A sunny weekend in St Leonards

After a few days back at work it was time to pack our little bags again for another weekend away. This time we were leaving the camper at home and going to stay with Shane & Cheryl who live in St Leonards on the Bellarine Peninsula. We have been over to Queenscliff a few times but have never been to this lovely little part of the coast. We arrived just before midday as requested and spent a couple hours catching up over a bar-b-que lunch and a drink. Afterwards we walked the two blocks to the beach and had a look at the little coastal town. It is a really sleepy little holiday village just 15mins around the bay from Queenscliff. As it was a warm day there were lots of little people in the water and a few boats and jet skis enjoying the sunshine out on the bay.

Later in the afternoon we hopped in the car and Shane drove us round to the new Marina complex at Queenscliff where we climbed the lookout tower, well went up in the lift and walked down. From the top of this tower at the Queenscliff/Sorrento Ferry terminal you can see for miles in all directions as well as getting a wonderful look at all the boats in the newly opened marina. Boy are there some $$$ moored down there. Once home we relaxed with a drink as we discussed plans for meeting each other in May when we will both be in Paris at the same time.

Soon it was time to get ready for dinner and we were back in the car for the short drive to Port Arlington where we were having dinner at the Grand Hotel. Apparently famous for it's many varieties of mussels on the menu. Now I didn't know this but they farm mussels at Port Arlington just of the beach. Well we just had to try some of these and Bill ordered some in a Yellow Curry sauce for entree. Oh My Goodness what a plateful arrived, I can only imagine a main course size would have fed all of us, and they were delicious. We all tried a few as well as sharing the two other entrees ordered. Shane's Bruschetta with Brie was just huge and Cheryl's Spring Rolls could have been our main. Thank goodness we had only ordered 3. Needless to say not all of our mains were finished but they were just as nice as all the entrees were. Will certainly be returning there again and might just eat the mussels. They were wonderful. Once home again we finished the night with wine & chocolates and lots more chatter. We finally fell into bed at 1.45am dreaming of sun, sea & mussels.

Sunday morning was another beautiful sunny day and a long slow breakfast was had with Shane firing up the barbie again for bacon, eggs & homegrown tomatoes. Boy were they yummy. After the dishes were done we all piled in the car again for a drive around the local wineries. We stopped at Bellarine Estate, Jack Rabbit, McAdams Lane & Scotchmans Hill Winery primarily to check out the lovely views but we did manage to tatse and buy at one of them. The bubbles from Bellarine Estate were very nice and we took a couple of bottles home. From the grounds at Jack Rabbit you can see the mussel farms in the bay quite clearly and I was amzed at how many there are. From there we drove through Drysdale returning to St Leonards with a detour to Tuckerberry Hill Blueberry Farm where we had a coffee and a piece of the famous Blueberry Buckle. Also yummy! You can pick your own blueberries here and they were quite busy but with time marching on we decided to go the lazy way and purchase the pre picked ones. Again, OMG, the fresh blueberries were the nicest I have ever tasted and we came home with a kilo of them. Some are now frozen for later.

Home again after our tour of the area we sat round the table with cool drinks, declined any more food, there was no more room left in our tummies, and firmed our plans for May. Soon after it was time to say our goodbyes and we left Shane & Cheryl around 4.00pm. We have had a wonderful weekend and look forward to doing it again one day. Thanks so much for inviting us and we will see you in Paris in a couple of months. Sounds good doesn't it.

Back to work on Monday for a full week this time. Faye's birthday kept us entertained the following Saturday night as we joined the family to celebrate. A great night was had by all. Another week at work passed quickly and with a very wet week and an even wetter weekend forecast we went in search of indoor pursuits for the next Saturday.

We left the house with umbrellas and braved the rain as we set off to see if we could find theatre tickets for A Chorus Line. We managed to get some and after lunch headed back to the front row of the Dress Circle to enjoy a the show. It was an excellent show and we enjoyed it all. It was still raining as we headed home but after a couple of hours it stopped long enough for us to walk across to the Rising Sun for dinner and to get home dry. The sun finally came out on Sunday and we went in search of a late lunch and found a new little gem in a laneway off Coventry St. Chez Dre is a gorgeous little cafe with a quirky menu and I think we will need a lot more visits to check it out properly. Oh how I love finding South Melbourne's little secrets. A visit to the market to buy the ingredients for Sunday nights dinner - Sweet Potato & Pear soup - finished the day and we walked home for a quiet afternoon.

So now we just have to survive the next week at work and then we're off again to explore the great outdoors for our long weekend.

until next time........