New Orleans 2012

Our friends Cindy and Mike met us at the New Orleans airport and after driving a few minutes they surprised us with the news that we were not headed to their home near Baton Rouge, but we would go straight to their boat and take a 30 minute boat ride up the bayous to get to their 'camp' on the edge of Lake Ponchartrain. If you look at the map above you will see New Orleans to the south and we then drove north 26 miles across Lake Ponchartrain (which incidentally is 45 miles wide), then another several miles west where their boat was waiting to take us on our swamp romp! They had dropped food supplies out to the cabin the day before, so it was just a matter of putting our suitcase in the boat and going along for the ride.  Cypress trees dripping with spanish moss lined the bayou as we sped along checking out the 'camps' along the way. Many of them were destroyed in one hurricane or another. When you look at the map and see how close the Gulf of Mexico is to New Orleans (which they say is technically 4' below sea level) and know that during hurricanes the water from the gulf pushes into Lake Ponchartrain you can understand how water is forced down the rivers and bayous that feed off it. Up to six feet of water passed under the cabin we are staying in. Thankfully it is 7 feet off the ground! Mostly the cabins are used as weekenders, so it has been delightfully quiet here during the week. Apart from the odd boat going out to check crab or shrimp pots, the only sounds we hear are the woodpeckers and other birds (ones that I recognise have been red cardinals and a blue jay). 

Straight from airport to boat

Minutes later Cindy and I are drinking 'hard' lemonade in the front of the boat 

Typical cabin (camp) on the bayou

See the Spanish Moss hanging from this Cypress tree?

Where we spent our 3 days in the swamp! 

View from our porch - Lake Ponchartrain is to the left

Red-Headed Woodpeckers taken from the porch

You get around 20 shrimp per lb i.e. for $5.50

Local seafood prices

These crabs were $59 a bushel

Yesterday we took the boat to join another couple (Diane and Ben) for lunch at a seafood restaurant (see map) about 30 mins boat ride from the cabin. The six of us met several years ago at a music festival in Arkansas, and although Cindy and Mike met us there a second time two years ago, Diane was undergoing chemo and they couldn't make it, so it was nice to all catch up again today. Just as we were leaving the restaurant we noticed some dark clouds and thought we may be able to get home before the rain, but we had to take shelter under a freeway for 10 mins and wait for the blue skies to return - which they did. Cindy and I sat in the front seats of the boat and as we sped up the bayous, the scenery was amazing - as was the wildlife. We pointed out herons, egrets, ducks as they crossed our path, and all up I counted 15 alligators that submerged as we got closer. I wish they weren't so fast, as they were gone before I could get my camera focussed!

Here we are with Cindy, Mike, Diane and Ben

Cindy and I were warily watching the storm approaching - we ended up taking refuge under that freeway until the storm passed

Sun is back out so we continued down the bayou to home. See how calm the water is...

That's our ship behind us in Haiti

Just home from a 7 day Western Caribbean cruise with 5 other friends. It was fun to share our travels (and dinner table each evening) and we were blessed with warm, fine and sunny days to enjoy our onshore adventures! The ship was from the Royal Caribbean line called Freedom of the Seas which started cruises in 2006. There were 3,500 passengers and around 1,300 staff - we were waited on hand and foot. The main Promenade Deck was only one floor below our comfortable balcony stateroom, and was home to several shops, bars, cafe's, Ben and Jerry's, and a Cupcake Shop to mention just a few. There were stairs from there down to the casino and to several of the theatres. There was an outdoor movie screen that you could watch from the hot tub on Deck 11, and a rock climbing wall and putt putt golf on Deck 12. The meals in both the formal dining room and buffet were excellent. We enjoyed a glimpse of traditional early village life in Haiti, saw colourful fish and remnants of ships wrecks from our semi-submarine in Grand Cayman, lunched at Margaritaville on the beach in Montego Bay (Jamaica) and snorkelled with the turtles about 90 km (50 miles) south of Cancun on the Mexican coast - while our ship was moored in Cozumel. A great trip! Next stop New Orleans...

3 floors of Dining

Our room taken from the balcony

The Promenade Deck

Chilling out in Haiti 

Tom and Murray in Montego Bay,  Jamaica

 

Here are Nicole, Jan, Dick, me and Rainie ready to go snorkelling with the turtles (see below)  near Cozumel (Murray and Tom went fishing)

Palm Bay, Florida

Rainie & Tom drove us to Orlando to meet up with our North Dakotan friends Kathy & Milt who live in Palm Bay, about an hour south of the Kennedy Space Centre and 3 hrs north of Miami. They spend 6 months in Florida during the winter, then head back to North Dakota for the summer. Their house is very comfortable, and they have a large shell collection they have accumulated from their trips to the beach. They showed me some dried pods that are locally called 'Mermaid Purses' and they are in fact Shark eggs.  Apparently 40% of sharks lay eggs and the others deliver baby sharks! Did you know that? I sure didn't!

We have had an enjoyable 3 days with them, and have done some things we had never done before - they have a trikke 3CV which takes a bit of practice to keep it going in a headwind. They also taught us to play dominoes which is nothing like I imagined it would be! Each game took us 4 hrs, and we played 2 nights in a row - we have now bought our own set to take home!

We spent a few relaxing hours at their local beach - the fisherman there were hauling in whiting just off the beach - seem to be a bigger species than our Australian ones.

Needing a hand on the trikke during headwind!

Dried Shark eggs

Original Shark Egg

Milt, Kathy & Murray heading to the beach

Murray in the zone...

Buckets of whiting all along the beach

First game of Dominoes

Our Ship - Royal Caribbean Freedom of the Seas

This morning Kathy & Milt drove us to Port Canaveral where we met our friends Dick, Jan & Nicole for lunch in a nearby cafe. We saw our Royal Caribbean ship 'Freedom of the Seas' as we drove past. After lunch we boarded and are now waiting to sail in an hour. After that our internet will be off for a week, so sorry about the emails and games that will go unanswered until Monday 7th May. Back online then...

Back in USA

Our last weeks at home in Ballina went very fast. My friends Jenny and Leonie came for a last girls' get together, and my sister Ret made a last minute, but very welcome decision, to join us. As usual the four of us had lots of laughs. We also had a last family dinner for 9 of us at our usual round table at the Chinese Restaurant on the Saturday, and the Sunday we were treated to Gemma's delicious roast chicken dinner and a special travellers blessing - thanks Gerard, Lew and Catherine! Next morning, Bill kindly agreed to accompany us for a 4.30am departure for the Gold Coast airport, and drove our car back to Ballina. 

Jen, Trish and Leonie walking to dinner

Leonie Ret and Jen lunching at Melba's

Before we knew it, we were in Sydney preparing to board our aircraft for USA. As luck would have it, Benn was also at the Sydney International airport ready to pilot an aircraft to Manila, so we had a chance to say hello and goodbye one last time before leaving. Hopefully he and Daina will get to join us in the RV somewhere in America this trip. 

We had a smooth flight to Dallas, Texas, and we both caught up on the latest movies. From Dallas we had a connecting flight to Tampa, Florida where our friends Rainie and Tom met us at the airport at 7.30pm - 29 hours after we left Ballina. We were ready for bed! Next day Rainie had to go to work, and Tom took us to Verizon (Phone company) where we updated our old internet USB that could only plug into one laptop and replaced it with a 4G WIFI that does up to 5 devices, just like our Telstra one at home. Murray and I each bought our laptops over, plus I have my iPhone where my games are, so now we are cooking with gas. Not only did we get the latest device for a one-off $30 upgrade fee, but we were on an old plan whereas the new plan is $10 cheaper a month for the same 5 GB per month. Very happy with that! While many of the RV parks have free wifi, because there are so many people using it, the speed can be slow - with our 4G WIFI, our internet and games will be much faster than ever before.

Following our trip to the Verizon store, Tom kindly took us to Walmart - just had to pay a visit and reacquaint ourselves! Now we KNOW we are back in America - we have no Walmart in Australia. 

After Rainie got home from work she changed into her horse riding gear, and I accompanied her to a nearby horse park where she has two riding lessons a week. I was able to watch her put her horse Tedders through his paces ready for an event they are competing in this weekend. 

Rainie leading Tedders in to saddle up

Rainie putting Tedders through his paces

About to enter the Theatre

Then it was home for Tom's steak dinner before making our way into the Straz Center for the Performing Arts in downtown Tampa. The four of us had tickets for a New Broadway Production called Burn the Floor. Many of the cast were not only Australians, but many were finalists in various countrys' version of 'So you Think You Can Dance' or 'Dancing With The Stars' or were Broadway or West End dancers. Talk about energy - those guys and gals can really dance! 

Now I am up to date. Tomorrow we meet up with friends Kathy and Milt who spend their summers on the East Coast of Florida in their second home. Their main home is in North Dakota, but the winters are pretty nasty there, so many locals escape south. We will stay with Kathy and Milt until we board our cruise ship on Sunday 29 April.

Sydney & Darwin

Grandma Ret with Jethro

I mentioned in the previous blog that my sister Ret & I were planning to fly to Sydney for the celebrations of her youngest grandson Jethro's 1st birthday. They were expecting around 40 adults and a posse of children to help celebrate with a picnic in a beautiful park. Ret & I flew in on Friday afternoon, and after playing with Jethro (he is at that stage where he points to everything - so cute) until he went to bed at 8pm, we made some delicious pizzas for dinner and then helped Ret's son Pete's wife Sam put some smarties on the cake to finish it off. Sam & Pete did a great job making the cake - a number 1. The birthday morning was glorious and it stayed that way all day. The party in the park went like clockwork, and the birthday boy was so well behaved he even had a sleep in his pram after the cake was cut. As the party was winding up my son Benn invited me to join him for a coffee, so we drove off to his suburb of Coogee and had a coffee, followed by a stroll to check out Coogee Beach. I shouldn't have been surprised to see all the cafe's patrons spilling out onto the footpath - with such delightful weather the Sydneyites were making the most of the nice days before the cooler autumn weather kicks in. That night Pete cooked us a slow roasted pork belly and Sam made some tasty accompaniments. After a few nice wines and a lot of laughs, we all slept soundly!

Happy First Birthday Jethro - with mum & dad

Jethro always pointing

And again...

Still pointing... with Grandma and Benn

3 generations Pete, his son Jethro, and Pete's dad Chris (Jethro's Pa)

Benn wondering why I was lagging behind

Coogee Beach

Meanwhile, in Australia's far North, my brother Tony, his son Nick and Murray were taking their chances among crocodile infested waters, fishing for the mighty barramundi! Tony caught the best catch of the 3 days - see photo of his fish below. They had a great time. Murray rated it 10 out of 10. After 3 days they pulled up anchor and headed into Darwin City where they had a dinner party hosted by Nick's wife Karen, and my youngest son Mark was able to catch up with Murray & Tony. 

Nick & Murray with Tony's Barramundi

L-R Karen, Mark, Tony, Murray and young Rebecca (Karen & Nick's daughter)

Murray & I both returned to Ballina to catch our breath before heading up to the Gold Coast on Easter Monday to celebrate Tony's birthday. Should be a great lunch! But first things first - tomorrow morning we are having a Cafe 29 breakfast to celebrate Easter Sunday with my sister Gemma, Bill, their daughter Claire & her family. Happy Easter to all.

Birthday, Family & Friends

Yep, you guessed it - the birthday dinner!

Having my birthday on St Patrick's Day makes it difficult for the family to forget. Lucky for me! The Gold Coast family (Ret, Pete, Tony & Yudian) travelled to Ballina to help me celebrate along with our Ballina family (Murray, Gem, Bill & Aunty). My eldest son Benn also flew in to spend a few days. His visits are usually bad news for my liver, but I take the punishment and just enjoy every moment! Just as we did last year, he took me to a local riverside restaurant, plied me with champagne & oysters and we spent several hours just chatting and appreciating the way our lives are unfolding. Kim did a Skype from Copenhagen and my youngest son Mark rang from Darwin. My birthday dinner was at our favourite Chinese restaurant, and as usual, we had a great evening, with our aunt regaling us with a typically Irish tale - although this one was a true story experienced on her last visit to Ireland along with Gemma & Bill. The birthday celebrations didn't stop there...a few days later Murray & I joined my eldest brother Tracy and sister Rosemary for brunch on the Gold Coast. Once again, another few hours passed very pleasantly and we had a chance to exchange family news.

Benn, Oysters & Champagne

Tracy, Me and Rose

That same day I boarded a train in Brisbane, and after a 5 hr journey North, I arrived at Bargara, near Bundaberg - famous for its Bundaberg Rum. I was met there by Heather, a nurse who joined the Air Force on the same day as I did, 25 years ago this November. I had arranged to spend 3 nights with her. Murray had a few friends to call in and spend time with on his way up, and he arrived to join us on my last day - and was in time to cook us a delicious BBQ dinner! Heather & I had a most enjoyable catch up - we went out to lunch for several hours with a few of her friends, another day we had coffee at the botanical gardens, and also spent hours chatting and looking through photo albums of our time together in the RAAF. It was great for Murray & I to see her two children growing up into delightful young adults. Trying to capture our time together, we asked Murray to take a photo of us on a hammock - pity the wood had rotted underneath which caused the whole thing to collapse and we got tipped out - we had our laughing medicine quota that day. The drive home looked so lush after the rain the area has had in recent months - the sugarcane & banana crops looked very healthy. 

The Hammock Collapsed!

Heather on left and me on right of photo - taken our first year in RAAF

 Healthy Sugarcane Crops

Lynne & Cuddly Friend

The week before my birthday I had my girlfriend Lynne come to stay for a week while she recovered from shoulder surgery. Lynne & I worked in Labour Ward at a Private Maternity Hospital on the Gold Coast for a few years before I joined the Air Force. While Lynne was here, she joined Gem, Bill, Dympna and I at the opening ceremony of a friend's Art Exhibition here in Ballina. 

Since getting back home we have been to see the movie "The Exotic Marigold Hotel' with Judi Dench. Quite entertaining. My other enjoyment has been reading the book 'French Women Don't Get Fat'. A friend lent it to me and it has been an interesting read. The book has some very down to earth concepts that I know we have all learnt in our lifetime, but I, like many others, have failed to adopt them. The way the author (CEO of Veuve Clicquot champagne) explains them has hit home to me. Thanks to the book I have quadrupled my water intake per day, and taken stock of simple improvements I can make in other areas such as incidental exercise and posture. I have also ordered the book for myself so I can re-read it whenever the mood grabs me and lend it to family & friends - as well as try several of the recipes included.


Murray & I are about to go and have a hit of tennis, and all going well (i.e. no rain) I will play tennis socially with about 4 others this evening. Tomorrow night we have dinner out with friends at a restaurant in Lennox Heads, and the next day, Friday, I fly to Sydney with my younger sister Ret for 2 days to join in the celebrations of her grandson's first birthday. Who said retirement was boring????