Day 5- Home
Last night we had a wonderful meal courtesy of Ellio and Jeff of chicken wings ( before’s) steak and salad ( main) and peppermint chip ice cream ( desert). We made use of the bbq at the motel which was very convenient. The night was a bit late with plenty of discussion about all sorts of topics.
This morning I was up early and it was another cracking day of clear skies and sunshine. The temperature was expected to reach mid twenties.
I made a decision yesterday to travel home early today with Phil on the train rather then do a short ride with Ellio, Jeff and Steve. I was concerned that the train might be full if we left later, particularly on the train trip from southern cross to Union…
After breakfast it was off to our favourite coffee shop for a coffee ahead of going to the train station. Interesting that the coffee shop proprietor spoke to us and said that she recently moved to Bendigo to set up the shop from Melbourne where she had been operating a coffee shop. The trade we witnessed each morning indicated she was doing well.
After saying goodbye to the boys doing the ride it was off to the station by bike. Phil walked with his walk on wheelie bag.
We arrived at the station with half an hour to spare which was enough time to get some lunch for the trip home.
As we boarded the train I looked for my mobile and couldn’t find it! !!!
After retracing my steps I was fortunate to speak to a Vline representative who had picked up my mobile on the seat at the station. Relief !!
So we boarded the train which was not full for the trip home…. About 2 hours. The bikes were put in the racks and we had some seats…. Far cry from the trip up to Bendigo from Melbourne.
On the train I was able to reflect on the trip and on summary we did about 180 kms over 3 days in almost perfect weather and visiting some lovely country. The people we met were friendly and the bakeries we ate at were great.
More than all of this, having the friends on the ride of Phil ( down from QLD), Jeff, Steve and of course Ellio was terrific. Ellio’s organisation of the triple was first class and he deserves my special thanks!
Well done to Ellio and all who rode with me… it was a truly special time!
The pictures are as follows:
Pre- dinner drinks last night
Ellio and Jeff at the Bbq cooking up a storm!
Coffee this morning at our favourite coffee shop!
Bikes loaded on the train
Phil at the seats… note the empty seats!
Hope you enjoyed the Blog of this Bendigo trip ?
Day 4- Maiden Gully, Myers Flat & Huntley 60 kms
Today was a little cooler than the previous 2 days with high overhead clouds but the temperature got up to around 22 degrees!
We started a little earlier as it was a slightly longer ride with coffee at the normal coffee shop at 8.00 am. The coffee shop is quite busy but needs more outside furniture as there are only about 6 seats! It is also a bit of a hub for mums dropping off school kids at the local school Girton Grammar and is handy for school uniforms being next to Rob Stewart uniform shop.
After coffee it was off to Maiden Gully along a route we had done in reverse yesterday and then on to the Great Stupa. This is a huge Buddhist church almost in the middle of nowhere. It is a magnificent church which is the largest of its type in the western world. The theory was for us to have morning tea at the Stupa…. Unfortunately the cafe was closed!
We had a tour of the temple which was interesting and admired what it had to offer. It is still a bit of a “ work in progress” as many of the statues etc in the temple need to be completed. It was interesting to see the number of tourists visiting the site and listening to the tour guides.
So…. Without morning tea we soldiered on to our lunch stop at Huntley. The coffee stop at the Stupa was after about 20 kms and the lunch stop was at the 48 km mark…. So we were told!
The route took us on many backroads through a place called Whipstick! The roads here were a mixture of gravel and rough fire tracks. We managed to travel through this despite some challenging navigation. Ellio was very good here with most of us wanting to get to lunch sooner as we were quite hungry!
Arriving at Huntley we ate at the local bakery with delicious food. I had a homemade pasty and doughnut, the others had pies. All great food for the journey ahead to Bendigo.
The trip into Bendigo was on a bike path part of which we had travelled on earlier in the rides. We managed to miss the part where there were cobblestones and the need to climb fences fortunately.
Nearing the motel, Ellio and I visited the Bendigo Cathedral which is a very impressive structure. The volunteers at the cathedral were very friendly and helpful and pointed out features including the structure of the roof, stonework, organ and some of the past bishops of the cathedral.
I arrived back at the motel at 3.00 pm and after showering and cleaning the bike it was pleasant just to watch the sun set at the end of the day.
Ellio and Jeff are cooking up a storm for dinner as a bbq… I will report on the final dinner in the next blog.
Today’s pictures are as follows:
The grand stupa!
Me outside the grand stupa
The ceiling and main shrine inside the temple
One of the shrines
An emu in a paddock …. I think this is an emu farm
The boy’s checking navigation near Whipstick
Inside the Bendigo cathedral
Todays ride
Day 4- Maiden Gully, Myers Flat & Huntley 60 kms
Today was a little cooler than the previous 2 days with high overhead clouds but the temperature got up to around 22 degrees!
We started a little earlier as it was a slightly longer ride with coffee at the normal coffee shop at 8.00 am. The coffee shop is quite busy but needs more outside furniture as there are only about 6 seats! It is also a bit of a hub for mums dropping off school kids at the local school Girton Grammar and is handy for school uniforms being next to Rob Stewart uniform shop.
After coffee it was off to Maiden Gully along a route we had done in reverse yesterday and then on to the Great Stupa. This is a huge Buddhist church almost in the middle of nowhere. It is a magnificent church which is the largest of its type in the western world. The theory was for us to have morning tea at the Stupa…. Unfortunately the cafe was closed!
We had a tour of the temple which was interesting and admired what it had to offer. It is still a bit of a “ work in progress” as many of the statues etc in the temple need to be completed. It was interesting to see the number of tourists visiting the site and listening to the tour guides.
So…. Without morning tea we soldiered on to our lunch stop at Huntley. The coffee stop at the Stupa was after about 20 kms and the lunch stop was at the 48 km mark…. So we were told!
The route took us on many backroads through a place called Whipstick! The roads here were a mixture of gravel and rough fire tracks. We managed to travel through this despite some challenging navigation. Ellio was very good here with most of us wanting to get to lunch sooner as we were quite hungry!
Arriving at Huntley we ate at the local bakery with delicious food. I had a homemade pasty and doughnut, the others had pies. All great food for the journey ahead to Bendigo.
The trip into Bendigo was on a bike path part of which we had travelled on earlier in the rides. We managed to miss the part where there were cobblestones and the need to climb fences fortunately.
Nearing the motel, Ellio and I visited the Bendigo Cathedral which is a very impressive structure. The volunteers at the cathedral were very friendly and helpful and pointed out features including the structure of the roof, stonework, organ and some of the past bishops of the cathedral.
I arrived back at the motel at 3.00 pm and after showering and cleaning the bike it was pleasant just to watch the sun set at the end of the day.
Ellio and Jeff are cooking up a storm for dinner as a bbq… I will report on the final dinner in the next blog.
Today’s pictures are as follows:
The grand stupa!
Me outside the grand stupa
The ceiling and main shrine inside the temple
One of the shrines
An emu in a paddock …. I think this is an emu farm
The boy’s checking navigation near Whipstick
Inside the Bendigo cathedral
Todays ride
Day 4- Maiden Gully, Myers Flat & Huntley 60 kms
Today was a little cooler than the previous 2 days with high overhead clouds but the temperature got up to around 22 degrees!
We started a little earlier as it was a slightly longer ride with coffee at the normal coffee shop at 8.00 am. The coffee shop is quite busy but needs more outside furniture as there are only about 6 seats! It is also a bit of a hub for mums dropping off school kids at the local school Girton Grammar and is handy for school uniforms being next to Rob Stewart uniform shop.
After coffee it was off to Maiden Gully along a route we had done in reverse yesterday and then on to the Great Stupa. This is a huge Buddhist church almost in the middle of nowhere. It is a magnificent church which is the largest of its type in the western world. The theory was for us to have morning tea at the Stupa…. Unfortunately the cafe was closed!
We had a tour of the temple which was interesting and admired what it had to offer. It is still a bit of a “ work in progress” as many of the statues etc in the temple need to be completed. It was interesting to see the number of tourists visiting the site and listening to the tour guides.
So…. Without morning tea we soldiered on to our lunch stop at Huntley. The coffee stop at the Stupa was after about 20 kms and the lunch stop was at the 48 km mark…. So we were told!
The route took us on many backroads through a place called Whipstick! The roads here were a mixture of gravel and rough fire tracks. We managed to travel through this despite some challenging navigation. Ellio was very good here with most of us wanting to get to lunch sooner as we were quite hungry!
Arriving at Huntley we ate at the local bakery with delicious food. I had a homemade pasty and doughnut, the others had pies. All great food for the journey ahead to Bendigo.
The trip into Bendigo was on a bike path part of which we had travelled on earlier in the rides. We managed to miss the part where there were cobblestones and the need to climb fences fortunately.
Nearing the motel, Ellio and I visited the Bendigo Cathedral which is a very impressive structure. The volunteers at the cathedral were very friendly and helpful and pointed out features including the structure of the roof, stonework, organ and some of the past bishops of the cathedral.
I arrived back at the motel at 3.00 pm and after showering and cleaning the bike it was pleasant just to watch the sun set at the end of the day.
Ellio and Jeff are cooking up a storm for dinner as a bbq… I will report on the final dinner in the next blog.
Today’s pictures are as follows:
The grand stupa!
Me outside the grand stupa
The ceiling and main shrine inside the temple
One of the shrines
An emu in a paddock …. I think this is an emu farm
The boy’s checking navigation near Whipstick
Inside the Bendigo cathedral
Todays ride
Day 3- St Anne’s Wine Loop 48 kms
Before I get on to the ride today, I should mention the dinner we had last night at Borchelli restaurant…. It was great Italian food at reasonable prices in a lovely environment. Well done Ellio for the choir restaurant!
After another good night of slit was up at about 7.15 am for breakfast and getting ready for the ride. Before we took off it was over to the coffee shop nearby for the “fix” before we left.
Once again the weather was cooler as we started but gradually warming as the day went on to about 25 degrees…. The was little or no wind all day.
The first part of the ride out of town was up a couple of steepish hills but it was good to use them to warm up the legs!
After leaving town we were on very good roads which were reasonably quiet thankfully. I said to Ellio that the roads so far on the rides today and yesterday were very good…. Almost immediately the roads started to deteriorate gradually until they resembled those I experienced in New Zealand on the Big River Wiuta ride. You will see some of this in the photos below.
After emerging from these roads we made our way to the Calder highway where we found a lovely cafe called Happy Jacks Farm Cafe. I lovely cafe which has just opened and the owner was very friendly. We had coffee and a cake which were served by a lady from Canada who was quite chatty until I mentioned how much I liked the current Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney. She was not a fan! Seems the conversation slowed a bit after this!
After leaving the cafe we made our way to St Anne’s winery. It was on a good road despite some of it being on gravel.
The winery provided us with a charcuterie lunch which we washed down with a glass of white wine. The view from the winery balcony was lovely looking over the vines.
After the lunch it was off again to Kangaroo Flat where we had an afternoon tea which was a milkshake for me! The road included a couple of bigger climbs but it was around an area called Big Hill… thank goodness we did not climb the Big Hill!
At afternoon tea we met the lady who owns the Happy Jack cafe doing the banking at Kangaroo Flat! It was great to catch up with her again.
The ride into Bendigo after arvo tea was along a lovely bike trail … at one stage we had to travel along the river which brought back back memories of the cobbles ride yesterday!!!
We arrived back at the motel at about 4.00 pm after riding 48 kms…. I lovely day of riding…. Well organised again Ellio.
The pictures today are
A blurred start of the ride…. Got to clean the camera lens!
2 pics of the road!!! And the creek crossing !
Morning teas at Happy Jack
2 of lunch at St Anne’s winery
Today’s ride
Day 2 - Bendigo Marong Eaglehawk Loop 46 kms
After a great night of sleep…. With Ellio in my room… I was awake at around 7.30 am.
After a quick breakfast we were ready for coffee at the coffee shop next door by 8.30…. Good coffee enjoyed by us all.
The ride started at around 9.15am with a crisp coolish morning at around 10 degrees and no wind. The day warmed up to about 25 degrees by lunchtime and was magnificent in the afternoon.
The first part of the ride took us past the early gold mining sites on the outskirts of Bendigo which was quite interesting. The gold mine we visited mined around 46,000 ounces of gold which is quite staggering!
After this we went on to Marong for morning tea. We made a few unscheduled detours as a result of some navigation errors which meant we had a late morning tea/ early lunch. No problem as the coffee was good and the cakes and sandwiches were excellent.
After this it was off to Eaglehawk …. Once again we had a bit of a delay with Jeff getting a flat tyre. Phil showed off his tube repair skills in an attempt to put a patch on the tube BUT alass the valve was buggered and we had to replace the tube…. All good to continue.
The ride to Eaglehawk was through some nice country and on a good road with great shoulders which made for safe riding despite some truck traffic.
Going into Eaglehawk we went along the Mulga Bill trail made famous for the Banjo Paterson poem … brought back memories of my schooldays when our English teacher read us the poem Mulga Bill from Eaglehawk!
Arriving at Eaglehawk we found a lovely cafe for a snack lunch. We were joined at the table by a busker playing his trumpet and telling us stories of his life as a teacher in Hong Kong. All very interesting!
After this it was on for the final ride into Bendigo. The bike path had some “interesting “ detours which made for some challenging navigation as you might see from the pictures…. There was a cobblestone part which would make for interesting rides in the European ride including one part where we had to climb over a fence with our bikes!
After these navigation challenges it was in to the town and back to our motel. We arrived back at around 4.00 pm.
A good day of riding in perfect Autumn weather!
Tonight we are off to an Italian restaurant for dinner which should be great!
So far Ellio’s organisation has been perfect.
I will report on dinner in the next post.
Todays pictures:
The mine we visited
Jeff’s puncture being repaired
An interesting church in Marong.. built in 1862!
The Mulga Bill trail near Eaglehawk
Our busker at Eaglehawk…. Phil didn’t like the music
2 pictures of the detour on the way into Bendigo including climbing over a fence!
Todays route!
Bendigo Hub and Spoke - Day 1
Today was the travel day to our motel at Bendigo.
It started with me packing the panniers on the gravel bike and setting off for the short ride to Union Station. I was a little early so made my way to the local coffee shop at Mont Albert where I met one of the Wheeliebinners, Anthony Walsh who was out on an early morning walk. He is not coming on the Bendigo ride as he is recovering from a recent health issue.
After coffee I met Steve Seymour and Phil Eager at the station to travel to Southern Cross to catch the train to Bendigo. The trip on the local Metro train was ok but with free travel operating on all trains in Victoria it was hard to get a seat with bikes!
The trip was a little more complicated as the train to Southern Cross with us requiring a change of trains and platforms at Flinders st.
We managed to get to Southern Cross to meet Jeff Jones and board the 11.00 am train. It was delayed due to an incident with some youths trying to misbehave and causing a situation where Protective Services officers were required to intervene. These youths were filming all their activities for later publicity on the web!
The train to Bendigo was full of day trippers which made finding room for us and our bikes quite challenging!
We arrived at Bendigo at about 2.15 pm and after a short ride we arrived at the Cathedral Motel which will be our home for the next 4 nights. The motel is very comfortable.
After unpacking we made our way to the Beechworth Bakery for lunch. This is a branch of the famous Beechworth Bakey in Bendigo and I was not disappointed with much of a toasty and vanilla slice.
After lunch we shopped for some breakfast items and waited for our fearless leader Ellio to arrive on a later train after his family luncheon in Melbourne.
After Ellio arrived it was time to watch the Dees win again the Lions by 2 points…. What a win!
After a brief celebration it was time for dinner at the Boundary Hotel which was a typical country pub with great food.
It was great to catch up as a group of 5 and enjoy the company and talk about many things goon in the world now. Catching up with Phil who is down from Brisbane was great.
After the longish walk to the pub over a few hills we managed to find a more relaxed route home to our motel.
A great first day and I am looking forward to the days of riding ahead.
Pictures are as follows:
At Union station… note Phil’s personal purser Abdy
On the Bendigo train…. Bikes in the foreground
Our home for the next 4 nights
Day 2 - Bruthen to Bairnsdale 34 kms
This morning we were awake at about 7.00 am and surprisingly it was relatively clear of rain.
As we showered and packed up our things there was a little drizzle… we made our way to the Honey Pot cafe for breakfast and down came the rain! Bugger!
Our resident weather forecaster ( Rob the weatherman) said of we waited until 9.30 am the weather would clear…. And sure enough it did!!!
Well done Rob…
So we started on the ride which was once again on a very good surface. The first 15 kms were on a gentle climb which was ok …then it was on to a good downhill to Bairnsdale on a sealed surface…. Great riding!
We crossed a few rivers which were flowing rapidly as a result of the rain in the region.
We arrived at Bairnsdale at about 11.30 am and found a cafe to enjoy a well earned celebration at the end of the ride.
The logistics of the car transport then came into play with Steve picking his car up from his friend ( about 7 kms away transport there by Uber) then picking me up to travel back to Orbost to pick my car up.( About 100 kms one way)
Then Steve and I returned to Bairnsdale to pick up Jeff, Rob and Elio.
By this time it was raining again and packing the bikes and bags was done in the rain!
We left Bairnsdale at about 3.00 pm and made our way home with a stop in Rosedale for a drink and late arvo tea!
The ride home was uneventful and I arrived home at about 7.30 pm tired but satisfied with a great couple of days of riding.
We saw some lovely countryside and met some lovely people along the way. The Gippsland Rail Trail was absolutely outstanding all involved in it creation and maintenance must be thanked for their hard work and efforts…. Well done!
We all need to thank Steve Seymour for organising the ride and doing such a wonderful job in doing the reconnaissance of the trail and organising our accommodation which was outstanding in the local pubs in Orbost and Bruthen.
We all had a great time despite the challenges of the weather sometimes!
The photos today are:
A familiar sign at each road junction shows the distance to go!
All of us on the Nicholson River Bridge
A view of the Nicholson river
All of us at the end of the ride
Today’s route
Day 2- Orbost to Bruthen 68 kms
Lady night we had a great meal at the Orbost hotel which was washed down with some good Pinot noir and some good conversation.
We awoke early and were ready for breakfast at around 8.00 am. The weather looked ok with no rain at this stage!
We made our way to the local bakery for breakfast and I enjoyed an egg and bacon roll and a coffee. As we were enjoying our breakfast it started to rain! Bugger!
Looking at the weather forecast and the radar it looked good for us to start the ride at 10.00am … so we waited!
We made our way to the start of the Gippsland Rail Trail. The weather was drizzly rain but the riding surface was very good thankfully.
After about 15 kms we were met by a group of people who were the members of the Gippsland Rail Trail association who were opening a newly renovated section of the trail…. It was on for the Wheeliebinners as we were the star attraction for the opening. We were photographed and interviewed by the press gathered at the opening and enjoyed the notoriety. Seems we might be the featured story in the local newspaper!
This group are responsible for the operation and maintenance of the trail and receive no financial support from government. They rely entirely on donations and fund raising for all they do…
After this it was on further for the ride which was again in light rain or drizzle with some times of no rain fortunately.
Along the way we saw these magnificent trestle bridges which crossed the rivers on the trail. The engineering of these bridges was truly remarkable and all the wood was cut from local trees in the area. For us though each bridge could not be crossed as they were either burned in bushfires or we’re in a bad state of repair. We had to navigate the creek/ river crossings by a short sharp descent and climb!!
After this it was on to Nowa Nowa for lunch which was good as we all needed a break after 40 kms in the rain and after some longer steady climbing…
Lunch was a pie and milkshake for me. Unfortunately the rain started and we waited for it to ease!
After resuming the ride we then made another(!!!) steady climb of about 10 kms … a real bugger after the milkshake really! It seem d to me that the steady climbing was never going to end!
Finally it did and we made it to the top of the climb to enjoy a great downhill to Bruthen…
We arrived at about 4.30 pm in what seemed to be warmer sunny weather.
The pub at Bruthen was very good and after enjoying a lovely warm shower we had a cleansing ale and pub meal. I had a reasonable lamb shank with some red wine.
We had some good chatter over dinner about the days ride and about the enjoyment of the day despite the weather.
A great day of riding with good company.
I will sleep well tonight!
The pictures will be sent on a separate blog as I lost my first go at today’s blog!
Gippsland Trail Ride
Today was the first day of our ride which was the car trip to Orbost for the fist night.
The car trip was about 300 kms with us in 2 cars until Bairnsdale where we left Steve’s car at a friend’s property. The trip we are doing is unsupported and we are carrying our gear…. Bit of a change from past Wheeliebinners rides which are supported with my Ute.
The logistics are that I will leave my car at the pub in Orbost for us to do the ride from there to Bairnsdale with a stop overnight at Bruthen.
The distances are about 70 kms to Bruthen from Orbost and about 40 kms from Bruthen to Bairnsdale.
Today we left Melbourne at about 9.30 am after packing the bikes on the Ute and we made stops at Yarragong for coffee and Stratford for lunch.
It was good weather thankfully and the roads were good with few potholes.
The guys are a bit worried about the rain which might be coming tomorrow but we are well prepared with wet weather gear…..hopefully.
We arrived at the Orbost hotel at about 4.30pm which was good timing. It is an “old style “ pub with shared facilities. It seems that it is the only accommodation in town!
We has a walk around the town centre which is pretty deserted with many of the shops closed or derelict which is sad as the town was a thriving centre many years back.
We are having dinner at the pub tonight which should be interesting… the bar is quite busy with locals and they are having a “poker/joker” night tonight which has a poteyprize of $6000!
It was a relatively easy first day in the car but I am looking forward to riding on the trail tomorrow.
Today’s pictures
Lunch at Stratford
The Orbost pub… home for the night
Day 34 & 35- Travel Home
The day started in the Seychelles which was warm and cloudy… the surf was up outside our hotel room!
After breakfast we packed our bags with a spare bag to take our cloy for the day given the plane trip to Dubai was leaving at around midnight from the Seychelles airport!!!
The day was spent resting and enjoying the last day ….
It was largely uneventful with us having lunch and dinner before taking the cab back to the airport.
We were lucky enough to enjoy the airport lounge ahead of the 4 hour flight to Dubai. Chris, Neat and the kids were in economy whilst we were in Business Class. Unfortunately the Emirates plane was very old which was a bit disappointing but I managed to get some sleep.
We arrived in Dubai in the early morning… about 6.00 am and said goodbye to Chris, Neat and the kids as they were to stay in Dubai for a few days ahead of travelling to Hong Kong then home.
Sad to say goodbye after being with them for the past week!
We enjoyed the business class lounge ahead of boarding the plane for the trip home…. 14 hours!!!
The trip home was ok and I had some sleep after watching some movies…
We arrived at about 6.15 am in Melbourne and it was chaos with plane flights coming in from everywhere and the border checkpoints were crazy. It seems that having technology helping the border guards is more inefficient than ever when there are multiple planes landing in Melbourne at the same time!
Anyway it was great to be home but the weather was really cold!!! After temperatures in the 30’s for most of the holidays it was a real struggle to adjust to Melbourne’s weather!
On reflection the holiday of about 5 weeks was great and for me the highlight was our time in Madrid!
The photo today is of the scene outside our room with the waves crashing onto the rocks… quite spectacular!
Day 33- At rest in the Seychelles!
I was awake at about 7.30 am to greet the day with a swim with Cooper!
The weather was warm with scattered clouds and brief periods of sunshine… temperatures in the mid twenties with high humidity!
After the swim it was off to breakfast with the normal fare of juice, yogurt and scrambled eggs, washed down with 2 cups of cappuccino! A perfect start for the day.
After breakfast we retreated to our room balconies and enjoyed some reading time interspersed with a couple of swims. At lunch we had some fare that was purchased from the local supermarket!!! ( I think that it was!) and a beer or 2 !
It was time to tune into the AFL preliminary final between the pies and the lions…. Seems a good game which the Lions won quite well in the end!
After this it was more reading and swimming for the rest of the day. The grandchildren enjoyed the surf on the beach near our rooms which was great!
At around 6.15 we watched the sunset and enjoyed a drink to celebrate the day. We later showered and enjoyed a good dinner in the Rockpool restaurant… far cry from it’s simmerly named cousin in Australia… good food though!
We finally finished dinner at around 9.30 pm and after a bit or reading I was ready for b d an hour later…
Today was our last full day in the Seychelles… we leave for home tomorrow!
The picture today is the grandchildren playing on the balcony near our rooms adjacent to the beach.
Day 32- Seychelles bus trip
After waking at about 8.00 am I had a swim with Cooper ahead of breakfast. I have found the swim great to get the juices flowing for the breakfast!
After breakfast we sorted out the local bus ticket app and took the short trip to the nearby village of Beau Vallon … the bus trip was “ hairy” to say the least with the driver taking the corners in the winding road at what seemed to be high speed!!! The stops at each bus stop were very sudden which made the whole trip a bit of a thrill.
Arriving at the town we enjoyed a walk along the white sandy beach looking at the various hotels and beach clubs which was interesting. We managed to find a restaurant called La Plag for a drink and snack lunch. It overlooked the beach and we enjoyed a fare of sushi, chips and ice cream….
After lunch we bused back to the hotel… this time the trip was even more “scary “ with the driver taking all sorts of risks… At one stage I looked at the back of the bus to see our party lurching from one side of the bus to another as we sped around the corners…. We were glad to get off the bus safely needless to say!
At the hotel it was time for a rest and time to listen to the AFL preliminary final between the Hawks and the Cats… good that the Cats were victorious!
After this we were greeted with cloudy skies and some light rain… Robyn had organised for one of the hotel staff to crack open a few coconuts for us to enjoy… he did a great job with a pick as the agent to prize open the shell and a mashetti to open the inner shell. Our show on this was enjoyed by a number of other guests particularly a German Gus and his wife. We presented a coconut to him at dinner which he declined… the translation of his reasoning for not accepting our gift was very unclear.
After this it was off to the buffet dinner which was Mediterranean tonight…. A good feed with some white South African wine. We were in bed a little after 8.45 pm
Another great day with the weather deteriorating at the end of the day.
Picture today is the inside of the bus!!!
Rather scary!!!
Day 31- in the Seychelles the surf was up!
Today after a great night of sleep I was awake at about 8.00 am and had a early swim!
The weather was perfect and the temperatures were in the mid twenties… as the day wore on the humidity increased a bit… being near the equator makes a big difference … the Seychelles are about 4 degrees off the equator.
After breakfast it was a lazy day of rest until the surf started to increase and before too long we were into it!
There were big sets of waves every 5-10 minutes which was great fun for Cooper and Mikayla. I guess the waves might have been about a metre and were all shore breaks. All great fun for the grandchildren.
Chris and I did a shop at the local shop about 500 metres from the hotel. We got bread , cheese, salami and various other assorted things for us to enjoy at lunch.
After lunch I had a break in the alternative area near the swimming pool where there was a lovely shaded deck where I could read a book! I think I did a bit of sleeping along the way.
After this it was back to enjoy the sunset and have a final swim for the day!!! Great to enjoy the swim as the sun was setting!
Dinner tonight was most enjoyable are Al La carte restaurant where we enjoyed locally caught fish with salad, frito miso, and some chips… great meal to reflect on the day!
All enjoyed by us all
Today’s picture is the surf!
Day 30 - In the Seychelles
It is hard to believe that we have been away from home 30 days!!!
This morning I woke at about 8.00 am after a good night night of sleep… the weather was good so I went for a swim ahead of breakfast.
We had again to do a tour to Victoria to see the big tortoises in the botanical gardens. So at about 10.00 am we were piked up by our taxi driver… grumpy Joe … who transported us to the botanical gardens…
The weather was quite hot and we walked to the enclosure where there were about 30 larger tortoises!! Magnificent to see and it seems they have long lives with ages around 250 years! Quite incredible.
After this we had a walk around the botanical gardens which were ok at the best!!! Seems they need to do a bit of upkeep to make them a real tourist attraction.
We walked to the centre of Victoria which is the capital of the Seychelles to meet our taxi driver… grumpy Joe!
The ride back to the hotel along the coast was good and we stopped at a nearby beach to buy a couple of boogie boards for the grandchildren… the beach was magnificent with white sand!
After arriving back at the hotel we relaxed in shade from the hot sun and humidity!!
At sunset we adjourned to the balcony to watch the sunset and enjoy a a glass of wine and beer!
After sunset we cleaned up for dinner which was a creole bbq which was at best okay!
We went to bed again around 9.30 pm
Another great day!
See below for the picture of the giant tortoises!!!
Day 29- at our hotel
I am writing this blog after a big night and day at our location at the hotel near Victoria…
The day started a little late for me at around 8.00 am with a swim and shower and breakfast… the weather was warm with some cloud cover but temperatures in the mid twenties.
After breakfast we lazed by the beach outside our room and enjoyed the warm weather. The grandkids enjoyed the surf that was offered up and found a floating foam cover from an ice bucket to do some body surfing along the beach.
We had a snack for lunch and a couple of them local beers!!! After this it was reading and sleeping for me to while away the afternoon…. God knows how much weight I have put on in this trip!!!!
As we watched the sunset with a glass of wine we reflected on the day and readied ourselves for dinner…. The choice was clear Indian or al la carte … we chose the latter!!! The thought of a vindaloo made me feel bad!
The meal was very good and we enjoyed the company of Chris , Neat and the grandchildren…
After a lovely dinner we were done by 9.30 pm!!!
Another great day
The picture is surfing nippers style in the Seychelles!
Day 28- At the Seychelles!
I am not sure what day it is??? Confusion rains !
The trip yesterday played havoc with my body clock… traveling in an easterly direction is the worst for me as the time zones shorten the trip!!!
The trip yesterday ended with a lovely dinner ahead of an early night to bed and a good night of rest…. We can hear the breaking waves outside our room which makes for a restful night of sleep!
Robyn was awake at about 6.00am and I was up at around 7.30…. Bit of a change as I am normally up first!
We waited for CC and Neat and Cooper and Mikayla who were coming in from Dubai on the same flight we had the day before… sure enough at about 8.00 am they arrived a bit tired after the flights from Johanesburg to Dubai then Dubai to the Seychelles….
As their room was not ready we had buffet breakfast which was good… g th e chatting for the day really was a catch up on our respective trips so far. For them it was about the excitement of the visit to Kruger National Park and the safari driving and for us it was the sophistication of our trip through Europe.. such a contrast on both accounts to the tropical islands of the Seychelles!
After breakfast the room was ready so after changing into bathing toga it was into the water for a swim… the weather was hot and sunny with some humidity! The temperature would have been near 30 degrees!
Around lunchtime we adjourned to the buffet lunch and had a snack lunch.
We went for a walk in the afternoon up the road to see other close by areas which was interesting but it was hot!
Getting back to the hotel we were glad to have a swim and laze around the beach outside our apartments which was refreshing!
Throughout the day both Cooper and Mykala had some sleeps as they were very tired.
At the end of the day we enjoyed a lovely sunset…. See photo…. And enjoyed a Chinese buffet for dinner.
We were in bed by about 9.00 pm …. Good to catch up with the family again after a long time.
Day 27- Travel to Seychelles
The morning began with a cup of cappuccino in a cafe I found quite near the main square near our hotel. I have been there several times now and the lady in the cafe seemed to know me!
Heading back to the hotel it was time to pack ahead of going on the next leg of our journey to the Seychelles which involves a leg from Madrid to Dubai then from Dubai to the Seychelles.
After packing and having our last breakfast at the hotel we did some shopping for about an hour. The weather was quite warm at about 25 degrees and quite humid.
After checking out of the hotel we were driven by the Emirates shuttle to the airport which is huge!
Checking in was ok but sorting out the VAT refund was quite difficult…. Seems that giving refunds on taxes is not a high priority… can’t understand why!
Before I leave Madrid I want to say how much I enjoyed the city and its ambience. The people were friendly and the trips we did on foot were amazing. We stayed in a very funky hotel which had some interesting quirks which were annoying at times… the most difficult being the small room size!
The flight to Dubai was running a bit late due to some mechanical issue but the 7 hours were spent sleeping and watching movies.
We arrived at Dubai at about 1.30 am and we had to make a quick transfer to our connecting flight to the Seychelles…. It was made more difficult as we had to change terminals! There were also some issues about the directions to change terminals which made the whole thing a bit more stressful. We arrived at the plane as they were making the final boarding call which was a relief! Hopefully the bags would be on our flight too!
The flight from Dubai to the Seychelles was about 4 and a half hours…. It is almost directly south from the UAE …Fortunately we had some breakfast on the flight before landing at about 6.30 am!!!
Fortunately our bags made it and we were able to find our hotel shuttle driver who took us on the 30 minute drive to the hotel resort where we are staying for the next week.
The main island of the Seychelles is Mahe and it is a bit south of the equator. The weather here is fine and somewhat cloudy with an odd shower every now and then. The drive was through the main city of the Seychelles which is Victoria. The terrain is hilly and from what our driver says there are some agricultural activities including coconut oil and cinnamon.i think tourism is a big contributor to the economy.
We arrived at the Bliss Hotel which is right on the coast with a small beach. Our hotel room is great with a view over the beach and ocean. Unfortunately our room was not ready when we arrived so we had a small wait which for me provided time to catch up on some sleep.
It will be good to stop here after the hectic few weeks we have had so far with travel and sightseeing… the weather looks like being warm and tropical. Good for me to find a palm tree to read a book!
The staff seem friendly here which will make our time more enjoyable.
Picture is a view from our balcony at the Bliss Hotel.
Day 26- in Madrid
I was up early this morning looking for a coffee at about 7.30 am …. Seems that there must have been some big celebrations last night with all the garbage that was being collected on my way to the cafe…
The morning started coolish but developed into a fine an clear day! The temperature reached the mid twenties which was quite acceptable.
After coming back to the hotel , I showered and changed and we went to the buffet breakfast which was quite good. A muesli and scrambled eggs for me….
After breakfast we made our way to the Royal Palace as we were advised that there King was in town and there would be much ado with horses and chariots… more like carriages…. Sure enough there was plenty to see around the Palace as the horses and guards made about 4 trips to collect the VIP’s. We both think the King was in one of the parades!!! We are completely uncertain as to why he was in town as normal residence is quite away from Madrid. I tried to look online to see whether there was something but to no avail… urrrggg!
After the pomp and circumstance of this we wondered up to the San Miguel market for a bit of lunch which was a fruit salad washed down with a fruit juice.
After this we made our way back to the hotel and I sorted out the washing while Robyn did some online work at the business desk. This included getting our visas to the Seychelles.
After sorting out the washing and the “admin” we settled in for a few hours by the pool. I managed to finish my fourth book… bit of a record for me!
At about 6.30 pm we returned to our room to shower and change for the Flamingo dance show! Not sure how you dress for these events but we looked good for the show.
The short walk to the venue was through parts of Madrid we have not really explored and it would seems the area was in the more affluent parts of the city.
We arrived early for the show and were able to look at possible venues for dinner…
The show commenced at about 7.30 pm and went for about hour. It was high intensity dancing by the ladies which was quite impressive. The guitar player was very good and there were 2 blokes who sang , tapped their feet and clapped!
The dancing was very good and the flamingo dresses added real colour to the show.
After the show we went for dinner at a nearby restaurant called “ Cannibal” and the food was excellent. We ended up sharing each of 4 dish s which seems to be the way here in Madrid.
The walk back to the hotel was pleasant as there was a lot of people out for the Friday evening either for drinks or dinner or both….
The day for me was probably a bit of a “ bad hair” day as it seemed nothing went right but the dinner and the flamingo show made it rather special.
Tomorrow we are off to the Seychelles via Dubai so it will be a big day of travel.
The picture today is the carriage going to the Palace!
