Travel Photography – Page 2 – Travels with the Booths.blog

Hello to Singapore …again.

It’s hard to say whether we should have gone straight from Melbourne to London without a stop-over but as we love Singapore we decided to spend a couple more days there on our way home.

When it rains in Singapore it doesn’t mess about and my goodness was it raining when we arrived! Instead of getting soaked wandering around we decided to get our heads down for a while. We stayed in The Park Regis Hotel again and had a fab room looking out on the swimming pool.

Swimming pool at The Park Regis Hotel, Singapore. — Typical weather in Singapore – downpours and warm, humid days.

After a couple of hours sleep we headed to our favourite cafe bar for breakfast, Malaysian style. This place is such good value and the person who runs it is so welcoming. Cheapest place in the city for breakfast (we reckon) as long as you’re happy to have a little honey on your bread with a boiled egg and cake to follow. Interesting combination and it worked for us. I didn’t have to explain this time how I like my tea (black tea, cold milk and one sugar), our friendly owner remembered from our visits a couple of weeks earlier. If she thought that having milk in tea was odd she didn’t say!

Double U Traditional cafe in Singapore. — Chinatown (top left) and our Malaysian breakfast bar, Double U Traditional cafe.

Next stop after a bit of a wander round was to the imposing building known as Parkview Square. I’d spotted this Art Deco building when we were in the city last time and thought maybe it was a museum. Turns out it’s one of the most expensive office blocks in the city. This link will tell you all about it so I won’t go into the detail of its history here but enough to say that despite the Art Deco architecture it was built less than twenty years ago! Parkview is not all it seems!

Once my man had researched the place and discovered there was a rather excellent wine bar on the ground floor that was where we headed. Apparently amongst its patrons are members of the Divine Wine Bar Society, I can aspire to that! Sitting in the Atlas Bar surrounded by Art Deco frescos and statues everywhere, you just want to make your glass of fizz last for ever!

Atlas Bar in Parkview Square, Singapore. — Atlas Bar inside Parkview Square.

Inside the Atlas Bar in Parkview Square, Singapore. — Enjoying a glass of fizz in the Atlas Bar in Parkview Square, Singapore.

Eventually we managed to drag ourselves away and walked to the adjacent district of Kampong Glam Malay, home of Singapore’s Muslim Community. It’s a popular area for tourists as there’s lots of good value cafes but more importantly at the end of Muscat Street is the imposing Masjid Sultan mosque which is a must to visit. The massive gold domes are a magnificent landmark and inside is a huge prayer hall which can accommodate up to 5000 people. Before you enter the Mosque women are given a very fetching all-over robe and for men wearing shorts there is a sexy long skirt for covering the legs. As you’ll see from the picture below we both looked rather fetching! Our stay in the mosque was longer than planned as in true Singapore style the heavens opened and for about an hour the rain was torrential. Even a rather large scorpion came inside to shelter! We gave him a wide berth …

Visiting Masjid Sultan Mosque, Singapore. — Masjid Sultan Mosque

Back to the hotel for a swim and another snooze (this jet-lag is hard to ignore) and we were ready for the evening.

There’s so much to do in this city and one of the star attractions is to go up to the Observation Deck of the Sands Park Hotel. The lift whisks you up the 57 floors to the SkyPark Observation Deck. You can go up anytime (it’s not free!) but at night you can watch the light and water show which is spectacular. These pictures don’t do it justice but there’s only so much my Panasonic Lumix camera can do from that height! You can see the ‘Gardens by the Bay’ and the whole of the Marina Bay area and the amazing cityscape which is Singapore.

Then it was time to head for Chinatown for yet another decently priced meal at one of the many restaurants and to soak up the great atmosphere there.

Views from Sands SkyPark Observation Deck , Singapore. — Views from Sands SkyPark Observation Deck – 57 storeys up!

The last day of our trip. We were heading home but not until late evening. We’d already done lots both at the beginning of our holiday and this stop-over on the way back so what were we going to do on our last day? It was easy to decide …Singapore’s Botanic Gardens. It’s world famous and rightly so and a great way to spend a few hours. Apparently the Gardens are the most visited botanic gardens in the world with over 4 million visitors annually.

It’s easy to get there by metro and free to wander round the grounds. There are lots of themed gardens and although we didn’t have time to go round them all we managed quite a few. After lunch we headed for the National Orchid Garden within the site. I’ll never forget this experience; the most fabulous orchids you’re ever likely to see, even tops Wisley! It’s cheap to get in too, just $5 dollars for adults and $1 dollar if you’re over 60.

Grounds of the National Orchid Garden, Singapore. — I’m one of the 4 million tourists who visit the National Orchid Garden each year.

Orchids in The National Orchid Garden, Singapore — Just some of the fabulous orchids in The National Orchid Garden

Orchid house at the National Orchid Garden. with each one dedicated to a famous visitor. — Orchid house with each one dedicated to a famous visitor.

If we go back to Singapore we’d definitely go to The Botanic Gardens again. There is so much to see and as interesting as the theme gardens are it’s the Orchids I’d head for straightaway. If you love orchids you’ll love this garden. This visit was the perfect way to end our holiday.

Farewell to Oz!

Mornington Peninsular, Victoria, The Dandenongs, Victoria

The quickest way to get back to our friends who live on the Mornington Peninsular was to go by ferry from Queenscliff to Sorrento. On this crossing, unlike the previous trip, we didn’t see any dolphins but you can’t be lucky every time.

Searoad Ferries — On the way back to Sorrento on the Mornington Peninsular

Our friends had planned two pretty full days of sightseeing for the last part of our holiday starting with a visit to see ‘Puffing Billy’. This century-old steam train railway is a major tourist attraction and runs through the mountainous Dandenong Ranges National Park. Unfortunately due to our packed schedule we didn’t have time to go on the train but at least we saw it. It’s not a million miles away from Melbourne so if you’re in the area I’m sure it’s well worth taking a trip,

Puffing Billy about to leave from Belgrave Station.

You can see why The Dandenongs is a popular tourist attraction. The landscape feels almost primeval full of verdant forests and rocky landscapes with a number of walking trails and lush pathways to choose from. If you’re not into walking there’s lots of arts and craft industries and quaint villages.

Our next stop after seeing the ‘Puffing Billy was right up my street as my friends knew it would be …William Ricketts Sanctuary. The brochure describes this place as ‘nestling into the hillside amongst cloud sweeping Mountain Ash and ferns’. It’s certainly hidden away and is literally a living gallery.

William Ricketts was apparently a quiet chap, very in tune with nature and believed all Australians should adopt Aboriginal philosophies. Within the sanctuary there are 90 different sculptures carved into rocks and tree trunks depicting Aboriginal people engaging with the pure forest setting, it felt quite magical and very peaceful.

Gardens of the Dandenong Ranges, Victoria, Australia — William Ricketts Sanctuary

It was hard to drag ourselves away from this delightful setting. What fascinating sculptures …I loved them! Lunch beckoned however and we had a table booked for 1.00pm for afternoon tea. At home we’d usually have this mid to late afternoon but don’t forget this is Australia! To be fair to our friends who’d booked ‘Fortnums’ for this treat, it’s such a popular place they were fully booked for lunch.

Fortnums is famous for their Devonshire scones and I’m not surprised, they were delicious and very filling. The restaurant is on the main street in Sassafras village which is full of English style tea rooms and shops. Agatha Christie came here hence as you might spot from the picture below, the village even boasts a Miss Marples tea room!

After a splendid tea we had a wander around before returning to our friends’ house in Hastings.

Afternoon tea, Aussie style. — Afternoon tea in Sassafras Village

Our last full day in Oz and no time for slacking! Fist of all we were taken to an enormous outdoor market with hundreds of stalls selling crafts, veg. and lots of interesting goodies. Perhaps as well that we didn’t have any room left in our cases. An hour walking around was enough; the temperature had shot up and was in the mid 30’s.

Our next stop was a trip on Arthur’s Seat Eagle which the Swiss would describe as a Gondolbahn. The views are really impressive if you like heights which my man and I do. My friend’s husband however was pleased when we got to the bottom. Unfortunately for him we had the trip back up …This is a new attraction for the Mornington Peninsular and I must say the gondolas are very smart and the views across Port Philip Bay are impressive.

Back up at the top with everyone ready for lunch we sat in the nearby woods and had a picnic in the shade away from the searing heat.

Arthur's Seat Nat Park, Victoria — Cheers!

Our friends know how keen I am on gardening and so our next port of call was to Heronswood, Australia’s first organically-certified gardens. As well as a variety of flower borders the house is quite a landmark. Architecturally it wouldn’t look out of place in Portmeirion. I was fascinated by the ‘Dry Garden’ with its mix of cacti, succulents and grasses which never needs watering. Handy in this part of the world I should imagine.

We would have stayed longer at Heronswood but it was very hot and our friends decided that it was time for an ice cream. It seemed like the whole of Mornington Peninsular was there, the place was packed, even coach loads of people arriving!

We’d certainly done quite a lot on our last day and were thankful to go down to the bay at Hastings to walk along a little and feel the refreshing breeze.

I can’t finish this Blog on our Australian trip without first of all thanking our friends for their wonderful kindness and hospitality. They had been waiting forty years for us to visit them and we were so pleased to be able to do that and celebrate their Ruby anniversary with them.

…And the plate of mussels? Please take note how beautifully those mussel shells are arranged! My friend at home always arranges the shells like this and we like to give it a go but what a stir we caused at the restaurant at Hastings. The waitress was amazed, so much so she took the bowl into the kitchen to show everyone! We have started a trend maybe?!

So it’s goodbye to Australia and hello again to Singapore before we arrive home. More on the last leg of our trip in the next Blog.

The fantastic Grampians National Park, Victoria.

Grampians National Park, Great Ocean Road, Victoria, Travel Photography

It was almost time to leave The Great Ocean Road and head inland for The Grampians National Park but there were a couple of iconic sites along the coast we still wanted to see.

Australia’s Shipwreck Coast is part of the Great Ocean Road, not surprisingly there’s lots of history associated with this area. Probably the most famous is the loss of a clipper ship named Loch Ard. She is one of 700 ships that are believed wrecked along this treacherous coastline. The iron-hulled ship Loch Ard went down in 1878, dashed against the rocks at Mutton Bird Island, east of Port Campbell. Of the 54 people on board only two survived, a cabin boy named Tom Pearce and Eva Carmichael, an 18 year old woman.

Tom came ashore first and heard the cries of Eva and clearly being a brave soul he went back into the ocean to rescue her. They sheltered in what is now known as Loch Ard Gorge. Tom was subsequently given £1000 and a gold medal for bravery, he married but not to Eva and reached the rank of Captain. Eva married, also to a ship’s captain and with her husband returned to Ireland where they lived on another coastline prone to shipwrecks. The irony is that apparently they often went down to help seafarers who had been shipwrecked.

Out of the 700 or so ships lost along this coast only 240 have been discovered. It’s a fascinating area but we only had time to stop at Loch Ard Gorge, The Bay of Islands and The Grotto. If you’re in the area, ‘London Arch’ is worth a visit too. We would have gone but by then The Grampians was calling.

I’m not going to get away without mentioning the picture of the bride. The joke with my man is that whenever we go on holiday we usually come across a bridal shoot. Having shot hundreds of weddings I always have to stop and see what the photographer is doing. I didn’t expect to see a shoot going on as we walked along the coastal path though. Credit to the model, no she wasn’t a ‘real’ bride, she kept on smiling despite a sheer drop in front of her and being buffeted by a strong wind coming off the sea. I had to take a picture of course!

So …on to The Grampians!

Kangaroos in the woods, emus on the Plain and our woodland lodge.

Not surprisingly The Grampians is a very popular tourist destination with it’s high mountain ranges, walking trails, scenic drives, good camp sites and a fantastic range of wildlife including kangaroos, emus and a huge variety of parrots. More on those shortly …

It was late afternoon when we arrived in Hall’s Gap where we were staying for two nights. Our woodland lodge was enormous complete with a jacuzzi in the bathroom, a massive lounge, two double bedrooms (should we have needed one each!) and a veranda complete with barbecue at the front of the house. Honestly we could have had some party in there!

Having dumped our things we went in search of a beer. The first place only had cans so that was out. We were told to drive out of town and we’d find a place selling draught beer. We eventually did! It had been quite a drive to Hall’s Gap so we thought we deserved a decent pint of beer and that’s exactly what we got. Our next thought was where to eat that night. We solved that pretty quickly as we spotted an Indian restaurant going back along the main road into town. We may be in Australia but an Indian meal is not to be turned down. If you’re in Hall’s Gap and looking for somewhere to eat go no further than ‘The Spirit of Punjab‘, it was excellent. We had such a good meal that we went back the next night!

Still on the subject of food. We’d bought everything we needed for breakfast from one of the stores in town and were all ready to eat on our veranda. Looking out of the picture window we weren’t too sure about eating outside ….how did these birds know?!

Now one sulphur-crested cockatoo we might have coped with but five – just too much of a challenge. Within a couple of minutes word had got round. We had enough different kinds of birds to rival any aviary – magpies, the aforementioned cockatoos, then kookaburras arrived (very cute) and last but not least the beautiful crimson rosella who clearly ruled the roost. There was a definite pecking order!

Having eaten our breakfast inside and planned our day we headed off first to see the spectacular Mackenzie Falls. It’s a short walk down to the base of the Falls from the car park; yes it’s steep with lots of steps but it’s fairly easy. At times you are right by the side of the falls but it’s only when you get down to the bottom you realise just how immense they are.

View from the car park and on the walk alongside the Falls

As the water cascades over the huge cliffs into a deep pool it sends fine sprays of rainbow mist high into the air, it was really something down there. Steep climbing back up though so we were pleased we had lots of water with us, although there was plenty all around!

After the waterfall trip we spent the afternoon wandering around the area. There are lots of walks to choose from including short strolls and that’s what we decided to do. We were saving ourselves for a more challenging one the next day.

Lots of info at the Visitor Information Centre

The highlight of the afternoon was walking across to the playing field in Hall’s Gap and meeting lots of kangaroos. They were everywhere! I know it says on the Hall’s Gap website that every visitor will encounter a kangaroo but we didn’t expect to get this close to them. It was a wonderful experience.

Now tomorrow we were doing The Pinnacle Walk. According to the Tourist Info. this walk is one of the highlights of the entire region with stunning views of Hall’s Gap and many of the peaks in the Grampians …we were choosing the easiest route! More about our ‘walk’ in the next Blog.

Saying Hi to the 12 Apostles

12 Apostles in the Southern Ocean, Great Ocean Road, Victoria

We were back on The Great Ocean Road after our encounter with koalas the previous day. This time we were heading to see the 12 Apostles. These iconic limestone stacks have been pounded by the Southern Ocean so much that only seven and a little bit, of the twelve pillars remain. They’re literally just crumbling away. In 2005 one of the stacks collapsed dramatically so it’s anyone’s guess as to how long the remaining seven will last.

The picture below was taken from the main viewing platform.

The Twelve Apostles, Great Ocean Drive, Victoria, Australia — Breathtaking views of these magnificent rock stacks

As you can see from this next picture there’s quite a few steps down to the beach but it was well worth going down there. Once on the beach we could really appreciate the size of these crumbling stacks. You have to laugh though …as a professional photographer shooting family celebrations I’m used to taking pictures of couples so when this guy asked me to take a picture of him standing on the beach with his girlfriend I was happy to oblige. Cheeky devil looked at the picture I’d taken and in broken English said …”Again please, no big rock behind us.” I guess he hadn’t come to admire the stacks!

The Twelve Apostles, Great Ocean Drive Victoria — It’s quite a way down there.

With my pride still intact we walked up the steps to the top with the wind battering us sideways. There are quite a few designated viewing areas so we walked along to a smaller, less crowded one which gave us fantastic views of this stunning coastline.

A few pictures later and it was time to head to our B&B to get sorted before finding somewhere for a meal. We didn’t want to be too late eating as we had a date later with with some fairy penguins.

Our aptly named B&B, 12 Apostles, was only a five minute drive away. Robyn Wallis has three rooms for guests at her cosy farmhouse. The views are lovely as is her garden with lots of interesting artistic objects around the place. It was so peaceful there and we were told that in the evening we would see a stunning array of stars as there was absolutely no light pollution.

12 Apostles B&B on Princetown Road near Great Ocean Drive, Victoria, Australia — 12 Apostles B&B on Princetown Road near Great Ocean Drive.

Having off-loaded our things we headed into Port Campbell to find somewhere to eat with hopefully some good Aussie beer on tap. Five minutes later we found just the place down at the Foreshore. ‘Hearty pub style food with local beer’ is what the sign outside said and it was right. 12 Rocks Beach Bar is unpretentious; the meals are reasonably priced and the local beer is good if just a little too cold for us Brits. Pleasantly full we headed back along the road to the Visitor Facility at the 12 Apostles.

Dawn for the sunrise and dusk for the sunset are the two times to view the 12 Apostles. We weren’t surprised therefore that with half an hour to go before sunset the parking plot at the Visitor Facility was pretty full. The seagulls were in force too, landing on cars and making a heck of a noise. They seemed to prefer certain vehicles, no idea why. Had to take picture of this lot on the car roofs.

Seagulls on cars at the Port Campbell Visitor Centre, Twelve Apostles — Seagulls enjoying a landing platform at the Port Campbell Visitor Centre.

With the light fading and a beautiful orange glow forming on the horizon we headed to the main viewing area. I can’t deny that there were lots of visitors there all waiting for the sunset but there was enough space for everyone.

Here is just a couple of the shots I took as this wonderful sunset slowly lit up those majestic rocks along the coastline …just magical.

Dusk at The Twelve Apostles, Great Ocean Drive Victoria Australia — Dusk at The Twelve Apostles

Sunset at The Twelve Apostles, Great Ocean Drive Victoria Australia — Just when you think the sunset can’t get any better …

So having this magical time enjoying the fabulous glow on the rocks you’re now given a new show ..penguins. These fairy penguins waddle their way onto the beach about ten to fifteen minutes after sunset. They play in the foam along the shoreline then go back into the water, come out again and then waddle a little way up the beach. It would have been fantastic to have had a longer lens with me but I didn’t so I had to be content with the pictures I got however these little penguins are so cute and we loved watching them. We stayed until it got dark until we couldn’t see them anymore.

Fairy Penguins at The Twelve Apostles, Great Ocean Drive, Victoria, Australia — Sundown and now the Fairy Penguins arrive waddling their way to the shore.

We rounded off this amazing evening by sitting on the porch at our B&B just watching the stars and sharing a very pleasant bottle of Australian Chardonnay. This is what holidays are all about.

Flying koalas and spooky forests on our way to ‘The Twelve Apostles’.

Great Ocean Road, Victoria

It’s quite a heading for a Blog but it describes what we got up to after leaving our friends who live on the Mornington Peninsular.

There’s a very useful ferry going across the bay from Sorrento to Queenscliff, Searoad ferries which saves quite a lot of time if you’re heading for The Great Ocean Road. The trip across takes about forty minutes and if you’re lucky as we were you might even see some dolphins.

View from Great Ocean Drive — View from Great Ocean Road

Large stone ‘butes’ rising up out of the ocean.

The views along Great Ocean Road are spectacular. The southern ocean can be very wild and it certainly wasn’t calm when we were there. Our first stop for the night was a motel right on the coastal road but before that we had a date with a few koalas …

Kennett River has a large koala population along with King parrots and kookaburras. We didn’t have time to walk up to the Grey River reserve which we were told is a great place to picnic, my sights or that of my camera was focussed on koalas. We weren’t alone at Kennett River of course in fact there were lots of people all eager to see koalas. Suddenly the shout went up as someone spotted one. You couldn’t say this iconic animal posed for the crowd below in fact he seemed rather disdainful of us and very sleepy. I couldn’t see there was much action and anyway there were too many blinking photographers so I wandered off to another lot of eucalyptus trees to see if I could spot a little more excitement.

Koalas by Kennett River — One koala by Kennet River

Honestly I nearly dropped my camera! There he or she was …a splendid koala and I had this magnificent creature all to myself. Did I keep quiet? You bet I did. Not only was he happy to pose for me (I’m saying he was a ‘he’), but he decided to show off his acrobatic skills by leaping around. You can probably see that I did quite well to capture his antics. I might have got a few more shots but all too soon I was surrounded by keen photographers shrieking and whooping with delight …time to leave them to it. What a shame that my koala decided to give them the ‘bum’s rush’ and scamper off!

Koalas by Kennett River, Victoria, Australia — A much livlier koala by Kennet River

koalas at Kennett River, Victoria, Australia — Koala putting on a show for me!

Seeing koalas and having King parrots land on your head was quite enough excitement for one day. It had been a fairly long drive to Apollo Bay as we’d stopped several times to look at the view and so we were tired when we arrived at our motel.

Our motel room at Seafarer’s Getaway had a superb view of the beach and the ocean but unfortunately the sea was too rough to have a swim. We missed the best of the sunset that evening as we’d gone into the town to have a meal but I managed to get this picture when we got back.

Apollo Bay, Victoria, Australia — Sunset over Apollo Bay.

Day two on The Great Ocean Road and our first stop, just fifteen miles away from Apollo Bay was at Mait’s Rest Rainforest. Surprisingly there was hardly anyone else around as we walked along the board walk. Mait’s Rest doesn’t feature much as one of the attractions along Great Coast Road which in a way is a pity however we loved the solitude. If you’re anywhere near do go, it’s fabulous. Giant myrtle beeches tower through the ever-constant mist which hangs over the rainforest and the array of ferns is wonderful. Such an atmospheric place which I’ve tried to capture in these pictures.

Maits Rest primeval rainforest — Start of our walk through this primeval rainforest

Maits Rest rainforest, Victoria, Australia — Amazing ferns in this primeval forest.

This had been a magical morning but now it was time to get back to the car, put the heater on to warm up and head towards the Twelve Apostles. These great stacks rise up from the Southern ocean so what with the promise of a dramatic skyline, stunning effects on the rocks at sunset I knew we were in for a treat. Here’s just one picture for starters, more to follow in my next Blog.

Sweeping down from Sydney to Mornington Peninsular N.S.W.

Travels in NSW Australia, Walhalla Historic Township

Everything we’d read about the drive south from Sydney along the coastal route was true. The scenery is breathtaking! Although we’d enjoyed our stay in Sydney it was good to escape from the city. If only our roads at home were as quiet as this. Plenty of places to pull in off The Princes Highway and admire the view although we knew we had a fair few miles to cover and a couple of places to visit en route.

Sea Cliff Bridge, New South Wales — You can’t help but admire this feat of engineering – Sea Cliff Bridge.

Illawarra Fly is famous for its treetop walk and zipline adventure through the tree tops. Maybe it was because the views weren’t great as it was quite misty that we were underwhelmed by our visit there. Perhaps if we’d done the zipline we would have been more impressed? So it was on to the next tourist spot, Fitzroy Falls.

Part of the tree top walk taken from one of the lookout towers at Illawara Fly NSW. — Part of the tree top walk taken from one of the lookout towers at Illawara Fly.

Fitzroy Falls is actually the name of the village which was founded in the early 19th century. Today according to Wikipedia 218 people live there. You’ll see from the plaque below that the good old Europeans began moving the indigenous Aboriginal people out from the area in 1816. This was a very spiritual place for the Aborigines, a fact lost to those early settlers.

We enjoyed our walk through the forest and especially the views which were spectacular including the falls where the water plunges down over 80 metres. The Visitor Centre acknowledges the Aboriginal history of the region and sells locally made souvenirs. We both felt that this tourist attraction was well worth the visit.

After a short drive we arrived at Vincentia, Jervis Bay for our overnight stay. After booking into our hotel for the night, Dolphin Shores we drove into town for a beer. Fabulous evening with a golden light lighting up the Bay; it was so good sitting out on the pub veranda, that I had a second pint.

Fitzroy Falls NSW and views. — Fitzroy Falls in Morton National Park and other natural features.

Very excited about our trip today. You just have to see kangaroos if you’re visiting Australia and today was going to be the day! We were heading for Pebbly Beach. If you take a look at their website you’ll see there’s kangaroos everywhere on the beach.

First of all we drove down through this wonderful, primeval forest which is part of Murramarang National Park. Definitely something out of Jurassic Park, it even smelt ‘earthy’. Arriving at the car park we started “roo” spotting. Was that a kangaroo over there? Maybe not. The weather was fantastic as we walked to the beach. Definitely very scenic with pure white sand and secluded but where were the residents? In fairness I don’t suppose they’re on the beach all the time and it was very hot but we’d come a long way …

We sat for quite a while soaking up the sun until we felt we’d had enough. We walked slowly back to the car feeling a bit miffed but just before we got there, on the grass by the bushes were a group of kangaroos. Turned out it was our lucky day in more ways than one as we hadn’t realised you had to pay for parking until we spotted the machine. No traffic violation …this time …but that’s a story for another Blog.

Kangaroos at Pebbly Beach N.S.W. — Elusive kangaroos at Pebbly Beach.

Views of Pebbly Beach NSW — Scenic and secluded Pebbly Beach

We stayed at a place called Eden that night. Not a lot happening there on a Monday evening. We drove round looking for somewhere to have dinner without success and arrived back at our hotel. Apparently there are around 3000 or so people who live in this coastal town, they certainly don’t go far on a Monday night!

Thankfully the next place we stayed in had a lot more life even though it’s a small village. Metung is very pretty and sits by the shores of Gippsland Lakes. I loved our wooden house at McMillans of Metung and had an enjoyable swim in the pool there. We’d definitely recommend this resort and the friendly people who own it. Another place we loved was the flower and tea shop where we had the biggest, squidgiest chocolate cake ever, it was divine! Thanks you Effloresce Flowers and Cafe, the walk into town along the boardwalk by the lake in the late afternoon sun was lovely and to discover they were still open was an added bonus.

Next morning we headed off to the wonderfully sounding name, Walhalla, which was an old mining town established in 1862. In its day the Gold Mine was one of the richest in Australia and the town was booming. Not like that today but it’s history is fascinating and of course it now relies on the tourists although at the time our visit it was fairly quiet. The town nestles in a deep mountain valley, it even snows there in winter! There’s a number of quaint shops all reflecting a time long gone. Our first stop was to the Grey Horse Cafe for a sandwich and a warming cup of tea. We sat outside by the War Memorial admiring the roses and feeling quite chilly.

Historic town of Walhalla N.S.W. — The historic town of Walhalla N.S.W

Just up the road outside the General Stores was a chap feeding the King parts and Crimson Rosella, both beautiful birds, which you can see. He told us that they rely on him …I bet they do!

Feeding time for the King Parrots & Crimson Rosella

I loved the Victorian-style band stand dominating the village and made a note to walk up to to it on our way back from visiting the Gold Mine.

Band stand in Walhalla — Could it be anything other than a Band Stand?

The Long Tunnel Extended Mine conducts tours every day. You don’t need to book ahead and with the concession rate my man and I paid $15 each. Our guide was great and gave us lots of information and she aimed it so that everyone, whatever age, could get a lot out of this entertaining tour. For the history of the mine have a look at their website http://www.walhallaboard.org.au/long-tunnel-extended-gold-mine

Long Tunnel Extended Mine, Walhalla NSW — Long Tunnel Extended Mine

After the tour we had just enough time to walk back through the village to the railway station to catch the Walhalla Goldfields Railway. This is a narrow gauge railway, run by volunteers. It’s a great journey (far too wobbly to take any pictures) which runs through Stringers Creek Gorge, going over six large trestle bridges. Then it passes through the delightfully named ‘Happy Creek’ before arriving at Thomson station. The star of the show for us was Gladys, the volunteer who seemed to be very much in charge even down to waving the train off as we left on the return journey.

Walhalla Goldfields Railway NSW — Walhalla Goldfields Railway

At this point we still hadn’t gone to where we were staying the night although we’d seen the cottage as its perched on top of a steep bank overlooking the railway. Stringer’s Cottage is a one-bedroom miner’s cottage tucked away and shaded by a massive mountain ash and black wood trees. It’s compact, eco friendly, solar powered and is bursting with character, we loved it there.

Miners Cottage in Walhalla and the Cemetery — Stringers Cottage and Walhalla Cemetery

I’m sure by now you’re thinking that we couldn’t cram anymore into this day but we did. I have a thing about churchyards …anywhere, anytime. I was not going to miss a visit to Walhalla Cemetery which I knew would tell the harsh reality of life here faced by the miners and their families. It’s an unusual cemetery perched high above the town with apparently 1100 graves although only 200 can now be located which seems very sad. It’s quite tricky to get around, climbing up along the terraces and stone walls but we made it to the top and it was well worth it.

By the time we got back to Stringers Cottage we only had a short time to sort ourselves out ready for our meal at the only pub in town. In fact the only place in town you can eat in the evening and you have to make sure you’ve ordered by 7.00pm. The Walhalla Lodge Hotel, better known as The Wally Pub was just what we wanted. An excellent pint of beer and a huge plate of good, hearty food. Just what we needed!

By 9.30 we were heading back to our little cottage in the woods. It was really quiet. No cars, people or any activity apart from a few Crimson Rosellas in the trees. No surprise that we slept very well that night in our miners cottage.

Two days in Singapore.

Singapore

A stop-over in Singapore (1)

We were off to Australia, our first trip to the Antipodes. We could have flown straight to Sydney but it was just too tempting to stop-over in Singapore after all, we’d arrive in Oz more alert without jet lag …wouldn’t we?

It was about ten years since we’d been in Singapore. Even at 6am and you’ve guessed it, feeling pretty zonked as we were driven from the airport, the skyline of the city looked impressive. Was it our imagination or did it seem like skyscraper city, with the ocassional area of green grass? How much would we recognise from the last time we were here we wondered, a lot can change in ten years.

We knew we wouldn’t be able to get into our room until early afternoon so after dumping our cases at our hotel, The Park Regis, we made our way into town, dragging our feet with tiredness. It was a grey old day which didn’t help to lift our spirits although it’s an interesting walk around the Boat Quay. Afterwards we looked around the very impressive National Gallery which is free to go in and huge. After a cheap and delicious Chinese lunch in one of the back streets we were able to get into our room and catch up on some sleep.

The statues along the Boat Quay, Singapore — Superb sculptures alongside the Boat Quay

A few hours later and we were ready to hit the city. We headed off to Gardens by the Bay which is a huge, futuristic park in the bay area. It’s rated one of the top three things to do in Singapore and you can see why. Great place and it’s free!

Supertree Grove, Singapore during the Light & Sound show. — Skyway and Supertree Grove. Taken during the Light and Sound show.

So much to see in the park and the Light and Sound show which takes place every evening at 7.45 and 8.45 is spectacular. How they’ve lit up the trees is something else – an amazing sight. Huge crowds started to gather to enjoy this free show; you have find to a space to sit wherever you can. If you want you can pay to watch it from the Skyway but we didn’t see the point. We did agree though that when we come back to the city in a couple of week’s time we’ll go up to the top of the Marina Bay Sands hotel and watch the display from there.

Our flight the next day wasn’t until early evening so we spent the day walking around the city, our first stop was the Asian Civilisations Museum. We love anything to do with Asian artefacts and culture. The gallery is on three levels and showcases not just Asian art and culture but also sculptures and paintings of Christian and Islamic art. As it turned out we could have spent hours in there, so much to see, it was excellent. I took a few pictures but the light in several of the galleries was very low. Their website has some good pictures on there.

Display from the Tang shipwreck of more than 1000 pieces from the 9th century of ceramics, gold and silver.

The Gallery of ancient religions at The Asian Civilisations Museum, Singapore — The Gallery of ancient religions.

Asian Museum, Singapore — The variety of exhibits in the Museum, something for everyone.

Inevitably when you’re staying in Singapore the place to go and explore and enjoy a good value meal is Chinatown. Apart from the appalling smell as you pass the stalls selling durian fruit, the area is fun, colourful and bursting with life. Night time is best to experience the buzz, the smell of street food and enjoy the entertainment. We ate there both nights

On our second night before going for a meal we visited the Hindu temple, Sri Mariamann which is just around the corner from Chinatown. I don’t know why but invariably on holiday I come across a wedding and this holiday was no exception. We didn’t expect the temple to be full of people carrying food, a procession and loud music. We weren’t sure what was going on but it turned out to be the first of several ceremonies celebrating a wedding. Don’t know whether the bride and groom were there but there was plenty going on even if they weren’t! We couldn’t stay too long as we wanted to have a meal before heading off to the airport. Only wish my pictures conveyed the huge amount of activity going on at this temple and the deafening noise!

A ceremony at Sri Mariamman Temple — The start of the ceremony at Sri Mariamman Temple

Food at the wedding ceremony at Sri Mariamman Temple, Singapore — Announcements at the beginning of the wedding ceremony at Sri Mariamman Temple

Wonderful features of the Sri Mariamman Temple, Singapore — Some of the wonderful features of the Sri Mariamman Temple, Singapore

After another excellent meal in Chinatown washed down by a couple of bottles of Tiger beer we picked up our bags from the hotel and headed for the airport for our next part of the trip. Australia here we come!

A quick visit to France

Montreuil-sur-mer, France

sun setting over the sea at Le Touquet, Northern France. — Setting sun over the sea at Le Touquet

It was just a co-incidence that we’d chosen to stay overnight at Montreuil-sur-Mer after stocking up on life’s essentials at the Hypermarket at Cite d’Europe.

Montreuil was a source of inspiration for Victor Hugo who wrote the novel ‘Les Miserables’. It’s recently been televised by the BBC and so several of our friends were asking whether this was the reason we’d chosen to stay there … it wasn’t. We thought that instead of going straight home after our mammoth shop it would be a nice idea to stay somewhere not too far away from Calais. Montreuil is only an hour down the motorway and it turned out to be a very good choice.

On the way there we came off the motorway at Le Touquet as I wanted to take a picture of the sun setting over the sea. I’m glad we did because as you can see from the shot above, it was a beautiful sight.

Having arrived at our hotel we got a bit of a shock as we tried the door to the old building which was locked and then realised the place was empty apart from a cement mixer! Major refurbishments are going on so we were relieved when a workman directed us next door to the open part of the hotel. We’d definitely recommend Les Hauts de Montreuil. We were given a nice warm welcome, the bedroom was huge and the meal in the evening was excellent and if that wasn’t enough the choice at breakfast was amazing – everything you could imagine include home-made creme- caramel!

Hotel Les Hauts de Montreuil-sur-mer. France — Hotel Les Hauts de Montreuil

It was late afternoon when we arrived so we just had time before it got dark to wander up to the ramparts. Apparently there’s 3km of them so Montreuil was pretty much a fortress and still is. The street, Clape-en-Bas with it’s old houses built of mud is very picturesque but as the light wasn’t good I waited until the next day to photograph it.

Streets in Montreuil-sur-mer, Pas-de-Calais region — Streets in Montreuil-sur-mer (near the ramparts)

The following day was bitterly cold and very grey with a promise of snow later. Nevertheless we had a good walk round the town. I took a few pictures of Rue Clape-en-Bas and then we walked up to ‘The Citadel’ which was built on the site of a former royal castle. Just shows how important a place Montreuil was. Every summer the town puts on a ‘Son et lumiere’ show in the Citadel celebrating Victor Hugo’s ‘Les Miserables’

The Citadel in Montreuil-sur-mer — The Citadel, an ancient monument and two views of the Ramparts.

After walking round a section of the ramparts we ended our walk round by popping into the main church. I thought it was a rather austere building on the outside although the carvings around the door are interesting. The church dominates one of the town’s large squares (lots of free parking!) and dates back to the 13th century when it was a monastery. The fan-vaulted ceiling is impressive as is the altar, the stained glass windows and the medieval tombs. Definitely worth a visit.

Church of Saint-Saulve, Montreuil, France — Church Saint-Saulve, Montreuil

This really had been a short trip to France but we’d packed quite a bit in and had a full boot of wine to show for it and a few other goodies too …and we beat the snow that fell on Montreuil that evening.

And onto Palma …

Mallorca holiday

Our first trip to the island of Mallorca and we couldn’t miss out on going to Palma. I knew there was an impressive cathedral in the capital and an historic palace but I was surprised with the number of stunning Art Deco buildings … I love this style. I also cursed that I hadn’t brought a larger suitcase as there were lots of nice shops along the narrow streets but maybe it was just as well!

The streets of Palma, Mallorca by Maggie Booth Photography — Just a few of the interesting things I spotted as we wandered around.

We thought the streets were pretty busy but we were told by one of the shopkeepers that it was fairly quiet as there were no large cruise ships in the harbour that day. She complained that the tourists don’t bring much trade to the city as they buy their souvenirs on board and stuff themselves so full of food they don’t eat in the local restaurants. The ice-cream sellers apparently do well though.

Royal Palace of Almudaina, Palma, Mallorca by Maggie Booth Photography — Royal Palace of Almudaina, historic palace of the Royal Family

The harbourside, Palma, Mallorca by Maggie Booth Photography — The harbourside

The Royal Palace is right by the waterfront as is the massive Cathedral which is adjacent. If you arrive by boat the Cathedral and Palace must look even more impressive as they rise above the city.

Santa Maria Cathedral, Palma, Mallorca by Maggie Booth Photography — The massive Santa Maria Cathedral dating from the 13th century.

Inside the Cathedral is pretty impressive too. We had to queue about fifteen minutes to get inside in what must be the windiest street in Palma! The wait and the wind whipping round was worth it, the interior is beautiful even though jostling with lots of other tourists was a bit of a pain.

It was a great to escape from the crowds as we slowly meandered back to the bus station. The weather was changing and we were beginning to feel the cold so we stopped and had a warm drink. Just opposite the cafe was a church. Nothing elaborate from the outside although clearly very old. Ironically this little church had much more atmosphere than we’d felt in the cathedral. Maybe it was because there was just two of us in there. Sadly I don’t know the name of the church but the picture below shows the incredibly ornate altar which dominated the tiny nave.

Tiny church altar-piece. Palma, Mallorca by Maggie Booth Photography — The elaborate altar in this tiny church in Palma.

The weather on the last two days of our holiday was definitely on the change. Bright skies one minute then showers and a very keen wind most of the time. Makes for great seascapes although walking along the seafront was quite a challenge.

Wild seas on the west coast of Mallorca by Maggie Booth Photography — Wild seas whipping the west coast.

Waking up on our final morning to sunshine we decided to go over to Bunyola in the foothills of the Tramuntana Mountains to visit the Jardines de Alfabia.

The entrance is impressive with an avenue of palm trees and at the top there’s an interesting ‘keyhole’ where you can look through to a still pond of crystal-clear water. The pergola further along was great too as you just have to push a button and watch small fountains of water criss-cross the path. Children would love this, particularly if any unsuspecting visitors are walking through the pergola at the time!

Interesting features in the Jardines de Alfabia, Mallorca by Maggie Booth Photography — View through the ‘keyhole’ and the Romanesque pergola.

Jardines de Alfabia, Bunyola, Mallorca by Maggie Booth Photography — Jardines de Alfabia, Bunyola and historical house. A great place to enjoy a glass of wine among the shady palm trees.

As I wrote in the first part of my Blog on Mallorca, we were very pleased we’d chosen Puigpunyent as our base. We ate out several times in the town and enjoyed all the meals. The Rose Restaurant run by a Dutch couple was excellent and is very popular with tourists. The Bar Ca’n Jordi is more basic with very reasonable prices, good food and friendly staff. Sitting outside by the town square is a perfect place to enjoy a beer or a glass of the local wine. It’s a popular spot for cyclists to pause and have a drink before tacking the gruelling climb up the mountains. The family-run Ca Sa Nina restaurant at the edge of the town was our favourite. As well as the excellent local wine, the fish was superb as was the steak that John had (on both visits) and the staff were great too.

I can’t finish this without mentioning the micro brewery in the town. Cas Cerveser has only been going a couple of years but has already made its mark on the island and beyond. And no wonder, the beer is great! The good news is that the brewery opens its doors every Friday evening. Beer straight from the barrels. No need to cook either …a pizza van arrives and parks opposite the brewery serving delicious wood-fire pizzas. In addition they have a live band which adds to the fantastic friendly atmosphere. This is a real family evening with children running around the square while adults enjoy a pint or two. We only had a five minute walk back up to our apartment and slept very well after three pints of the Galilea golden ale! We felt very at home in the village. It’s a peaceful place but has lots to offer and has the added bonus of being off the tourist trail.

A trip to Mallorca

Mallorca holiday

Hoping to grab some autumn sunshine and warm weather we decided to head for Mallorca (Majorca). My man had done his usual research and found a studio apartment in the small town of Puigpunyent just twenty minutes drive from Palma. It was perfect, very quiet, newly constructed with stunning views of the Tramuntana mountains.

Beautiful views of Tramuntana mountain range — Secluded terrace with beautiful views of the Tramuntana mountain range.

This is a hilly island with a great coastline. Plenty of beaches away from the popular tourist spots and lots of great walks to do. Don’t make the mistake that I did by thinking my little dinky trainers would be fine …they weren’t. I should have sacrificed some space in my case and taken my walking boots, it was a lesson learnt!

Coastal walk from Banyalbufar to Port des Canonge, Mallorca — Old smugglers route from Banyalbufar to Port des Canonge

The coastal hike from from Banyalbufar to Port des Canonge is a popular one. Even in October the car park at the starting point was full but eventually we found somewhere. The hike takes you through pine forest along high rocky crags and after 6km down to the beach to the small port. I’m grateful to the cafe owner for giving me iodine and a dressing for my knee. I was much more careful about where I walked on the way back! It’s a stunning walk but make sure you wear appropriate footwear.

100 year old narrow gauge railway from Palma to Soller in Mallorca and the old tram to Soller Port — 100-year old narrow gauge railway from Palma to Soller and the old tram to the Port

Most tourists visiting Mallorca go on this little train, so we did too! Good bus service from Puigpunyent to Palma and cheap too. We found the terminus with minutes to spare and sat back enjoying the 50-minute journey to Soller. No time to look round as the next stage of the trip is to take the old tram so you join the queue with the rest of the tourists. The trams wind their way through Soller before going along the coast a short distance to the port.

Sollar port, Mallorca with old tram by Maggie Booth Photography — Sollar port.

Even at this time of year Sollar Port was heaving. Beautiful weather as you can see. We weren’t too bothered about eating in one the many restaurants along the harbour front or tempted by the souvenir shops so after a short walk and a beer we got the tram back to Sollar. We had an inexpensive lunch in a sandwich shop away from the main square with entertainment provided by the owner who was quite a character. The Japanese tourists just couldn’t work him out!

Near Saint Elm in Mallorca by Maggie Booth Photography — A quiet beach just by Saint Elm.

With the weather still holding we headed the next day for the coast to the small seaside town of Saint Elm. This place is beautiful! We had been tipped off that if we walked down from the town a little way we would find a quiet little beach and we did. Five people including us, it was perfect, as indeed was the lunch we had later back in the town.

The 18th century monastery in Valdemossa and and the gardens The Palace of King Sancho by Maggie Booth Photography — The 18th century monastery in Valdemossa and the gardens of The Palace of King Sancho.

Inside the monastery at Valldemossa, Mallorca with the old monastic pharmacy by Maggie Both Photography — Inside the monastery with the old monastic pharmacy

A decorative tile on a house in Valldemossa, Mallorca by Maggie Booth Photography — One of the decorative tiles on a house in Valldemossa

The guide book on Mallorca says that Valldemossa is the destination of thousands of visitors every year. You can see why it’s so popular. The winding roads up to this mountain village are interesting to say the least and the town is very cute. There are flowers everywhere, decorative tiles on the houses and some great shops! You have to visit the 18th century monastery which includes the pharmacy used by the monks. We didn’t pay extra to go into the rooms used by the composer Chopin. The guides want you to, but we are a bit too shrewd to fall for that. The Palace is interesting too and is included in your ticket.

I think this Blog is quite long enough! Part two on our trip to Mallorca will follow shortly …

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

A stop-over in Singapore (1)

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this: