Showing posts with label Oz 2012. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Oz 2012. Show all posts

Tuesday, October 16, 2012

Wild wet weather at Ulladulla

Up until the last two days we had virtually no rain during our five weeks is Australia. Right before the end of our trip, the heavens opened and the wind blew.



I noticed that I had taken no photos of Ulladulla itself. This is the harbour.


The main street with its one traffic light. This street is also the main Princess Highway running up to Sydney. For such a small town it has an amazing number of shops, including three large supermarkets.


The library is smallish but not tiny. The immediate region only has a few thousand people living there year round. Many of the houses in the area are only used by vacationers.


One of two bowls clubs in the area as well as two golf clubs. Many of the full-time residents are retired.


Our exchange family had arranged that a brother-in-law who lived in Ulladulla would show us around. Bob turned up and took us to a number of beaches and view points that we had not come across. There had been a huge wind and rain the night before and the sea was very rough. It was definitely not a day to be out in the water.


It reminded me of Whitby when we first visited. Cold, wet and windy.














A water treatment plant. I liked the curved roofs.



I had got out of Bob's car to take this video. I almost was blown away by the wind it was so strong.




If you ever go to Australian beaches you will find that the best position usually is occupied by a caravan park with holiday cottages. If I lived by myself I would be tempted to downsize and live in one of these year round. Marianne and I reckon we would need three of them One each for our hobbies and a third so that we could meet at meal times.




The rocks that from the foreshore in the area have curious grooves in them. Bob told us that there are lots of fossils in the rocks.




A Joey pokes its head out of the pouch.






Eventually a bit of blue sky appeared.







There is no way I would have been out there on the rocks with the ferocious wind and waves still on the go.



The houses would have a pretty good view. This was a beach called North Durras, about thirty miles south of Ulladulla.


To get to the beach we had to drive through a small rain forest.


This is normally a very calm inlet.



Several inches of rain had fallen and there was localized flooding.





Yes, there are kangaroos in Australia. Like deer, they eat everything and jump out in front of cars.

We had a great time with Bob. He quickly realized that we shared the same sense of Aussie humour so there was much banter back and forth. Later in the day he took us back to his house where his wife Alison had laid on a magnificent afternoon tea, including freshly baked scones. It was very interesting to hear what it was like to live in Ulladulla.

We thoroughly enjoyed our two weeks living by the ocean. The beaches are absolutely magnificent.


Finally you might notice the pair of spiffy loudspeakers on either side of the big screen TV. I built them for Robin in the garage while we were in Ulladulla. Basically the wooden parts came in a flatpack and I had to glue them all together and then install the drivers. It's a design known as a Frugal Horn and they sound quite good.


Thursday, October 11, 2012

Braidwood

Soon after we reached the top of the range, we drove into Braidwood.


View Larger Map


Tree lined approach to Braidwood.


It was immediately obvious that this town had plenty of interesting old buildings.


It was a weekday and the footpaths were deserted. Several shops were shut but they were the kind that sold stuff for trendy women. This town appears to be an up and coming 'trendy' place for Canberra people to hang out at on weekends.



Gold was discovered near here back in 1851 and the population rose to 10,000 which explains why there are so many substantial buildings for a town that now has a population of 1000.




The bakery is famous. 




The above two items were in the thrift shop. I like to put a bit of extra colour into the blogs.


I was struck by the low price for a house and 24 acres of land. It is already under contract.





Apparently the lack of development in the 20th century resulted in so many old buildings being preserved. They are now on the Historical Register for New South Wales.





Later I will show what is on the notice on the right hand door.





A small park.




The Court House behind a couple of gigantic Norfolk Pines.



Most towns of any decent size in Australia have a swimming pool and learning to swim is encouraged. This pool is not full size but at least you could learn to swim here.








Beer casks.


The sign on the door of the pub.







Marianne has remarked on the number of quilting shops in Australia. Every town has at least one.


This is part of some weird motor bike which is part of a class of bikes called Supermonos. Even though I am not into motor bikes, this one looked cool.



A local church.


A very simple entrance.


The roof was unusual.


Small miner's cottages left over from the gold mining days.

This town looks like it is right at the stage just before it gets really popular and the housing prices soar. Because it is 2000 feet up and not that far from the highest mountains in Australia, it is probably coolish for most of the summer. Winters would be cold by Australian standards.