Monday, January 18, 2016

THE ROAD TRIP


We had family business in Sydney..
so did we fly there in an hour for a few dollars (or points)?

No, we decided to take to the highway -
the Newell Highway that is, 'Out West' at Goondiwindi, a four-hour drive inland from Brisbane.


Wide open spaces, cotton and canola fields...we headed South,


past rustic old inns and pubs, with towns slowly dying due to drought, and changing economics...


At Gilgandra, we popped in to their new museum, opened in 2015 to mark the centenary of the first Cooee March, a recruitment drive in World War I.


A local hero at this outback town had the idea of gathering a group of volunteers for the British Empire, to fight the war in Europe.  A small group set out from Gilgandra in October, 1915, marching all the way to Sydney, 640 km.
Passing through towns and villages, they called 'Cooee! Come and join us!'


In all 263 men walked into Martin Place, Sydney, five weeks later.
The Cooee March was the first of about ten such drives in various regional Australian towns.  Young men left the farms, their parents, wives and sweethearts.  Ten per cent of Australia's population went to WWI, and many never returned.


A hand made flag carried on the original march.

At first glance it seems preposterous that these men were so easily persuaded to go to the other side of the world, of which they knew almost nothing, to fight for the Empire.
But the taste for adventure, a change from a hard and predictable life, money in the pocket and a uniform to wear - these things have appealed to youth throughout history.  It was seen as their patriotic duty, and they went.




The map of the march showed us that we were taking the same route into Sydney, following in their footsteps.   
At the start of our road trip it was hot -
very hot, in the high 30s C.
But then we hit rain, and as we headed South, so did the temperatures.
We turned East after Dubbo, heading to the pretty, leafy town of Orange.
It snows here, so I'm guessing it was named for its Autumnal colours, which must be spectacular.

Our B&B had a beautiful garden..




and there was excellent bird-watching too.


Next morning, in pouring rain, we approached the Blue Mountains from the West.  Located on the Western edge of Sydney, the mountains are a popular tourist destination, with lots of old-world charm, spectacular scenery, bushwalking and enticing galleries and shops.


Beautiful view from hotel, totally obscured!

The mountains were wrapped in a thick, foggy mist.  The rain poured down for the next two days.  The beautiful scenery remained hidden.  The temperature was around 10 deg C, and we were cold!  The hotel had a log fire burning, and guests were drying out their sodden walking shoes on the hearth.

Much of the next two days, the fog came right up to the windows.  
We spent our time in a few of these:


    
and I found a couple of budget additions to my milk glass collection...



No, not all this, just the fishy plate, a small white comport and the rustic wooden fox.  



Mr Fox came from this gorgeous shop, Rick Rutherford's Country, in the pretty mountain town of Lawson.  Always on my 'must see list' when in the Blue Mtns.


At last, on Day 3, the fog lifted and there was the view of The Three Sisters, most popular attraction in the area.
It is hard to pick the scale from this picture, but people were climbing on the left column, and they looked like ants!







A little patch of sunlight emerged, as we said goodbye to the mountains and headed down the motorway into Sydney.

During the next few days, I did many of my favourite things..
eating, viewing art exhibitions, exploring the shops, and best of all, meeting a couple of fellow bloggers.



The lovely and talented Val, of Valerie's Sewing Blog, took me on a magical mystery tour of Sydney's best fabric bargain destinations, and what a day it was.  I had a great day, and for the first time in my life, I now have a real 'stash' - enough fabric to see me sewing into my dotage.  Well, eleven pieces anyway, and for less than $100.  The prices were incredibly low.  



I loved Pitt Trading best, a shop where attractive collectibles and antiques are scattered among the fabrics.  So pretty.



For a lively account of our adventure, pop on over to Val's blog on the above link.


Cabramatta, our final destination of the day
After leaving Sydney, we drove north to Newcastle.  The hot weather had returned and on a scorching afternoon I met the delightful Sarah Liz, of SarahLizSewStyle.  Sarah Liz is a pocket dynamo, full of energy and good ideas (like not doing photos: we were both expiring from the heat) and we enjoyed a couple of hours of getting acquainted, sharing sewing and life stories, and having a cup of tea.  Like Val, she is a sewist of exquisite ability, generous in sharing her expertise and techniques.  

Thank you both, ladies, you were highlights of my holiday.
Meeting a fellow blogger has always been such fun and rewarding for me, one of the pleasures of making friends via social media.


I will save the other Sydney activities for another post.

Hope you are all well, and that 2016 is proving to be a good year.

Take care

XXXX

















36 comments:

  1. It is lovely to see you back Patricia, and I am pleased that you had a good trip.
    When we sailed across the Dardanelle Straits in Turkey last November I thought about all of the young Australian soldiers who died there at Galipoli. Our young soldiers were the same, they thought that it would be an adventure that would last a couple of weeks and then they would be home again. I don't think that young today men would be quite so naive or gullible.
    Love the geology of the Three Sisters, it looks a very dramatic spot to visit.
    How nice that you met up with two sewing blog friends, and it looks as if you have returned home with plenty of new acquisitions for your future sewing needs.

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    1. Thank you Rosemary. I need to get back into blog mode now.. Sailing across the Dardanelles must have been a dramatic experience. The memories are strong of the awful losses there. In fact the Cooee March came a few months later, when more men were needed to replace those lost! Yes, the majority of young men today would not be quite so easily led, but as we know a few are drawn in, via social media, to conflicts far away. The Three Sisters have been popular even since the Blue Mtns were crossed in 1813, and the place became a resort to escape the heat down in Sydney.

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  2. So many interesting things to see on a road trip. Thanks for this mornings' travelogue! Have a great week.

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    1. Thank you Linda Kay - it was fun looking at lots of intriguing things - too many to use in the blog :)

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  3. Thank you for showing us your roadtrip to Sydney. It is very interesting to see wonderful far away places I should like to visit, but most of them I shall never see in real. That's why I like blogging.

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    1. Hello Janneke, glad you enjoyed the 'roadtrip'. I wonder if we will ever do it again...it was a lot of driving for Mr C. Blogging is fun!

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  4. It was lovely to follow your trip, Patricia. The scenery is spectacular and I loved the quaint buildings of Lawson. It's rather similar to the rural South African building styles, and I think the mountain weather is quite similar too! What fabulous views you had when the fog lifted! And how lovely to meet some blogging friends too. A wonderful trip!

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    1. That is interesting about rural South Africa, and I can imagine there would be similarities, especially in the colonial architecture. And all over the Empire, people escaped to the mountains for the cooler weather. We were so pleased the fog lifted on the last day.

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  5. What a wonderful road trip!!! Looks as though you enjoyed some beautiful sights, saw interesting places, found out new things about old things and met new people. What could be better than all of that!!! xx

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    1. Hi Amy, I am back in business, and will visit your blog asap. The trip was a good combination of things we enjoy, and I will be showing some nice art from Over There - very soon... xx

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  6. I just love a roadtrip! I so enjoyed tagging along on yours....some lovely highlights Trish xx

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    1. Always fun to see what one can find... often in unexpected places. Glad you enjoyed Michelle. xx

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  7. It was a great idea to take a road trip instead of flying. I've never been to Australia but I know it is a very diverse place and your photos prove it. How interesting to see the landscape change as your trip progressed, and to know that the weather did too. I would very much like to visit someday. Thank you for sharing, Patricia.

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    1. There were certainly a lot of variations as we drove south, and plenty to keep us entertained. There were some dense forested areas too, but my photos from the car window were not worth showing! Hope you visit someday.

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  8. What a splendid trip, despite the weather in the middle. 10C sounds very cold indeed for Australia in summer! My father spent 8 years in Australia as a young man and I remember him telling me as a child how beautiful the Blue Mountains are. Your photos certainly bear that out.

    Meeting fellow bloggers, especially those with whom you share a passionate hobby, is always a wonderful experience and you obviously had a lovely time. Looking forward to part 2. :-)

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    1. I am told that the Blue Mtns do turn on a taste of winter at any time! Fortunately we have been other times and seen the fantastic Govett's Leap with is really spectacular. My experience meeting other bloggers has always been pleasant - like-minded souls all. I'll get working on the next episode....

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  9. Hi Tricia,

    I'm glad you took me along on your road trip. I so enjoyed this blog! Love the history of the Aussies who joined the fight durning WWI. The towns you are visiting are very charming. How beautiful is the countryside! Can't wait until we arrive in Sidney. :)

    Save travels, my friend and Mr. C.!

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    1. Gosh, after one hits the button, there's no going back! Allow me to correct "Sydney" here.

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    2. Ha, Blogger is so demanding at times!
      Glad you enjoyed the history bit, and of course I always enjoy the countryside too. Time to do a bit on the big city.

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  10. What a fun road trip you took, Patricia. You saw many interesting things. I really like that old horn, and also the view of the three sisters. It's so nice that you got to meet a couple blogger friends. I've only met one. We used to live in the same town, and she owned a vintage shop and I went in there often.

    Road trips are so fun, and I've been thinking of taking one myself soon.

    love, ~Sheri

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    1. Hi Sheri, I do hope you take a road trip too - and show and tell it! The old horn was used in the war, so a precious relic. I love a vintage shop; must be really nice to have a friend with one :) xox

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  11. What a great adventure, Patricia! I'm sorry about the fog though. At least it lifted at the very end so you could catch a glimpse of the Three Sisters. How nice you were able to meet up with several blogging friends. I'm looking forward to the next time you journey through Vancouver so we can meet up again!

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    1. It seems the Blue Mtns are noted for fog, so I guess we had to have that unique experience at least once. We had a great trip and only missed one place I was keen to see because of the rain. Guess we'll have to go again :)
      Might be a couple of years before we get back to Vancouver - hang in there!

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  12. What pretty little old cottages, even if the towns are dying. I would have been pretty fed up if the Blue Mountains had been shrouded in mist (but then if I was seeing them, I'd have come to the other side of the world to see them!) I did visit as a kid and still remember how beautiful they were and i am glad that the cloud lifted in the end for you. Sydney always sounds like such an interesting place.

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    1. Hello Jenny, fortunately we have been to the Blue Mts before, or we'd have been really disappointed. There were British tourists at our hotel, going out to bush-walk in the heavy rain because they only had a day or so to see the sights. Felt sorry for them! Sydney is always fun to visit, with lots to see and do. I should have taken more photos in fact.

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  13. What pretty little old cottages, even if the towns are dying. I would have been pretty fed up if the Blue Mountains had been shrouded in mist (but then if I was seeing them, I'd have come to the other side of the world to see them!) I did visit as a kid and still remember how beautiful they were and i am glad that the cloud lifted in the end for you. Sydney always sounds like such an interesting place.

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  14. What a great thing to do Patricia, I would have enjoyed that trip too. The road less travelled has more to offer.

    Although we lived in the Brisbane area for a year we didn't get out and about as much as we should have.
    The Aboriginal names are wonderful - Goondiwindi!

    In my early twenties I flatted in Sydney for a year. One of the girls I met came from Orange and she invited my friend and I to spend the weekend at her family's property out of Orange. One evening we all piled on the back ofa truck and went out spotting kangaroos, it remains a magical vivid memory for me to this day!
    When we watched that lovely Australian series "A Place Called Home" I was reminded of my times in the Australian outback!

    I've been to the Blue Mountains area several times and love all the lovely towns thereabouts.
    I imagine the farmers were very happy to see the rain!

    Meeting bloggers is fun and we have a special bond with each other too. We all enjoy writing about our escapades and in this case the three of you are good seamstresses! I hope you show us your stash one day P!

    I'm looking forward to your photos of Sydney!

    Hugs
    Shane x

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    1. Ah, so you have been to Orange, and what a very Australian thing to do, kangaroo spotting. We still do that when we take my Dad out for his Sunday drives!
      I will try to line up the stash and take a picture for you - need an artistic angle, however :)
      Those towns out west do have great names - Goondi, Gilgandra, Narrabri, Coonabarabran - and on it goes. It was good to do the old highway, one more time. Hugs to you too xx

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  15. What a wonderful trip (rain and all!!!). It's always fascinating visiting the old country Australia - as you say, now sadly dying. With regard to WW1, I think also people had a value and meaning system in those days, and also fought for that. Certainly by WW2, Australia was defining itself as a nation fighting for it's own principles as well, a fight that must continue. We sometimes forget what our forebears sacrificed in order to have the life we have now.

    Once you got through the rain (what a pity - it really was torrential, and impossible to do anything) what a wonderful time (aside from family, which I am sure was wonderful un as well), you had.

    And thank you for mentioning Val and myself - and yes, I very deliberately did not take unflattering photos of us - we were a little too hot and flustered on that day - and I didn't think either of us would appreciate that sort of photo :)

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    1. Yes, good point about values back in the day. Mr C and I often discuss the lack of ethics in today's world, so contrary to our upbringing. Luckily, although we encountered rain, we seemed to avoid the worst of it by being in another place at the right time. In hindsight, the cold weather at Katoomba, winter in the middle of summer, was rather fun.
      Definitely, no bad photos allowed in my life these days; like to maintain some dignity :) It was such a pleasure to meet you ladies, a testament to the power of the blog.

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  16. OH this was fun! I loved sharing your adventures with you Trish!! Such gorgeous (& exotic looking to me) places. I think road trips are one of the most fun ways to do a trip. It's the journey as they say, right? ;)

    I loved learning a bit about the war history there too. I find it so fascinating. And how fun you got to hang out with some blogland buddies on the way! That would be a highlight.

    But I love that you're a Gal like me - it's a lot about good food and finding fun antique treasures. Thanks for sharing. Blessings to you my Friend. xoxo

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    1. Hi Carrie, glad you enjoyed. We founds lots to see and do on our road trip. Blessings to you this Sunday morning too. xo

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  17. Hello dear Patricia,
    What a lovely time you had driving to Sydney and in Sydney.. meeting with blogging friends.
    visiting the antique shops, and buying some material for some new lovely outfits that you so cleverly design and sew.
    Some great photos. I really enjoyed this post.
    Happy weekend. Val xxxx

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    1. Hello Val, yes, a great time catching a few blog friends. Now I must find time to get into my sewing room - if only to take some photos of my new stash! Happy weekend dear Val. xxx

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  18. What a wonderful trip you experienced! Road trips are far more interesting than a quick flight! So many interesting things you have packed into this post. I'm curious about the Newell Hwy, as that's my maiden name, and I have early Newell relatives that moved to Australia from England! Will do a little research.
    Wendy

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    1. What fun - maybe your family named the Newell Hwy. I hope you can find something about your Australian relatives, and where they settled.

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