Thursday 6th October - Kincumber

Our second day in Australia and it's still cold! Actually, my Lidl's interior/exterior thermometer showed that for most of the day it was about 18 degrees Celsius. But it still feels cold. This morning we went shopping in the nearby town of Kincumber (near Avoca) because the reptile man was appearing there and little Ollie loves crocodiles, snakes etc. So we all piled into the Subaru and made the twenty minute drive along the coast. The reptile man was appearing in the Kincumber "Coles" store. For non- Aussies, Coles is a large supermarket found in most Aussie high streets. Like Tesco I guess. So there was the guy, looking a bit like Crocodile Dundee, or maybe Lemmy, showing a crowd of kids and parents a sandy coloured lizard. Ollie gave it a stroke before meeting a black-headed python and finally a three foot salt-water crocodile which, by the way, he had met before, at playgroup. We got some coffees whilst the reptile stroking was going on, but soon we left the shopping centre and headed home stopping briefly to pick up some lunch. We spent an afternoon at home having said lunch, playing with Ollie and his train set and sweeping and strimming the back yard. We had to make a short walk to a local hardware shop to get some strimming cord and then popped into Coles to buy a few items. Ollie was in his pushchair. It keeps him in one place as he is a run-away sort of child. Give him the chance and he's off down the street like a mini Usain Bolt. He dented the confidence of a pretty check out girl who gave him a smile and said hello, at which he broke into tears! She said that was a first and that they usually like her. I did but Ollie certainly didn't. I didn't bother to explain that that was a very unusual reaction; I'd never seen him do that before. On the way back, would you believe, it started to rain! It was very fine but still rain and still 18 degrees! This is not what was expected. Cursed La Nina! We left England in the grip of a totally unseasonal heat-wave.

Any birds today? Well only the friendly locals. A noisy miner poked around at my feet at one stage and then a local magpie flew in and I wondered if he'd like some food scraps so I retrieved a lump of fat from the edge of last night's steak. I offered it to him and, blow me down he walked over to me, jumped up on the trampoline and took it right out of my fingers! My sort of bird - I think we two will bond over the coming weeks! Chicken tomorrow old son!