Tuesday 24th November 09

Barry visited the sunspot clinic and was found to be all clear.

Wednesday 25th November 09

We had a day out in the Dandanong hills visiting some of the gardens that allow dogs. Firstly the George Tindale Memorial garden which unfortunately had a large portion closed off from the public due to tree risk.

This of course meant that the entry donation became proportional to the amount of garden we got to see. What little we did get see was quite nice and in all probability the rest would have been as good if we could have seen it, but in the final analysis it wasn’t worth opening my wallet.

We moved on to Alfred Nicholas Memorial garden which lived up to expectations and gave us plenty of good exercise as it involved a walk down to a sculptured lake and arboretum.

This of course meant a long climb back out.

The hydrangeas were only just in the process of opening so in some respects we were a little early for the visit, but other flowers were finishing so we may have been too late but with gardens it is just down to luck. This garden did receive a donation.

We finished the garden tour earlier than expected so we drove out to Olinda Falls which proved a little trick to locate, and then meant leaving the car/dog in the car park at the picnic area, as dogs are not allowed in the Dandanong Parks. We ignored the last part and took Foxy down to the Falls with us, which were actually cascades rather than falls with little water despite the recent heavy rains, and didn’t really inspire us, but it gave us another climbing work out.

To fill a little more of the afternoon we drove on to Silvan Dam Reserve which we visited and enjoyed some years ago, and then headed homeward looking out for a café for afternoon tea and cake in one of the many sleepy villages. The first one in Kallista was very difficult to access the car park and once that was achieved we discovered they are closed on Wednesdays. We eventually found a spot in Belgrave where the ‘Puffing Billy’ train runs from, and sat in the alfresco area and watch the world go by for a while.

We also received the good news that our Adelaide friend Jenny’s cancer removal was successful, and that she is recovering well.

Thursday 26th November 09

Day of rest as weather is wet and stormy.

Friday 27th November 09

We drove down to Stony Point where we have booked in to stay after Christmas to see what we had let ourselves in for as it is a very small out-of-the-way place but looks peaceful for while the kids are on school holidays.

On the way back we stopped and had a proper look at the beachfront in Frankston.

We where pleasantly surprised how nice it was and discovered it actually had a small canal type river running along the side of the town.

Saturday 28th November 09 and Sunday 29th November 09

Watched the test match.

Monday 30th November 09

Barry visited a doctor regarding the strange way his thumb bends, clicks from one position the other, rather than a smooth bend. Apparently called a ‘trigger finger’ and has been referred to a specialist for possible surgery.

Tuesday 1st December 09

We drove in to Melbourne to the Botanical Gardens and found a parking spot right outside the gardens alongside the Yarra River at only 60 cents an hour. We chose this outing as the weather is fine and warm and ‘dogs are allowed’.

After entering the gardens we walk along one side of the lake for a while and then backtracked and walked round the other side to the tea room as it was lunch time.

Here we had a rather over priced lousy lunch but manage to photograph a ‘Superb Blue Wren’ as opposed to a ‘Splendid Blue Wren’ that we get in the south west of WA. We then wandered through the gardens to the visitors centre near the main gate and old observatory and put our names down for a free guided tour.

Whilst we waited for that to begin we crossed the road to the war memorial for a while.

The tour consisted of some old biddy telling her little stories as we wandered back through the gardens, some of which was of interest or amusing but much was total rubbish so Barry and Foxy tended to wander slightly apart from the small group.

After the 1.5 hour tour we made our own way through part of the garden that we had not yet seen and then made our way back to the car. We sat by the river for a while watching the enthusiastic rowing teams doing their thing, both learners and experienced, and then headed for home.

Wednesday 2nd December 09

Day of rest catching up on emails, etc.

Thursday 3rd December 09

Very windy so watched the Australian Open Golf.