I remarked to R that we had hardly driven the new car and my cunning plan succeeded and he suggested we go for a drive the next day and have lunch somewhere. It was our intention to go to Mentone or Mordialloc, a nice drive along the bay. We didn't get that far and stopped at the Ricketts Point Tea Rooms. Well, that is what it used to be. It can now be described as a cafe with a nice outdoor area. It was a nice enough lunch, surrounded by mostly local comfortably fit, comfortably off and retired folk. I wonder if there is anywhere in the world that has such a fit, financially comfortable white middle class non church going people along a stretch of the sea but with the qualification that you won't be able to tell by the way they dress, which is in a very casual manner.
Anway, it was a nice drive and a nice lunch. Clearly the beach cleaning tractor had only done one run along the beach this day. Washed up seaweed comes and goes.
Oh look R, there is a kookaburra.
I've not seen kookaburras at the beach before and I was a bit surprised. Perhaps they are for this reason. Kookaburras love snakes. They pick them up with their beaks and drop them from heights repeatedly until the snake dies and then they eat them. I am not sure if they confuse a sausage on a barbeque for a snake or they have learnt that a sausage is pretty good tucker, but your sausage on a barbeque is at great risk if there are 'burras around.
This was about to explode into a very long post with kookaburra information. I will save it for another day.
Lovely views! :-)
ReplyDeleteGreetings from London.
Thanks Cuban. I read your article with interest.
DeleteOh, those scenes look nice, especially since it's winter-like where I'm at right now.
ReplyDeleteKirk, it was warm with the sun on my back in the cafe, but cool enough outside with a decent breeze. Jacket weather at least.
DeleteIt sounds like a very pleasant day out for you both...and the kooka! :)
ReplyDeleteMy mother loved fishing, and caught many fish...she never baulked at scaling, gutting and filleting them...nor did our Nana, her mother. Mum was also a good mud-crabber, too. She id the fishing and crabbing, while Nana took my brother and me along with her to collect fresh oysters off the rocks. We may not have had much money...but we ate the freshest seafood. Actually, Mum and Nana never skimped on food. Our cupboards were always full, as was our dinner table.
I love having the kookaburras around. Mine visit every afternoon, on time, without fail ...along with the maggies, currawongs and butcher birds. If I'm running a bit late, they let me know! They get the meat scraps when I'm chopping up the meat for my two furry mates.
Just a little outing Lee, and pleasant. Yes, there weren't a huge stock of processed foods in cupboards back then. Funny about the females doing the fishing. That must be great to have the birds visit. I've often thought of doing that on our balcony as we have all those species land at times, but it is not allowed by the body corporate. But I could get away with it occasionally.
DeleteThere was no father in our home, Andrew...just our Mum, Nana, my older brother, Graham, and me...
DeleteI love my birds...I love that they are free...and all wear watches...because they're always on time! :)
Have been fishing years ago, certainly not my thing. I'm the one who would throw the fish back into the sea even though I like eating fish. Never have I guttered one, not for me.
ReplyDeleteThe sea looks good in the photos and never saw a Kookaburra on this trip, heard them in the distance only.
Margaret, I find fishing boring, even with a book. I am surprised you didn't see a kookaburra over all that time.
DeleteThe only two native snake here is a garter snake and rubber boa, both non poison and they might get up to 24 inches (all most 61 cm) But we do have bear sign place at trail heads in the mountains.
ReplyDeleteWhat does the snake sign say?
Dora, it says, Snakes may be around in warmer weather. Then below, please notify (local) council with a number is one is seen.
DeleteLovely stretch of sand and I like the kooka story. I would take my girls fishing back in the day, their father was not a fisher and would read in the boat while we did everything. But when we got to shore everyone would ask him how the fishing was and admire his catch while ignoring the 3 of us. But he would always flick his thumb at us and say "ask them!" but they never did.
ReplyDeleteXO
WWW
WWW, stereotypes so often don't work and we are taken aback when they don't. Good story.
DeleteThat looks like a nice beach. Good for swimming? or too many sharks/boats? Riptides? Not that I swim these days, wading up to waist depth is enough for me, then I can bob under and get fully wet with my feet still safely on the ground.
ReplyDeleteRiver, I've not swum there but I think it is. It was too cold for swimming. Sharks in the bay are rare and here boats wouldn't be a problem and the bay is usually calm so not rip.
DeleteGlad To Read That You Two Took A Little Road Trip - Travel On Boys
ReplyDeleteCheers
Cheers Padre.
DeleteHow wonderful to have long, sandy, deserted, beaches. I only dream of such things.
ReplyDeleteCro, whatever Australia has or has not, it has a lot of empty and beautiful beaches. But this is a suburban beach. The weather wasn't warm enough.
DeleteWe haven't been down the bay for quite a while. I'll make a note of that caf' - maybe we'll get down there once the warmer weather arrives,..... it will get warm won't it?
ReplyDeleteCathy, it will. I keep telling R it will and that our seasons are getting later, which I truly believe.
DeleteI too find fishing far too boring. I do like salmon and halibut and cod. Most of the fishing done in these parts is of stocked trout from hatcheries. People fed their entire lives. They enter a lake when dumped out by fish and game and have no clue what to do and will bite at anything.
ReplyDeleteStrayer, the same happens here where hatchlings are dumped in rivers and lakes by park authorities.
DeleteI was persuaded to try fishing once but it's too boring for me and I returned the fish to sea as I wouldn't be able to eat the fish I caught even though I love fish - from the supermarket that is :)
ReplyDeleteLove seeing kookaburras, but had no idea they ate snakes.
Sami, given your heritage, I expect you really like fish. Impressive how kookaburras know how to pick up a snake and not get bitten.
DeleteWe have a few kookaburras around here Andrew, will have to be on alert next time we have a barbeque, that would be camera alert.. what a great shot that would make 😉 Good that the new car went on an outing!
ReplyDeleteGrace, our Perth holiday photos are now on our rotating photo screen and I photographed a kookaburra there. Yes, I always look out for my sausage at a barbeque.
DeleteRicketts Point Tea Rooms :) I loved Sunday afternoons in my childhood, the only day of the week in which all the family was together. I don't remember driving further south than Frankston at first, but later on we visited tea rooms en route to Dromana and Rosebud.
ReplyDeleteHels, weren't simple and cheap tea rooms so nice.
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