We hit the road and found another fabulous area…The scenery never ends in Australia…

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One of many quaint outdoor/indoor restaurants along Williams Esplanade In Palm Cove beach. More photos of the boulevard will follow tomorrow.

Midday yesterday after my stint at the fitness center, we decided to drive until we found more amazing scenery we’d yet to see. It wasn’t a difficult task to accomplish as we headed north on the Captain Cook Highway, beyond a point which we’d driven in the past.

A boat launch near the Palm Cove pier.
The beach with a few adventurous sunbathers.

At a long distance from our area, we’d seen a pier that piqued our curiosity. After asking Sylvie and Andy about it, they suggested it was definitely worth a visit.

When the sun peeked through the clouds, the views were especially appealing.

We couldn’t have been more pleased after we turned east down the road we’d guessed it might be to find the beautiful Palm Cove, a fabulous beach and resort area with restaurant-lined streets, shops, and tourist attractions.

The pier had been designed with various levels to allow those fishing to be out of the way of the walking visitors.

Surprisingly, on a busy Friday, we managed to snag a parking spot and were able to walk up and down the beach along Williams Esplanade soaking in all the quaint and interesting buildings. 

The view of Palm Cove beach from the pier.

Too close to the buildings and with the street crowded with tourists, it was difficult to take good photos from the sidewalk. After our walk, we slowly drove along the boulevard enabling us to get some decent shots to share here over the next few days.

Notice the white plastic holders on the posts. These holders are for the purpose of holding the fishing rods while those fishing can take a break from holding their rods.

The walk on the pier was pleasant on a sunny day and we were able to watch fishing enthusiasts avidly perusing a fine catch of the day. In our old lives, we enjoyed fishing but now without equipment of our own and prohibitive costs to buy or rent equipment, it’s not something we need to do. 

The long, fairly wide pier is a commonly visited spot for tourists.

The pier was packed with tourists armed with cameras, like us, along with families and kids enjoying the beautiful, albeit windy day. There were a few sunbathers lounging on the beach and a few in the water, oblivious to the danger signs posted everywhere in regard to the stingers and crocodiles.

A brave kayaker in the ocean with sharks, stingers, and crocs in these waters.

Palm Cove has numerous hotels and resorts and interesting history:

“The history of Palm Cove dates back to over 60,000 years ago when the Aborigines became the first settlers. The most famous landing at Palm Cove happened in 1873 when G.E. Dalrymple’s Northeast Coast Expedition landed to explore the beach. The expedition was met with hostility by the indigenous people and they opened a violent assault on the exploring crew which led to one of the largest beachfront invasions in Australian history. Shortly before World War I in 1918, the land that is today Palm Cove was bought by Albert Veivers from Archdeacon Campbell. Archdeacon Campbell had been known as a priest at Cairns church who experimented with bringing different agricultural crops to the Cairns region. Veivers was important in the advancement of Palm Cove by having the first road built. The creation of the road led property values in Palm Cove to increase dramatically, leading to more prosperity for the community. Shortly after World War II, in which Palm Cove was used as a training base for Australian soldiers, the number of people traveling to Palm Cove greatly increased. The opening of the Ramada Reef Resort in 1986 marked the first international hotel chain to be located in Palm Cove and the town has continued to increase in national and international recognition ever since.

Palm Cove is located in Far North Queensland and is on the coast of Australia. It is guarded against the South Pacific Ocean by the Great Barrier Reef. Palm Cove is completely surrounded by the Daintree Tropical Rainforest and is close to Daintree National Park. Since Palm Cove is located in a tropical climate, the average summer temperature is between 24 and 33 degrees Celsius; the average winter temperature is between 14 and 26 degrees Celsius.“

On our walk back to the beach.

Palm Cove proved to be an interesting and enjoyable spot for us to visit. Later, on our return drive to Trinity Beach, we discussed how different our lives may be then for those of tourists. Most tourists visiting this area would have stopped for a meal and/or drinks in one of the many dining establishments along the way. 

Catching Tom off guard on the Palm Cove pier.

Instead, we read and take photos of the posted menus for the restaurants we may return to down the road when the mood hits us. Dining out is less enjoyable for us when my restricted way of eating makes doing so complicated at many restaurants. But, we’re not complaining.  

The sand on the beach in Palm Cove is known not to be as fine sand as other beaches in the area.

Checking out the various locations is satisfying enough for us. It’s just not worth my ordering a steak for AUD $35, USD $26.80 when it’s being cooked on a grill where foods with gluten, starch, or sugar may have been cooked. We can easily purchase and cook fabulous grass-fed steaks for AUD $15, USD $11.49 each, with side dished we know I can have.

The sixth fish down in the left column on this list is the popular local Barramundi Cod, often found on menus in local restaurants. Apparently, according to this list (see photo below), the sign says, “No take,” perhaps indicating they cannot be kept if caught.

 Barramundi Cod as indicated on the fish identification sign in the above photo.

Neither of us feels any resentment even in the slightest manner by the virtue of the fact that “Hey…we’re traveling the world and we’re healthy. What more could we ask for?  Nothing, absolutely nothing!”

                                                Photo from one year ago today, June 27, 2014:

Ironically, it was one year ago that we booked our next location in our travels in Savusavu, Fiji as shown on the map of the smaller island in Fiji.  For more details, please click here.

Figuring out the most simple things is often challenging…Feedback from our readers, please…How often do you go to a doctor when feeling well?

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Double Island is often shown in many of our ocean view photos.

At times, we find figuring out the seemingly simplest things becomes tricky while outside of our home country.  It’s not due to any difficulty generated by any other country in particular. It’s simply the fact that everything is different in each country.

Recently, I began searching online to order a year’s supply of my contact lenses. Should be relatively easy.  Unfortunately, my prescription is three years old and the familiar brand that I’ve used for years has been discontinued.

Trees and vegetation are often seen growing along the beaches.

In order to make a new purchase, I’d have to pay for a new eye exam here in Australia and start all over again.  I don’t feel like doing this nor do I want to purchase a brand that may not be readily available as we continue on our travels. Also, my prescription hasn’t changed. I can still see perfectly with my current prescription.

Scout Island doesn’t look too inviting and isn’t occupied.

I only have common age-related far-sightedness, resulting in difficulty in reading small print, corrected with bifocal contacts, a different prescription in each eye. It works great for me and has done so for the past 25 years without difficulty.

In the US, an eye exam prescription is good for two years and the same applies in Australia. Sticking my neck out, I asked my old optician in Minnesota to send me a year’s supply of a new brand with me taking the risk that they’ll work. 

A handmade swing at the beach.

Finally, they agreed and as of a call I made to them this morning, they’ve agreed to send me only a one year supply of a new brand that should work well when it matches my prescription. Rather than have them send them directly to me in Australia and in order to make it simple, I asked them to send them to our mailing service in Nevada.

Before we leave Trinity Beach, we’ll order a new box of supplies and have them mailed to us. In Australia, if the contents of a package shipped from outside the country into the country has a value of less than AUD $1000, US $773, no taxes or customs fees are required. We’ll keep close tabs on the value of the contents as we add to the items we’ll eventually have shipped to us.

Sandy beach on a cloudy day.

Once again, we must address the teeth cleaning issue after canceling our appointments in Maui when Tom didn’t feel comfortable with the odd scenario of the location and office setup of the makeshift dentist’s office. We’ll check with our landlords and also check online for reviews.

Recently, we’ve decided it may be time to make doctor appointments for both of us for a general check-up and blood tests which neither of us are excited to do when we’re both feeling so well. Our insurance doesn’t pay for office visits or tests and this could easily run into quite a bill. Its been almost three years since either of us had a physical exam. 

Double Island is privately owned.

We’d love feedback from our readers and you may do so anonymously at the end of this post by clicking on the “comment” link. How often do you see the dentist when you’re teeth feel clean and without problems? How often do you see a doctor when you’re feeling well?

Today, we’re off to the fitness center and for another exploratory drive in the area. There’s so much to see in our immediate surroundings as we continue to post photos. 

There are plenty of condo and apartment complexes in Trinity Beach and the surrounding areas.

One day soon, we’ll head out of town. For now, we’re so content that its difficult to become motivated to take a road trip especially when its been cloudy and rainy most days. We’re hoping that by next week we’ll be ready to take off for a day.

Soon, we’ll be leaving for the fitness center and another drive exploring this amazing area. Have a fabulous day!

Photo from one year ago today, June 26, 2014:

The small island of Madeira had many points of interest to explore within a short distance of our home. We certainly enjoyed our time on the beautiful, historical island. For more details, please click here.

Sitting too much?…How about walking in the mall on a rainy day?…More photos from exploring…

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We spotted this beautiful cove at the end of the boulevard in Trinity Beach.

Tom says he never planned to include walking as a part of his retirement. What did he plan to do? Sit in a chair waiting to grow old for the anticipated eventuality? That’s what some retirees choose to do when health-wise when they could be more mobile. 

Unfortunately, many seniors have health conditions, making mobility unlikely if not impossible and my heart breaks for them. Having the ability to freely move about has a tremendous bearing on our general good health and state of mind. We commend the many people we know and love who aren’t able to be mobile and yet maintain a positive attitude.

Sitting puts a fast end to our mobility and our mortality. The maximum amount of sitting I allow myself most days is during the time it takes for me to write and post here each day and to handle the necessary aspects of our travels online.  For the remainder of the daylight hours, I try to stay on the move as much as possible. 

A long stretch of unoccupied sandy beach.

Although after dinner, during which we sit, we do gravitate toward the sofa to watch a recorded program or two on my laptop using the HDMI hooked to the flat-screen TV. I can’t imagine having the inclination to be running about the house each evening after dinner. After watching for two hours, we lay down in bed for seven or eight more hours.

Ouch! Writing this down makes me realize how much time we actually do spend not on our feet. Long ago, I read that standing and moving around once an hour is helpful which I desperately try to do. But, even then, it’s easy to get lost in the distraction of the moment while seated.

Harvard Medical School issued this report on the dangers of sitting for people of all ages including those in the workplace. Oh, that I recall sitting at a desk most of my working life, sitting in the car, sitting watching a movie. 

This dome-type vacation rental reminded us of dome homes from decades ago. 

Aside from a large faction of the working population that busted their “you-know-whats” engaged in a career of hard working manual labor, most of us sat in a chair at work or spent the better part of each day gravitating back to a spot where there was a place to sit.

If we look back at early man/woman, they seldom sat, instead, spending most of their time on their feet working for shelter, warmth, safety, food, and water. Perhaps humans weren’t intended to sit other than around the fire at night for dining and warmth.

A lone explorer on the secluded beach.

However, when we see animals in the wild most of them sit from time to time, to relax, nap, and scour their surroundings. So, let’s assume that sitting to some degree must be acceptable for the health and well-being of humans as well. As we’ve observed wildlife these past years of travel, we’ve seen that they are like us in many ways or…we’re like them. They were here before us.

After all, most of us have an adequate built-in cushion for sitting which seems to shrink as we age for some odd reason. Who knows? Maybe it shrinks as a reminder that we need to get up and move around instead of sitting in an attempt to maintain a certain degree of health and fitness.

I’m no expert. All I know is that when I’m active I feel better, my muscles move more freely, my sense of health and well-being escalates and my spirits rise beyond my usual “overly bubbly,” if that’s at all possible.

The beaches are seldom populated this time of year with the risk of stingers and crocs.

Tom, on the other hand, loves sitting. He always says he spent enough time outside moving about in 20 degrees below zero to last a lifetime. I’m not so sure about that.

Yesterday, after two weeks of clouds and rain, we needed to walk some more, although in the past week we’ve done quite a bit of walking at beaches and parks in the area. But, being moderately active one day doesn’t necessarily carry over to the next day.

The Lime Tree restaurant in Trinity Beach is rated as #2 or 16 restaurants on TripAdvisor. Soon, we’ll make a reservation and give it a try.

As much as I know Tom doesn’t like to go for walks, I suggested that we return to the local Smithfield Mall for a few items to supplement our grocery shopping of a few days ago. We needed to buy lettuce and coffee and, I wanted to try the low carb, sugar-free, goat’s milk yogurt I heard was readily available in the market (which, by the way, is fabulous!)

Instead of telling Tom, we should walk in the mall, he gladly agreed to take me to the store for the few grocery items and to stop at a vitamin store for some B1 which is known to help some against getting sandfly bites. (Oh, we won’t get into that. No complaining on my part over the 50 bites on my knees for which no natural non-DEET repellent works. Why they bit my knees, I’ll never know).

Kangaroos are accepted as a part of everyday life in Australia, not unlike our former reaction to squirrels and geese when we lived in Minnesota.

To accomplish both of these tasks, it made sense to walk through the very long mall which when walking up and back requires a good 30 minutes of brisk walking. Tom brought along his phone with his Kindle books so he could “sit” while I meandered a few shops along the way. 

Walking in our new neighborhood is unlikely. The hugely steep driveway is impossible to safely navigate on foot for anyone over 30 years old. It’s a knee injury waiting to happen. 

Tom is highly adept at driving a stick shift with his left hand and yet he surprises me each time we go up and down as he easily maneuvers the underpowered little red car that chugs along especially going up the hill. 

Even active kangaroos take time to sit in the shade when the sun peeked out for a few hours.

The hill is so steep, I’d have hesitated to drive it even with an automatic transmission if I’d had to.  (With no parking allowed on the street at the end of the driveway, we’ve had to drive to take walks, which we’ve done each day this week).

“Good on you, Tom Lyman,” I say, using a common Australian expression that we hear everywhere we go, which apparently means “good for you!” Easily, I could repeat this adorable expression for his willingness to walk with me as we wander about the world, attempting to get off our butts as often as possible, hopefully lengthening our time on this planet with a certain level of good health and fitness.

Photo from one year ago today,  June 25, 2014:

This worm on the organic lettuce in Madeira, Portugal practically picked up his head to look at me before I tossed the leaf over the veranda into the vegetation below. For more details, please click here.

Out and about…Always discover something new and interesting…Joined Coast Fitness…

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This pretty restaurant, L’únigo (misspelled in TripAdvisor as L’Unico) is rated #3 of 16 restaurants in Trinity Beach. We’ll try this one also. The sun peeked out for a few hours yesterday!

With dense fog and pouring rain impeding the view of the ocean and the horizon, we’ve decided not to go on the road trip along the ocean that we’d tentatively planned for today. 

With the intent of taking photos of the scenery along the coastline to share here, we’ve decided to wait until the next sunny weekday. We prefer not to travel on busy weekends fighting traffic and crowds when we can just as easily travel on weekdays.

I stepped out of the car to take this shot. Tom reminded me that passengers on the ship had told him that the ocean is murky at most beaches in Australia, as opposed to the clear crisp blue waters of Hawaii and other islands. Here’s an article about the murky waters surrounding the Great Barrier Reef.

However, yesterday when we took off for me to join a fitness center, we took a drive and stumbled upon a fabulous area with photo ops we look forward to sharing here over the next few days. With wifi limitations and the overall poor signal, we can’t post as many photos as we had in some past locations when we had free unlimited wifi.

Coast Fitness is the closest health club and although modest, it certainly will do the trick. I’ve always found that a health club must be conveniently located in one’s place of residence. It’s hard enough to make oneself workout on a regular basis, let alone having a long distance to drive. 

View of the mountains from Trinity Beach.

Working out, although obviously beneficial, requires a degree of self-discipline that I’ve always found to be challenging. Once I’m there and warmed up, it’s all good. 

Unfortunately, Tom has to drive me wherever I’d like to go. The car rental required an extra USD $23.22, AUD $30 per day to add me to the agreement. It just wasn’t worth spending an extra USD $2066.58, AUD $2670.36 for me to drive myself to the grocery store and fitness center during the 89 days. 

There are warning signs along all the beaches in this area in regard to stingers and crocodiles. We’ve seldom seen anyone in the water or lounging on the beach.

It’s not like Tom has a lot to do to prevent him from having time to drive me around. He brings his phone loaded with books he’s reading staying entertained while he waits. Also, driving a stick shift left-handed and on the opposite side of the road wouldn’t have been ideal for me. In essence, I’m happy I wasn’t included in the agreement.  It would not have been pretty.

As we exited the car at Vasay Esplanade, we were excited to see restaurants along the street. Trinity Beach Beachfront Bar and Grill which we particularly liked for their menu is rated #4 of 16 in TripAdvisor. We’ll try this one soon.

It took no more than 10 minutes to pay the required US $177, AUD $230, for the next two months and get my membership card. Not wanting to pay for the third month, my membership will end two weeks before we leave Trinity Beach on September 8th. During that final two weeks, I’ll do the workout at home.

This morning’s view at 10 am.

Hopefully, I’ll be able to find a facility on the tiny island we’ll be living on in Fiji after we leave here. I’ve already begun searching, contacting various resorts for possibilities, hoping to hear back before too long.

We can’t see beyond the yard.

I hadn’t realized that I’d feel so out of shape when I started yesterday’s routine. I can only attribute it to the fact that I was sick during the final month in Kauai, never working out, and then did a less than stellar attempt on the ship when we were busy socializing each day. 

Now I’m totally committed to go to the fitness center frequently and give it everything I have. It’s amazing how energized and strong I’ll feel after a few weeks. 

The modest entrance to Coast Fitness.  Although unassuming, it has excellent equipment, everything I can possibly use.

As we left the fitness center, Tom, with his keen sense of direction, decided to take us on another drive toward the ocean. Little did we know we’d stumble upon a quaint oceanfront area of Trinity Beach we hadn’t yet discovered. I practically squealed with delight as we parked the car.

The pool at Coast Fitness wasn’t particularly appealing. With the pool here at the house which we’ve yet to use with the mostly cloudy weather these past few weeks, we won’t be using this pool.

Even Tom, who doesn’t get quite as excited as I do, couldn’t get out of the car quick enough so we could wander along the ocean boulevard, Vasay Esplanade, checking out the scenery and the various restaurants and their menus. We found enough restaurants in that one location to satisfy us for weeks to come.

The equipment is up-to-date and adequate.

However, we’ve yet to dine out since we arrived. What can I say? We’ve so enjoyed making our meals and, with Tom losing weight like crazy, it’s pointless to dine out and spoil the momentum. Perhaps soon, we’ll visit one of these appealing options.

We’re content, feeling settled in, enjoying the area. We’ve begun looking ahead to the future when we still have holes in our itinerary that we need to fill. We’ve waited long enough and currently are considering several options. Once, we’ve booked the next round, we’ll certainly be sharing the news here.

Have a warm and wonderful day filled with sunshine in your life, if not in the skies.

                                              Photo from one year ago today, June  24, 2014:

This was the first time we’d seen these Angel’s Trumpet flowers as we drove in the mountains of Madeira. Later, I saw these in Kauai when I toured the Princeville Botanical Gardens to discover that these flowers are used as a hallucinogenic by certain cultures. For more details, please click here.

Challenge at the grocery store…Adapting to food differences presents challenges…How much did we spend?

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Aussies we met on the ship suggested we try kangaroo meat.  I haven’t convinced myself to try this yet.  Tom is definitely not interested.

For those of our readers who have little interest in food, the cost of food, the availability of food, and our ability to find foods appropriate to our way of eating, this post is not for you. Tomorrow, we’ll be back with more non-food related conversation.

Let’s face it, food is a big part of all of our lives. We may find pleasure in what we chose to eat. Food has the ability to provide us with good health. Some revel in the shopping and preparation of food. Food may accompany certain recreational occasions. Food and wine (or other drink of choice) may represent romance and celebrations.

We can’t escape from food, even if we want to. We have to eat to survive. We may choose to enjoy the process of figuring out our next meal or we can struggle with guilt and angst (or not) over a stop for fast food or other less than healthy pre-made and restaurant food. 

Ground beef is referred to as mince in Australia as we found in some other parts of the world such as in Africa, Italy and Portugal.

Some who prefer not to cook may have found excellent sources of pre-made or pre-cooked meals that fit both their survival and goal of good health. There are many who may choose ways of eating that have no rhyme or reason or may prefer a wide array of eating options to include: low carb, low fat, paleo, low carb, gluten-free, sugar-free, vegetarian, vegan, and many more that have brought them to a point of good health. 

Wouldn’t all of us choose to eat in a manner that brings us good health, longevity and also a level of enjoyment in eating our chosen type of diet? For many younger people (and older as well), little thought is given to what they eat or the long-term consequences of their choices. That, too, becomes a choice in itself.

I’m not here to preach any particular manner of eating. If I’ve seemed to do so, as we’ve traveled the world, striving to maintain a level of health that will allow us to continue on for years to come, I apologize for “stuffing” you with our choices and opinions. The bottom line, what works for each of us?

You can easily enlarge this receipt to read the details of yesterday’s grocery shopping at Woolie’s. The AUD $227.57 for Woolie’s translates to US $175.86.  This total didn’t include the veggies at US $32.77, AUD $42.41, and Italian sausage at US $13.45, AUD  $17.40.

In the past few weeks, Tom has returned to my way of eating beginning back on the ship on the last few days when he’d had his fill of bread, sweets and starchy foods.  He’s since lost 15 pounds of belly fat. His shorts and pants now button easily. 

I look at him several times of day, in awe of the reduction in the size of his waistband, surely an indicator of future good health. Extreme amounts of belly fat has been proven, over and over again to have a bearing on health, well being and life span. 

I wouldn’t care about the appearance of a big belly if it was an indicator of good health. But, unfortunately, it is not. And nothing gives us both more joy than knowing that our continued good health is the primary reason we’ll have the opportunity to continue on our journey long into the future. It is only poor health or serious injury that will put an end to this life we live.

Fallen coconuts sprouting into what will eventually be coconut trees.

Yesterday, we headed to Woolie’s, a popular supermarket in Australia. Having visited a few other markets, we found that overall Woolie’s has the best selections. 

Over the past week, I’d made a list of several items we’d needed to purchase for meals that we particularly enjoy befitting our chosen diet that we’ve mentioned many times in these posts; one, our grain, starch, and sugar-free sausage, mushroom, onion, and olive pizza made with a cheese and egg crust and two, a staple for us, our “unwich,” a bread-free sandwich wrapped in parchment paper using large romaine lettuce leaves to hold it together. 

Here’s the link to our gluten-free pizza recipe.

Here’s the link to instructions and recipes for making our bread-less sandwiches.

We hadn’t had either of these meals in over a month and were looking forward to having them again, leaving leftovers for a few more meals. As I mentioned in the past, we have little room in the small fridge and freezer making it challenging to stock up for a week or more.

With metered wifi, we won’t be able to spend time online looking for names of plants and flowers. We saw this particular bloom in Hawaii but can’t recall the name of it. Any suggestions?

On our menu for the upcoming week, we’d planned for the following meals:
1.  3 nights:  Unwich, made fresh each night. The fresh deli meats only last four days before spoiling and thus it makes sense to have this for three nights
2.  3 nights:  Homemade pizza
3.  2 nights:  Homemade coconut chicken tenders
All of the above includes a side of vegetables and a salad, made fresh each day. This menu plan allows for eight dinners and few, if any, trips back to the market except for a few fresh veggies.

As I wandered through the market while Tom sat on a bench nearby ready to help me when I was done, I found myself at a loss when I couldn’t find many of the items necessary to make the above meals befitting my way of eating.

All of the pasta sauces necessary for making the pizza were loaded with sugar, starch, wheat and chemicals. At the deli, all but one type of the deli meats (a bland-looking ham) we typically use in making the sandwiches; roast beef, turkey, ham and salami had massive amounts of sugar, gluten and chemicals. 

Tropical flowers proliferate in tropical climates such as here in Trinity Beach in the northern part of Australia which is warmer year-round than many other parts of the continent. This is a bottle brush flower which we’d also seen in Kauai at the Princeville Botanical Gardens.

Deli meats should have no added sugar and less than one gram of carbohydrates per serving. Many of the meats were 5 carb grams per serving indicating large amounts of additives. Plain beef, pork, chicken, turkey have zero grams of carbs per serving.

After driving the deli guy crazy asking him to look up the ingredients in the meats, which appeared to be freshly-sliced meat, we discovered that the meats were filled with grains and sugars of varying types, none of which I could or would be willing to eat other than the bland ham. 

Since Tom doesn’t react to small amounts of sugar or gluten, I purchased the usual items for him. Would I not be able to have an unwich, one of my favorite items, while we live in Australia?

The only solution that would work for me was to make my sandwiches with cooked uncured streaky bacon, avocado, natural Jarlsburg cheese without additives, the gluten, the bland ham, spinach, lettuce, tomato and onion, an alternative that proved to be delicious.

We’d never seen anything quite like these growing fruit or pods as in this tree in the yard.  Any ideas?

As for the pizza that we’ll make in a few days, I will forgo the sauce, instead spreading a bit of our homemade ketchup (I made this the first few days we arrived), seasoned with Italian spices. This will ensure I won’t be consuming gluten, additives, or sugar. Luckily, I found free-range organic chicken without added hormones and won’t have any trouble making our coconut chicken tenders. 

I must admit I scoured the market attempting to find more appropriate items. We use a few pre-made products. A few nights ago, I used a bottle of what was referred to as “American” mustard that I’d purchased, never thinking to read the label. American mustard is usually made with mustard seeds, vinegar, salt, and water. 

When I squeezed a glob of the mustard onto my plate and dipped my gluten-free sausage into it, taking a bite I was shocked by the sweet taste. It was loaded with sugar, one portion including four grams of sugar compared to a teaspoon of sugar. I wiped the mustard off my plate, later tossing the squeeze bottle into the trash.

We’ve yet to use the pool when its been cloudy or raining most days since we arrived, including today.

In all, my disappointment is over the long list of ingredients in many foods which includes chemicals, grains, starches, and sugar that are entirely unnecessary in our diets. This is not an Australian thing. It is universal in many countries throughout the world many of which we visited over these past few years.

As a result, I’ll stick to my usual “food in its natural state” as best as I can while avoiding items loaded with ingredients unsuitable for my way of eating. I’m certainly looking forward to a repeat of last night’s unwich. Of course, Tom was content with his giant bread-free sandwich.

Otherwise, I was thrilled over the mostly organic vegetables we purchased at the indoor farmers market which when I washed at home, made me smile over the worms and bugs I encountered. The uneven sizes of the produce and the bugs assured me that few if any, chemicals were used in the growing process.

These lovely gladiolas are growing in the yard.

Finally, when I wasn’t able to find Italian sausage of any type in the market, I was ready to give up the idea of pizza entirely. Tom doesn’t care for pepperoni or other meats on pizza. After we paid for the veggies at the farmers market and Woolies, I headed to the nearby meat market in the mall. 

They not only had the Italian sausage but it was gluten and sugar-free. The butcher explained that a small amount of rice flour was used in the preparation to hold it together which is a very small amount, won’t have a negative impact on me especially with the small portion I’ll eat. Also, this meat market had all the grass-fed meat, both beef, and lamb, that we could possibly want during our three months in Trinity Beach. 

Included today are photos of the receipts for the meat market, Woolie’s, and the farmer’s market. Overall, we spent US $238.66, AUD $308.88, an amount with which we’re pleasantly surprised. That averages at US $29.83, AUD $38.61, keeping in mind this included paper products and a few non-food items as well.

Today, we’re off to the fitness center where I’ll sign up for a membership and do my first workout while Tom waits for me, reading his book. Later, we’ll take a drive to check out more scenery in the area. Tomorrow, weather providing, a road trip may be in order. It’s raining today.

Have a day filled with wonderful surprises!

                                              Photo from one year ago today, June 23, 2014:

The soccer world cup was in full swing and the citizens of Madeira were excited and engaged in the process.  For details for this date, please click here.

Happy Father’s Day to those where it’s Sunday, June 21st…The shortest day of the year here in Australia…The longest for others…

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View from our veranda. 

It’s a weird phenomenon for us. Today is June 22nd here in Australia, June 21st in many other parts of the world. For those for which it is June 21st, it is the longest day of the year.

For us, yesterday on June 21st, it was the shortest day of the year with the least amount of daylight. It’s now winter here. The longest day of the year in Australia will be December 21st when summer begins.

Colorful plants surround the yard,

In our old lives, we never gave any of this a thought. We lived our lives with a calendar commensurate with what we saw when we looked out the window; all four seasons with June being the beginning of the short Minnesota summer months.

By late August the leaves began to fall, the temperatures quickly began to change and less than two months later, we would turn on the furnaces and prepare for the long winter months.  

On occasion it snowed on Halloween with the trick or treaters wearing coats over their costumes, the house becoming chilled each time we opened the door to hand out the candy. That was our old life. This is our new life.

The high humidity is a perfect climate for mushrooms.

It’s Monday morning here.  Sunday afternoon, we took a drive looking for the fitness club that I plan to join in a few days. I’ve put this off since we arrived 10 days ago and the time has come for me to face the music. 

It’s so easy to lose the momentum for working out. I worked out on the ship but most likely lost a certain amount of my fitness level by missing over a week. With the high-intensity interval training I do once every six days as recommended by scientific research, with lots of walking and activity, I am not as far behind as I may have been in my old style of working out five times a week, an hour and a half each time. Those days are long gone.

Wildflowers in the yard.

It was tricky finding the fitness center which was closed by the time we arrived. Like typical seniors, we like to scope out where what we’re looking for in the area. We’ve already noticed that driving directions may be off in this area when using online maps. After navigating a few roundabouts (common in Australia), we finally found it and hope to return tomorrow so I can join and do my first workout.

Now as we reflect, we don’t think we had jet lag. In reality, we were off an entire day after crossing the International Dateline plus a few hours. Not enough to cause jet lag. The entire day time difference wouldn’t result in jet lag. It’s just a different day on the calendar. In any case, we’re back to our “old” selves, cheerful, feeling great, and anxious to see more of our immediate surroundings.

We spotted these White Ibis on the front lawn of a house near the fitness center.

Australia is considered one of the most expensive areas to live and visit in the world. As we’ve investigated what we hope to do we’ve decided it makes sense to stay within a day’s drive of our current location. 

Investigating trains to other larger cities, the cost for a round trip 24 hours train ride with a modest reclining sleeper was US $1165, AUD $1500 (for two, round trip).  By adding the cost of accommodations, other transportation, dining out, and various tourist venues a three-day visit could easily cost US $2500, AUD $3216.

The beak on White Ibis is long and hooked, ideal for catching fish.

Driving the same distance would take six days round trip plus the cost of gas, accommodations, meals, and venues and result in our being gone for nine days. Paying rent for our house in Trinity Beach makes no sense for us to be gone for nine days. Our budgetary concerns must always prevail.

Instead, we’ve booked several cruises that travel around the continent allowing us to “live” on the ships with no other rents paid at that time and to see the majority of the larger Australian cities on tours. For us, this is an economical and logical alternative. 

In the interim, there’s an abundance of sights to see within a one day drive in this amazing area with beautiful weather during its winter months. Today we awoke to exquisite sunshine and ideal temperatures.

A kangaroo posing for us. They aren’t a friendly as warthogs in South Africa or birds in Kauai so I won’t go overboard with kangaroo photos. I can’t wait to see a “joey” in a pouch.

As soon as I upload today’s post, we’re off to Woolie’s and the farmer’s market. We’re literally out of any options for tonight’s dinner. The last time we shopped was six days ago and with the tiny freezer stocking up for longer periods isn’t possible. Tomorrow, we’ll post a photo of our receipts.

However, we have no concerns that this will be an issue for us. We try to make each planned meal last for no less than two nights, made fresh each day. When we enjoy our meal as much we do we actually look forward to repeats.

Again, Father’s Day to all the dads out there on the opposite side of the International Dateline including our two sons, both of whom are great dads and to whom we send our utmost love and affection.     

                                              Photo from one year ago today, June 22, 2014:

Water in the creek in Campanario, Madeira after a night’s heavy rains. For more details of our life in Madeira, one year ago, please click here.

How did we get so lucky?…A thoughtful purchase and a new friendship that means so much…Photos of last night’s dinner…

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This morning we were excited to have our first cups of homemade coffee in almost a month. It was perfect! Some habits never die and why should they, when a solution such as this was generously provided by our thoughtful hosts?

Yesterday, Saturday here in Australia, was a very good day. That’s not to say that generally speaking, most days aren’t good. They are. But, some days have a special quality that leaves us with a smile on our faces for those unexpected little treasures in life. Yesterday was such a day.

In the morning, our hosts and property owners, Sylvie and Andy sent us a message saying they were coming to clean the house at 8:30. Early birds that we are, the time was no problem for us. We’d be up since 6 am.

Our landlords, neighbors, and new friends, Sylvie and Andy. Sylvie is from France and Andy is from the UK and has lived in Australia for over 20 years.

They offered to wash and dry the sheets, remake the bed, wash the towels, and clean every inch of space.  Wow! That was an amazing offer. However, we’d already done the sheets on Thursday, one week after the day we arrived, all the towels were already in the wash and, the prior day I’d swept the floors and dusted the shelves.

The bathroom and kitchen were already spotless since we clean as we go. When we arrived, we’d inquired as to a cleaning person coming once a week to do the entire place for which we’d pay the cost, if it wasn’t too much. 

With Sylvie and Andy busy working all week, we didn’t want to pester them about a cleaning person, instead, doing everything we could with the cleaning products we’d purchased; bathroom and toilet cleaner and Windex along with a broom and dustpan we found here.

Tom’s dinner last night, included one pork chop, three gluten-free cheese sausages, one gluten-free knockwurst on a bed of sautéed onions and mushrooms, a side salad, and a muffin with New Zealand grass-fed organic butter (muffin not shown).

Tidy folks that we are, on any day of the week, there are few areas that require cleaning. The only area of concern was the floors which we’d swept almost daily. 

After over a week of cooking and then eating in the dining room, even after we’d swept the floor several times, it could easily do with a good washing. Plus, the area rug was covered in bits of white lint that I’d tried to sweep to no avail. I hesitantly asked that they only do the floors and the rug. 

At 8:30 sharp they both showed at the door with vacuum and mops in hand. We felt awkward letting them do the work but, they insisted. They explained that any other guests renting the property didn’t have to clean when they stayed for shorter periods.

Tom and I moved outside to the veranda while they worked. About 30 minutes later Andy stepped outside, done with the work, to join us for a lively and animated conversation that we thoroughly enjoyed. Going forward, they’ll do the floors and we’ll do the rest, a fair and easy compromise for all of us.

My dinner last night included two lamb chops, two gluten-free cheese sausage, one gluten free knockwurst on a bed of sautéed onions and mushrooms, a salad, and a low carb muffin with grass fed New Zealand butter (muffin not shown in this photo).

A short period after Andy left, he excitedly joined us outside again, holding his tablet anxious to show us an online photo.  He’d found a coffee pot, an actual drip coffee pot! And above all, he was driving to Cairns to buy it for us to use.

Although we hesitated for a moment, not wanting them to spend the money, Tom and I looked at each other, both agreeing it would be greatly appreciated. It made no sense for us to buy a coffee pot that we’d have to leave behind. However, it could be a valuable item for them to include for future renters.

As Tom and I busied ourselves during the day with our usual this and that, the day flew by. While I was in the kitchen making my usual 4 pm mug of hot tea, Sylvie and Andy showed at the door inviting us to their home above us. 

They’d purchased the coffee pot and wanted us to bring our bottle of “thickened cream” to give it a try at their house and then we could bring it downstairs for our use during our remaining time in their lovely property.

The sunrise from our veranda yesterday morning.

We’d yet to see their exquisite modern home and couldn’t help but ooh and aah over their beautifully designed, decorated, and appointed home. The view, one story up, was all the more enchanting. 

Sitting on their veranda we thoroughly enjoyed “happy hour” together, until finally, we had to leave when the mozzies came out in full force and it was time for us to go back downstairs to make our dinner, all of which I’d set up earlier in the day for quick final cooking. I prefer to prepare as much of a meal earlier in the day so that when hunger hits us, the final prep is quick and easy.

As we were about to leave Sylvie handed me a bucket filled with cleaning supplies, a bird book, and a set of measuring spoons for baking the few low carb muffins we make from time to time. Check out the photos below.

This is the bucket of cleaning supplies Sylvie and Andy gave us for our use and also measuring spoons and a bird book.

After the excellent dinner for which we’ve included the above photos, we settled in for the night watching an episode of America’s Got Talent, a highly smile-worthy show that we’ve watched for years.   

Using the HDMI cable daughter Tammy had given us at Christmas which we plugged into the high def TV we enjoyed almost two hours of light-hearted pleasure.

We are grateful to our lovely property owners, Sylvie and Andy, for adding so much to our experience in Trinity Beach, for their kindness and friendship which surely we’ll treasure now and well into the future.

Happy Father’s Day to those dads who are in our current time zone where it’s Sunday!

                                             Photo from one year ago today, June 21, 2014:

This Bottle Brush plant and its unusual colors particularly appealed to us as we drove through the mountains of Madeira. For more details, please click here.

Noisy screaming night bird waking us up every night…

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This is the noisy night bird, the bush stone-curlew (Burhinus grallarius) are a nocturnal, ground-dwelling bird that makes its home in Australia’s open forests, grasslands, mangroves and salt marshes.  (Not our photo).

Andy and Sylvie warned us the day we arrived that there was a noisy bird we’d definitely hear during the night.  We shrugged it off thinking nothing of it after all the roosters crowing beginning at 4:00 is in Kauai over our many months on the island. In a short time, we no longer heard them.

Here’s a video that illustrates the noises we’re dealing with during the night:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=40&v=QmN_WBJs3Nw

We spotted this Straw-necked Ibis in the same field where we saw the kangaroos.
I doubt that we’ll stop being awakened by these birds during our three months in Queensland. It’s comparable to a person screaming “bloody murder” as much as two or three times a night. Luckily, we’ve both been able to get back to sleep after each screeching session.

I’d love to actually spot one of these during the day. Andy explained that they wander about the bush surrounding the house but their natural camouflage makes them almost impossible to spot.

The fluorescent colors on the back of the Straw-necked Ibis were beautiful.
“The Straw-necked Ibis is widespread across much of the Australian mainland except the harshest deserts, and they often fly hundreds or thousands of kilometers between temperate locations in the south and tropical areas, and between inland sites and the coasts, possibly as regular seasonal movements, and sometimes in response to local environmental conditions. The longest recorded movement of a Straw-necked Ibis was from Muchea in south-western WA to Beaudesert in south-eastern Queensland, a distance of well over 3500 kilometers.
The Straw-necked Ibis is a large waterbird with a naked black head, long down-curved black bill, and yellow throat plumes. It has a glossy blue-black back, with metallic purple, green and bronze sheen, white nape and sides of the neck, and white underparts. Its preference for grassland insects such as grasshoppers and locusts have earned it the name of Farmer’s Friend.

Actually, we can hear a number of birds but getting a photo is tricky. They seem to alight and fly away so quickly that it appears unlikely we’ll be able to capture as many as we’d like. Of course, we’ll continue to try.  We saw an amazing deep bluebird we’d love to see again for a photo. 

There is a wide array of tropical birds in Australia. A few days ago we spotted a wild cockatoo stopping for a short rest atop a nearby tree. By the time I grabbed the camera, she was long gone.

Lillies growing in the yard.  Andy and Sylvie had left a vase filled with these flowers on the dining room table when we arrived on June 11th.

As for the below, yellow-billed Bush Stone-Curlew, here’s some information we found at Australian Geographic:

“Once widespread, the species is now rare in most regions of the country, thriving in just a few areas in Queensland, the Northern Territory, and Kangaroo Island. By night it feeds on a selection of prey including insects, crabs, lizards, and small mammals, and by day it hides among the tall grasses and shrubs, folding its slender legs up under itself as it rests.

It might look demure, but the Bush Stone-Curlew has a call that would make just about anyone’s blood run cold. Nicknamed the ‘screaming woman bird’, their high-pitched, drawn-out shrieks can be heard across the night as they try to contact each other. This eerie behavior could explain why the species is thought to have close associations with death and suicide in some indigenous Australian cultures.

Once a bush stone-curlew finds a mate, this bond remains throughout their lifetime, which can last up to 30 years. This means that courtship behaviors are rarely observed, but it’s believed that a complex dance and call are performed, and sometimes in the air. Whatever they do, it must be pretty impressive, because the behavior has been described by observers as a ‘whistling concert’ or ‘glee-party’.

During the breeding season, the bush stone-curlew will become particularly territorial, even with its own kind, and will try to ward off its competition with that powerful cry. It will also puff up its chest and spread its wings in an aggressive display to appear larger and more formidable.

Its response to a predator, however, is almost the exact opposite. If it catches wind of a fox, dingo, or goanna nearby, the Bush Stone-Curlew will freeze, dead-still, often committing itself to the strangest and most awkward of poses.”

As we explore the area we’re always on the lookout for birds, some of which we’ll be able to identify and others we will not. As it turned out, the wifi signal at the house is so poor it’s almost impossible to look up multiple photos of anything in an attempt to identify plants, trees, shrubs, flowers, and wildlife.

This is a Masked Lapwing, also known as Spur-winged Plover.  For more details on this bird, please click here.

“Masked Lapwings are large, ground-dwelling birds that are closely related to the waders. The Masked Lapwing is mainly white below, with brown wings and back and a black crown. Birds have large yellow wattles covering the face and are equipped with a thorny spur that projects from the wrist on each wing. The spur is yellow with a black tip. The Masked Lapwing has two subspecies resident in Australia. The southern subspecies has black on the hind neck and sides of the breast and has smaller facial wattles. Northern birds are smaller, without the partial black collar, but have a much larger wattle, which covers most of the side of the face. The sexes are similar in both subspecies, although the male tends to have a larger spur. Young Masked Lapwings are similar to the adult birds but may have a darker back. The wing spur and facial wattles are either absent or smaller in size. The southern subspecies is also known as the Spur-winged Plover.

The Masked Lapwing is common throughout northern, central, and eastern Australia. Masked Lapwings are also found in Indonesia, New Guinea, New Caledonia, and New Zealand. The New Zealand and New Caledonian populations have been formed from birds that have flown there from Australia. 

The Masked Lapwing inhabits marshes, mudflats, beaches, and grasslands. It is often seen in urban areas. Where this bird is used to human  presence, it may tolerate close proximity; otherwise, it is very wary of people, and seldom allows close approach.”

It was challenging getting photos of the Masked Lapwing birds when they wouldn’t sit still for more than a second.

Instead of using the wireless broadband in the house, I’ve been using the free “loaner” the Telstra rep gave us to use while we’re here. At US $108.81, AUD $140 for a 16 gig SIM, which we’ll use up in a month, it makes life a lot easier being able to be online with a decent signal. 

We spotted these three Masked Lapwings hanging out in a vacant lot near the Bluewater Marina.

Tom is using the house’s broadband since he’s less of a heavy user than I am as a result of posting each day with photos, which after ancillary research, uses approximately 300 mg a day. With other online research, I do each day, it appears I’m using one gigabyte every other day. As a result, the 16 gig SIM card will last a little over one month. 

Thus, if we post a bird, plant, flower, or animal without a description, please write to us if you know what it is.  I’ll go back to the post and update the information with your suggestion. This saves considerable data use in performing research to find items that aren’t easily found online.

That’s all folks! Have a fabulous weekend and Father’s Day for all the dads out there. We’ll be back soon.

                                              Photo from one year ago today, June 20, 2014:

Hanging clothing outside is common in most areas of the world. Here in Australia, we are able to use a clothes dryer which is a nice perk, although we never mind using an outdoor line when necessary. For details, please click here.

Another afternoon of exploration…

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The water, the mountains, a blue sky.  What more could we ask for, here in Trinity Beach, our home for three months?  Lovely.

With plenty of photos backlogged from our exploration of a few days ago, we decided to head out another day when curiosity got the best of us. An odd scenario we experience living in this house is that the garbage bins for both recycling and garbage are located at the bottom of a very long, very steep hill from the house to the street.

The waterway continued through many neighborhoods in this lovely Trinity Beach location.

With the panoramic views, we have from the yard, this steep incline is to be expected. The steepness of the driveway is such that walking down the long-distance carrying trash makes no sense as one would need to consider their balance on the steep decline. 

For a 20-year-old this may be fun and challenging. For us old-timers, caution is more important than this type of needless trek.  s a result, each time we have garbage, we have to drive down the hill.

In doing so, already in the car, we may as well drive somewhere and check out the exquisite area in which we’re living. Soon, we’ll be planning a road trip as there’s much to see within a day’s drive that we’d like to experience in our time here.

Yesterday, the sun was finally shining so we were especially interested in getting out.  As a matter of fact, with the sun shining again today, we plan to spend our 20 to 30 minutes soaking up Vitamin D, a vital nutrient especially for seniors that cannot be derived from food to any great degree. Since carrying lots of vitamins is prohibitive in our lifestyle and having difficultly finding them in some locations, any source from which we can glean Vitamin D becomes vital to our health.

As we always state, we happen to be living in Australia, enjoying the culture, the way of life, the nuances.  Close to the beaches, parks, and wildlife, if we never left the area of a one-hour radius, we’d be content.  But, we feel a certain responsibility to our worldwide readers to share that which is beyond the scope of our immediate area. 

Thus, we’ll visit some of the sites in Queensland during our three months here. Yesterday, as we drove through the gorgeous neighborhood where the Bluewater Marina is located, seeing all the lovely homes, many new and many being built, we marveled over how we have no interest in living a life in a house, with a car, utility bills to pay and a lawn to mow. 

We felt no sense of desire or the coveting of such a life. We had that life. Now, we don’t. And, we love this peculiar life on the move. We do enjoy reveling in the lovely properties, imagining what they’d be like inside their doors with no interest in our lives, whatsoever. 

Most homes along the waterway have this same type of dock to their boats. It’s winter here now and the docks stay in the water year-round, not like in our old lives where we had to remove the dock during the winter to avoid its destruction from the ice on the lake.

Our interest in continuing on in our travels has only escalated instead of waning over these past 32 months. A few weeks ago, we realized that I’d misstated how many continents we visited since the onset of our travels.  Tom pointed this out to me after I’d posted that we’ve been to six of the seven continents, the only exception at this point is Antarctica.

Of course, we have much exploring ahead of us down the road and further exploration of the continents we’ll eventually revisit. Health providing, we have all the time in the world. We feel no sense of urgency. 

What will be, will be.  The only control we have is over our ability to continuing to travel is the efforts we exercise (literally and figuratively) to maintain a good level of health and fitness through being active, engaged, having a positive outlook, and eating a healthy diet of foods in their natural state; lots of fresh leafy greens and non-starchy vegetables, grass-fed meats, wild-caught fish, free-range chicken and organic cheeses, eggs and raw nuts.

And yes, there are days that we’re lazy, don’t walk much and spend the better part of the day doing a “bunch of nothing.”  Then again, who in our age group is always active?  Who in any age group is always active, even if they are sitting at a desk at work, standing on their feet performing a repetitive type job or simply sitting reading a good book?

Living a good life encompasses many avenues of passion we each choose that provides us with the greatest joy and meaning. Finding that passion is the greatest challenge. We’ve found ours and this discovery alone had led us on this path.

Continue with us on this journey. In many ways, it’s just begun. We have so much yet to discover and learn
Photo from one year ago today, June 19, 2014:

The beautiful mountains and hills of Madeira were breathtaking to us each and every day. For details from that post, please click here.

Finally out and about photos…And, of course, .the anticipated kangaroos! Clifton Beach…

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Our second kangaroo sighting of the day at a nearby field.  The first, we saw in a flash while walking in the rain forest, unable to take a photo in time.

I must admit that one of the factors inspiring us to visit Australia has been the prospect of seeing wildlife.  Wrongfully, I’d anticipated that we’d see wildlife running about everywhere. 

Perhaps, it was wishful thinking as I can’t seem to shake memories of living in the game reserve, Marloth Park in South Africa, where one only needs to walk outdoors to spot a visiting wild animal.

Warning sign at Clifton Beach.

It’s just not the case in Trinity Beach, although there are areas nearby where wallabies and kangaroos may be found lounging, wandering, and jumping in the fields and in dense rainforest areas.

Finally, yesterday rain or shine, we decided to get out and explore. Of course, the minute we got into the little red car the rain began to pelt the windshield. Shrugging and looking at one another, we decided, “Let’s go anyway. If it gets too awful, we’ll head back.

Clifton Beach.

For a while, the rain came down in buckets, dying down a while later. For a short period, the sun peeked through the clouds as we absorbed the sudden warmth, quickly noticing how hot it became. We’ve yet to soak up a bit of Vitamin D since we arrived one week ago today with the constant clouds and rain.

Hopefully, soon, we’ll experience sunny days to encourage us to head down the steep hill to the pool awaiting us beyond the required fence in the yard. With the sun stronger here than in many parts of the world, we’ll proceed with caution never staying in the sun more than 20 or 30 minutes, the amount necessary to absorb Vitamin D without wearing sunscreen, divided in half by flipping over once.

A
We’ve been warned not to go in the sea with the high risk of stingers and crocodiles, often spotted on the beach.

As we drove toward the direction of the ocean, we knew a part of our trip would be to check out the open field that Sylvie and Andy explained where there are numerous kangaroos and wallabies known to hang out in a certain nearby field, most days around 4:00 pm.

Although we took off around 11:00 am, we decided that if we didn’t see anything, we’d make of point of returning to that popular field later in the day. However, the early day visit didn’t disappoint.

Scout Island, named for its boy scout type hat shape is located at a distance.

With no way to park along the busy Captain Cook Highway, Tom pulled into a bus stop, pull off, while I jumped out of the car to walk quite a distance down a bike path in order to get close to the kangaroos. 

I told Tom if a bus came, he could drive down the highway to the roundabout and return to get me after the bus was gone. I’d wait for him on the bench at the bus stop if I was done taking the photos. It all worked out. I got close enough to take these photos and he never had to leave.

We’ll return another day soon hoping to see more kangaroos and wallabies taking turns watching the car so each of us will be able to see them. In any case, we’re certain we’ll see plenty of wildlife as we drive to many other areas since animals heavily populate the countryside. We’re within a short distance from the more wild areas.

Walkers on the beach carrying a parasol to protect them from the rain or potential sun.

On our journey, we noticed another strip mall with perhaps 40 stops including a Target store. Surely, Target would have some type of coffee making device. Not the case. The Target store surprised us as we walked inside.  It was no larger than a specialty clothing shop one would find in a shopping mall, for example, the size of a Gap or Old Navy store. By far, it was the smallest Target store we’ve ever seen.

We giggled as we headed to the tiny kitchen wares department…no coffee machine to be found here when “small electrics” only occupied two sides of a short row, none of which had anything to do with coffee. 

Another scene at Clifton Beach.

Ah, we get a kick out of our typical US expectations, although diminished greatly after 32 months of travel, still lingering in our minds. As we wandered through the mall, we marveled at how different the shops are here in Australia. 

In reality, the shops have almost everything one could want or need; popular clothing and shoe styles, digital equipment, food in abundance, and a wide array of locally grown and manufactured items of varying types.

We stopped at Cole’s grocery store in Clifton Beach to find a huge section of affordable grass-fed meat. The Cole’s at Smithfield mall doesn’t sell grass-fed meat other than a few small pricey steaks. In the future, we head to this location to purchase the meat which was very reasonably priced. With little room in the freezer for more than a few packages, I’ll plan to eat the grass-fed beef only once or twice a week.

Flowers blooming on a tall tree.

After walking along the beach and taking photos, a few hours later we headed home to excitedly review our photos and make dinner. We’ll continue to explore every few days and report back on our experiences. We’re feeling confident that we’ve chosen an ideal location for our base while here in Australia. 

It’s Thursday here, one week since our arrival.  We’re feeling settled in, returning to our “old” selves, sleeping better, eating better, and working our way into a comfortable life, albeit temporary life, here in Australia.

                                               Photo from one year ago today, June 17, 2014:

This interesting plant caught our eye on a drive in the mountains of Madeira. Zooming in, we saw how amazing these flowers actually are. Check out the photo below.
A close-up view of what looked entirely different from the above photo of a plant we spotted in the mountains of Madeira, Portugal. For more details, please click here.