A Quiet Weekend

Lincoln and I were both tired this past weekend and decided to be slow and easy. Saturday morning found us walking along the Navy yard and up into Potts Point for a few groceries and then to sit out at one of the many patio restaurants and enjoy raisin toast, tea and coffee. There was a mini flea market set up in the square in front of us and we wandered over after our drinks and perused the stalls, mostly food vendors bringing in their vegetables to sell, although there were also a couple of stalls selling homemade pies and cakes. Much to our surprise one booth was selling organic vegetables, which you do not see here very often. We then walked home and ate lunch and decided we would walk over to Government House for one of the tours that were being offered. It is a 15 min. walk from our place, and is actually in the Domain, with the Botanical Gardens on the water side of the house.

The first Government House was erected in 1788, it was one large tent in Circular Quay, which can also just be seen from the present site. Edward Blore (1789-1879) of England was hired by the then Govenor Bourke to design the house. It is said that he did not think it correct to have one of the Australian architects design it as they were all convicts at one point in time. The house was constructed between 1837-1845 and is in the Gothic Revival Style. England originally granted the Govenor 16,000 lb which was a huge amount at that time, but eventually the cost ran to 46,000 lb ( I need a different keyboard) The house has an outstanding collection of 19th and 20th century furnishings and decorations in the Dining Room, Drawing Room and Ball Room.

We were told that every time a new Govenor and family moved in the house was then redecorated to their tastes, so as you can imagine it has seen many a make over. Presently the Drawing Room has a beautiful multi toned red rug and the sofa and chairs, along with the drapes are all a lovey raspberry red, the walls are in soft green decorative wall paper, sounds gaudy, but looks very becoming. The Drawing Room opened up to the Ball Room, which has a balcony for the muscians to be seated in, along with alcoves on the side of the main floor for more muscians. This room has wide striped wooden floors and again green and gold wall paper with matching gold drapes. This is the room that the APEC ministers met in when they were in Australia in September.

The house has not been used as a residence since 1996 when the then Premier Robert Carr moved the Govenor to more modest premises on the North Shore at Kirribilli. Unfortunately we were not allowed to take photos inside the house, although Lincoln did take a couple from outside through the windows.

In the front entrance hangs the portraits of the first Govenors and once you enter the main hallway it again holds more current portraits. One thing that we did not know was that Captain Bligh was a Govenor of Australia. He governed from 1806 until Jan 1808 when he was unceremoniously removed from office, ie arrested. He had upset a number of people, and was accused of using Goverment funds for his own purposes. He remained confined in Sydney refusing to promise to sail to England if liberated. He stayed in Sydney until Governor Lachlan Macquarie arrived in Sydney and finally set sail for England on 12 May 1810.


Sunday we were off to the Maritime Museum to visit 2 of the ships that are permanently docked at the harbour. The Museum is over at Darling Harbour, our usual 30 min walk thru Hyde Park to the bridge crossing the harbour. This is a lovely museum which is free to one and all, although there is a charge to visit the ships. The first ship we boarded was the Daring Class Destroyer HMAS Vampire, it was built at Cockatoo Island Dockyard in Sydney and was the last of three Daring Class Destroyers built in Australia. She was launched Oct 27, 1956 and commissioned June 22, 1959, that is how long it took to outfit it. She served in the Royal Australian Navy from 1959 until 1986. She essentiallly had a peaceful career, and took part in the SETO exercises off Singapore during the Indonesian Confrontation with Malaysia in 1965 and made troop escort runs to Vietnam in 1965, 66, 67 and 69. She was selected as the RAN escort for the HMY Britannia during the Queen's Silver Jubilee tour of Australia in 1977. During 1980 Vampire was refitted as a training ship and became a member of the RAN Training Squardron. These Destroyers were strong, and of lightweight construction, combined with powerful steam turbines allowed for high speeds (30.5 knots) with maximum armament which included 3 twin turrets housing 4.5" guns, anti aircraft guns, torpedo launchers and anti submarine mortors. We were given the tour of this ship by a former sailor, he was great and gave a grand explanation of the guns and how the shots were loaded,(quite a big deal when you actually see where they worked) we saw where they slept and ate, the officers mess, the wheel house, which was not on the top deck as I thought but 2 decks below. It was hot inside and was hard to imagine people actually living in those close conditions. We also were shown where they washed their cloths and how they had to be folded or were made to do it over again. He told us of a few of the antics that the crew got up to and the shore trips that they took and then the consequences of their actions. It was a pleasure to listen to him.

Lincoln then went off to visit the HMAS Onslow, which is a Oberon Class Submarine, which was decomissioned in 1999. This ship is complete and is close to operational condition. It was built by Scotts Shipbuilding and Engineering Co. Ltd., Greenoch, Scotland and launched Dec 3, 1968 and Commissioned Dec 22, 1969 it had a diving depth of 180m. She could carry a crew of 8 Officers, 60 Sailors and up to 16 Trainees. Her most secretive work was tracking Soviet submarines moving into the Arabian Gulf from Vladivstok via the Coral Sea and the Great Australian Bight. The Great Australian Bight is the largest indentation on the Australian Coast, it is said to be the longest line of sea cliffs in the world. The white coloured rock near the base of the cliffs is known to geologists as Wilson Bluff Limestone and it was formed on the sea bed between 38 and 42 million years ago. Another interesting point is that Australia appears to be the only nation which recognises the Southern Ocean, to most of the world it is still the Indian Ocean. Beyond the shelf break, where the water is around 200m deep (as far out as 190Km from the coast line), the sea bed slopes down gradually to 4,000 meters (4Km deep). The coast line is aligned with the equator, meaning it runs east to west instead of north to south. It is the longest ice free coast line running in this direction the Southern Hemisphere.

I did not go onto the submarine as the tour was just finishing on the Destroyer. It was the last tour of the day on the submarine and Lincoln really wanted to see it. The down side is that we were so engrossed with what we were learning that we did not take pictures of the inside of either ship.

I hope you do not find this too boring, but I am finding it fascinating to learn as much as I can about this lovely country. I'm not sure I would have paid that much attention at school but when you are in the country seeing things for yourself they take on a whole new meaning.

A lovely weekend in Australia

This was one of the first weekends that the weather was absolutely great the whole time.

Friday evening I met Lincoln and Don (also from JSI) at Hyde Park for the Noodle Dinner. Hyde Park was the colony's first racetrack and cricket pitch, it is graced with a grand avenue of trees, delightful fountains, and a giant public chessboard. We walked through the area where the tents were set up, with each restaurant in a separate tent, I believe there were 20 all told, we perused the menus and then picked the place that was serving our choice. We were able to grab a table under a tree and close by a make shift stage, and also the Beer tent. By 6.30PM the park was full of happy people sitting on blankets, and what chairs they could find. This park is huge and would venture to say there were between 900-1200 people in attendance. After enjoying our meal and a couple of drinks the Dragon Dancers started to make the rounds of the area, and much to our delight stopped at the stage and put on a show for those of us sitting close enough to enjoy. Next on the entertainment was a Thai woman who danced while balancing bowls on her head and then entertained us with some juggling of balls on a parisol, and then juggling a baton with sticks. The evening was warm and we sat out until 8.00PM just enjoying ourselves.

As you leave the park heading east, in the direction of our place, stands this beautiful old church, called St Mary's Cathedral, with its new copper spires. In 1821 the foundation stone of the first St Mary's Chapel was laid. In 1835 Sydney's first Bishop John Bede Polding OSB arrived on Sept 13th as Vicar Aposlotic of New Holland, and St Mary's Chapel becomes his first Cathedral. In 1865 the first St Mary's Cathedral is ruined by fire on June 29th. In 1868 the foundation stone of a new Cathedral is blessed by Archbishop Polding. The new Cathedral is an outstanding example of Gothic Revival Architecture and was designed by William Wilkinson Wardell of England. By 1905 the Cathedral is debt free is is consecrated. In 1928 the total cost is 700,000.00 which was spent over 60 years. The spires were finally built in 1998-2000 as per the original architects drawings, and the length of this Cathedral now measures 107 meters and takes up a whole city block.

Saturday we were up early to catch the ferry to Watsons Bay which is at the entrance to Sydney Harbour. This is a snug community with restored fisherman's cottages. Again we walked along the paths provided and took in some very spectacular views from the cliffs overlooking the Tasman Sea. We saw one of the few remaining light houses still in operation in Sydney, and also were able to view the anchor which was retrieved from the ship Dunbar that was arriving from England, after an 81 day voyage from Plymouth, when it was swept upon the rocks at the entrance to the harbour (the entrance is 4/5th of a nautical mile wide) barely 12 nautical miles from Circular Quay, all but 1 person perished in this disaster. That person, James Johnson, became the keeper of the light, at the Hornby light house (built in 1858) and we are told that this light house is one of a few still in operation. The ship sank on August 20, 1857, and is considered Sydney's worst maritime disaster, these were not convicts arriving, but rather weathy Australians who were coming back to Australia after visiting their homeland, at the time there was a very fierce southerly bluster blowing, and

according to the news it was similar to one that struck this area earlier this year and took out a couple of the ferry landings well inside the harbour. The wreck was not found until the following morning when someone walking along the cliff noticed the bodies and debris below. The ship sits 9 meters under the waves and just 100 meters from the towering cliffs.

As on all these walkways there are numerous benches and we enjoyed some time just sitting and taking in the sail boats racing below. Sun Screen and a Hat are a must in the sun here, Lincoln even got some sun under his shirt he was wearing. On our walk we came across Lady Bay, which much to my surprise was a nudists beach, which is frequented mostly by males, of which there were about 1/2 dozen in attendance. All the tour boats come in close for a better view, does not seem to bother the bathers. We also saw a couple of topless sun bathers on another beach, I guess they really want to be brown all over.

We then enjoyed a lovely lunch of fish and chips at a little diner on the wharf called Doyle's. It had seating both in and outside, we sat outside under a canopy, and Lincoln enjoyed a Tasmanian Beer. He has nothing but good things to say about the beer here, I am not a beer drinker so have to take his word on how good they taste.

We then decided to take the bus over to Bondi Junction, to visit a heath food store, and then rode the train the rest of the way home, arriving shortly after 6.00PM, tired and having had a great day. Two months and we still have not driven a vehicle here.

Sunday we decided to again take the ferry this time to Manly, 1/2 hr ride (see green and cream coloured ship in background). Again we decided to try another walkway 9KM along the harbour. We walked about 2KM out and then back again. There was a lovely cool breeze off the water, and numerous trees overhung the walkway, some with lovely red or yellow blossoms. We saw little harbours filled with sailing craft of all sizes and watched numerous people out in kayaks, and on sailboards. We had brought some treats along and sat on a bench which had a view straight out to the sea. By now you have guessed that I love the seascape.

We then walked to the sea side of Manly, where a real blow was happening, surfers were out trying to get on their boards and have a good ride into shore. The beach was crowded with people in very skimpy bathing suits, but Lincoln and I were cold, still have not gotten used to the cold air blowing off the sea. We then walked back to the harbour side and hopped on the ferry for the ride back to Circular Quay. We decided to walk home thru the Domain, less hills to climb and again arrived home at 6.00PM tired, a little sun tanned, and ready for a nice relaxing evening.

We are absolutely having a great time and next weekend Lincoln is thinking of renting a kayak for an hour to explore some of the bays. I will bring my towel and a book and sit on the beach and just enjoy the comings and goings.

On going adventure

Last Saturday we decided to visit the local Aquarium, but alas we were delayed buying Lincoln new walking shoes, he had worn the soles off the ones he brought from Canada. He now has new snazzy Australian walking shoes.

As we walked over the Domain by us, we stopped to take a picture of the New South Wales Art Gallery. We have not been in yet — thought we would save that adventure for a rainy day. It is only a 5 minute walk from our house, so easy to visit at the drop of a hat.

On Sunday we walked over to Darling Harbour, which is a lovely and lively spot to visit. We first stopped at the Sydney Fisherman's Wharf where Lincoln had his first look at the fresh fish which are displayed in 3 different stores. You would not believe the people queuing up to buy fish! They were actually cleaning it in a different section of the store as it was unloaded from the fishing boats. We need a cooler in order to get it back to our house as the weather is really warming up.

They also had a beautiful bakery, with breads and buns at half the price of the ones in the main part of the City. Great Danish. We each had one and sat outside with the throngs of other people enjoying the scenery and the sun, and of course our Danish.
We then walked back to Darling Harbour and went to visit the Aquarium, where we saw many, many lovely fish. The seals were very playful and just loved to show off for us. We were able to walk down below where the seals were swimming, and see them underwater also. I was not so sure I liked being down under the water like that, as everything creaked and groaned.

The Penguins were hiding so we did not get to see them, just the behind on one.There was an area set up with Nemo fish and all the little children were quite enthralled with this area. The fish in these aquariums were just absolutely beautiful colours.

After the Aquarium we were ready for a drink, so we sat out at one of the Bistros and enjoyed a glass of wine and a beer and also a great dish of wedges with sour cream and chili. The sun was just setting and the water was sparkling.

When we walked through the Business District on our way to Darling Harbour, Lincoln snapped a couple of pictures of the old buildings that line some of the streets. This one has McQuarie Bank in it, along with a number of clothing shops and cafes.

This is a picture of the Byzantine-style Queen Victoria Building which houses many clothing shops, great chocolate shops, a Tea Room where they actually serve afternoon tea, and antiques shops and then of course the usual restaurants and cafes. It is described as the city's most sumptuous shopping complex, and takes up an entire city block.

October 5 2007

What an absolutely great time we are having here in Australia. Should have done this much earlier. We do not get to tour that much as Lincoln is always working and just this morning arrived back from 5 days in Bangkok Thailand. I did not go with him as was very ill with a flu of some sort, much better at present.

On our previous posting meant to include a picture of a homeless person who lives on the edge of the cliffs at Bondi Beach, he even has a chair set up so you can visit and chat with him. I would be afraid of rolling off into the sea below, but does not seem to bother him as you can see from the picture he is set up for good at this site. You get to it as you walk along the path they have built between Bondi Beach and Coogee.

Also do not think we posted any pictures of the B&B that we stayed in for the first 10 days. It was a beautiful old heritage house built in 1872. Had about 10 rooms spread out over 3 floors. Our room was on the top floor and had a skylite to brighten the room. It was a dormer room and had windows at the top of the wall which we could not see out of so the skylite was lovely. Breakfast was served in an atrium which had been added to the building about 20 years ago. We thoroughly enjoyed our stay, and would recommend it highly. Our apartment did not have internet when we moved in and the owners of the B&B kindly let us use their facilities until our was set up.


I have just generally been enjoying the sights and talking with different people I meet while out for my 2 1/2 hr walk each day. Have met some lovely couples and have even been able to give directions to a couple when they asked.

There is also another park close to us called Hyde Park, it is usually packed with people at lunch eating, laying in the grass soaking up the sun, men in suits spread their jackets on the ground and just lay there with their eyes closed, lots and lots of people running and doing exercises, they also have groups that have a trainer leading them thru their paces.

I have never seen green space used so much by the locals. We are fortunate to have all this space so close to where we live and I use it every day. Cafes are everywhere and most are only open until 3.00PM. As I walked thru Sydney Hospital to the downtown area, I noticed that a cafe was set up in the courtyard, tables even had white table clothes and linen napkins and not a table was empty. I do not think that many people eat at home as in the evening the night spots are packed as well.


Saturday we took the Harbour Cruise offered by Captain Cook Cruise Lines, and had a lovely time. The cruise was 2 1/2 hrs and took us to a number of different harbours within Sydney Harbour and out as far as the Heads, which is the entrance to Sydney Harbour from the Tasman Sea.

There are a total of 66 harbours within Sydney Harbour, and numerous areas that are set aside to remain bush, quite an impressive sight to see the city skyline from the Harbour. It was a beautiful morning as we sailed from the harbour at 10:00am and we chose to sit on the upper deck outside, unfortunately we sat on the left side and most the sights that were pointed out were on the right side, so had to get up and go to that side to see what they were telling you about. Lincoln and I had tourned some of the places on land previously and were quite content to just cruise and enjoy the commentary.

Sunday afternoon we enjoyed a very nice Thanksgiving buffet with the Canadian Australian Club. Approx 60 people were in attendance, and once again Lincoln and I each won a door prize. I gave mine back at I had won the same item at a Mixer we went to on Friday evening in Darling Harbour. People were telling us we should buy a lottery ticket as we seemed to be on a winning streak. We then went to a Belgian Beer Pub with 5 other people afterwards and a number of different types of beer were sampled by all who were beer drinkers. We spent 3 hrs just chatting and enjoying each others company.