My Holiday Tales - From Abroad

[LizG]

Introduction

First I need to say that the majority of any holiday is organised by my husband who spends hours ensuring every meticulous detail is correct.  My stipulations are that at some point the holiday needs to include where possible a boat trip and a train ride but not necessarily butterflies and invariably a few nice local beers are consumed!  It should be noted that both Australian and New Zealand wines are more expensive in their own country than at home – so we don’t always include wine with our meals!  I have tried to include a few travel tips for anyone that might be interested and I should also add that I do most of the driving; it saves on arguments when directions are concerned because apparently I can’t read maps, although now we rely on Mr Google!

 

My first tale goes back to February 2023 when we visited Australia.  We flew with Quantas on a ‘direct’ flight to Sydney from Heathrow with a brief stopover in Singapore when the plane refuelled!  We all had to get off the plane, and then go back through security (which included disposing of any bottled water since bought after going through security in London!) back onto the plane!!! (see photo - it was pouring with rain)

 

We landed in the early morning at Sydney, although the flight was late, our attempt to buy a sim card for the spare phone failed as we found out the phone was locked (it was my old phone but not that old - this was eventually sorted out by my daughter at home who got the code to get the phone unlocked).  In addition the Wi-Fi at Sydney Airport was not working so by standing outside MacDonald’s and picking up their free Wi-Fi, we could tell the family we had landed, although they already knew as they had been tracking the flight all the way!  So no Uber but a taxi in the rush hour to our hotel in an old part of the city not far from the harbour!  The Lord Nelson Brewery Hotel was old and quirky and needless to say we were on the top floor with two suitcases weighing just under 30kilos each and no lift!!!  We later found the beer and food here was extremely good though!  They allowed us to leave our bags, have a wash and brush up and we hit the city walking!  The day before we arrived had been very wet but the weather was improving rapidly – we walked and walked that morning – all around the botanic gardens, the harbour, around the Opera House and then stopped for lunch in a bar overlooking the Ferry Terminal to watch all the comings and goings!  In the afternoon my husband had booked a harbour trip which was on an old sail boat – the Southern Swan.  We first chugged downstream and then turned round and they put the sail up and we sailed back and under Sydney Harbour Bridge finally motoring back to her mooring – I was allowed to helm which was quite an experience!  We fell asleep quite early that night but we have found if on an overnight flight its best to just get going the minute you arrive!

[LizG]

Day 4

Next day we woke up quite early, and went to find breakfast only to find the view down the road blocked by a giant cruise ship that had come in overnight.  Today we were going to do some city exploring /walking so we caught a metro (Sydney use contactless) to King’s Cross and walked to Paddington via routes available in the guide book.  Then in the afternoon we walked back to the city centre as we were booked on a trip up the Sydney Tower – the views were exceptional apart from the Bridge only just being in sight!  Finally at the end of the afternoon we walked across the Harbour Bridge – I believe my watch calculated we had walked 16 miles that day?

[LizG]

Day 5 & 6

The next morning was an early start with a car booked to take us to the airport for an early flight to Adelaide. Our hotel was outside the city so we got an Uber, checked in, crossed the road to the shopping centre, bought a phone card and started to try and buy the bus pass to get us onto the buses (every city is different)!  That was harder than you would think because you bought the pass in an AA shop not at the bus station as we had assumed!  So back into Adelaide and a walk around; so different to Sydney, compact with many old buildings amongst the new! We then returned to our hotel, which was by a big lake and in the morning which was a Sunday, it had turned into a rowing lake with many different skulls of all sizes practising. 

 

After breakfast, we caught a bus into the city and went to wait for a mini bus that was going to take us on a wine tasting tour of the Barossa Valley – which I might say, was very enjoyable.  The weather and views were superb and the wine equally nice!  It was a long day and back in Adelaide we found a nice bar by the river for a drink and some supper before catching the bus back to our hotel.  Whilst by the river an electric ‘party’ boat went past but too far away to get decent photos. 

 

[LizG]

Day 7 & 8

Next morning we were on the move again with an Uber to Adelaide airport (which was a nice airport to waste a few hours in unlike Sydney!).  We then caught a small plane to Kangaroo Island – Kangaroo Island was very badly damaged in the 2019/2020 fires but the island is recovering and back in business.  The small airport was an experience as it was basically two people it seemed doing all the check-ins, and baggage handling so although our baggage had come off the plane and was sitting on a trolley, it was on the wrong side of security and we had to wait ages for the staff to finish sending the plane back to Adelaide for the luggage to come in on the conveyor belt!  A taxi took up to our hotel in Kingscote which was by the coast – it was quite an old building and the entire town seemed to belong to a different age!  That evening I was introduced to a ‘Parmi’ a staple of Australian cuisine, breaded chicken with ham, tomato and cheese and copious quantities of chips!  The local wine and gin were also very nice.  We had another early start in the morning, to go on a coach tour of the island.  Here we visited many of the landmarks, starting at the eucalyptus distillery - we saw sea lions and spectacular rock formations and then a tour of a local wildlife sanctuary where many of the injured animals were taken and cared for after the fires.  We saw koalas with burnt feet and met the Kangaroo Island kangaroo!

[LizG]

Day 9 & 10

So yet again another early morning wake up call to get the bus to the port at Penneshaw – all night we had heard the wind buffeting our window and it was just as windy when we got to Penneshaw!  We sat at the front of the Ferry and watched the waves as we made the short crossing to Cape Jervis and then a connecting bus into Adelaide, followed by a taxi to the airport and then a late afternoon flight to Melbourne!  As we walked to the plane we were thankful to leave Adelaide as a heatwave was forecast for the next few days and even just walking to the plane was HOT! Landing in Melbourne we caught the Skybus into the city and then a tram (having worked out how to buy a MYKI card) to St. Kilda.  We were staying in a Quest hotel which is a chain of hotels that are really apartments and ideal for a few nights, with kitchen and washing facilities so we could catch up with clothes washing.  We had eaten at the airport so just found a nice bar for a few beers and then returned to our room!

 

So needless to say we got up early, found a nearby street café for breakfast and then hit the trams again, back into the city – topped up our MYKI card and went for a bit of walk around the city before embarking on a river trip, up the Yarra and back – it was a hot but very pleasant boat trip.  Back in the city, we stopped for a bite to eat by the river and watched all the comings and goings in the shade of an umbrella.  We looked at what we could do and realised that the vintage tram ran around the centre of Melbourne in a circular route, and because it was the city centre the tram was free.  We found the Tram Stop and waited for this lovely old tram to arrive – it was a good way of seeing the city and we could decide where we wanted to go!  Being that it was quite hot, we decided we needed to check out some of the pubs that were scattered around the city!  Later we returned by tram to St. Kilda and walked to a restaurant and bar that came with recommendation in the guide book!

[LizG]

Day 11

So next day, we again caught the tram back into the city but on this occasion we were then catching a suburban train from Flinders Street out to Belgrave – which included a bus replacement service!  We were going to catch the Buffing Billy Train from Belgrave to Lakeside.  I always remember an episode of Neighbours when they went on the train and had always wanted to go on it.  Its unique character is that you can sit on the side of the train, with your legs over the side (hanging onto the bar) – I declined to do this but many tourists did……… on the way back the novelty seemed to have worn off so I could take more photos!  It climbs up in the hills above Belgrave and was a great day out!  We caught the suburban train back and did some more exploring and again found a nice pub for our evening meal in Napier Street.  Catching the tram back to St. Kilda………..

[LizG]

Day 12

Again we were up early (there is a theme) and we caught the tram back into the city but on this occasion we were going from Southern Cross Station to Ballarat.  This was much more into the countryside but still covered by the MYKI card - in the end we went one stop further and got off at Wendouree.  Here we walked to the Botanical Gardens which were an absolute treat and walked around a bit of Lake Wendouree where the rowing events in the 1956 Olympics had been held!   We saw our first native Black Swans before catching the train back to Ballarat – Ballarat is a famous gold mining town which was very prosperous in its time but still an interesting place to visit.  We caught a bus to the Sovereign Hill gold mining town which was very interesting but then realised if we didn’t catch the next bus back to the station we had a very long wait ahead of us for the next train.  We caught the train with only a few minutes to spare and it filled up with school children going back into Melbourne and young girls on their way to a Harry Styles concerts in the city centre!!  What we did notice throughout our visit was how old fashioned the school uniforms were – they reminded me of being at school in the 1960s, with blazers and the girls wearing gingham dresses. 

 

We returned to St. Kilda, it was a Friday and the area was very busy but we found somewhere to eat and walked about – the famous Luna Park Fun Fair is there so makes the area quite busy at the weekend.  Next morning we were on the move again!

[LizG]

Day 13 & 14

Having packed up, completed all the washing that needed to be done, we called an Uber to take us to a Car Rental Office where we picked up our first and only hire car for the holiday.  The plan was to drive along the Great Ocean Road and then make our way back to a small town called Little River!  Well the Adelaide heat wave had broken and the weather system hit the coast that day and it rained and was windy, so the drive was rather disappointing!  Despite the weather all the carparks were busy and one could imagine that if it had been sunny the tourist hotspots along the coast would have been unbearable.  Our daughter had done the same route some years ago on a coach and maybe in retrospect that would have been better?  Driving back into the hills, it was as it we were in a rain forest with ferns and mist.  Once over the hills the weather improved, we found Little River where we were staying in a B&B next to a pub – probably the only pub for miles and it really was in the middle of nowhere.  In a garden there was a large boat which the owner had been building for about 25 years – how it was ever going to get to any water, one wonders.

 

The B&B was quite quirky with a do it yourself breakfast – as we arrived the night before a large parrot/cockatoo roost had turned up, it was extremely noisy and there were 100s of birds.  Our clean hire car was no longer clean in the morning!!!  We drove up into the Yarra Valley and stopped at the Healesville Wildlife Sanctuary – it was a Sunday and very busy with families but very interesting.  The highlight was the Tasmanian Devils’ feeding time – not for the faint hearted.  We heard how many of these marsupials are dying as a result of a fungal disease which is transferred by eating the same ‘joint of meat’ and effects their mouths so they can’t eat and they die – a lot of research is going on to find a cure.  As we left Healesville, we found a nice little preserved railway line and watched the last train of the day leave and then we drove off to our next hotel.  This was in an upmarket vineyard with the most fabulous views, some pretty nice wine and some very expensive food if you wanted – we went for a light bite of a cheese platter which wasn’t quite so expensive!

 

 

 

[LizG]

Day 15

In the morning we set off with the intention of finding somewhere for breakfast (the hotel’s was too expensive) which we did in Yea, and then onto Murchison where in 1969 a meteor had landed!   Violet Town station was the site of the Southern Aurora train crash also in 1969 which was caused by one of the drivers suffering a heart attack – thankfully although the photos look horrendous only 9 people died – it could have been a lot worse?  We stopped in Glenrowan, where Ned Kelly was captured and there is a huge monument to him – the town was a ‘bit touristy’ with every shop selling something to do with Ned Kelly.  The highlight was Chiltern, a town where time had stood still, and lots of interesting shops (although most of them were closed). Our destination was Albury, a town we were told was really nice………..which the River Murray passed through.  The hotel was large but apparently the restaurant was closed on Mondays, and this was Monday and most of all the other bars and restaurants were also closed on Mondays!  We did find a bar which was open as well as doing food – not the most inviting of towns (on a Monday anyway)!

[LizG]

Day 16 & 17

We have now reached Day 16 which was Albury to Canberra which involved driving through lots of small towns with really difficult names to pronounce let alone write but one was Wagga Wagga where we stopped for some lunch near the Murrumbidgee River!  We stopped at the Dog on the Tucker Box memorial and drove on into Canberra.  Canberra is surrounded by several distinct hills and we drove up Black Mountain to check out the view!  The next morning we decided it was easier to get an Uber into the city rather than try and find somewhere to buy a bus pass and we were dropped by the Parliament Buildings.  It wasn’t necessary to book a tour so we were able to just walk around the building, including visiting the Parliament and Senate.  We then visited the old Parliament building which is now a museum and then walked around the large lake that splits the city in two.  Canberra is strange place there are almost no tall buildings let alone skyscrapers or old buildings for that matter, there is also very little public transport other than buses – just a few new tram routes so there are just loads of carparks!  It was quite difficult to find any bars that were open but we did eventually!  It should be noted that despite being the capital of Australia, the station has just one platform and just 3 trains a day!

 

[LizG]

Day 18

The next day we continued our drive to Sydney and the coast, driving through some spectacular scenery - we drove past a giant concrete sheep at Goulburn and then down a really steep hill to the coast at Wollangong at which point we started seeing missed calls from home – considering this was in the middle of the night there, we started to get a bit worried.  It transpired they weren’t emergencies although one had potential; just my phone got called instead of someone in England!  From Wollangong we made our way to Bondi Beach so we could say we had been there but the parking charges were so high we only stopped for about 20 minutes to buy some lifeguard swimming trunks for our grandson. 

We then hit the Sydney rush hour traffic and having been absolutely determined to not drive on a toll road as we hadn’t set up payment for the hire car, in the midst of all the traffic, I found I had gone down the wrong turning and yes we were on a toll road!!!!  Although in retrospect it did save us about an hour’s driving and we later managed to sort out the payment before the hire car company sent us a bill with fees added.  We were staying at Blackdown and next to the hotel was the Royal Cricketers Arms pub! 

 

[LizG]

Day 19 to going home

Until now apart from our drive along the Great Ocean Road when it rained the weather had been lovely but on our last whole day the forecast was extremely iffy!  We set off for the Blue Mountains with fingers crossed and we were remarkably lucky until our drive back to the hotel when it did eventually rain! Our first stop was Windsor which had a nice old town and then as we went into the mountains we stopped at the Blue Mountains Botanic Gardens at Mount Tomah, which were very pleasant and we also saw and heard a Kookaburra.  We stopped for lunch in Lithgow which was a coal mining town and then went to Katoomba and found Scenic World – we didn’t have much time but we managed to fit in the three rides with spectacular views of the canyon.  Throughout the journey we were following the railway line and if we had had longer that would have been on my to do list! On the way back to the hotel we stopped at a Woolworths and bought supplies of Vegemite and Tim Tams for the daughters to enjoy!

 

So we had come to the end of our holiday, we drove to the airport via Botany Bay to see where Captain Cook had landed and then dropped off the hire car.  At the airport we walked to the gate expecting to see our plane already there but………..no it wasn’t and it wouldn’t appear for another two hours – they were checking a potential fault and the plane was on the other side of the runway and we eventually left two hours late!  Sydney Airport goes down as far as I am concerned as one of the worst airports to be stuck at.  The WiFi wouldn’t connect and the food and drink selection very poor and the beer terribly expensive!  We stopped off briefly in Singapore and got back to Heathrow where our youngest daughter came to collect us – it was 3 degrees centigrade in London and very unwelcoming!

 

A few days later our youngest daughter told us she had a new job – in NEW ZEALAND!!!  We hadn’t planned to have two holidays in one year but that tale is for another day!

THE END!

 

[kpnut]

What a complete exploration Liz. Very interesting with things I’ve practical notes filed in my head, like the apartments with washing facilities and where to get tickets from. Wierd that Canberra only has 3 trains a day. 
Just as with Jean’s photos, yours show that generally the cities seem to be kept extremely clean. 
What was the Angel of the North doing there? And the bronze pig rooting in the bin?😂

[LizG]

It was a baby Angel of the North but still by Antony Gormley!! There were lots of sculptures along a pedestrian street in Adelaide!! As to Canberra's three trains a day.....it's not a busy /big city and most people fly there?

[SwanR]

Wow! What a trip! The strange thing for me was reading about your time in Sydney and looking at your photos knowing exactly where you were even though it's halfway around the world. And recognising so many other place names too, that we either visited, saw on train routes, or have heard about from our son.

[LizG]

 

4 minutes ago, SwanR said:

Wow! What a trip! The strange thing for me was reading about your time in Sydney and looking at your photos knowing exactly where you were even though it's halfway around the world. And recognising so many other place names too, that we either visited, saw on train routes, or have heard about from our son.

Likewise with your trip and CeePee's - I was thinking I've been there. 

[YnysMon]

Lots of photos of cake displays Liz. They looked pretty yummy! 

[BroadAmbition]

Great write up and great photos too. Tks for sharing 

Griff