South Coast Secrets – Narooma Oyster Festival

Tell someone you are going to Narooma and they will most likely reply “Where’s that?”. Of course, those who share the secret know that it is on the South Coast of NSW, about 5 hours drive south of Sydney.

The first sight of Narooma is when you approach the bridge over Wogonga Inlet. This photo is at a lower angle from the best view from further up the road. It  alone is worth the trip.

You won’t need an excuse to spend a few days in this beautiful seaside environment.

But, the Narooma Oyster festival is certainly an excuse to visit friends in the area. The best event of the festival, apart from eating the oysters, is the cooking demonstration program.

Local chefs as well as Julie Goodwin, demonstrated seafood dishes using mainly local produce.

Michael Stokes, a popular chef in Narooma, makes tasty food preparation look simple.

I am sure many in the audience would be keen to attempt his dish of pappardelle and seafood.

Huw Jones from Zanzibar Cafe` in Merimbula (another wonderful secret further south), created an amazing dish: Marinated yellow fin tuna, black lip abalone, squid ink consomme` and beach herbs. His restaurant is definitely on my ‘must do’ list.

Those who were fortunate to taste this dish would surely agree that it tasted amazing.

Alex Dawkins  announced that he would soon be opening a new restaurant in Ulladulla at the Habourside restaurant site. Great news for the improving food scene in that area.

He used native flat angasi oysters in his dish of oysters with nori, foam and ocean trout roe.

After the buzz of the Festival, there are plenty of ways to relax. An enjoyable walk along the boardwalk will take you to the boat ramps where fishermen clean their catch after returning from ocean fishing. Giant sting rays wait in the shallows for scraps.

For the energetic there are boat trips to Montague Island or if you want to relax there are many beaches to choose from. Hiring a tinnie is a relaxing way to explore the inlet.  Through the clear water see many of the baby fish, such as yellow fin tuna, that develop here as well as magnificent birdlife.

Narooma, well worth the effort to visit. Many more secrets to discover along the way.

Out West

A recent trip away saw us venture across the Great Dividing Range to Orange. The  Bells Line of Road takes you high out of the Sydney Basin. You pass by the Blue Mountains, with glimpses of the grand rock formations. The road then makes a steep descent into Lithgow  where we hope we can find a coffee.

Not long after Lithgow, the road opens up and there it is the grand expanse of the Central West of NSW. I think of all the people in the city who have never seen this beautiful country or even think of its existence. The air smells beautiful and the sky goes on forever.

Bathurst is not far from Orange but it is good to get out and stretch the legs and have another coffee. I love the wide streets of country towns and the old buildings. Country councils don’t seem to be in such a hurry to remove older buildings, thankfully.

The parks remind you of a distant time. We found this Begonia House.

It was full of begonias(of course) and very well maintained, as was the park.

Years ago when Bathurst was a stopping point for us, on route to Sydney, lunch was a  ‘special’ spring roll from a local Chinese restaurant. These days there is more choice. We had a lovely lunch at Hub cafe of a goat cheese tart with figs, and a decent coffee!

Not far from Hub is Legall Patisserie. We had a look at the tempting offerings but decided we would have to stop there another time.

Orange is known for cherries, wine and this time of year, apples. It has been well ahead of other food growing areas in its appreciation of local and fresh foods. The local tourist guide has always been informative and a necessity, to locate local produce.

We stayed on Mt Canobolas, surrounded by apple orchards and vineyards, with an incredible view towards Orange in the distance.

There seem to be new wineries every time we visit. This time we enjoyed Brangayne and Ross Hill cellar doors. Both of these wineries have vineyards on the slopes of Mt Canobolas with altitudes of 970m and 1100m. As happens with other wine areas, the wineries you want to visit aren’t always open on the days you are there. Luckily in Orange, many of the local wines are available at the local IGA supermarket. Great for when you are just passing through.

The same goes for local produce. Most farm gates are only open at weekends. There are a couple of places that stock locally produced goods. We managed to pick up a few supplies at A Slice of Orange in the city centre.

A visit to Orange wouldn’t be complete without dinner at Lolli Redini. Wednesday turned out to be BYO which was a nice bonus.

With a sampling of local apples we headed for home. We had hoped for a hearty breakfast in Orange but we found the few cafes open, overpriced for breakfast. You can get a good coffee though at Bills’ Beans. We decided to look at Millthorpe on the way home. No luck with breakfast there so we settled for morning tea instead. We couldn’t resist what was on offer at The Old Mill Cafe in Millthorpe.

The treats were definitely worth stopping there for. We tried the pear and almond torte

and the lemon meringue pie. Both were full of fresh fruit flavours and not too sweet. We wished we were staying for lunch.

That will have to be next time.

Ulladulla contd… Fossils

The Gondwana Coast is abundant with shallow water marine invertebrate fossils, of which the Ulladulla area is a part. At low tide, an ancient world is exposed on the Ulladulla rock platforms.

During the summer months, guided walks are provided by volunteers. At other times, adventurous fossickers may locate fossils in the rock platforms.

These shell fossils are easily identified.

This is my favourite, it could be a lamp shell. As I am in no way an expert on fossils, my identification of these photos are only suggestions. A pamphlet is available from the Visitor’s Centre in Ulladulla.

This could be a sea fan.

This is interesting. Maybe it is a sea lily, or it could be a ‘trace fossil’ from the track of a worm.

There are also interesting rock formations like this one which seem to be of a great significance to the formation of the area.

These images are from a small part of the area. Next trip we will explore further. Not everyone is interested in fossils. I find it fascinating and wish I had listened more carefully in Geology!

South Coast Snippets – 2

The ‘summer that wasn’t’ has officially ended, but I did manage to enjoy one week of summer on a recent trip to the South Coast. This time we spent a week relaxing in  Ulladulla/Mollymook and surrounding areas.

Ulladulla is a fishing port, 226kms south of Sydney. The town may be not the most glamorous coastal village but it certainly makes up for it in natural beauty.

Every day was near perfect summer weather, even an afternoon ‘southerly buster’ thrown in. Each morning we looked out to see the sunrise or in the north, glimpses of the sea through these fabulous trees. Throughout the day their trunks would change colour depending on the angle of the sun. They remind me of an artist’s impression of the tree.

Breakfast would have to wait until our morning walk, usually along Mollymook Beach.

I love the colour of this piece of sea lettuce washed up on the sand.The birds were enjoying the early morning as well!

All day could be spent on the beach. The temperature was perfect with a gentle breeze to keep it from being too hot. My favourite time is at low tide when the waves are the right size for me, especially at North Mollymook. The water temperature was perfect! But there is more to do at Ulladulla at low tide! More about that later.

New Year in a Past Time

New Years Eve 2011 was spent at Wollombi, a small, historic village in the lower Hunter Valley. The area was established in the mid 1800′s with the road and most of the sandstone buildings built by convicts.

Only a few of the original buildings remain, such as the court house and the post office. Although no longer used as a post office, the building remains an important part of thetown.

The population of less than 300 swells on New Years Eve which is, surprisingly a big event! Many of the locals and their guests were at Panino Restaurant for a 7 course degustation menu.

The highlight of the meal for me was the Baked Glamour Black Fig Wrapped with Prosciutto and Filled with Gorgonzola! Divine!! I also loved the Raviolo Filled with Fresh Lobster served with a Lobster Bisque Reduction! Yum!

We were entertained by a local piper playing his bagpipes on the street outside.

Dinner was interrupted at 9pm when most of the guests left their tables to walk down to the local pub to watch fireworks. I really didn’t expect such a grand display. It was very impressive with lots of oohs and aahs, almost as good as Sydney Harbour!!! The fireworks were provided by the owners of the pub as a gift to the town. I’m sure the whole town population must have been there.

At the completion, we were able to return to finish our meal. At midnight, the piper and some friends, played Auld Lang Syne outside the pub. Many people joined in with linked arms and sang along  in the street.

The pub is the most important landmark in the village, although not impressive in looks. It has long been popular with touring motor cyclists who travel up from Sydney for the day. Some will remember it as the home of Doctor Jurd’s Jungle Juice!

Wollombi is rich in aboriginal history and rock carvings can be found in the nearby Yengo National Park. We saw great examples of native plants such as flannel flowers and this banksia.

This interesting plant needed expert consultation to identify it! It is called Lomatia silaifolia but I like its common names of crinkle bush or wild parsley.

Sculpture in the Vineyards is an annual event along the Wollombi Wine Trail. The sculptures are displayed at local vineyards and locations throughout the village.

The Greater Grater by Jimmy Rix, pays homage to the restaurant industry. He works as a chef to supplement his sculpting.

Al Phemister used found and recycled materials for his Dandelion. Notice the perfect weather that day!

Earthstars is the name of the sculpture by Mike Patton. It seems to be made using plastic scourer materials and other man made materials. Earthstars refers to a fungal species.

For such a small town, Wollombi certainly has a lot going for it. There are the wineries to explore along with the sculptures. When you have exhausted those, there is Broke with more wineries not far away, and of course the great wine region of the Hunter Valley!

Cockatoo Island – Outpost

Cockatoo Island is the largest island in Sydney Harbour.  In the past it has been used as a prison for convicts, an Industrial School for girls and a Naval dockyard, but is mostly known for its large ship building yards. It is now a venue for public use. Many of its historical buildings have been retained which makes for an interesting space to explore.

A ferry trip on Sydney Harbour, on a glorious Spring day, to visit the island, happened to coincide with ‘Outpost’ – an exhibition of street art. There are murals, weird installations and yes, graffiti paintings.

Not everyone would want to make the trip to see street art, but I am sure they would find something that appeals to them.

This crane structure is holding a massively scaled up version of a sushi fish.

It represents unconscious waste.

A Belguim artist, Roa paints large animal images on abandoned factories and walls. I hope this one gets to stay around for awhile.

He chooses animals native to the location(country). Can you recognise any?

Some animals are placed in piles.

There are many more murals on display, too many to mention.

 We went through the Dog Leg Tunnel to escape the heat. It is lined with the work of 30 street artists. It used to be a bomb shelter during WWII.

There is an exhibition by the world famous graffiti artist Banksy. When you have had enough, there are places where you can relax with a cool breeze and a cool drink and take in the wonderful view.

‘Outpost’ continues until 11 Dec, 2011. You may change your view on street art if you visit this exhibition.

Cockatoo Island itself requires further exploration on another day.  The ferry trip back reminds you of how lucky we are to live in this great part on the world!

City Secrets

City centres are busy places but they all have their quiet areas. So does Sydney! An exploration to locate laneways that are part of Laneway Art, enabled discovery of previously unknown or forgotten areas.

Some of the above images are a selection of artworks as part of the exhibition. These are on display until end of January 2012.

The bird cages are part of a permanent exhibition. The sounds of the birds change throughout the day to indicate which native birds would have been present at that time.

A short detour to Chifley Plaza gave us the opportunity to view the finalists in the Shoot the Chef Photographic Competition. It was a bit difficult finding the photos amongst the coffee drinkers! I’m not sure how long the photos will be on display.

No. 1 Bligh St is set to become a Sydney landmark. Not only does it look spectacular, it is an environmentally sustainable design. Check it out inside, the concierge is very informative. The cafe invites a return visit and the kiosk beside the ‘green wall’ is tempting.

Of course, no trip to the city is complete without lunch and a coffee. Hidden in another laneway, Temperance Lane, is the Grasshopper.

Coffee is served in jam jars! With wonderful food, great atmosphere and service, it is a great and convenient spot to escape the hoards of hungry workers.