Australia: The Road Trip to Sydney

On our way to sydney, we stopped at several places along the way. The ride was easily over eight hours so, to make it easier and more enjoyable, we split it up over the course one and a half days.

 We started off in Melbourne. At the Federation square to be exact. This outdoor park/ shopping center takes up a whole block in Melbourne.
In other words.
It is huge.

There were lots of abstract sculptures... Tons of clothing, food, and jewelry shops, and some great views. It was good to be able to walk around before hopping in the car.

This is called a Paradise Bird Flower. Saw this on the side of the road, and they are all over the place. :)

And some purple flowers... Don't know what these were called.

Totally random here: We stopped and looked at a submarine. No where near the coast...
It was quite huge. Those little red dots are people.

This stop was a welcome one, as it was after some hours of driving. In a town called  Gundagai, there is a statue made in remembrance of the early pioneers and their dogs. It is called "The dog on the Tuckerbox"
   In the first days of australian Pioneers, food was quite scarce. So, the dogs would guard the men's Tuckerboxes (Lunchboxes) So no one would steal the food.

Here is the poem that made the tuckerbox and dog famous.

'Nine Miles from Gundagai' by Jack Moses

I've done my share of shearing sheep,
Of droving and all that;
And bogged a bullock team as well,
On a Murrumbidgee flat.
I've seen the bullock stretch and strain
And blink his bleary eye,
And the dog sit on the tuckerbox
Nine miles from Gundagai.

I've been jilted, jarred and crossed in love,
And sand-bagged in the dark,
Till if a mountain fell on me,
I'd treat it as a lark.
It's when you've got your bullocks bogged,
That's the time you flog and cry,
And the dog sits on the tuckerbox
Nine miles from Gundagai.

We've all got our little troubles,
In life's hard, thorny way.
Some strike them in a motor car
And others in a dray.
But when your dog and bullocks strike,
It ain't no apple pie,
And the dog sat on the tuckerbox
Nine miles from Gundagai.

But that's all past and dead and gone,
And I've sold the team for meat,
And perhaps, some day where I was bogged,
There'll be an asphalt street,
The dog, ah! well he got a bait,
And thought he'd like to die,
So I buried him in the tuckerbox,
Nine miles from Gundagai.

This wagon is over 150 years old. Looks like it too. ;) The area on which it is sitting happens to be a ruin of an old hotel and saloon.

The remains of these walls and ruins belong to a place that was called "The Limestone Inn". It was started and built by Mr. and Mrs. Carberry. It was opened in 1858. What made the inn so popular was the fact it provided lodging on the way to Sydney from melbourne, and Mrs. Carberry was an excellent piano player.
   unfortunately, in 1861, the hotel was robbed by a man who went by "Jack-in-the-boots". Four years after the robbery, they sold the hotel. A few years after that, (1876) It was closed and left to fall apart, and here it is today.

Can you tell I love old buildings? ;)

The last thing we stopped to look at was something called "The Giant Merino". Australia is known for their incredible quality of wool. So, this 97 Ton concrete Merino Ram was made in 1985. Eventually it was moved to a more popular location in 2007. It is attached to a wool gift shop. It was huge, around 35 feet high.

That was some of the stuff we saw on the way to sydney. Lots coming up soon! Manly beach, The opera house, and MORE!

Austin