Grandma's Visit - Sydney II

On Monday, October 8, mum and I hopped on an on-off bus tour to see the city as efficiently as possible, while the boys went to the Powerhouse museum. The tour visits 27 of Sydney's most famous attractions and landmarks, such as the Opera House and Bridge, Botanic Gardens, Luna Park, Sydney Museums, Art Gallery of New South Wales, the Queen Victoria Building (great shopping and incredible architecture), Anzac Memorial, Chinatown, Maritime Museum, and The Rocks, and provides historical and cultural commentary along the way. Because we were pressed for time (the plan was to head for the Blue Mountains in the afternoon), we only got off the bus at the Botanic Gardens. Here is a taste of what we saw.

Bird of Paradise...
















Beautiful roses..















Very old trees (that look like they belong in the "Lord of the Rings" movie!)





























More beautiful roses





















































I'm sure mum would know what these pretty little flowers are called...

Grandma's Visit - Sydney I

On Saturday morning, October 6, we headed to Sydney! Along the way, mum could see the change in terrain from dry and brown "bush" to the more lush, green coast. The weather wasn't the best when we arrived so we had an early supper then took mum to the Sydney Aquarium in the evening. We had been there before (with John during his visit) - its a great aquarium, and I think it is safe to say that mum was in awe of what she saw....so different from anything we see in Canada.

The next morning the weather was working in our favour so we headed to the Market at the Rocks (another favorite spot of ours) and did some souvenir shopping. The Rocks is the old area of the city. It reminds us of the buidlings of the Historic Properties in Halifax, and it is close to the Opera House and the Sydney Harbour Bridge, two of the city's icons. Here are mum and William showing them off!































After a picnic lunch, we hopped on the ferry and went to Manley, which is across the Sydney Harbour. The boys went and played footy on the beach while mum and I strolled the streets and markets.















Manley Beach.....















Footy on Manley Beach (William has kicked a football on every beach he's been to in Australia!)

Grandma's Visit - Bungendore Train

On Thursday we went on a train trip with our friends Grace and Jodi Cooper to the town of Bungendore, which is about 35 minutes outside of Canberra on the way to the coast. The Australian Railway Historical Society (ACT Division) operates this heritage train, which uses retored passenger cars from the early 1900's. The train operates for special events such as school holidays, Mother's day, Father's day, etc. We had to get our tickets two months early - it sells out very quickly! It was a great trip and a great day!

Here we are just starting the trip, with fresh coffee and hot-chocolate.














Bungendore is a great little village. When it was established in the early 1800's, it was an important crossroads between a number of towns in New South Wales (our neighboring state). Like many Australian towns, it started with a "lock-up", then grew over the years to include a flour mill, schools, railway, horse racing, etc. Now it is still a very small village that has smartly capitalized on its proximity to cities such as Canberra and Queanbeyan, attracting people (and money) to its art and hand-craft galleries, tea rooms and restaurants. Ian and I were just remarking today, while in Bungendore, that we have gone to Bungendore more frequently than any other place in our time here in Australia. The Bungendore Woodworking Gallery is a favorite place of ours. When we get back to Canada, some of you will get to see the Jarrah hallway table that we bought there!.

Here are Grace and William at the Bungendore station...















Jodi and Grace....















William and Grace dropped into the local "Lolly Shop" before we headed back to Canberra. Here they are, silly and blue-toothed in Grace's case!

Grandma's Visit - Floriade

While William was at the cricket clinic, Mum and I went to Floriade - the annual flower festival put on by the National Capital Authority. This year the theme was Aussie Myths and Icons, so we even learned a little bit of Australian history! We saw flower beds designed to look like the surf/waves, a sports stadium, sheep in a meadow, flags, etc. Here are just a few of the views....it was beautiful!

Grandma's Visit - Cricket & Pool

On Wednesday, October 3, William opted to attend a half day cricket clinic instead of attending Floriade - the huge annual flower festival here in Canberra - with Mum and I. We got back just in time to watch the kids play a game of cricket. Here is William taking his turn at "bowling" (I call it pitching!).





















Here is William taking his turn at "wicket-keeping" (as close as you can get to goal-tending)















After cricket, William spent the afternoon with his friends Reilly and Meaghan O'Grady. Their mum, Lynette, took the kids swimming. Here is William zooming down the slide, and next a beautiful group photo!

Grandma's Visit - Zoo & Memorial

On Tuesday we headed for the zoo. It was a perfect day - barely a cloud in the sky, temps around 21 or 22 degrees C, light breeze....aaahhhhhh! We saw lots of animals - black bears (very out of place in Australia!), red panda's, tigers, lions, tigons (yes, tigons), emus, crocs, dingoes, cheetahs, etc, etc. Here are just a few pics.

For those of you who don't know, William's favorite Australian animal is the wombat. This cute and cuddly one had been having a fine nap in his little "cave" but Mum and William insisted that he come out for a visit. After much coaxing, noise making, and grass landing on his head, he came out, only to go to sleep again in the sun.
















If William keeps growing at the rate he is currently growing, we will end up feeding him from a basket hanging from a telephone pole just like this one...




















Then it was on to the Australian War Memorial Discovery Zone for Kids. William loves this place. This particular day it was not so crowded, so William was very pleased to have been able to get into most of the costumes. Here is what it was like to be in a trench, looking out (and up) at the enemy.




















Here, William is trying his hand at building a bridge as a UN peace keeper. When the bridge is successfully constructed, a convoy of food and supplies makes its way across the bridge to the nearby town.















And here he is jumping out of a helipcopter in Vietnam.....




















This is William and Grandma standing at the entrance to the War Memorial with Anzac Parade behind them. (Anzac stands for Australia and New Zealand Army Corps). The Parade is lined with memorials from various countries and organizations recognizing the various conflicts the Anzacs were involved in. It is a beautiful and very moving place to see. Directly across the lake from Anzac Parade is the Old Parliament House and the new Parliament. You can see them in the distance.

Grandma's Visit - Nature Reserve

We didn't give Grandma much time to get used to the time change. The day after she arrived, we took her to the Old Bus Depot Markets in Canberra where we saw many beautiful hand made things - art, food, crafts, jewellery, wood workings, etc. We drove her around the city including up Mount Ainslie where she could get a 360 degree view of the city (pictures of this view are included in the blog pages of John Davies' visit in Feb/March).


Monday, October 1 was Labour Day here in Australia, so we decided to avoid the coast - where everyone goes on statutory holidays. Instead we headed to the Tidbinbilla Nature Reserve, which is a beautiful 25 minute drive from Canberra. We went on a "koala walk" but had no luck, but there were (and always are) plenty of kangaroos hanging around!

















Here is William showing off his "Nimbus 2000" (He had watched the first Harry Potter movie in the evenings prior to our visit to Tidbinbilla!)

Grandma in Oz!

Saturday, September 29, 2007 was a very special day for us. At approximately 10:40 am (Canberra time) Grandma Rachel walked off an airplane and into our arms at the Canberra airport! I don't know who was more surprised - her (realizing that she had actually made it to Australia all by herself), or us (for seeing her actually standing there in front of us, and in fine form to boot!). We managed to keep her awake until around 8 pm that evening. Here is William giving her a good night hug as she settles in for her first night's sleep down under.