A Belated Autumn Post.....

Well.....I know Autumn has passed but.....I just had to share some photos of my local area in autumn time. Just on the edge of town is an avenue of trees that are glorious when their leaves change colour.

I love travelling on this road because, after a short drive through state forest, there is more beautiful scenery to enjoy.

And, there's more! Following on from here, along a gravel road, there are many pretty spots to admire.

During the sunny, warm autumn weather, it's so nice to walk uptown and meet a friend for a coffee. On one such walk, I came across this tree covered with a vine of autumn leaves.

A little visit to the plant section of Bunnings, in order to add a bit of colour to the garden. We went home with these beauties.....

I love Autumn, with its gorgeous colours, warm sunny days and that feeling of a change in the air. Sometimes I wish it would stay in this season for many more months!

Posh Frocks and High Teas

Having reserved ourselves a 'regal high tea' spot at The Carrington Hotel in Katoomba, we donned our posh frocks and headed off to play ladies for the afternoon. We admired the beautiful stained glass facade and dome,
the rather grand exterior and the elegant interior decorations of a bygone era.....

We sat back in the Grand Dining Room and played ladies, sipped our champers and enjoyed the indulgent culinary delights being served. Of course, special mention must be made of the afternoon's piano serenade by a lovely gentleman, who was very obliging and played some special requests for us. (To our amusement, we did think he looked like Sir Les Patterson! Maybe too much champagne for us!)

What an enjoyable, fun way to spend the afternoon, and a lovely way to remember our trip to Katoomba.

Mountains and more.....

Just a stone's throw from Shelton-Lea is a spectacular rock formation and one of the Blue Mountains best known sites, The Three Sisters.

Now, I am not sure if this was a case of too much mountain air or some serious limbering up before a strenuous bush walk! Aah.....to be that flexible!!!

So, after a good dose of mountain air, we went off to explore more of Katoomba and surrounds. There are many arts and crafts markets every weekend around the Blue Mountains. We caught up with a few and were amazed by the variety and quality of handmade articles......beautiful woodwork, knitwear, felted toys, sewing, and so on. Not to mention all the bric a brac, vintage and retro materials, crockery, and the list goes on.....definitely many treasures to be found! Unfortunately I fell down on my photographic duties as I was too busy admiring everything!
But, I did manage to 'snap' some other quirky and fun things we saw.....

plus this very friendly little chap.....or lady (wearing a pink heart).

Katoomba Delights

Leaving Orange, we quite enjoyed a scenic drive through the Blue Mountains, arriving in a somewhat chilly, rainy Katoomba. But, that could not put us off finding a classical art deco cafe or following the trail of antique shops! Being a bit 'peckish', we headed to the main street to find somewhere for lunch. And, look what we found! It was a very busy afternoon in the Paragon Cafe and after a bit of a wait, we were seated in one of the booths. The Paragon is Australia's oldest cafe and is a step back into the 1920's, so we couldn't help but admire the gorgeous decor and the art deco memorabilia.

And, of course, we had spotted the antique and second-hand shops on our way to have lunch, so they were our next places to explore. Several stayed open until late, which was very lucky for us! So many treasures to find and admire.....

We spent hours looking through just two shops with rather extensive collections. So much to look at! This is only a snippet of some of our favourite pieces.

And my purchases.....well, I just had to add to my afternoon tea collection.....a Meakin 'Sunflower' coffee pot destined to be a teapot instead and an 'english scenery' sugar bowl to join my blue and white collection. All a bit eclectic!

So, as the afternoon drew to a close, we booked into our accommodation, the Shelton-Lea Bed and Breakfast. What a lovely place! Our two nights were in this cute little studio at the end of the drive.....

Just ideal for an evening of takeaway pizza and more Miss Marple watching!

Quirky, Cute and Gourmet.....

Now, to finish the Orange adventure, we enjoyed a very busy afternoon sightseeing, eating and shopping! The quirky Byng Street Store provided great coffee and food, and unusual decor...

Hawke's General Store entertained us with many amusing items.....as you can see, we are very easily entertained!

We were lucky to be in Orange for their 'Taste Orange' Food Week, which involved a number of special events in and around the city. Now, fortunately for us, a special food and wine tasting event in the park had been postponed from the previous week due to rain. Although the day had been quite showery, by the evening the rain had finally moved on and we (plus many others) were able to enjoy the 'foodie' event in Robertson Park.

There were plenty of wines and gourmet foods to sample......like this 'Chocolate 3 Ways' delight!

By now,we were a bit weary (and our shoes were rather wet and muddy), so we retired to our accommodation and decided to watch Miss Marple DVDs, accompanied by a late night snack of cheese toasties and cups of tea!

Thank you, Orange, for a wonderful few days. We have really enjoyed ourselves and there is talk of a return visit! Next port of call.....Katoomba and the Blue Mountains.

To Grandmother's House We Go

I have many memories.....happy ones, of course.....of growing up in the Orange district. This house I remember very well as it was my Grandma's house. There were beautiful leadlight windows, feather-filled eiderdowns, Blue Willow china, lots of photos and rather ornate china figurines. Despite being renovated over the last few years, the facade still looks the same.

  Now, Grandma was a rather large lady, not tall, but quite 'round'. She always seemed to wear lace up black shoes and have a cigarette in her hand. Grandma also came with a reputation of being someone who was 'not to be trifled with'. She could often shock my mother with her comments and was known to pass cigarettes under the table to my brothers.

Yes, this is me (and Debbie Doll) with Grandma.....take note of shoes and cigarette! (And, of course, note my rather spectacular legs and very short dress!) Butter wouldn't melt in my mouth.....not sure what Grandma was thinking.....

Anything Grows

I mentioned in my last post that we found a truly delightful place to visit in Summer Street, Orange. So, I am enjoying sharing with you a little look at Anything Grows.

It was a very 'showery sort of day' but it certainly couldn't stop us from enjoying every part of this place.

After exploring, admiring and doing plenty of "oohing and aahing", there were cups of tea and sweet treats to be enjoyed.

And, of course, I must mention the very friendly owners and staff.

Well, we all dreamed for the rest of the day how we could have such a lovely place in our town.....

A Day in Orange

Well, here we are in Orange, and despite the rain and chilly weather, my friends are in love with this beautiful Central West NSW city! Named in honour of Prince William of Orange (no, they don't grow oranges there!), it delighted us with its magnificent autumn colours, beautiful homes and pretty scenery.
To begin, no trip to Orange is complete without a walk in Cook Park.

Even the rain couldn't stop us from admiring it's grandeur and beauty.

Tucked away in the park, is a quaint little craft shop, which is crammed full of clever people's handiwork. Here is a small sample.....some of the knitted toys for sale.

And, even some good old homemade coconut ice!

Of course, the beautiful trees, with the beginnings of their glorious autumn colours, are not restricted to the park. They line many streets and feature in many gardens.

Now, this street above is very special in a couple of ways. I remember it quite fondly because it is the home of my Grandma's house. Also, we travellers/tourists found and fell in love with the most amazing nursery/cafe/florist/gift shop! (Can something be that many things?) Anyway, we were delighted by it all, but more on all of this in my next post!

Road Trip Adventures

Recently, AmelieAnne and friends went on a road trip to the central west of NSW and the Blue Mountains. We set off in the little black city car, that was quickly going to find out about country roads. First stop.....Ebor.....with a flat tyre! Luckily, our knight, not in shining armour, but wearing a checked flanny and driving a rather large cattle truck, came to our rescue! After several consultations with the manual, a few funny comments about little black car's tyres and tools, and a few swift kicks to get the tyre off, we were on our way again.

Now, the spare tyre was only an 'emergency' type, so next stop was to purchase a completely new tyre! We were greeted by this little fellow, who was supervising the counter.....maybe to 'soften the blow' of the cost of the replacement.

 Day 2 started with a delicious breakfast.....

then included some very long, straight roads.....

an unusual, not very tasty selection of 'stuck together' lollies.....

a community craft shop with this quaint collection, showcasing some very clever knitting.....

and the historic streets of an 1800's gold rush town..... 

To finish our second day of touring adventures, we sipped champagne, dined on lamb shanks and homemade pie, and sampled a dessert tasting plate, which looked so nice I didn't have have time to photograph....too busy eating!