With February, often the hottest month in Australia, coming up, Roy and I decided that the perfect place to visit would be the beach. With so many beaches to choose from, the decision which to visit was not easy, but we eventually decided on Thirroul beach on the South Coast of NSW. It is a lovely area, but its ocean baths also have an interesting history. You can access the baths from the beach itself, or you can go through D. H. Lawrence Reserve and down the steps. This Reserve is named after D. H. Lawrence, a famous author who wrote a book called 'Kangaroo' while staying in Thirroul.
This week, Roy and I decided that we should show you what butter is and how it is made. Most of the children we know assume that butter is made in a long and difficult process, and you can really only buy it pre-made. This isn't true at all though! Butter is really very easy to make, and doesn't take a lot of ingredients or even any cooking, just patience and a bit of muscle.
Imagine, you are a child living in the 1800's or before. You aren't well off, and you don't have a lot of toys. Those that you do have are treasured. One of your favourite games is to go out with your friends into the streets or the fields and play marbles, using your collection of clay and stone marbles. Today, you were really lucky. Although you didn't win the game, you found a perfect stone to use as a marble if you grind it down a little and you also found a new supply of clay to make marbles!
This coming Tuesday, the 26th of January, is Australia Day and marks the day when European settlement in Australia began. It also marks the day when Indigenous Australians had their land taken from them. Roy and I thought very carefully about what place to visit which would be connected both with the first settlement of Australia by Europeans, and with the original Indigenous people. We decided on Sydney's Tank Stream, the reason why European settlement began in Sydney Cove, a stream also used by the Indigenous Australians.
This week Roy was lucky enough to be invited to go to Sheridan Rogers cooking classes for kids. He learned lots of interesting recipes, handy hints to use when he's cooking, as well as making some new friends!
Imagine, it's the mid 1920's. It's a hot day in the middle of summer. You've been out in the sun all day, and you want a cold drink. You and your friends decide you want a soft drink, like Coca-Cola. Usually, you would head to the local soda shop, the pharmacy, but you decide you will try the bottles instead. After all, Coca-Cola has only been available in bottles in your area for a short time - it's still a bit of a novelty!
With the second half of the School Holidays now under way, and many families on the move, Roy decided to suggest a place to visit if you were heading to Bathurst or the Central West. There are lots of very famous attractions in the Bathurst area, like Mount Panorama and the Fossil and Mineral Museum, but if you are in the area, Roy suggests Miss Traill's House and Garden is well worth a visit! Miss Traill's House is located at 321 Russell Street, Bathurst, NSW. Check the National Trust website for opening hours, and special events which are sometimes held at the property by clicking here.
When we were looking at Roman mosaics this week, Roy and I discovered that many of the specific designs used have special meanings. Some of the mosaics were difficult to understand, but we found one style which was straight forward and captured our imagination, the 'Cave Canem' mosaics.
Imagine, you live in Ancient Rome. You are working on creating a beautiful floor for a Roman home. The floor will have a picture laid into it with little tiles, making up a mosaic image. Each tile must be laid one at a time. Luckily, you are using reasonably large tesserae (tiles), after all, you have seen some mosaics which have up to 50 tesserae in a singe square centimetre!
Roy and I decided that, it being the Christmas School Holidays, and rather warm, this was the perfect opportunity to tell you about the Codock II, now known as the 'Cockatoo Ferry' which runs cruises around Brisbane Waters throughout the holidays. After all, there is nothing better on a hot day than messing about in boats and on the water! The Cockatoo Ferry runs between Woy-Woy and Ettalong each day of the School Holidays and tickets are $12 for a 2 hour, 20 minute round trip.
