Travel – Page 9 – A Bellingen Diary

Meeting the locals …

Published on March 6, 2013 by FJB

Day Two and we meet some of Kangaroo Island’s most famous inhabitants … honey bees brought to the island around 1880 from the Italian province of Liguria. In 1885 the island was proclaimed a bee sanctuary, out of range of bee flight from the mainland, and they are now believed to be the last remaining pure strain of Ligurian bees left in the world. They are renowned to be be a gentle and industrious bee and I can certainly attest that their honey makes a delicious ice-cream.

At lunch, we meet another famous resident at Andermel Marron Cafe … this time however they are not so industrious. In fact they are lying on my plate covered in a chilli and lime dressing!! Again delicious. Thankfully we decided to eat before our live marron viewing, as they turned out to be rather attractive in spite of looking vaguely like one of those big black shiny garden cockroaches.

We ended the day with a walk at Vivonne Bay, which was voted Australia’s most beautiful beach. It’s definitely very pretty, but I think there are plenty of rivals for that title, including some of the beaches on the Mid-North Coast of New South Wales.

Kangaroo Island …

Published on March 5, 2013March 6, 2013 by FJB

Day One of our Kangaroo Island visit and already we are obsessed with the comings and goings of the KI ferry which we can see from the deck of our rented holiday house. Mum swears that the lights of the first ferry woke her up soon after 5am, but I neither heard nor saw anything …

The maximum today was 35C – a bit hotter than we were expecting – and the island is very dry, but the air is pure and free from pollution and the roads and beaches are un-crowded.

Highlights … beautiful views across Backstairs Passage from Cape Willoughby Lighthouse and then a delicious lunch at Dudley Cellar Door. I would normally run a mile from a pizza topped with fish and seafood dressing, but their Whiting Pizza actually tasted rather good, and the view from the tasting room has to be one of the best in Australia. A paddle and a pelican sighting at Baudin Beach and an expedition to Island Pure Sheep Dairy for cheese, yoghurt and labneh finished off our day.

More Macarons …

Published on October 1, 2012October 1, 2012 by FJBLeave a comment

IMG_0813 (600x800) — Salted Butter Caramel & Chocolate Donut

Yesterday was a perfect Sydney spring day, so Kala and I caught a ferry for the short ride to historic Balmain, where we lost ourselves (often unintentionally) in the labyrinth of historic little streets.

We stumbled upon great coffee at Charlottes in Rowntree Street, and investigated the boutiques of Victoria Street before finally finding our way to Adriano Zumbo’s tiny pâtisserie for a macaron fix. We tried Chocolate Donut and Salted Butter Caramel – delicious, but still not quite good enough to beat Ladurée’s Cassis & Violet.

Footnote: Patisse has closed it’s retail outlet in Waterloo so I will never know if the Rose & Lychee would have been a winner !!

IMG_0825 (600x800) — Destination Balmain

Nice … my highlights

Published on July 10, 2012 by FJB

If you only have a few days to spare, here is my selection of experiences and top sights. Make sure you check opening times for the restaurants as they close on different days of the week.

Farmer’s Market in Cours Saleya – a large market full of wonderful fresh seasonal local produce. Try the socca (chick pea pancake) with a glass of local rosé. Get there about 9am to avoid big crowds. We found a reasonable coffee at Les Ponchettes on the corner of Place de la Poissonnerie and Cours Saleya. Daily except Mondays. From 8am to approximately 2pm.
Brocante Market in Cours Saleya – around 200 dealers congregate every Monday to sell antiques. Includes kitchen paraphernalia, artworks, fabrics and nick nacks. Prices are a bit high but you can usually negotiate. Roughly the same hours as the Farmer’s Market.
Walk to Le Chateau – for fabulous views of the city. Take the free ascenseur (lift) to the top and walk down the hill ending up in Rue Rosetti in the old town. Then wander around the narrow streets of the Vieille Ville (old town). The ascenseur is at the eastern end of Promenade des Anglais – set slightly back from the seafront. Look for the signs.
Palais Lascaris – a small baroque palace in the heart of the Vieille Ville. Beautiful architecture, musical instruments and paintings. Combine this with your walk down from Le Chateau (above). 13 Rue Droite. Daily 10am to 4pm except Tuesdays.
Hotel Negresco – walk along the Promenade des Anglais at night and stop off at the fabulous belle époque style Hotel Negresco for a cocktail or a glass of champagne in Le Relais bar. Rather expensive but worth it for the experience. The hotel looks particularly beautiful at night.
Train trip to Villefranche sur Mer – a pretty seaside village with steep winding streets and plenty of cafes and restaurants for crowd watching. There is a Sunday Brocante market which gets going at about 10am. The train trip takes less than 10 minutes from the central railway station.
Dinner in the Vieille Ville – at night the Cours Saleya converts from a market to a dinner venue. We had a great Soupe de Poissons at Le Safari – sit outside for people-watching. If you don’t find anything to your liking here, then venture further into the vieille ville. We liked L’Escalinada for typical Nicoise food and Oliviera for fresh local produce matched with provencal olive oils.