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Bush to Beach and back…

I know. I know. I’ve been quiet on here. Waaaaay too quiet.

I am going to blame my absense on several things – personal and family stuff which needs to remain, well, personal.

Part of it is that I’ve been sharing a bit on Facebook too… at my BB of Oz page and our Outback Paparazzi page which is proving mountains of fun.

And part of it is the drought, which is slowly but surely tightening its grip on our part of the world.  I will share some of that soon. But not quite yet.  I need to gird myself (and hope it rains in the meantime) …

Let’s talk about last weekend instead! We had a rare chance to get away – thanks to Cal our fabulous jackaroo who kept an eye on things at Granite Glen for us.  With the excuse of a couple of medical appointments and much-needed family visits to lure Mr Incredible from home and all its drought-related worries, we found ourselves here…

noosa_0178Recognise this fairly famous part of coastal Queensland?

noosa_0155 eHow ’bout now?

noosa_0188 eYep. Hellllooooo NOOSA… you are looking mighty fine!

In a former life, I actually lived on the Sunshine Coast … in beautiful Buderim.  I never really went to Noosa, except for work.  And apart from a cousin’s wedding, I had never stayed here before, just to holiday. (Even if only for three nights).  It was wonderful…

noosa_3244 fPanoramic Noosa Beach.

I gave up trying to avoid the two soccer-ball-kicking camera hogs in the centre.  Maybe they thought I was ‘proper media’ with my big camera? Heh. Not anymore kids!

noosa_0160 eDash and Violet ADORE the beach.  Violet needs to occasional bit of help to catch those pesky waves…

noosa_0172 eBut the girl sure knows how to celebrate when she succeeds!

noosa_0305 eDouble country-kid surf action!!

noosa_0183 eAnd they went back. Again. And again…. and AGAIN. Pretty much til we dragged them out at sunset.

Surf is a VERY big novelty when you are a bush kid.

So is this…

noosa_3233Exotic ice-cream! Not just the vanilla or neopolitan Mum has on offer…

And then there is the non-Mum-cooked breakkies. (No-one rejoices in this more than Mum).

noosa_3283 eMine – muesli and fruit and yoghurt. Only ate half cause I needed to http://www.billhobbs.com/ fit those mushrooms on toast in! (Priorities).

bfast_3282Dash’s incredible magical act – making a massive plate of breakfast vanish before your VERY eyes….

bfast_3285 ePoof! The waiter almost keeled over. My favourite party trick.  Too funny…

noosa_3268 eI know I shouldn’t keep on with the ‘food porn’ but this – BEST GNOCCI ever. Mushrooms. Cheese. Mmmmmm…

And no washing up! (Triple mmmmmmm)

Noosa’s Hastings Street is quite ethereal at night.

noosa_0218 e

That little archway to the left show dining on the street – and that’s where I had that gnocci.

noosa_0217 e

We ate and we people-watched. Noosa is terrific for both those pastimes.

We also visited with family on the coast and in Brisbane – which was lovely and good for us all.  Only hiccup was that I managed to leave my iphone at my father-in-laws place. Nice work Amanda!

Then on the way home, we called in to the sweet little town of Eumundi.

eumundo_3289 We stopped briefly at the Eumundi Bakehouse – it had amazing pastries, a great view over the streetscape and of a patrons gorgeous husky-style dog.

eumundi_3293

The iced coffee was pretty spesh too.

I wouldn’t realise until four hours later – after discovering my camera bag missing and making several frantic phone calls to other stops along the way home – that I had managed to leave my treasured camera bag there!  Tucked neatly away under the bench where we sat with that iced coffee. Luckily I happened to choose an establishment that was quick to spot and safely stow my Nikon, and lenses, and GLASSES … how LUCKY was that.

And two days, one sister, one friend, 300km plud one 100km round trip to town for me to rendezvous ….

camerabag_3313And it was back where it belonged…

In my hands, taking photos of dust-covered things…

selfie_0342And red dirt roads and sunny skies…

selfie_0332 fI was just glad to be home with my all my digital devices close by.  I had the jitters when each went missing!

So you know that superstition about how things happen in threes?

Yeah.

Next post.

🙂

8 Comments

  • Gretchen in KS

    I generally figure I haven’t been on a trip if I didn’t forget something. I’m lucky if it was something small and unimportant. But it’s something of a family tradition. Last time my brother came to visit us, his daughter left two pair of jeans and her library card. (Lucky for me, I could fit them in a ripstop envelope and mail them back!) So glad you got your things home again!

  • Lynda M Otvos

    Ocean waves are the best fun on a vacay, aren’t they? We got our feet wet in the Atlantic Ocean off the New Jersey coast when we were kids and later moved within a few blocks of the beach. As an adult and mother with toddler, we moved offshore where we fed birds and fish and rowed to the dock whenever we needed something from the land !~! Water is the best.

    Hope your drought breaks soonest. Ours did for few days this pasts week, less than a month after our Guv declared a Disaster Drought. The rains have helped some but it’ll be rationing later this summer I fear.

    Personal business is just that-personal. Life has to come first these days with kids and baby animals all about. Thanks for sharing whatever you can; your world is so very different from mine that to get even a glimpse is a treat for me.
    Lynda M Otvos´s last blog post ..How I Quit Drinking Thirty Years Ago

  • Colin Huggins

    Great to see that you picked Noosa. The Sunshine Coast beats that other place south of Brisbane on every point possible.
    Lucky you with the alertness of the shopkeeper in Eumundi that you got your bag returned. I have no affection for the Gold Coast whatsoever, never have even as a kid, and certainly never will.
    As kids from Moree days, we had our family holidays in Caloundra – sure not like the Caloundra of today!
    Surfing in those days was “sans” the extra apparel of today!

    Sorry that “Huey”, the rain God, hasn’t seen fit to give your property a good drenching. Hope “he” comes to his bloody senses soon for your sake and the sake of many others.

  • Leenie

    The sun and the beach and the food are such a superb break from the clouds and the snow and the cold here. Thank you. Thank you.

    And a big WHEEEEEYOOOO! To getting that extension to your hand back in your possession. I’ve got two Nikons and how I’d mourn and miss them if they went missing.

  • Anne

    Ahh I was in that beachy area a few weeks ago. I always love a good trip to the beach, so relaxing. Looks like the kids had a lot of fun. Good thing you got everything back safely.
    Anne´s last blog post ..Welcome Swallow