A League of His Own?

I hadn't yet finished unpacking the trunk of the car on Sunday when a neighbour at the Val Vista RV park approached and invited me to participate in a slow-pitch game (these guys don't waste any time). "What the heck", I thought, it's not like my dance card was filled up yet. "OK" I said, where and when?

A couple of days later, Dale and his brother Roy picked me up and stopped off at the batting cage on the way to the park - "just for a few practice swings" they said. I got the distinct impression that, despite an apparent recommendation from a now-absent snowbird, they were wondering about just what they had invited on to their team. Well after about 20 pitches and a couple of hits (hey, it has been a few years since I last swung a bat in anger) we were off to Apache Wells and the diamond. These guys were 15 or 20 years older than me so what's to worry about?

Actually, I may have been the youngest player on either team and definitely the best-looking.

The sun was warm with clear skies and little wind. Everyone was friendly and laid-back, greeting each other after the Christmas and New Year's break. Most of that cameraderie evaporated rather quickly with the first disputed play. "Oh, these guys take their ball seriously" I thought. And one could certainly see that in years gone by, these players were probably all better than I had been.

Well, after a few at-bats, I managed a couple of hits, an RBI or two and a face plant between first and second base. Seems my legs were not working in sync with my visualizations.... Oh well, wiped off the blood (an initiation of sorts, I figure) and carried on. Arriving back at the RV, Dale presented me with a grapefruit right off his tree and invited me back next Tuesday. I'll see. This morning, this body is definitely feeling the effects of swinging a bat and a long layoff from almost any type of running, never mind base-running. Those guys are tough!!!


Raymondo with the proffered grapefruit (yes I know it's called a "cactus league" in Arizona, but close enough), and a smile. Notice the two skinned knees.

A Visit to Grandma's House

There are few things more pleasant than a visit to Grandma's house. We made that stop on our way back home after a recent visit to eastern Saskatchewan.

Much to our delight, we weren't the only ones with that thought. More than doubling up on the pleasure, we got to visit her with Doug and Lenore, as well as Paul and Kim and their delightful crew.

Naturally, the art gallery picked up a few new acquisitions. The gallery also witnessed an enthusiastic game of hide-and-seek.

Some of the contributing artists in a photo op with Grandma C.

Grandma also had time to show off some of her newly refreshed interior decor.

The back entry is a bit brighter these days...

.... as are the front rooms.

Good neighbour Ron S. stopped in while walking his dog and we were all proudly introduced. Commenting on how nice it was to have a good portion of the family for a visit, including two of her three sons, Grandma Clara said with a sigh, “If only Ted were here it would be perfect. Oh well, I suppose two out of three is better than nothing”.

Love you Grandma! We'll visit again soon!

Last Day in Oz

In less than 24 hours, we will be on our way back home. I thought I'd leave you with a few images of our last day spent in Palm Cove and environs.

Palm Cove's uncrowded beach

The Nunu Restaurant

This one's for Laurel ... the upscale Nunu Restaurant's logo.

This one's for Ted

Didgeredoo Player and Dancer

Ray's Retro look

A Rainbow lorikeet on our table, a "Breakfast with the Birds" guest

Kookaburra

Anyone need a new battery?

We went on a tropical wet rainforest boat ride along the Daintree River yesterday. Saw a couple of salt water crocs, a few birds and lots of different types of tropical trees. We had expected to see a few of those big bats - flying foxes they call them here. They have a wingspan of around a meter and bear a strong resemblance to small foxes with wings. They are usually active around dusk when they go searching for their favourite food, fruits like papayas, grapes, melons etc. Unfortunately there were no flying foxes to be seen on our cruise.

Driving home later, we found out why there were none along the banks of the Daintree River. They were all hanging out beside the golf course at Port Douglas!

One of several trees with "batteries"

These guys were making an awful fuss, screeching and fighting with each other, and constantly moving to new perches. They paid little attention to this Canadian who was pretty fascinated to see several hundred of these big boys in one spot.

Uncropped flying fox image just above a telephone line

For those of you who are perhaps a bit skittish about sharing your space with bats this size, well, just think of how many fewer flying insects there are around thanks to these guys and their cousins. Altogether not a bad trade off, no?

Palm Cove - a little slice of heaven ...

We are staying at a community north of Cairns called Palm Cove. It more than lives up to it's name. The beach is fairly narrow, maybe 50 meters wide, and runs for kilometers in both directions. The edge of the beach is fringed with coconut palms, and a variety of other tropical pines and broad-leafed trees. This band of trees is shallow, maybe 30 meters wide and borders the Esplandade, Palm Cove's main street.

Palm Cove beachfront

This two lane street is cobblestone/brick, and a vehicle passes along maybe once every 30 seconds. You can usually find a place to park wherever you like.

The Esplanade walkway

On the other side of the street are restaurants, shops, apartments, hotels, bars, and even a few detatched homes; none are low end and a few are quite high end. None of them are taller than four stories, by local by-law. You have to actually walk in to them to see how lovely some are. It's clean, uncrowded and safe.

Ray out for a stroll

We love it here. As Roni described it, “tranquil with a casual sophistication”. I'm heading out right now to sit under those trees in the top photo and to do some reading.

No Barriers On Great Reef Experience

Yesterday we stroked a couple of items off the bucket list.

Seastar Reef Cruises took Roni and I from Cairns to Michalmas Cay and Hastings Reef on the outer Great Barrier Reef. The fast catamaran took about one hour to make the trip. Before we even had the anchor down, a green sea turtle cruised by. The 20 or so guests on board donned snorkeling gear and dove right in.

I think this might be Nemo, the clown fish....

Now, Roni and I have snorkeled in some lovely places, but none could remotely compare to this. It was amazing! Something to lie awake at night and recall with wonder. Every few feet brought a new variety of coral or a new type of fish. Reds, greens, yellows, blues, whites, oranges and so on through the spectrum. All sizes and shapes. It's an unfair assault on the senses. No wonder it's a world heritage site.

The water was warm, around 28C, the surface was calm, winds were light, skies clear – idyllic. Visibility underwater was maybe 100 feet or more. Probably more. We were so lucky to experience this. Wow!

The second item on the list was that I got to try SCUBA diving! Yes, even an old goat like me can still float well enough to try new things. I hope Ted and Colleen are proud of me.

In we go!

....and out again!

A lot of my energies and attentions were taken up in clearing my mask, and trying to maintain proper buoyancy, but in between those challenges, I got to touch a giant clam and swim through schools of fish and someone's bubbles. With practice, one would surely be able to spend more time on the experience, and less on the process.

Camels and Koalas

After enjoying the fruits of the Hunter Valley and a few of its delightful vineyards, our next stop was the coastal town of Port Macquarie. A cople of hours drive north of Sydney, it is a resort town with miles and miles of beaches. Roni and I explored a few, stopping at various viewpoints such as lighthouses, headlands, and cliffs. Along one particular stretch a tour operator was offering camel rides along the beach. How could I refuse?

Raymondo on his new ride, Obama!

Let me tell you about this big boy. Over six feet tall, you can clearly see that he is truly U-G-L-Y! With stained and protruding teeth, gangly legs, and bony joints, his temperament is no better. Ornery to the point of exasperation, stubborn, and grouchy, he is quite a handful even for the most skilled of handlers. He's foul-breathed, and often farts and burps simultaneously, giving forth thunderous and obnoxious belches! It's no wonder people want to stay upwind of him.

But what about the camel, you ask? Obama was aquired just a few weeks ago, thus his name, and was once a wild camel. Apparently there are over a million wild dromedaries in this country, the only place where one-humped (dromedary) camels still run free. He's actually quite well trained, although the guides keep a close watch on him. After our half-hour ride, we had become quite good friends. So now I can claim to have ridden a camel. Next up, an elephant, although not likely on this trip.

Port Macquarie is also home to Australia's Koala Hospital. Apparently these sweet little guys sometimes run afoul of cars, dogs, falls, and disease and most don't survive these challenges. A group of volunteers have formed this organization to assist by nursing these animals back to health whenever possible and then releasing them back into the wild. Koalas spend most of their time high up in eucalyptus trees, feeding on the leaves. Quite a few live in urban areas, where most of the hazards they face exist.

Roni and I watched this little girl being hand-fed. She loves having her tummy rubbed and her back scratched. She's obviously very cute and cuddly, with a sweet and gentle disposition. Just like Roni.