For Saturday - Sunday Geelong, Victoria, Australia

Denny admiring the art....

G’day

Turned in our third rental car and cabbed over to Micah’s on the bay.  Impressive, modern apartment with lots of space, laundry, a great view...very nice!  We walked around and had dinner, planning the next few days and watching Micah’s football team play on the telly.  She gave us another Aussie term, which I will share in context:  Guy meets girl, and they become mutually interested.  He starts panting.  She “puts a hard word on him.”  The gist of this: “you want to move to the next stage I need a ring on my finger...”  

In the morning Mimi and I watched a nearby mini triathlon on the quay, and walked through the botanical garden.  I noted a golf course there.  Wandering in while Mimi took pictures of flying foxes (bats), I found two Aussies manning the golf course pro shop.  They gave me a card so I could look at yardages, and fielded my question: “Can I wander in any day and play?”  One mumbled, “Don’t come Wednesday,” and then said something that left me uncertain.  I asked that he repeat.  He complied, “sheilas...”  My light went on.  (Note that I was offended and did not laugh, or even smile as they have to outgrow this boorish behavior).  His point: Women would be on the course on Wednesday and I think he was inferring that these women would play slowly.  I wandered off leaving these men in their cultural backwater....unless of course I am mistaken over the whole thing.  

Saturday night we walked to Pizza Land, a Turkish/Italian restaurant. Delicious. I tried three types of hummus, one of them beet. Yummmm....

Micah gave us a good tour of Geelong, and then we were picked up by Hillary and Roy for a family dinner about 20 km away, in Ocean Grove where Phil and Jess live and they hosted. We had a solid time getting caught up and gaining initial exposure to Hillary and Roy (all relatives on the European side, Mimi’s father’s widow’s nieces and nephews).  Lively conversations and a very good time. Denny and Phil will be playing golf at least twice this week and I will get to spend some time with Jess and wander around some quaint villages.

Denny and Mimi

Learning to sail

More bollards..over 100 of them through Geelong (Pronounced 'Ju' as in Just). Bollards are what used to be used hold up docks

Bats...they were making a rackets...hundreds of them

Cute, huh? And no, I did not get this close!

American Legion (RSL) practicing the bagpipes for Anzac Day (Veteran's Day 25 April)

Views of Geelong

Kangaroo checking us out

Emus

From Micah's Corio Bay

Micah et moi and a bollard

Phil and Jess' house

Denny, Ziggy (the poodle), Phil, Jess, Hillary and Roy. Roy and Jess are brother/sister and are Mimi's father's widow's niece/nephew