Last Saturday I was invited to speak at a lunch (at a great little restaurant called Blue Ginger) in Noosa in Queensland. It was with great pleasure that I headed out the door and travelled north to the Sunshine State. The event was arranged by Annie Grossman who brings books and peole together at her well-known and popular bookstore, Annie’s Books on Peregian at Peregian Beach, south of Noosa.
The lunch was held during a ‘Weekend in Italy’ event at the new boutique shopping complex in Noosa, the Evergreen Lifestyle Centre. We ate well - Tomato and Bocconcini Salad followed by authentic Italian Risotto and a glass or two of crisp, Soave white wine.
Not your average shopping centre, Evergreen consists of a number of specialist shops including the aromatic Italian skin care and beauty centre L’Erbolario, where creams, lotions and perfumes are made by herbalists in Italy; and you won’t have to spend a fortune to spoil yourself! As well there is a florist, a photographer, an art gallery, an aromatic, gourmet chocolate shop, an interior decorator and a garden centre blooming with an eclectic selection of flowers and plants. The centre is well worth a visit next time you are holidaying in Noosa.
‘Til next time…

With a 900 km trek on the Spanish Camino fast approaching I am furiously trying to get the old body in reasonable working order. The first step was joining the WEA Rambler’s Club which run a selection of short, medium and long walks on almost every day of the week. I have managed to complete three of the ‘medium’ walks and found them testing and enjoyable, exhilarating and working wonders on the muscles and the endurance.

Yesterday’s ‘medium’ walk took us around the stunningly beautiful Pittwater area in the northern beach suburbs of Sydney. We trekked along white sandy beaches, climbed rugged, hilly trails through a shady, woody wonderland including the endangered Spotted Eucylyptus Gum and finally reached the Barrenjoey Lighthouse where we found a rocky look-out, perfect for a picnic lunch.

The views over Palm Beach and up to the Central Coast were superb as was the lunchtime entertainment. We were joined by a few curious and very friendly lizards and a fat, timid, long-tailed rat watched cautiously from behind a nearby tree. Boats bobbed up and down on the turning tide, a sea-plane swooped and taxied into port and ferry boats plied up and down the channels.

Reluctantly we had to move on and trod carefully down a steep, rocky narrow pathway once used by rogues and smuggler’s when hiding their loot. A long beachwalk led to the most difficult section - 700 steps. We all made it up but thankfully half of these were downhill and we soon found ourselves back where we started. Another day with the rambler’s and another great work-out.

Hello Again.
Well, I never thought I would make a You Tube video - but I have now. It is a 3 minute film on convent and monastery guesthouses in 6 European countries. We had such fun making it and I hope you like the result. You can have a look via the following link or by clicking the you Tube logo on the home page of the good Night and God Bless website.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lgzOG9oAgRg
I welcome all comments. Please let me know where I went wrong (or maybe even right).
All the best,
Trish