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| 414 kms from Taree to Mittagong was the furthest the bus drove so far |
After touring Port Macqurie and surrounding towns, we headed to Taree, 81 kms further south on the coast. It was late November but summer is nowhere to be felt since NSW is all wet throughout the coast. Initially we planned to tour Taree and go fishing again but the showgrounds where we camped was soaked just within hours when we arrived. Driving around town to buy some fresh bread and milk, streets were flooded already so the editor suggested we leave the next day.
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| This is where we camped at Taree Showgrounds. |
We left Taree early the next day trying to avoid the rain and we ended up driving straight to Mittagong instead after briefly stopping by Gosford trying to find a campsite nearby. Unfortunately there was not much choice then and it was getting late so we continued heading south on the motorway. In Mittagong, we parked on the side of the road just across my sister's place. We stayed for a week while planning where to go next.
Mittagong, gateway to the southern highlands, is home to an abandoned historical building complex known as the "Maltings". The Maltings in the past served as malthouses for the old major beer company of New South Wales, Tooth and Co. One of the malthouse buildings can be seen when entering Mittagong on the Old Hume Highway and the bus was in fact parked just outside the driveway to the Maltings.
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| This is where we camped the whole time we were in Mittagong. |
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| This is the "Maltings" |
While in Mittagong, we also toured the next town Bowral which is only 6 kms away. It is the largest town in the Southern Highlands of New South Wales. Bowral is today, universally associated with the cricketer Sir Donald Bradman, who is commemorated by the Bradman Museum and other monuments at the Bradman Oval. It also hosts the annual Tulip Festival held in the town in
September. Unfortunately, we were too late to see the tulips but we had a look of the Bradman Museum and drove around town to Mt. Gibraltar Lookout. Below are the pictures.
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| Bowral from the lookout. |
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| Goulburn, Moss Vale and other nearby towns are visible from the lookout |
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| Bradman Oval from the lookout. |
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| The Bradman Museum |
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| Sir Donald Bradman |
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| Bradman Oval |
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| Different kinds of cricket balls. |
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| An old bat used in the 1750's |
The entire week while we were in the Southern Highlands, the weather was wet most of the time so we indulged ourselves with some indoor activities. We played ten pin bowling which was participated by my sister, bro-in-law and nephew. The editor finished as the winner!
