Menollowerdaplais; gadding about

G'day mates!!!

During the month of April, due to having pre-posted quite a few things, you only caught the occasional glimpse of the trip to the Great Down Under Parts. Have had one or two emails suggesting this was mean of me! Fair enough. However, I am glad I did arrange it that way.

Australian Magpie

Reason one; getting a proper time to concentrate on posts has proved elusive due this being very much a people-oriented trip and one ought to focus on one's friends and relos (sorry, 'relatives') rather than a screen.

Reason two (a); even though I practiced before coming, it wasn't long and using the little hub arrangement and the bluetooth keyboard on the YAMroid is good - but not nearly as good as having Voovoo the Vaio with me!

Reason two (b); loading and processing images and then also to load them into the bloggy is a far less comfy task than am used to on Voovoo. Cumbersome is the description which pops to mind. However, it is being done (in small batches) and now

Aboriginal art from 18th century

have quite a few sorted so can start inserting them here.

Not excuses, note. Reasons. Logisitics and functionality. Am done, let's move on.

I did previously mention that in the first ten days I was staying with Emm and family and that it was a busy, busy time. She had much on her plate as the wedding arrangements are still in finalisation. The event(s) are a week away. Then there were the discourses and ashram functions. All good. On Sunday 14th I trundled the mega-luggage (lordy, I'sa going back to cabin baggage only after this trip!) onto the trains (two required) to get down to Wollongong in the Illawarra district, South of Sydney. (Couldn't finesse the YAMroid to insert an interactive map for you, so here's a plain old screenshot...)

The door to door time was three hours. Forty minutes of that was waiting time so the actual travel time two hours twenty minutes. Did you need to know that? Only if you were interested in scale. As another point of interest (for the interested 😏) is that Mt Colah (Emm's end) is just about on that kink in the M1 (green road) at top right.

Don't Yawn - no yawning with YAM, remember! (By orders of the Mad Snapper.)

You also knew, due to reference earlier, that I was now staying with cuzzy D. The first week we spent yarning (nattering, chattering, flapping our lips), and going out and about locally. The thing with D, though, is that she is something of a nervous driver and wants to use the satnav even for going down the road. Fair enough - only Sat Nav Mrs keeps wanting to send us to Nowra. A lot further South!!! It has given us a few giggles. You saw some images from our trip to 'lunch' and to Sublime Point (the trees and the kookaburra and Crimson Rosella) and the long view of the coastline. We have been to the cinema once (The Chaperone - can I give two and three quarter stars?) and enjoyed a delicious Indian meal down at Shellharbour. The weather has been fantastic, hovering around the low 20's centigrade and light breezes, though cool nights. Somewhat warmer than the usual Aussie autumn, when it can start to get quite nippy and damp.

April 23rd we packed and flew over to Adelaide in South Australia. That is where the rest of the relos now reside. Cousin S who was on Scotland Island had decided to shift there due to her twin sons, Andrew and Daniel, making the decision to move for improved work conditions and opportunities. The 'boys' (in their 30s now) are non-identical and have taken very different paths. Andrew always wanted to be a chef and set himself on that course, transferring to London as soon as he could and taking up some fantastic posts. Latterly he was a chef on the team at Texture. Last November he repatriated to OZ and went where his brother was. Daniel is an electrician and doing very well down there. His wife Mel gave birth to their first child, Ivy Alice, last November. Also in Adelaide are Marc and his wife Marion and their offspring and their partners. Marc is direct cousin to Sally and my third cousin. (Got that??? I just realised I don't have a piccie of M&M, nor of the twins... there will be a family group shot at some point later.)

Until this trip, it has to be owned, Sally was the only family member here that I had any major connection with. Dear old Norma was the lynchpin of  all news. Cuzzy D is her daughter, but until now, we had next to no connection. After this close time with her, we are becoming rather good friends!

Andrew gave up his bed at his mum's place to stay with M&M and we three ladies had a good old catch up time. It was a short trip - but golly, we fitted a great deal in. That will require another two ++ posts!!! Therefore I can officially put here, "to be continued..."

Soffie settles in at Sally's stable.