An Adelaide Institution

Haigh's Chocolates at the entrance to the wonderful Victorian Adelaide Arcade off Rundle Mall in Adelaide city.

Cutest News This Year

Rabbit saves owners from house fire in Melbourne

Tinaroo Raid 2008

Flynn's - Yungaburra Food Hero

MDR & MB unearthed a rare gem at Yungaburra on Friday night. For their first night at Tinaroo they decided on dinner at Flynn's, a charming little restaurant that serves very good classic dishes with great service.

The duo shared an entree of duck liver & cognac pate which turned out to be quite a large portion with lovely fresh ciabatta, also made on the premises. The pate was sublime and the pair quickly scoffed the lot, MDR was practically licking the bowl he was so enthused with it.

For main course both went for the duck confit and were not disappointed, the duck meat was so flavoursome and tender. The duck was served with some fresh, lightly cooked cabbage and some sliced potato, the duo were pleasantly surprised that a bowl of lightly dressed fresh salad leaves was also included.

To prolong the pleasure even more MDR had a slice of chocolate torte which more or less had pure chocolate oozing out of it's centre. MB opted for the creme caramel, another classic that was very enjoyable.

The service was efficient, unfussed and very affable and the restaurant, while quite compact, has great ambience. Can't wait to return for more.

Tinaroo Raid

The Wooden Boat Club of Cairns organised a gala event for Queen's Birthday weekend at Lake Tinaroo, dubbed the Tinaroo Raid. It's really an excuse for builders, collectors and restorers of traditional wooden boats to compare their prized wooden boats. The club organised an excellent curry night on Saturday in the marquee by the Lake. Sunday was the important day with a tongue-in-cheek competition which centered around a pirate boat throwing coloured ping pong balls into the water which contestants then had to retrieve and throw into a basket suspended between the two masts on the pirate's boat. MDR was in his little dingy acting as safety officer and actually rescued someone from a capsized dinghy.
There was also a peoples choice award for the best boat and a dragon boat demonstration. The dragon boats were actually Crocodile Boats as featured in the accompanying picture. The croc boats scooped the pool, winning both the pirate competition and the peoples choice award. The work and skill that went into these boats was amazing, really spectacular and very deserving of their popularity.

The Dinghy

MDR's dinghy finally gets a workout! Here he is launching it at Lake Tinaroo, ably assisted by John Breen (born in Gordonvale of Dutch parents).

Tinaroo Lakes Resort

MDR & MB really lucked out with accommodation for their weekend jaunt to the Tinaroo Raid, ended up in a huge townhouse on the waterfront. The townhouse was superb with 3 bathrooms, 2 bedrooms, fake log fire heater and all the modcons you could ask for, including 3 televisions. The view was a delight, this photo taken from the front deck. The BBQ by the way is a council installation however it looks as if it's part of the resort, it's very nicely designed and very handy to the folks staying at the resort.
The only downside of the stay there was the reptile incident. On Saturday, after a drive to Herberton MDR & MB returned to the townhouse and encountered a baby black snack inside, a few metres from the front door which has a large gap at the base. MDR managed to rustle up the little blighter with a beach towel and relocate it outside. MB was very cautious after that just in case any of the baby snake's siblings were also thinking of visiting!

Welcome Winter

The MB family celebrated the first day of winter with a visit to the Flecker Botanic Gardens.  A nice lunch was had at the cafe then it was a stroll through the gardens to see what was in flower. 

The most spectacular flowering plant at the moment has to be the Jade Vine, it has masses of weeping tendrils with the most unusually coloured flowers, photo below.

Jade Vine

Currently putting on a glorious show at Flecker Botanic Gardens, Cairns.

Warm Tinny

Those creative ratbags in the ad agencies have been at it again and produced an hilarious advertisement for Campbells soup.  MDR keeps telling MB about it but she keeps missing it on TV, luckily though it's on Youtube.  A great send up of Aussie beer ads.  Speaking of advertising the MB family are also enjoying Wil Anderson's new program on the ABC "The Gruen Transfer", this is another great vehicle for Wil Anderson and uniquely entertaining.

Wireless

Remember when the "wireless" was the big chunky radio with the scratchy sound? The MB household was propelled into the new wireless age today with the help of neighbouring MENSA member, CC, who installed a new Linksys Wireless-G ADSL2 802.11g Gateway. CC very patiently explained all of the marvelous security features and has set up the wireless network to accept only computers that are registered at the gateway device. CC also made the wireless network invisible to all other computers as well as encrypting the wireless signal. All in all MB is very impressed with this new device and is thoroughly enjoying the extra internet speed or as Linksys put it, "blazing fast connection", as well as the portability offered by the wireless network.

Government Charges Rant

MB hasn't renewed her passport for some time and recalls that the fee when she did so in 2004 was around AUD$100.00 for a passport with a validity of 10 years.

Just heard from PTA who renewed his today that the current fee for a basic 32 page passport with 10 year's validity is now $200.00 and as he'd mislaid his old one, which was about to expire, there was another fee of $66.00. Jeez Louise, that's a huge slug. What with income tax, GST, stamp duty, land rates, exorbitant parity pricing fuel excise and alcohol excise to name a few we must be shelling out at least two-thirds our income to the bloated ranks of fat cats in the City Councils, State and Federal Governments.

Kevin Rudd's Love Child?

Whilst browsing through a friend's friends on facebook MB came across Tapio Shrey, a member of the European Youth Parliament, who looks uncannily like Kevin Rudd.  Young Tapio shares Kevin's boy next door looks and aspires to politics, could they also share DNA?

Gecko Chronicles

Some freaky news from Darwin this week about a rather adventurous gecko. Living in the tropics means sharing your living space with a bunch of geckos.  They especially love hanging around walls and ceilings near the lightbulbs so they can catch unsuspecting insects and many a night the MB household has observed large geckos cannibalising baby geckos. 

MB's pantry has one very large gecko dubbed Gary. Gary ventures out of hiding when the pantry door is closed, then when one opens the pantry door one sees a sudden movement out of the corner of one's eyes which always gives one a bit of a start. Gary is the biggest gecko MB has ever seen and he's still growing.

In view of what's happened in Darwin MB recommends you always keep your trousers on when in the tropics!

Save the Pandas

Pictured is Eljay feeding the panda bears, plus one polar bear. Eljay picked some leaves off one MB's indoor plants, piled them all up nice and neat on the landing then arranged the bears around their "snack" in a very neat circle.

Trivia Games

Just read in the Green Guide (Melbourne Age) that Buzz!: Quiz TV for PS3 is due out soon. Any mention of electronic games usually make MB's eyes glaze over and bring on a fit of yawning, but mention Trivia Game and MB is agog. 

If only she had a Playstation 3.  This latest version of Buzz, made in the UK with Australia's own Jason Donavan doing the voice of the cheesy host, looks even more promising with users being able to download additional question packs and even write their own questions.  There will also be a facility for players to compete with others over the internet. These are definitely wishlist items.

Lesson #2 with the FBI

Learnt some more staples of Italian cuisine last night with Daniele. Daniele very charmingly stresses he is a "full born Italian" or FBI and has been classically trained in Italy. Daniele likes acronyms, one of his printed recipes calls for EVOO and MB was completely mystified, turns out it's extra virgin olive oil, obvious really.

Last night it was Osso Buco, Risotto alla Milanese and Biscotti. The Osso Buco was served with the Risotto and was superb. Risotto is a fairly tricky dish to make so it was good to learn the proper technique. MB however did manage to toast the rice in the first stage and thought it was ruined, but thankfully it turned out fine in the end.

The Biscotti were amazingly easy, again this is something MB has struggled with in the past.

You really can't beat learning by doing. Next week it's seafood dishes, including the ever popular calamari.

ASX Investor Update May 08

Feature article in the latest bulletin from the Australian Stock Exhange - "Better returns from long-term investing".  What a scoop!  They must have had to really draw on some huge resources to work that one out. 

First Class at La Scuola Italiana di Cucina

Four hopeful students turned up for Daniele's class on Tuesday night. First lesson was how to make that perennial favourite, Tirami Su. Ill Maestro's (Daniele) version is very rich and actually easier than the one MB learnt years ago from her Italian language teacher. Tirami Su actually means pick me up and it's not pronounced Tira Misu.

Next up was Bruschetta, then Pasta Amatriciana. The pasta dish was a lesson in simplicity and absolutely superb.

Daniele is very passionate about his food and his teaching is really quite inspiring. One of the students doesn't eat tomatoes which Ill Maestro handled pretty tactfully considering the tomato is the cornerstone of Italian cuisine.

Next week's class will focus on Biscotti and Osso Buco.

Melbourne Comedy Festival Roadshow

The Melbourne Comedy Festival Roadshow rolled into Cairns last week with three shows over the Labour Day long weekend.

MDR had seen it advertised in the papers last week but with most of the weekend spent building a vegie garden and chopping down trees at father of MDR's, it was forgotten about until Sunday.

The duo hastened into the Civic Theatre on Sunday around lunchtime to buy tickets but were told tickets would only be available one hour prior to the 8pm show.

Not to be deterred MB jumped online back at home and bought two tickets which turned out to be in the second row, this had the pair speculating that the third and last show in Cairns wasn't going to be very well patronised. This turned out not to be the case, the show was in fact a full house.

The 2½ hour comedy gala had the audience doubled over in laughter the whole time with the highlight being Tripod, these guys are really talented entertainers with their lightning fast repartee and songs with ridiculous lyrics.

The stand up comedians were amazing and entertaining, MB never fails to be impressed with their bravery in fronting a crowd with absolutely no props and actually making a bunch of strangers laugh, it has to be most daunting experience ever.

Dave Thornton, Hannah Gadsby and Asher Treleaven were the standup highlights for MB. Greg Fleet was OK but his long winded LSD trip story wasn't really that amusing, although some his observations around Cairns were pretty good, especially his take on the Cairns' Table Tennis Stadium, which is really just a small building no larger than an average size restaurant.

The roadshow is a great way to showcase a sample of Melbourne's truly singular festival in far flung places around the Australia. MB noticed on the website that the roadshow is also being taken to Singapore this year. Will be interesting to see how it's received there.

La Scuola Italiana di Cucina

Daniele the chef at the nearby Crystal Cafe in Redlynch Shopping Centre is starting up Italian cooking classes tonight.

MB has heard that Daniele is an ex-chef from Panaroma Restaurant in town so has decided to attend the first class tonight to try and get some more knowledge on genuine Italian cooking, one of her favourite cuisines.

What a Load of Horsesh*t

The Vegetable Garden project for CF is nearly complete. To ensure a bountiful crop MB advised that plenty of manure and blood & bone is necessary, so MDR put out some feelers and was told by an equestrienne colleague where he could find some free horse manure.

MB & MDR called in today and filled up the ute. Surprisingly enough the horse manure didn't smell at all, resembling more a mound of dry compost. Luckily this was so as the wind was very strong and blowing "manure dust" over the pair.

Will be unloading the manure later today into the custom built vegie garden enclosure. The topsoil will be delivered tomorrow (Labour day public holiday) from Limberlost and seedlings can then be planted.

Sausage Tree

Cairns Botanic Gardens are home to some very weird and wonderful botanical specimens. Pictured above are the fruit of the sausage tree, a native of tropical Africa.

MB took Hiroko & Keiko for a visit to the gardens on their second last day in Cairns. The trio also had a delightful long lunch at the Botanic Gardens restaurant, always worth a visit.

Beach Shack - Macham Manor

Went down to Bramston Beach last Saturday for lunch with Hana at her friends' beach shack (friends live in Switzerland). Hana was down there doing some maintenance, including tiling a bathroom, she is a pretty handy lady to have around.

Bramston Beach is only an hour south of Cairns and another world away. Mobile phones (including Telstra) don't even work there.

It was a picture perfect day with loads of Birdwing and Ulysses butterflies showing off. An ideal day for a lazy lunch on the verandah.

MB was so enthused she made a website for the Holiday Shack as the owners are keen to get more holiday rentals, check it out at http://machambeachmanor.com.

Harp Recital

Cairns was very lucky to enjoy French-Australian harpist, Sebastien Lipman and his Japanese wife, Sayo (pictured above at right), also a harpist on April 20.

MB's good friends from Tokyo, Hiroko & Keiko, were in town, so she purchased 4 front row tickets to attend the recital. MDR however wasn't keen to go so another great friend, Jan, stepped into the breach.

The modern harp is an amazing instrument, it actually has 7 pedals so a huge multitude of notes and tones can be produced.

The harp music was divine and the duo were very entertaining, going to a lot of trouble to explain each music selection and the mechanics of the harp.

April Harvest

MB got back home during the week and found to her delight that the monsoon has moved on, the southerlies are blowing, humidity has dropped dramatically and nights are cooling. 

Cairns is emerald green, has water galore and the MB family garden is showing off it's bounty.  The lemonade tree, a lemon & orange cross, is bursting with fruit, the first year it has produced anything of significance.

MB's Panama Red passionfruit which wasn't even flowering in March is now laden with fruit and the sweet potatoes are growing like trifids and continually need cutting back.

Yes that's yet another snake skin, noticed this skin today just lying on the grass under the lemonade tree.

The juice from the lemonade fruit is superb and does really taste just like it's name!

Out 'n About

MB's visit to the desert city is drawing to a close so a night out was in order. After much research and discussion, it was decided to try out the Queen's Head in North Adelaide. All agreed their menu looked great and as it was a Sunday no live band would be playing.

On the way to the pub the trio noticed lots of people in the city dressed up in costumes, a roman centurion and samoan girls in traditional dress (luckily it was very warm), it then dawned on them that these were supporters leaving the Rugby Sevens and the nice little quiet pub was actually full of very merry supporters and a really loud band, making a dreadful cacophany that could not possibly be called music. Anyway the restaurant was down the back, a little way from the noise.

Dinner was excellent, Mami & MB had wagyu rump which was delectable and PTA had a pork dish, the name of which escapes MB now. MB had a funny time of it, nearly getting knocked out of her chair by a drunken rugby supporter who was trying to find the toilets.
On the way out of the restaurant PTA asked a rugby supporter in an Aussie guernsey who won the Sevens, the guy told him he left after Australia got knocked out so PTA was none the wiser until the following morning.

Mami suggested dessert at Spats in Hyde Park (on the way home), PTA described it as very olde worlde with lots of kitsche and would you believe it an olden days cash register - Ka Ching - that was still in use. This is a really charming spot with little booths and comfy sofas for each dining party, the sort of place you'd love to go to on a really cold night for a hot chocolate. Pictured is Mami's banana waffle, Mami is very lucky to have a galloping metabolism, never puts on weight! Spats has a prodigious selection of desserts, coffees, teas and loads of other beverages. MB is very much looking forward to going back there next trip.

Saltbush Chevon

Sunday dawned clear with a forecast top temp of 20 something and MB got to the Adelaide Showgrounds Farmers Market just in time for opening at 09:00am. Lots of other like minded foragers waiting at the gates, which were opened on the dot at 9am, causing quite a stampede. This really is a superb market with a great selection of produce being sold directly by the growers. Some stalls such as an organic orchard's apple & pear stand had very long queues snaking away from it. The highlight for MB was the Willabrand Figs, the last week of the season with two luscious varieties on sale, a very red one that tasted like sherbet and a light green one that tasted like warm honey, absolutely divine.

The oh so cute kid pictured is from Rugosa Paddocks which markets saltbush chevon (goat fed on saltbush). MB bought some shanks and later that day made some oven roasted shanks with chermoula, a huge hit with the human kids.

Many stallholders have generous samples which MB prepared for by not breaking her fast that morning.

PTA & Mami are so lucky to have such easy access to this market, which is less than 2 klms from their apartment.

Adelaide City

Adelaide is bristling with beautiful stone buildings, large squares, wide roads and plenty of pedestrian space.

Foodie Heaven

The mecca for Adelaide foodies is the Adelaide Central Market, just near Chinatown on Gouger Street in the city. The market is very accessible, only about 150m from the tram stop and it also has plenty of car parking. The location is great, the rest of the street is humming with restaurants, cafes and cookware shops. MB, PTA & Mami walked through yesterday and MB couldn't help but stop here and there to exclaim over the beautiful produce, but PTA kept getting impatient and dragging his Mum away. Mami however did manage to buy some Kaki (Japanese for persimmon), one of her favourite fruits which has just come into season.
MB went back today, by herself, so she could have a good look around and picked up some fresh supplies for tonight's dinner, a beef stir-fry. Figs are just coming in so a few of these delectable treats were also picked up. MB also had a very good piroshki for lunch, made by two Kazhakstan ladies who make and cook fresh piroshki at their stand, genuine food heroes these two.

Auction Fever

MB spied in last Saturday's (29 March 08) Adelaide Advertiser an article noting that a collection of memorabilia belonging to the Australian artist Pro Hart was going to auction in Adelaide. Further investigation revealed that Pro Hart was quite an avid and eclectic collector, especially of matchbox cars, glass paperweights and antique furniture. On perusing the catalogue MB spied an interesting Huon Pine chest of drawers, MB being a fan of huon pine furniture decided to inspect the piece and subsequently attended the auction (her first auction ever) on Sunday 30 March 08.
After a browse through the auction room with PTA, MB took a seat to await the auction which began at 12 noon, she then realised that with over 700 lots she was going to get hungry as she hadn't had any lunch. PTA kindly ducked over the road and picked up a bag of nuts to keep the old girl sustained.
Seated next to MB was a Chinese lady who pointed out two lots in the catalogue that she was interested in, her English was practically non-existent and she eventually communicated to MB that MB was to tell her when these lots came up for bidding. MB obliged and ended up writing down the bid amounts on paper as Mrs Chinoise didn't understand when the numbers were pronounced in English! She successfully bid on a large oak dining table and seemed very happy with her purchase.
MB had set a limit on her bids for the chest of drawers and is happy to report that she succeeded in the bidding which came in just under budget. Some of the collectibles seemed to sell for very reasonable prices and there was some spirited bidding for many items. The most notable item probably was one 1930 penny. MB asked the auctioneer the next day how much it went for and was told "18 plus 20% buyer's premium", MB asked if that meant 18 hundred dollars, wrong, it was $18,000.00. By the way the auction house was also the British Consulate office for Adelaide.
MB rather enjoyed the auction and would like to do this sort of thing more often.

Zen Garden, Adelaide

Adelaide is home to a most delightful Japanese garden near South Terrace on the edge of the CBD. This is the Himeji garden celebrating Adelaide's sister city ties with the city of Himeji in Japan. Mami (Paul's girlfriend) is from Himeji which is near Osaka.

Adelaide Rugby Sevens

Hard to believe in this one-eyed city of Aussie Rules supporters that an international rugby sevens tournament is being hosted here this weekend. The local paper mentioned a laser light show being staged tonight from Montefiore Hill in North Adelaide so the trio of MB and son with girlfriend went along for the show. St Peter's cathedral is just near the hill and the trio were delighted to hear the bells pealing as they passed by the brightly lit twin spired cathedral.
The actual light show was located at a statue of the aptly named Colonel Light, spotlights were placed behind the colonel so that the beams of light would appear to be coming from his raised arm which is pointing directly at Adelaide oval. The light show also turned out to be a small VIP event with local dignitaries quaffing drinks and nibbling on canapes. After a dull speech by the sponsor, the SA premier, Mike Rann, stepped up and patted himself and colleagues on the back for pipping Singapore to host this event. Mike Rann also revealed he was born in UK, grew up in NZ and is now an Australian citizen. This goes a long to way to explain how a Rugby event could be staged in Adelaide!
The light show consisited of a handful of fireworks over Adelaide oval, then the spotlights behind Colonel Light were switched on. A chap adjacent to the trio summed it up with "is that all?"
The chap pictured was posing for the press with what appears to be the tournament trophy, he looks like a male model, not sure if he is a player or not?

Holy Trinity of Food Trails in Tasmania

MDR fortuitously found this brochure in Zeehan whilst the pair were en route to Burnie. After an overnight stop in the port city of Burnie, a fairly ordinary city which is desperately trying to become more attractive, MDR & MB headed south-east to Swansea via Latrobe so the food trail could be "sampled". The duo stumbled on the Cherry Barn first so popped in and bought a little cherry & apple pie plus a delightful mini cherry cheesecake. Got directions to Anvers which is a quaint little chocolate factory in a California bungalow which also houses an excellent restaurant, so lunch there was a good choice. MDR had a type of steak and kidney pie that included chocolate in it, however he couldn't taste it.
Next stop was Ashgrove to pick up some of their novel but nice Wasabi cheese, had to jostle with a very large group from a tour bus, but also managed to pick up some nice blue cheese and a small piece of Red Leicester. A few clicks down the road was the Christmas Hills Farm Cafe, by then MDR & MB were feeling very overfed from the lunch and all the samples, so just picked up a punnet of fresh raspberries for later consumption.
Great fun and definitely worth the drive.

Hahndorf Food Hero #2

Saturday 29 March 08: Last stop of the day on the Adelaide Hills tour was an afternoon tea (not necessary but nice) at Udder Delights a boutique cheese factory/shop and cafe on the main street of Hahndorf. This place is fresh, clean, immaculately presented and the cheeses are divine. Their goat curd and chevre are particularly noteworthy.
MB had the best cup of Earl Grey tea ever, made with loose leaf tea and piping hot water and MDR enjoyed a very high quality coffee & chocolate cake with service that was exceptionally pleasant and professional. Simple pleasures like these are in reality not that easy to find but Udder Delights is a true food hero.

The Cedars, Hahndorf

MDR & MB were scratching around for something to do on MDR's last day in Adelaide and saw in an Adelaide Hills guide a small mention of the family home of the famous artist, Hans Heysen, which was open to visitors. This turned out to be one of the highlights of the Adelaide visit, a beautiful home and studio (pictured) set on 130 acres on the outskirts of Hahndorf, and hardly changed within the last 80 years. This home, which is very comfortable but not at all grand, is filled with Heysen artworks and other beautiful objects, books and publications. Not to mention the gardens which are a lovely haven featuring Himalayan Cedars.
Hans Heysen was an exceptionally talented and prodigious artist with an output of over 20,000 artworks in his time. Heysen's famous paintings of eucalyptus trees are iconic and one learns during the tour of his property that he was an ardent conservationist who kept buying land to save the gum trees. He would even pay nearby landholders to stop them from felling gum trees on their land. Heysen was born in 1877 in Germany and emigrated to Australia when he was 7 years old. When Heysen died in 1968 his collection of Rembrandt & Vermeer paintings tragically had to be sold to pay SA death duties, most of these paintings ended up overseas. Luckily in 2003 a Rembrandt self portrait was found in the house and it is now there on display. MDR reckons Heysen is a much better artist and MB wholeheartedly agrees.
It was a real privilege to visit this property as it still a family home for the Heysen descendants and therefore does not look nor feel like a museum.

Hahndorf Food Hero #1

Saturday 29 March 08: MDR & MB took a leisurely drive up to Hahndorf with a view to visiting Hans Heysen's family home. Hahndorf is in the Adelaide Hills and less than 30 minutes drive from Glenelg along an excellent motorway.
Readers may remember an earlier visit by the MB family to Hahndorf in 2005. It was with some trepidation that MB & MDR crossed the threshhold of the Kaffeehaus, MB expected heads to swivel and a hushed silence as they broached the entryway, mustn't be that famous though as no one took a jot of notice. The Kaffeehaus does not appear to have changed greatly, didn't actually stop for coffee just a quick reccy.
After walking the length of the very picturesque main street, MDR decided he was going to have a pie at Pot Belly Pies. MB followed suit and both ordered a beef mushroom & guinness pie. This is a very small shop that only sells hand made pies (12 varieties) and rightly deserves it's award for best pies in SA. One of the best pies MB has sampled. The special of the day was a chicken brie and cranberry which had sold out, not quite to MB's taste but obviously there are punters out there who fancy that combination.

Feeding Frenzy - WOFTAM

MB dropped into the Jurlique sale early on Saturday morning (29 March 08) hoping to snag some of their very nice skincare products at bargain prices. MB saw the sale advertised in the Adelaide Advertiser and was hoping not too many folks saw it, she couldn't be more wrong however as it looked as if half of the female population of SA were there.
There were about 6-8 small tables with a limited range of discontinued Jurlique products, four checkouts and queues to each checkout that were easily 200m long, definitely not worth the wait.
MDR had dropped MB there and gone off the find a servo and was quite surprised when MB called him within 5 minutes of being dropped off. A bit disappointing but worth checking out nonetheless.

Glenelg

Presently staying in sunny Glenelg, quite the tourist hub. Found a very nice apartment on Colley Terrace which is just opposite the beach. Didn't realise when we made the booking that the World Beach Volleyball Tour was being held practically on our doorstep. Quite a huge event with lots of tall, athletic types from all over getting around. Eljay scored a lanyard and other merchandise from the sponsor, Swatch, when we walked by yesterday. He must've flirted with the nice lady handing out the merchandise as none of us grown ups were offered anything! CF & PTA spent a while arguing over who was going to keep the lanyard, looks like CF won that round.

Norm's Coolie Wonder Dogs

A trip to the Barossa Valley is not complete until you've visited Norm's Coolie dog show near Tanunda.  Norm is still going strong with his not so funny sense of humour, giving all the kids in the audience a hard time.  First part of the show was rounding up some sheep, the dogs were a little disorganised and it took quite some time and countless attempts for the dogs to get the sheep corraled.  Eljay spent most of the show playing on the hay bales in the shed behind the paddock where the show is held.

Norm also got the dogs to sit in a circle and bought the sheep in, then he got all the dogs to lie down togther in row.  The show is set in a lovely rural setting and the property is dotted with old yellow utes and trucks that double as dog kennels, very Aussie.  At the end of the show Norm got all the dogs to jump in the back of a yellow ute so the visitors could pat them, Eljay got up close but some of the dogs were pretty jumpy and snarling at the strangers.

Pear Ridge Restaurant, Margate, Tasmania

Such a promising restaurant, just south of Hobart: "Pear Ridge is the beginning of your discovery of what we're all about. It's really terrific ingredients, many grown in our own garden, which our customers can see in progress. Serving local produce in a way that entices you to explore different tastes each time you visit."
MB was delighted to discover this place, which sounds just like Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall's River Cottage, and dropped in for lunch on their Huon Valley day trip. Soup du jour was cream of spinach and after enjoying some delightful fresh spinach in the campervan MB was keen to sample some more. MDR ordered lamb cutlets which he pronounced very good. The soup unfortunately was a disaster, it tasted like water thickened with flour, unseasoned with no stock nor herbs, just some unidentifiable green flecks in the "paste" which is all one could describe it as.
MDR had also attempted to order a pear juice but this was another menu item not available.
Not to be completely deterred MB decided to try the French Pudding for dessert as it contained seasonal pears and cherries (pear trees laden with fruit in the garden were in plain view). Unfortunately this dessert wasn't available and the chef recommended the hot raspberry waffle. MB thought this was a safe bet as fresh raspberries are still available. The dish that came out did not resemble a waffle at all. Instead we were served a large ramekin of stodgy bread and butter putting with a half dozen raspberries on top. If one wanted to eat a large stodgy pudding this would have been fine, pity their menu descriptions are completely misleading.
The service was super slow and only a handful of diners were in attendance. After lunch MB & MDR strolled through the garden and were amazed to see ripe apples & quinces falling off trees and rotting on the ground. Masses of large pears were there for the picking and there was also an impressive stand of ruby red rhubarb plus a large stand of fennel - none of these were even on the menu. The garden, whilst large and well laid out, looked very sad and neglected.
One wonders if this place has recently changed hands, the present management do not seem to take any pride nor interest in the concept that they are advertising.

Wineglass Bay, Freycinet Peninsula, East Coast Tasmania

Some pics from the Wineglass Bay hike, one has to walk uphill for nearly an hour to get a glimpse of this spectacular bay.  Then it's another very steep hike downhill to visit the actual beach, not for the fainthearted that's for sure.  MDR was very patient with MB on the return hike back uphill, MB was only allowed to have 20 "pitstops"...

Dove Lake, Cradle Mountain

Two of the lovely vistas captured whilst MDR & MB did the 6klm Dove Lake circuit at Cradle Mountain.

Street Rods invade Tasmania

Street Rod convention in Tasmania over Easter with over 400 participants.  Spotted these beauties at the Anvers Chocolate factory just outside of Latrobe in Northern Tasmania.

Cradle Mountain

Cradle Mountain is everything the promotional literature says, absolutely stunning.  MDR & MB did the 6klm Dove Lake circuit and both agree it's the most beautiful walk they have ever done.  Good weather, slightly overcast, around 12c.  Took loads of photos but no USB port on this PC (at van park in Swansea), one of the rare occasions MB has been able to get internet access.  Found an online access centre yesterday in Zeehan but the lady running the place couldn't stop chatting, MB must've been the only customer that day.

Easter Friday MDR & MB plan to visit Freycinet National Park on the east coast home of the iconic Wineglass Bay. 

Night of the Hungry Possums

Stayed a night at Lake St Clair National Park en route to Strahan and the west coast. This is an alpine area which MB thought would be cooler as the word "alpine" suggests. Well it couldn't have gone below 20c overnight and there were bushfires in the region so lots of smoke and ash. Lake St Clair is at the southern end of the Overland Track which starts at Cradle Mountain.

The camping area was very busy with all sorts, trekkers from overseas and grey nomads etc. The camaraderie is wonderful, met lots of other travellers, many of whom had driven down from Devonport (from SA, Vic Qld etc). Some folks from Adelaide were bemoaning the lack of mainland newspapers and were appalled at the quality of food shops, apparently at a store somewhere on the west coast one could find 15 types of gravy mix, but no legs of lamb. MDR has now dubbed the west coast "Gravyland". Our Maui campervan was a hit with our neighbours who all came inside to check it out. One of our neighbours had a custom made camper trailer which looked very space age.

MDR & MB did get a chance to do a 90 min walk around part of the lake, up to a platypus hide, however water level was very low so didn't see any platypi, did spot a black faced possum however.

It was a hot night there so dinner was al fresco on the campervan outdoor table, MDR cooked up our King Island porterhouse while MB did some garlic mash, salad and beans. While eating their dinner a black possum started sneaking up towards MB, luckily MDR spotted it and tried to chase it away, the possum though wasn't shy so MDR had to tap it on the nose with a rock to move it on. These possums are really fat, quite tame and obviously very well fed by the tourists. One of these little buggers jumped on our neighbours' dinner table while they were eating and tipped it over, then started eating all the food that had fallen.
Next morning MDR & MB set off for Strahan and the Gordon River.

Zeehan

Tuesday 18 March: Today was a wilderness Cruise up the Gordon River and over to Sarah Island in Macqaurie Harbour.  Sarah Is. was a brutal prison between 1822 and 1833 and couldn't be anymore isolated either. Strahan was packed with tourists so spent the night in Zeehan.  Zeehan is an old mining town, very reminiscent of Charters Towers and was once the 3rd largest town in Tasmania.  The Gaiety Theathre was the largest in Tasmania at one time.   Found an interesting shop selling antiques and crocoite, a mineral that is only found near Zeehan and is very sought after by collectors all over the world.

Next stop is Dove Lake & Cradle Mountain

Seals near Tasman Island

Australian Southern Fur seals on the coast near Port Authur.  Amazingly rugged coastline.

Stewarts Bay, Eaglehawk Neck

MDR & MB roughing it in the bush near Port Arthur.

Wet n Wild at Port Arthur

Sunday 16 March 08: First night in the "wild" for MDR & MB at Stewarts Bay turned out to be a very comfortable and serene night.  The van has backup power so one can run the fridge and limited lighting.  There is also hot water (gas heated) so one is not really missing any of the home comforts.  The early morning by the water was absolutely gorgeous.
Sunday morning saw MDR & MB kitted up for on a 3 hour tour of the coastline around Port Arthur, including Tasman Island.  This is amazingly rugged coastline with towering cliffs and lots of swell breaking on the rocks.  Saw loads of lazy seals, some dolphins and lots of birds, including 3 species of albatross (if the guide hadn't told us this we would never have known). Great tour in a smallish Rib type boat, luckily it was a warm day, so not too cold, however there was a cold southerly blowing and all passengers are offered a spray jacket, which is really a tent as it goes down to your feet, but it protects you from the wind and spray which is a Godsend.  The tour starts at Stewarts Bay (Port Arthur) then travels along the coastline to Pirates Bay, where the tour bus meets you and transfers passengers back to Port Arthur (about 20 klm).
As the tour finished at around 2pm the pair were famished and decided to try Lemo's Seafood Restaurant near Port Arthur.  A big barn of a place with not a lot of seafood but some pretty good standard fare, MB opted for chicken & vegetable soup which was actually very good.  MDR had stirfried beef and blackbean which looked excellent, very generous servings too.
Hit the road after lunch and made a snap decision to spend a night at Richmond.  It has a small but nice van park with very clean facilities and very cheap laundrette as well.  The park is walking distance to town too which is nice.  On the way back to Richmond stopped at Dunalley to buy some fresh fish at their wharf.  Picked up some nice fresh flathead which MDR decided he was going to cook by dredging in some flour and pan frying.
Just before Richmond is the small town of Sorrell which has a magnificent "pick you own" fruit orchard, stopped in there to get some stone fruit and berries.  Alas all of the stonefruit was finished but plenty of strawberries on offer and also sweetcorn.  MB & MDR had a great time pigging out on strawberries, eating at least half a dozen to each one picked to buy....
After checking in and plugging in at the Richmond van park the pair realised they'd forgotten to pick up some flour.  MB tried the van park shop but no luck.  MDR tried the neighbours, the only ones at home sort of laughed and said why ever would they have flour!  Not to worry it was a good opportunity for a walk so the pair strolled into the big smoke of Richmond to pick some up.  Luckily one shop was open, everything else closed very early.
Had a great dinner of super fresh flathead, hand picked sweetcorn, mash & peas with sweet, tender, juicy strawberries and cream for dessert - just heavenly.

 

Heatwave Hobart

Friday 14 March 2008: Forty degrees celsius in Hobart! Relief though when a cool change came in at around 7pm. MDR & MB did a tour of a shipyard in the morning and saw a massive car/truck/passenger ferry destined for Japan in the shed, just 4 weeks from delivery to the client. The northerly winds blowing through the shipyard were enough to blow your helmet off. MDR then had another visit with some other maritime types so MB opted to hang out in the city, did some window shopping then retired to the air-conditioned comfort of the Hobart Library.  It was a lovely evening so the pair did a promenade through Salamanca Place and ended up the Annapurna for an excellent curry dinner.  Returned to the van park to find both our neighbours' tents had collapsed in the gusty hot winds, poor buggers.   A clone of our campervan parked next door so we compared notes, turns out they were just about to return home so they gave us a bag of supplies that they hadn't used, very nice folks.  MDR worked out how to get the hot water working in the van last night, what a marvel of convenience!

Coffee Please

The trainee nomads landed in Hobart yesterday afternoon, just in time to pick up the campervan from Maui.  The van turned out to be an old clunker with a manual transmission, not at all what was reserved and paid for.  MB even asked the chap at the Hobart Maui office if it was an auto, he said it was then scurried away as it was closing time for their office.  Anyway MDR got on the blower to Maui and after a some discussions Maui are swapping the van today.

Stayed our first night at the Treasure Island Van Park in Berriedale (north Hobart).  This park is relatively close to the city, adjacent to the Derwent river and we have a perch overlooking the river which is very nice.  The park is also conveniently located next door to a sewerage treatment plant.  Just on the other side of the STP is Moorilla Estate winery.  Cadbury chocolate factory is nearby too, gotta go and do the tour there.

MDR is off inspecting shipyards today so MB is getting some shopping therapy in the city.  First priority though was a coffee as she forgot to buy some when the team went shopping last night, found a great deli in the mall and had a fantastic Goroka coffee latte. 

Weather is a balmy 20 something, with a nice cool breeze, perfect. Forecast for tomorrow is 30 something.

Dis is da rulz OK?

Got all warm and fuzzy when I read Da Rulz at a nearby laundrette in Stratford. All I wanted to do was wash one blanket, which I stuffed into a $3 washer. I haven't been hunted down yet.

BBQ Report

MDR's trusty BBQ gave up the ghost last week after at least four years and countless BBQ's. Saturday was spent checking out the BBQ shops and studying the merits of the various BBQs on offer.

After some spirited discussions between MB & MDR a Weber gas BBQ with lid was decided on. MDR picked one up on the way home from work tonight, assembled it in a few minutes, then read the assembly instructions....

MB had some nice pork loin chops ready, they are now cooking very rapidly and making the writer very hungry.

Yoghurt Experiment

Whilst in the UK MB sampled the most delightful goat's milk yoghurt and was inspired by Elizabeth David (from her book, "Is there a Nutmeg in the House?") to try making this herself, especially as there doesn't appear to be anywhere in NQ that makes or sells this gorgeous product. All she needed was a thermometer and a wide mouth vacuum flask, the latter of which she had, so after purchasing a $13.00 thermometer at Robins Kitchen and a litre of fresh goat's milk she was all set.

MB boiled the milk down to three quarters it's original volume to create a creamier yoghurt, then let it cool to the requisite temperature and mixed in a tablespoon of biodynamic Mungalli Creek plain yoghurt as a starter. Then it was into the vacuum flask to sit for 4 hours.

When the "brewing" time was up MB was anticipating a tangy, creamy yoghurt but was terribly disappointed to find the yoghurt completely failed, it didn't take at all. Looks like it's back to the drawing board, might be an idea to try making it with cow's milk instead....

By the way the Mungalli Creek yoghurts are sensational. All of their products are made with biodynamic milk and their flavour and texture is far superior to any other yoghurts available. Best of all Mungalli Creek is in NQ so us Northerners enjoy very fresh product.

The Humble Crepe

Last week at the Wynnum Coles' supermarket MB spotted a box of frozen crepes made by Creative Gourmet. For years MB has been harping on about not being able to buy ready made crepes, this is a product that freezes so well.

Cooking crepes isn't so difficult but being able to buy a box of them, providing they are made with eggs and milk, would be incredibly convenient. Cooking crepes in the kitchen when it's 34C is no fun whatsoever.

MB isn't endorsing these crepes just yet but is very gratified to see somebody has finally taken the initiative to put them on the market. She firstly needs to ensure she can buy them in Cairns.

Zen Fungi

MDR & MB did a daytrip to Montville on the Sunshine Coast today to visit the Spiritwinds gang in their new digs located in a delightful bush acreage on the outskirts of Montville. Tony & Deb cooked up a storm for lunch with fresh Mooloolaba prawns and oysters for starters then barramundi for main, all topped off with some fruit mince tarts and liqueur chocolates bought from Aldi by MDR & MB, who also contributed a very nice organic baguette from the Northey St Markets in Brisbane which they visited prior to heading up to Montville. Mustn't forget the very nice stout too that Tony brewed up, went very nicely with the lunch.

The Spiritwinds gang are sharing their block with lots of wildlife, such as yellow faced whip snakes which like mating in the pool, blue tongue lizards, funnelweb spiders and a large goanna which enjoys eating all the scraps. Tony is also contending with a bat which keeps flying into the house to deposit little parcels of excrement everywhere, he is still working on a method to catch the little critter.

Tony has discovered in his meanderings around the estate, a Boletellus Obscurayadayada, which apparently has not been sighted in the Montville area previously. He has succesfully replanted the rhubarb coloured mushroom into a Bonsai pot. Unfortunately it's not known whether this fungi is edible, and no takers to date have been willing to test the toxicity or otherwise of this interesting mushroom.

The main street of Montville was jam packed with tourists and MDR & MB did a bit of a promenade to grab a Sunday paper. The street is lined with lots of shops selling souvenirs, trinkets and geegaws. One shop, called "Shabby Chic" had a refreshingly honest sign "Fine Purveyors of Shabby Chic Clutter". Clutter of course being an amazingly accurate description...

Afterwards the duo returned to Brisbane in very good time, 75 mins, and dropped into the Yeronga quarters of VT & Hana to take their favourite pooch, Oounoi, out for a walk through the local sportsgrounds to the Brisbane river and back.

The weather has been glorious, mid to high twenties with a lovely cool southerly breeze and relatively low humidity. Going back to hot and humid Cairns tomorrow is not a happy prospect.

Birthday Capers

For MDR's birthday on Friday night, VT & Hana offered to take MDR & MB to their favourite Indian Restaurant, India Kitchen in Westend. Hana was on call and sure enough just as the team left home for the restaurant Hana's mobile trilled and unfortunately she had to be dropped off at the PA Hospital for a medical emergency.

The India Kitchen is a gem of a restaurant with quick service and very reasonably priced and great curries, the breads were divine too. It's a very unpretentious place with two fabulous Indian ladies running the show. After the trio stuffed themselves with curry it was off to a little ice creamery around the corner, where MB sampled some unique Turkish Delight gelati which really did taste just like it's namesake. VT then took the team to his favourite coffee shop and Westend institution, Three Monkeys, for a late night caffeine shot.

After their bacchanalian revels the trio staggered back to the car and headed home. Fortuitously Hana called just before they got the Yeronga so they were able to pick her up en route.

Saturday night MDR & MB were able to return the favour and take both Hana & VT to MDR's favourite Thai joint in wacky Wynnum with the catchy name of "Thai Cuisine" (or "Thai Quisine" according to the menus). This is another cheap and cheerful spot with great Thai food. The dreadful exterior of this place has to be seen to be believed and MB hopes to get a pic in daylight before returning to Cairns.

Interesting Observations

Anybody noticed those very tempting small red fruit in the supermarkets and greengrocers that look just like strawberries? They are even sold in little punnets at very inflated prices and labelled as "Strawberries", however when one bites into one of these delectable looking little fruits, one discovers a hard, crunchy and somewhat flavourless texture. Methinks these "strawberries" must have been GM'ed with apple genes and therefore really should only be marketed as "Strapples". Whatever happened to those delicate, fragrant fruit that a strawberry really is?

On a completely different tack and without segue, MB recently attended a book launch in Cairns, hosted by Cairns Library and tickets to the event were free. MB was running slightly late and on arrival thought that all of the seats at the event were taken, however on closer inspection noticed the front row of seats were all unoccupied so she perched herself there and was practically within touching distance of the author, Monica McInerney. Not that MB had any compulsion to touch the author mind you.

MB has noticed time and again that at an event or speech where the guests have not had to pay for a ticket to attend that the front row or rows are generally unoccupied. Conversely if these same folks had to pay for their attendance, then they would most likely be jostling for front row seats and probably paying a premium to do so!

Rick Stein, where are you?

Since returning from the UK MB has discovered that Rick Stein is presently in Australia. As MB didn't get a chance to go to Padstowe to genuflect at Rick's Shrine there may be a chance she could attend his cooking demonstration at Palm Cove, if only she could find out where it's being held!

A colleague of MB's told her he'd heard quite a bit of advertising for this event whilst she was in the UK, but he couldn't remember which restaurant was hosting this singular event. MB has been calling restaurants at Palm Cove and getting various responses such as "Who's he, never heard of him?" or "If you find out can you let us know where it is?".

MB has scoured the internet for information but so far unable to unearth any forward event information pertaining to Rick Stein. She even set up a Google news alert and is getting tantalising snippets, the last news item a couple of days ago was from a local paper in Ulladulla where Rick cooked a meal for a some sort of club. It appears he was in Adelaide prior to that for a food festival there. So MB can take heart that he does appear to be heading north.

Just caught Rick's new doco about cooking for the Japanese Ambassador in London, thoroughly enjoyed it. Rick really knows how to convey his reverence for fresh seasonal ingredients and simple, but sensational dishes. His enthusiasm and bonhomie is such a delight.

Upcoming Reading

The long awaited instalment in Colleen McCullough's "Masters of Rome" series, "Antony and Cleopatra" has just landed at Cairns' library. MB is fifth in line for this book and is eagerly anticipating a very engrossing and entertaining read. Colleen McCullough's research skills and ability to weave a great story are second to none. Her books are such a treat to read.

MB also noticed a new fiction offering from Paul Theroux, "The Elephanta Suite", set in India. Sounds promising, so MB has also reserved a copy of this.

Speaking of books, Michael Palin will be in Australia soon to launch his new book about Eastern Europe. When MB was in London she tried to attend Palin's book launch there, but missed the last ticket by 10 minutes! Of course he ain't coming to Cairns, just visiting the capital cities dammit.

However our little outpost of Cairns is on the itinerary for Monica McInerney, author of "Those Faraday Girls". MB gets the feeling this book is in the same genre as those of Maeve Binchy, not really MB's cup of tea, but being the loyal member she is, MB will show her support and attend the event as it is being hosted by Cairns' Library.

Hong Kong Foodie Encounter

During the short Hong Kong stopover the subject of Tony Bourdain came up whilst the trio were at dinner, as Bourdain's series "No Reservations" is a great favourite of both MB & MDR. PB mentioned the Hong Kong episode which unfortunately MB & MDR has missed. One of PB's restaurateur mates, Frank (not "Harry" as previously reported), happened to be Tony Bourdain's guide in this particular episode.

Later in the evening, after leaving the Bhatti Bar, the trio came across the pictured Hawker stand just down the street from the bar. PB mentioned this was Raddie's favourite nosh spot in HK, so the trio stopped and sampled some traditional Chinese desserts, Black Sesame gruel and Coconut Sago porridge. A few minutes later Frank happened to walk by and PB beckoned him over so MB could quiz Frank on Tony Bourdain. Frank was very diplomatic, revealing that Tony was a very nice guy and quite the perfectionist.

Three Continents in Three Days

MB & MDR arrived back home yesterday after a two day (1 night) stopover in Hong Kong. The flight from London to HK was approximately 12 hours and the pair arrived relatively rested after being able to sleep most of the overnight flight (even though the pair were travelling cattle class). Not long after checking into the Holiday Inn Express at Causeway Bay it was dinnertime, so it was off to PB's fave Chinese and true to his promise the food was excellent. Also visited Soho and checked out the Bhatti Bar, where they make a great Pina Colada.

The following day the trio visited the Panda bears at Ocean Park. There are now 4 Pandas resident here in upgraded and air-conditioned enclosures. Two of the Pandas were up and about and MB as always was completely beguiled. Ocean Park was spruiking Halloween bigtime with halloween merchandise everywhere as well as the usual props such as monsters, pumpkins etc. Unfortunately they'd also managed to find some "scary" synthesised halloween music which was blaring from multiple speakers, the maximum distance between each speaker could not have been more than 3m, ensuring blanket coverage throughout the park. Peace broke out in the cable car though, thank God no speakers in them. They're probably working on rectifying this omission though.

After building up an appetite at Ocean Park PB again proved himself to be the ultimate host and took the pair to his favourite Sushi joint, Sushi Sumi, for another super meal. MDR was ready for a nap by then so MB went off for some retail therapy. Loads of excellent shopping all around the Holiday Inn.

After an evening dim sum meal at the IFC Mall above the Hong Kong MTR station, the pair took the airport express back to HK airport for their overnight, direct, flight back to Cairns. This is a pretty short flight, around 7 hours, but neither MB nor MDR slept much so both arrived home absolutely wasted. It is however great to be home after 6 weeks away.

The Scoop

You saw it here first, the brand new Monsoon Clipper moored on the south side of the Thames. This is one of the 4 commuter catamarans built in Australia using MDR's design and shipped over to London on decks of 2 cargo ships. Two more catamarans will be delivered later this year.

Osterley Park

The approach to Osterley House from main entrance.