19960618 Australia

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19960618Australia

Don't know where the idea came from - but it was "off-season" in Oz, and I like driving holidays - so off we went...

18th June, 1996

Flew to Brisbane, rented a car and from Information desk got fixed up in a small hotel in Kangaroo Point, central Bribane. Went straight out - down to one of the ferries/Taxi-boats that ply up and down the river - and across to the main wining-dining/pleasure spots of downtown. Had a nice Italian light meal overlooking the river - very pleasant start....

19th June, 1996

Don't know what we did with this day.......??

20th June, 1996

Strolled around River Walks, the Gondwana Wildlife Sanctuary on SouthBank and the Rain Forest (no piccies)....

the river-walks...

Ha-ha - we asked somebody to take our piccie - and this geezer came steaming along on his bike so we asked for another... We're on the Kangaroo Point side of the river and that's downtown Brisbane behind.

Gondwana Wildlife Sanctuary Koala Bears........ sleeping...

Wombat... did you see the Billy Connolly series on TV - "World Tour of Australia"?? - great!! I think he was here with these Wombats and he said their names were something like... Grumpy (because he was!!) and Notso (because he/she was also grumpy, but Notso much as the other one)!! Australian "naming conventions" were noticed to be rather "direct" during this trip (unless of course - they were Aborigine) ... none of your "Frangrant Harbour" or "Chelsea Reach".... no... more like "Goat Island" and "Blue Mountains" etc...

And then we drove out of town a bit - to Mount Cootha - for a fine view back to Brisbane City...

Then further on to Ipswich which was supposed to be "old architecture houses and wrought ironwork" - cannot remember if it was..

but this is Ipswich centre - very quiet....!!

21st June, 1996

We wanted to see the Sunshine Coast of Queensland, but didn't allow much time... we drove out of Brisbane headed north on Route 1 (the Pacific Highway), stopped for lunch in Maroochydore - I had a haircut in Noosa - and we checked into the Sheraton at Noosa Heads - what a great town and a lovely hotel...

We had a massive room with a nice balcony - the "main drag" of Noosa Heads is running left to right behind us - excellent place - lots of lovely restaurants and bars!!

22nd June, 1996

No time to dilly-dally - a look at the beach...

Very nice beach......

Then we had to be off - Southward - next stop was Sanctuary Cove in New South Wales' Gold Coast...

Basically a very large development of homes around golf courses and marinas - excellent place!! We pushed on to Byron Bay for the night..

23rd June, 1996

I think... by now.. I had realised that i didn't like my new haircut - and...

it made ME grumpy!! So.... that's your Byron Bay behind and.... coming up...

More of it... and its light-house...

24th June, 1996

Nice easy driving - its basically winter-time - so Hotels/Motels are easy to get into... next stop...

It was bright sunshine but a bit of a wind and the temperature wasn't all that high - but I can remember eating breakfast outside...

25th June, 1996

Up the next morning heading for the Hunter Valley..

bye to the coast for a while...

At Newcastle we turned inland for Cessnock - found a Tourist Information place and asked for the best/most expensive hotel in the area.. they recommended a couple and we decided on...

The Peppers Convent Resort Hotel. This romantic retreat was once home to the Brigidine order of Nuns in Coonamble, about 600kms west from the Hunter. After careful reconstruction it now sits amidst magnificent landscaped gardens and vineyards of the Pepper Tree Winery.

26th June, 1996

Up early - and out on the balcony.....

And then a snoop round the grounds and winery...

Now.... you see the plaques on the wall there..?? Each one represents a year/vintage - and this is "roughly" what each said...

	1987 - poor harvest, fruit damaged by frost - only 45,000 lbs harvested - blended with last year's - a great wine.
	1988 - Fantastic harvest, biggest ever recorded - a great wine.
	1989 - Average harvest, some blight amongst the late harvest - a great wine.
	1990 - Average harvest, just a bad growing climate - a great wine.

So, in the wine business - it doesn't seem to matter what the crop is like - it will always be a great wine - and presumably the price in the shops will reflect that!!

didn't buy any - just because we'd got lots more traveling to do - and a flight back to Hong Kong..

No - its not our hire-car... can you see the number-plate...?? MERLOT... how flash!!

Time to head for Sydney.... We had picked out a hotel to try - I think it was a Marriott Janet thinks it was a Japanese ANA Hotel - but I do remember getting into 1 way systems right down there in the Business District near Circular Quay etc.. - and being able to see the hotel - but not get to it... we ended up (I think) in an ANA Hotel - just checked on the Internet - its now the Shangri-La - over towards The Rocks on Cumberland Ave.

27th June, 1996

Out exploring.....

Had to make sure we were in the right "Sydney" - and I do detect.. its that same bloody cyclist from Brisbane!!

Still checking.....

All around The Rocks area... no tourists, no people - great!!

Nice restaurants around there..

Then we wandered over through Circular Quay - to the Opera House...

And then it was time for a ferry-boat ride - I think just around the harbour...

Time for some "sights".... its not a "bad" haircut...

This is "coming back"... to Circular Quay.

That same evening - we needed feeding and braved the inclement weather.... 'twas bloody cold...

The Rocks - by night - in the Winter!! - nothing!! And so.... to bed...

28th June, 1996

There's a Russian submarine in town!! ...................What??..... Haven't the defence Services - sorted it out?? No, no.... its an old one - and its over at Darling Harbour - you can look around it...

well - this is part of your Darling Harbour - looking out towards the Heads/Manly etc.. I see no submarines!!

Well... as its turned out... I took no piccies of the Rooshian sub!! But I do remember how "primitive" it was - sorry all you Russians - I'm not being nasty unkind.... I know nothing about "how submarines should look" - nor do I know one jot about how effective they should be.. all I went by was - how cramped everything was - also - wiring and plumbing etc... maybe that's the way its done - so it can be fixed easily.... but to me (the un-practiced, non-naval eye) it looked - primitive.

We came "topside" - waltzed through some other vessel..

it may have been this one......??