Mareeba

Friday, 20 July 2012

Back to the night of my birthday: we had a superb meal at Barnacle Bill’s. The food was wonderful, the service was great and the weather was just lovely for sitting outside under a canopy. We even had the Federal Treasurer, Wayne Swan, arrive at the restaurant with a few guests and they sat only a couple of tables from us. We did debate as to whether we should approach him and ask for a rise in our pensions!

Yesterday (Thursday) we headed for Mareeba, with Rex and Carlene for company. The weather was just one of those blissful days – not a cloud in the sky or a breath of wind and the temperature about 28 degrees. (Our vitamin D levels are starting to rise.) Our first stop was at Termite Fruit and Vegetables, where Carlene made the owners very happy and we had a large cardboard box of sauces in the back of the vehicle.
Our next stop was at the Heritage Centre and Cat immediately made friends with one of the volunteer ladies – I was starting to think she would want to come with us! Anyway, Cat had great fun playing in the school room and looking through the stereoscope; he didn’t think very much of the sign in the butcher’s shop; and completely embarrassed us all with his antics out the back where the “facilities” were!

We did a couple of circuits of the main street of Mareeba before finding a coffee shop suitable for a light lunch. Then it was off to North Queensland Gold Coffee Plantation for some new coffee supplies. We met the new owners and heard how coffee was grown, picked and processed. Remembering back to our previous visits, the number of cats was much reduced but the roosters were very abundant. We introduced Carlene to Maria and Bruno and chatted for another hour before being able to head to the Mareeba Wetlands. It was extremely hot at the visitors’ centre and not many birds around in the middle of the afternoon. Therefore, we sat on the verandah and had an ice cream instead of a boat cruise. After leaving the centre, we stopped to say hello to a Brahman bull who had his head over the fence – he didn’t want to have his photo taken and became a little upset. We thought it best to say goodbye instead.

Our next stop was at the Golden Drop Winery (Carlene’s request), where Carlene again helped out the Mareeba economy and we added to the boxes in the back of the Pajero. We were back at the caravan park in time for the free sausage sizzle and entertainment. The sausages were very nice; unfortunately the entertainer was extremely loud and positioned right behind our caravan. We have decided that next time there is entertainment provided, we may go out somewhere for the evening.

Today is a public holiday for the Cairns Show and another lovely day. Fortunately, Cairns Central Shopping Centre was open, so we were able to make a quick trip to the toy shop and make Jack happy. Then it was off to the airport so that Les could catch his flight home to Hobart. I am becoming quite familiar with the route to the airport by now.