It's also a bit cool, 16 degrees, it's the first long sleeve job since we have been here.....
What to do in Albany on a wet day? We start off by going to the National Anzac Centre, remembering the 41,000 Australians and New Zealanders who set off from Albany to fight in the First World War, it's not really for us but keeps us dry for an hour or so. It also makes you question the makeup of the Aussie male, they travelled thousands of miles with and fought alongside Aborigines who enlisted with them but when they returned they shunned them, even the Government treated them very differently but then I think of the way the UK treated the Gurkhas, perhaps it's something in the ancestry of Aussies that's responsible? Right, off to the 2 lookouts, one being the most visited lookout in the region, from where families watched the 1914 convoys set sail but the cloud is so low, we are in it and can see nothing.
Okay then it's the Brig Amity for us, a replica of a sailing ship that brought the first European settlers from Sydney to Western Australia. We smiled most of the way around, thinking "We paid money for this" and then went back up on top deck, two families arrive and fluff about so as to ruin any chance of a photo. They appeared even less impressed with the Amity than us as they left not long after arriving, that said I feel the fact you had to climb down some stairs backwards, through a two foot square opening and then walk hunched up on the middle deck, even her of the height restriction had to bend at the waist to walk...... May, due to their build, have had some bearing on their decision.........
Next stop is the Old Gaol, a building saved and restored by the local historian society, one of whose members was inside collecting the entrance fee, this rain is beginning to cost us dear! However he takes it for granted we are 'seniors' so we get a 50% discount on the entrance fee, yes that's the equivalent to £2.50 saved........ For first ten minutes it's fine but then the family with three young children arrive, why bring three children all under the age of 7 to a place like this, they were not interested one iota. All they did was run around, shouting, calling for attention, touching things that should not be touched and generally being a nuisance, the mum did what all Mothers do and tried to control them but in doing so also added to the noise, the dad did what it appears all Australian dads do, he ignored them...... He walked around as if he did not know them and if they approached him, he would pass them onto their mother, we have seen a lot of this type of behaviour and it's as if because he is on holiday, then he does nothing, whilst the wife/mother has to do it all. Still we saw photos of Albany a 100 years ago, what surprised us is, that even though we had been in the town centre once a few days back, we immediately recognised it from the photos, it has hardly changed, the main buildings and a tree are the same, progress stops in Albany with new car parking bays.........
We look up what's on at the cinema but it's all children's films (still school holidays) until 20.30hrs so back to camp site pleasantly surprised as its 5pm, we notice because, as we pass the pub there are a dozen Utes parked up outside........ With that it sounds like a good idea to open the fridge and test whether it's keeping the liquids chilled........
Next stop is the Old Gaol, a building saved and restored by the local historian society, one of whose members was inside collecting the entrance fee, this rain is beginning to cost us dear! However he takes it for granted we are 'seniors' so we get a 50% discount on the entrance fee, yes that's the equivalent to £2.50 saved........ For first ten minutes it's fine but then the family with three young children arrive, why bring three children all under the age of 7 to a place like this, they were not interested one iota. All they did was run around, shouting, calling for attention, touching things that should not be touched and generally being a nuisance, the mum did what all Mothers do and tried to control them but in doing so also added to the noise, the dad did what it appears all Australian dads do, he ignored them...... He walked around as if he did not know them and if they approached him, he would pass them onto their mother, we have seen a lot of this type of behaviour and it's as if because he is on holiday, then he does nothing, whilst the wife/mother has to do it all. Still we saw photos of Albany a 100 years ago, what surprised us is, that even though we had been in the town centre once a few days back, we immediately recognised it from the photos, it has hardly changed, the main buildings and a tree are the same, progress stops in Albany with new car parking bays.........
We look up what's on at the cinema but it's all children's films (still school holidays) until 20.30hrs so back to camp site pleasantly surprised as its 5pm, we notice because, as we pass the pub there are a dozen Utes parked up outside........ With that it sounds like a good idea to open the fridge and test whether it's keeping the liquids chilled........
Lookout for low cloud
Brig Amity
The realistic historical interpretation of the Old Gaol Warder........
