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Oh, I wish I'd looked after me teeth ...

I'm feeling just a tad worn down with this tooth of mine.

Just to say it's been an ongoing saga, which has so far lasted months 'n months 'n months.

... oh, I wish I'd looked after me teeth!

Anyway I'm now on antibiotics, so they just better do the trick?

For now anyway.



I'm not thick skinned, and was sad to notice I lost a follower today.

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Crocodile, as seen a few years back on our maiden voyage to Australia.

Don't forget remaining followers - you're more than welcome to join in with the book giveaway on my garden blog.

The more entries there are, the more fun I will have picking out a winner!

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banana buns ...

I baked banana buns just in time for elevenses today - using a black 'n blue banana recovered from J's rucksack.



There's always a banana to be found in our house - both of us take at least one to work with us every day.

These are about as yellow as I like them, and fossilized black ones in the main, shamefully end up on the compost.

Not this one!

Top tip - Bananas degrade quickly and provide above-average bacterial activity for your compost.



Since when did we stop selling eggs by the dozen?

Fifteen in a box, ten in a box - and in this box nine!



A dozen (!) delicious, moist banana buns, baked in my Mum's old bun tin.

Suggestion - Serve warm, drizzled in golden or maple syrup, with a big dollop of thick cream, ice-cream or custard!



These banana buns remind me of/and taste very similar to the banana cake we ate a lot of, on both our trips to Australia.

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As recently featured on Kris' blog Life at Rosemary Hill.

Baked in loaf form, we often found it served spread with sweet butter, the same thickness and texture of our Christmas brandy butter.



For the banana buns, I used and adapted the recipe for honey & banana cakes to be found in 200 Cupcakes from the Hamlyn all colour cookbook series.

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It's a neat little book costing only £2.49 at good old trusty Robert Dyas.

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I aim to try out lots of the fabulous recipes inside - and for that taste of Australia, I may well just put that frosting on the top of my buns next time!

Last New Year's Eve we pulled out all the stops.



This one we did on the cheap!

Happy New Year everyone.

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hello possums ...

I've had Australia on my mind over the past few days.

Here are some pics of Melbourne taken by me on our last trip to Oz.



They show the really lovely area of the Docklands.

You can get there by tram.



Back in January 2010, the state of Victoria was experiencing some kind of freaky weather.

The temperature soared to 45 degrees!



There was cloudless blue sky over the Etihad stadium.

Melbourne's equivalent of the O2!



Sand sculptures baked in the heat.

We baked in the heat!



Next time.

I want to visit Melbourne in the cold, with no heat and no humidity!



Never have we been in need of so many smoothies, ice-creams or bottles of water.

Or so thankful for shelter!

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where the racetrack meets the sea ...

This weekend the MotoGP is being held at the Phillip Island Circuit in Australia.

We got to visit there in January 2010, and even got to stand on the podium.



Robbo is the resident Phillip Island Circuit cockatoo, who for some reason is behind bars?


not my photo

I think he's got dillusions of being Nicky Hayden!

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photos - BBC Iplayer website

little penguins ...

Have you been watching Penguin Island, a series on BBC One following a breeding pair of little (fairy) penguins Bluey and Sheila, and their two offspring?

They all live on Phillip Island, off the south coast of Australia.

I have been sat glued watching, 'cos at the beginning of this year, on our road trip between Sydney and Adelaide, we had the once in a lifetime opportunity to see these little penguins for real, staying within walking distance of their colony.

At the time, really not wanting to leave them behind, it is so lovely to see them again.



These little darlings, you can't help but love em!

There really is something about this little bird's character that makes me grin from ear to ear, every time I see one.

Well that's another one ticked off those 1001 things I must do before I die!

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Ocean Beach, Tas, Aus ...

The longest stretch of beach in Tasmania, and the most beautiful I have ever encountered.



There's no land mass between here and South America!



Life's a beach, but someone has to do it!



From this photo it's difficult to conceive the wingspan on this bird. The remains of a White-bellied Sea Eagle?



In season Muttonbirds fly in, to their burrows in the dunes.



A small bird blends in rather well in the sand.



You can get to Ocean Beach by un-sealed road. No trouble in a 4x4, we made it in a two-wheel drive erring on the side of caution!

If there really is a place one can call Paradise, this is it.

Click on link for more Watery Wednesday

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b is for ...




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Bondi New Years Eve!

These photos were taken at Coogee Beach. It was fun to guess.
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I wonder whether a sky-writing pilot has ever got his letters muddled up?

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Captain Cook's Cottage, Vic, Aus ...

Built in 1755 by the parents of Captain James Cook, the cottage originally stood in the North Yorkshire village of Great Ayton.

In 1933 the owner of the cottage decided to sell it to the empire, and an Australian bid of £800 was accepted.




I thought to move house is stressful enough, but to actually move a house, well that's a completely different ball game!

The cottage was deconstructed brick by brick and packed into 253 cases and 40 barrels complete with an ivy cutting, for shipping onboard the Port Dunedin from Hull.



This lovely old photo shows Cooks Cottage where it once stood, circa 1920. The single storey extension was demolished before the sale.

The cottage now stands in the beautifully picturesque Fitzroy Gardens in the city of Melbourne, Australia.

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Bondi to Coogee coastal walk, NSW, aus ...

The walk takes about two hours, the most part along the cliff face of the Pacific Ocean, passing six beaches and bays.

We had to do it a bit different and took it in reverse, from Coogee to Bondi!



The name Coogee is said to have been taken from a local aboriginal word 'koojah' which means smelly place, referring to the large amount of seaweed washed up on the beach.

A bit unfair I thought, the beach had a niceness about it, and on first impressions I preferred it to Bondi where we'd visited a few years back.

A flock of seagulls!

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Like me you really don't need to be superfit to do this walk, but if you don't want to end up looking like a tomato, or feeling like a dehydrated prune, on a hot day it's essential to wear a hat, long sleeves and carry plenty of water.

In an emergency there are pit-stops along the way, and we stopped in a bowling club where after signing in, I swiftly downed half of shandy, and the OH a pint of Tooheys!

The Rocks!

Finding ourselves starting to sizzle in the mid-day sun, where only mad dogs and Englishmen go, we didn't get to complete the walk and decided our best bet was to catch the bus from Bronte beach back to the shade of the city, to cool off!

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Cradle Mountain, Tas, Aus ...

The views on the road down to Cradle Mountain in the Lake St Clair National Park in Tasmania were breathtaking.

Being windy, and all up hill and down dale, there was no use for cruise control on our automatic car!



On arrival we decided on taking on one of the more difficult walks up to Crater Peak, over steep terrain exposed to the elements. They weren't wrong, we just about experienced four seasons in one day with gusty winds, blazing sunshine and light showers!



A bright buttercup-like flower.

A pretty pink alpine.

For an artistic slant on this post I took this photo on an angle! I quite like it.

A paper-like white flower.

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A creamy-white alpine.

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Concentration is the key on this trek as rocks are sharp and jagged.

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On our descent we witnessed a man carrying a huge rucksack on his back lose his balance, resulting in him toppling backwards consequenting in a badly gashed arm, and I'd imagine several bruises to boot and a very hurt pride.

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We both breathed a sigh of relief at not having to use first aid, or attempt to summons the mountain rescue!

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This was a difficult walk for me, but to see the stunning views of the beautiful lakes below, made all the suffering worthwhile.

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Not returning the way we came, we took a detour, and at the end of our walk six long hours later, I was pretty much finished!

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