It was up and off to an early start… well, early for us at least… we met Learne, Dean and Tanner at their house at about 9.45 and got the grand tour of their amazing mini resort home complete with pool, spa, pool table, pin ball machine and even a drum kit! Khi’s eyes were popping from his head and within seconds he was asking if he could come and stay next holidays… certainly not shy our Khi!
We also got a look at their house plans which look amazing –
hope they find a builder soon! After a quick catchup we set about getting
organised for our surfing lessons… we were very fortunate that these guys have
not only a great supply of wetsuits and surfboards but Learne’s friend Heather
has even more (both Learne and Heather teach surfing)… so it wasn’t long before
we were all decked out in nice warm wetsuits and found ourselves walking,
boards in hand, onto the beach at Ocean Grove.
Once there, Learne very patiently set about giving us a lesson firstly on the beach and then out in the water…. Yes, again we braved the freezing sea which is actually quite hilarious as usually I consider myself an equatorial swimmer (you know, where the temperature of the ocean is about the same temperature as the air and so there is none of that awful – eke – yike- aarrgghhh – that goes on when your belly button is invaded by cold water)….but I was determined to have a go… so off we went. It is incredible how warm you actually get doing a bit of physical exercise whilst being shrouded in a full length wettie!
Bryn was a natural which didn’t surprise any of us as he usually picks up most sporting activities within a few minutes of trying… he was soon off solo catching waves all the way into the shore. Khi finally got up once he switched over to a fibreglass board, Mark got up on our big Kahoona foam board and I got up as far as one knee and one foot… just couldn’t quite get up to both feet! It was so much fun though and I am going to give it a go next time I have the opportunity. Both the boys loved it, so I think the next trip down to Jervis Bay is going to have to include a surfing trip to Caves Beach with Auntie Liz and Uncle Adrian!
After we'd had our fill (and filled our mouths with enough salt water!) we did the carpark change (much to Bryn’s chargrin) and had lunch at The Dunes cafĂ© which overlooked the beach where we had been out in the waves. A big hearty lunch of seafood paella, hamburgers, nacho’s and pancakes washed down with milkshakes, soda, pear cider, beers and a glass of red was perfect.
We wrapped up lunch just in time for the boys to get back to the house to watch the Cats play (Dean watching the AFL in the lounge room) and the Tigers play (Mark watching the NRL in the kitchen…I do need to note that Learne was pleased to see him in the kitchen and not in their bed which was the other option for TV viewing!!)
The kids headed for the spa with zooper doopers in hand and Learne and I headed into Queenscliff to check out the local art gallery and shops. The gallery is not huge but it has some amazing pieces in it. The slumped glass art is fantastic and I hope that one day Terrina and I will get down here to do a course with the resident artist - we have talked about it for a while - ever since Learne did her course and enjoyed it so much.
The other art that was just amazing was that by Emma Hack. Her work involves painting nude female bodies ‘into’ backgrounds which are usually her range of wallpapers. She then photographs the ‘scene’ and sells the prints. If you have seen the Gotye filmclip for ‘somebody that I used to know’ then you will have seen her work. Try googling her name and have a look - it is simply incredible and well worth the look – particularly try to find the ‘crashed car’ art (named body crash) which was a actually a whole lot of artists piled up on one another and painted to look like it had been crumpled in an accident. The image was used as part of a road safety campaign. Have a look on Youtube to see how it was done – amazing patience on behalf of the artist and the models!
After saying our farewells and thank you’s for such an
incredibly fun and fulfilling day, we headed home and had a light dinner of
bacon, eggs and fruit salad… with just enough energy left for a quick read and
off to sleep!Once there, Learne very patiently set about giving us a lesson firstly on the beach and then out in the water…. Yes, again we braved the freezing sea which is actually quite hilarious as usually I consider myself an equatorial swimmer (you know, where the temperature of the ocean is about the same temperature as the air and so there is none of that awful – eke – yike- aarrgghhh – that goes on when your belly button is invaded by cold water)….but I was determined to have a go… so off we went. It is incredible how warm you actually get doing a bit of physical exercise whilst being shrouded in a full length wettie!
Bryn was a natural which didn’t surprise any of us as he usually picks up most sporting activities within a few minutes of trying… he was soon off solo catching waves all the way into the shore. Khi finally got up once he switched over to a fibreglass board, Mark got up on our big Kahoona foam board and I got up as far as one knee and one foot… just couldn’t quite get up to both feet! It was so much fun though and I am going to give it a go next time I have the opportunity. Both the boys loved it, so I think the next trip down to Jervis Bay is going to have to include a surfing trip to Caves Beach with Auntie Liz and Uncle Adrian!
After we'd had our fill (and filled our mouths with enough salt water!) we did the carpark change (much to Bryn’s chargrin) and had lunch at The Dunes cafĂ© which overlooked the beach where we had been out in the waves. A big hearty lunch of seafood paella, hamburgers, nacho’s and pancakes washed down with milkshakes, soda, pear cider, beers and a glass of red was perfect.
We wrapped up lunch just in time for the boys to get back to the house to watch the Cats play (Dean watching the AFL in the lounge room) and the Tigers play (Mark watching the NRL in the kitchen…I do need to note that Learne was pleased to see him in the kitchen and not in their bed which was the other option for TV viewing!!)
The kids headed for the spa with zooper doopers in hand and Learne and I headed into Queenscliff to check out the local art gallery and shops. The gallery is not huge but it has some amazing pieces in it. The slumped glass art is fantastic and I hope that one day Terrina and I will get down here to do a course with the resident artist - we have talked about it for a while - ever since Learne did her course and enjoyed it so much.
The other art that was just amazing was that by Emma Hack. Her work involves painting nude female bodies ‘into’ backgrounds which are usually her range of wallpapers. She then photographs the ‘scene’ and sells the prints. If you have seen the Gotye filmclip for ‘somebody that I used to know’ then you will have seen her work. Try googling her name and have a look - it is simply incredible and well worth the look – particularly try to find the ‘crashed car’ art (named body crash) which was a actually a whole lot of artists piled up on one another and painted to look like it had been crumpled in an accident. The image was used as part of a road safety campaign. Have a look on Youtube to see how it was done – amazing patience on behalf of the artist and the models!
Again, no pictures of our surfing adventures as they are on the waterproof camera and we can't download or upload them... but we will be sure to upload them once we get home.
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