Cockington Green Gardens located in Canberra—Australia’s capital is home to meticulous crafted and highly detailed miniature buildings and landscapes. It is a wonderful place full of creativity with replicas of many international known buildings or scenes. If your ever visiting Canberra take a couple of hours and enjoy a roam around the gardens and be inspired.
In yesterday’s post I mentioned that Australia has over 150 big things. The original big thing — The Big Banana opened in 1964 and recently celebrated its 50th birthday. John Landi came up with the idea initially to get more people to stop at his banana stall on the Pacific Highway, Coffs Harbour. It worked. Australians and international visitors stopped in droves to visit the Big Banana and taste the iconic chocolate coated bananas. I remember my first trip as a young and impressionable 10-year-old travelling north on my first road trip. There were bananas everywhere and the Big Banana itself looked so much like a real banana. Then I discovered why, the designer had cut up the most perfectly shaped banana into 40 pieces to build the pattern.
Over the years the Big Banana has grown into the biggest tourist attraction on the North Coast of New South Wales. It is now called The Big Banana Fun Park and includes Laser Tag, an Ice Skating Rink, a Wild Toboggan Ride, a 36 hole Mini Golf Course and Water Park. There is also “The World of Bananas” multimedia experience, plantation and a packing shed, nursery, café, gift and souvenir shop, a Candy Kitchen and Cheese Making Workshop. There is definitely something here for everyone including a mandatory selfie in front of the iconic Big Banana.
Last year I returned with my family and enjoyed sharing my fond memories of the Big Banana with my children, and created some new ones. I was also excited to discover the Big Banana’s monkey who helps entertain the million visitors each year is called Max.
It’s no wonder the Park’s slogan is “It’s a bunch of fun.”
What better way to start the April 2016 A – Z challenge than with some fun facts about my amazing country, Australia.
Dipping my toes into the sea of retirement
During the working winters of my life you never know what is a round the corner
Finally out of the shadows and into the Spring of retirement — freedom
If we were having coffee I would tell you that I can’t believe it’s already February. As this year is going so fast I have decided to catch up for coffee with you every month.
If we were having coffee I would tell you how much I miss the beach and how I enjoyed my first swim of summer when my husband and I went to the coast on our mini break over the Australia day long weekend. Most of the beaches were closed due to dangerous surf however we persevered and found one open with life guards patrolling it. Lighthouse Beach I love you as I felt safe enough to go for a swim. The water was so fresh and clean on my skin. I was in my element bobbing in the waves until suddenly……. I found myself out of control under the water being turned around sand churning up. The waves dumped me. It happened so quickly, all I could see underwater was sand and foam. I was grateful that the surf life savers didn’t need to save me but I certainly was reminding myself that they would notice me missing if I didn’t come up. Fortunately I was able to save myself and when I popped up for air I decided I was too shaken to stay so I walked out of the surf attempting to focus I the more pleasant aspects of my afternoon swim. That same day there had been several drownings up and down the east coast of Australia so it was no wonder the beaches were closed.
Lighthouse Beach
If we were having coffee I would tell you how excited I am with my new coffee machine. When I decided to get one I wasn’t sure which way to go however in the end I decided to go with the biggest variety of pods and the simplest system. I choose the Caffitaly system and a S22 machine. It is a fully automatic one touch capsule machine that has pods from Twinings, Grinders, Gloria Jeans, Moccona and many more. The first drink I made was an extra strong cappuccino and it was amazing. I am please I paid a bit extra for the machine with the milk attachment included and that I didn’t have to froth my milk separately.
If we were having coffee I would tell you about a little friend my husband and I found overseeing the water at Lennox Head Beach. He was lizard of some description although we didn’t get too close to him so as not to scare him off. We thought he was cute, what do you think?
If we were having coffee I would tell you the storms in Sydney last we were so fierce that within a two-minute window our courtyard went from having no water in it to looking like a toddler’s swimming pool with 5 centimetres of water. There was so much water the drains couldn’t cope so they forced it back out and into our courtyard which has a cover over it. Then as quickly as the water arrived within the half an hour it was gone again leaving behind mud and leaves to tell the tale.
If we were having coffee I would tell you how I enjoyed the annual catch up visit with my long time girlfriend in early January. We have made it a tradition now as life gets busy and we live in different cities. We spending the weekend reflecting, reminiscing and celebrating the year that was, which helps keep us connected and safe in the knowledge that we always just pick up from where we left off the last time we saw each other.
If we were having coffee I would tell you about spending Australia Day 26th January in regional Australia instead of at home in Sydney. It was a little harder to just go out and BBQ lamb so in keeping with tradition I cooked my lamb when I arrived home from the airport. To help me celebrate I also watched this classic video on the day to remind me of all the great things Australia has. The Big Prawn in this film clip is in one of the cities we visited over the Australia Day long weekend. Enjoy!
If we were having coffee I would ask you what you have done in the last month. Let me know in the comments?
Diving is a beautiful weightless sport. In my opinion it looks more weightless when you dive outdoors in the sunshine. Here is my daughter practising what we nick named her flying dive. She makes it look so effortless as she blends with the sky.
https://dailypost.wordpress.com/photo-challenges/weightless/
Back in September 2015 I was surprised to hear the story of Chris The Sheep, as it had never occurred to me that his could happen. Chris was found wandering in the bush on the border between New South Wales and Australian Capital Territory, his fleece so massive he could barely walk or see. The size of his fleece makes professionals estimate that Chris had wandered around in the bush not shewn for about 6 years possibly after wandering off from previous owners.
When Chris was spotted the RSPCA ( Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) was called in to get him help. They organised a rescue team and for Australian Champion Shearer Ian Elkins to shear him. After two shearing passes, a new world record was set for the heaviest fleece — 40.45 kilograms or 88 pounds. The previous record holder was New Zealand with a 28.9 kilogram fleece. Due to the damage that carrying this amount of wool around can have on a sheep’s tiny body let’s hope this record is not broken again.
As a child, who was your favorite relative?
I would have to choose Nanny, my father’s mother. She lived with us in a separate granny flat until my early teenage years and was always good for a treat. She even let Santa know one year that we wanted a swing set, which he delivered on Christmas morning.
If you could be a tree or plant, what would you be?
As an Australia I love Wattle. It booms in early Spring and it looks glorious when in full bloom. Wattle is our national floral emblem as well as the colours of Australia—green and gold. For more information on see my previous post attached.
What would be your preference, awake before dawn or awake before noon?
Many years ago it would have been sleep to noon, however these days I get up early and a sleep in for me is 8 o’clock.
Would you like to sleep in a human size nest in a tree or be snuggled in a burrowed spot underground?
Being a bit claustrophobic I would choose the human size nest as long as there no wind to destabilize it.
Bonus question: What are you grateful for from last week, and what are you looking forward to in the week coming up?
Last week I got to catch up with a girlfriend of over 20 years in our annual date although this year we are working on making it more frequent. This week I am looking forward having a day off on Friday—my first for 2016.
It has been over two months since our last coffee catch-up and life has been pretty busy.
If we were having coffee I would tell you I’m feeling a little confused. I began preparing this post as I usually do, by adding links to earlier posts. However, this time, with my new WordPress version the result is a little different. I don’t know if it’s the same for everyone or only WordPress.org blogs. My next question is can anyone re-blog my posts now as this has been a problem in the past and it would be great to have it changed.
If we were having coffee I would tell you about Berry Christmas. My sister and her family do an excellent job of hosting the event—decorating their home in theme colours, preparing gift bags for everyone and organising and preparing food. We had a great day reconnecting as a family—sharing the joys and dealing with the dramas of the past year. Christmas is definitely my favourite holiday, although because I live in a different city south of my family on Christmas day it takes 3 hours to get there. I don’t enjoy the travel but Berry Christmas was worth it.
If we were having coffee I would tell you that over the Christmas period I was initially frustrated that my blog wasn’t working because of problems with my Jetpack. I tried to fix the problem, however when I couldn’t and Jetpack staff where on vacation I decided to surrender to the moment and use my time more efficiently doing other things.
If we were having coffee I would tell you how much I enjoyed my husbands and my date to the city over the Christmas New Year period. We decided to catch the ferry into Sydney. The trip along the Parramatta River takes about an hour and it was a glorious day. As it had been several years since we had caught the ferry we enjoyed every moment. We then had lunch at a little pizza restaurant at the Rocks before spending the afternoon wandering around Sydney’s Botanical Gardens. We saw many places I had never been before. It was a great way to round off 2015.
If we were having coffee I would tell you how excited I was that my first sugar cookie Christmas tree worked out so well. I iced it a blue-purple to match our berry theme and at the end of the day most of it was eaten.
If we were having coffee I would tell you about the champagne fountain trial on Christmas Day. The science of what was the best way to do it kept many people entertained and in the end they were proud of their working efforts.
If we were having coffee I would tell you about the huge moon on New Years Eve that was as mesmerizing as the Sydney Fireworks. Unfortunately, I choose not to take my camera as I am not good at photographing fireworks—a rookie error I won’t make again. The fireworks were fantastic and our viewing place, a hill, is only a 10 minute walk from my house. While we couldn’t see the fireworks coming off the bottom of the Sydney Harbour Bridge we could see the top of it through the trees. We could also see the fireworks going off up and down the Parramatta River and from the other side of Sydney. At times it was like 360 degrees of fireworks. Once the live fireworks have ended we went home to watch the taped version on television and catch the ones we missed.
https://youtu.be/viqQGXVeb8s
If we were having coffee I would tell you how much I enjoyed the second week of my holidays being a full-time writer. I spend many hours everyday working on the last stages of editing of my book. With the amount of work I did I was hoping to finish it but no I still have work to do. It is getting exciting however, as it nears completion and the next part of its journey begins. Just when I thought I had the chapters in the right order, I decided to rearrange the early chapters again and to my surprise the order I have changed it to is my second order. I think my lesson is trust your gut.
If we were having coffee I would tell you how excited I was on Christmas Eve to win the hamper at the local bottle shop. I had gone in the draw after buying two bottles of champagne for an early family Christmas party a few days earlier. It was fun investigating my laundry basket full of goodies and deciding who to give each item to.
If we were having coffee I would ask you what you have done and how you have been since we last met. Let me know in the comments what you have been up to.
Tell us about a time when you were left on your own, to fend for yourself in an overwhelming situation — on the job, at home, at school. What was the outcome?
I believe learning by doing is the only way to grow—it teaches skills that are never forgotten. Initially the situation may appear overwhelming particularly if it is based on dealing with a sudden crisis, however by using St Francis of Assisi’s quote I have found a way through many tough times.
The whole idea of sink or swim to me bring to mind pictures of young children being forced into the water by their parents as an act of love. The parents need to make sure they learn to get back to the side of the pool and save their life, if they fall into a swimming pool without an adult watching to rescue them. Initially, there is a lot of screaming and protesting. Then as the young child listens to the instructions, they are rewarded by the freedom of moving unaided in the water. They can swim and they are so proud. Nobody remembers the fear—they remember the success.