Eugowra - Bushrangers, Granite, and Silky Oaks

Eugowra is 37km east of Forbes.  It was badly hit by  the 2022 floods and many museums, hotels etc remain closed.  There was no accommodation available there either.

 

 

So it was a day trip from Forbes.

Bushrangers feature heavily in its history, and in its decorative murals.

It seems that its main claim to fame is that it is the site of the largest robbery ever in Australia. 

Frank Gardiner's gang held up the coach which was going from the gold diggings to Orange, and got away with 77kgs of gold and some cash.  I believe most was recovered. And  local hero Ben Hall was involved.

So we went to have a look at the site of the robbery, called Escort Rock.  .It was 4 km north of Eugowra.

 The rocks are to the left of the road, facing towards Eugowra,  Orange is behind the photographer.

 

Eugowra also has a granite industry.  I believe they supplied granite to the new parliament house.

Even John Howard  got a mention on this granite plaque.  The post office had closed, but the building remained a transaction centre.

And they like their silky oaks!

First stop was the Tourist Info for info.  It was beautifully presented.  In fact, you could see that Forbes had put a lot of work into developing a tourist industry.

And the local bushranger is Ben Hall.  There is a statue of him outside the Tourist Info - looking very patrician.

Then we  went to the Forbes Cemetery

And here was his grave

 

 

 

 

(more to come)

 

The Road to Forbes.

For one reason and another, we had never been to Forbes.  Parkes to the north and Hay to the south , yes,  but not Forbes.

So tonight, here we are.

We had lunch at Leura.  It is a delightful place, and these days, a tourist stop. Much cuter than nearby Katoomba, IMHO.

Mobile phones all out.

Lots of loos in Leura.

And on a sentimental note. Many years ago, beginning a drive from Sydney to Smithfield, we (including Yvonne) were in Leura, looking for something to eat - like a hamburger or fast food of some sort.  All we could find was this eating place called "Silks".  In we went and when the meals came, it was obvious they were much more than fast food.  So we sat back and enjoyed the meal - and I remember a lovely lemon tart for dessert.

Today, Silks has closed down and this is in its place.  

The country looks green and lovely.  Sometimes sheep, sometimes cattle.

New metro line

The extension of the M1 line to Bankstown was ready on Friday 30th.  Coincidentally, three of us had arranged to meet up at Revesby, but when we discovered the line was open, two of us hopped on the metro and met our friend at Bankstown.

All very exciting - and we relished the opportunity to not only easily get to Bankstown, but also the prospect of exploring other places that had suddenly became accessible.

First indication of the new order - signs at Epping with new names!

New places to explore!

On board, we had plenty of space.

Gap fillers:

Getting off at Bankstown

And Bankstown was celebrating!

And the station had been redeveloped as well.

View of UWS, to the right as we exited the Metro station.

A great new piece of infrastructure - as well as the new airport - in the next post!

Data Centres

 Data centres have been in the news.  There have been protests around the place where people do not want them built near their homes, over fears of their demands for electricity and water, and noise.  As well there have been listings of Data Centre builders on the stock exchange, with uncertainty as to their future as an investment.

So we thought - we had better go and see what they are like!

We discovered there are lots in Sydney - including in the light industrial area near Macquarie Shopping Centre.  They have been hiding in plain sight!  It was my John Howard moment - how long has this been going on?!

We took pictures of just three.  But there are plenty more in Sydney.

Along Waterloo Road.

At least the turkey was happy!

Then  NEXTDC along Eden Park Road.  At least they made an effort to look bright and interesting.

And another NEXT DC in Giffnock Avenue - had never heard of the street, even though it is near Macquarie.

When we could get close, yes, there is a hum coming from them, sometimes reflecting from surrounding buildings.  It was a bit like the hum you get from a motorway.  

Out and about in Zurich

 

Tonight we pack before our flight tomorrow - Thursday local time. Today we just walked around Zurich, and tried the Funicular and local tram system.

Just in case you aren't sure which country you are in - you are reminded.

 

There are plenty of chocolate shops with plenty of chocolate.

 Queue for sight-seeing lake cruise.

Lakeside views

And the mountains in the distance.

The polybahn -or funicular.

And in Zurich, traffic and pedestrians mix freely!