Staying Put

We were undecided this morning whether to move on or stay.  We wanted to fish and snorkel off the beach before we went, and I was still very tired, so in the end we settled down to enjoy one more day here at Carnarvon Blowholes on Point Quobba.

Early this morning Grant took everyone for a walk up to the blowholes, while I stayed back, did the dishes, then drove up with Cooper who was a bit sniffly in the night and this morning.  We wanted to see the blowhole at low tide when it is supposed to put on it's best show.  It didn't disappoint us and we stood and watched for quite a while, fascinated by the noise and the spray and the wild swell of the sea beyond.  It is a different, less docile ocean on this side of Australia.  The Indian Ocean.  It doesn't warm up as much as the east coast ocean either, I've heard.

 

Blow hole blowing and sucking!

 

Arriving back at the van, we struck up a conversation with our new neighbours.  Jill and Kumar from Holland Park in Brisbane, with their five year old Priya  and 3 year old James are travelling for 15 months, of which they have done seven months.  They were great to talk to, and we found out they'd both at different times worked with people that Grant has worked with, which is pretty funny.

Jill and Kumar are into scuba diving, and answered lots of Joseph and Dominic's questions about how you sink down when your air tank and wetsuit tend to float. We went to a sheltered part of the bay and snorkeled together in the morning, and again in the afternoon.  There were some lovely fish and coral in the  bay - I saw a moray eel, a huge cod (I think), lots of damsel fish, blue and black and white schools of fish, and an oyster with fat purple lips.  A man brought two big blue starfish out of the water to photograph, which Jill was not very happy about.  I guess she was right, they shouldn't have been disturbed.  But he took them back again, so I hope they are alright.

Jill gave me lots of hints about how to cook in the van.  She told me how she makes pizzas, using a dough of plain flour, oil, then warm water, and cooks it both sides in a fry pan, before topping it and cooking it under the grill.  It's a Malaysian bread recipe from her mother-in-law.  I am going to give it a go.

Her husband was born in Malaysia, so they know all the right things to do for curry, and recommended Bubba's curry powder very highly!  They have given me a sample to try, along with a sample of muesli they make themselves.  I find many people so inspiring, in all different ways.  How can you admire the strengths of others without feeling inadequate yourself?

Dominic was inspired by her Kindle...now he wants one for Christmas.

We took down the little tent this afternoon, and tidied up the van, in an attempt to get away earlier in the morning.  We want to get down to Denham, and a bit closer to Perth where we will collect Katie in just over a week!

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Vicki