Jane and Mark down under

Today we've driven down To Margaret River - it's a big wine producing area. We stopped off at Fremantle, Perth's main port.  Above is the round tower which was the first prison, dating back to 1830. Freemantle is a short drive south from Perth,  very  historic (for Oz) and busy. Great place to visit for a couple of hours but not a place to stay overnight.   We were tipped off about this by Viv and Graham (thank you!).  It was seriously hot at lunchtime - 32 C and  this is meant to be autumn. Interesting market selling all sorts of goodies! View of  the successor prison to the Round Tower.  This one was built by and for convicts! Now at the Cape Lodge near Margaret River which is just outstanding.  We both swam - the water was 19 C - brisk!   They brew 3000 bottles of wine annually on their own estate. This is used for guests at the lodge and not sold externally....looking forward to sampling a glass or tw...

Another beautiful morning in Perth.   We went west up to Kings Park and the Botanic Gardens via the excellent free bus.  Superb views over Elizabeth Quay and the city shoreline.  Also some guns dating from Crimea and Napoleonic wars....just up Mark's street. We came across the Scotch College pipe band...don't think our Scottish friends would approve of the terminology.  They were supporting the end of a charity bike race.  It was rather a hot day for kilts! We timed it perfectly to join the midday free guided tour that focused on indigenous trees and shrubs and a history of the memorials in the Park.  We were also told that WA (Western Australia) also stands for `wait awhile'...that maybe explains why it took nearly half an hour and 2 prompts for coffee to arrive. We analysed the working systems as we waited....  We learnt lots in 90 minutes from Di who loved living in Edinburgh and Bradford a few years ago.   We ...

We've been worried about snakes, spiders, sharks and crocodiles but no one warned us about `killer' palm trees! We were sitting near Elizabeth Quay waiting before our Swan River cruise to Freemantle when we heard this crashing sound....a big bit of palm tree landed behind our seat.  A guy sitting nearby suggested that we should do the lottery!  It was windy, but not gale force. We were lucky and left smiling! The river cruise took most of the afternoon and we loved it.  Great views of Elizabeth Quay - fairly new and aimed at the tourist market. The coast line near Freemantle reminds us of  last year's sailing holiday in Croatia There's lots of sporting activity in the Swan River,  paragliding and sailing....these photos  are for Rob T. We saw a couple of dolphins but they did n't hang around long enough to be photographed...or Jane doe...

Started the day with a bit of work on the balcony, enjoying the views of the city and the river. No sooner had Jane said she would n't take any more bird pictures, this little green parrot-like bird popped up!  This was on our river walk to catch the tram into the city. Our river cruise, with entertaining commentary, took us passed venues for the Australian Open Tennis and the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG).  You can do guided tours but we'd only go there to watch England playing well v Australia! The one hour cruise also went past the Botanic Gardens, our next destination.  This pic was taken on the way back to the start point with views of the city high rise buildings just coming into focus. Interesting facts about Melbourne...named after Lord Melbourne -  the British prime minister at the time when the City was starting to get going at the start of the gold rush.  A chap call Batman `bought the land from the Aborigines and suggested the new Ci...

An interesting day.  Our apartment is in a new suburb, well out of the centre. After walking in a riverside park we took a tram into the city.  After a coffee stop at the Victoria Market, we caught a free city centre historic tram to get our bearings.  This runs through the Central Business District (CBD) and also to the regenerated dock area. It looks picturesque but the seats were a tad uncomfortable! Also very busy, Mark was standing most of the way after giving up his seat. We liked the docklands area....it seemed a bit deserted.  Ideal for dueling with cameras! We caught another tram into the city to explore Melbourne's famous `Lanes' but started with the Royal Arcade...very grand.  Compared with the Prince Philip `look alike' Mark looks improperly dressed! According to the guidebook and loads of young, asian tourists, Hosier Lane is `the' lane to go to...we're not so sure! Back to base via a busy tram and a pleasant rivers...

We strolled into the village for a cup of coffee and looked round the art gallery.  Jane bought a couple of small prints.   The coffee was good as well! Back to David and Pippa's - Mark decided to sweep the deck while lunch was being prepared. The house has been designed to fit a long, narrow plot. It's about 5 minutes away from the beach and sheltered from the winds. David and Pippa plan is to add a one bed studio into this bit of the plot.  It will be similar in design to a couple of the airBnBs we've stayed in. A lovely place to visit!

David and Pippa have a bach/beach house here - about 45 minutes north west from Wellington. Just along the road from the house is an entrance to the Queen Elizabeth Park.  We did a circular walk taking in a reserve, a memorial to WW2 US mariners who were drowned in a training accident and then back home via the beach. The sculpture  in this photo represents a mother whale and her calf.  The tree is a pohutakawa and flowers around Xmas but this one had flowers attracting lots of bees. This shot of Pippa shows a bit of park and beach.   It's a very long beach, ideal for dog walkers, swimmers and horse riding! David and Mark striding ahead with Pippa and me taking it at a more leisurely pace! We  half talked about going for a swim but by this time it was late afternoon.

This is Wellington's ecosanctuary.  It's been created in a valley that housed Wellington's first resevoir.   We had a wonderful day here, watching and listening for wildlife. Our first `spot' was a female brown teal (pateke) - they are rare but are getting established within the sanctuary. We spent quite some time watching these delightful ground birds, the takahe, thought to be extinct until 1948.  There are 3 at Zealandia.  Puffin and T2 were thought to be too old to reproduce but a chick hatched in December.   Father Puffin is in the foreground. The reserve is a mix of bush and beautiful views. These photos are of a tuatara, it was about 9 inches long and very obliging....it was there when we walked up the reserve and in a slightly different position when we came back.   Tuatara are reptiles that were roaming the earth at the same time as dinosaurs 60 mil...