Friday, August 5, 2011

The Pink Shopping Bag

I woke up at 12:45 thinking I should not go to Cairns today.  It was raining, and I was sleepy, but when I got up at 3:20 I felt like going.  We dropped Karen off at the airport at 4:45 with a few tears. She thanked John for his wisdom and told me to stop worrying about the scales.  I hope to see her again soon when she comes to the States.

We went to Rusty's Market and bought papaya, sapadilla,  avocados, tomatoes, star apples, cucumbers, coconuts, bananas, pineapples and mandarins.

John did his program at the radio station, and I surfed the internet.  I checked emails, Facebook, looked at acreage in Saline County, Arkansas, and checked out places to stay in Cairns.  I have about decided on the Mercure.  After 25 days traveling solo across Australia, I might enjoy a little more luxury than a hostel for the last three nights.  A private room with a private bath, a television, electrical outlets, and wi-fi sounds wonderful.

We went back to Rusty's for sugar cane drinks.  One of these days, I want to drink TWO of them. I met this couple ahead of us in the sugar cane drink line when I asked them where they got the pink shopping bag with the names of the major Australian destinations.  She said I could probably find one at a souvenir shop.  They asked where I am from.  I said, "Arkansas in the U.S.....Where Bill Clinton is from....Next to Texas."  They were visiting Cairns from their home near Melbourne.  I asked what I should see when I go to Melbourne next month.  They recommended the Queen Victoria Market and an all day tram pass to see the city.  They got their drinks and walked away.  As the vendor began to squeeze the sugar cane for our drinks, the lady was back with the pink shopping bag emptied...and she gave it to me!  People amaze me with how kind they can be.  I LOVE the bag, and I love it even more because of the way I received it.


We went to Captain Cook's Laundry to pick up and drop off our laundry, the health food store for sauerkraut, and a craft store called Spotlight to get some dye.  We are going to try our hand at dying the curtains in the cabins.

Lunch was papaya, star apple, banana, sapadilla, avocado, and coconut.

I did some hand laundry, rinsed my watermelon seeds, and read until supper.

It's cold...in the 50's.  Supper tonight was lettuce, cucumber, sliced tomatoes, 1/2 avocado, and sauerkraut.  I didn't want any pecans or dates tonight.  

I practice flute, studied pediatrics and got under as many blankets as possible to read.

1 comment:

  1. After so many continuous days over 100 degrees F, 50 degrees sounds pretty good right now. But I would be under the covers, too. It is so hot, it is difficult to breathe. I wanted to tell you that I went to Fordyce for my first visit about the memorial garden and the superintendent of the school agreed to have it on some great school property and to submit the proposal to the school board. They meet Monday night, but I don't think I can make it by then. I'm still keeping Bird and Ike through next week before school starts, so it may be the Sept meeting before I get to present it. It is exciting to know that he likes the idea.

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