Another month done and dusted!
We went out last night to one of the local restaurants for dinner. Seriously good food. For entrée, the men ordered oysters kilpatrick and the girls had garlic bread and wedges with chilli sauce and sour cream dips.These were all delicious to eat and the service was outstanding, but then we made the mistake of trying to have a main as well. The folk we are staying with ordered the seafood pasta dish each and I had the chicken parmigiana whilst Himself ordered the fresh caught local fish and chips. The chef certainly can cook up a storm, it is just a shame our eyes were bigger than our tummys! All of us were full after the entrée and we made a valiant attempt at the mains, but ended up sending large portions of it back to the kitchen at the end of dinner. Our waitress was laughing when she asked if we wanted to see the dessert menu! We did bring home a 'doggy bag' of the left over chicken for the two puppies for their lunch today. We have decided when we go next, and there will be a next time, we will only have one course.
Ah but wait, there is more. Today we were invited to the very same restaurant for lunch!
The men stayed home and had a toasted sandwich and the girls lined up again. This time we chose a simple dish each and shared. Even then I struggled to finish my meal. I should have just had half of something and stopped!
Saturday, August 31, 2013
Wednesday, August 28, 2013
Wednesday...28 August 2013
The boys have put the new LED tail lights on the caravan. I guess they work as they have packed away the tools.
We had some very strong winds last night. There was rain with it but mostly it was wind, great rocking gusts of it. Had to keep turning the television up to be able to hear it. It become hard to stay in my chair such was the rocking inside the caravan. Today was cold and clear but late this afternoon it rained again and now the wind is picking up too. I can hear the ocean crashing loudly on the shore. Guess it is going to be another rough night. I hardly slept last night and to add insult to my nightmare some one rang me at 6 am and after waking me when I had more or less just gone to sleep, it turned out to be a wrong number! Sorry Robert, who ever or where ever you are, my name is definitely not Carla!
We had some very strong winds last night. There was rain with it but mostly it was wind, great rocking gusts of it. Had to keep turning the television up to be able to hear it. It become hard to stay in my chair such was the rocking inside the caravan. Today was cold and clear but late this afternoon it rained again and now the wind is picking up too. I can hear the ocean crashing loudly on the shore. Guess it is going to be another rough night. I hardly slept last night and to add insult to my nightmare some one rang me at 6 am and after waking me when I had more or less just gone to sleep, it turned out to be a wrong number! Sorry Robert, who ever or where ever you are, my name is definitely not Carla!
Monday, August 26, 2013
Monday...26 August 2013
Big rains yesterday. At one stage it was impossible to see the house over the road the rain was so heavy. Only got serious a couple of times but was useful for checking the integrity of the new roof repairs! Dry inside so all is well.
My turn to cook today. I did the famous chop casserole and had four people with full tummies at the end of the night. Maybe that will erase the memory of my lunch which left me in meltdown when it broke apart as it was being taken from the grill. Grilled ham and cheese never looked so sad!
The boys spent the morning digging up the back yard. The irrigation needed some attention. They found a magic water pipe that was able to conduct water onto the lawn without being attached to any other part of the system. Eventually they sorted the problem and now have a working sprinkler system.
My turn to cook today. I did the famous chop casserole and had four people with full tummies at the end of the night. Maybe that will erase the memory of my lunch which left me in meltdown when it broke apart as it was being taken from the grill. Grilled ham and cheese never looked so sad!
The boys spent the morning digging up the back yard. The irrigation needed some attention. They found a magic water pipe that was able to conduct water onto the lawn without being attached to any other part of the system. Eventually they sorted the problem and now have a working sprinkler system.
Saturday, August 24, 2013
Saturday...24 August 2013
Breakfast was cooked by our host this morning. Berry scones and a mixed berry pan size pancake to cut and share with fresh cream. Very tasty and lunch was cancelled as everyone is so full we simply cannot be bothered to make lunch and quite seriously no one has room for it anyway. Dinner will be tarragon chicken.
I cooked a cake and a slice yesterday. My way of helping my hostess keep the cake tins full for all the yummy morning and afternoon teas we have. And then there is happy hour. The only excess baggage in our caravan is being carried by the occupants! While we are in no hurry to go further south until it is warmer we may have to move on to lose weight.
Yesterday the men took the wheels off the caravan and serviced the wheel bearings, they found one tyre had a leaking valve so that too has been fixed. Until now our satellite dish has been travelling inside the caravan and moving outside at each new stop. Rather labour intensive. The men have made it a new home on the rear bumper of the caravan which is a much more sensible place for it to live.
I cooked a cake and a slice yesterday. My way of helping my hostess keep the cake tins full for all the yummy morning and afternoon teas we have. And then there is happy hour. The only excess baggage in our caravan is being carried by the occupants! While we are in no hurry to go further south until it is warmer we may have to move on to lose weight.
Yesterday the men took the wheels off the caravan and serviced the wheel bearings, they found one tyre had a leaking valve so that too has been fixed. Until now our satellite dish has been travelling inside the caravan and moving outside at each new stop. Rather labour intensive. The men have made it a new home on the rear bumper of the caravan which is a much more sensible place for it to live.
Thursday, August 22, 2013
Thursday...22 August 2013
Golly gosh it sure is windy here. Every morning it blows quite a bit but it does eventually settle down and become a very nice day. Have walked to the lookout two days in a row and collected a very pink nose for my time in the sun. It is so relaxing sitting up there and watching the movement of boats and people as they go about their day. Saw a dolphin yesterday but not seeing any whales now so maybe they have finished coming past here on their annual migration.
The men seem to be running out of things to fix which is good news, but this leaves them time to trawl the internet for more "stuff". Apparently we are now waiting for new LED tail light assemblies for the caravan! And we still need a new set of wheel arch thingys. One got damaged a year or so back when we had the tyre blow out that ripped it right off the side of the van and the other just disappeared. It was there at a particular fuel stop but missing when we pulled into a free camp later the same day. No idea what happened to it. Neither of us saw it blow away and it did not flap or hang loose prior to falling off. The only set back is that the new ones will be all shiny white and the rest of the van is starting to go cream with age.
The men seem to be running out of things to fix which is good news, but this leaves them time to trawl the internet for more "stuff". Apparently we are now waiting for new LED tail light assemblies for the caravan! And we still need a new set of wheel arch thingys. One got damaged a year or so back when we had the tyre blow out that ripped it right off the side of the van and the other just disappeared. It was there at a particular fuel stop but missing when we pulled into a free camp later the same day. No idea what happened to it. Neither of us saw it blow away and it did not flap or hang loose prior to falling off. The only set back is that the new ones will be all shiny white and the rest of the van is starting to go cream with age.
Monday, August 19, 2013
Monday...19 August 2013
At last! The new vent arrived from America today so as well as having the roof membrane fixed I now have a new rain sensor vent over the bed. I can now open that vent and not worry about it raining while we are out. It also has a fan so if we are hot we can turn the fan on as well. Wonderful. Just waiting for the fixatives to set then we will turn the hose on and make sure the whole thing is really waterproof and then we can relax and enjoy the weather again. Very pleased.
As well as this the boys have fixed the toilet. Put my foot on the pedal a few nights back and the entire pedal and its fittings fell off the toilet onto the floor. I freaked! A bit of Aussie ingenuity and some loctite and it is functioning again. Mind you if it falls apart again we will need to buy a whole new toilet and they like everything else with the word caravan in the sentence will cost heaps. I do hope it continues to work, I rather like not having to leave the comfort of my little home in the wee small hours of the night when naturecalls yells loudly, this is no doubt so that I can hear it even when the hearing aids are resting on the bedside table beside the false teeth in their glass!
The sun came out after three days of cold windy weather and so did some of the wildlife! Here is a picture I borrowed from another web site as our visitor did not stay long enough to pose for the camera, however it was exactly like this one and about three and a half foot long. As well as this visitor we also saw a bob tail lizard.
As well as this the boys have fixed the toilet. Put my foot on the pedal a few nights back and the entire pedal and its fittings fell off the toilet onto the floor. I freaked! A bit of Aussie ingenuity and some loctite and it is functioning again. Mind you if it falls apart again we will need to buy a whole new toilet and they like everything else with the word caravan in the sentence will cost heaps. I do hope it continues to work, I rather like not having to leave the comfort of my little home in the wee small hours of the night when nature
The sun came out after three days of cold windy weather and so did some of the wildlife! Here is a picture I borrowed from another web site as our visitor did not stay long enough to pose for the camera, however it was exactly like this one and about three and a half foot long. As well as this visitor we also saw a bob tail lizard.
Thursday, August 15, 2013
Thursday...15 August 2013
From lovely sunny weather to freezing cold in five minutes flat followed by rain. Just on sunset tonight the weather suddenly got quite cold and I stood up and shut the outside door and had not even sat down again when it began to rain. Now it is cold and windy and the waves are crashing loudly on the shore. Guess it is going to be a wild and windy night. Do hope our roughly rigged tarpaulin will hold up under the strain and not turn into a flapping sail that will encourage our caravan to rock and roll all night thus scaring the daylights out of me.
We have had a couple of quiet days, the boys headed back to Geraldton yesterday to fetch all manner of 'stuff' and while they were gone the girls went out to lunch. There is something so relaxing being waiting on while watching the comings and goings of an average Australian seaside tourist town. The food was yummy and the service was impeccable. The company was good too.
We have had a couple of quiet days, the boys headed back to Geraldton yesterday to fetch all manner of 'stuff' and while they were gone the girls went out to lunch. There is something so relaxing being waiting on while watching the comings and goings of an average Australian seaside tourist town. The food was yummy and the service was impeccable. The company was good too.
Monday, August 12, 2013
Monday...12 August 2013
Still got a seriously bad headache, the annoying thing has hung on now for three days and is wearing me down.
We went on a beautifully tranquil river cruise today. The tour goes up stream on the mighty Murchison River and the scenery is really quite spectacular. The water was dead calm and smooth as silk. A bump free ride.
The people who run this trip are very knowledgeable and obviously love their little bit of this magnificent country we all call home. They gave us morning tea along the way. Very nice.
We saw lots of birds and even a white faced heron which I am told is considered a rare sight. There was quite a few pelicans and terns as well.
Very pleasing to see so many other small boats out on the water. Plenty of locals fishing and others having picnics on the river banks. The local boat hire place put five sets of picnic tables along the river. Very community spirited of them.
At one point we pulled into the bank and everyone got out to stretch their legs. The more energetic climbed to the top of a small hill. Up past that hill was another that had a lot of small caves and we could clearly see some small kangaroos in one of them.
On the return to town we went and had a close look at the river mouth. Quite scary watching the waves crashing and rolling around in the channel. I am glad I did not see that before our trip through the mouth yesterday or I would never have gone on that tour!
We went on a beautifully tranquil river cruise today. The tour goes up stream on the mighty Murchison River and the scenery is really quite spectacular. The water was dead calm and smooth as silk. A bump free ride.
The people who run this trip are very knowledgeable and obviously love their little bit of this magnificent country we all call home. They gave us morning tea along the way. Very nice.
We saw lots of birds and even a white faced heron which I am told is considered a rare sight. There was quite a few pelicans and terns as well.
Very pleasing to see so many other small boats out on the water. Plenty of locals fishing and others having picnics on the river banks. The local boat hire place put five sets of picnic tables along the river. Very community spirited of them.
At one point we pulled into the bank and everyone got out to stretch their legs. The more energetic climbed to the top of a small hill. Up past that hill was another that had a lot of small caves and we could clearly see some small kangaroos in one of them.
On the return to town we went and had a close look at the river mouth. Quite scary watching the waves crashing and rolling around in the channel. I am glad I did not see that before our trip through the mouth yesterday or I would never have gone on that tour!
Sunday, August 11, 2013
Sunday...11 August 2013
Today I went on a whale watching tour. So glad I went. For the past two days I have been suffering with one of my funny headaches and everyone thought I would not be well enough to go but I said I was going even if I had to crawl onto the boat and have them lash me to the seat to stop me falling overboard.
The trip starts with a nice gentle cruise down the river to the ocean and then it gets really rough and hairy for about 30 seconds while the captain navigates through the mouth of the river and into the open ocean then it gets a bit calmer again. The rough bit is often called the washing machine, the water is unpredictable and only a couple of weeks ago three people died trying to go through this passage, so I deserve a huge pat on the back for being brave enough to take the ride!
Once out to sea we spent more than half an hour looking for the whales and then we found two females and two calves with a chaperone. The little ones did their bit and leapt out of the water but the larger females only breeched a few times. A little disappointed that they did not splash their tail fins but still very pleased to have been out there and to see them in their natural habitat. There was even a couple of dolphins out there too.
Well worth the cost and the few shivers and shakes this non swimmer had when the waves turned rough or were seriously high.
The return passage into the mouth of the river was terrifying as the tide was coming in with us and the waves along the shore were huge and we had to turn side on to them to come through the mouth. Scary for me, thrilling for the boat people who like a bit of excitement in their day.
The trip starts with a nice gentle cruise down the river to the ocean and then it gets really rough and hairy for about 30 seconds while the captain navigates through the mouth of the river and into the open ocean then it gets a bit calmer again. The rough bit is often called the washing machine, the water is unpredictable and only a couple of weeks ago three people died trying to go through this passage, so I deserve a huge pat on the back for being brave enough to take the ride!
Once out to sea we spent more than half an hour looking for the whales and then we found two females and two calves with a chaperone. The little ones did their bit and leapt out of the water but the larger females only breeched a few times. A little disappointed that they did not splash their tail fins but still very pleased to have been out there and to see them in their natural habitat. There was even a couple of dolphins out there too.
Well worth the cost and the few shivers and shakes this non swimmer had when the waves turned rough or were seriously high.
The return passage into the mouth of the river was terrifying as the tide was coming in with us and the waves along the shore were huge and we had to turn side on to them to come through the mouth. Scary for me, thrilling for the boat people who like a bit of excitement in their day.
Wednesday, August 7, 2013
Wednesday...7 August 2013
Not a happy camper!
Got woken this morning, (before 6 am), by water dripping on my face. I guess this means that the roof still needs fixing. And the really sad bit is that it is not actually raining. There is a heavy fog out there and it is condensing on the roof and that water is finding its way through the perished roof membrane and onto my face.
Being a seriously unhappy camper I woke Himself to complain and was told that ordering a new roof was on today's list of things to do and then he rolled over, on his dry side of the bed, and went back to sleep while I was left looking for towels and buckets to protect the mattress. Part of me is running around trying to save the one and only mattress in our home, the other part of me thinks about filling a bucket with water and tipping it on his side of the bed! I hope the sun is going to shine today, the doona is wet too.
Meanwhile the list of completed jobs is growing. The kitchen bench has again been mended and the pot drawer has been given a much stronger catch to stop it opening as we travel down the road as has a drawer in the bedroom. The kitchen sink and the shower are ready to have new silicone sealant applied today. The cupboard above the computer desk has been straightened and the water pump has been muffled. The fridge is fixed and the storage cupboards near the bathroom have nice new stainless steel rails on the shelves to stop stuff trying to fall out during our travels. All fairly simple jobs but a lot of work when added up.
Got woken this morning, (before 6 am), by water dripping on my face. I guess this means that the roof still needs fixing. And the really sad bit is that it is not actually raining. There is a heavy fog out there and it is condensing on the roof and that water is finding its way through the perished roof membrane and onto my face.
Being a seriously unhappy camper I woke Himself to complain and was told that ordering a new roof was on today's list of things to do and then he rolled over, on his dry side of the bed, and went back to sleep while I was left looking for towels and buckets to protect the mattress. Part of me is running around trying to save the one and only mattress in our home, the other part of me thinks about filling a bucket with water and tipping it on his side of the bed! I hope the sun is going to shine today, the doona is wet too.
Meanwhile the list of completed jobs is growing. The kitchen bench has again been mended and the pot drawer has been given a much stronger catch to stop it opening as we travel down the road as has a drawer in the bedroom. The kitchen sink and the shower are ready to have new silicone sealant applied today. The cupboard above the computer desk has been straightened and the water pump has been muffled. The fridge is fixed and the storage cupboards near the bathroom have nice new stainless steel rails on the shelves to stop stuff trying to fall out during our travels. All fairly simple jobs but a lot of work when added up.
Sunday, August 4, 2013
Sunday...4 August 2013
The boys went to Geraldton a couple of days ago and did a spot of shopping. This included a new element for the temperamental fridge. Now we are back in control of this badly behaved piece of equipment, now it is doing things our way and at a much much cheaper price than a new fridge!
Since their return the boys have been working steadily through the list of things that need fixing or tweaking and are making good progress. They celebrated the end a little early but I am sure they will eventually get it all done when they are well enough again!
On Friday we walked down or should that be up to the lookout at the river mouth. That is a view that no one could ever get tired of looking at. A pretty river running into that endless sea. Note to self, next time wear a hat to shade the eyes from the glare of the sun on the water, the sunglasses cannot do all the work on their own!
Last night we had the other long time Para people over for a lovely roast lamb dinner. It was a good evening. Sometime soon I shall be doing the iconic sunset wine and cheese river tour with these lovely people. Also the whales are in the area so we may be able to organise to go on one of the whale watching boats too. That would be very special.
Since their return the boys have been working steadily through the list of things that need fixing or tweaking and are making good progress. They celebrated the end a little early but I am sure they will eventually get it all done when they are well enough again!
On Friday we walked down or should that be up to the lookout at the river mouth. That is a view that no one could ever get tired of looking at. A pretty river running into that endless sea. Note to self, next time wear a hat to shade the eyes from the glare of the sun on the water, the sunglasses cannot do all the work on their own!
Last night we had the other long time Para people over for a lovely roast lamb dinner. It was a good evening. Sometime soon I shall be doing the iconic sunset wine and cheese river tour with these lovely people. Also the whales are in the area so we may be able to organise to go on one of the whale watching boats too. That would be very special.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)