely way of the canals. Glynn felt quite let down after it was all over.
It was a very hot and humid day and Geoff got up quite a sweat whilst he was doing it. We had forgotten how humid the UK could become WHEN it does have sunny days. A relaxing day afterwards with reading and relaxing. All in all, a great week was had by all. We thoroughly enjoyed the slow travel, scenery, wildlife, attractions and the leisurely way of the canals. Glynn felt quite let down after it was all over.
Monday, 4th June 2007 - Iver to Eastbourne
Glynn was up at 6.30 am, poor thing, as she has to go back to work. Geoff was up at 7am so I got up as well. Glynn was a bit tearful when she said goodbye as we had all had a terrific time. We packed up, cleaned up and had left by 9.45am and had a quick trip down taking just over an hour and a half. Just past Polegate we stopped at a roadside food van for lunch and bought egg and bacon rolls and had a good natter with the girl operating the van. We had just sat back in our car to eat the rolls when a car arrived and a lady got out and went to speak to the girl in the van. Then all hell broke loose. She had been the bearer of very bad news and had to tell her that her mum had just died. The girl just ran straight towards the busy road as if she could run from the news she was being given. Geoff rushed out of the car and made sure she didn’t run straight out into the traffic. She then collapsed into a sobbing heap and was inconsolable. Geoff went into the van and turned all the gas off and then helped to close the van down. We stayed long enough to ensure that she had calmed down enough for her friend to be able to handle her and they were waiting for someone to come and tow the van away. I have never seen anyone take that sort of news so badly. Geoff says it just goes to show how your day can change in the blink of an eye. So sad. When we come back from Ireland we will go back and give her some flowers. Arrived back at dad’s around 12.30pm and Aunty Silvia was there so we had a good natter. Geoff gave dad his pirate hat to try out and to stop Smokey, the budgie, landing on dad’s bald head.
Dad says the budgies claws are too sharp for his poor, tender head. John G popped round after tea to catch up with us. The next few days were spent washing, ironing, shopping etc to get ready for the Scotland and Ireland trip on Thursday, the 7th.
Dad says the budgies claws are too sharp for his poor, tender head. John G popped round after tea to catch up with us. The next few days were spent washing, ironing, shopping etc to get ready for the Scotland and Ireland trip on Thursday, the 7th.
Thursday, 7th June 2007 - Eastbourne to Heysham
Up early and head up to Chris and Shoo’s and drop our bags and then down into Eastbourne to pick up our hire car. Back to Chris and Shoo’s and load up the car and head off. The drive to Charmaine’s at Haysham near Morecombe was a long drive but uneventful with all of the driving done by the motorways. That afternoon we visited some very old abbey ruins at Heysham which were interesting. Chris and Shoo’s grandchildren John, Peter and Rachael came round to see them. Charmaine was in the process off of packing up her house as she was to move back to Eastbourne on the Friday.
Friday, 8th June 2007 - Heysham to Isle of Man
Up early to catch the ferry to the Isle of Man. Nice day and a calm sea so a nice, easy passage over. Whilst we were waiting to embark we watched motorbike after motorbike disembark as it was the end of the TT races. It wasn’t the normal Heysham to Isle of Man ferry but had been hired extra to cope with the extra traffic due to the TT races. Once again, the ferry was made in Australia but this time it was a Tasmanian ferry. Not as nice as the one to Morocco. We found seats in the Quiet Lounge which meant no screaming kids so it was a peaceful trip over. The views coming in to Douglas was very picturesque with a fort similar to ‘Pinch Gut’ in Sydney Harbour.
As all the luggage came off the ferry there was a little spaniel checking it all out for drugs, presumably. This was the first time we had ever seen a customs dog in use and was interesting to watch.
Mark (France’s hubby) was then there to meet us off of the ferry and we were then transported to their lovely home at Glen Mayne where Frances and their son Stevie was waiting for us. After a bit of lunch Chris, Shoo, Geoff and myself decided we would go for a walk to stretch our legs and walked to the glen and waterfall just up the road and ended up walking down to the coast. The walk was reasonably easy and the view at the shore was very pretty and Chris, Shoo and Geoff went for a wade at the waters edge.
As all the luggage came off the ferry there was a little spaniel checking it all out for drugs, presumably. This was the first time we had ever seen a customs dog in use and was interesting to watch.
Mark (France’s hubby) was then there to meet us off of the ferry and we were then transported to their lovely home at Glen Mayne where Frances and their son Stevie was waiting for us. After a bit of lunch Chris, Shoo, Geoff and myself decided we would go for a walk to stretch our legs and walked to the glen and waterfall just up the road and ended up walking down to the coast. The walk was reasonably easy and the view at the shore was very pretty and Chris, Shoo and Geoff went for a wade at the waters edge.
Saturday, 9th June 2007 - Isle of Man
Good nights sleep and a glorious day, quite warm. Mark was kind enough to take us on a tour of part of the Isle of Man. Fran stayed behind with Stevie as there was not enough room in the car for all of us. We had left the car behind on the mainland as it was too expensive to take over. Our overall impression of the Isle of Man, so far, was that it was quaint, cute and very picturesque and much bigger than it seems. It was quite unexpected and is a little jewel hidden away from most vacationers eyes - and long may it stay that way. It was still quite full with bike riders and there was still a fun fare along the promenade. Mark drove us to a lot of the places on the island and then we headed back to his place where he disappeared for a little while. Later he came back in and we were told we were all going out and that we shouldn’t ask any questions. When we got there, we found out, of course. He had treated us all to a helicopter scenic flight of the island. What a treat. Shoona tried to say she would look after Stevie but she didn’t get away with it and got into the helicopter with good grace and actually found it most enjoyable even if she didn’t like the feel of the G forces on her head (G forces that none of us others even felt, I might add).
The views were brilliant and it was a lovely surprise for us all. After the flight we all headed into Douglas and the fun fair and some fast food. After a bite to eat we wandered along the promenade to the fair and watched peoples faces as they rode on the extreme rides. Fran decided it was time she returned the favour of the lovely chopper ride and asked Mark if he wanted to go on a ride with her. Mark couldn’t believe his ears and he asked her to choose a ride and to his surprise she chose one of the most nasty looking ones. They were on before Mark gave her time to change her mind and I think that she wished she had changed her mind once it got going. She looked absolutely petrified and a little green around the gills. Mark had an absolute ball but had to take her home after that as she was feeling a little off, to say the least.
Whilst we were waiting for Mark we wandered up the sea front and came to the cenotaph where there were hundreds of yellow ribbons and posters for the missing little girl ‘Madelaine McCann’ who had been missing (abducted) from Spain for over a month. So sad.
Mark then came back for us and took us for another drive to a cove nearby. Here we caught up with Vanessa who was working at a local restaurant who was sitting and enjoying the view before she headed off home. She said her professional name was Jade star and she was off in the morning to Glasgow to finish filming a scene for a UK TV program called Kitchen Criminals and she gave us a taster of her rissole speciality. So, those of you in the UK, look out for this program in November this year.
Whilst we were waiting for Mark we wandered up the sea front and came to the cenotaph where there were hundreds of yellow ribbons and posters for the missing little girl ‘Madelaine McCann’ who had been missing (abducted) from Spain for over a month. So sad.
Mark then came back for us and took us for another drive to a cove nearby. Here we caught up with Vanessa who was working at a local restaurant who was sitting and enjoying the view before she headed off home. She said her professional name was Jade star and she was off in the morning to Glasgow to finish filming a scene for a UK TV program called Kitchen Criminals and she gave us a taster of her rissole speciality. So, those of you in the UK, look out for this program in November this year.
Sunday, 10th June 2007 - Isle of Man
Chris and Shoo were kind enough to look after their grandson for the day and Mark dropped them off at Peel for the day. This meant that Mark and Fran were able to take us out for the day as Chris and Shoo go over to the Isle of Man quite a few times and have seen most of it. So off we went and the first trip was to the Laxley Water Wheel which was built in 1854 to pump water to a neighbouring mine and was named the Lady Isabella. She is the largest surviving water wheel in Europe and has a circumference of 228 ft. She is one of two identical water wheels made in the Isle of Man and the other is in a disused state down in Cornwall and there are plans in progress to bring her back home to the Isle of Man.
The drive up the lane into this car park was so narrow that both Geoff and I breathed in to make more space, a natural reflex. How cars pass each other on some of these roads is beyond me. Then it was on to the electric railway to Snaefell, on the highest hill in the Isle of Man, where you could see Ireland, England, Scotland & Wales.
Very blowy and chilly from the lookout but great weather. A quick cuppa and back down to catch the Manx railway to Douglas. The Manx Railway is also turn of the last century and still in its original Victorian state with open carriages. The route took us along the coast and was very picturesque and unique.
The drive up the lane into this car park was so narrow that both Geoff and I breathed in to make more space, a natural reflex. How cars pass each other on some of these roads is beyond me. Then it was on to the electric railway to Snaefell, on the highest hill in the Isle of Man, where you could see Ireland, England, Scotland & Wales.
Very blowy and chilly from the lookout but great weather. A quick cuppa and back down to catch the Manx railway to Douglas. The Manx Railway is also turn of the last century and still in its original Victorian state with open carriages. The route took us along the coast and was very picturesque and unique.
Monday, 11th June 2007 - Isle of Man
Mark was back to work today so we all caught the bus to Douglas (Doohlish in Gaelic). We split up with Chris and Shoo and Fran and Stevie as we had a few things to do. We had a photo enlargement printed off of Fran and Mark on the fun fair ride and visited the chandlery and bought a few bits and pieces that took our fancy. We wandered around the shops and had, what was called, a coffee milk shake. Their idea of a milk shake is cold milk and flavouring stirred, not shaken. What a disappointment. We have missed our cold coffee milk drinks. When you can find a cold milk drink it is either chocolate, strawberry or banana. Apparently coffee flavour is not that popular over here. Catch the bus back where little Stevie had a ball up on the top deck. Mark was home when we got there and he took us to the ferry terminal with all of our gear. It was a calm crossing, this time on the Ben My Crae and we got in at 11pm and Charmaine picked Chris up and he came back with the bigger car. Spent the night again there and she is almost packed up and she and Peter are ready to head off to Eastbourne.
Tuesday, 12th June 2007 - Heysham to Edinburgh
Not much to report today as it was mainly travelling to Edinburgh. We got into Edinburgh about 3pm and tried to find an information centre and a B&B to no avail so we headed to the outskirts and found a B&B there.
Wednesday, 13th June 2007 - Edinburgh
Headed off this morning and parked the car in the ‘Park and Ride’ car park and took the bus into Edinburgh and headed up to the castle. We were surprised at how small the area in front of the castle was where the Edinburgh Tattoo is held each year. It looks huge on the TV. We were lucky enough to tag onto a guided tour that had just started and very good the tour guide was, too! After the tour finished Chris gave him a tip so he spent a bit more time with us and was a mine of information. We spent a good three hours at the castle and we had head phones to enable us to find out as much as we could about the place.
On the way back out we stopped to watch a gang of stone masons doing renovating work and were making the stones in the original old fashioned way and were very interesting to watch. It reminded me of the stonemason that Parks Victoria flew over to Victoria from Scotland to oversee track work on the track up to Mt Feathertop near Bright where we used to live. The streets approaching the castle were ringed with really old houses with stunning architecture and were very pretty.
We then caught the open topped tour bus and did the city tour getting off at the Dome Hotel. We went inside for a quiet drink and to look at the magnificent dome. Once again, an old building but I have no idea how old.
Then it was time to head off again and we drove to Perth where we found a nice B&B for the night.
On the way back out we stopped to watch a gang of stone masons doing renovating work and were making the stones in the original old fashioned way and were very interesting to watch. It reminded me of the stonemason that Parks Victoria flew over to Victoria from Scotland to oversee track work on the track up to Mt Feathertop near Bright where we used to live. The streets approaching the castle were ringed with really old houses with stunning architecture and were very pretty.
We then caught the open topped tour bus and did the city tour getting off at the Dome Hotel. We went inside for a quiet drink and to look at the magnificent dome. Once again, an old building but I have no idea how old.
Then it was time to head off again and we drove to Perth where we found a nice B&B for the night.
Thursday, 14th June 2007 - Tomintoul
At breakfast we caught up with some more Aussies so had a good chat and then had a good natter with some Scots who had been to Oz. Today is Shoo’s birthday and we gave her a McIntosh tartan scarf (yes she’s originally from Scotland). After brekky we headed off and did a little detour to go to Blair Atholl where my great, great, great, great grandfather came from. My ancestor’s surname was originally Lamont/Lamond and they came from the west coast of Scotland before being attacked and dispersed by the Campbells. They then fled to Blair Atholl where they changed their name to Brown and eventually one ended up in London as a London policeman and then the family moved to Eastbourne. It’s amazing what family history you find out about that you never knew about. And here was me thinking that because my maiden name was Brown that my ancestral history must have been boring, We then did a tour of the Blair Atholl distillery which is one of the distilleries that make whisky for Bells and is the main rich and dark whisky used for the base.
It was time, once again, to head off and continue on to Tomintoul (pronounced Tom in towel) which is the highest village in the Highlands. We were surprised at the Highlands as they didn’t seem very high at all and reminded us very much of the High Plains of Victoria and New South Wales. On looking on the map, none of the mountains in the UK are as high as the mountains in Oz, which was also a big surprise. In fact most were only half as tall as Mt Hotham. We got to Ushi’s, Shoona’ s step mum, and had a cuppa before leaving Chris and Shoo there and making our way to the Findron B&B which was to be our home for the next three days.
The B&B was a working farm and was really nicely appointed. It felt very homely. That evening Chris, Shoo, Ushi and her friend Janet plus Geoff and myself headed off to a very nice restaurant to celebrate Shoona’s birthday.
It was time, once again, to head off and continue on to Tomintoul (pronounced Tom in towel) which is the highest village in the Highlands. We were surprised at the Highlands as they didn’t seem very high at all and reminded us very much of the High Plains of Victoria and New South Wales. On looking on the map, none of the mountains in the UK are as high as the mountains in Oz, which was also a big surprise. In fact most were only half as tall as Mt Hotham. We got to Ushi’s, Shoona’ s step mum, and had a cuppa before leaving Chris and Shoo there and making our way to the Findron B&B which was to be our home for the next three days.
The B&B was a working farm and was really nicely appointed. It felt very homely. That evening Chris, Shoo, Ushi and her friend Janet plus Geoff and myself headed off to a very nice restaurant to celebrate Shoona’s birthday.
Friday, 15th June 2007 - John’O Groats
Chris and Shoo decided to stay and visit with Ushi today so we headed off in the car on our own. We headed up towards Inverness and had only just got out of Tominoul when we saw some striking Highland cattle in a nearby field (note I said field and not paddock—getting back into the pommy language). These cattle are so very different and beautiful in their own way and we just had to stop for a photo.
Then just up the road we saw a dead deer on the road - road pizza - a bit different to Roos, for a change. Then it was up through Inverness and up the top east coast of Scotland past many a ruined castle and onto a small fishing village called Helmsdale.
Then it was on to John O’Groats. Not much there but we expected that. It’s just a place to say you have been. There was a magnificent hotel/castle type structure there that was boarded up. We wondered why ?
We bought a few obligatory souvenirs and then we once again hit the road and visited Durret Head which was the most northern part of Scotland as against John O’Groats which is the longest distance away from Lands End. He we met more Aussies and had another natter before heading off again along the coast road at the top of Scotland. Now the scenery started to get really striking and we were thrilled at the craggy mountains, sandy bays, cute villages and views at Farr Bay.
Then it was mountains and lochs, one after the other - magnificent - Tongue Bay (Tunga) Ben Loyal & Loch Loyal. Such beautiful scenery. We knew we still had plenty of time as sundown was at 11.30, sort of, with sun up around 3.30. Not good for sleeping! Onward, always onward, driving on one lane roads with areas for passing. It was here we saw the stag with his lovely antlers and managed to get a reasonable shot. We stopped for a bite of lunch at a cute little pub run by people with a accent straight out of the East Enders. Sounded strange. We eventually got back to our B&B around 8pm. Tired but happy. Glorious day and glorious weather.
Then just up the road we saw a dead deer on the road - road pizza - a bit different to Roos, for a change. Then it was up through Inverness and up the top east coast of Scotland past many a ruined castle and onto a small fishing village called Helmsdale.
Then it was mountains and lochs, one after the other - magnificent - Tongue Bay (Tunga) Ben Loyal & Loch Loyal. Such beautiful scenery. We knew we still had plenty of time as sundown was at 11.30, sort of, with sun up around 3.30. Not good for sleeping! Onward, always onward, driving on one lane roads with areas for passing. It was here we saw the stag with his lovely antlers and managed to get a reasonable shot. We stopped for a bite of lunch at a cute little pub run by people with a accent straight out of the East Enders. Sounded strange. We eventually got back to our B&B around 8pm. Tired but happy. Glorious day and glorious weather.
Saturday, 16th June 2007 - Tomintoul
Unfortunately, I was storing my journal notes electronically and the rest of June went off into cyberspace, never to be seen again, so I am doing this journal by looking at the photos and trying to remember any unusual bits. Sorry. Today it was raining so we spent the day mooching around Tomintoul and going to the museum to look at the re-erected smithy shop which belonged to Shoona’s grandfather. Nice to see a bit of history and know some of the ancestors it pertains to. It was then off to the local pub for a drink and a bite to eat and enjoy the company of a local spaniel. Don’t know who he belonged to but he was a real person dog. We sat in front of the roaring fire (remembering that it was summer) and enjoyed the ambience. Back to the B&B to pack for tomorrow.
Sunday, 17th June 2007 - Tomintoul to Troon
It was raining when we left Tomintoul, raining again (what’s new). Said goodbye to Ushi. We had intended to take a cruise on Loch Ness but decided against it as it was also freezing cold. So we just drove past it. It is 23 miles long and over 750 feet deep in places so maybe Nessie does exist down there somewhere. We continued on down to Fort William where we stopped to watch a tall ship going through the lock there. It was crewed with youngsters and we believe was sponsored by the royal navy. The lock keepers asked them to climb the rigging and they were kind enough to oblige which led to a good photo opportunity. Mind you, it must have been absolutely freezing up there!
The day stayed very cold but the rain eased up so was a small bonus. After a bite to eat at Fort William it was continue towards the coast. On route we passed some spectacular scenery around Glencoe. Because of the low cloud it had a very mystical and brooding feel about it. Once through Glencoe we came to a clearing where there were craft stalls, a food van and a piper. We popped some money in the pipers hat and filmed him. It was really lovely listening to the haunting melodies of the pipes whilst overlooking the beautiful loch below. There were some spectators there who were trying to take photos of him without popping something in his hat so he just kept turning his back on them. As he said, he’s not there just for the fun of it, it is his living.
By this time we had to start looking for a B&B and found quite a nice one down an isolated road. Then dinner at THE local pub.
The day stayed very cold but the rain eased up so was a small bonus. After a bite to eat at Fort William it was continue towards the coast. On route we passed some spectacular scenery around Glencoe. Because of the low cloud it had a very mystical and brooding feel about it. Once through Glencoe we came to a clearing where there were craft stalls, a food van and a piper. We popped some money in the pipers hat and filmed him. It was really lovely listening to the haunting melodies of the pipes whilst overlooking the beautiful loch below. There were some spectators there who were trying to take photos of him without popping something in his hat so he just kept turning his back on them. As he said, he’s not there just for the fun of it, it is his living.
By this time we had to start looking for a B&B and found quite a nice one down an isolated road. Then dinner at THE local pub.
Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday - 18th, 19th, 20th and 21st June 2007 - Northern Ireland
It is hard to work out when we went where from the photos so I have combined the three days we spent in Northern Ireland together. The Monday was spent mainly travelling to Troon to the ferry for 8pm with not much to report. We arrived in Northern Ireland about 11pm and Robert, Chris’ cousin, was there to meet us and we followed him back to his house in Moira where his wife, Marie, was there to greet us. Rob met Marie when he was in the army and stationed in Belfast. The next couple of days was spent with Rob and Marie giving us a whirlwind tour of Northern Ireland. It was really good of Rob to take the days off to do this for us and we were really grateful. We visited the Giants Causeway and the entire coastline of Northern Ireland. On the second day with them we all went down the east coast of Northern Ireland and ended up crossing the border into the Republic of Ireland to fill up on diesel as it was much cheaper, according to Rob. We dutifully filled up and then drove to a nice hotel for dinner. When we all got back into the car at 8pm it wouldn’t start. Marie said as a jest “Are you sure you put diesel in it” and Rob said he was sure he had. He rang the RAC but, being in the Republic of Ireland, he had to ring France and she was difficult to understand. Eventually, about an hour plus later, a van arrived and, to Rob’s horror, he found he had put petrol in and NOT diesel. All the RAC guy could do was tow us to the border where we would then have to ring RAC Northern Ireland. When we got dumped at this service station just over the border Marie rang her daughter and arranged for her and her husband to come a pick most off us up, which they did. Chris elected to keep Rob company until things could be sorted. Us others got back about 10.30pm and Marie tried to ring Rob but couldn’t get through so I tried Chris on his mobile and got them. Apparently, Rob had been on to RAC and they had sent the tow truck to their home address and not where the car was and then Rob couldn’t get back on to them. Marie gave them a ring and they said they couldn’t pick them up until 10am the next day. Marie got very strong with them and said they couldn’t leave them stranded on the border in an area that was not so good so they went out to them and they eventually got back in at 1am. What fun and games. The next day we were off but Rob arranged to pick up a minivan and drove us into Belfast to show us the murals etc. This was good as he knew all the areas to go and all the stories that went with it as he had been stationed there during all the troubles. A lot of the government buildings, such as the law courts and a lot of the police stations, were still fortified with barbed wire and it was strange to see. A lot of the more radical murals had been painted over to a more peaceful theme but a lot of them were still intact. It was a very interesting and moving experience. We then hopped in our car and headed south. On route we passed the area where the Battle of the Boyne was fought so stopped for a look. We were just in time for a talk on it all and it was very interesting considering that when we got there it was just a field with a few carts etc in it. Then it was on again until we got to the little village of Malahide and our B&B. Once we had settled in it was back into Malahide for a very good Thai meal. By this time it was raining, once again, which was unfortunate as it was a very pretty little village and we were not able to take any decent photos.
Friday, 22nd June 2007 - Dublin
Still raining when we left Malahide and headed on into Dublin. Found a park spot and then jumped on the City sight seeing bus. It stopped raining for a while so we were able to sit upstairs after sitting on our raincoats as the seats were wet. Dublin is just another city, really, but we passed the bronze statue of ‘Molly Malone’ and other parts of it had some charm. Then it started to rain in earnest again so we thought it was time to head off the bus and into the Guinness Storehouse to do the self guided tour. It was a massive place inside and was very interesting to see how the various stages of the Guinness was made. It had a large atrium area with a large glass roof and we could see it was teeming down outside so the Guinness Storehouse seemed to be the place to be for a while. At the very top of the building was a 360° bar with fantastic panoramic views of the city skyline. It was here we sipped our complimentary Guinness. Sorry - bleh! Not my cup of tea, so to speak. The boys seemed to like their’s and I must say even Shoona managed to drink her half but mine was left 99% full.
By this time we thought it was about time we hit the road for the west. Outside the Storehouse we waited for the bus in the rain. Now wouldn’t you think that in one of the wettest cities in the world the Irish would have worked out that a bus shelter would be a good idea when waiting for a bus. No, not at all. Not only that but they seem to put the bus stops where the puddles accumulate so that you get a tidal wave hit you when the bus approaches. Also, where are the drains? As we drove out of town the rain became a downpour and we were driving through narrow roads that had become rivers - AND NOT a drain in . They say all roads lead into Dublin but they sure don’t lead out and we got hopelessly lost. We did eventually find ourselves in the little town off Newbridge where we found a less than perfect B&B but it did the job. We headed out for a bite to eat and when we were walking back to the car we passed an ATM which was beeping. I went to investigate and the screen was asking if I needed more time so I pressed the NO button and a credit card popped out. If I had pressed the YES button I would have been able to pull out a fair amount from the credit card. Which, I must add, I would never do. I ended up popping the credit card through the letter box of the bank so lets hope the owner got it back ok.
By this time we thought it was about time we hit the road for the west. Outside the Storehouse we waited for the bus in the rain. Now wouldn’t you think that in one of the wettest cities in the world the Irish would have worked out that a bus shelter would be a good idea when waiting for a bus. No, not at all. Not only that but they seem to put the bus stops where the puddles accumulate so that you get a tidal wave hit you when the bus approaches. Also, where are the drains? As we drove out of town the rain became a downpour and we were driving through narrow roads that had become rivers - AND NOT a drain in . They say all roads lead into Dublin but they sure don’t lead out and we got hopelessly lost. We did eventually find ourselves in the little town off Newbridge where we found a less than perfect B&B but it did the job. We headed out for a bite to eat and when we were walking back to the car we passed an ATM which was beeping. I went to investigate and the screen was asking if I needed more time so I pressed the NO button and a credit card popped out. If I had pressed the YES button I would have been able to pull out a fair amount from the credit card. Which, I must add, I would never do. I ended up popping the credit card through the letter box of the bank so lets hope the owner got it back ok.
Saturday, 23rd June 2007 - Ring of Kerry and Portmagee
Today we were heading toward the ‘Ring of Kerry’. Our first photo stop was at the Adare Castle and Adare Church. The castle was in ruins but quite picturesque and the church was once part of a priory which was built in 1315 by John, The Earl of Kildare. The church was still in use, in good repair but the abbey was in ruins. The sad thing was that people had been using the abbey ruins as a toilet and there was toilet paper strewn around. Westward again and eventually made it to the ‘Ring of Kerry’. The ‘Ring of Kerry’ is a mountain range that skirts the west coast of Ireland and is very spectacular. We ended up at the little fishing village of Portmagee with the Velentia Island just opposite. Here we found our best B&B of the Ireland trip. It was called the Ferry Boat and was right by the sea and very comfortable. We settled in, Chris and Shoo went for a little siesta & Geoff and I decided to go for an explore. We thought the lobster traps looked colourful and the fishing village very cute & quaint.
Sunday, 24th June 2007 - Portmagee to Tipperary
After a good Irish brekky it was, once again, time to hit the road. Our first port of call was Velentia Island where we viewed ‘The Skelligs’ from the shore. If we had of had more time we would have been able to take a boat to these mountain tops sticking out of the sea. On the main one there was a monastery that dated back to about 4AD (I think as I have lost my notes). The ruins can be obtained by climbing over 750 steps and the seas around these exposed mountain tops can be quite rough so you have to choose your day to go as it can be quite hairy getting from the boats to the shore. Maybe I am glad that we didn't have the time to do this trip. There was also a Celtic religious well from around the same date that was very interesting. Then it was on to the Tetrapod tracks that had been discovered by a geology student in 1993 on some rocks by the coast and were over 400 million years old. I found them fascinating but I think Chris wondered what all the fuss was about. By this time we needed to get a move on as we needed to be in Tipperary by evening as we were hoping to catch up with a paragliding pal called Jerry. We had been calling and texting him but had not managed to catch up with him so we were taking pot luck. We got into Tipperary late afternoon and still not managing to get on to Jerry so we got a B&B and headed off to the pub for a drink. I then got a text from Jerry asking where we were and he was with us within a few minutes. After introductions were made he then decided to take us to the Glen of Aherlow which is a very beautiful and mystical place indeed. Unfortunately it was now dusk and photos were out of the question - bumma! We had a meal at a nearby pub and then it was off to bed with the promise from Jerry to go with us some of the way in the morning.
Monday, 25th June 2007 - Tipperary to Rosslare
Jerry came round to the B&B at 9am and we packed the car and followed him until we reached Cahir (pronounced Care). Jerry wanted to show us Cahir Castle which was only a 20 minute drive from Tipperary where Jerry had lived all of his life. Mind you, this was the first time he had ever placed a foot inside Cahir Castle. They say the locals are the worst for visiting local places. We found it was a very good castle and in good repair and you could even climb to the parapets and go in the dungeons - a thing almost of the past with the OH&S issues and litigation of the modern age. Cahir Castle is one of the best preserved castles in Ireland & was built in the 1300’s. There was a good diorama of one of the battles to conquer the castle and you could climb the keeps and immerse yourself in the history and imagine life as it was. We spent a good couple of hours here and then we followed Jerry to the turn off to Waterford where, after hugs and kisses, he left us to continue on alone. The rest of the trip was via motorways so not very interesting until we took a detour to the little fishing cum tourist village of Kilmore Quay. Another cute and quaint village but, unfortunately, getting a bit touristy. Most of the cottages had thatch roofs and made the village look lovely. We had a bite to eat here and Geoff tried to log onto the wireless internet at the local pub, without any luck. Never mind. Then onto Rosslare and the B&B we had booked for a bit of a siesta.
Tuesday, 26th June 2007 - Rosslare to Exminster
Up early, before brekky, and board the ferry at 7.30 am. It was supposed to be rough so Geoff and I took a stugeron as we wanted to buy brekky on the ferry and keep it down. As it was, it wasn’t too bad and two and a half hours later we arrived at Fishguard in Wales where Jo and Mike were waiting to pick us up. Goodbyes to Chris and Shoo and they drove off leaving me feeling a little flat as we had been with them for the last 20 days or so. It didn’t seem right to see them drive off on their own, somehow. Hugs and kisses for Jo and Mike and then we were heading off. Had to ring Chris to stop for us as Geoff had left his camera in the car - shock, horror - we can’t leave that behind! It was quite a few hours drive to Exminster and, on route, we went over the new bridge over the River Severn called the Second Severn Crossing. We eventually arrived at the village of Exminster and bought some Cornish pasties from the local village store. Onto Jo and Mike’s lovely little house. They have just had a third master bedroom completed up in the loft and the house was really nice and comfy. We didn’t get up to anything after lunch but just relaxed and chatted the night away and showed some photos.
Wednesday, 27th June 2007 - Devon
First things first, so on with all the washing and get it all on the line and hoping that it wasn’t going to rain before heading off to Exeter. Exeter was only a few minutes drive away so we were there before we knew it. We wandered around town. Bought a cheap windcheater with a hood as I was a bit short on warmer clothes. I had thought that it would eventually end up sunny, I mean it is summer, but maybe not. Exeter has quite a few historical buildings in the centre of town and was a pleasant surprise. We then went to the historical port of Exeter and wandered around all the old and various shops which were housed in old warehouses around the old port. It was here that Geoff sampled his first clotted cream ice cream which he gave a definite thumbs up. We also visited the boat chandlery here but didn’t see anything that we felt we MUST have.
Thursday, 28th June 2007 - Devon
Today we were off to Lands End via Newquay to visit Tony, a friend from Oz. The first place we passed was the Jamaica Inn near Bodmin which was made famous by the book written in the 1930’s by Daphne Du Maurier. We rang Tony en route and got some directions to Carol’s mums place. Well, his directions weren’t that flash so we got lost but eventually caught up with him. A quick cuppa with Carol’s mum and then Tony directed us to a local pub overlooking the bay. We were able to eat outside as the sun was out and it was reasonably warm. After a nice lunch Tony headed off to walk back over the sand as it was low tide and a walk he liked to do. We headed off towards Lands End. It was much the same as John’O Groats as in much that that it is only a place on a map and not particularly pretty. Still, we can now say we've travelled from John’O Groats to Lands End. It was pretty windy and colder there but we took the obligatory photos, of course. It is a bit more of a tourist trap than John’O Groats, presumably because it is in a more populated area and easier to get to. I think we got out of there without buying anything! We then headed back eastward, passing St Michaels Mount, and visited a pretty area where there was an old outdoor theatre hewn into the cliff face. Being England, you had to pay to get in, so we just took in the views and the winding steps heading ever downwards. This wasn’t far from the fishing village of Mousehole (pronounced mausall) which was next on the itinerary. This was a typical picture postcard Cornish fishing village and was built on a hill and was filled with very old and quaint houses plus various cafes selling scones and clotted cream. Yummy! Then it was time to test the next clotted cream ice cream. Not bad but not as good as the first one Geoff tried. We spent quite a while walking around Mousehole and taking lots of photos and it was a magical place. My eyes have certainly been opened on this trip around the UK as I never realized before how beautiful this place could be - except for the ‘B’ weather. Back to Exminster after a really terrific day. Very tired so off to bed.
Friday, 29th June 2007 - Devon
Before we went anywhere today poor Jo had to make a batch of Yo Yos for Geoff. This was her specialty when she lived with us in Oz for a while. Geoff was very disappointed that there wasn’t a batch waiting for him when we first arrived. After these were cooked we headed off for the moors of Dartmoor. Dartmoor is a desolate and windswept place but not without its charm. We climbed to one of the highest tors and the others climbed the actual tor itself. More little country villages to explore and narrow winding one lane roads to navigate before arriving at Dartmouth. Dartmouth is a port with quite a few sailing yachts in it and lots of very old buildings. We went into a very old public house here (where Francis Drake drank ) and had some lunch and then wandered up the street where, yet again, another clotted cream ice cream was tested. Good but not as good as the first one at Exeter. We then drove the car onto a small ferry to cross the River Dart to the other side to save some extra mileage and for the experience. On the way back we visited Torquay which was where Geoff and I went for our honeymoon those 39 years ago which we found had changed a bit but still recognizable in some places.
Saturday, 30th June 2007 - Devon
Rainy day so we just relaxed around the house a bit and then in the afternoon we headed out to have a look at the local area. We went to Dawlish and other various places. In fact I’m not too sure of the ‘when and where’ order of the last week in Devon and Cornwall but it is just about right. Not a good day for sight seeing as it was cold and blowing quite hard but fun, nether the less. By this time everything was starting to blur into one another so it was good that it was about time for us to pack up and get going back to Eastbourne on Monday. We went to the train station and managed to get two tickets for the price of £22 each, which we thought was a good bargain.
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