Poker night at Chez Burns

Tonight we're hosting some people over who want to learn how to play tournament Texas Hold 'Em. Should be fun and if nothing else there are plenty of eats and drinks on hand to distract the losers. Mike is in charge of the table which I think makes me the cocktail waitress? Work is going great - having a lot of fun with it mostly because its a total challenge and I have total free rein to do whatever seems necessary to get the job done. I wouldn't have been ready for this a few years ago, now I have just the right amount of gumption to run with it til I either get the job done, or they kick me out :-) Even working three days a week is a shock to the system after all this time off. I was pooped by Friday night. (come to think of it, taking the red eye back from HK Monday AM probably didn't help that). But now the full impact of Western Australia shopping hour regulations are hitting home. No mall or big box grocery store type shopping after 5-6PM on weekdays, and none on Sundays. Since I have standing plans Mon & Wed and Saturday mornings I'm going to have to figure out how to accomplish shopping. Not exactly the worst issue in the world to face, but never underestimate my talent for sloth!

It has been forever since the last post

But I've been busy, and gone, and working. Photos and details to follow but suffice it to say Hong Kong was fun and full of both shopping and dining treats. Shekou/Shezen was interesting and a flashback to the sleepy foreign lands of my youth. A curious juxtaposition of modernity and the 1960s all in one. I found the atmosphere charming despite the streets of brothels we had to navigate to get to the main square where Oktoberfest was taking place :-) Now back in Perth and back at work which is turning out to be interesting and engaging, mostly because everyone there is so busy I can pretty much leap in with both feet and they'll be grateful for any assistance. Here are a few photos just to kick things off: Mike in Shekou at SeaWorld Plaza. That is an old cruise ship they've turned into a land locked hotel. There was an excellent Mexican restaurant that served a fab margarita in the plaza. View from The Peak. You literally can not even see our old apartment building from up there any more. It's completely hidden by all the new construction. I did get a glimpse on the way past on the Peak Tram though...its not green anymore but brown. Dragon on Kowloon in the cultural museum courtyard. The amazing new bridge under construction Our favorite old Star Ferries still look just the same. And the Kowloon side terminal hasn't changed a bit except now the gate to the ferries is automatic rather than operated by a guy in a blue sailor suit. And the ice cream stand is gone. :-(

Yallingup Day 2

I had it all figured out before we headed down to Yallingup what our wine tasting itinerary would be. I'd researched thoroughly, consulted the latest winery ratings using newspaper special inserts and two books about Aussie wines. I'd made a considered decision to narrow my choices down to those few with decently rated Zinfandels, because otherwise there are far too many wineries to try. I had plotted said wineries on a map. I was READY. Til we woke up the second day to the sounds of kookaburras and assorted strange bird noises, greeted the rosy fingered dawn on the balcony breakfast area, and talked to Tim about the lay of the land. Tim suggested that we start our morning on the scenic road up Point Geographe (the French did get to name a few things in AU) and around to Eagle Bay. He mentioned there could be a whale. We proceeded forthwith. And lo - there were whales. My wine tasting plans were immediately scrapped and the whale watching became the mission for the day. We walked along a beautiful beach to a hill above Castle Rock and from there across the wide vista we could see whales all over. The place was lousy with humpbacks! A mother and baby were hugging the shore line. Slightly further out was another large one moving more quickly, and towards the horizon we could see tremendous leaps and splashes as numbers more breached and tail slapped. I was mesmerized. Fortunately we had our binoculars with us but my camera was not adequate for the task so the photos I have are lousy but will have to suffice. (photo 2 below is the spout of the mama whale, 3 & 4 you can see the backs of the whales...maybe. ) We followed the whales from shore for a couple of hours then agreed once more that seeing the coastline was of more interest to us than fighting crowds in wineries. We visited Canal Rocks, GraceTown, and Red Gate on the coast - enjoying the surfers, the perfect weather, the colorful rocks, the sandy beaches. Here's what we saw:

Yallingup

While we were wandering around Bunbury, the proprietor of our B&B called and asked what time we planned to arrive so he could make sure the hot tub was ready. I call that excellent customer service :-) With that incentive we headed out of town, south to Yallingup. Here's what one of the regional websites has to say about it:

Yallingup has bred many of the region's and world's greatest surfers. Home to a relaxed local community, Yallingup, an aboriginal word meaning "Place of Love", is a small town nestled in amongst the trees along the coast. The town itself is relatively untouched by the mass tourism visiting the region and one can still enjoy the coastline and local beaches without the crowds characteristic of the city beaches.

It has to have one of the best views I've ever seen - it is so beautiful it takes my breath away. I have yet to get a photo that captures it but here's a pale insipid taste. We were a little early to check in so decided to eat at the wooden surf shack on the side of the road...full of an odd variety of surfer gear, canned baked beans, and fishing accoutrement, they serve an excellent burger which was so big we split it. We scoped the surfing lesson ads just in case the kids want to give it a try in December and then headed to the lodge. Our hot tub was ready :-) Tim, the proprietor, was there to greet us and show us around. It's located down a dirt track and just up the hill from a brewery. There are tall trees, masses of flowers, expanses of wild calla (canna) lilies. Talk about salubrious location! There is a day spa on the grounds and we enjoyed a couples massage and the hot tub very much. But there was more! We had dinner reservations at one of the major wineries - Leeuwin Estates. It's a gorgeous venue set in expansive rolling hills of vines with huge native trees framing a broad green lawn where they hold annual concerts with big name acts. This years its Boz Scaggs and Michael McDonald. Leeuwin Estates website We were strongly cautioned to be very careful driving driving the two lane roads as the 'roos like to leap madly in front of cars at night. That would hurt. Turns out we only saw one cross in front of us, (and a couple of misguided bunnies but we missed 'em). The dinner was fantastic and we had the best table in the house - a long bench of polished native wood facing out through picture windows over the lawn and trees lit by spot lights. I delicately inquired about the size of the bone in veal chop and proceeded to demolish it all anyway. The fabled Leeuwin Art Series Chardonnay - billed by many as the best in Oz was fantastic. The best chardonnay I've had by far. Find out about it here. I sampled the Cabs too but the chardonnay takes the cake. While waiting for our chocolate fondant to cook we wandered down to the art gallery - each year the estate commissions new art work from Australian artists for the labels of the Art Series wines. The originals are in the gallery downstairs and decidedly worth a look. We made it back to our B&B unscathed though with some admittedly nerve wracking moments - it's DARK out there in the country and there'd been all those dire warnings about smushing kangaroos after all. Here are a few photos from the grounds - that brown building next to the pool is the spa: