yesterday, Joe & I decided to catch a train to Katoomba. the plan was to go to the co-op to get our fruit & vegies, visit a few op-shops & have lunch.the day dawned and it was raining, but not to have a plans dampened we donned our coats and drove to the station.
just last week, I had found a vintage shopping trolley. One like my Nan had. Perfect for my planned jaunts on the train!
[Joe had to play around with my camera while I stood waiting, for the train to pull in at Springwood station]the trip takes about half an hour, the train climbing through mountain villages. we even went past our old home Inglewood!
once we arrived, we walked down Katoomba St, in the wet. me feeling very much like my grandmother as I pulled my canvas trolley along.
our first stop was morning tea.. so many cafes to choose from. we chose Mountain Harvest. a place that sells a large assortment of teas. I chose China Rose and a coconut nest with melted chocolate. Joe had his favourite, toast with peanut butter. very simple. we are simple folkafter we had finished, we decided to do a few op-shops. there are about 5 in Katoomba and various other second hand, junk or antique shops - call them what you wish.. all selling a variety of stuff.
I love going into op shops looking through racks of second hand clothes.
I gathered quite an assortment of dresses, tops and shoes.
I am beginning to feel like I am playing dress ups. what a fun thing to look forward to: for the rest of my life, I can play dress ups - op shops are my dressup box and it doesn't really matter what I look like - this goes with that and everything in between. dresses from the 80's are taking on a real fashion statement.
when I was younger, I always dressed a little 'out there'.. over the past few years, I really don't know what happened.. I had lost my creative spark in the way I dressed.. but since moving to Villa Maria, it is like something is awakening & I am finding that I dress differently. I still love my 'uniform' of jeans and tees but more so moving into dresses and such.. like i use to wear years ago.
[I spied this tourist bus and just had to take a photo for you!]Katoomba is one of my favourite towns in the Mountains..
a place where people paint their cars.an eclectic mix of people - buskers, tourists with the jumpers tied very fashionably around their shoulders, japanese tourists walking with the hand behind their backs, teenage school boys spitting on the footpath [made me feel sick.] locals just sitting on sidewalk cafes talking to friends. others going shopping.. backpackers.
then once we had our fill of op-shops and my trolley could take no more parcels.. we had lunch. choosing a place we use to frequent when we first met. The Paragon. where we use to have pie & peas with chips n gravy
built in 1916, the Paragon has actually declined from its former glory and no longer can you buy pie n peas. more's the pity.so I had soup and Joe settled for a late breakfast of scrambled eggs and mushrooms
the Paragon is famous also for its chocolates which are made upstairs above the restaurant. I didn't buy any this time.
'dark wood panels with Grecian style carved designs'.. decorate the booths made from various Oaks.
and then home.. I think this train trip to Katoomba is going to become something we do often.today is the Feast of Our Lady of Sorrows so I decorated my altar in honour of that:
some pink flowers & white candles.. I read that somewhere.. chamomile flowers are used to but none flowering in my garden at the moment.. so the pink azaleas will do.[you will notice that I no longer call Joe, 'dutch husband'..not sure why, it just doesn't feel right here at Villa Maria.. things have changed - alot.]
8 comments:
Delicious trip! So many cool places to go to where you live. Enjoy. :)
Looks like a fun trip and I LOVE the colour of your cardigan and it looks like a hand knit too!!
Op shops are the best, I love looking in them too and most of my clothes come from these places!!
So happy that you're happy..
Robyn, this looks like such a fun way to spend the day. How wonderful that you can take the train and not have to worry about cars, and parking, and traffic. And even with a little rain you still had a good time.
What a fun day trying on vintage clothes and enjoying the atmosphere. Cute photos! Think I'd love that place!
I felt as if I'd gone on the trip with you! Thanks for taking us all along! What a wonderful eclectic place you live near! I wont be online much soon, so just wanted to let you know.
We are in full spring bloom here and if you ever watch the news you will see our spring weather temps, already to be 25 next week! and its nowhere near summer yet! yikes!
G'Day Robyn, after reading this post I reckon you would laugh at a lecture I got from my daughter last night about the way I dress myself. She thinks I dress myself to hide behind baggy clothes, my jeans and various T shirts and tops, she wants to dress me in skirts and dresses, nah against my idea of ....me. Hahaha.
Not sure if I already commented or not Robyn, as you show no comments here yet.
I love days like this one you just had.
Your second hand stores seem much better than ours. I think the staff pick off the best stuff and leave us the tat, the pickings were much better 10 years ago, so much so, I rarely bother these days.
Love your altar.
big hugs
xx
PS I'm off to Inglewood to look for your Apple Cake recipe!
My kind of day! Sometimes I think people with simple tastes are the happiest. I am definitely with Joe on the food front, scrambled eggs and mushrooms sounds wonderful.
We had one of those shopping trolleys once, a big old fashioned white one, when we lived in the country. We named it Neil after a friend who's surname was White,and who was always off to the shops, though unlike me he managed to stay clear of the op shops.I love them.
Your altar is so pretty.It gives such a sense of satisfaction to put flowers on an altar -even a humble vase on the kitchen table gives so much pleasure doesn't it?
Post a Comment