Visit to Yucatan Pt.3

On our 3rd day of the visit Gavan took us to spend some time in Merida. Merida is the state capital of Yucatan and located about 35km inland south of Progreso. It has a population of around 1 million people and like many of the older Mexican cities has a magnificent square in the centre of the city.

In Merida the square is surrounded by old Government buildings and the Cathedral which dates back to 1598.

After playing tourist we had lunch in one of the many restaurants surrounding the square and were seated by this delightful young lady in traditional dress.

Following lunch we paid a visit the adjacent ice cream parlour where we all (not just the kids) sampled the wares. Great ice cream.

It was a great day out and an opportunity to see a quite historic and beautiful city.

Next we are off to Uxmal and the pyramids.

Cheers Bev and Ross

Visit to Yucatan Pt. 2

Gavan and Lorena's daughter Alexandra attends traditional dance classes in a hall near their house and the students were generous enough to allow us to take photos during the class although I think I distracted her when I took this.

The climate in the area is excellent for growing many varieties of vegetables and flowers and these are just a few of Gavan's hibiscus with fruit trees in the background. All are grown in pots as the natural soil is too sandy to support most plants.

The beachfront home lends itself to relaxing and many a restful hour was spent doing exactly that.

Father and elder son (Albert and Adrian) ventured regularly into the surf,

While younger son (Cameron) was content with the adjacent pool.

In the next session we will cover our visit to the Yucatan's capital, Merida.

Cheers Ross and Bev

Visit to Yucatan Pt.1

Coinciding either fortunately or unfortunately with the spring school break we visited with Gavan, Lorena and Alexandra in Chicxulub located on the Yucatan Peninsular about a 3 hours drive from Cancun in Mexico. Mary Alice, Albert and their sons Adrian and Cameron joined us on this adventure.  To get into the mood for our Mexican adventure we had breakfast the day before our departure with Keith and Kaci who lived across the road from us all until last week when they sold their home.  We will all miss them as we have had great times together.  

It was a 21/2 hrs direct flight from San Antonio and as it was going to be another 3 hours until we got to the Connell's residence the decision was taken to stop for lunch at Valadolid which is very pretty little town as you can see from the photo.

The food was delicious.

We finally arrived at the Connell residence which is a waterfront property with direct access to the sea.

As you can see the Gulf of Mexico provides a backdrop to the pool which displays a Kangaroo on the bottom.  Alexandra, Cameron and Adrian spent may hours happy hours both in the pool and in the sea.

Alexandra is 6 years old and attends the local Montessori school and is fluent in English and Spanish.

The local major city is Progreso and it is a bustling town with colorful buildings as well as being a stopover for cruise ships.

Gavan and Lorena were very gracious hosts and were keen to show us the sights of their area.  This day we had lunch at a hotel adjacent to the cruise ship pier.

The restaurant is located on the beach and as long as you are drinking, be it a soft drink or alcohol, tapas sized food is delivered to your table.  The array of food was amazing from squid in ink to a variety of other foods particular to the area.

There is a pool located near the tables so families can eat at their leisure while the children play in the pool.  It was a pleasant day with a light breeze.

Over the week we were treated to a wide variety of experiences so more to follow.

Ross and Bev

Sea World San Antonio

Sea World in San Antonio is a great place to visit and as it was around the time of Ross' birthday, Lauren and Jono shouted us a year long ticket as a birthday present to Ross.  While it is a 250 acre marine mammal park, oceanarium and animal theme park there are a number of mascots around to entertain the visitors.

It also has a very long rolleracoaster ride which Jono really enjoyed while we stayed on the ground.

There are some tame rides as well and this was as risky as Lauren would venture on.

There are a lot of water rides at Sea World and here Lauren and Jono dry off after the above ride.

There are several animal shows and here the Sea Loin is part of a skit.

There are white whales,

and, killer whales who captivate the crowds with their activities.

They are indeed magnificent animals.

The coral is also amazing.

We had a great day with Lauren and Jono and will certainally be back for another day of enjoyment.

Best wishes to all,

Bev and Ross

February 2013

Well February has been a very busy month in our household.  On the 13th Ross celebrated his birthday which he shares with Richie.  Our Texas family hosted a great night for them both. 

A few days later once Lauren and Jono arrived we had another birthday dinner this time sharing it with Lauren and Albert at Kirby's restaurant.

We took very opportunity to visit places of interest and to eat different foods.  This photo is taken at the Gristmill in Gruene.  It is situated on the banks of the Guadalupe River.

Gruene also has the  Gruene Hall which was built in 1878 by Richard Gruene and it is the oldest continually run dance hall in Texas.  It was the set for the film Michael which starred John Travolta (dance scene below) and has staged concerts by Willie Nelson, George Strait, Gregg Allman, Australian Casey Chambers and thousands of others.

Lauren and Jono were particularly fond of the food served at Rudy's the Worst BBQ in Texas.

However we did vary our diet and took in some Italian cuisine.  Anyone for a calzone?

We visited Austin and sampled the fare at Deskill's Hotel.

Aly and TJ were kind enough to show our friends some of the night life at Gruene.  This night they were at the Gruene Dance Hall.

A great night was had by all.

Lauren, The Texas Cowgirl.

Jono and Lauren enjoyed the evening together.

The evening before they departed back to Australia, Lauren and Jono cooked us all a great meal and who better to share it with then our dear friends, Albert, Mary Alice, Aly, TJ ,  Adrian and Cameron.

We were so delighted that Lauren and Jono made the long trip to visit with us.  We had a great time with them and hope that they may find their way back here in the future.  It was also a joy to introduce them to our friends.  We had lots of laughter and good times.

More to follow,

Beverley and Ross

Australia Day 2013

Australia Day
Australia Day on Sydney Harbour, 2004
Also called	Foundation Day, Anniversary Day, Survival Day, Invasion Day, Day of Mourning (in 1938 & 1970)
Observed by	Australian citizens and residents
Type	National
Significance	Date of landing of First Fleet in Port Jackson in 1788
Date	26 January
Observances	Family gatherings, picnics and barbecues; parades; citizenship ceremonies; Australia Day Honours List; Australian of the Year presentation

Australia Day is the official national day of Australia. Celebrated annually on 26 January, the date commemorates the arrival of the First Fleet at Sydney Cove, New South Wales in 1788 and the proclamation at that time of British sovereignty over the eastern seaboard of Australia (then known as New Holland).
Although it was not known as Australia Day until over a century later, records of celebrations on 26 January date back to 1808, with the first official celebration of the formation of New South Wales held in 1818. It is marked by the presentation of the Australian of the Year Awards on Australia Day Eve, announcement of the Australia Day Honours list and addresses from the Governor-General and Prime Minister. It is an official public holiday in every state and territory of Australia, unless it falls on a weekend in which case the following Monday is a public holiday instead. With community festivals, concerts and citizenship ceremonies, the day is celebrated in large and small communities and cities around the nation. Australia Day has become the biggest annual civic event in Australia.

So now you are all up to speed with what Australia day is all about.  Here in Texas, Australians come together to enjoy the day.  We drove to Austin for the event.  Austin is an hours drive north from San Antonio and this is where Boomerang's Gourmet Veggie and Meat Pies shop is located (BoomerangsPies.com will provide more information).  They make great Australian meat pies, sausage rolls, lamingtons and Anzac biscuits.  All traditional Australian fare which tasted as good as our mother's used to make for us when we were kids.

Here is an example of the great Ozzie tradition - the Original Meat Pie with mashed potato and gravy, served with Coopers Beer.

The sausage roll with tomato sauce was just as good as we had remembered it to be.

 No Australian get together would be complete without beer and you can see that there was a lot of this beverage consumed.

As you can see some of the folks dressed for the occasion.

 This jumper (sweater ) was bought on E bay.

Of course there were a number of activities throughout the day and at 5 pm the pie eating competitions started.  The adults went first.

Followed by the children.   The winners were rewarded for their efforts with free pies for the next year. 

On our return home on Sunday we shared a belated celebration with our friends and introduced them to Australia meat pies, sausage rolls, pavlova, lamingtons and Anzac biscuits.  

Mary Alice, Albert, Keith and Soojin are now honorary Australians, all they to complete the process is an Aussie accent.

This is our 5th Australia Day away from home but everywhere we have been for it we have enjoyed great times with friends.   

Warmest wishes to all.

Bev and Ross