Author: brianlaurance

A disappointing introduction to Hervey Bay this morning gave way to blue skies and brilliant sunshine for the very lengthy drive along the foreshore of the bay this afternoon.
The trick is apparently lunch at the Boat Club situated right by the ferry terminal for Fraser Island. Roast of the day and seafood selection turned the day’s fortunes around completely.
Tomorrow we head for Childers, where I am reliably informed Grandma Mollie was actually born before being raised as a child in Bundaberg, where we will also be, heading ultimately to Gladstone.
But who was Mr Hervey or for that matter Mrs/Ms Hervey you might all ask………

The first recorded European sighting of Hervey Bay was made by James Cook while carrying out his running survey of the east coast of Australia, on the 22 May 1770. “By noon Cook’s ship was in a position a little over half-way across the opening of Hervey Bay heading for Bundaberg. Cook named the bay “Hervey’s Bay” after Augustus John Hervey (1724–1779), later Third Earl of Bristol, a naval officer who became a Lord of the Admiralty the year Endeavour returned”.

A few pictures and also more of the grand kids

We’ve had a fabulous week with sunshine streaming across the Pacific Ocean directly into the front windows every morning—-warming the living area until we open the doors to cooling sea breezes.
Seaworld, Wet and Wild, Movie World and Dreamworld have all been on the visitation list; but for us Seaworld still has it. The Penguin and aquarium areas we found the best, while the older young ones enjoyed the thrill rides
And the weather forecasters just can’t cut the mustard, nor the actual details of whether to take an umbrella or apply more sunscreen!

Isabel had a great idea; a family holiday at the Gold Coast at Oceana apartments on Broadbeach, where we had a holiday on an upper floor overlooking the Pacific 15 years ago.
And so this is the week when all 17 of us get together, be it in our own apartments and hire cars because of the diverse needs of tiny babies thru to sub- teens, some denying approaching middle age and even septuagenarian deniers.
What a treat. First time kiddie flyers with their own window seats, cousins getting together having fun at Seaworld, a luxurious heated pool and spa and 7 men in a boat casting a fishing line on the Nerang river.
All this and it is only Wednesday. Expect a lot more as the week progresses.

Today dawned sunny and bright— not that we have ever seen the sunrise on this trip— and the executive caucus made the decision today would be devoted to eating and drinking, snoozing, book reading, blogging, stitchery and Lombok viewed from the promenade deck.
At Lombok there’s no port facilities, no shuttle bus service, in fact not even an air conditioned Toyota Kijang with driver.
What a dreamy island!
Back to the grind of daily ship-board life. But someone has to do it!

Everybody’s favourite holiday place. What more can I say?
Another Toyota Kijang car with driver and this time we invited another couple, Terry and Sally, from our dinner table to join us.
Our collective intention was to find opulent resorts we can visit at a later date, lunch on the beach at Jimbarin Bay and buy a knock-off Rolex watch .
Mission accomplished!
No traffic grid-lock, air conditioned comfort and The Westin within the Nusa Dua locale was the unanimous choice should we venture back next year. Enjoy the pictures.
Note: The ship’s tendering ferry service was an endurance test, akin to unloading a sheep ship. But fortunately there was no-one from animal welfare to video the abuses for next Monday night’s 4 Corners program

While the local people gave us a genteel welcome, the local sea water gently lapped 200mm above the surface of the wharf!!!; requiring a longer than usual walk-way to avoid a rusting of the wheels of the Zimmer frame.
A youthful dance troupe added to the anticipation of a day in our first Indonesian port-of-call. And quickly finding our driver displaying our name on a stick, meant our ordered Toyota Kijang (google it) would fulfil our hopes of a trip to the famed Borubudur temple.
The journey, (we will never again complain of the Perth traffic volumes), was a nightmarish 0 to 15 km an hour for the first half until I spied an overtaking police car with sirens blaring followed by 3 big tourist coaches. “That’s the folk from the ship…..quick, follow them” I blurted out and our driver Mr Suderman (we called him Mr Superman) responded with great alacrity.
In a flash we went from dead-stop to 90 km an hour for the final 20kms of our journey, all on the wrong side of the road. A cop car, 3 big buses and a limpet hanger-on
The skies opened up as we arrived at Borubudur and covered by superman’s umbrella made a dash through the plethora of 300 stalls to get at least a picture of the mighty temple, beiged as it was by about 10,000 or more locals for a Sunday festival, a quick toilet stop and back on the road again.
The scenery was quite breath-taking, wall to wall villages of the very poor to the well off, rice paddies, an endless ribbon of roadside stalls, gentle people and 4 million motorbikes.
Upon our return to the ship (we beat the cop car and the buses by a couple of hours) the charge was sixty bucks instead of the quoted $90 and so we gave superman the $30.
“When are you coming back to Semarang?” beamed a happy Mr Suderman.

 

Ryan, Sam, Jessica, Sophie and Megan at picnic            Taking OZ lying down

Grandpa’s big brekkie too much for Sophie

Frankie on a bicycle built for 2

Picture of an ever-smiling Grandma

Alliteration is a literary stylistic device, but in this case ‘Round the rugged rocks the ragged rascals ran’ ideally nominates some of the activities undertaken on a recent limited seniors’ tour of the south west.

We joined Bill and Wendy Moodie on a day-trip to Augusta and surrounds, for all of us it had been a decade or more since we had been in the area. The old relics refers to the now fossilised working parts from a long forgotten era and seen here on the beach at Leeuwin.

For us it was fortunate the BOM had failed to accurately forecast the weather for the capes that day, so lunch was taken outdoors on the lawn of the Augusta Hotel with views overlooking the Blackwood river where it flows into the Southern Ocean.

Hamelin Bay with its now derelict semblance of a jetty was also a picture evoking thoughts of perhaps taking a beachfront cabin next spring.

And the majestic Boranup Forest which never fails to impress showed her mighty form and colourful grandeur amid the dappled late afternoon sunlight; the splendour of nature that has a certain stateliness which all admire.

With days end and seeking for further amusement we paid and went into Amigos Mexican restaurant in Dunsborough where we had margaritas, coronas, dips, tacos and burritos.