Tag Archives: Days Out

An Interstate Trip

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We live in Victoria and today we took a trip to New South Wales. The Murray River forms the majority of the border between these states and the southern bank is the actual border so once you are on the river you are technically in New South Wales.

Castlemaine is about 20 minutes drive from home and the railway station there is on the main line from Melbourne to Echuca. When we catch the train it is generally to Melbourne but today we headed about 130km north to Echuca.

About 18 months ago regional travel was made significantly cheaper so with our seniors fares we can travel all day for a mere $5.30. However, this week is Seniors Week and there is free travel anywhere in the state for seniors. We noticed that we we not the only ones taking a day trip to Echuca.

It is about 1.5km walk from the station to the old river port historical precinct. It was a gloriously sunny day and we stopped along the way to admire some of the old buildings and beautiful gardens. Many buildings have plaques which provide great information about the history and previous uses of the buildings.

lunch in one of the many cafes we headed down to the wharf for a cruise of a paddlesteamer. The river seems so benign but we know that this is not always the case. In fact, almost exactly 2 years Echuca endured on of the worst floods on record with the river peaking about 7 metres higher than the level it is at today.

One several paddlesteamers which offer short cruises from the Echuca wharf.

The PS Pevensey at the wharf. This was the one we went on.

The PS Pevensey was rebranded as the Philadelphia for a starring role in the 1983 television miniseries, ‘All The Rivers Run’ and this room included various pieces of memorabilia from the series which was one of my favourites.

Finally, another traveller kindly offered to take our photo on the boat.

No day out is complete without an ice-cream so we indulged on our way back to the train.

During our walking around the town, I spotted an op shop at the Anglican church and they had a terrific selection of cotton fabrics in large and small pieces. I was quite restrained but did pick up these for $5.

Before we knew it we were back at the station where the train was waiting for us.

Winter Winners

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We were out and about today in a town about 40 minutes drive from home. The purpose of our visit was see 2 different exhibitions about nursing and midwifery which were of particular interest to me. One was in the local museum so we also saw other local historical memorabilia. We also caught up with some extended family at a local cafe.

Since we were walking down the street between venues I spotted an op shop so we decided to check it out. They had a lovely selection which was nicely displayed. GMan found a white tshirt which had been on his ‘to buy’ list so I was just idly waiting while he tried it on when I spied a coat. It was red. Be still my beating heart.

This vintage red duffle coat is all I could have hoped for. It is wool/cashmere blend, fully lined, made in Australia from Italian fabric. A perfect fit and cost me $20.

It has definitely been a successful week of op shopping. When we were in Bendigo on Wednesday I bought a red wool blend jumper for $6 which also appears to be a vintage piece as well as a long sleeve shirt which is white with navy spots in a soft cotton fabric for the princely sum of $2.50. It will be more suitable for spring than winter, though.

My other purchase which does not rate a photograph was a king-size doona cover for $8 which I unpicked so that I could use the back of it for the backing of the recently finished patchwork quilt. I took that to be quilted today so I should be able to show you the finished product in a week or so.

Beautiful Bendigo

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The regional city of Bendigo is a little over 30 minutes drive from where we live and we go there regularly to access shopping and other services.

However, our day out yesterday was a much more pleasurable excursion than simply grocery shopping.

We went to the current exhibition at the Bendigo Art Gallery, ‘Paris: Impressions of Life 1880-1925‘. This exhibition is curated from the collection at the Musee Carnavalet in Paris runs for 4 months in Bendigo until 14th July 2024.

Late autumn in the Arts Precinct of Bendigo is the perfect time and place for a Parisian excursion without a long-haul flight to Europe. Although, I must admit it has whetted my appetite to visit the City of Light again after our brief one day excursion there in 2017.

A spectacular entrance.

A wall mural showing an interior of the Musee Carnavalet. I am putting that one on the travel bucket list.

Back outside – a streetlamp and sunshine.

A late autumn street scene in Bendigo.

Champs Elysees in Paris (taken in 2017).

We enjoy travelling but there is also plenty to do in our local area.

Each Day

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I have not posted for a few days as GMan caught a cold several days ago and then kindly shared it with me and I simply have not felt on top of the world.

During the past 5 days we have only left the house to take the dog for her regular walk and it has been good to be getting some exercise and enjoying the autumn sunshine on at least some of the days.

I have reflected on what I have actually done and realised that almost every day is a mix of some housework (but not too much), cooking, reading, watching television, walking, gardening, computer activity and sewing. Variety really is the spice of life. Not everything gets done every day but most times it does.

Then there are days when we are out and about all day so only the bare minimum of other stuff happens. Sometimes it is social activities or a mixture of shopping and appointments. It is probably just as well we have had a few quiet days at home as the diary for the coming week is looking rather full. We will be out more than we are home on 4 of the next 6 days. There will be a trip to Melbourne to do some shopping and meet up for lunch with friends visiting from interstate. Another day we will be in Bendigo for a series of appointments as well as some shopping. The weekend will be a social whirl with the locals – TEDX talks, lunch and music as well as a short film festival.

Every week and every day is different so it keeps us on our toes.

Four Days of Fun

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It is now 4 days since our granddaughters arrived from Queensland. They are here for 10 days and we are trying to find a balance of interesting things to do with a 16 year old and 14 year old.

After we picked them up at the airport we found a spot for a picnic lunch before we headed home.

A spot of mulberry picking rounded out the day.

On Tuesday we headed to Bendigo to buy a birthday gift for Miss 16 as well as a couple of other errands.

Yesterday we went to nearby Lake Cairn Curran for a BBQ picnic lunch, paddle in the water and a walk with the dog.

Here is a view I captured while waiting for lunch.

Finally, we picked up this DVD from Castlemaine Library before the girls headed to the local pool for a swim. We watched ‘Picnic at Hanging Rock’ in preparation for our outing today. It was interesting to note that some of the scenes were filmed in a town where we used to live, although the film was made long before we moved there.

Our first view of the rock.

Almost at the top.

A view of the surrounding country.

A quick op shop stop on the way home and Miss 14 found this pair of denim shorts for $4. A sundress completed her haul for the day.

Tonight we watched ‘Looking For Alibrandi’ on SBS On Demand and they both enjoyed this movie. We have plenty more adventures planned so most of the regular chores have been put on hold while we enjoy spending time with this special pair of teenagers.

Introducing Islay

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No-one would dispute the fact that the past 8 months or so have been unprecendented and pretty difficult for all of us. We have had the added complication of losing our elderly dog in May last year as I wrote in this post.

We were sure that we wanted another dog but that was the extent of what we knew. There has been much discussion and searching for the perfect pet over several months.

All of the planning came to fruition on Saturday when we collected our new Tenterfield terrier pup. It was a big day out with a round trip of over 400km.

A stop in Brisbane and then a BBQ lunch at Wyaralong Dam broke up the outbound trip.

It has been a bit of shock to the system as it is over 25 years since we last had a pup. The combination of being 8 weeks old and of a small breed means that she was not much bigger than a guinea pig when we picked her up.

The next trick was to decide on a name. I wanted something that was relatively unique but easy to use when calling her. So, the final decision was ‘Islay’ – pronounced eye-la. The origin is the southernmost island of the Inner Hebrides in Scotland which we visited last year and home to several whisky distilleries. It is a nod to her whisky-coloured face as well as our travels.

Despite her small size, Islay seems to be settling in well and I think she has grown even in the past 2 days.