The Country Show

You will find them across the globe, bringing people together for good family fun. Complete with overpriced everything. Rides, show bags full of plastic rubbish and the best part of all. Greasy food and bad coffee.
The sights, sounds and smells all make the show what it is. Where else can you get an abundance of fluro and flashing lights, the smell of cow poo and food altogether, kids screaming and the strange people all in one place.
And as one friend mentioned – the toothless carnies trying to rip you off in side show alley.
The country show is the place to be for sure.
Yesterday was the Huonville Show, three weeks after The Royal Hobart Show (a bigger, but not always better version) and with two boys in tow we took the trip over the hill to visit.

All the usual attractions were in place but one. If only for photography purposes, I wanted a ferris wheel. I’m not a fan of heights, and the experience really gets to me (I’m not going on this for fun) but I will grin and bear it if I can get good pictures.
I was sorely disappointed, no ferris wheel in sight.  So I compensated by getting pictures of the more rural aspect of this show – horses, vintage engines, alpacas and of course the wood chopping. I spent many summers watching this and love it. Who would have thought watching grown men wield an axe at a lump of wood would be interesting.

What the secret to a Dalek?

The venue – with food and other vendors behind me – looking across to the main attractions

Still early days here

And my favourite – the wood chopping.

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Los Angeles. Qantas. And the Hollywood sign.

So here I sit, in the lounge, waiting for my flight to board. Wishing I could stay, but happy to be going home.
My second but better look at the great city of Los Angeles showed me a sprawling mass of suburbs, high rise, trees and many freeways snaking their way through hills and valleys, criss crossing the city in rows and clover loops.
I must say, I actually quite liked what I saw this time round.

As we taxied round the buildings I saw my first sight that home was close. The vision of the flying kangaroo very nearly brought tears to my eyes. But a grin to be sure.

Arriving in LA via domestic flight and leaving through International is a much easier way to do this. I actually enjoyed the experience of going through security this time (a story for another time there).

And so far, have not heard any Australian accents. Hmm, wonder how many are returning home like me? Should be a few, our ride is the Airbus A380.
And the Hollywood sign? I saw it as we flew over, from a distance granted, but there was no mistaking what it was.

It is Saturday evening US time, and I will arrive early Monday morning Aus time. Not sure where Sunday figures in. It disappears when I cross the IDL over the Pacific.

Waiting with my friends in Portland.

Los Angeles from above.

And that would be my plane.

Catch you when I’m back in the land under.
Jen

A day of Decadence

It started this morning with a gorgeous coffee full of cream – I mean, what were we supposed to do while waiting for the bead shop to open? Rich, hot coffee with sugar and cream.
After the bead trip we heady to Newtown where we wandered window shopping before hitting Sushi train for lunch. I like my sushi, but wow! What a selection and how cool is that concept?

Dessert was Gelato Blue directly next door where the choices were mind boggling.
All items are made on the premises, with real flavour. Like really full on flavour. The baked Apple pie, it was like I had eaten a slice, pastry and all. Pavlova, fruit, after dinner mint, banana pancake… I tried them all before deciding on cappuccino, Argentinian Caramel and American peanut butter brownie.

Then came the beauty treatment and stopping for a well earned coffee break. The best Vienna I’ve had yet.

The day didn’t finish there. For my last night with my brother (and in Australia) we went out for dinner at the local rowing club. Just beautiful. Even with winds and overcast weather the view is still pretty good.

I’m now waiting for washing and finishing the re packing of my bags ready for tomorrow.
The next post will be coming from the US, most likely Arizona. I’m getting super excited now, and it can’t come quick enough. There will be plenty of pictures to share with you, so I hope you hang around a little bit longer.

And if my boss is reading, I have posted two postcards already.

Here’s a look at what we did today.

Sydney City

This morning I woke to the happy sounds of my niece and nephew having breakfast and getting distracted from the school routine. I left them be and got my coffee, pondering what we (my brother was today’s chaperone) would do today.

Although I have been to Sydney before, going up the tower hasn’t been part of that, so it was something I really wanted to do.
For a cheap, and definitely easier trip we took the ferry to Darling Harbour and walked through the city.
I had decided that I would skip the whole photo taking frenzy I normally do, and simply enjoy the moment. Keep my memories in check to write as I could, and not be a total tourist*

As part of my quest to face my fear of heights I wanted to do the tour where you walk around the outside edge, but we were too late for one, and weren’t going to be around for the next. So, the observation deck it was, and seeing the whole of the harbour, and city from above is pretty cool, by anyone’s standards.

Sushi was our preferred lunch choice and afterwards walked through the Botanical gardens, and around past the Opera House to Circular Quay for the ferry home.

The first time I was in Sydney was 11 years ago, and it is still as impressive now as it was that first time on the top of the Spirit of Tasmania, coming in under the bridge. There is a certain beauty about the city on the waterfront.

The old melding with the new. The classic arches, pillars and sandstone architecture contrasting with the contemporary glass walls and concrete blocks of the new.
The smells, the sounds. Bustling, busy, always on the go.
Weird I know, but I found a certain peaceful, almost unhurried, quality about the people while we wandered the streets. Everything is busy, but there wasn’t the urgency to it like I’ve felt when in Brisbane.

On the way home we took a drive through tour of Olympic Park. The very same place thousands of people converged on back in 2000 when we held the Olympics here.
It is a gorgeous area – wide tree and flag lined streets – and the buildings are simply amazing. The aesthetics appear to have been well thought out, and the whole area fits together very nicely. Far from being a ghost town, it is well utilised with most of the arenas in use – swimming, hockey, tennis, athletics – plus convention halls, stadium for concerts and the Royal Easter Show being held close by each year.

Harbour Bridge

Sydney Tower

Looking down onto the city, from Sydney Tower

Looking east.

And as I write this, the weather has turned, and there’s a thunder storm rumbling around outside.
Jen

Bobbin Head

After a much needed sleep – I didn’t realise just how tired I was until I stopped, having landed in Sydney and was at my brother’s house – and a relaxing morning, we headed north to Ku-Ring-Gai Chase National Park and Bobbin Head.
The weather was a balmy 29C (10 degrees warmer than home, and it is still Spring) so shorts and thongs were the right combination.

The area is stunning, with a beautiful river flowing through the valley, a marina full of boats we can all be envious of and plenty of room for kids to run around.
A BBQ lunch was packed, along with the sunscreen and swimmers for the kids and so a closely afternoon was spent simply relaxing. Enjoying the view, playing with the kids (I’m somebody’s new soccer partner) and basking in the sunshine.