Saturday 29th April
We are back home now, slowly recovering from the jet lag but I will fill in the our antics from the last week in Australia.
Friday 21st, we caught the ferry to Cockatoo Island, one of the islands in Sydney Harbour, now a world heritage site.
The island is an important site for aboriginal history being a meeting place for various of the local tribes. It then became a prison for convicts, a sort of Colditz for those who reoffended once in Australia. The convicts used stone quarried on the island to build the prison buildings, some of which still remain. Alledgedly only one convict ever escaped.
After the prison was closed the island became an important ship building and repairing facility for the navy and only closed in 1992. Much of the industrial archaeology still remains.
Saturday, an exciting day, Lauren took Hazel out for a trial run in the running pushchair, doing short out and backs whilst we walked along. Hazel loved it. We also went to the DFO, a sort of outlet mall.
Sunday, shopping at Coles.
Monday,our final walk along the foreshore to the Wangal reserve, we noticed some strange things growing in one of the borders, turned out to be a strange fungus.
Tuesday, Anzac Day, a public holiday in Australia so Tim was off work. Anzac Day is rather like Rememberance Day in the UK, there are dawn services at war memorials followed by parades and the only day when it is permitted to play two up. Anzac Day commemorates the landings at Gallipoli by the Anzac troops at dawn on 25th April in the First World War.
Tim and Lauren took us for lunch at the Sydney Rowing Club, despite being a prestigious club the restaurant is open to the public. We had a lovely meal overlooking the Parramatta River.
Wednesday, time to go home, after a rather tearful goodbye Tim dropped us at the airport for the first leg of our journey home, an 8 hour flight to Singapore.
In Singapore it was like walking into an oven, so hot. We stayed at a different hotel, the Parkroyal on Beach Road, we would certainly recommend it.
Thursday, the final step, 13 1/2 hours back to London and home.