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George and Eva
Belmont
We left Umina yesterday morning, heading for "The Entrance" which, we were told, was a 'must see.' It dawned a grey and miserable day, so we thought it was a good day for driving. As we pulled in to the Entrance, the sun was trying to break through, but not doing very well. One of the big highlights of the Entrance is the pelican feeding on the waterfront at 3.30 pm every day (just a good excuse for the local fish shop to get rid of their rubbish, and get tourists in on the side.)
As it approached 3.30 the sun gave up any pretext of trying to shine, and just as the first fish heads were being tossed elegantly through the air, the rain dumped down in a torrential downpour. We attempted a few photos, but the camera was getting soaked.
It continued to bucket down all night, and we woke to a large puddle in front of our van, making accessability difficult. However the weather was generally better, so we managed a walk around town and a look at their 'heritage trail.'
General impressions - this seems to have been a town that was always popular with campers in tents on the foreshore, and some guest houses for those who wanted a bit more luxury. These were run by families, and you get the impression they were there forever, and knew their regular guests by name.
However now it is a jungle of high rise apartments, hotels and holiday flats, one after the other, as far as the eye can see. The street level is awash with cafes and restaurants, gaudily advertising their wares to a scanty crowd at this time of the year.
We moved on to Norah Heads light house, and had a tour there run by some very enthusiastic volunteers. Beautiful views, and interesting history.
We thought we would stop at Swansea for lunch as it looked quite pretty on the map, and perhaps stay if we liked it. The next big town coming up was Newcastle, and we weren't sure if we actually wanted to stay there. At Swansea Tourist Info we were advised that there are no caravan parks in Newcastle, only hotels, and the closest place with caravan parks was Belmont.
So we asked about a nice picnic spot, and were told there really wasn't any in town, but a couple were suggested just out of town. We thought this was ridiculous as there was so much waterfront, but as we drove round and round in circles we could not locate a single park with tables etc for a picnic. We headed out of town as suggested, and found a lovely spot at Pelican Flats. Swansea is much nicer viewed from a distance, over the water.
We then continued to Belmont and booked into a caravan park there. This is actually like an outer suburb of Newcastle, but the caravan park is right on the lake and near the sailing club - very nice.
We had earlier been told about a great app called Wikicamps, and had attempted to download it to my ipad. However apparently it needed ios 6, but I only had ios 5. This may mean something to some of you, but it meant nothing to me. So we Googled, and found there was an Apple shop in Charlestown, 10 km from Belmont, so we headed there to sort this out.
Charlestown Square is a huge mall, like Shoppo or Chadstone, and it was really a drag trying to find our way there, especially trying to find parking that was not undercover, as our van was too tall. After battling through traffic, small windy one-way roads, and very confusing signage, we finally found a spot that was not too far away. We found the Apple shop, and booked an appointment for tomorrow morning. Hopefully tomorrow we will sort this nice and quickly, then drive into Newcastle for a quick look around.
GeorgeY's bit
Memory is a funny thing. It is personal and intangible. Unless it is replaced by the exact equivalent French word (memoir.) Then it becomes tangible. When printed, it is called 'memoirs', and turns into 'souvenirs' when it is made in China, with no possible function or purpose (unless a tiny thermometer tube is glued on, to give it its raison d'être.)
Eva wrote a bit about Swansea, but a few bits were forgotten. The Swansea Tourist Information Centre is the most impressive one in the whole region. A brand new, purpose built, large building sharing the second storey with the public library. It had large high glass walls providing a commanding view of the place. Not an easy job to be telling people, "There's not much to do here, but your next stop should be a blast," from behind such a magnificent desk.
When we eventually found a spot for lunch, we decided to take 2 shots 180 degrees apart to show us in front of the $1 million house, and the view we had from there. However we discovered that the camera was no where to be found, and after extensive searching over and over, we decided to back track and check. So we went back to the impressive Tourist Centre, and luckily it had been left behind there, and was recovered. Something to remember Swansea by. Now blogs like this one can potentially drive the Chinese souvenir economy out of the market, because technology has replaced tangible artifacts, still preserving the memory, with less clutter. Now that I mentioned technology and memory, I forgot what I was about to say.
Set up camp, then decided to pull up and drive from Belmont to Charlestown. Did not ride because we thought it will be too confusing without GPS, and the camper is safer.
Forgetting is the essence of the day, possibly because we are at the opposite end from Remembrance Day. The trip was horrible, being a Friday at 3:20 pm, so copped the full school peak traffic. As I slowed down before a traffic light, I noticed that the lid of the camper storage hatch was still fully open, and was held open by the top catch. I pulled up "quick smart" and jumped out to close it. The ladies in the car behind were having a good laugh at my expense. Amazingly nothing fell out, or at least nothing I can remember was missing, and I still trust my memory.
The Apple store in Charlestown is the biggest I have seen ever, and as sceptical as I was about their service, I was pleasantly surprised by their support. Everyone was working like in a beehive and the service and support we got was exemplary. Having a "Vintage Macbook," as they classify them when they are more than 7 years old (now if they call my newer one Vintage, I better not tell them about the one I am still using), and a first generation Ipad was no problem. After explaining the potential risks to the "geriatric machines" with their fading memory, and the possible risk of a stroke to the HDD, I agreed to proceed despite the risk of having my beautiful white laptop ending confused on the streets of Charlestown. Or somewhere in China, where it gets transformed and sent back as a deck chair, or something sold by Harvey Norman, or more ironically as a souvenir thermometer.
The updates were carried out, and backing up the Ipad and re-installing the latest operating system on both machines went without a hitch. And the app was running fine finally.
Luke Tindall was the tech person, and he did not look down his nose at our archaic ************ the contrary, when he knew we were travelers, he gave us his best. I think he did that to all people in the store, actually. Somehow I reckon country people get better service than in Melbourne or Sydney. Good one Apple. I thought I would never say that, but there you are - must give credit where credit is due.
Now that all is well and all is forgotten, Samsung will need to wait longer for now. And since they release on average a new model every 12.7 days, it will be the 27th generation out before I get to try their tablets. And this is in less than 6 months. "Tablets mmmmmm…"
We left Umina yesterday morning, heading for "The Entrance" which, we were told, was a 'must see.' It dawned a grey and miserable day, so we thought it was a good day for driving. As we pulled in to the Entrance, the sun was trying to break through, but not doing very well. One of the big highlights of the Entrance is the pelican feeding on the waterfront at 3.30 pm every day (just a good excuse for the local fish shop to get rid of their rubbish, and get tourists in on the side.)
As it approached 3.30 the sun gave up any pretext of trying to shine, and just as the first fish heads were being tossed elegantly through the air, the rain dumped down in a torrential downpour. We attempted a few photos, but the camera was getting soaked.
It continued to bucket down all night, and we woke to a large puddle in front of our van, making accessability difficult. However the weather was generally better, so we managed a walk around town and a look at their 'heritage trail.'
General impressions - this seems to have been a town that was always popular with campers in tents on the foreshore, and some guest houses for those who wanted a bit more luxury. These were run by families, and you get the impression they were there forever, and knew their regular guests by name.
However now it is a jungle of high rise apartments, hotels and holiday flats, one after the other, as far as the eye can see. The street level is awash with cafes and restaurants, gaudily advertising their wares to a scanty crowd at this time of the year.
We moved on to Norah Heads light house, and had a tour there run by some very enthusiastic volunteers. Beautiful views, and interesting history.
We thought we would stop at Swansea for lunch as it looked quite pretty on the map, and perhaps stay if we liked it. The next big town coming up was Newcastle, and we weren't sure if we actually wanted to stay there. At Swansea Tourist Info we were advised that there are no caravan parks in Newcastle, only hotels, and the closest place with caravan parks was Belmont.
So we asked about a nice picnic spot, and were told there really wasn't any in town, but a couple were suggested just out of town. We thought this was ridiculous as there was so much waterfront, but as we drove round and round in circles we could not locate a single park with tables etc for a picnic. We headed out of town as suggested, and found a lovely spot at Pelican Flats. Swansea is much nicer viewed from a distance, over the water.
We then continued to Belmont and booked into a caravan park there. This is actually like an outer suburb of Newcastle, but the caravan park is right on the lake and near the sailing club - very nice.
We had earlier been told about a great app called Wikicamps, and had attempted to download it to my ipad. However apparently it needed ios 6, but I only had ios 5. This may mean something to some of you, but it meant nothing to me. So we Googled, and found there was an Apple shop in Charlestown, 10 km from Belmont, so we headed there to sort this out.
Charlestown Square is a huge mall, like Shoppo or Chadstone, and it was really a drag trying to find our way there, especially trying to find parking that was not undercover, as our van was too tall. After battling through traffic, small windy one-way roads, and very confusing signage, we finally found a spot that was not too far away. We found the Apple shop, and booked an appointment for tomorrow morning. Hopefully tomorrow we will sort this nice and quickly, then drive into Newcastle for a quick look around.
GeorgeY's bit
Memory is a funny thing. It is personal and intangible. Unless it is replaced by the exact equivalent French word (memoir.) Then it becomes tangible. When printed, it is called 'memoirs', and turns into 'souvenirs' when it is made in China, with no possible function or purpose (unless a tiny thermometer tube is glued on, to give it its raison d'être.)
Eva wrote a bit about Swansea, but a few bits were forgotten. The Swansea Tourist Information Centre is the most impressive one in the whole region. A brand new, purpose built, large building sharing the second storey with the public library. It had large high glass walls providing a commanding view of the place. Not an easy job to be telling people, "There's not much to do here, but your next stop should be a blast," from behind such a magnificent desk.
When we eventually found a spot for lunch, we decided to take 2 shots 180 degrees apart to show us in front of the $1 million house, and the view we had from there. However we discovered that the camera was no where to be found, and after extensive searching over and over, we decided to back track and check. So we went back to the impressive Tourist Centre, and luckily it had been left behind there, and was recovered. Something to remember Swansea by. Now blogs like this one can potentially drive the Chinese souvenir economy out of the market, because technology has replaced tangible artifacts, still preserving the memory, with less clutter. Now that I mentioned technology and memory, I forgot what I was about to say.
Set up camp, then decided to pull up and drive from Belmont to Charlestown. Did not ride because we thought it will be too confusing without GPS, and the camper is safer.
Forgetting is the essence of the day, possibly because we are at the opposite end from Remembrance Day. The trip was horrible, being a Friday at 3:20 pm, so copped the full school peak traffic. As I slowed down before a traffic light, I noticed that the lid of the camper storage hatch was still fully open, and was held open by the top catch. I pulled up "quick smart" and jumped out to close it. The ladies in the car behind were having a good laugh at my expense. Amazingly nothing fell out, or at least nothing I can remember was missing, and I still trust my memory.
The Apple store in Charlestown is the biggest I have seen ever, and as sceptical as I was about their service, I was pleasantly surprised by their support. Everyone was working like in a beehive and the service and support we got was exemplary. Having a "Vintage Macbook," as they classify them when they are more than 7 years old (now if they call my newer one Vintage, I better not tell them about the one I am still using), and a first generation Ipad was no problem. After explaining the potential risks to the "geriatric machines" with their fading memory, and the possible risk of a stroke to the HDD, I agreed to proceed despite the risk of having my beautiful white laptop ending confused on the streets of Charlestown. Or somewhere in China, where it gets transformed and sent back as a deck chair, or something sold by Harvey Norman, or more ironically as a souvenir thermometer.
The updates were carried out, and backing up the Ipad and re-installing the latest operating system on both machines went without a hitch. And the app was running fine finally.
Luke Tindall was the tech person, and he did not look down his nose at our archaic ************ the contrary, when he knew we were travelers, he gave us his best. I think he did that to all people in the store, actually. Somehow I reckon country people get better service than in Melbourne or Sydney. Good one Apple. I thought I would never say that, but there you are - must give credit where credit is due.
Now that all is well and all is forgotten, Samsung will need to wait longer for now. And since they release on average a new model every 12.7 days, it will be the 27th generation out before I get to try their tablets. And this is in less than 6 months. "Tablets mmmmmm…"
- comments
Aida Hi Eva & Mr Bean! I am really enjoying reading your descriptions of places, people, happenings and stream of thinking. The photos are great and there are moments when I think I would like to do the same, but then I go back to reality and the age factor and some other factors as well, and here I am happy at GC! All the best throughout your adventure.
Buszko How's the rack holding up
Jan George; remember how I told you drugs are bad for you? Evidently vous oubliez, mais c'est tres drole (with a little roof on top, which I can't get to work) alors, continuer!
GeorgeY Aida lovely to hear from you. Not as hard to do as it might seem but some one has to do it. Jan is this what you are looking for ^? There is no drugs involved it is just ripe age no less and Peter so far so good after 1500 kms I feel slightly more confident in your welding ability. Met this old retired guy in the Entrance caravan park, he is from Bundoora and he was contemplating your handy work as he was quoted couple of grands and we talked and I told him I teach at Greenzy and he actually was a student in Watsonia Tech and his kids went to Greenzy and in a couple of years his grandkids will be coming to school. He remebers Watto and Heitbaum and he helped out moving the J wing during kennet amalgamation time. Small world !!!