Melbourne 2017 day 2

Shopping!  That was the plan for today! I had googled the mall and it said that it opened at 10am.  

We haven't bought any supplies for our stay as we are only here for a couple of days. So Lance nipped down to the cafe downstairs to pick up a couple of coffees. We have discovered that it is a specialty bread and brioche place, verrrrry tempting. 

Lance googled the mall and found that it opened at 9am, so with plenty of anti inflammatory and pain relief drugs we skipped out the door for the 8 minute walk. A quick breakfast was had, just yoghurt and a cuppa, and then we found the mall. And low and behold it didn't open until 10am. But he best thing is that we happened across one of my favourite shops, UNIQLO, a Japanese store with all sorts of clothing. We managed 28 items and only two of those were Lance's. "Well done" I must say to myself. 

To Lance's credit he lasted until 2pm. His hip has been good today thanks to a good load of drugs, and he just needed to sit frequently, which merged perfectly with my jaunts into a variety of shops. I carried on until 4pm, but actually found nothing else to buy.  The big news is that I found my way home, I know, I had my phone and that helped me. If you have never used the 'maps.me' ap when travelling, then you need to get it.  You don't need any data, and you just down load the map of the city and you are off. 

Back at our apartment I coerced Lance across the road for a beer and a shandy. We sat outside, as it was quite a mild day. But a cool wind came from nowhere and I have to admit that I had goosebumps. 

Lance wanted to take me down to the Crown Plaza for a look around and a nice meal, we ubered there (isn't it funny that uber has become not just a noun but also a verb, just like Google), and got dropped at the Crown Casino. No we didn't gamble any money and we also didn't gamble on not being able to find our way out! Finally we got through to the other side and wandered down by the riverside looking for a restaurant that took our fancy. Well we needn't have bothered because none could take us! If they could fit us in we would have to be out in an hour. Finally we found an Italian place that would let us stay for a two hour meal. Phew. By then Lance was feeling the pain again and hadn't brought any drugs with him, so he limped into the Gradi Crown and started with one dozes oysters kilpatrick. Well not just him, I had half. The service and food was great, Lance had pizza and I had eyefillet, sliced with parmesan cheese slices covering it, sitting on a bed of rocket with a balsamic jus. Desert was just for me and it was pannacotta, which I love. I do wonder though why when only one person orders desert they always assume that you are going to share it with the other person and they bring two spoons. This happens to me all the time and "I'm not sharing!!!"  We finished with a lemoncello and a sticky (desert wine). 

It is a shame that we had to wander back through the casino to try and find a nice bar. The whole place makes me feel sad. I bet these same people go home and tell their kids off for staring at their phones or Play Stations. And there they are feeding machines with money with a blank look on their face. Sorry rant over, well nearly over because the only bar that we could find was a sports bar and that was equally unpleasant but not so depressing. 

We are really enjoying our apartment, it is very central and comfortable. I would recommend it but worry that you will all come and stay and then there may not be a room vacant when we want one!

Melbourne and Adelaide 2017-2018 Day 1

Here we go off on another adventure. This time we are winging across to Melbourne Australia for three nights and then off to Adelaide to join some friends. 

Getting up early is always easy when you are going away holiday, so the 5am start wasn't too unbearable. And what made it easier this trip was that we had an upgrade to Premium Economy arranged with Air New Zealand. Of course this was a lovely treat, with all the bells and whistles, only to be met at the airport by the driver that I had arranged to whisk us off to the Hero City Pad Apartments in Russell St.  I had booked this online and the apartment is perfect.  One bedroom and a selfcontained area, close to everything. And of course 'air conditioning' which is great because today we hit 34 degrees. 

We were met at the apartment by Tricia, who showed us around. Then we quickly unpacked and hit the streets. This is my very first venture to Melbourne, Lance has been here several times for business, but not for some time.  Following our normal holiday regime, we hopped on the 'Hop On Hop Off' bus to get our bearings. There were two routes on our ticket and we chose to hop on the St Kilda route first, rather than the city route.  This was only because the city route looked quite full. We managed to get a seat on the top deck and the warm wind kept us mildly refreshed. 

The commentary was good, and we picked up some facts. Half way through we decided to hop off in Bay St for a late lunch.  Fish and chips at BELVGA. The sign said that they had the best fish and chips in Melbourne, it was okay, but not great and I certainly doubt that they are the best in Melbourne. I went for a wander and Lance took a seat (he has a bad hip at the moment) and there was nothing to see, just food and beauty places. Back on the bus we decided that we would finish this route and then jump on the City route. And that is just what we did, except when we got on the other bus we had to wait for 20 minutes before it got started and it was roasting.  As soon as the commentary started we realised it was doing the same route! Bugger, never mind, we sat back and enjoyed it all over again. There were no stops that were close to anywhere else and Lance wasn't up to walking far. Then a stop before the last stop the driver said that he was finished and we all had to hop off and walk the last bit, which wasn't far. But after all the sitting Lance had seized up, so we got a cab back to our apartment and had a beer and a shandy across the road. 

After a well deserved rest we headed off to a restaurant called Lucy Liu which is situated in a small dark cobbled lane off Flinders Lane. We had been directed to this place by a good friend and foodie who would never put us wrong. The basement restaurant was humming and we had a 45 minute wait for a table. Perched behind a concrete pole we enjoyed a cocktail and a beer and sat back taking in the vibes. I was a little concerned that the young woman who had greeted us would never find us amoungst the throng of people, particularly because we were hidden behind the pole. But right on cue she arrived and showed us to our table, well not actually a table, but a couple of stools perched at a bar. Please don't misinterpret this as a disappointed tone. We were delighted to be looking straight into the prep area of the kitchen, in fact the chef leaned over and directed us to his favourite dishes, not to be missed. Our waiter also was charming, in a casual chatty but professional way. Food: 8 freshly shucked oysters, we chose 4 with ponzu sauce and 4 with a spicy red nam jim. There was almost a fight over the last oyster, I felt sure that it must have been mine. The oysters were followed by kingfish sashimi with refreshing green chilli and mint and coconut cream. I know, anything with coconut cream is delicious, but I think that this was my favourite of the evening and I wanted desperately to lick the plate. The Peking duck dumplings were great, filled with tasty duck and wrapped in a dough that was fleshy and light. My second pick of the night was the soft shell crab 'JIANBING' in a pancake roll with hoi sin sauce. The crispy crab was complimented with a fresh  Vietnamese flavours and a rush of hoi sin sauce. (salivating as I write this, I need breakfast badly). The chef had insisted that we must have the roasted short rib with rending curry and when we ordered it he leaned over and told the waiter that we wanted roti as well. The beef was melt in your mouth, in fact it was a bit rich for me so Lance had the honour of hoovering it down. Even the roti gets a mention, it was almost like a soft pastry and my regime of not eating grains just flew out the basement window. The roti came with pickled vegetables and a tasty tangy relish. As I was absolutely stuffed I had decided that I wouldn't have desert, but alas, when asked the words just flew out of my mouth "banana fritters please". And that is just what we got, nothing over the top, good old banana fritters with vanilla ice cream. What an outstanding meal, service and ambience. Definitely on our ' places that need a second go' list. Thanks to Debbie Zouch for the recommendation. 

On our 5 minute work back to our apartment Lance needed to stop and rest his hip. It is a bit of a worry really and we hope that it is better tomorrow. 

Day 5 and the last.

Today was a free day  we had tried to book a cruise but were too late. I messaged a friend who lives in Noumea for recommendations on places to go with a hire car and this is how we ended up driving to Parc de la rivière bleue. 

Lance had forgotten to bring his licence so I booked the car and had to drive out of the parking lot. Having never driven a left hand drive, or on the the right hand side of the road you can imagine the feelings that were pulsing through me. Panic. But it was okay, I had 3 voices chiming "keep right, keep right". I only drove a couple of hundred meters, but there was a corner!  Quickly pulling over, we did the exchange and Lance took the wheel. At least then he could manage the reminders about keeping right without crying, which could have happened if I had continued to drive. Garry was the navigator and with only two u turns we got home safely. 

The 90 minute drive was mainly through dry bush land and very red soil. There were no signs and we were relieved to finally arrive at the park. A small fee was paid and we paid a visit to the scrupulously clean toilets. There were camping facilities, however they were up a tree in a hanging tent!  The views of the lake were quite different to anywhere that I have been, the water seemed low. But it was still quite lovely. 

We continued on to a small picnic area, red dust and Australian type of bush. There were trees however that were distinctly New Zealand. They were like a small kauri.  Not as tall or straight but they have to be from the same family. The pretty mountain stream was surprisingly warm, in fact I thought it was warmer than the ocean!

On the drive back we stopped at a Burger place called Quick. Once again the team pushed me forward to use my minimal French. The food was okay, fast food okay. It was leaving here where Lance had become a little more relaxed and nearly turned into the wrong side of the road. But apart from that he was a pro. 

Back at the resort we lounged by the pool before returning to our rooms to pack. 

We were free for dinner so decided to venture a bit further. We grabbed a couple of taxis and set off. I had looked at the name of a restaurant that we had been to earlier to use as a destination point. Jumping into the first taxi I told the driver Les 3 Brasseurs  sil vous plait. I had told Lance the name. But when he got in the second taxi with the others he went blank. He just told them to "follow that car". Then his driver radioed mine and I heard him ask the driver where we were going!  Anyway we got there safely and it wasn't that far from where we were staying. Our choice of restaurant was Il Picollo and the waiter spoke English. Phew. This was a great meal of traditional French food. 

Taxis were ordered, but didn't turn up so we walked home. The evening was beautiful and it was lovely seeing local families eating on the beach late in the evening. There was even a game of pétanque happening, with champagne glasses lined up and a feeling like this was a regular activity. 

Up early and bags packed we departed for the airport. The organisation at the airport was pretty dismal. They had been warned that we were coming through and that there would be 120 premier passengers plus a plane full of conference goers, but it was like they were turning their noses up at us. They didn't open the customs for about 30 minutes after we checked in and then had a ridiculous scanning system. Anyway we all got on the plane eventually. We had a bumpy but scenic flight home. Flying on the eastern coast of NZ right from the tip we had a marvelous view of Aotearoa, the land of the long white cloud. 

Day 4

Up early to join the Noumea in a Nutshell tour for the partners of 'the working conferencees'

It was a tricky job to get on the tour as they had apparently underestimated the interested people.  I had booked myself in, however Sherron had missed the email and was not booked. We checked my name off the list but waited with all the other 'extras'.  In the end they had a few spaces and we managed to get on.  Lance's company were one of the sponsors for this tour and I pulled the trump card declaring in the most polite tone " sorry, we do need to get on the tour because we are the sponsors". Bingo! We had a seat.  

Our first stop was the market. They only gave us 20 minutes but that was enough as many of the stalls had not even set up yet.  I made a couple of small purchases and we were off to our next stop. 

Tjibaou arts centre is on a hill top looking out over the ocean. The buildings are unique in their structure. Five egg shaped constructions all linked and very impressive. But actually inside there was not much to see. 

Last stop was the wine and cheese tasting. I didn't hold out much hope on this one. Domaine du Faubourg was a nice surprise, quite trendy with an outdoor setting. The wine was good and the cheese also was good. It was a nice way to finish the tour.

Back for a swim before the evening events. The resort is right on the beach and it merges with the public beach. Every time we have been down to the beach there has been a man that we have named 'the sun worshipper'. He is slim and wiry and more than extremely tanned. We know that this is not his natural complexion because when the gentle breeze lifts his long grey beard an arch of white flesh is revealed. He is dressed in a dark budgie smugglers (speedos). 

This evening was a fancy dress French night and that is just what we did. We knew to make it simple as we would be transported to Ils aux Canards (Duck Island) for the evening. Compulsoy cocktails were had before we joined the rest of the conference attendees. Sherron and I tried a new one, champ de elderberry. This came with 3 cherries on a toothpick. I don't know what they had been marinated in but they had more kick than the entire cocktail. The head bar guy (I'm sure he has an official title) came up to us and said "because it is French night, I will test you". And he proceeded to ask us in French what we were drinking. I have to tell you that sometimes I even amaze myself. I understood completely and replied in my best French. He did a little nod and complemented me, in French. Must have been the cherries. 

Pre dinner drinks were had on the lawn by the beach and we were surrounded by people dressed in striped tshirts and berets, just like us. However there were some very impressive outfits. Marius and Magda were dressed as 17th century peasants and I think my favourite was the pair of frogs (green Kermit types, not being disrespectful to the French here) and they had snorkels, goggles and a bomb. You guessed it Rainbow Warrior bombers. 

The water taxis arrived and we walk d strait off the beach onto the taxi and were ferried to the island. Wow, there were lights and music and people welding flames, spinning them furiously. Scantily clad island dressed girls lined the pathway and greeted us. Tables were scattered throughout and area with trees and sculptures. It was really something special. After a few words were said we lined up for dinner and the less said the better. Okay, but pretty ordinary. 

Finally a toilet alert. I know my regular readers will be wondering what has got in to me with no toilet talk so far. They had composting toilets on the island. Some in little sheds and some in tents. I chose the shed option. Once inside,very clean and a step up almost like stepping up onto a throne (little smirk happening here). The toilet seat was lime green and afterwards I was meant to add a layer of some substance, or so the sign said, but I couldn't find anything to spread. 

The music was pumping, we had an island dance to watch and a great pyrotechnic display. All in all a great evening. 

After stepping off the water taxi back onto our beach I noticed what I thought was a bundle f rubbish up by a building.  But in fact is was the 'sunworshipper' fast asleep in a sleeping bag. 

Day 3

A very lazy start to the day, breakfast and then lazing in the lounger by the sea.  I even had a couple of swims, although the crystal clear water was a little fresh. Not much to say really except that I am enjoying my novel, Marian Keys - The Break..

After lunch Sherron and I wandered down to the township where I managed to purchase a few small items. The conversion is a bit tricky, I I have sorted it and there should be no surprise astronomically priced items on the visa. We have been trying to arrange a tour for Wednesday, but can find nothing suitable. We went into one agencie de tourisme and everything was in another language, and it wasn't French. They obviously only catered for Asian tourists. So we still have nothing sorted. 

The evening activities were kicked off with a drink in the bar. The Kiwi contingent had organised a blackout. Where we would all wear black. The Australians were not aware of this plan, however you could see the penny start to drop as more and more Kiwis arrived in Allblack and all black tshirts. Several Chou chou (a small tourist train that drives on the road) picked us up and delivered us to a brew bar, Les 3 Brasseurs, that served pizza. We were upstairs on the balcony, which happened to be a great spot. Until the food arrived, we seemed to be the 'no mans land table' and eventually Sherron and I had to go to the kitchen to accost a waitress. The pizza was okay, the base was super thin, the waitress likened it to a pizza crepe. However they arrived so infrequently that they were inhaled by the table and taste didn't really come into it. They served their own brew of beer and which by all accounts was pretty good. However the wine was 'hang over wine' so I didn't partake in too much.  At 9:30pm buses arrived to pick us up and we carried on in the resort bar (decent wine, Villa Maria). 

Day 2

What to say, what to say?

Great buffet breakfast after sleeping on a bed that was fit for a princess!

Lance left early to attend an A.G.M whilst I had a more leisurely start to the day. After breakfast Sherron and I had a wander and sat on the loungers looking out to sea, shortly the 'Women in Contracting' session started, and even though we are not 'in contracting' the wives were invited to attend. Our main speaker was a lady called Sue Nolan, a forensic scientist who has had a really interesting career. Currently she works in workplace drug testing. We received an indepth coverage of the drugs available in NZ and Australia and their history. Of course all of the drugs could not be covered because as we speak the low lifes are still concocting new brews out of terrible substances and getting them ready to distribute. She also covered alcohol and let it be known that I am in the 'safe zone'.  Phew!

After a morning tea of fresh fruit and more pastries we met Lance and Garry by the pool and that was where we stayed. Apart from a short sojourn to refuel at the buffet lunch, which I have to say was pretty good. ( I am not a fan of buffet, often they are ordinary and lack variety). 

After an afternoon in the sun we met with Garry, Sherron, Magda and Marius and wandered down to the shopping centre for dinner. We thought we would get there early, which was a great move. Booking into the Stone Grill for 6:30 proved easy and gave us time to wander along to a bar for a cocktail and beer. My strawberry something-a-rather tasted like a cross between rocket fuel and medicine. It even had a glow in the dark look about it.  Bugger, I should have checked the loo last night after a visit, maybe I had 'glow in the dark' wee. 

It was a beautiful evening and we watched a large cruise ship glide past. 

The meal was okay and our young waiter was charming. He kept apologising for his English, which in fact was pretty good.  I have been feeling pretty happy with my French and have been deciphering some menus for some of the others. Hopefully I haven't put anyone crook yet, but there is still time. 

After dinner we strolled back to the resort where conference drinks were being held. 

Junket in Noumea 24 September 2017

As a teacher I rarely, infrequently never go to conferences of this calibre. However for 5 days I get to accompany my husband Lance on a conference in sunny and luxurious Noumea. 

We are fortunate to be attending with two other other couples, Garry and Sherron, and Marius and Magda. But hey, already I am friends with many other Master Electrician officianados.

Arriving in Noumea we were whisked onto a bus, with a bottle of cold water and told about the country's history and customs on the 50 minutes drive to Le Meridian Hotel. When we have travelled to other tropical islands we have been greeted with a glass of watery juice, at Le Meridian it tasted like fresh juice (there were even lumpy bits) and decorated like a special cocktail.
Check in was seamless and our room is quite luxurious and spacious. We have a peep of the azure blue sea, but mainly look out onto the garden.

Alas we have had the maintanence crew in twice though.  Once to replace a broken safe and then again because one of the sliding glass doors had no lock on it, in fact no handle at all.  I found this out after popping onto the balcony to rest on the day bed in the shade. Aahhhhhh.
My first cocktail of the trip was my obligatory piña colada, one of my favourites. It was rich and creamy, in fact maybe even a little too rich and creamy, but I'm not complaining. We had a quick drink and then wandered over to the beachside restaurant. It seems that everything here is quite pricy; over thirty four dollars for a burger and chips. So I had the tuna tartar and chips for the same price and a local beer.

With a need to walk off the consumption Garry, Sherron and I wandered down the beach and into the local shopping area.  This looked good and we may get back down there for a meal and definitely for a little shopping, although once again, things look expensive.
The conference was officially opened at 5:30 with beach side drinks and some roast pork and salad (is there such a thing as too much crackle). There was a cool breeze and I was a bit chilly, but managed to chat to a few people before we headed into the bar (and warmth) for a couple of mojitos before bed.
I am thinking that there will be a regime of diet and exercise when we get home.