Day thirty eight

Our bags are packed and we are both ready to come home. One last walk through Waverley and along Bronte Beach....

Day thirty seven

Continuing our slow down so that we fit back into our slow life at home. We went shopping in Bondi Junction to buy James and Grace a kitchen scales and to wander around the shops. Then back home for lunch and an afternoon swim for James and a cliff top walk for us. 

Tomorrow we pack and fly back to Birmingham. 

Day thirty six

Another slow down day. We went in to Sydney to visit the QVB (Queen Victoria Building) a magnificent edifice with beautiful Victorian engineering on display. 

It also has a very extensive model railway section so I was able to purchase a few local additions for the Australian layout. From there we walked down to Darling Harbour, and area we have not visited before. 

This is a swing bridge and was one of the largest in the world when it was built. 

We then met up with James at his office and got back to Bronte in time to watch him having his evening swim!

Day thirty five

‘Lucy in the sky without her diamonds’

(That wasn’t the proper title)

We went to the Museum Of Modern Art today - they call their galleries museums for some reason. It was nearly full of things to make you cross but several things that made you smile as well. A display of wooden items made by aboriginal women was great fun.

And a collection of drift wood items, collected from a River mouth in the North. They all bore uncanny resemblance to birds, fish and animals. 

The best thing was the cafe which served really good food and had good views too.

Day thirty four

Ideleness, sheer idleness. After a poor night’s sleep on the train we felt an easy day was due so, apart from walking round Waverley Cemetery, doing a little shopping in the local shop and walking down to the beach to watch the surfers, we did nothing. 

I read a bit.....

Day thirty three

Our last day in Melbourne so we took a train in to the centre and walked in the Botanical Gardens. Very well cared for and a beautiful use of the landscape. 

Then we caught the sleeper train from Melbourne to Sydney. A very good journey with not too much noise but the track needs relaying! For all the Railway buffs who reads this blog (Hello Roger) here are some genuine Australian V Line trains. The more observant among you will notice the third rail - this is because the New South Wales Network (where Sydney is) runs on a different gauge to the Victoria Network. 

This was our sleeper train.

Day thirty two

We returned to Melbourne but rather than going back the way we came we drove North through the rain forest to visit a Geopark near Alvie called Red Rock. This is the site of multiple volcano cones and has a viewpoint looking out over the landscape. 

On the way there we spotted a large flock of birds and watched them settle in a clump of trees. The birds are Straw Necked Ibises. 

We found a nice spot for a picnic lunch beside one of the many lakes that formed in the area. They were all drying out but we found one with a little water left.