Tuesday 1st September 09
Returned to Fort Knox storage to collect various items required to make our stay in
Melbourne more comfortable and then drove out to Page brothers caravan display yard.
Here we found a caravan that would actually suits us to perfection if one modification was possible, which the sales staff assured us it was on three occasions. However, we resisted the urge once again and on arriving back at our son’s home made a appointment with Jayco to do a tour of their manufacturing plant for the following Tuesday.
Garon and Sue returned from their interstate trip, but Garon is crook.
Wednesday 2nd September 09
We drove out to another Jayco agent that operates in an area that contains several caravan brands to look at other options, and other Jayco variations. The other brands had some nice features but cost considerably more and in the final analysis Jayco is better value for money and improving all the time. In the Jayco section we made the same enquiry regarding the modified style of van that we would like and this time the agent contacted Jayco planning and found it was not possible, which shot the Page Brother sales team. We could have what we wanted if we went to a longer van but this was not an option we wanted to take. We did however, find a caravan that came close to being ideal which was our preferred size, and offers many advantages in comfort and practicality over our current van. This included stabiliser legs that are easier to use, shower with more room to move in, toilet with more room to move in, skylight in the bedroom area rather than a four seasons hatch. The kitchen also has a skylight rather than a small flimsy opaic hatch. The toilet has a window instead of a flimsy roof hatch, which effectively means two of this type of flimsy hatch has been replaced with better alternatives that do not break up due to UV problems. The kitchen range hood has been modified so Barry will not continue to bang his head on it (slow learner) plus the kitchen has a proper pantry and much larger fridge/freezer. The washing machine is built into the en-suite rather than mounted on a platform on the back of the van with a canvas cover. The most important advantage is the dining arrangement is now a café style rather than ‘L’ shaped which makes life easier for both to watch TV with our feet up. We submitted to the urge, and this van, which gives us another advantage in as much as the urge has been satisfied, at least until next time.
The disadvantage that goes with this urge is that the Jayco agent wouldn’t do a straight swap.
Thursday 3rd September 09, Friday 4th September 09, Saturday 5th September 09 and
Sunday 6th September 09
All of these days were wet and windy so all were treated as lazy days with some local shopping
Monday 7th September 09
Barry sanded the front door wooden threshold which appeared to be stopping the security screen door closing positively without being assisted. This improved the situation but the door handles hang down and had to be lifted to the horizontal position to allow the door to close properly. The handles were removed, and as expected, the return springs where permanently compressed from years of use and one was broken, therefore not returning them to the proper horizontal position.
Replacement handles were purchased and fitted, which annoyed Barry as buying the whole thing for the sake of twenty cents worth of springs doesn’t go down well with him.
When the weather is less windy the threshold sanding will be completed so that it can be re-sealed with paint, or varnish.
Tuesday 8th September 09
Rain stopped play
Wednesday 9th September 09
The car was taken to the local auto electrician for a new type 12 pin plug to be fitted to suit the new van which requires extra wiring to accommodate the larger fridge/freezer.
Thursday 10th September 09
Drove out to Fort Knox storage and started preparing the van for the handover and on attempting to exit the computer operated gate failed and wouldn’t let us out. After many computer re-starts and phone calls the staff manually opened the gate by winding the motor with a short handle that took quite some time due to the low gear ratio.
Friday 11th September 09
Rain stopped play
Saturday 12th September
We drove out to Dandanong and had lunch at the popular Grant’s picnic area where one can stand and hand feed the lorikeets, which unfortunately also attracts galahs and cockatoos that cause a lot of damage.
Returned to Fort Knox storage to collect various items required to make our stay in
Melbourne more comfortable and then drove out to Page brothers caravan display yard.
Here we found a caravan that would actually suits us to perfection if one modification was possible, which the sales staff assured us it was on three occasions. However, we resisted the urge once again and on arriving back at our son’s home made a appointment with Jayco to do a tour of their manufacturing plant for the following Tuesday.
Garon and Sue returned from their interstate trip, but Garon is crook.
Wednesday 2nd September 09
We drove out to another Jayco agent that operates in an area that contains several caravan brands to look at other options, and other Jayco variations. The other brands had some nice features but cost considerably more and in the final analysis Jayco is better value for money and improving all the time. In the Jayco section we made the same enquiry regarding the modified style of van that we would like and this time the agent contacted Jayco planning and found it was not possible, which shot the Page Brother sales team. We could have what we wanted if we went to a longer van but this was not an option we wanted to take. We did however, find a caravan that came close to being ideal which was our preferred size, and offers many advantages in comfort and practicality over our current van. This included stabiliser legs that are easier to use, shower with more room to move in, toilet with more room to move in, skylight in the bedroom area rather than a four seasons hatch. The kitchen also has a skylight rather than a small flimsy opaic hatch. The toilet has a window instead of a flimsy roof hatch, which effectively means two of this type of flimsy hatch has been replaced with better alternatives that do not break up due to UV problems. The kitchen range hood has been modified so Barry will not continue to bang his head on it (slow learner) plus the kitchen has a proper pantry and much larger fridge/freezer. The washing machine is built into the en-suite rather than mounted on a platform on the back of the van with a canvas cover. The most important advantage is the dining arrangement is now a café style rather than ‘L’ shaped which makes life easier for both to watch TV with our feet up. We submitted to the urge, and this van, which gives us another advantage in as much as the urge has been satisfied, at least until next time.
The disadvantage that goes with this urge is that the Jayco agent wouldn’t do a straight swap.
Thursday 3rd September 09, Friday 4th September 09, Saturday 5th September 09 and
Sunday 6th September 09
All of these days were wet and windy so all were treated as lazy days with some local shopping
Monday 7th September 09
Barry sanded the front door wooden threshold which appeared to be stopping the security screen door closing positively without being assisted. This improved the situation but the door handles hang down and had to be lifted to the horizontal position to allow the door to close properly. The handles were removed, and as expected, the return springs where permanently compressed from years of use and one was broken, therefore not returning them to the proper horizontal position.
Replacement handles were purchased and fitted, which annoyed Barry as buying the whole thing for the sake of twenty cents worth of springs doesn’t go down well with him.
When the weather is less windy the threshold sanding will be completed so that it can be re-sealed with paint, or varnish.
Tuesday 8th September 09
Rain stopped play
Wednesday 9th September 09
The car was taken to the local auto electrician for a new type 12 pin plug to be fitted to suit the new van which requires extra wiring to accommodate the larger fridge/freezer.
Thursday 10th September 09
Drove out to Fort Knox storage and started preparing the van for the handover and on attempting to exit the computer operated gate failed and wouldn’t let us out. After many computer re-starts and phone calls the staff manually opened the gate by winding the motor with a short handle that took quite some time due to the low gear ratio.
Friday 11th September 09
Rain stopped play
Saturday 12th September
We drove out to Dandanong and had lunch at the popular Grant’s picnic area where one can stand and hand feed the lorikeets, which unfortunately also attracts galahs and cockatoos that cause a lot of damage. 
The authorities are trying to stop this feeding but the chances of success are next to nil.
From there we drove to an open garden display which had a wide variety of protea, camellia and azalea. The garden was only open for the weekend and Saturday had perfect weather for it, whereas the next day was wet and windy.
We moved on to a daffodil farm which really surprised us with the number of different variations in colour and formation, plus that is the first time we have seen vast fields of daffodils.
Sunday 13th September 09
Rain and wind. Garon is still unwell so we cancelled the lunch we were going to have in the Docklands to give him a chance to recover. As previously mentioned we picked the right day for our trip in the hills.
Monday 14th September 09
The weather is reasonable which allowed Sue to do her volunteer work with handicapped children riding horses. We on the other hand had a lazy day with the slight exception of removing an offending metal bracket from the front gate area and adjusting the bathroom door catch to operate more positively
Tuesday 17th September 09
The weather is still quite pleasant so we went into Melbourne by bus and train to Flinders Street Station and then crossed into Federation square and on along the river bank and eventually into the MCG. This was in the week leading up to the AFL grand final so everything is being prepared for footy.
Rain and wind. Garon is still unwell so we cancelled the lunch we were going to have in the Docklands to give him a chance to recover. As previously mentioned we picked the right day for our trip in the hills.
Monday 14th September 09
The weather is reasonable which allowed Sue to do her volunteer work with handicapped children riding horses. We on the other hand had a lazy day with the slight exception of removing an offending metal bracket from the front gate area and adjusting the bathroom door catch to operate more positively
Tuesday 17th September 09
The weather is still quite pleasant so we went into Melbourne by bus and train to Flinders Street Station and then crossed into Federation square and on along the river bank and eventually into the MCG. This was in the week leading up to the AFL grand final so everything is being prepared for footy.
Here we took a guided tour of the MCG ground and facilities which took almost two hours for a one hour tour, and then after lunch in their café we went into the National Sports Museum under the MCG which also took a good two hours.
We left the MCG somewhat footsore so we took the short stroll to Jolimont railway station and took the train into Flinders Street Station (2 stops) and then crossed to platform eight for the Frankston train home.
Wednesday 16th September 09
This was treated as a rest day as Tuesday had been full on.
Thursday 17th September 09 and Friday 18th September 09
Also treated as rest days due to bad weather but took the opportunity to drive to Bayswater and checked out some measurements on the new van for shelving and rugs and then went to a canvas place down the road to arrange to have the annexe fitted after we have taken possession of the new van. This will also require a new draft strip as the old one will not fit due to different door positioning.
Saturday 19th September 09
Shopped at Bunning’s for a few necessary items and then dug two holes in appropriate places by the driveway fence and cemented in two red gum posts to stop the fence leaning in over the drive. .This also included cutting the creepers back that were hanging over the top of the fence into the neighbour’s garden.
Sunday 20th September 09
Dug a third hole by the driveway fence in readiness for a third support post then moved to the fence at the side of the house and tensioned the five straining cables to pull the fence upright where the fence was leaning into next doors garden.
This was treated as a rest day as Tuesday had been full on.
Thursday 17th September 09 and Friday 18th September 09
Also treated as rest days due to bad weather but took the opportunity to drive to Bayswater and checked out some measurements on the new van for shelving and rugs and then went to a canvas place down the road to arrange to have the annexe fitted after we have taken possession of the new van. This will also require a new draft strip as the old one will not fit due to different door positioning.
Saturday 19th September 09
Shopped at Bunning’s for a few necessary items and then dug two holes in appropriate places by the driveway fence and cemented in two red gum posts to stop the fence leaning in over the drive. .This also included cutting the creepers back that were hanging over the top of the fence into the neighbour’s garden.
Sunday 20th September 09
Dug a third hole by the driveway fence in readiness for a third support post then moved to the fence at the side of the house and tensioned the five straining cables to pull the fence upright where the fence was leaning into next doors garden.
We then cleaned up and went to a restaurant in Docklands for lunch. 
This turned out to be a very large lunch so we strolled round the shopping precinct to wear of some of the effects.
On our return home we cemented in the third post along the driveway fence
Monday 21st September 09
Went out to Fort Knox and prepared the van in readiness to do the changeover. On attempting to leave the area the electric gate refused to let us out, despite putting in the correct code three times. This held us and several other people up about half an hour until they wound the gate up by hand.
Tuesday 22nd September 09 and Wednesday 23rd September 09
Rain stopped play
Thursday 24th September
Collected the old caravan from storage and took it to Bayswater Jayco where it was parked alongside the new van to allow us to move our possessions from one to the other, in the rain some of the time. During this time we realised that the Auto electrician had fitted a plug to the rear of the car instead of a socket so when we finished the loading at Jayco’s knock-off time of 4.30pm we went to their recommended auto electrician and had it changed.
Friday 25th September
Drove out to Bayswater Jayco and finished the transfer and then took the new van about 200 metres up the road to have the annexe runners attached and a new draught strip made to allow us to retain our old annexe. This took about four hours during which time we tracked down a few items that we deemed necessary, such as new locking bolts for the spare wheel carrier, and longer bolts to hold the pole carrier on to the van ‘A’ frame as the ‘A’ frame is 20m deeper than on the old van. I then mounted the pole carrier whilst waiting for the annexe job to be finished. We then took the van back to the storage area as we had chosen to extend our stay at my son’s place.
Monday 21st September 09
Went out to Fort Knox and prepared the van in readiness to do the changeover. On attempting to leave the area the electric gate refused to let us out, despite putting in the correct code three times. This held us and several other people up about half an hour until they wound the gate up by hand.
Tuesday 22nd September 09 and Wednesday 23rd September 09
Rain stopped play
Thursday 24th September
Collected the old caravan from storage and took it to Bayswater Jayco where it was parked alongside the new van to allow us to move our possessions from one to the other, in the rain some of the time. During this time we realised that the Auto electrician had fitted a plug to the rear of the car instead of a socket so when we finished the loading at Jayco’s knock-off time of 4.30pm we went to their recommended auto electrician and had it changed.
Friday 25th September
Drove out to Bayswater Jayco and finished the transfer and then took the new van about 200 metres up the road to have the annexe runners attached and a new draught strip made to allow us to retain our old annexe. This took about four hours during which time we tracked down a few items that we deemed necessary, such as new locking bolts for the spare wheel carrier, and longer bolts to hold the pole carrier on to the van ‘A’ frame as the ‘A’ frame is 20m deeper than on the old van. I then mounted the pole carrier whilst waiting for the annexe job to be finished. We then took the van back to the storage area as we had chosen to extend our stay at my son’s place.
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