Brisbane Trip Day 7: Coffs Harbour

Amelie came up into my bed in the middle of the night and I was awake then for a couple of hours. Initially I was worrying about things then I looked up some auto electricians online and started to plan the next leg of our trip and felt much better. When I woke up in the morning I felt ok although my cold seemed worse. I went for a quick walk down to the beach then came back to ring an auto electrician who started work at 7am. He wasn’t able to help me but gave me the number of someone who would probably be able to. I played with Amelie for a while then rang the 2^nd guy, he agreed to come out and have a look at the window the following morning.

We’d planned to have a quiet day today then go to Dolphin Marine Magic (formerly the Pet Porpoise Pool) tomorrow – but not knowing how long it would take the window to be fixed I didn’t want to risk having to sit around all morning waiting to be able to go. So we decided to go today and quickly got everyone else out of bed, had breakfast, packed some food, untaped the window and were at the Dolphin place by 9.30. I’d bought our tickets at the caravan park and saved about 15% which was a nice bonus. When we arrived I taped the window back up in case it rained and for security.

We had arrived at the dolphin place in time for dolphin kisses so we headed out to the dolphin pool – there were 2 dolphins swimming in the pool when we arrived so we excitedly watched them for a while. The kids then lined up to get a kiss from a dolphin which they all loved. They said the dolphin’s nose felt rubbery. We headed down to then get a hug from a seal – the kids all had one individually and then I joined them all for a group hug. We were able to put our arms around the seal – it felt smooth and furry and slippery.

We went back to the dolphin pool to get ready to watch the show – we were early enough to get the front row of seats, right at the middle of the pool. The show was enjoyable and funny – and Amelie was picked to go and help the dolphins dance – she got to stand by the side of the pool and conduct the dolphins by pointing her fingers and swinging her hands side to side. The smile on her face was as big as I have ever seen. The seals performed directly in front of us, we had a great view. Caitlin was picked to throw rings to a seal, who caught them over her head. She was also pretty thrilled. Once the show had finished we were all able to stand at the side of the pool and the dolphins swam past on their backs and we were allowed to pat their bellies. They felt cool and smooth and it was a lot of fun.

After the show we went to watch the shark and ray feeding. We looked at the fish, small sharks and rays in a large tank – we could look in through the top, or through windows in the side. There were also smaller tanks containing colourful fish from the region. Fish and squid were handed out on little metal plates and we were able to feed the animals using tongs. Some of the big snapper really splashed as they came up to grab the food, it was pretty funny. A banjo shark came right up the side of the tank and kept popping up to try and get food – it was beautiful and also amusing.

Next we watched the green turtles being fed – one of them was huge and the others a good size. We listened to the guy talk about how and where they’d been rescued and some other turtles that had been rehabilitated. On our way from there to the penguin feeding I noticed a plaque with this trainer’s name on it – he has been working there since 1970, so would have been there even when I visited as a 2 year old!

The Little Penguins were very cute (as expected). We got some photos then were able to help feed them fish – the guy handed out a couple of little fish or a piece of squid to each person as they got to the front of the line – we held out the fish and the penguins pulled them out of our hands (and then fought over the fish until one of them managed to swallow it). We were able to back to the end of the line and keep feeding them until all the fish were gone – the kids had several turns. Most people were feeding the penguins right up at the barrier, we reached a bit further back to feed some of the other penguins. Some of them didn’t like squid (and many people didn’t want to hold the squid) – Liam spent quite a while trying to find a penguin to eat his last piece of squid.

We then helped feed the small turtles (throwing pellets in to their pond), looked at the photos of the dolphin kiss and seal hug, then went back up to look at the dolphins again. One of the trainers was about to do a training session with a seal so we were able to sit (in our front row seats again) and watch that, it was cool to see how the trainer was working on tricks with the seal. We chatted to another trainer who had started working there part time in Year 11 and had recently moved to a full time job once she finished school, she loved working there and was really appreciative of the opportunity she’d had. One of the dolphins brought a ball over to the edge and Amelie played catch with it for a little while which was pretty fun. Walking back down from the pool we saw a trainer with a little New Zealand Fur Seal and talked to her and one of the vets.

We went and had some lunch (surrounded by a school group) and the kids wandered around and looked at the animals some more. Soon it was time for the afternoon session of dolphin kisses so we went back for more – I had a kiss this time as well, it was pretty cool (and yes, it did feel rubbery). Then off for hugs with the seal, the kids had another individual hug, I had one as well, and Caitlin and Liam hugged her together.

Back to see the show again, and had our front row seats again. This time I was picked to hold fish out for the dolphins to jump up and grab (very excited), Liam got to help the dolphins dance, Caitlin got to do a tooth and heart check on one of the dolphins, and Amelie got to throw a ball to one of the seals. (There were very few people in the audience this time, only 2 other kids and they also were selected to interact with the animals). We patted the dolphins again then went for another shark feeding and turtle feeding. We played with the dolphins in the pool again, throwing the ball to them, and then went back to see the penguins and fed them again. We went and watched the seals in their pool for a while, and then went to purchase the group photo of us with the seal. The kids browsed the gift shop and Caitlin and Amelie bought some jewellery.

It was very hot and humid by now so we decided to go to the Big Banana to get a frozen banana. I drove around via the beaches so we could have a look – the beach just to the north of the marina looked very inviting, not rough, wild surf like everywhere else we’d been. I drove all the way to the end of Ocean Parade and the last little bit felt very familiar – just like a memory I have of walking with my Dad when we were in Coffs Harbour in 1974. (I checked with Mum later and we stayed just near that road on that trip, so I think it was the place from my memory). On the way out of town we passed a shopping centre so called in to get some milk and something for dinner. We also went to Target and bought some clothes that were needed.

At the Big Banana we bought 2 choc (and sprinkle) covered frozen bananas to share, as well as an Ultimate Banana smoothie (with cinnamon and maple syrup) and a Choc Banana smoothie. They were all delicious and very very enjoyable. We wandered through the banana and then went to play in the video arcade for a short time. The kids all got lots of tickets and we exchanged them for a few little toys – including those rubber popping domes that I remember loving as a kid. We went back to the banana and took some photos of the kids in front of it, and I figured out the self-timer on my camera and we got a group shot.  There’s now a fun park at the Big Banana as well but we were there too late in the day to do any of the activities.

Back at the caravan park we went for a swim in the pool which was lovely and refreshing. Amelie played for a while with some other kids in the playground. I figured out that this caravan park was the same place I’d stayed with my family in 1986 – but it looked different because they seem to have recently sold the top half of the park and it’s now a housing estate. So I was feeling quite nostalgic for previous Coffs visits.

We cooked sausages on the bbq in the camp kitchen and then headed back to camp for a quiet night. There was more rain coming so I spent a bit of time setting up the awning so that none of the rain pooled in the roof, and felt like I did a pretty good job (it worked overnight). 

Ballarat Trip -> Day 3

Everyone woke up in the middle of the night, freezing cold. The girls came up onto the mattress with me, and I reorganised blankets so LiAM had more, and we eventually became warm enough to get back to sleep. I later discovered that one side of one of the tent windows was unzipped, so that would have made things much chillier inside than they needed to be!

We all slept in until nearly 9 then got up and had a relaxing morning - I read my book (re-reading the Twilight series, up to Eclipse today), the kids jumped on the jumping pillow and rode scooter and RipStik and played in the playground and the TV room. Once we'd had breakfast I got ready to go out and we headed into town, so that I could get some more tea bags, and to buy more blankets! Caitlin suggested op shopping for the blankets and I found a couple near Woolworths so we could get everything in one trip. At the first op shop we found a (vomit green) woollen blanket and a quilted fabric sleeping bag - perfect. The kids also picked up some toys and games and books and knitting needles and warmer clothes. We popped into Woolworths and got tea bags, socks for the girls, and a few other supplies, then over to the other op shop where we got a polar fleece sleeping bag, a few polar fleece blankets, scarves for everyone, more warm clothes and a couple of kitchen supplies that had been missing from our camping equipment.

It was a very cold morning, with an icy wind, so Caitlin in particular was very thankful we'd found warmer clothes, and she changed into them straight away. We drove straight to Sovereign Hill and headed back in, with a bit of spare time before the Red Coat parade. We went down to the Chinese part of the settlement and spent a bit of time at the Chinese temple. We lit incense and wrote wishes on wish cards and hung them up in front of the temple. We looked through the tents and Chinese shops and watched a bit of a video about the Chinese miners standing up to the government when they were taxed more than non-Chinese miners. I hadn't heard much about that side of the goldmine history and it was quite interesting.

Back up the hill we watched two (actor) guys chatting in the main street while we waiting - they were hilarious and drew a huge crowd, then the Red Coats marched through and one guy made a speech and then the soldiers fired their guns, which were very loud. After the kids had their photo taken with one of the Red Coat soldiers, we joined the crowds of school kids in the Confectionary Factory to watch Raspberry Drops being made. It was a very cool process to watch and his commentary was informative. The best bit of course was the free sample we all got afterwards - it was still warm and even more delicious than the regular ones.

We stopped and ate lunch and watched the crowds go by for a while, then went and bought tickets for a coach ride. There was a bit of a queue and we wanted to watch the musket firing, so we decided to do the coach ride after that. One of the troopers talked us through the history of the police force in the gold fields and about the weapons they used. He handcuffed Caitlin and LiAM together - but LiAM's hand was small enough to just slip straight out which was pretty funny. He filled the barrel of his musket with gun powder then showed it to everyone, letting us look down into the barrel - as Caitlin was looking he yelled 'Boo!' which scared her a lot and startled everyone else - she thought it was pretty funny afterwards. He fired the musket which was again pretty loud, then we headed back up to the horses. Millie showed the other kids the rock collection she'd discovered the day before. The horse and coach returned and we all climbed in and went for a ride around the settlement - it was pretty cool, especially after watching the coach go past so many times in the last 2 days. We patted the horses for a while afterwards, then the kids ran after the coach as it headed to it's storage place - we were the last ride of the day (running after the stage coach is something the kids do when we play Toy Story 3 on the Playstation, so it felt like we were reenacting that scene, it was fun).

Caitlin being arrested by the trooper

Patting the horses after our coach ride

We wandered up to the top end of town where we hadn't explored yet - and saw some very big turkeys in a yard. I wanted to check out the iron foundry where the guy was making brass and iron items. There were so many beautifully crafted objects there, and I ended up buying a big iron frypan and an iron omelet pan - exactly what I've been looking for, and great to talk to the guy who actually made them, about how to care for them, and to see how much he loves what he's doing. From there we walked back along the residential street of the settlement, and were able to explore some of the houses and talk about how different they are compared to ours - why the toilet is outside, why there was no stove and how they cooked, why the baby might be sleeping in a drawer etc. In one of the houses a lady was doing some quilting and we stayed and talked to her for a while, discussing how it worked, and admiring her sticky paper fly catcher above the table. She let the kids sort and take a handful of hexagons home so that they could start their own quilt - Caitlin loved talking to her and the other kids enjoyed it as well. From there we checked out the cart and wheel makers, then wandered through a couple of gardens, and back down the main street and home to our tent.

Pumping water into the horse trough

The kids played with the kids from the caravan next door and LiAM met another boy on a scooter, so they scooted around the park, and played giant chess, and jumped on the jumping pillow. I cooked dinner and it was quiet enough to eat it in the camp kitchen this time. After we'd eaten the kids played a bit more then I packed all our jackets and new scarves and we headed back to Sovereign Hill for the Sound and Light Show. The Show was spectacular. No actors, just voices, sound effects, and lights in various places to tell the story of the Eureka Stockade. Some was inside but most of it was outside - at the main gold diggings (where we'd panned for gold the day before), or after a long bus ride to the other side of the property, sitting in an auditorium with the front wall open to a reproduction of the Eureka Diggings. It was cold outside (it had been cold all day) but it was a fascinating show and I'm so glad we went. Millie spent the whole time cuddled in to me and didn't watch at all - but later talked to me about the story and she'd taken it all in and understood it all. I remember this was one of my favourite stories when I studied Australian History at school, and I enjoyed seeing it explained in so much clever detail, and glad the kids have heard the story now too.

We were back at the caravan park around 10.30pm and set up our beds with our new blankets - the girls on the mattress with me again, and LiAM snuggly bundled up on his camp mattresses. We read Eldest for a while then snuggled in to go to sleep.