Saturday 7th & Sunday 8th October, 2006
Saturday morning I had a nice run in Wagga around an inlet of the Murrinbidgee River.It’s right in the town and signposted as Wagga Wagga “beach”.
The only problem was that I was still so freaked out by that huge black snake, that I ran the trail with my toes scrunched up the whole time.
The rest of the day was spent driving back to Victoria through previously visited towns (I got a pic of Ned’s bloody legs!)
http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k160/sylvie_011/nedslegs.jpg
We spent the night in Bendigo.
This was one of Australia’s major mining town and it’s a nice town!
I took a run through the city down one of the main streets and was really taken by the beautifully maintained Victorian buildings.
http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k160/sylvie_011/bendigo1.jpg
http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k160/sylvie_011/bendigo2.jpg
http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k160/sylvie_011/bendigo3.jpg
http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k160/sylvie_011/bendigo4.jpg
http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k160/sylvie_011/bendigo5.jpg
Too often these buildings have been reduced to nothing more than a façade with a modern building skulking behind it.
Later on we took a walk through the Chinese Gardens.
http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k160/sylvie_011/chgarden.jpg
There was a significant Chinese population in Australia during the goldrush, and they generally had a pretty hard time as people felt they were taking jobs and of course they had different cultural practices and refused to play AFL.
Bendigo is very dry! One local told us that the damns currently hold only about a years water supply.
Once we left Bendigo, we headed for Ballaraat!
But before we reached there we stoped off in a town called Dalesford. As we drove in, it was sign posted as Australians major spa town.I thought it was an odd claim to fame. To be reknown as the town of human crock pots-but I soon happily discovered that the spa’s related to the natural springs in the town!
I love these unexpected sidetracks we take.I came across a monument that was dedicated to the ‘Lost Children”.They were 3 children aged 6, 7 and 8 who disappeared 140 odd years ago.Could they, or their families ever have imagined that , some chick from thousands of miles west, with a head full images of metallic bubbling tubs and crotch rashes , would stumble across their memorial, centuries after they had lived, and wonder what happened to the children?
Ballarat is another major goldrush town and one that I was especially looking forward to.
We started at Sovereign Hill which was a nice but very touristy period village that re-creates the main street during the rush.Heaps of people panning for gold.
http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k160/sylvie_011/panning.jpg
Look at the horises!
http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k160/sylvie_011/cart.jpg
and people dressed in period costumes and banging bits of metal and..look at the horsies again!
http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k160/sylvie_011/cart.jpg
But for me, the best bit was going to the spot where the Eureka Stockade took place.
http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k160/sylvie_011/flag2.jpg
This was arguably the incident which shaped the nation.
One day in 1854,a group of diggers (miners),in response to long on-going problems they had with unfair and corrupt troopers (guards/police) had a monster meeting under the Eureka flag.
http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k160/sylvie_011/eurekaflag.jpg
They pledged under the southern cross, to truly stand by one another and fight to defend their rights and liberties against the troopers.
As a result of the uprising, many of the diggers (and some of the troopers) lost their lives. It was not considered a ‘military’ success.
http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k160/sylvie_011/monument1.jpg
But,in 1855 a mining committee was established onto which diggers could be elected to represent the views of the miners,and so,the idea of fairness and egalitarianism came to fruition.
What an awesome place to stand.
We will spend the night somewhere around Geelong. Tomorrow we begin our trek on the Great Ocean Road.I can't wait!
The only problem was that I was still so freaked out by that huge black snake, that I ran the trail with my toes scrunched up the whole time.
The rest of the day was spent driving back to Victoria through previously visited towns (I got a pic of Ned’s bloody legs!)
http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k160/sylvie_011/nedslegs.jpg
We spent the night in Bendigo.
This was one of Australia’s major mining town and it’s a nice town!
I took a run through the city down one of the main streets and was really taken by the beautifully maintained Victorian buildings.
http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k160/sylvie_011/bendigo1.jpg
http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k160/sylvie_011/bendigo2.jpg
http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k160/sylvie_011/bendigo3.jpg
http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k160/sylvie_011/bendigo4.jpg
http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k160/sylvie_011/bendigo5.jpg
Too often these buildings have been reduced to nothing more than a façade with a modern building skulking behind it.
Later on we took a walk through the Chinese Gardens.
http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k160/sylvie_011/chgarden.jpg
There was a significant Chinese population in Australia during the goldrush, and they generally had a pretty hard time as people felt they were taking jobs and of course they had different cultural practices and refused to play AFL.
Bendigo is very dry! One local told us that the damns currently hold only about a years water supply.
Once we left Bendigo, we headed for Ballaraat!
But before we reached there we stoped off in a town called Dalesford. As we drove in, it was sign posted as Australians major spa town.I thought it was an odd claim to fame. To be reknown as the town of human crock pots-but I soon happily discovered that the spa’s related to the natural springs in the town!
I love these unexpected sidetracks we take.I came across a monument that was dedicated to the ‘Lost Children”.They were 3 children aged 6, 7 and 8 who disappeared 140 odd years ago.Could they, or their families ever have imagined that , some chick from thousands of miles west, with a head full images of metallic bubbling tubs and crotch rashes , would stumble across their memorial, centuries after they had lived, and wonder what happened to the children?
Ballarat is another major goldrush town and one that I was especially looking forward to.
We started at Sovereign Hill which was a nice but very touristy period village that re-creates the main street during the rush.Heaps of people panning for gold.
http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k160/sylvie_011/panning.jpg
Look at the horises!
http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k160/sylvie_011/cart.jpg
and people dressed in period costumes and banging bits of metal and..look at the horsies again!
http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k160/sylvie_011/cart.jpg
But for me, the best bit was going to the spot where the Eureka Stockade took place.
http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k160/sylvie_011/flag2.jpg
This was arguably the incident which shaped the nation.
One day in 1854,a group of diggers (miners),in response to long on-going problems they had with unfair and corrupt troopers (guards/police) had a monster meeting under the Eureka flag.
http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k160/sylvie_011/eurekaflag.jpg
They pledged under the southern cross, to truly stand by one another and fight to defend their rights and liberties against the troopers.
As a result of the uprising, many of the diggers (and some of the troopers) lost their lives. It was not considered a ‘military’ success.
http://i87.photobucket.com/albums/k160/sylvie_011/monument1.jpg
But,in 1855 a mining committee was established onto which diggers could be elected to represent the views of the miners,and so,the idea of fairness and egalitarianism came to fruition.
What an awesome place to stand.
We will spend the night somewhere around Geelong. Tomorrow we begin our trek on the Great Ocean Road.I can't wait!
posted by Wanda Ring at 8:45 PM
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