And then we went to Geelong

Another weekend, and another interstate road trip - no holding us back now we've got the green light from our various state premiers - yay! Its done nothing but rain in Canberra for the past month so we were also hoping to see some clear skies for a change.

This time we did the 9 hour road trip down the Hume Motorway all the way to Geelong - for our long awaited catch up with Ros and Pete, who we'd not seen for about 6 months thanks to COVID restrictions.

On all our visits Ros and Pete have planned some wonderful outings so we can get to see more of this beautiful part of the world. On Saturday (a windy blustery day in Geelong) we did lunch at Portarlington on the Bellarine Peninsula, overlooking Port Phillip Bay, 28 klm from Geelong. Naturally, like most of the towns on the bay there was a pier and foreshore that needed to be checked out first ........ 

before settling into our lunch reservation at the nearby Pier Street Cafe....

where we were lucky to be joined by Erin and Lili and Sam who kept us entertained over our lunch of Portarlington mussels with their stories about school, favourite pets and plans for Christmas.......

Ros and I both do the Advent gifts in a box thing now for our grandkids. Lili and Sam looked ecstatic to get their Advent boxes all ready for opening on Wednesday (1 December)......

We gave Ella and Abi their boxes on Thursday before our departure for Geelong - much excitement there too... Christmas really is coming isn't it?

24 small gifts for each day of Advent ........

After lunch on Saturday Ros and Pete drove us back to the the Geelong Regional Gallery so we could enjoy the wonderful Archie 100: A Century of the Archibald Prize Exhibition. We thought this was fantastic to see and prompted a lot of discussion between us about the artists represented and the portraits chosen (not all of them winners either!)

We explored a lot further yesterday (Sunday) heading S and then SW from Geelong towards the start of one of Australia's natural wonders, the National Heritage listed Great Ocean Road. We drove through Anglesea and on to Aireys Inlet, with our first stop at its very picturesque Split Point Lighthouse which dates from 1891(It also achieved great fame from being featured in the popular children's television program "Round the Twist").

There were great views out to Bass Strait and the magnificent Table Rock from the lookout ...

We loved the gardens and the beautiful coastal (but classy) style architecture of the houses along the quiet street leading up to the lighthouse - and we vowed to make time for tea at the beautiful Willow Tea House in the nearby grounds of the lighthouse on our next visit.

Then it was back on the road, driving through the Historic Great Ocean Memorial Arch at Eastern View before arriving at our lunch destination, Lorne. First stop was Lorne's award winning pier (rebuilt in 2007) for stunning views of this classy coastal town on the shores of Louttit Bay.

We had time before lunch to walk quite a way along Lorne's foreshore, from the pier .......

past the township and main surfing beach and through the grounds of the Mantra Resort before being turned back by Security protecting the crowds of Schoolies currently in residence there! We were blown away by Lorne: its natural beauty, great beaches and its very classy, arty vibe (very reminiscent of Noosa we thought but much quieter and a lot less brash).

Our (late) lunch booking was at MoVida, a sister restaurant to the famous Melbourne MoVida, and described as "classic Spanish but with a beachside twist".

Here we enjoyed a fabulous set menu consisting of a variety of Tapas, Raciones (rations?) and Postre (dessert). Like everywhere we go in these post lockdown times restaurants are short staffed, and tables are restricted - but it felt so special to be able to experience wonderful food and a restaurant experience like this again - although the wait staff were under the pump they made the meal very relaxed and memorable for us.

Ros and Pete had spent a week in Lorne earlier in the year and knew all the best places. On their advice we took some of Lorne's renowned scallop pies home with us for a late night snack after the drive back to Geelong!

Thanks to Ros and Pete's planning we packed so much into our 3 night visit - but the best part was just being able to spend time together sharing laughs (as well some sad memories too). The only thing that made saying goodbye more bearable was the thought that we'll see each other again in just under 4 weeks in Canberra!!

Back in Sydney

We headed to Sydney last Thursday - our first visit since April (thanks to all the lockdowns). It felt very daring and exciting to plan, but we felt tentative as well (that's what emerging from 12 weeks of lockdown is like!).. it affected where we chose to stay, where we ate and how we got around!!!

We were in Sydney for the opening of my dear friend's Les Sculptures Refusées exhibition at the Q Station at Manly on Thursday night. It was months and months of planning, work and worry for Tania (and others) and I'd had a tiny part to play too - so we really wanted to be there on the night to see it come together, and show our support.

But our first stop in Sydney, after the drive from Canberra, was lunch - at the beautiful, breezy Boathouse at Shelly Beach (at the eastern end of Manly). This was the view out of the open windows ..........  

And one of the very friendly locals offered to take this picture of us, at the Boathouse, already starting to relax into the Sydney vibe!

Later that afternoon we headed up to the old (former) Quarantine Station on North Head (on Gadigal Country) feeling excited to see Tania and the collected works of Les Sculptures Refusees in this amazing setting.

Tania (and her co-director Simon) could not have picked a better site for this afternoon's launch ....

And this work by Anna Dudek "After Chinati" had pride of place in the old glasshouse .....

... which the judges must have appreciated too as Anna's work was judged the winner of this year's Les Sculptures Refusees prize. The announcement of the prize was the culmination of the official opening.

Tania's work looked stunning on this site too - "The Shadow Lines" - echoing some of the themes emerging in her massive earlier work: "The Terrible Beauty" on the Quarantine Station Wharf. (Unfortunately, Tania's work (and Simon's) was not able to be included in the judges' consideration because of her Director's role.)

The official opening went very well (of course) and the local celebrities Jennifer Byrne (journalist and broadcaster) and Kali Steggall OAM (Federal MP) gave brilliant speeches about the importance of community events like this, the meaning behind the original rebellious Salon Des Refusées and the need to affirm female sculptors (still underrepresented in most exhibitions). 

Anthony Battaglia's "In Transition"........

and Christina Frank's quirky "Pram"...

After months and months of excitement and stress Tania must have felt pleased that the launch went so well (although I know she would never say it was perfect!)

I loved listening to this group discuss the work of Orest Keywan ......

As the sun went down over Sydney Harbour.

Work by Johann Tovar Carrera: "Eclipse".......

We were lucky to be invited to the judges' dinner that night at the Boilerhouse Restaurant down near the Q Station Wharf. It was a fantastic night for us in the company of Tania, Alan and Aine (and others) and John McDonald (Australia's best known art/film critic and former head of Australian Art at the NGA) and Dr Michael Hill, Head of Art History & Theory at the NAS. The conversation was so lively and about stuff I really am very interested in, including lots of insider stories about artists and the NGA!!!!

And the moon was especially spectacular this night!

Despite the excitement of the night before we fronted up for breakfast as usual next morning at Fusion Point Cafe in Manly under cloudy skies and drizzle.

From where we decided to go walking - heading northwards, as we admired all the sights, sounds, smells and COLOURS of coastal, rain soaked Sydney .....

We walked a fair way this morning - all the way from Manly Corso, through Queenscliff, then across the Manly Lagoon to ......

Freshwater Beach ..............

As more rain threatened we took it easy in the afternoon in our little studio apartment on Fairlight Street, before heading back to Manly Wharf for a beer (and a meal) by the "beach" (Manly Harbour Pool) in the early evening.

Saturday dawned cloudy and threatening rain again, but suitably attired, we set out again to find breakfast (at Sonoma this time) and do some more walking around the "hood".

We made our way to the headland (Manly Peace Park) overlooking Little Manly Cove

from where we could get another distant view of the Q Station again.

View of the villa at 11 Fairlight Street Manly ..........

... where we stayed in a studio apartment at the rear of the villa. We liked staying here; it was so quiet, so open and airy and very clean, and only a few minutes walk to the Manly Wharf! it was a great choice for these "emerging out of lockdown" times.

We headed to Circular Quay via a very uncrowded Manly Ferry in time to meet Tania, Alan and Aine and a few other friends for lunch yesterday at our fave Lord Nelson pub at The Rocks.

We were celebrating my dear friend Tania's arrival in Australia (from Belfast) 40 years ago (almost to the day)!! Everyone at this table knew Tania from way back then and love her to bits. It was definitely an anniversary to celebrate. We all agree we're a much better country for having Tania in it!

And Alan and Aine (and big sister Morgan now living in the UK) are a wonderful part of the Tania package too.

We had no trouble filling in FIVE hours at the Lord Nelson sharing all those stories of the past forty years with this wonderful woman!