Sunday, May 31, 2015

Sydney...


Now, going back to Saturday night ...

That evening we had a black tie dinner to attend at the Sydney Cricket Ground. It was a great night but my poor feet suffered having to wear heels (which I rarely do). The band was called Jellybean Jam and they played great 80's/90's covers and Vince Sorrenti was the talent. Very funny man!

I turned into a pumpkin just past midnight and hobbled off to bed!

Now, I know these heels are not even that high but I have arthritis in one big toe and bending my feet into heels and tottering around on concrete having drinkies for ...get this...an hour and a half !!! before we sat down for dinner, well that just crippled me! Burning feet!

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On Sunday, after a lazy morning we headed for Circular Quay for lunch...

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We were so lucky with the weather. Bet it was chilly doing the bridge climb!

Our favourite spot for lunch is The Sydney Cove Oyster Bar...for a nice Pinot Gris...

We ordered and they bought our my weapons eating utensils! What was I in for?

I ordered the Blue Swimmer Crab curry - they should have given me rubber gloves and a bib - it was a messy business!

Gus ordered the more sensible fish of the day...

Anyway, I demolished the crab, splashing it on me, Gus and other lunch guest, no doubt (!) with every claw crack and lapped up the curry! Delish!

Later in the afternoon it was off to see The Rocky Horror Show at the Lyric Theatre at Darling Harbour...

A brilliant show, made even better with Craig McLachlan as Frank N Furter! Good, adult fun!

After the show, we found a little place Gus had read about called 'Pony Dining' at The Rocks so we got a table. I wasn't very hungry so I ordered the twice baked cheese soufflé (great choice) and Gus had some scallops and a couple if other little dishes. The beauty is that you can just order another dish if you're still hungry and it quickly appears. All the food is made in the kitchen right in front of you.

After dinner, we strolled back around to Circular Quay to catch the train back to St James station. The Vivid 2015 light show was on so we saw some laser lights set to music and most buildings were lit up with artworks. My iPhone just wasn't picking the lights up so I was pleased when I found some great pictures on a blog.

Jools from a Year In My Garden has the most beautiful pictures of the night on her blog. View here...

Monday morning, I went to The Tea Centre (which was just across the road from our hotel) and bought some Sweet Dreams tea to help me sleep. I saw these lovely little cups for tea drinking and picked out a teapot to match. Sadly, the teapot had a flaw in the glaze and it was the last one....boooo! I still bought the cups and they said they'd ring their other store to see if they had another teapot. I while later, I had a call and yes, they had one so would freight it to me....

Wednesday, back in South Australia, my teapot arrived - what fantastic service! The tea makes a lovely tasting brew!

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Back on deck for work on Tuesday - no rest for the wicked!

Cheers - Joolz xx

 

 

 

Friday, May 29, 2015

Joolz's Chicken Penne Pasta...

This recipe is an oldy but a goody!  I just sort of made it up one night and the family loved it.  

I originally posted it in June, 2009 here.

Cheers - Joolz xx

Thursday, May 28, 2015

Anzac Commemorative Throw Rug...

 My kit arrived today so I hope to get knitting later this afternoon...
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100% Australian Wool - the colours are in honour of our armed forces - army, navy and air force.
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The rug is knitted in strips which means rather than sewing each square together, you only have to sew whole rows together.  
Wish me luck!
Cheers - Joolz xx

Off to Sydney...

 

Friday morning we said goodbye to Brianna and headed for the airport. We have a 15kg limit flying out of Mt Gambier so I crammed some stuff into my Harrods bag for carry on luggage.

We first flew to Melbourne and had to wait there until 1.30pm for our Sydney flight...

Gus wanted to try out a Greek restaurant close to our hotel but it was booked solid. I happened to see a sign for Bambini Restaurant - it was a noisy little place as Friday night workers go to the bar there for drinks. Anyway, they had a table so ate there. Lovely authentic Italian and nice quick service.

I had a creme brûlée to finish. Delicious!

Next morning, we used the train to go out to Redfern to Eveleigh Farmers' Market

There was s a shuttle bus but we decided to walk the kilometre or so...

...down streets lined with old terrace houses...

A bit of street art...

First stop was Billy Kwong's - we'd heard they do a healthy breakfast. Can you see Kylie Kwong (second from left)? She was supervising the busy stall.

We had steamed rice pancakes with organic egg omelette, fresh herbs and caramel-tamari dressing. So fresh and yummy!

We continued on, perusing the stalls. If we come back again and have an apartment style accomodation with cooking facilities, we'll buy some of the wonderful produce!

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Can't get fresher than that!

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The only think I bought was a few sachets of this dried fruit mix which I love and some biscotti. Angus tried some wine and had 6 bottles freighted home (free).

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More to come... Joolz xx

 

Busy times...

Sorry, I've been absent for a while. We had Bri home for a week (so good) then we went to Sydney for 4 days last weekend...
The perfect boiled egg. Everyone likes them cooked differently and it's a personal thing but I like mine with a cooked solid white but the yolk runny and creamy. On MasterChef, Marco Pierre White suggests boiling water in a saucepan then carefully putting the eggs in. My eggs are just right at 5 minutes 45 seconds...
Bri and I enjoyed Thai when we had to zip to Mt Gambier... $11.90 lunch specials!
Aren't these little guys cute? Bri has self-taught herself to crochet (YouTube) so she's been churning lots of these out.
I enjoyed cooking for her. She likes Devilled Sausages...
...and corned beef with veggies and broc-cauliflower cheese bake...
While Bri crocheted, I knitted - another nice dish cloth (or wash cloth).

I am awaiting the delivery of my kit to knit this Commemorative Throw - Shades of our Forces. The colours represent the Army, Airforce and Navy. I chose to knit it in wool rather than acrylic.
Kits are available for a limited time at the Better Homes and Garden shop site.
Now this - this is my sister Leanne's completed throw rug. Isn't it beautiful? I hope mine turns out as nice!
I'll be back with a few pictures of Sydney soon...
Cheers - Joolz xx