Surfers Paradise Sydney Trip seeing lots of friends & in particular caught up with Karen Greenwood an old girlfriend from 1991, 26 years ago. As you can see see still looks fantastic. 🙂 So many great memories came flooding back, it was certainly wonderful week Surfers Paradise. We are at Franks seafood cafe on Chevron Island.
I first visited this iconic bar on New Years Day 1982, 35 years ago. The reason I am so sure of the date is it was the day after my unforgettable NYE on Sydney harbour with my overloaded boat being showered by sky rockets.
First stop Kingscliff only a 40 minute drive.
Just a quick stop for a very good breakfast and some photos.
Great views over the beach from this excellent hotel, Use THIS LINK for a terrific discount on a room with a view.
The older side of Coogee
Many parts of Coogee are quite ancient as you can see, probably worth several million as a development site here in Arden Street.
This one is certainly worth preserving.
Not sure if it will be kept as a private residence or a guest house.
Overlooking Coogee Bay
As you can see Coogee is quite hilly.
Important safety message
When on the beach in Australia make sure you always use sun block-out, wear a hat & swim between the flags.
In recent years I have had many skin cancers removed, doctors tell me the damage was done many years ago before I turned 16 years of age. In those days we NEVER wore hats or used sun protection.
Things looked a little different in 1936
It was called Belmore Rd in 1930
Fabulous old photos.
How about 1905?
It certainly wasn’t Busy Chaotic Coogee Beach then. 🙂
Thanks for visiting my Busy Chaotic Coogee Beach Sydney photo blog, before you leave please check out Maroubra Beach which is a few kms south of Coogee.
Gosford Central Coast NSW is located on Brisbane Water just 80 km north of Sydney. Growing up in Sydney this area was where our family would spend our annual holidays.
Breakfast at Tommys Cafe at Gosford
Before driving to Coogee in Sydney I decided I needed a good breakfast.
Scrambled eggs & avocado
On Turkish toast of course. 🙂 TripAdvisor rate #6 of 101 Restaurants in Gosford.
A delightful spot in Gosford Central Coast NSW
I wish I could find Turkish bread in Thailand.
Perfect sunday morning in Gosford
From Gosford it’s just a short cruise to the magnificent Hawksbury River,
Starship Cruises
The “Lady Kendall” will take you on a 2.5 hour cruise for $37.
Gosford Sailing Club Club
Located on the foreshore of Brisbane Water. Check it out through THIS LINK.
Shooting some photos
I never go anywhere without my Canon. 🙂
A perfect place for a row.
Opposite the Leagues club.
Gosford Central Coast NSW Central Coast Stadium
The stadium has picturesque views over the Brisbane water.
Just book through THIS LINKfor an excellent discount.
The Settlers Tavern
A terrific T Bone have Settlers Tavern at 2 Hely Street, West Gosford. They have a great menu for a local pub, check it out on THIS LINK.
All the meals were excellent
My friend Geoff had the pasta & his ex fiance Nana ordered a huge meal of steak & seafood. Geoff is a regular visitor to Thailand, follow THIS LINKto see his 50th birthday party.
Time to head south to Sydney.
The last leg of my road trip is just a short drive south to Sydney along the Pacific Highway.
Forster Tuncurry north coast NSW was my first stop on the way from Port Macquarie to Sydney in March 2017. A population of over 18,000 people it is a holiday destination for many Sydney people who are only a 4 hour drive away.
Over the bridge to Forster
The bridge is 631 metres long and was built around 1956, prior to that it was a half hour ferry trip between the two towns.
View from Forster to Tuncurry
It is really a magnificent looking structure.
A fisherman & a pelican
Who is going to catch the first fish? My money is on the Pelican. 🙂
Up a lazy river……
There are so many places here you can go by boat.
A boating paradise.
More water than land around Forster Tuncurry mid north coast NSW.
Talking about boats….
This one is almost identical to the boat I owned in Sydney in the 80s. One of my most interesting experiences occurred on NYE 1981 on Sydney Harbour, follow THIS LINK for the story of THE GREAT ESCAPE.
The main St in Forster
As you can see the main street is nothing to get excited about.
Nice little coffee shop
I’m happy as long as I find a good coffee shop with the daily newspaper. 🙂
If you have the time take a cruise
Unfortunately I was heading south to Gosford so I didn’t have time for a cruise.
Cruise prices
Not too many alternatives here.
You could have fun on this boat
As long as your friends contributed to the fuel cost. 🙂
Forster Tuncurry north coast weather
An absolutely beautiful climate in Forster Tuncurry mid north coast NSW.
We always seem to come back to the bridge
No doubt it is the most memorable landmark in the area, and probably even the whole NSW coast.
Over the bridge & back to the highway.
Next stop Gosford, thanks for visiting my Forster Tuncurry mid north coast NSW photo blog.
For an excellent discount on your room rate in this area just book through THIS LINK.
Rock Art Port Macquarie actually began as an art competition in 1995 & gradually evolved into a fascinating outdoor gallery.
Rock Art Port Macquarie
Sadly after a small amount of complaints 12 in 10 years the rock art is now banned. It’s crazy how a few idiots can spoil things for the majority, what a shame the council won’t hold a vote on the issue.
Celebrating an engagement.
Two lovers leave their mark to celebrate their engagement.
The mouth of the Hastings River
The river descends 1,040 metres (3,410 ft) over its 180 kilometres (110 mi) course. The Hastings river descends 1,040 metres from the Great Dividing Range over its 180 kilometres journey to the coast at Port Macquarie.
Look closely and you will see the rock art. 🙂
A beautiful day to catch a fish.
One of the locals has picked a beautiful day to fish off the rocks.
Waiting for the big one
Actually I spoke to the guy who said he was trying to catch some small fish to use for bait.
Apparently their life is a circus.
It says so on the rock. 🙂
A great tourist attraction
You can spend a very interesting hour or so checking out the Painted Rock Art Port Macquarie.
Port Macquarie
And so it goes on & on, a great addition to this terrific coastal town.
Port Macquarie’s Town Green
This is a superb park where people relax and enjoy the perfect environment beside the Hastings River.
Oxley oval
Just a short way along the road from the painted rocks is Oxly oval where cricket & football are played in beautiful surroundings.
A beautiful park beside the river.
A great place to relax have a picnic lunch and check out the Painted Rock Art Port Macquarie.
Yamba Clarence River NSW Coast has a population of just over 6,000, which tends to triple in the holiday season. The economy is based on tourism & fishing. Yamba was my 2nd stop after leaving Surfers Paradise where I had spent a week catching up with friends.
Mathew Flinders was the first European to visit Yamba Bay in July 1799.
If you live in Yamba you gotta have a boat.
The fishing is wonderful all along the NSW Coast.
If you don’t have a boat…
Go to one of the seafood restaurants along the Clarence River.
Or buy fresh seafood here
Then sit in the park close by and enjoy it. 🙂
Or perhaps here
I really love those Sydney Rock oysters (double this price in Sydney) plus the fabulous prawns.
Here is the place to eat
A nice park overlooking the water is the perfect spot to polish off your prawns & oysters.
You can watch the waves rolling in
The surf was fairly rough today on March 10th 2017.
You may like to compare room rates to the Moby Dick motel, just use THIS LINK for a great room rate.
Room with a view
When the Pacific Hotel in Yamba in northern New South Wales opened in 1934 it was lauded as “the most perfectly appointed place of all seaside resorts north of Sydney”.
The view from your room.
Eighty seven years later, the Art Deco pub still stands majestically overlooking her namesake in this town at the mouth of the Clarence River.
For a terrific room rate just book through THIS LINK.
Thanks for visiting my Yamba Clarence River NSW Coast photo blog. Next stop is Port Macquarie, check out the painted rock art by the river.
Kingscliff Northern Rivers NSW was my first stop after leaving Surfers Paradise where I had spent a week catching up with friends. My plan was to travel down the coast to Sydney stopping at various coastal towns on the way.
Kettles on
Very popular for breakfast as you can see.
Eggs Benedict for me.
Cooked to perfection. 🙂
Huge breakfast for my brother Ian.
There is nothing wrong with his appetite. 🙂
Kingscliff Northern Rivers NSW
A fairly typical coastal town with lots of coffee shops, tourists & terrific beaches.
For instance
Miles & miles of surf & sand & deserted at 9am on Wednesday March 8th 2017.
Short walk from the beach to the shops
Kingscliff Northern Rivers Coast NSW is a tourist destination with a population of a little over 6,000 with beach and estuary access for swimming, surfing, fishing and all types of water sports.
Choppy surf today
Kingscliff is only 14 kms from Coolangatta airport.
Location
It’s obvious why Kingscliff is so popular given how close it is to the Gold Coast.
A beautiful day
Kingscliff by the beach.
Kingscliff estuary
A nice peaceful picnic area.
Picnic area beside the estuary.
Grab the morning paper & relax under the trees.
Time to hit the road & head south
I got an amazing deal on my hire car from Apex, 6 days hire and drop it off at Sydney airport for only $150, a special relocation deal.
Here we go
After an excellent breakfast I’m on the road again.
Hundreds of new townhouses
So many new homes, the demand is obviously here.
Other towns heading south.
All are nice little seaside villages, I may well wind up in this area when I return permanently to Australia in the next few years.
This was Chinderah on the way to Kingscliff.
One lazy pelican and Mount Warning in the distance.
The highway to Byron Bay.
I thought I would bypass Byron Bay and head for Yamba.
Road tunnel
Cutting through the hills.
Inside the tunnel
Lucky for me there is very little traffic.
Thanks for visiting my Kingscliff Northern Rivers NSW photo blog.
Kitchens Robina Town Centre Gold Coast is the largest and most expensive in QLD costing a whopping $160,000,000. Combining bars, cafes, restaurants along with 40 fresh food retailers. Spread over two levels it features eateries from local hospitality heavyweights such as the Honeyeater Kitchen from ex-Songbirds chef Trent Scarr, David Hayles’ Betty’s Burgers and James Brady’s Mr Pigs Bakehouse; alongside celebrity chef George Calombaris’ first Queensland restaurant, Jimmy Grants.
Kitchens Robina Town Centre Gold Coast
The whole place is quite spectacular, I will certainly visit again next time I’m on the coast.
Pure Meats
Butchers have come a long way since I grew up, I clearly remember them having sawdust on the floor. Here is an explanation from an old butcher explaining why;
When my Dad and I butchered, we used it as a safety enhancement and for ease of cleanup as was mentioned. No, we wouldn’t have meat on the floor, but it seemed as the floor would get slippery over time, and without sawdust, it was only a matter of time before someone would slip and it didn’t matter much what you had for footwear.
Often we wore cowboy boots as you basically stand for 8 to 14 hours at a time and it seemed easier on you, but as you can imagine they aren’t known for tractive abilities. If you are packing a 135# or so hind, you really want your feet to stay under you. We never would have worked without sawdust on the floor in the back, the front we left sawdust free but eventually it would make its way up there.
It is a pain though tracking sawdust all over the place, in your vehicle, etc.
Naturally the beef must be hung. 🙂
Why is meat hung you may well ask;
Meat hanging is a culinary process, used in beef ageing, that improves the flavor of meats by allowing the natural enzymes in the meat to break down the tissue through dry ageing. The process also allows the water in the meat to evaporate, thus concentrating the flavor.
Fish Lab by William Wu
Not only is this a good looking restaurant they also have a “drying room” next door. Follow THIS LINK for more about it.
The drying room
I have never seen anything like this before in a food court.
One of the many cafes
There is certainly lots of choices where to have a coffee here.
Too many coffee shops are never enough. 🙂
Not too sure if they are all making a living, and I’m guessing the rents are astronomical.
Such a feeling of space.
The high ceilings and open plan gives a feeling of space.
Spectacular roof at Kitchens Robina Town Centre Gold Coast
The architects have really done a great job here.
Lucky Luciano’s
I wonder if it’s a mafia hangout? 🙂
Woolworth’s for some serious shopping.
As you can see Kitchens Robina Town Centre Gold Coast caters for everything.
Farewell from Robina
Thanks for visiting my Kitchens Robina Town Centre Gold Coast photo blog.
Fabulous views, excellent restaurants & a very good room rate if you book through THIS LINK.
The building in the middle is the Holiday Inn, on the left is the Amari Hotel which is another very good five star hotel. Use THIS LINK to book for a very good room rate.
I first visited this iconic bar on New Years Day 1982, 35 years ago. The reason I am so sure of the date is it was the day after my unforgettable NYE on Sydney harbour with my overloaded boat being showered by sky rockets.
O’Malleys on Cavil Avenue
After Melbas we wandered down to O’Malleys to have a couple more drinks and watch the rugby league.
The view from O’Malleys
Overlooking the famous Surfers Paradise Beach.
Great week Surfers Paradise in Cavill Avenue, what a terrific poster.
That photo is always going to grab my attention. 🙂
The Avenue in a new location
The Avenue moved across the road to make way for a new property development.
Orchard Avenue Surfers Paradise
Certainly on of the most famous streets in Surfers Paradise.
Costa D’oro restaurant
I can remember eating at this restaurant over 35 years ago.
Corner of Orchard & the Gold Coast Highway
You can clearly see the light rail tracks that stretch from Helensvale to Broadbeach.
Certainly one of the highlights of my trip.
Caught up with Karen Greenwood an old girlfriend from 1991, 26 years ago. As you can see see still looks fantastic. 🙂 So many terrific memories came flooding back, it certainly made it a Great week Surfers Paradise Australia. We are at Franks seafood café on Chevron Island.
Here we are 26 years ago.
I could’t resist posting this photo from 1991.
Fabulous breakfast
Green Days restaurant on the corner of Bundall Rd & Ashmore Rd offer my favourite breakfast.
Green Days restaurant
It is difficult not to feel totally relaxed here. Open for lunch every day & dinner Friday & Saturday.
Two of my best friends
Ross Kennedy & Bryan Dart are two very old friends, we met for a few drinks at the Benowa Tavern.
Talking about old friends
Here are two of my oldest friends, both in years I have known them & years they have been on this planet. Tony Murphy aka Murph the surf & David Robertson aka Chocolates.
Back to Rossco and his new home.
Paradise waters is now home for the Kennedy’s.
They plan to pull it down & re-build
A wonderful location with beautiful water views.
Last but not least the Legendary Lloyd Ross.
Caught up briefly with Lloyd & hope to see him in Thailand soon.
Thanks for visiting my Great week Surfers Paradise Australia photo blog.
This is not a travel blog just my personal photo collection from the 1970s & 80s, check it out if you wish.
Arabella St Longueville
Farewell Melbourne hello Sydney
Farewell Melbourne hello Sydney, it was early 1976 after a dramatic final few months living in Melbourne, I resigned from Sanyo Office Machines, moved to Arabella St Longueville in Sydney & started a new job as NSW sales manager with Wilkins Servis washing machines. I rented a beautiful waterfront home with the view you see above & a garage for my red E-Type Jag.
Little did I realise the next 11 years would be the most successful money making decade of my life, along with an almost non stop party regime and included luxury waterfront apartments, Jaguars & Mercedes plus a Bertram fly bridge cruiser parked outside my condo, & last but not least a red Doberman called Baxter.
This was actually 1975
However it features my friends & my beloved Jag in Beechworth Victoria, how about the hair & the bell bottom jeans? 🙂
Looking back the 1970s was probably my most exciting decade.
Carol Aboud
It didn’t take me long to get tied up with Carol who had a hair dressing salon in Double Bay. She also had a husband & 4 children but these minor complications did not stop us from having a lot of fun over the next 4 years.
There is a very funny story involving Carol on another blog, just follow THIS LINK.
My beautiful mother celebrating my birthday on the 7-7-77
What a great date for my birthday to fall on. When friends see these old photos is it any wonder they suggest I looked like a Miami drug dealer? 🙂
My Dad Arthur & my 2 best friends Wolf Wottke & Ron Walsh.
My two buddies surprised me by flying over from Adelaide without prior warning. That was a fabulous birthday present.
Carol’s birthday November 1978.
Check out the hair colour & the gold chains.
New Years Eve 1978
Apologies for the fuzzy photo, but you get the picture. 🙂
French Champagne of course
From memory we were at the Castle Cove house of my friend Peter H & the booze was really flowing.
Oh Carol, I am but a fool…..
Neil Sedaka "Oh Carol"
Peter Luciano RIP
Peter & his wife in 1979, he was Carol’s brother and sadly passed away a year or two later.
December 1978
We hired a houseboat for a weekend cruise on Hawksbury River. Two Peters, yours truly & Rob Symonds.
Talking about boats
This was my Bertram 25 moored right outside my condo at 72 Wrights Rd Drummoyne. I enjoyed six great years here & threw so many parties that I became the most hated person in the building.
St Georges Crescent Drummoyne
Just around the corner from my condo I purchased another waterfront apartment, so now I owned 2 condos & a terrace house in Glebe, I was on a roll. Working now as NSW Sales Manager for Remington Typewriters before moving to the word processing division. Enjoyed the job but hated the back stabbers, & there were plenty of them.
Selling all my Sydney properties over the years was one of my worst ever decisions, I should have kept at least one.
After the Jaguar XJ6 I upgraded to a white Mercedes Sports, life was good.
In my eyes this was one of the prettiest cars ever built.
View from my condo
With my Bertram moored right out front.
Another party at Wrights Rd
This gorgeous redhead called Beryl worked with Carol in the Double Bay salon, she had just had a boob job and I couldn’t help but admire them. 🙂
While we are on the subject of boobs….
You could never accuse Carol of being shy. 🙂
And the winner is Angie
Her name was Angela Savic, she was the girlfriend of my best friend Wolf. Without a doubt she had the best body out of all the girls we knew. Our very own Greek Goddess. 🙂
The music in the 70s produced many of my all time favourite songs, here are 3 of those.
Neale, David, Ian, Bryan & Warren, it’s a shame the photo is such poor quality.
Jenny Dale
Jenny with the red eyes was another nice girl from the late 70s who wandered into my life occasionally. 🙂
Let’s finish the year off properly
Well 1979 turned out to be a very tumultuous year, Remington gave me the flick and I joined the company who had the agency for Qyx the new word processor taking the world by storm. I did a marketing course with Exxon in Philadelphia and topped the class, there were 25 Americans in the course with me the only foreigner. Back to Australia to launch the product nationally but only lasted a few months before having a blowup with the company directors who showed me the door. I was never good at taking instructions from fools. 🙂
Now in 2023 at the ripe old age of 79, I guessing I just may have been a rebel without a cause. 🙂
To top off the year finally Carol & I parted company after 4 terrific years painting the town, I suspect I may have been going through a mid life crisis. 🙂 🙂
Consequently I took 3 months off, spent lots of time on my boat, travelled to Philippines, Hong Kong, Thailand & Bali then opened my very own liquor store in March 1980.
Sydenham Cellars
Yippee, cheap booze for me. 🙂
Opening night
My friend Debbie Don was part of the celebration. More photos on THIS LINK.
The 1970s were probably the most interesting & dramatic of my life. 1972 saw me return to Sydney after a 2 year stint in Melbourne, only to see me head to Adelaide for two years as State manager for Sanyo, then back to Melbourne for two years with Sanyo before returning to Sydney in 1976.
Made some money, broke some hearts & had a lot of fun.
I was very good at my job, Sales & Marketing in the cut throat business equipment industry was a tough gig, but on reflection & being & brutally honest, my arrogant autocratic management style that worked well in the 60s & 70s was out dated in later decades. Consequently recognising my limitations I went back to what I was good at, which was selling. In the mid 80s I had a successful few years at Canon followed by 7 or 8 very good years as a financial planner with a couple of banks in QLD. In 1998 I took a year off work to travel & never really worked again. 🙂
Thanks for visiting my Farewell Melbourne hello Sydney photo blog.
It’s now 2023 and here is Glenn Frey to tell you exactly how I feel today.
Apologies for the fuzzy photo, but you get the picture. 🙂
