Today we shamelessly did a big fat NOTHING!
If you know how hectic life has been for us in the last few weeks you will be saying "good on you!". I know that most people would be saying "What? You drove 9 hours to stare at the walls of a cheap hotel!" but we needed this rest and thoroughly enjoyed the day.
After a great big long sleep, we woke up, backs a bit crooked from the lumpy old motel room mattress (and partially because we are old farts and bad backs kinda comes with the turf, but lets just say it was the bed OK). Expecting to look outside and see grey clouds and drizzling rain we were pleasantly surprised that the sky was blue and clear. Now THIS is the north I know and love. Hobbit wanted to watch the V8 Supercars which went from 10am to 3pm so he settled in for the day and I threw a calico bag over my shoulder and decided to stroll the main street and do what I do best - SHOP.
All the same shops here as my many previous other visits, still they never bore me. Every time there are new little treasures to find and something that catches my eye and draws me in. I love that on vacation I have the time to amble around, most of my city shopping is now done online so I actually rarely ever 'shop'. I really like getting things on vacation because down the track when you wear them or see them sitting around the house they remind you of the time you bought them and the trip you had. I think the only ornaments I have in my house are actually ones found on holidays, my favourites being some sharks that I found in Coral Bay Dive Shop, and also a great big Marlin that stands proudly on my bathroom bench.
My favourite nik-nak shop.
Today was no exception, I found a gorgeous little cheese serving platter carved out of wood with dips in it for separating food. The handles are metal starfish, just beautiful! I also got a little set of spoons and forks with starfish handles to go with it, they are those miniature ones that you use to stab at antipasto, I don't know if they have a special name. I also found a beautiful t-shirt for my House-sitter, a lovely shark bay t-shirt and shark stubby holder. Hope she likes them. Anyone who puts up with my arsehole cats for a whole week definitely deserves a reward! I also found a little card that was worded so perfectly for Hobbit so I got him that and a present to go with, a long sleeve 50+ sunshirt that has cooling action and is designed for the north. This will look great and be very practical for our road trip bush walks. I also stocked up on some groceries which some people would find boring but I say in all seriousness that grocery shopping is one of my favourite passtimes. Call me crazy but I love ambling up and down every aisle, reading labels, finding bargains, and looking out for new things to try. I popped back home midway and cooked a lunch for Hobbit which he devoured with gusto. A vegetarian flatbread with roasted eggplant, tomato, spinach, artichoke, mushrooms, and fetta. And so Hobbit got a meat fix I also cooked him up some chicken tenderloins marinaded in sweet chilly and lemongrass.
I look forward to using this beauty at my next nibbles night.
After Hobbit had finished watching the cars go around and around and around and around.... he decided that he wanted to stretch his leggies. So we went for a walk down to the end of the path to the left of our motel. At this stage the wind had picked up strength and was howling but the sun was out so it was still a pleasant stroll. I got some lovely pics of the area which never do it justice, you simply have to come this way and see for yourself. We then strolled to the right and went to the other side of town which ends at the Denham Seaside Caravan Park. We have stayed there before and it is an adorable place, probably the nicest of any caravan park we have ever booked into. I much prefer it to the Monkey Mia one as it has much more of an outback feel and is less 'touristy'. Plus it is great having access to the township for night walks and visits to taverns and cafes. Whilst Monkey Mia is a pretty place, we prefer it for day visits as it is really just a resort and the beaches there are not as nice as around Denham townsite.
On our stroll we watched the sun setting down and it was lovely to check out the playground on the foreshore which is the most impressive one I have ever seen. It is really huge and would definitely be a great draw-card for families. There are all sorts of structures made out of wood for the kids to climb on and in and around, swings, castles, musical chimes, steps, ladders, and a the most amazing slippery slide that is actually really steep and curly, a bit scary for an old duck like me but to an adventurous child it would be like all your Christmases come at once.
Fantastic seaside playground, fun for us big kids too.
Popped into the Fuel, Camping, Fishing, and Cafe Store (yeah, I know, talk about combination!) to grab a double shot espresso for the walk home. Not as good as the Yahava X-Rated coffee we have at home but definitely warmed the tummy and gave us a caffeine hit to make our toes tingle.
Back at home it was getting dark so we showered up to get warm and clean and then settled in for the night where I caught up on my blogging whilst Hobbit read a book and played games on his Mobile. We had a bit of a nip of Ratu Rum (if you have not tried this rum, oh my gosh, you are seriously missing out! It is made in Fiji and filtered through coconut shells so is a beautiful smooth drop that you dare not add any mixers to). We never even liked Rum until a visit to Dan Murphy where they were offering taste testers of this and we were amazed at how lovely and smooth it is. Definitely a completely different experience to the harsh bogan tones of Bundy. I assembled a little cheese platter and we ended up watching a movie on TV.
With a lovely restful day behind us and body batteries recharged, we are all geared up for the next few days to be more adventurous and outdoorsy. Hoping to spend tomorrow driving to the beach tracks to check out some of the lovely lookout spots and soak up some scenery. We also want to head back to the Ocean Park Aquarium and have another gander at the sharks and fish on display there. I actually prefer this place to Aqua in Perth as it is much more of a close encounter and the tour itself is really personal and informative.
Magical Denham sunset
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