Friday, January 13, 2012

14 January 2011 - Koroit – Tower Hill Caravan Park, Koroit, Victoria


Somehow the afternoon seems to have got away on us, but then that is evidence of a satisfying day. As I start this, Chris is switching between the third India – Australia cricket test and the tennis being played in Melbourne. Tomorrow the Santos Tour Down Under starts in South Australia, so it will all become rather overwhelming. That is not to suggest that my husband’s sports interest overshadows opportunity to sight see. We simply have to work a little harder to achieve the correct balance, as has been true of today.

We arrived at Hilda’s lovely home on schedule this morning and spent more than two delightful hours nattering over cups of coffee, not adequately managing to catch up on the intervening years, hence the dinner date scheduled for Wednesday evening. We look forward to that with equal pleasure.

This afternoon we ventured out on foot, through the small botanic gardens of Koroit, under the fig trees crowded with the same corellas that woke us soon after six this morning with their incredible raucous noise. Butter wouldn’t melt in their mouth; they silently watched us pass underneath pretending to be the quietest of all winged angels.
Catching up with Hilda

The population of elderly Koroit men were gathered on the bowling green and we leaned on the wall watching them play for a while. I was reminded that we have no petanque set on board, such as we carry in the motorhome in New Zealand. Perhaps we should buy one here? On second thoughts, I am making a conscious effort not to gather more possessions.

Saturday afternoon in Koroit is not very busy; a couple of people in each of the café / tearooms and proprietors doing housework in their stores. There are an interesting number of very old buildings, and it would seem that the inhabitants of this small settlement hold on to their Irish heritage dearly; signposts at the corner pub show the direction to Killarney, Dublin and such, and windows display the odd shamrock symbol, possibly to ward off bad economic times. A potato picker hewn in wood stands on a grass corner forever reminding everyone the importance of the “humble potato” as a staple food and the genetic stock the people themselves come from.

There was drizzle about this morning. Now it has cleared but we are still waiting for better weather. Tomorrow’s activities will depend entirely on what Hughie throws at us.



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