Credit Card Fraud

Monday, 22nd July

Northern Tablelands

Dimbulah

A couple of famous performers in Dimbulah

Dimbulah Railway Station

Hitching a ride on the Wheelbarrow Way

Looking over the Mareeba valley

Thinking ...

Looking towards Cairns

Sunday was a quiet day – very hot and sunny all day. We partook of some exercise with a walk along Freshwater Creek before lunch, after enjoying a cup of coffee with our next door neighbours. Himself even wiped the condensation off the inside of the roof of the awning - and then realised he had forgotten to think about it first!  A couple of hours in the late afternoon were spent listening to the football; Cheer, cheer the red and the white …


Today, with the weather still continue dry and warm, and the coffee supply running low, we decided a trip to Mareeba was called for. On the way, we called into the Termite Shop for some chilli chutney (as requested by offspring) and then received a rather unsettling telephone call from our daughter. Evidently the NAB had been attempting to contact me as they believe my bank account (ie credit card) had been fraudulently accessed. First stop at Mareeba was at the local NAB branch and a call to the bank’s fraud department. Two attempts had been made to access my credit card (which I haven’t used as it is an “emergency” card), the first attempt was for $8.60, which was allowed. However, the next attempt was for $2,800 and this set off alarm bells and my account was suspended immediately. My credit card has to now be re-issued with new numbers and the $8.60 will be covered by the bank. After talking with the lady in the fraud department, this is a common occurrence, with computers generating random numbers and if a small amount is allowed, the large request follows.

Feeling much better after this, we continued to the NQ Gold Coffee Plantation for our coffee supplies, as well as a chat with Maria and Bruno, and a cup of their lovely coffee. This family farm may not have all the bells and whistles of the larger touristy coffee places, but the coffee is much cheaper and the place has character.

We continued along the Wheelbarrow Way, which runs from Mareeba to Normanton, as far as Dimbulah – the first time we have visited this outback Queensland town. On the way, we passed mango plantations, coffee plantations, mango plantations, sugar farms, mango plantations, citrus (mandarins?) groves and mango plantations. The land that wasn’t under cultivation was just the dry savannah vegetation, with plenty of termite mounds. Dimbulah was a typical, small town with wide streets and little traffic, a few shops, a pub, railway station, bowling and soccer clubs, as well as a small caravan park.

On our return journey to Cairns, we stopped at the Skybury Coffee Centre – more for comfort than coffee. The coffee shop and restaurant were in a lovely modern building overlooking the valley towards Mareeba. The toilets were also VERY impressive, with an indoor waterfall and lily pond running between the ladies and gents. The running water probably also was a help to those needing some assistance …  We also encountered road works which involved newly laid tar and metal - this is going to involve more thinking now.