Next stop - Bundaberg

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This morning Matt accompanied me on my run, and upon our return woke Rowena so she could join us for a pre breakfast swim. We all sat down for breakfast together and then had a relaxed morning chatting and packing up. Around 10.30am we said our goodbyes and started our one and a half hour journey North to Bundaberg (Bunde). In Bunde we are to be staying at Matt’s family home. Nobody has lived there permanently for the last few years as Matt’s parents are living and working on the West coast of Australia. However everybody pops back regularly to stay throughout the year. Recently, on one of these trips, somebody spotted that termites had eaten away a large proportion of one of the beams and floor at the back of the house. Subsequently the house is now undergoing major renovation, including re-building the back of the house with new materials. Luckily Matt’s uncle is a carpenters/builder so he is doing the work, so everybody can still come and go as they please.

When we arrived we had a quick scout round, checking out the state of the house and gardens, and surveyed the sugar plantation fields at the back which Matt’s granddad used to own and work. We collected some of the mangos, macadamia nuts, oranges and lychees which were ripe from the trees. We then had a clean-up of the house, sweeping the dust and mopping, disinfecting the kitchen from the building dust and ants, hosing down the outside deck and chairs. We were warned there was no bathroom but a working toilet in the laundry, so staying was like an executive form of camping – walls, roof, bed, toilet and kitchen, just no lights or bathroom.

Once cleaned and sorted, around 3pm, we headed down to Moore Park – a beautifully secluded beach about 15 minute drive from the house. Moore Park is a stereotypical Australian beach, with beautiful sand stretching as far as the eye can see, with water crashing gently against the sand, and even better, we were the only ones on it! We spent several hours relaxing, reading and swimming before heading home around 5pm.

Once home we created the pavlova we have been meaning to make and consume all Christmas, topping it the mangos we found in the garden and passion-fruit we had bought. We spent our evening relaxing on the veranda, lit by candles and a full moon, listening to the cookaboroughs and local wildlife, Bbq on and a cider in hand.

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