We have had a busy two weeks since we arrived. After spending the first weekend with baby and new Mommy we went back to London to visit with my brother and sister. I did the tourist thing with Josette, who is also in London on her way to Rome to do her semester abroad. We walked for miles along the Thames Embankment and saw the museums and galleries of central London. Also found some interesting restaurants to replace the calories spent walking.
On Saturday, we met with Steve and Helen from Dignity who are also in London also awaiting the arrival of their first grandchild. We had an enormous English breakfast and then took a walk around Primrose Hill and Regents Park. It was quite surreal to see them out of the cruising context in in the pub in London enjoying a pint or two.
My niece, Kate, announced her engagement to Paul and we went to their engagement party on Sunday.
The Admiral and I went to the boat show in Dusseldorf the following day. And what a show it was, you have to hand credit to the Germans for an outstanding show and facility. It was superbly organized and is huge. Allegedly, the largest out of water show in the world, they managed to get hundred footers in there.
We went to see the new Amel 55 and she was, in my view, the queen of the show and represents a huge step forward in design and quality. I am having a serious case of boat lust but I'm not sure if a trade up is feasible.
We went to Amersham to visit the great grand parents and we are now back in Kent with Jessica and Ben and little Sydney for the weekend.
Saturday, January 28, 2012
New baby update
Four generations of ladies
The new baby is now three weeks old and is now much more alert. She has increased her body weight by 20% and is now over ten pounds
Monday, January 16, 2012
Blighty
The Admiral and I are at our daughter Jessica's house visiting with the new bundle of joy. The flight from Oz was pretty awful and i'm just over the jet lag after three days. The effort was worth it, however, as Sydney Isabelle is a most excellent baby. Even though there may be some significant bias in these statements.
We were joined yesterday by the other set of proud grandparents, Sandra and Phil. I have no doubt they agree with me.
More photos to follow once the Admiral and Jessica decide on which ones to post.
We were joined yesterday by the other set of proud grandparents, Sandra and Phil. I have no doubt they agree with me.
More photos to follow once the Admiral and Jessica decide on which ones to post.
Sunday, January 8, 2012
Congratulations to Jessica and Ben
Sydney Isabelle Donoghue entered the world at 0400H on January 6th, 2012. (local time) She is 19 inches long and weighed in at 7 pounds and thirteen ounces, so definitely a keeper. Mother and baby are doing well. Yet another milestone!
Saturday, December 31, 2011
Happy New Year 2012 from Sydney
The new year was heralded by a most spectacular firework display in Sydney harbour witnessed by more than a million people lining the shores. Many camped out for two days to secure a good spot.
The weather was perfect and we had an excellent view of the festivities from Callisto's cockpit.
We wish you all a heathy and happy new year.
Christmas on Callisto with Julie
Julie came to visit with us on Christmas day and we spent an enjoyable day eating all the seafood we pre-ordered from the Sydney seafood Market. On the following day, Julie and I took the ferry over to the South Head to watch the beginning of the Sydney-Hobart yacht race. Hundreds of spectator boats were out in force and I'm glad that we didn't bring Callisto out into all that craziness. The initial leader Wild Oats was finally beaten by the other contender Loyal. We spent some more days exploring Sydney with Julie until she left for New Zealand the day before New Years Eve.
Friday, December 30, 2011
End of year thoughts from Australia
As 2011 comes to a close I have been thinking back over our last few months in Australia. South East Australia to be exact. It is hard to imagine we have been world wandering for 2 years & 2 months!
This is a vast country full of surprises, and we have only experienced one corner so far.
November and december this year have been the coldest start to summer in 51 years, and extremely wet ,so it is not surprising how green the countryside appears to be. We have travelled many thousands of miles by ,train,coach ,bus,ferry ,car, tram and foot through New South Wales ,ACT and Victoria these passed few weeks.( 43 hrs by country link trains and coaches alone ). We have observed through the train windows grazing cows and goats,gambolling( the captains favourite word) lambs and sheep, llamas, horses ,leaping Roos,camels and ostrich. Fields filled with wheat, wild Grasses and thistles,rivers,vineyards,gum trees galore,acacias, olive trees and limited cedar and pine forest. Blackberry brambles line the roads and railway tracks .This corner of the Australia is in full bloom,purple laden jacarandas,horse chestnut,milky White magnolias,eucalyptus especially heady after a rain storm,fragrant frangipani and oak trees line the streets along with gardens abundant with fragrant star Jasmine ,roses, lilies, lavender,gardenias and hibiscus.The screeching from sulphur crested cockatoos, brightly coloured parrots ,noisy magpies and singing kookaburras are amazing,but watching the lorrakeets suddenly dart in an orchestrated fashion en masse stops you in your tracks. If it's not the birds, it's the abundance of insects providing us with natures sounds!
There are recent state laws that give all waterfront property public access ,so there is green parkland throughout our travels. One of the ways we pick up a feeling for our surrounding culture is spending many hours overhearing conversations from our fellow passengers travelling on these long distance trains and coaches, there has been a mixture of tourists, seniors,school children and all I can describe as who you might find in the waiting room at Union station LA, making for a different perspective . Whenever we go to a new country we try to follow the politics on the tv and in the newspapers,so it was enjoyable to watch some of their behaviour when we went to parliament to listen to some of the pollies!
I always thought the Americans had adulterated the English language,but they don't come close to the -Aussies ,Here are some of them in their categories,try to guess their translation ,it is quite literal most of the time.I'll give you some answers.
Occupations and people:
Schoolies,salvos, ambos, pollies,,journos,aboes, firerees,bogans, westies,,tradies
Beer sizes and drink:
A stubby,a pot,a middy,a tinny,a schooner,grog
Food items:
Maccas( macdonalds)chook,sangers,sarnies,nannas,brekky
Containers:
Chilly bins,eskies,Barbies
Clothing, :
Thongs(known elsewhere as flip flops),cozzie,swimmie,bathers,sunnies,akubra(hat)
Places:
A milk bar,a bottle shop,RSL
Fauna:
Roos,skippies,mozzies,crocs,salties
Misc
G'day, ,chrissies, ,buckley's ,pressies ,crook( ill or broken),arvo,,footy,pokies( slot machines)
Another thing I noticed,was that the Christmas decorations ,the carols and all that the holiday season entails didn't begin to show up here before December 15, which was so refreshing from England where they had already began during my recent visit at the begining of November,and the US not long after.
For those of you who know me, you know how important my tea is to me and you may say I'm a tad fussy about it! So I have to praise the Best pot of tea I have had so far was at the Carrington hotel in Katoomba ,good bone china ,excellent fresh earl grey leaves , a strainer and cold milk.Perfect.
Oz seems obsessed with KFC and barbies,no comment on the first ,but the latter being the greatest idea ,the towns ,supply the barbies in public areas with gas free of charge! I am guessing this is due to the devastating fires that occur fairly often. But ,also it seems that promoting families to gather and participate together is very much on the agenda here. There are many incentives to take the children for free on public transportation on weekends. All children, of all ages from state run and private schools wear uniforms,( including hats whenever outdoors,by law due to the high incidence of skin cancer,).
We have found great public transportation values so far for example:
in Sydney there is a 7 day pass for $41 giving you unlimited use of ferries,buses ,trams and city rail. There were Free tourist buses and free inner trams around Melbourne stopping at, or near the main tourist attractions. Plus excellent ,helpful visitor centres .
For tourists,showing a valid foreign passport and flight information ,we are entitled to a $275 backpackers pass for a month($298 3 months) with unlimited use on any 'Countrylink' buses and trains in New South Wales ,ACT,Victoria and Queensland.
To our yachtie friends I would like to clear the myth that wine in Oz is expensive, you can breathe a sigh of relief, just sign up for getwinesdirect.com ,and see some wonderful pricing and delivery, especially with a buy one case get one free offers!
We are about to experience New Years Eve from maybe the number 1 best firework displays in the world ,just sitting on the decks of Callisto.We wish you all a very Happy Healthy New Year for 2012,we should have photos all being well.
This is a vast country full of surprises, and we have only experienced one corner so far.
November and december this year have been the coldest start to summer in 51 years, and extremely wet ,so it is not surprising how green the countryside appears to be. We have travelled many thousands of miles by ,train,coach ,bus,ferry ,car, tram and foot through New South Wales ,ACT and Victoria these passed few weeks.( 43 hrs by country link trains and coaches alone ). We have observed through the train windows grazing cows and goats,gambolling( the captains favourite word) lambs and sheep, llamas, horses ,leaping Roos,camels and ostrich. Fields filled with wheat, wild Grasses and thistles,rivers,vineyards,gum trees galore,acacias, olive trees and limited cedar and pine forest. Blackberry brambles line the roads and railway tracks .This corner of the Australia is in full bloom,purple laden jacarandas,horse chestnut,milky White magnolias,eucalyptus especially heady after a rain storm,fragrant frangipani and oak trees line the streets along with gardens abundant with fragrant star Jasmine ,roses, lilies, lavender,gardenias and hibiscus.The screeching from sulphur crested cockatoos, brightly coloured parrots ,noisy magpies and singing kookaburras are amazing,but watching the lorrakeets suddenly dart in an orchestrated fashion en masse stops you in your tracks. If it's not the birds, it's the abundance of insects providing us with natures sounds!
There are recent state laws that give all waterfront property public access ,so there is green parkland throughout our travels. One of the ways we pick up a feeling for our surrounding culture is spending many hours overhearing conversations from our fellow passengers travelling on these long distance trains and coaches, there has been a mixture of tourists, seniors,school children and all I can describe as who you might find in the waiting room at Union station LA, making for a different perspective . Whenever we go to a new country we try to follow the politics on the tv and in the newspapers,so it was enjoyable to watch some of their behaviour when we went to parliament to listen to some of the pollies!
I always thought the Americans had adulterated the English language,but they don't come close to the -Aussies ,Here are some of them in their categories,try to guess their translation ,it is quite literal most of the time.I'll give you some answers.
Occupations and people:
Schoolies,salvos, ambos, pollies,,journos,aboes, firerees,bogans, westies,,tradies
Beer sizes and drink:
A stubby,a pot,a middy,a tinny,a schooner,grog
Food items:
Maccas( macdonalds)chook,sangers,sarnies,nannas,brekky
Containers:
Chilly bins,eskies,Barbies
Clothing, :
Thongs(known elsewhere as flip flops),cozzie,swimmie,bathers,sunnies,akubra(hat)
Places:
A milk bar,a bottle shop,RSL
Fauna:
Roos,skippies,mozzies,crocs,salties
Misc
G'day, ,chrissies, ,buckley's ,pressies ,crook( ill or broken),arvo,,footy,pokies( slot machines)
Another thing I noticed,was that the Christmas decorations ,the carols and all that the holiday season entails didn't begin to show up here before December 15, which was so refreshing from England where they had already began during my recent visit at the begining of November,and the US not long after.
For those of you who know me, you know how important my tea is to me and you may say I'm a tad fussy about it! So I have to praise the Best pot of tea I have had so far was at the Carrington hotel in Katoomba ,good bone china ,excellent fresh earl grey leaves , a strainer and cold milk.Perfect.
Oz seems obsessed with KFC and barbies,no comment on the first ,but the latter being the greatest idea ,the towns ,supply the barbies in public areas with gas free of charge! I am guessing this is due to the devastating fires that occur fairly often. But ,also it seems that promoting families to gather and participate together is very much on the agenda here. There are many incentives to take the children for free on public transportation on weekends. All children, of all ages from state run and private schools wear uniforms,( including hats whenever outdoors,by law due to the high incidence of skin cancer,).
We have found great public transportation values so far for example:
in Sydney there is a 7 day pass for $41 giving you unlimited use of ferries,buses ,trams and city rail. There were Free tourist buses and free inner trams around Melbourne stopping at, or near the main tourist attractions. Plus excellent ,helpful visitor centres .
For tourists,showing a valid foreign passport and flight information ,we are entitled to a $275 backpackers pass for a month($298 3 months) with unlimited use on any 'Countrylink' buses and trains in New South Wales ,ACT,Victoria and Queensland.
To our yachtie friends I would like to clear the myth that wine in Oz is expensive, you can breathe a sigh of relief, just sign up for getwinesdirect.com ,and see some wonderful pricing and delivery, especially with a buy one case get one free offers!
We are about to experience New Years Eve from maybe the number 1 best firework displays in the world ,just sitting on the decks of Callisto.We wish you all a very Happy Healthy New Year for 2012,we should have photos all being well.
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