Tuesday, July 27, 2010

The South Coast - Narooma

We are thinking of moving to Oz at some stage and the little town of Narooma is high on the list. We took Robin and Amanda along with us to show them the place.

The picturesque route south goes through the Royal National Park south of Sydney.

At the southern tip of the park is Stanwell Park. This is the view along the coast at that point.

It's a great place for hang gliders.

Part of the road south along the ocean.

A beach along the way.

At this place there is a toilet block that had a poem about me. How they knew I was coming, I don't know.

We passed through Kiama again and yes, the water is that blue.

The view from the house we rented at Dalmeny.

The wharf area at Narooma.

The inlet at Narooma.

The view to the golf course that overlooks the ocean.

The hole shaped like Australia.

The Beachscape house we stayed at. Very much recommended.

And now we have some pictures of a sunset and our walk along the beach at dusk.





Not a bad sunset. But now, the next morning.


So there is the sunrise. You could get used to it I suppose.

A visitor, one of several who appear to be regularly fed by visitors.

We went up into the hills behind Narooma and here is the view of the inlet.

The dirt road we travelled on though the hills. Most of our driving has been on bitumen, but occasionally we get off onto dirt to go to lookouts.

We took a walk through a rain forest in the hills.


Fungus growing in the humid conditions of the rain forest.

The oyster farms in the upper reaches of the inlet.

Unfortunately, harvesting of the oysters has been prohibited for a while.



Robin and Amanda loved the hills behind the small village of Tilba Tilba.






Tilba is a collection of trendy shops, but there is a very good lolly (candy) shop. Robin wants to take it over.

We went to Mystery Bay, just south of Narooma. On bright sunny days it is absolutely magical, but this day was a little overcast.

Narooma and Mystery Bay are the main locations for the book Mystery Bay Blues. This cave plays a large part in the plot.


The rock formations are very interesting and the sand squeaks as you walk on it.


Later in the day, we took a walk along the boardwalk beside the inlet.
A stingray that is probably 7 to 8 feet long from snout to tip of tail. Crikey!
Marianne, Robin and Amanda went to visit this emu at Batemans Bay.
Apparently people are not allowed to hold koalas because it stresses the koala. Of course it would stress me too to hold a koala.
Holding a wombat is pretty special.
So this is the main street of Narooma. Note there is just one traffic light and it is for pedestrians. Hope you all enjoyed all the photos.


Monday, July 26, 2010

Sydney - odds and sods

Here is a collection of odds and sods that you might find interesting.


Every day on the way to the train station, we would walk past a shop that sold bathroom stuff. It was expensive stuff but interesting to look at.

The underground train line out of one of the stations.

Perhaps the best of the smaller ferries to go on is the one to Mossman. It goes deep into one of the coves and there are a number of stops.

Sydney walks around with a coffee cup in hand. Here is a coffee shop in one of the small ferry terminals.
 
The floor in the Art Gallery of New South Wales. It is used quite effectively in the beginning of the film, Sirens

Inside the Gallery.


This collection of statues is very powerful. Read about it here.





Inside the Sydney Botanic Gardens. They are pretty good and worthwhile visiting, but they are not the equal of those in Melbourne.

Sin City is a pretty good description of Sydney. Crime and corruption has been part of Sydney's culture for most of it's history.