Update #25 Valentine's Day--the Good, the Bad & the Ugly

> Headed back to Sydney with no plan for the day. Stopped at a McD to book a room about half way back and then stopped at a visitor center near Penrith...for such a big city, they sure didn't have much that we were interested in. Since it was hot, we decided to do the river walk & we were told we might see platypus. Bad & Ugly-River was muddy & banks were littered. Met a guy fishing in the river who told us he been fishing everyday for a month...no platypus. It was hot as an oven & no breeze. We crawled back to our car & went looking for lunch...all the way to the Outback...restaurant that is. Good!! Every bite like eating at the one home. Made another stop at McD to see if there was a movie near & then off we went to search for it. Bad. Traffic was thick & we didn't have accurate directions so had to turn around lots...which is hard enough when you are driving on the "right side" but totally screwed up on the other side. Finally found the theater but the movie we wanted was sold out. Bad. But decided on The Choice...which was a Good choice. Predictable but entertaining. Popcorn was blah...no butter or salt. Bad. Finding our hotel was easier...Good...but the hotel--BAD & UGLY!!! Had it not been after 10, we'd moved on and we are not too picky so you can imagine what kind of place it was...though I shouldn't complain...we actually had our own waterfall right in our room....air conditioner had a major leak...and our bed was on great rollers so every time we touched the wall, we'd go for a ride...though not too far cause the room was tiny! And to top it off, a slight screech from the AC grew with intensity until finally around 2 am, we pulled the plug...the heat was easier to endure. Sure made us appreciate all the other great rooms we've been in!! Good! So ends my story of the Valentine's Day Good/Bad/Ugly!!

Update #24 Ukulele Festival & Everglades Estate

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> After hiking on to see just "one more waterfall"...we headed to a Ukulele Festival...and what a treat! Ukulele groups...many with other instruments as well...from all over. Each got 30 min on one of the 7 stages from 10 am to 11 pm!! There was a whole lot of lively music, toe tapping and clapping going on. All pretty awesome. The crowd loved me and they totally loved performing. Only thing better would have been if some of our music, strumming friends were with us...like Terri & Ted who probably would have been up on the stage! Around 2 pm we took a break & headed to the Everglades Estate where we meandered around their extensive gardens filled with flowering shrubs, shady trees, ponds and of course, gorgeous flowers...many we have but also many we have seen in other countries even in rainforest & tropics. There was even a man made, rock-lined, creative creek & amazing waterfall complete with a pool. Again I was jealous of not just the variety of blooms but also the length of time they bloom. Something is blooming almost all year long. I'd work harder in my garden if that were the case in Michigan. Toward evening, we headed back for another fix of music & got it. Rog's favorite group what's a 4 man group with a terrific lead singer. Mine was a huge...may 30...high energy group that was having a blast entertaining us. All in all, a great day which ended in the cabin we've been staying in. There I popped some corn and we watched Robin Hood on TV.