Heading home!

The day started cloudy but with no rain. As I headed out of Dubbo the western plains opened out in front of me. The vast spaces really make you feel free. It's looking very green especially after all the rain.

Some of the roads were in need of repair and the couple of areas of dirt were rather tricky with all the pot holes! I called in to Gulgong a town which should be called the museum town as there were three. I was stopped in my tracks at the Henry Lawson museum as they only took cash! I eventually found a note in my bag and was able to enter. It was quite interesting and I found Henry's mother very intriguing. I then wandered around the town and came across another museum only this one was huge. I have never seen so much 'stuff' in one place! When I went into the school room I was taken back in time  - remembering desks with lids, the inkwell holes and do you remember the double opening desks? This place was a historians delight but I got over it after a while and being cold needed to find a cuppa. I did get my cuppa, warmed up and continued on to Mudgee.

The scenery changed from the plains to hills and vines - you definitely knew you were in wine country. A quick stop at the Information centre gave me the info I needed to head to the vineyards. I found a distillery and had a tasting - they were producing gin, orangecello,  butterscotch schnapps and a lemon myrtle drink. He t stop was a recommended winery where I had some food and a tasting - I  must say $75 bottle of wine is wasted on me!! The view over the vineyard was lovely.

It was an amazing sunset tonight.

Today started foggy and became quite patchy after a while. My biggest excitement (??) was when the satnav decided it didn't like my choice of turn and then took me on a 20km trip along dirt roads through farm lands, lots of cattle grids, until finally we reached tar! I did  eventually reach home!

Where will the next blog will come from ????

Now the rain!

Saturday started with a great sunrise but then gradually went downhill as it poured all day!

I was heading down the back roads following the ' Heritage town's and village's information booklet. I'm afraid some of the blurb was well out of date  e.g. 'browse our boutiques' - my idea of a boutique and the closed shops couldn't have been more different. These town's were rather depressing and I don't think it can all be down to Covid!!

From Molong the 'Animals on bikes' trail had me smiling through the rain. It was the idea of a local lady to make the road trip more interesting and I  think she put it the  local landowners about using old bikes and any old rubbish they had lying around to make a structure that was an animal a bike. There were some really great designs.

It was really pleasant to get off the highway just enjoy the countryside. I know that many of these areas are still in drought so I'm sure they were delighted to see the rain. I was very glad to arrive at my accommodation and get out of it! Thankfully this motel has a very good restaurant and I didn't have to go back out in the rain.

Sunday arrived grey and dull but without rain so I headed straight off to the zoo. I decide to walk around rather than do the 5km drive - needless to say I ended up walking 10km! It is a terrific zoo, so much space and there were quite a few new babies on show. I would definately suggest people come to visit.

Another grey day but it didn't look like rain - wrong! I started by walking the length of Dubbo high street -got to get my steps up! The rain started as I headed towards the old Dubbo jail so it was a good place to get undercover. It was an enjoyable visit. Although the exhibits were rather old it was well done and the stories of the inmates were interesting. I would never have survived in the isolation cell - I would probably have been taken out in a straight jacket!

In the afternoon I headed out to Dubbo airport to visit the Royal Flying Doctor centre. Lots of interactive activities, a live map of the planes in the air and its history. This centre was opened at the end of last year. Another very interesting place and good for a rainy day. I have lots of admiration for all those people who live in such isolated spots in Australia. The RFD service is a very important service

A frosty start brrrrr!

I woke to beautiful sunshine but on further investigation the vines and close hills were covered in frost! It did look beautiful but wasn't much fun scraping the ice off the car  - I haven't had to do that for a very long time!

I set off for Canobolas mountain top - cautious driving was needed because of the frosty road. No wonder I keep seeing danger signs about frost and snow!

 It was a great view but very nippy so back into the car to go to Canobolas lake. There's plenty of water in the lake and it was a good walk around it even if the croaking of the frogs was rather deafening!

Even though many trees are bare you can just see the buds starting to appear and it gives you faith that winter is on the way out! The
Wattle is really beautiful. Moorhens were having a great time chasing each other and the lake was looking very picturesque!

It was then time to go and visit a couple of the local Heritage villages. After meandering down unknown back roads I came to Millthorpe. This town's buildings were a step back to the 1900s.  I  enjoyed going in and out of the little shops and ended up at wine tasting shop. After the initial 5 second 'should I, shouldn't I' scenario I felt it was my duty to support the economy! The owner gave me a rundown of the history and I came away with a couple of bottles!

After a pleasant lunch I  headed through Blaney to Carcoar. Carcoar is known as the 'Town that Time Forgot'  - so true it was as dead as a dodo but a very pretty area! Much of this area reminds me of places in England!

Travel during Covid!

As we are not allowed to leave the country I have decided to travel around New South Wales.
Two weeks ago I headed south, down the coast to Batemens Bay - this was one of the areas which had devistating bushfires at the start of the year. I was shocked by how many kilometres of burnt trees I drove through. It was even sadder to see a couple of wombats and a roo dead on the side of the road - they must have somehow survived the fire only to be killed on the road!!

I stayed next to the river, the weather was glorious and I walked a lot, I feasted on oysters and tried to support the local economy with my shopping! The devastation was overwhelming especially in one little place where 17 businesses were burnt to the ground. Now, 2 weeks later they have some Covid cases so will be shut down again.

School has gone back after 2/3 weeks of holiday so I felt it was time to do another roadtrip. This time my decision was to head west and after a 200km drive I'm in Lithgow for the night. The temperature dropped as I drove up and over the Blue mountains but it was such a beautiful day.
The countryside is spectacular and the roads fairly empty.

After booking in at my motel I headed to the Information centre where I had a good chat to a couple of locals and the set me on the right road to a couple of sights. I started at the Blast Furnace Park where the first furnace was built, mainly by Italian workers, in 1906 and was where the iron smelting happened but in the mid 1920's it was decided to move the operation to Port Kembla  - just down the road from me! It was an interesting trip around  the ruins.

A 2km drive up a dirt road  took me to Hassans Walls lookout which at just over 1100m above sea level gives great views over the Blue Mountains. It was a perfect afternoon and was shortly before sunset, rather cold, but it was a spectacular view  - well worth the drive or hike if keen!

With Covid it's hard to know where to eat when you travel  - I must admit that I had bought cheese and biscuits with me as an emergency food source! I  was lucky enough to find a 'pub' that I didn't feel awkward about going into. I have a long and interesting chat with the female owner and we got around to talking about Gin distilleries that were in the local area. She was telling me about a few places to visit. I had a pleasant meal and interesting conversation.

I woke this morning to a frosty car  - it had felt cold during the night but the electric blanket helped! Thankfully by the time I set off the first had melted and the temperature gauge reach 4C! I  headed towards Bathurst hoping to visit a Gin distillery but alas they are closed in the winter! The distilleries had started to make hand sanitiser.  Onward to Orange with another visit to the local Information centre. With a handful of literature I headed towards Canobolas when I found a walk to Towac Pinnacle Lookout

Final days!

One of the nights, when we were in Inle lake, we visited a night market where our leader Lyn’s mum ran a noodle stall. It was very good. He waited on us which was hilarious and when he put down a dish of chilli I heard him say hot -  now I like chilli but erred on the side of caution and literally had the amount that would fit on a pin head. Well it took my breath away and I truly believed I  would end up with ‘duck’ lips they were stinging so much. Everyone found it hilarious and said didnt6you hear Lyn say it was ‘crying hot’?!!
On our last but one night we had a farewell dinner at the lovely hotel we were staying at. Early next morning a few of us were going to watch the monks line up for alms. I was ready to go when I found myself with my head in the toilet! Eaten too much Les I thought but no 9 others were struck with the same food poisoning. An hour bus ride to the airport, an hour wait, an hour flight and another hour bus ride really got to me and the minute I got to the reception area of the next hotel I was luck that I had a plastic bag to hand because I

never made it to the loo! I was so glad to get to bed and be near a bathroom! Luckily I had an extra few days because I would never have made it on a plane!

I am now worried about eating any food but have managed to find some bread that is not sweet and slowly nibble on that – I yearn for Marmite on toast, must pack some next time! I went for a long walk today through lovely gardens to the centre of the city in the hope of finding a supermarket and some bland food. I was semi successful. I was surprised to hear the sound of fire engines but even more surprised when I saw the firemen sitting on the roof and hanging on the back!!

I was noticeably the only foreigner but you never feel unsafe here.
I start to head home tomorrow arriving early on 21st. Although I’ve had a good time I will be glad to get back to normal food!!

Still travelling around Myanmar

Our trek started at 8 and unfortunately we were told that there were four big hills to climb before we reached our lunch stop – I groaned quietly to myself! At the start there were  frequent stops as the guide showed us the different plants – the loofah plant which looks a bit like a cucumber but is where the loofa sponge comes from, avocado (they are in season so we get lots as part of our meals!), a small type of celery, tea plants and oranges. This area was once a big tea producer and although this still goes on the people get more money selling oranges so that’s becoming the main crop grown.
There are a number of different ethic communities with Nepalese and different local ‘tribes’. Everyone is very friendly and as we’ve learnt the Burmese word for hello you see some happy faces. They chew beetle nut here and I don’t think there are many dentists around!
The hills were ones where you needed to see a point to go to and then pause there to get your breath back and then head to the next tree etc to take in the view – well for me it was to catch my breath! There was a lot of walking on the flat too. At one stage we had to find rocks to make a safe, stable path through some very wet, muddy ground. Luckily we all go through without anyone getting filthy!
After walking for 4.5 hours we made it to our lunch stop. A very good lunch awaited us! A chicken dish with lots of fresh vegies and big plates of guacamole! It was surprisingly good as we were at the top of the mountain. In the distance we could see a pagoda and behind that apparently was a gold mine. There is gold and different gem stones in this area and their near neighbours, China, are in on the act!
Deciding that I did not want to walk up hill and down dale for another 3+ hours I opted for the truck ride back. Three of us oldies decided the ride back was for us. Unfortunately I was not quick enough off the mark to get in the front with the driver and ended up in the back where we were thrown around at every bump. My arms were aching from gripping onto the side  - even though the driver was doing his best the terrain was terrible – and the 45 minutes seemed like hours! Thankfully the hotel rooms have a bath and I had a good soak to ward off the inevitable aches and pains that would come. Speaking to the group who had continued the walk the truck ride was by far the best way to go!!

Heading to our next destination our trip took us to a cave which contained 8000 Buddha’s – quite a sight! Then on to  see how the paper umbrellas were made before arriving at Inle lake. We are staying in a lovely hotel – mind you all the hotels have been much better than expected!
Yesterday we spent the whole day on long boats touring the villages on the lake Inle lake is 26km long and 11km wide. There are various communities and you could compare the waterways to Venice but much less salubrious!!
We visited a variety of  places where people were showing us their skills at weaving, silverware and even cheroot making. The weaving was fascinating  as they showed us how they make material from the lotus flower. We had lunch in someone’s home and it was delicious. I needed to go to the loo but when I went to the ‘bathroom’ I found it was a squat on bamboo poles where you could see the water below – suddenly I didn’t need to ‘wee’!! It was very clean but I had visions of disappearing into the lake! A new baby had been born the day before and we all saw this tiny little bundle – mum was on a mattress on the floor holding court.
We saw the fishermen who row with their leg so that they have both arms free for fishing. This day was a highlight of the tour.
This morning  5 of us went for a cooking class. We had a tour round the market which was heaving but the produce is so fresh and good – avocados 7 for $1!!! Typically our western upbringing got the better of us when we saw how the meat/chicken was kept! Mr Leslie, his Burmese name translated, just kept the vegies coming as we carted it all for him. There were 16 people in the group which was slightly worrying at first but it all ran smoothly. There were 8 salad and 8 mains prepared. We all had a hand in the prep and then the cooking finally sitting down to a huge feast.
I’m now relaxing before a 90minute massage which costs all of $30!!

Moving around Myanmar!

Day 3 of the tour saw us gathering at 5am to catch a flight to Bagan. The small prop plane thankfully made it! We were greeted with wet stuff falling from the sky – what a novelty! As we were parked away from the terminal the staff came out with large umbrellas for us. All was well until walking behind (not literally) a plane taking off. You held onto your brolly for dear life – didn’t want to do a Mary Poppins!
Our bags arrived after a while and then we were on a bus making a stop at a local market. The rain was rather unusual for this time of the year so was very muddy. A group of women had a good laugh as iI skidded on the pathway luckily I managed to stay upright!
Next stop was at a temple complex.  There are 2000 temples in Bagan – hopefully we are not seeing them all!!! Many we damaged by earthquakes but they are definitely different in design! An early lunch was a must – food is similar to Thai but not so spicy. A quiet afternoon led to a 20 minute walk to ....... you’ve guessed it – a temple. It is actually very relaxing to walk around a quiet space bare foot. The temple started to glow -all that gold – as the sun went down.
Another day, another early start but this time it was at 5:30 because I was going to take a hot air balloon trip- it was on my bucket list! I felt I was being very brave because I don’t really like heights!! It was one of the most amazing things I’ve done! Lift off was effortless and suddenly we were in the sky and I was able to look down! It was so peaceful. There were about 32 balloons in the air so a very impressive sight. We drifted over the temples and villages for about an hour before a gentle touch down. Once we had clambered we were give a wonderful breakfast  - champagne, cold meat, truffle cheese  and fried eggs. It tasted so delicious and siting out in the open on a beach was a perfect spot.
The rest of the morning was spent cycling around – you’ve guessed it! Each place is very different so it makes the visit interesting. A good lunch combined with all the cycling will hopefully  be the start of! my health kick!
Next day, 6/1 a couple of us took a tuktuk around some of the lesser known temples. It helped pass the time before we had to check out. Staying in a community village next.

The buildings have been made by the locals and are really lovely. We are overlooking a dam and much to everyone's surprise we saw 5 water snakes as we were leaning over the  balcony enjoying a beer!
The community village is a concept of Intrepid’s and helps four villages. The idea is that the payment for our accommodation and food goes to the community all the people take turns in cooking and so far the money has been enough to bring electricity to all the villages. They are just waiting for the government to connect the power. The villagers now have running water -one tap outside per home. They have dirt floors and the only bedroom  is for the married couple everyone else has to sleep outside. The food they prepared was very good.

I decided against riding a bike around the villages – I didn’t think I’d get me leg over the bar and as it turned out the terrain was very rough and rather muddy – 5 of us went in a tuktuk?! We saw women combing hair – cut from those entering the monastery, it’s then sent to China to be made into wigs. Helped, for all of 5 minutes, the ladies removing the peanuts from the bush, saw weaving and planted a tree – not sure if it will survive!
Have just arrived in Mandalay – not quite as exotic as the name sounds!