Fairs and Markets

Saturday, 26 July 2014

 

Thursday was the day to enjoy my birthday present – a “Sensory Journey” at the Serenity on the Avenue Day Spa.  After nearly being gassed with the lemon grass oil, a quick change of aroma meant a very enjoyable and relaxing morning.  How times flies when having fun!

We had some light rain during the night on Thursday, which meant that Friday was not only hot, but very humid.  We also had a couple of very heavy downpours during the morning; now we know why the park has such large drains!  With my birthday present from Cazaleys about to reach its expiry date, we decided to use all the vouchers and enjoy a nice lunch and glass of wine.  With barramundi being the “Catch of the Day,” how could we go wrong.  After collecting my $5 club money, we then used it to make a donation back to the club via the poker machines.  It doesn’t really take very long to spend $5 on $0.02 machines!!!

 Following lunch, we headed to the Cairns Indigenous Art Fair, being held at the ocean liner terminal.  Having seen a similar fair a couple of years ago, we were a little disappointed with the paintings; not many were traditional indigenous designs.  However, the sculptures were very good, and we enjoyed talking to the man who created a chainsaw cassowary.  Some dancers and singers also provided entertainment on the lawns outside, although I think there was a little confusion with various cultures.

 

Wall of Honour

Memorial

Lush farmland



Cathedral Fig Tree (lower part)

In the centre of the tree

Rainforest stream

Small crater lake

Lake Tinaroo and a camp ground

Tinaroo Dam outlet

The rain continued at times overnight and this morning was rather cloudy and drizzly very early.  We had decided earlier in the month to visit the Yungaburra Market today (its only held once a month) and were very undecided early as to whether to travel to the Atherton Tablelands or not, but with the clouds clearing and the sun shining, we made the big decision to go.  The weather stayed lovely until we were about 2 kms away from Yungaburra, then the rain started and continued until we had parked and walked to the market.  The sun reappeared and we started to stew in the humidity; the market was well worth the visit.

Our next stop was at the Avenue of Honour to our servicemen, and dogs, who had lost their lives in the Afghanistan War.  As with visits to all war memorials, a very moving experience.  We continued on to Lake Barrine and its tearooms for lunch, found a quiet table on the balcony, ordered our food and then watch the rain come towards us across the lake.  Lunch was enjoyed inside and we were subsequently soaked on the run back up the hill to the car.

After studying the map, we decided to take the tourist route around Lake Tinaroo and have a look at the cathedral fig tree.  We have never been on this road before and we wont be travelling on it again!!!  The road was sealed as far as the fig tree – definitely worth a look – with lovely farm land on one side of the road and rain forest on the other.  Once the bitumen finished, surrounded by rainforest, the road rapidly deteriorated, with a sign saying the road was unsuitable for caravans.  The gravel had become mud because of the rain, and the potholes had filled with water.  Of course, the driver did his utmost to make sure he drove through every pot hole and corrugation; one of us was feeling a touch of green (GREEN, not grey!) but the time we regained the bitumen.  I'm sure there were VW Beetles in some of the potholes.  This road just seemed to go forever and it wasn’t until we came across a couple of campgrounds on the shore of Lake Tinaroo and five kilometres before the end of the gravel, that we started to enjoy the drive.  It was even better when we reached Tinaroo!

When we returned to the caravan park, we were surprised to discover that the people who were beside us last year had returned today for a few weeks and will be beside James and Maureen when they arrive next weekend.