Local Travel Christmas with the Whanau

Christmas with the Whanau.


This is my first long journey since having a total hip replacement operation four months ago. Last spring I had a holiday in Perth with my brother and sister-in-law and an eight-day trip home to N.Z. for a school reunion, both times were quite difficult having constant pain.
Now all is back to a great quality of life again and being a bit of a gypsy I am happy to be back doing what really sets my adrenalin going—travel! I decided to spend some overdue time with my eldest son Peter, Heather and their two sons Eli (9) and Axel (7) It was the first time I have seen the boys, a lot better than just talking to them by phone..
My journey started at the Nambour Railway Station on an afternoon inter-city train to Brisbane, stopping at every station, it took two hours for a one-hour trip. Arriving at Brisbane I soon found the bed and breakfast hotel just a short walk from the station. Then a good pub to enjoy some cool beers and a meal, took a walk downtown, being Sunday all shops were closed already and the restaurants were getting ready for the influx of tourists, the strand looked great all dressed up with Christmas décor and lights. Meyer department Store had a grand display of modern day moppets telling an old Christmas story.
Next morning I was up early to catch the 6.30 a.m. train to Sydney for the 14 hour mostly daylight journey. Being holiday time the train was packed; thank goodness I reserved a seat. Leaving the city we were soon in nice pastureland and orchards. After leaving Coffs harbour in N.S.W. the train followed an inland route stopping at most major towns, bypassed cities like New Castle. The day was so hot the train had to travel a lot slower because of the expanding tracks, another first for me was to see armed guards patrolling the carriages, we arrived about half hour late in Sydney.
Pete was there to meet me; it was about three years since I last saw him. We travelled to his Sydney home by train after a few well-deserved beers in a pub and a good chat.
It must have been about 22 hours since I last slept so I soon joined the land of noddy. There is daylight saving in N.S.W., which made for longer evenings.
Heather picked us up next morning for the three hour trip to Ulladulla, fist on the Canberra highway then the road along the coast and over the hills to Kangaroo Valley, a very pretty drive, still some reminders of the bush fires that swept through there two years ago. There were many smaller towns with their own character; Bowral is the hometown of Don Bradman, the cricketer. There is a new museum there dedicated to his life.
Arriving at Ulladulla I met my two grandsons Eli & Axel for the very first time, a lively pair full of energy, we were soon old friends. Tried out the brew at the local Merlin Hotel, the only watering hole in the town,
Next morning my fitness was tested, two lively lads dragging me off to see the sights of the town, very busy this time of the year, a lovely sheltered fishing harbour, a small town of the usual shops and some nice cafes built for the sea views. The temperature was a bit cooler than north but the prediction was for hotter days.
Christmas morning and the lounge was littered with flying wrappings as gifts were hastily opened. Peter had the job of assembling bikes for two impatient boys.
The day got hotter as we enjoyed a Christmas dinner of ham and salads, the sky was getting very smokey, hopefully not another bush fire that circled the town two years ago.
Boxing day and we took a drive around to view some of the nice beaches and lakes; there were many camping grounds, all full of happy holiday makers.
Next day Heather & Pete took me Batemans Bay, another resort town a half hour south, and left me with a dear old friend of mine, Claire who is totally blind now but still managers to look after herself and the house, how I would not know but everything was neat and tidy, she has help to do shopping and about two hours house cleaning a week but she manages to cook for herself. It had been 6 years since she visited me in N.Z when she still had a little sight. We went for lots of walks, Claire with her white stick and holding my arm. She has a great memory of places and pointed out interesting things about the town, she seem to know exactly where she was. The first evening I took her to the soldiers club, a huge and modern place where we enjoyed some nice cool beers, I remarked to Claire she had no trouble finding the glass…. Next afternoon after more sightseeing I had no trouble convincing her a repeat visit to the club, she was ready, so sad, I would like to do more for her but she is such a long way from the Sunshine Coast.
Next on my list I took a 3 hour bus trip to Canberra for two days, we travelled over some pretty impressive mountain ranges, unspoilt forest and fauna, I found a budget motel which turned out to be a backpackers hostel, it was clean and I had a four bunk room to myself. As arranged my brother-in-laws son live there and took me to his place for a nice barby and drinks, Phillip and Annette gave me a good grounding of the layout of the Capitol city.
The whole city was very quiet; being holiday time the locals take to the coastline to escape the summer heat.
Next morning I booked a full day bus tour, more comfortable than trying to sightsee myself in a very hot 38 degs with no breeze. Canberra is a separate State called Australian Capitol Territory (A.T.C); the city had been carefully planned with nice wide tree lined streets. The bus tour had some options first, I chose the Museum of Australia, there were only a few people on the bus and I soon found out that I was the only person for the guided tour, I sure felt important being shown all the features over the next two hours, then I had an hour to enjoy special points of interest in the history of Australia, most exhibits are now electronic and so easy to observe full accounts of historical happenings. Rejoining the bus we arrived at Parliament Buildings, very impressive with it’s stainless steel artwork towering above and most of the building was built into the hillside. There was an interesting tour of the chambers and we learned about tradition and procedure of parliament sittings. The old parliament building close by still had lots of character and the interior very plush. Down from the main steps of the old building is what is called the Aboriginal Embassy. There has been a small tent town on the lawns for the past 3o years, they do quite a few demonstrations on their rights and claims.
Next was a tour of some of the cities Diplomatic Embassy’s, many memorials from other countries and a trip to Mt. Ainslie lookout, this gave a better view of how the city was planned, there is no actual down town shopping although there is a centre for offices, transport and lots of nice outdoor cafes, every suburb has it’s own large shopping centre to cater for the 320,000 folk who live there.
The last important stop was to the War Memorial, a very impressive display of world war one and two, you would need a full day just browsing and reading of the war history.
I found a nice Irish pub to take refuge from the heat and enjoyed a nice meal there. Local people were still talking about last years terrible bush fires and parts of the surrounding bust still showed the charred trunks of trees. Surprising how regrowth of new trees need a fire to germinate seedlings.
My return bus trip to Ulladulla got me there in time to celebrate New Year with my family, the temperature had crept up while I was away and now the campers are happy swimming and fishing.
My grandsons and I did lots of walking and hiking through small pockets of bush, a good test for my new hip, no problems. The family took me into some very impressive hill country above Ulladulla; blackened patches were still visible of bush fires two years ago.
The Sunday markets down on the wharf was a lively show with lots of gardening and pot plants, local handcraft and loads of old junk that other folk find useful. There is just one good size supermarket in town that creates massive waits with the big influx of people.
Now my time is up and so need to get ready for the long journey home. Pete and Heather drove me to Nowra where I caught the coastal train to Sydney, a three hour trip following some lovely scenery and cost us old pensioners just a mere $1.20, then a three hour wait for the night train back to Brisbane, a short wait there and my connection to Nambour where Sister Nancy and B.I.L John picked me up, this all took about twenty hours but a good experience and something I can now handle with this new lease of life thanks to the wonders of the medical profession. Now my brain is busy planning a future in travel, next will be a holiday back in N.Z. 1st March for three weeks, then later on in winter a train trip north to Cairns, stopping off about three times on the way, probably Rockhampton, Airlie Beach and Townsville. I still want to take a trip into Longreach, west of Rocky to see the Aust. Hall of Fame and the birthplace of Quantas, and Adelaide Cathedral city is still very high on my list.
In-between I now enjoy a great life of being a retired gentleman, swimming, walking and cycling and the odd trip to the Surf Clubs, what more does one need??? I also enjoy my volunteer job for Marrochy tourism helping folk with their queries, suggesting places to visit; it is only four hours a week.
Till my next adventure.
Cheers
Jim