A little Rock and Roll.....

Coming home from Canberra on Sunday night the weather changed and we spent a chilly week in Melbourne which was a bit hard to take after our lovely weekend in the sun.  Still it is Autumn and this is what we should expect.  The trees are colouring up and losing their leaves now making my walk to walk a 'sound' experience as well as exercise.   I love crunchy leaves.

We managed to get through our week back at work and before we knew it we were packed and back in the car again on our way to see Cheryl and Shane at St Leonards.  We were spending the weekend with them and looking forward to a big night out at the Geelong Performing Arts Centre where we were going to see a show.

We had dinner at Parkers Steakhouse not far from the theatre.  This fabulous old building, previously Parkers Iron Merchant, has been converted into this wonderful space full of history and the steaks were good too.

We walked back to the theatre, found our seats and for the next couple of hours were taken on a Rock and Roll trip down memory lane.  75 years on - A Buddy Holly performance - the music was great and the four guys on stage were just an amazing talent.  The guy playing the Saxophone was just magical and we will never look at a Double Bass player the same again.  He literally walked all over it but my god it all sounded great.  'Buddy' - Scot Robins - was so good and told us that they have been playing this show for over 18 years now and still playing to packed houses where ever they go.  The crowd bopped along all night and while most of the audience had grey or balding heads there were more than a few young ones thoroughly enjoying the music as well.  It was a great night.

Back at home Shane and Bill donned the bathers and complete with a glass of wine in hand hit the spa. Cheryl and I decided that warm and dry was the better way and had a lovely time with a drink and a chat.  We finished the night with Cheryl's yummy apple pie and soon after we all fell into bed for a much needed sleep.

We surfaced on Sunday morning and after a yummy breakfast cooked to perfection by Shane we joined Lily, the gorgeous black spaniel, for her daily walk along the beach.  Thankfully our winter weather had disappeared and the morning was sunny and mild.  We walked for about an hour along the beach and then turned up into the St Leonards Salt Lagoon for the walk home.  This nature park runs along the beach and is a wonderful habitat for many birds and animals that live here.  With lots of walking tracks through the varied areas it looks like a great place to explore so we will be back with the camera one day.

Back home we were spoilt again with a fabulous lunch, pumpkin soup, quiche and apple pie to finish.  No dinner was needed that night.  Soon after it was time to gather our bags and head back to the city for another week at work.  It had been another great weekend with Cheryl and Shane and we can't thank you enough for having us once more.

Just three days work to get through now and we are off to Yackandandah again, until then......

A weekend in Canberra

After our last family filled weekend I had a very quiet week with Bill away so I was looking forward to catching that plane on Friday for our weekend in Canberra.  I had the whole day off so did the usual boring things before I left for the airport.  Housework and washing took care of most of the morning then I even managed to fit a little clothes shopping in as well - that bit was not boring.

The flight to Canberra left a little late but the pilot must have come straight from the Airshow I think as we sped towards our destination at speeds I can only imagine.  Once in the air on a plane I never really 'feel the speed' but this flight felt incredibly fast the entire way.  And the landing - Oh My God - he sped in getting lower and lower and then we hit the ground with a bump still at high speed and I just wonder how the plane didn't stand on it's nose when he applied the brakes.  Perhaps he was late for dinner! 

Bill was out on Friday night at a function and Lesley met me at the airport and took me to the National Press Club for a much needed glass of bubbles.  It was great to see her again and we had lots to catch up on.  We stayed there for dinner and enjoyed our evening together.  She then drove me to my home for the weekend and left me to wait for Bill and consult the tourist guides to plan our weekend.  The Mecure was an old hotel that has had a makeover and now has lovely modern rooms and very comfy beds.  Bill arrived home soon after and it wasn't long before we were both in the land of nod resting up for the next day's adventures.

Saturday morning was bright and sunny but a little chilly and our first stop was The Walk to find a cafe for breakfast.  We wandered along the very quiet streets watching Canberra's city centre come to life and admired the street art along the way.

Once our breakfast was finished we drove up to the Mount Ainslie lookout to see the view over Canberra.  It was a lovely clear autumn day and we were able to see Lake Burley Griffin, many of Canberra's national attractions and the mountain ranges surrounding the city. You can great views of the Australian War Memorial, Anzac Parade and Parliament House from this viewpoint.  As it was autumn it was easy to see how Red Hill got it's name with the beautiful red leaves on the trees in the distance.

Leaving here our next stop was the National War Memorial where we spent the next few hours wandering through the many rooms, displays and stories of Australians at war.  With only 3 hours there we have not done it justice and it will definitely be a place we return too.  We spent most of our time in  whole rooms dedicated to the First World War and the Second World War before taking a quicker look at the more recent Vietnam War.  There are many life size exhibits you can walk through showing life in the trenches, life on board submarines and helicopter flights.  The flight simulator of the bomber is an amazing experience and you can only imagine how awful it must have been in those days. 

We saw the wonderful photographic exhibition, Remember Me - The Lost Diggers of Vignacourt.  Taken by Louis and Antoinette Thuillier they were found some years ago in an attic of a dilapidated farm house located in the small French Village and donated to Australia by a niece.  These were later bought by Kerry Stokes and donated to the War Memorial.  There are some wonderful pictures and I believe many of the soldiers have been identified though some still remain anonymous.

Dragging ourselves away from the War Memorial we drove across to the National Museum where we met Leslie for an afternoon exploring the Glorious Days exhibition.  It was fun looking at how things were done in the early 1900's and Lesley and I are still wondering how one plays tennis in a long white dress, petticoats, corsets and a hat!   We called in at Lesley's place before going out for dinner at the Hellenic Club where we had a lovely dinner and lots of catching up before heading home to our respective beds.  It had been a wonderful day.

The next morning we started at the War Memorial again but this time only looked at the monuments in the gardens outside.  Our next stop was Parliament House where we spent a couple of hours exploring   this wonderful building.  It certainly is a spectacular sight both inside and outside.  The Tapestry inside the great Hall is an amazing work of art based on Arthur Boyd's painting Shoalhaven Landscape.  A little further along we found the original painting hanging in the hall and they are both beautiful to see in this spectacular setting.  Other artwork in the building was lovely to and it was great to see the Tom Roberts painting called the Opening of the First Parliament of the Commonwealth of Australia by H R H the Duke of Cornwall and York.  (phew, what a title).  Now it is mostly known as the Big Picture.

We had a look at The Senate and The House of Representatives before heading up to the rooftop balconies and taking in the view from under the iconic flagpole.

From here we could see our next stop, Old Parliament House, and after a coffee we drove down the hill to see that famous porch where Gough Whitlam uttered his famous words - God Save the Queen because no-one can save the Governor General.  This building was only ever meant to be a temporary home for the Government but lasted 64 years.  Bob Hawke was the Prime Minister when they moved his suite has been left just as he walked out.

The Senate and The House of Representatives while the same shape here look so very different and one of the guides spent some time with us telling some fabulous stories of his time there.  The old building while still lovely is so different to the 'new' building up the hill.  While here we went downstairs to the Museum of Australian democracy and had a look at 2012 Behind the Lines.  This is an exhibition of the Best political cartoons from the previous year.  A lot were already familiar from the daily news but there were so many other very clever pieces that we had not seen before.  Well worth the time to take a look.

Our next stop was the National Portrait Gallery where we met Leslie again for a quick lunch and a very quick look at some of the wonderful photos on display before saying our goodbyes and returning to the airport for our flight home.  We had had a wonderful weekend in this very interesting city and look forward to visiting another time to continue our exploration.  It was lovely to see Lesley again and thank you again for making time to pick me up from the airport.

Arriving home at Melbourne airport to a cold wet night made us appreciate the lovely autumn weather we had experienced all weekend.  But it wasn't long before the sun shone again and we got ready for our next adventure.  We were off to St Leonards.

until next time...........

The big birthday bash....

The following week was a big occasion for the Harris family.  Bill's Mum, Valda, was turning 80.  The big birthday bash was being held at the Chelsea RSL on the following Sunday and would be an afternoon of celebrations with 65 of her family and friends attending.

Mum's actual birthday was on Wednesday so we all met at Faye's place for dinner that night.  It was good to see her enjoying dinner with the family and lovely to see Anne who had come over from Perth for the week.  Paul was joining her on Friday.  Gareth and Taegan were coming over from Perth as well but as this was to surprise Nana we were all sworn to secrecy until the big day.

We had a non family moment on Friday night when Astrid and Hans came in for dinner 'Downstairs'.  We had a great night together catching up on all their news since Eildon.

Gareth and Taegan arrived on Saturday afternoon and Bill and I picked them up from the airport.  We spent a quiet afternoon at home catching up before heading out to Lygon St for dinner that night.  We even tried a new restaurant though it was not as good as our favourite Sale and Pepe.

The big day dawned warm and sunny and we were soon all on our way down to Chelsea to help set up the room for the party.  Maree and Faye had done a wonderful job organising the decorations and lots of old photo's for a walk down memory lane.  Once the room was all set up it was time to go and pick the guest of honour up.  Bill did this taking Taegan and Gareth with him so the surprise would not be too overwhelming for the old girl!  And yes, she did get a big surprise as everyone had told her they were not coming.  It was just a shame that David, Sarah and the kids were not able to make it as well.

They all got back just before the first guests arrived for the party and from then on in with was four hours of fun and frivolity as Mum worked the room and generally enjoyed herself with her many friends.  The family learned lots of new stories about their Mum and Grandmother but none were too shocking that we could not cope.

After our big day out we settled for fish and chips at home that night and spent the next few hours looking through the many pictures that Gareth had taken that afternoon.  It had been a fabulous day and I'm sure Mum had enjoyed every moment of it.  I know we had.

On Monday Bill said goodbye to our visitors as he was off to Sydney and Canberra for the week.  I had the day off so we had a lovely day together shopping and lunching before driving them back to the airport for their flight home.  It was so good to see them both again and we loved every moment of there brief visit.  And I know that Nana was thrilled with her surprise too.  It was great to see Anne and Paul again and we look forward to catching up with you all again next time we are in Perth.  No plans yet but we will make it later in the year.

So with the big birthday bash over and all the visitors gone it was time for me to head back to work for another week before joining Bill in Canberra on the weekend.

until then.........