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Advice to Overseas Cruisers coming to Australia

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SpainAlien "Live from...." Rare

SpainAlien

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Some excellent wines from Margaret river as well, here are some suggestions of wineries to visit with good Shiraz wines

.

Vasse Felix, the first commercial vineyard and winery in the region, has a cellar door, restaurant and art gallery in a lovely setting.

Voyager Estate., with its breathtaking Cape Dutch architecture, is one of the most spectacular cellar door/restaurant complexes overlooking vines, rose gardens and sweeping lawns.

Leeuwin Estate, venue for regular concerts and home to a top-notch restaurant, is a de rigueur destination for visitors keen on tasting the winery's benchmark Art Series wines.

Cape Mentelle has a really nice Shiraz as well.

 

Thanks McCanberra, I think we are going to Vasse Felix but I'm not sure, I'm not arranging that bit, I shall certainly be testing their Shiraz :). My aunt has lived there for 27 years and this is my first visit so she is taking me all over. I am looking forward to every minute of my 3 weeks (apart from the 25 hour flights)

 

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SpainAlien "Live from...." Rare

SpainAlien

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There is also some very good chocolate made in Margaret River http://www.gabrielchocolate.com.au/

 

Chocolate and a good red wine go very nicely together. ;)

 

Enjoy! :D

Mmmmm .... chocolate.... :drool

 

Actually, I will be bring Cadbury's chocolate with me by request. It's what us Brits are used to and it's the best :D

 

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GUT2407

GUT2407

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Mmmmm .... chocolate.... :drool

 

Actually, I will be bring Cadbury's chocolate with me by request. It's what us Brits are used to and it's the best :D

 

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You'll get Cadbury's here, pretty much any shop. Also a Cadbury factory in Tasmania and NZ.

 

If you see Young's Rocky Road in WA grab one, it's to die for.

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MicCanberra Holiday Sharing Rare

MicCanberra

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Thanks McCanberra, I think we are going to Vasse Felix but I'm not sure, I'm not arranging that bit, I shall certainly be testing their Shiraz :). My aunt has lived there for 27 years and this is my first visit so she is taking me all over. I am looking forward to every minute of my 3 weeks (apart from the 25 hour flights)

 

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Just remember to have one for me.

For long flights, drink plenty of water, it will keep you hydrated, ensure plenty of journey's out of the seats which helps with circulation and wards off jet lag.

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MicCanberra Holiday Sharing Rare

MicCanberra

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I will definitely look out for that. I have brought souvenir chocolate back for my husband from lots of places so Aussie chocolate is a must :)

 

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If you stumble across any Haigh's chocolates, based in Adelaide but they have shops in many places such as the capital cities main shops and airports around Australia. There is one in Sydney airport.:D

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Hawka

Hawka

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I sincerely apologize for my postings and as you are a very very senior contributor to these forums and your advice very much respected, I will confine my further reports to the poor suffering fellow passengers on my roll call (Solstice 30 Oct 2016 sailing)

 

But I do hope you will allow me the opportunity to file one further report as I say goodbye to all the good folk on this specific forum.

 

dont go love this thread reading through it laughing my head off ,

 

has anyone mentioned the sheep in NZ yet ?

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Hawka

Hawka

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Thank you for your concern

 

My wife took the key away for my own wellbeing - but she also emptied the beer fridge and replaced the contents with non alcoholic beverages - and my favourite Aussie Rules football team is winning in Melbourne as we speak

 

OMG it is no wonder I am what I am

 

I will be seeking your help shortly - more about that later

was that the HAWKS

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Bpos

Bpos

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Im a born and bread Melbournite living in Perth, so have heard all the warnings to stay in your car.

The main reason we stayed in the car was all the flies!!!!!! Get out of the car and we would be covered in flies.

Great stories to tell of our adventures though!

 

Dear valued overseas visitors - it is with regret that I have to warn you about a dispicable pest that you may encounter during travels downunder.

 

Of course I am referring to the bush Fly.

 

In our summer the flies are found in rural locations in their billions.

 

They will not eat you (unless your deceased) so be reassured there and some can bite you but will not cause any great harm and generally an expletive will be sufficient to ease any pain.

 

The flies do like to have a cuppa too (slang for a cup of tea) No problems, just use your spoon to fish out the dozen or two in your cup and continue to enjoy.

 

We Aussies have learned to live with them and so will you. Please do not bring any of your own flies to Australia, we have more than enough for everyone.

 

Help is at hand with another great Australian invention - see the attached photos

 

Fly nets are cheap (because they are China made). It does require some (well lots of) practice to imbibe your beer when wearing the net so I recommend, if travelling to the outback, you get your net as soon as possible before you come,

In order to master drinking with the net on.

 

One warning - always remove the net when entering public buildings etc, especially banks or you will be mistaken for someone of ill intent.

 

That's one sure way to ruin a wonderfull exciting holiday to Oz.

 

If you doubt what I say - see the quote at the beginning to this post???

image.jpg.7591490c0995349814135733a6ad5ab5.jpg

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Bpos

Bpos

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OMG - I have posted the wrong photo in the post above.

 

No one could have a head as big is That??? or could they.

 

If you have a keen eye you will see it is a tree fly net - silly me

 

Hopefully I wii get it right this time - and I thought I was infallible

image.jpg.9bd6c7a82eba807ae59af3395b8ffee9.jpg

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mrs and mrs

mrs and mrs

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We thank BPOS for these very helpful hints,all true,and we can only add our own,another method is to cover oneself in sun-screen,but the trick is do not rub it in.

Leave it all sloppy and gooey on your skin.

The flies will be attracted to the chemical smell,and get stuck in it.You will end up being a walking fly trap.

Eventually you will fall over,from the sheer weight of the 3 million flies stuck to your skin.

Hopefully you have fallen-over near some water,but alas this never happens as in reality,you will have fallen over into sand,and dust,further exasperating the situation.

You will now have 3 million flys and 1 tonne of dirt to contend with.

Please do not PANIC,just call out for beer and someone will come and wash enough off,so you can regain your feet and stagger back to camp.

Where of course there will be more beer and probably a bucket of stagnant water.

Please use the stagnant water to wash off,this is usually reserved as drinking water,but of course the beer is really there for hydration.

Next hint is do not sit by the camp-fire as,everything will dry and cake on like a permanent body Armour,which of course could be a good thing as you will have no more problems,apart from you may not get served at the bottle-o,the supermarket,etc,etc.

But you probably get a free ride in a pretty white car or van with blue and red lights on it.

Good-luck with it all and we eagerly await BPOS next post of Hints for Happy Travels in Australia.:):)

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Bpos

Bpos

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March flies are horrid during summer

 

Yes, they do tend to march around as if they own the place and they do bite if you get friendly with them.

 

Most Aussies call them bloody flies, not by their proper name - if you get my drift.

 

Interestingly, talking about flies, on my last visit the the USA, I visited a town called Bird in the Hand (yes its true - imagine if we had a town in Australia with the same name???) I could have some fun with that???

 

It's in the heart of the Amish communities and all the restaurants were selling "Shoo Fly pies" - well this got me really excited.

 

I ordered the pie and looked for the flies - in the pie - well there were none, so I asked for a refund and told the server, in a very nice Australian way, what he could do with his pie, (Aussies will know what I mean).

.

What a letdown.

 

At least we always advertise our food properly here in Australia - particularly what fish variety you will be served.

 

I can assure you, it is not our custom to make pies with flies down under although if in the very unlikely event you do find one in your pie - do not make a fuss - as others will want to experience the same experience as you (which will not be nice for you or people around you as well - think about that - you may have to then swallow a spider - you know what I mean)!

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MicCanberra Holiday Sharing Rare

MicCanberra

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It's in the heart of the Amish communities and all the restaurants were selling "Shoo Fly pies" - well this got me really excited.

 

I ordered the pie and looked for the flies - in the pie - well there were none, so I asked for a refund and told the server, in a very nice Australian way, what he could do with his pie, (Aussies will know what I mean).

.

What a letdown.

 

At least we always advertise our food properly here in Australia - particularly what fish variety you will be served.

 

I can assure you, it is not our custom to make pies with flies down under although if in the very unlikely event you do find one in your pie - do not make a fuss - as others will want to experience the same experience as you (which will not be nice for you or people around you as well - think about that - you may have to then swallow a spider - you know what I mean)!

 

I hate false advertising. I got some dog biscuits once, yep you guessed it, not made out of real dogs.:eek:

Same thing with the baby oil.:confused:

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Hawka

Hawka

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March is during Autumn here in Australia.:confused:

 

they are called march flies they can be about in january feb and march when ever it is HOT just found also known as horse flies March Fly (Tabanidae family )

 

 

Despite their name, the flies do not mainly occur during March in Australia, but all throughout summer.

"It's not really to do with the season's in the southern hemisphere, it may have more to do with early spring in the northern hemisphere," Mr Yeates says.

 

 

ANIMAL SPECIES:

March flies

 

March flies are ferocious biters.

 

Standard Common Name

March flies

 

Alternative Name/s

Horse flies, Green heads

 

Size range

3 cm

 

Distribution

March flies are found throughout Australia.

 

Habitat

March flies live around freshwater creeks, intertidal estuaries and mangroves.

 

Feeding and Diet

As with most biting flies, it is only the female march flies that bite as they need blood to produce the next generation. They use their strong, piercing mouthparts like a needle to extract blood from their mammal hosts. The males have larger metallic green eyes and feed on nectar.

 

The maggot larvae are quite aggressive and efficient predators too. They have sharp mandibles (mouthparts) and inject their prey with venom. The venom immobilises the prey almost instantly and helps to liquefy the tissues, which are then sucked out, leaving just an empty skin. The prey is usually the larvae of other insects, however they are also known to be cannibalistic. March fly larvae can bite if handled.

 

Classification

Family:TabanidaeSuperfamily:TabanomorphaOrder:DipteraClass:InsectaSubphylum:UniramiaPhylum:ArthopodaKingdom:Animalia

Edited by Hawka
keep finding more info
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