Parental Visit - October 2008

My parents are here to visit me!!! They landed on 4th October at Sydney airport after a stop over in Singapore. A little weary Rachel and myself met them at the airport (just - we got lost on the way) and whisked them off to our flat where they would stay for the first week.

I had the week off work so I could show them the sights of the city. We went to the Zoo and saw some antipodean wildlife (including a baby koala), Watsons Bay for the views of the city and the harbour and National Park for a spot of beach action and bush (countryside) viewing.

It was a very relaxing week. And it was finished off by a weekend trip to the Hunter Valley. The Hunter Valley is, believe it or not a valley for the Hunter River. Who'd have thought. Anyway, the important thing is that due to the soils and the climate it is a very good area for growing grapes that make wine. Excellent.

After a couple of hours drive north we navigated our way through the wineries and vineyards and found our cabin for the weekend. We were staying in a little self catering place in amongst the wineries. BBQ cooking for tea every day - it was fab.

The Saturday was the wine day. Dad kindly offered to be the taxi and Rachel, mum and myself set about tasting the wines. It was good fun and interesting. One of the Vinyards exported 70% of the wine it made to Tesco in the UK. would you believe it. You come all this way and Tesco down the road could have sold you the same wine at probably half the price. Never mind. The tour of the winery was very interesting and insightful.

At the end of the day we had navigated round several vineyards, bought (Rach and I) 18 bottles of wine, tried many more and joined a wine club. Some of the wine was fantastic. Really fantastic.

The Sunday was spent at the Hunter Valley Gardens. Then it was back to the cabin for a BBQ before Rach and I headed back to Sydney. the parents stayed Sunday night then headed slightly further north to the coast for a relaxing few days and some dolphin watching.

A Night at the Opera

Rach's Dad and his girlfriend (Carleena) came to stay for the weekend. We thought it would be a good opportunity to catch a show at the Opera House. We went and saw a show called VAMP! It was a one woman show, with Meow Meow playing Vamp, and supported by a jazz/rag band.

Now would be the bit where I tell you what it is all about. However, I have no idea. It was based on some of the works/thoughts/stories of Oscar Wilde. So it had a Femme Fatale character who swung from the ceiling and danced around in various states of undress, and that was about it really...

It was good, donlt get me wrong. Meow Meow (stupid name if you ask me) was certainly talented and good at what she did and the audience were certianly engaged. Although Rach's dad and Carleena did fall asleep part way through.

Would I go again? To the Opera House - yes. To see Meow Meow - probably not.

Cockatoo Island - August 08

Cockatoo Island is the largest island within Sydney Harbour. It is located on the inland side of the bridge, a short ferry ride from Circular Quay in the centre of town. It was formerly a prison and most recently it was the site of one of Australia's biggest shipyards but that closed down in 1992. Now it is a derelict mass of dock yard buildings and cranes. The ideal place for an art exhibition then, obviously.

So on a stunning Sydney winters day (wall to wall blue sky, not a cloud in site) we hopped on a ferry and cruised across to the island to have a look at the wonderful art.

The sign says it all really...

Hmmmm, most of it I have to say was a big pile of crap. Maybe I am just not quite as in touch with my arty side as I think, but I seemed to get bored very quickly indeed. The exhibits were spread out in different rooms across the island. The favoured medium seemed to be film. OK so there were some things that were quite good but on the whole it was pretty rubbish.

It was good however to have a picnic, and some wine, in the sun, in the middle of the harbour. And the island itself, with the remnants of the ship building days was pretty impressive.


All in all a nice day out.

Zoo

My work has a free pass to Taronga Zoo in Sydney. Amazing place of real estate on the North Shore giving the animals a view of one of the best city scapes in the world.

But i wasn't there for the view. I was there to see possibly THE coolest animal in the world - a Koala!!!

Not So Summer Bay

It was the long weekend to celebrate the Queens birthday (ironic??? - i wonder will happen if Australia leaves the Commonwealth. There is already an Australia Day and i can hardly see them removing a public holiday from the masses) so we made use of the new motor to head north to 'Summer Bay'.

Actually the place we were headed was Palm Beach in the north of the northern suburbs of Sydney at the mouth of the Hawkesbury River. Its the setting for the fictional town of Summer Bay in Home and Away. Unfortunately, with rain and a slight chill in the air, Summer Bay was far from summery. Ah well. Fun was still to be had.

The 'Bay' is actually a spit of land with a Pacific Ocean beach on one side and a sheltered inlet/harbour beach on the other. It is actually a beautiful place. the sheltered waters of the Hawkesbury River are just stunning.

Even though the weather was not ideal we did manage to climb 'Stewart Point' to the lighthouse. From there we could see Palm Beach in all its glory. It didn't last long however as the rain soon came in.

After a quick stop at the surf club (and really lame touristy photos - but i guess it has to be done) it was back to the warmth of the accommodation to dry out and sort dinner.

Sadly we didn't bump into Alf, or any flamin galahs for that matter. There were a few hoons though.