One morning my cousin whisked me out of the city. We drove east for an hour to the Dandenong Range where we came to William Ricketts created a space to honor native Australian flora, fauna and people. His fired clay sculptures mounted in the rain forest are a wonder to behold. Wandering through the sculptures … Continue reading A Rain Forest Sanctuary
Travel
Melbourne and suburbs
Melbourne was the first place my grandparents and my aunt stopped at on their journey to Australia in 1912. In my book Visions from Two Continents I published my Aunt Lucille's diary entries about that arrival. While in Melbourne I wanted to find those places. They entered the harbor via the Yarra River and came up … Continue reading Melbourne and suburbs
Bowral, Mittegong and Canberra
My uncle who wrote the letters featured in my book Visions from two Continents had four children and their children had many more who spread throughout Australia. On this trip I have been very fortunate to meet many of his grandchildren and their children. After I left Townsville, I flew back to Sydney and then … Continue reading Bowral, Mittegong and Canberra
Magnetic Island
A 10 minute ferry ride from Townsville takes one to a magical place, where free koalas sit in the trees, lorikeets eat out of your hands, and rock wallabies pose in the rocks. Each character has its own place. There is an air conditioned bus that will take one within reach of everything. The air … Continue reading Magnetic Island
Townsville
The web says: Townsville lies on the Queensland coast and is located about 17.5 hours drive north of Brisbane and almost 5 hours drive south of Cairns. The area is a vibrant mix of sub tropical rainforests, sandy beaches, rugged outback and quaint coastal townships. Visit Townsville for a sleepy, country holiday. It has a … Continue reading Townsville
Home? Peachester, Crohamhurst and the Glasshouse Mountains
The main purpose of this journey was to do the reverse of what mother did when she came to America in 1923 and to share her story with my family and the people who still lived in Peachester. Mother's paintings surrounded my childhood and she told me stories of a dream world before my … Continue reading Home? Peachester, Crohamhurst and the Glasshouse Mountains
Sydney
The TV screen in our cabin was tuned to the monitor that told us we had arrived in Sydney. It was still dark and we did not see the harbor as we traversed through it into Sydney. The trip across the Tasman Sea was rough, as it often is and my roommate was feeling seasick. … Continue reading Sydney
New Zealand
Not long enough!!! The ship stopped in New Zealand for two days. Once out of the city, the countryside shown in its emerald glory. On the first day we took a tour to the Hobbiton Movie Set, and spent four hours on the bus getting there. Way too long! The bus went straight there and … Continue reading New Zealand
Cruising Never Bored
People asked me how could you be confined to a boat for 22 days. Don't you get stir crazy? Don’t you get bored? First of all I’ve never been actually bored sailing even in a 25 foot sailboat. It was a state of meditation, at one with the waves, the wind and the clouds. How … Continue reading Cruising Never Bored
Papeete, French Polynesia
After we left Bora, Bora, we sailed to Papeete a modern city with a port. We docked at the port for the day. We spent the morning walking around the city and took a tour called Snapshots of Tahiti in the afternoon. Again it was warm and humid. We were the only cruise ship in … Continue reading Papeete, French Polynesia
Visions from Two Continents. 