Farewell 2016 - Hello 2017

Well here is it - January 2017! How exciting - a new year to explore and enjoy! But first, I need to finish off 2016 - my last previous entry was the September Ghan train trip that we did up to the Northern Territory. So here goes with a brief catch-up of events since then ...

My sister Rose decided to retire to Ballina at the end of September, which means that I now have my Aunt Dympna, eldest sister Gemma and her husband Bill, and now Rose living here in Ballina. As each of the family or friends visited, we took them to check out Rose's new home. It is only a stone's throw from Gemma, and in the same lovely retirement complex. On the left is a photo from when I took Benn and Daina to check out Rose's new place. Benn & Daina stayed with us for a few nights in October, and then again just before Christmas. We always enjoy catching up on their adventures. 

Mt Warning from Tyalgum

Thanks to my friend Jenny's timeshare, we had a girl's weekend in Cabarita, which is located on the coast about 45 minutes north of us. Jenny, Julie, Carol and I walked to the beach, played mini-golf, checked out the waxing harvest moon, and had a lovely day trip to Tyalgum. There were beautiful views of Mt Warning during our drive - see photo above.

Mini golf - L-R Jenny, me, Carol (Julie was taking this photo)

Jenny, Carol and Julie on carpet of Jacaranda flowers

At the end of November, my dear little nephew Jackson turned 3. He is a delightful little fellow, well behaved, and really enjoys any party. He couldn't wait for his mum Yudian to light his birthday candles! 

December was here before we knew it, and Murray and I flew to Melbourne for a week. He was able to catch up and enjoy quality time with his son and daughter, and his 4 grandsons. In the top photo on the left Murray is with his son Adrian and Adrian's 3 sons, Blayke, Heath and Max. In the bottom photo Murray is with Jeremy's son Dane. They are growing up so fast. Very handsome boys!

While we were on the East side of Melbourne, we took the opportunity to check out the bathing boxes at middle Brighton Beach. Each year that we visit Melbourne we stay not far from this beach, but I had never seen these bathing boxes before. I saw them advertised in a Qantas travel magazine and took note of their location. The first bathing box at this beach was built in 1862, and they are still in use today. So colourful! Wedding couples often arrange to have their wedding photos taken here. 

While Murray was having fun with his kids and grandkids, I joined with 16 others and attended a 7 day SILENT retreat at Santa Casa in Queenscliff, Victoria. Most of my family and friends couldn't believe I would last, but not only did I last, but I enjoyed it so much that I have already paid my deposit to do it again at the end of this year. Located right on the beach, at the edge of a quiet seaside town, the facility was surrounded by a large garden area and it was ultra peaceful. Below are some of the views from the property and from my walks to the beach (just through the back gate). The room with the chairs - in the centre, top photo - is where our group met twice a day for a 20-30 minute reflection. We each had our own room, complete with ensuite, and all meals (including a glass of wine with the main meal at lunch) were provided. Several libraries were available for our use. I created the photo postcard below for me to keep on my fridge to remind me of that peaceful retreat.

Gwenda, Trish, Murray and Bill

At the end of my retreat, Murray picked me up and we drove to have lunch at friend's of ours who had moved to Geelong - Jo & Ross. They have a delightful Heritage home which Jo had decorated beautifully for Christmas. It was great to see them and catch up with their news. The next day we spent the day with Gwenda and Bill, a couple that we met on a Cosmos bus trip in 2014 and we have kept in touch. (On that bus trip, Murray and Bill each bought a tartan cap in Scotland with orange hair hanging off it - delighted the other bus passengers with their antics!) They drove us up to Mt Macedon where we looked down to the city of Melbourne, and then had a delicious platter for lunch (see photo above) at a nearby winery where Bill has 'adopted' a vine. 

Gwenda and I beside a stunning rhododendron bush at Mt Macedon

My youngest son Mark flew down from Darwin and joined us for several days over Christmas. We had a family dinner at our place to welcome him to Ballina. Bill took the photo at left of Gemma, Murray, Trish, Mark and Rose. A few days later, Benn and Daina flew in and I took the photo below as we were walking down the lane to dinner. 

   

Christmas Day celebration was at our home again this year - we enjoyed it so much last year that we lined up for seconds and repeated it this year! Plus it was Rose's first Christmas in Ballina, and Mark was in town too. So lots of reasons to add to the special meaning and celebration of Christmas. Kris Kringle kicked off at 5.30pm, followed quickly by Bill's hot turkey, a hot baked ham, and lots of other tasty treats. Although it was a warm day, it was pleasant out on our back patio, and some even needed a scarf to ward off the cool of the evening. If you look at the table settings, you will see lots of red cardinals. Our friends Sandy and Joe Bill from Fordyce, Arkansas sent us the table runner in December, just in time to use on the day, and the red cardinal place mats were a gift from our North Dakota friend Avalyn a few years ago. 

Lighting Mary's Christmas pudding - thanks for another winner Mary

Ret and I doing a snapchat photo for Kim -we loved the way snapchat erased all squiggly lines from our faces!

The last activity for the year was a New Year's Eve party at Ret and Peter's home on the Gold Coast. My eldest brother Tracy and his eldest son Greg came down from Brisbane, and my other brother Tony, his wife Yudian and young Jackson joined us as well. We started the ball rolling at 5pm with champagne and nibbles, and continued on for several hours. Tony and Yudian took Jackson home and then some of us talked of watching the 9.30pm fireworks and then going to bed - but we all got a second wind and after dancing to You Tube videos on the big screen, we ended up watching the midnight fireworks over Sydney Harbour Bridge - on TV of course. After that, a few of us ended up cooling off in the pool, and Ret, Greg and I even had a few rounds of rummicub. We had half hoped to drive over to Main Beach and watch the sun rise - but we didn't quite make it. I finally got to turn my light out at 5am NSW time on 1st day of January - which was 4am QLD time - that is definitely the latest I have got to bed on New Year's Day that I can remember. What a fun night though. Thanks for being our DJ and dance partner again Greg -  Murray enjoyed having another man up dancing with us, although Tracy did his bit too! 

HAVE A GREAT 2017 EVERYONE! 🎉🌻☘️

Blog Email Notification

Dear blog readers,

You may recall back in April this year I reminded readers that the Blog email notification that you receive from 'Trish Warwarek - Aussies RV USA' is an automated email that is generated from the 'blogger webpage' and not from me. NEVER REPLY TO THIS EMAIL! 

Whenever I publish a new blog, the 'blogger' webpage (I use 'blogger' to upload and manage my blogs) sends out an automated email letting you know that the blog site has been updated. If you get a repeat email, it means that after I have pressed 'publish', Murray has read my blog, or I have re-read it and found a spelling error, or put a word down as plural when it should be singular, or I have got the tense wrong, etc etc. Whatever the reason for my editing, once it is completed, I have to re-publish the blog. This then sets off another automated email advice to you. 

So please ignore the second (or God forbid) a 3rd or 4th blog notification email! I don't recall the website doing that before, and believe me, I have had to edit several blogs in the past, so something has changed within 'blogger'. I also noticed on my laptop that some of the text was in green, but it wasn't green on Murray's laptop. I also tried to correct that, to no avail. I definitely think there is something happening within the blogger website and blog tool management. I hope they get it fixed sooner rather than later. 

You may also recall that I suggest that you don't read the email blog version, but use it as a trigger for you to follow the link to the blog on the website (link is at the bottom of the email you get), as the layout and photos are in a better format on the actual webpage than what you see in the email. Compare the two and you will understand what I mean. 

Hope you are all enjoying your weekend. Cheers Trish 

The Ghan - Iconic Australian Train Journey

You would think that after spending the first 17 years of my life growing up in the Northern Territory of Australia, that I would have seen enough of the red centre. Obviously not, as here I am, 46 years later, very keen to embark on a train trip from Adelaide, up through Alice Springs and northwards to Darwin. It was no ordinary train though - it was on the legendary Ghan train. It is a special trip that my 92 years young aunt Dympna has had on her bucket list for many years, along with a trip through the Nullarbor desert to Perth on the Indian Pacific train. We did that trip in January 2013 (you can re-visit my blog link to read about that adventure), and now she deemed it was time to go on the Ghan. 

Champagne to start our trip: Dympna, Gemma, Ret and me

My Aunt Dympna, eldest sister Gemma, and youngest sister Loretta (Ret) and I flew to Adelaide in South Australia where the Ghan begins its journey north. The north-south cross-country train journey travels 2979 kilometres (1851 miles) and covers spectacular and diverse landscapes from the bucolic South Australian plains, the ochre red colours of the MacDonnell Ranges to the tropical greens of Katherine and Darwin. The excitement kicked off with being warmly met by Akubra-hatted staff at the Adelaide Parklands rail terminal and offered champagne after the efficient check-in process.  

Gem in our cabin

We checked into our cabins and settled in for the 3 day trip. The advantage of being the eldest in each cabin was getting to sleep on the bottom bunk. I shared with my eldest sister, so I was relegated to the top bunk, as did Ret in the cabin next door! The photo on the left is how the cabin looked before we went to dinner each evening, and then the photo below (taken off the Ghan's website) shows how the staff transformed the cabin ready for us to sleep in. Then each morning whilst we were at breakfast, they reversed the process. Each cabin had an ensuite which was stocked and cleaned each day including a supply of fresh towels. Can't beat a lovely hot shower to start or end each day - and have fresh towels each time. 

The dining experience on these trains is amazing. As well as breakfast we had the choice of 2 courses at lunch, and 3 courses at dinner. In the Queen Adelaide Restaurant the train boasts a 'commitment to fresh, regionally-sourced Australian food. Dynamic menus showcase the finest regional flavours available - from Top End barramundi, locally-produced beef and lamb, Margaret River cheeses, Barossa Valley smallgoods and native Australian fare including kangaroo, saltbush and wild rosella flower.' Delicious, gourmet foods, and all cooked to perfection. Meals were complemented by a range of all-inclusive wines, beers and non-alcoholic beverages. We usually ordered 3 different meals, and sampled a little of each. A great way to try all on offer. Cabin crew offered to bring an early cup of tea or coffee to our cabin each morning - Murray must have trained them up!

On our first night, after a delicious meal accompanied by a nice red wine, we were sitting at our dining table chatting when Dympna decided to head back to her cabin before Ret, so that she could have first shower. About 5 minutes after she left, the train came to an abrupt stop, and anything that was not secure came tumbling down. Apparently the train hit a cow, and usually I believe the cow just gets hit and is pushed aside by the force of the train, but something happened this time that inadvertently activated the emergency brakes. Thankfully we were seated so we were okay, but those standing up were knocked to the floor by the impact. We all immediately thought of Dympna and made a beeline for her cabin. To get to our cabins we had to pass through the bar area - it was mayhem in there - glasses and bottles were scattered on the floor, as were the contents of the souvenir stand, and the display cupboard itself. A woman was lying on the floor, too afraid to move anything in case she injured her neck - she had fallen backwards, hit her head on a table, and landed heavily on her derriere. Poor lady - she was very stiff and sore the next day, but thankfully after a restorative massage she improved the following day. Getting back to our aunt, she had been undressing in the bathroom when the impact occurred and the top of her head connected with the door - thankfully it was a confined space so her head didn't have far to travel! She had a good sized 'egg' on her head, but with 3 nieces (all nurses at one time) who applied ice and monitored her for head injury or signs of concussion, she survived. A few days afterwards, she had 2 black eyes but otherwise seemed fine. In fact, in playing rummicub on our last night in Darwin, she won 4 out of 5 games, so we figured she suffered no brain degradation from the incident! Thankfully a neurological check up in emergency after our return confirmed all was okay. A close call. 

Trish, Dympna and Ret with the Ghan behind us

The next morning we had an early morning call to witness an unforgettable outback sunrise at Marla in remote South Australia.   Marla is just north of the Oodnadatta Track and about 160 km (100 mi) south of the Northern Territory border with South Australia. When we got off the train we found that staff had two bonfires burning to keep everyone warm, and had hot tea or coffee and a choice of bacon and egg sliders or vegemite scrolls to tide us over until breakfast! We all agree it was one of the highlights of the train trip. A very unique experience. 

The next day we arrived in Alice Springs just after lunch and were fortunate to have a 4 hour stop over. While the train offered several free tours which looked great for those who hadn't been to Alice before, that didn't apply to us, so we took advantage of the time, and caught up with friends instead. Gemma's schoolfriend Bev met us at the station and took us to a nearby cafe at the Araluen Art Gallery where Bev's brother Barry also joined us. However the highlight for me was to have two of my oldest and dearest school friends join us at the cafe. We laughed and chatted and laughed some more, until it was time to head back to the train. Gemma's grandson Sam met us at the station and came on board to check out our cabin before the train whistle signalled it was time to depart. What a memorable interlude. 

Laughing with school friends: L-R My sister Loretta, Josie, me and Sue

In between train stops, meals and sleeping, we managed to sneak in a few games of rummicub. It was so relaxing playing the game, and looking out the window to see the countryside as we passed by.  That is the Flinders Ranges that you can see behind us out the window. 

The next morning we pulled into Katherine, a town in the Northern Territory 320 km (200 mi) south east of Darwin. Our fare included a tour of the beautiful Katherine Gorge, where we all enjoyed a boat trip between sandstone cliffs and listened to a talk by a local indigenous chap on the aboriginal art that we saw on the cliffs.  

Aboriginal Rock Art on the Katherine Gorge

2 nights and 3 days later, we arrived in Darwin, the capital of the Northern Territory and home to around 136, 000 people. It also happens to be the city of my birth, so it holds a special significance for me. My sisters and I enjoyed visiting the addresses of the houses we used to live in - one was blown down during Cyclone Tracy in 1974, one has been so fabulously renovated you wouldn't recognise it as our 4 bedroom house on stilts, and the other place was unchanged - still a 4 bedroom house on stilts, but the foliage seemed to have taken over the yard. 

L-R: Mark (Rosie's husband), Gemma, Trish, my son Mark, Ret, Rosie, Anna, Dympna and Bridgette

We arranged to have 3 days in Darwin to give us time to catch up with family. We were treated to a delightful dinner at niece Bridgette and Rob's new home (see photo above) - the gathering included my youngest son Mark, two of Gemma's daughters Bridgette and Rosie (and their menfolk and children), our brother Tony's daughter Anna. The next day I also got to catch up with Kathy, another of my schoolfriend's from Alice Springs (who now lives in Darwin).

It was fun visiting some of the old haunts from our childhood which included having lunch at Stokes Hill Wharf. Not that we ever had lunch there as kids, but mum and dad would take us on a drive there. That is the inlet leading to the Timor Sea behind us. 

We couldn't visit Darwin and not drop in on the beach where we spent most Saturdays, while mum and dad played golf across the road. We always had one of our older sisters with us, Gemma tells us she minded us often, but I can only remember Rosemary having that chore. Poor Rose. Two young girls on a beach, in the sun, for hours on end. There were only a few shady trees there then, but it looks fabulous now - they even had some nice bean chairs to sit on courtesy of a 'pop-up cafe'. I bet Rose wishes they had those in our day!! 

Me with Ret at beach in front of old Golf Club at Fannie Bay - the tide goes out for miles, then comes right up to a few feet from the trees. Amazing. Its not so far out in this photo as you can still see the water...

So now we have completed both epic Aussie train journeys - both most enjoyable and highly recommended. See below to compare the route of each train. 

Route of Indian Pacific from Sydney (East) to Perth (West) - across the Nullarbor Desert

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Ireland 2016

Ireland, the home of my ancestors, sure turned the beautiful weather on for our arrival - a sunny 20 C greeted our 5.30pm arrival to Dublin. Sadly the car rental companies don't seem to operate as efficiently as we have experienced in America and France, but eventually we were on our way, and headed for the West coast. 

Our main first stop was Dingle in County Kerry. It really is a beautiful area, and this was our third visit here. The BnB we booked here was built in 1909, and was right on the water. Best of all it was only a short walk into Dingle's hub (small as it is) and the numerous pubs. We enjoyed our meanderings along the Slea Head Drive where we passed the beehive cottages (date back to the 12th Century) and re-visited the beautiful scenery made famous in the 1970 movie Ryan's Daughter with Robert Mitchum and Sarah Miles. 

L-R: Murray, Meg's partner, me, Meg and Lorna

We also met Meg, a friend of our Ballina friend Celia. Lorna, the owner of the cafe where we met Meg happened to be the daughter of our BnB's landlady, and is also known to Celia, so we got a group photo to immortalise the occasion, but mainly for Celia to see her Dingle friends.

Colourful Dingle - photo courtesy Wikipedia

Dingle B and B

Dingle Harbour

Lured by pretty seaside villages, we also spent 2 nights in Kinsale, County Cork. Chef Keith Floyd once lived here, and many local restaurants are highly renowned. We ate at a few different places, but ended up on both nights at Kitty O Se's to enjoy the lively Irish music. Our last night was a Saturday night, and two hens parties wandered in and livened the place up - the music got faster and louder, and before we knew it, most of us were up dancing, including yours truly. It was a lot of fun. 

The next day we made our way to Tramore in County Waterford - home to the longest beach in Ireland (5 kms/3 mi) and also home to my cousin Ellen and her daughter Clodagh. Not far away lives another cousin Bríd and her daughter Shona, and we were treated to a lovely lunch at Ellen's home where we all caught up. Bríd and Shona have been to Ballina several times, and have stayed in our home twice - sadly we were in the USA at the time, so it was great to visit them on their home turf.

During our stay at Waterford we took a drive to the seaside town of Dunmore East. As luck would have it, they were filming an upcoming BBC series called Redwater - due to be aired in 2017. It is an off-shoot of the long running Eastenders, and Kat and Alfie Moon from that series will be in the new one. We stood and watched while they did a few rehearsals, trying to get the lighting right with the cameras…I wonder why they didn't ask Murray to be an extra - perhaps wearing shorts to church didn't fit their dress code! If you google 'Redwater BBC' you can read all about it.

We couldn't visit Dublin without another visit to Taylors Three Rock - 'Ireland's Best Loved Pub and Entertainment Venue' that boasts it has the largest thatched roof in Ireland. It is also home to the 80 plus year old Irish comedian Noel V Ginnity (who was the main draw card for our repeat visit) and Irish Tenor Rob Vickers who has played the lead role of Jean Valjean in West End's musical Les Miserables. We recognised the lead male Irish dancer from our visit 2 years ago - his looks and cheeky antics and interaction with the other musicians and dancers on stage throughout the night reminded me of my eldest son Benn. At the end of the evening Murray took a photo of me with him. It is in the collage below.

Although I have two cousins in Dublin, unfortunately Mary was away in Spain, but Joanne took time out of her busy schedule to meet up with us after the show above. We met her for the first time 2 years ago, so it was so nice to catch up with her again. 

After 10 weeks of travel where we visited 13 countries, we are now ready to get back home and enjoy NOT living out of a suitcase. I'll leave you with these scenes from around Ireland.

Scenes around Ireland

Britain 2016

Our 12 days in London and surrounding areas kicked off with a fabulous and unexpected opportunity to experience space-age transport technology. To get from our hotel to Heathrow airport to connect with trains and the underground (tube) we had the choice of taking a regular shuttle bus (£5) which comes every 30 mins, or take a POD (!!) (£4.50) which comes every 20 seconds. Unbelievable. Each pod holds 4 people and 4 suitcases. It was such a smooth, hassle free ride - like a monorail- so it does not get caught up in traffic like the shuttle bus. Modern technology - love it. 

Our friends Ken and Ros live in the delightful village of Padbury in Buckinghamshire which is about 130 km (80 miles) NW of London, where Ros is the resident Vicar. Not letting the grass grown under our feet, Ken took us out to Bletchley Park - if you saw either the movie 'The Imitation Game' or 'Enigma', you would recall that the Park was known as Station X and was the hidden hub of code-breaking during WW11. A most interesting place to visit - I have since bought two books on the place - one called 'The Bletchley Girls' and the other 'Alan Turin' written by his mother - he was the British mathematician who was pivotal in the code deciphering process.

After Bletchley, Ken took us for a beer at a nearby pub that dates back to around 1645 - can you believe it?? Sadly their beer isn't as cold as I like it, but that is how the Brits like it, so I had a cider instead.

We then had a 3 day stopover in the heart of London - we got our steps up by wandering around Kensington Gardens and Hyde Park. The red double decker bus/boat tour gave us a great view of London and refreshed our Monopoly Board locations! It was great to see Piccadilly, Mayfair, Park Lane etc. 

We wandered through famous Borough Market, one of the largest and oldest markets in London, it claims to have been active since the year 1014. Staggering to think of it being over 1000 years old!! 

Saying our goodbyes to London, we picked up a hire car and drove to stay with Jen, Charlie and Ollie in the Cotswolds. Their home is the restored Train Station house at Adlestrop. Despite the train line running directly beside the house, the trains were small and fast, and were a novelty rather than a nuisance. I daresay that Jen et al don't even notice them going past anymore. The red arrow in both photos below show where our bedroom was. Jen is the daughter of our friend Anne who lives in Ballina. Jen showed us around her beautiful part of the world, including a visit to the Rollright Stones (like a mini Stonehenge) dating back to 3,500 BC, as well as taking us for High Tea - she started a trend for us trying variations of Cream Teas (we call them devonshire teas back home) after that, but no more High Teas, so nowhere near as grand as our experience with her!

High Tea - thanks Jen

Plymouth, Cornwall was next on our agenda - it was a central location for us to do day trips from. We enjoyed walking along the Plymouth Hoe (waterfront) and on our last evening we bought back memories of our recent visit to Spain by dining at a tapas bar overlooking the English Channel. It was a glorious evening, and a fitting end to our stay.











However, the highlight of the stay was a visit to Port Isaac - the location where they film the series 'Doc Martin'. The fishing village of Portwenn always looks so beautiful in the series, and it has been high on my bucket list, along with Cinque Terre in Italy. So now I can die happy …I've seen them both and am content! Oh wait, I still have yet to visit Medjugorje, but that special place will have to wait.

Port Isaac - Cornwall

Have you heard of a little village called Salcombe, on the English Channel in Devon? It has the highest property prices in the UK. We thought we should take a drive and see what it looked like - the population soars from 1900 in the winter to almost 25,000 during peak summer periods. Sadly the day we visited it was drizzling rain, but we could appreciate why it is such a popular holiday and retirement location for Londoners. 

For our final night in the UK we booked into a unique AirBnB property that was less than 30 minutes from Heathrow airport where we were to fly out of the next day. The owner lived in a houseboat on the canal, and we stayed in a cabin a few steps from the houseboat. Breakfast in the morning was in the houseboat. To access the property you had to walk about .5 km (.3 mile) along the canal tow path to the cabin. It sure rates as the most unusual BnB we have stayed in! It was fun to walk about 1 km to the locks on the canal, and watch them raise and lower the level of water to allow the barges to get access along the canal.  

Our final hurrah for the UK was a Mexican dinner out with our friend Nick. I worked with him many years ago when I was still in the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) and he was in the British Army. It was wonderful to spend a few hours having a meal with him and catching up on family news. Next stop Dublin...