Far South Coast of New South Wales - Day Three

Day Three on our lazy beach holiday to the Sapphire Coast involved lots of lazing around (how good for the soul!) and lots of drinks with pureed mango in them (and gin, but that's another story).

We began the day with coffee at Gloria Jean's on Market Street, Merimbula, followed by a sweltering round of mini golf at Top Fun (99 Main Street, tel: 02-6495 3091), a super-doo circus-tented kiddie Nirvana that presides over town on the top of the hill. They've got ten pin bowling, zone 3 laser game, video and dance games, and even host birthday parties, too.

We then spent the rest of the afternoon in the pool, had fish and chips for dinner, and then ambled around the neighbourhood in the early evening light, taking in the stunning waterways and coastline.

It was fascinating to see the masses of oyster deposits on rocks and low tide, and delight in the cooler sea breezes of early evening.

We finished off our walk a the main beach near our apartment - it was hazy but the vista was beautiful.

As nothing much happened on Day Three, I thought I'd share with you some tips about holidaying in Merimbula in January, so you can make the most of the place if you foolishly decide to go at that time of year. Hopefully these fab finds will help you enjoy it more than we did.

Avoid Woolworths if at all possible – it's jam packed and almost impossible to maneouvre a trolly during January. Head to Merimbula Fresh Food Market for fresh produce, local and imported groceries, deli and dairy instead. Shop 2, 5 Palmer Lane, tel: 02-6495 3833

BOOKtique, Shop 6, The Promenade, tel: 02-6495 1969, is probably THE find of our entire holiday, in total. I LOVED this bookshop. You can even sip coffee there whilst surrounded by books. It's on the main road, so you can sit back and watch all the action, and the owners of the store have done a glorious job in their book selection, particularly kids books. Love.

Another treat is The Lolly Shop, 62 Market Street, tel: 02-6495 2680. The owner is lovely and the range is amazing. This is where I oohed and ahhed over my greatest holiday product find - the time-honoured and rapidly devoured Choo Choo Bar.

If you're in for some rollicking kid fun - a games room, toboggan, grand prix cars, magic carpet slide, waterslides and more, head to Magic Mountain, Sapphire Coast Drive, tel: 02-6495 2299.

There's also Mandeni Family Fun Park, Sapphire Coast Drive, tel: 0403 706 692 and the Merimbula Aquarium at the Wharf looks wonderful, tel: 02-6495 4446.

Lily & Lola’s pre-loved designerwares, shoes, jewellery and clothing is really luscious and there are some great finds within, all at great prices. Shop 3, Merimbula Plaza, tel: 02-6495 4716.

Also check out...

Poppy’s Courtyard Café, Cnr Beach & Alice Sts, Merimbula Plaza, tel: 02-6495 1110

Merimbula Ice Creamery, Hylands Corner Plaza, tel: 02-6495 2311‎

Catch a flick at The Picture Show Man Twin Cinema at 80 Main Street. Call ahead on 02-6495 3744 for session times.

OTHER IDEAS

Hire a bike ~ go walking on coastal tracks ~ fly a kite on the beach ~ visit the Australiasian Pub at Eden for a counter meal; the kids can play on the equipment out the back ~ visit the Bega Cheese Heritage Centre ~ go horse riding at Wolumla ~ go fishing off the jetties around Merimbula Lake and inlet ~ go kayaking ~ go whale watching ~ take a scenic flight ~ visit the Opal and Shell Museum at Bateman’s Bay ~ visit the animals at Potoroo Place ~ pan for gold at the Gold Rush Colony, 26 James Street, Mogo ~ swim at Bermagui’s Blue Pool ~ skateboard at the skateboard parks of Pambula and
Tathra ~ swap pre-read books at the Batehaven Book Exchange ~ go snorkeling… anywhere!

Far South Coast of New South Wales - Day One
Far South Coast of New South Wales - Day Two
Far South Coast of New South Wales - Day Four and Five and Six

I Know How to Cook! Well, I do now...

* * See my full review at Australian Women Online * *

One of my greatest culinary desires is to own Julia Child’s iconic cooking collection, along with that of Margaret Fulton, Nigella Lawson, Stephanie Alexander, Maggie Beer and Martha Stewart. I’ve already put a major dent in the latter author but the rest are shamelessly under-represented in our house.

On second glance at this highly desirable wish-list, it’s dawned on me there’s not a single white male amongst them. Nor brown, black or yellow male, for that matter. This is probably because these categories are already well-represented. I have Gordon, Jamie, Bill, Luke, Rick and Nhut – even Gérard Depardieu in my house, yes I do.

But over the years, I’ve gradually risen like a well-oiled soufflé and begun to desire lighter, more delicate, more ethereal culinary exposure. Something, I suppose, more feminine.

Frenchwoman Ginette Mathiot’s cooking bible – I Know How To Cook - is a feminine tome I’ve greatly coveted. It’s the layman’s Larousse Gastronomique. It’s the French equivalent of Italy’s Il Cucchiaio D’argento (The Silver Spoon). It’s the parallel of UK darling, Delia Smith’s, How to Cook. It’s the representative of Aussie Stephanie Alexander’s The Cook’s Companion and Julia Child’s Mastering the Art of French Cooking in the US.

It’s a book that’s been passed through three generations of French home cooks since it’s publication in 1932, and now it’s here for us, in English for the very first time, thanks to the good people at Phaidon. Adapted by contemporary French food writer Clotilde Dusoulier, the book has been re-released in consultation with a team of international cookery experts and – most happily for those of us who adore authenticity – its replication has been kept masterfully close to the original.

French cuisine may be notoriously complicated, even intimidating, however I Know How to Cook takes us deep inside the plat de cocotte to a time of simplicity – there are classic French dishes here for sure, but there are also rustic, basic, time-honoured recipes that are surprisingly easy to prepare. Sure, you’ll find coq au vin, but there’s also rustic bean and rice dishes, a fabulous array of salads, even fresh corn on the cob (the French secret is to add a little milk to the cooking water).

Mathiot’s recipes are divided helpfully into sections, beginning with sauces and hors-d’oeuvres, through dairy, meat, veg, rice & pasta, and concluding with fruit, milk & egg puddings, ices and cakes & pastries which is my favourite chapter, brimming with all manner of known and unknown delights. There’s even instruction on home-made pastries and the French version of the humble sausage roll – puff pastry wrapped around chipolata sausages – naturellement!

Finishing the book with sweets, preserves & drinks, readers will delight in learning more about almond milk, syrop de thé (tea syrup), orange syrup, even raspberry vinegar. There’s also recipes for mead, mulled wine, and a tipple the author calls ‘grog’, though its ingredients are certainly far more refined than the images conjured in your Aussie head at this very moment – French ‘grog’ combines cognac, boiling water, sugar and lemon. Drunk by the fire in a pair of Argyle slippers.

Alas, photos are few and far between, but this doesn't detract from the style. 1,400 recipes are instead dotted with charming, 60s-inspired block-printed illustrations by French comics artist Blexbolex, which give the book a must-have quality in terms of aesthetic design. His divine illustrations also head chapters and the removable dust-jacket can be unfurled to reveal a delectable Blexbolex poster worthy of any art-loving chef.

I love the sheer Simplicity turned Great of this book. The recipes are almost shockingly concise, direct and easy to follow, yet the end results are mighty impressive.

But the prevailing tone of this book is the excitement one feels when holding it in hand. The almost gleeful feeling that you’re being let in on a treasured secret. Now that the barrier to complicated French instruction has been stripped bare to English, all the meaning comes tumbling free and we can revel in the roux, the jus and the beurre blanc.

It’s all there – naked and delectable and baring itself for our unabashed use. Finally, we can sharpen our knives and join in with the myriad of fabulous French home cooks who’ve been hiding this beautiful tome in their teensy Parisian and rambling provincial kitchens for decades.

Rejoice, lovers of good cooking. Enjoy every juicy moment. Cuisine heureuse!

I Know How to Cook (Je Sais Cuisiner) is published by Phaidon, A$69.95RRP. See Penguin Australia website for more.

Don't think I've EVER posted two I'm Loving...s in a row. Check Happy Loves Rosie out and you'll know why I couldn't wait another moment to let you know about it.

Nina, Posie and Tina - methinks you'll especially love!

Tania loves Happy Loves Rosie! Sunshine and buttons.

I'm Loving... Kids Online Encyclopedia

For those of you born pre-1970, you'll be pretty au fait with the term 'encyclopedia'. Remember those things - books with information printed on the inside?

I could be kinda sad about the demise of the encyclopedia because some of my fondest bookish memories were diving headfirst into the kids encyclopedia set we owned in our childhood. I wouldn't come up for hours, and the one with the pink spine was my fave.

Of course, our fast-paced children would scoff at a book that outdates itself before the ink dries, fresh off the printing press - so virtual encyclopedias are certainly now de rigeur.

Kids Net is a simple Australian website that is impressively packed with some really decent information from pilosophy and maths to applied arts and social sciences. It's links are seemingly endless and it would suit many children from middle school to high.

Love.

encyclopedia.kids.net.au

Always the Photographer Never the Subject

Photo: Beyond Snapshots

I was most happily perusing Writing Out Loud this morning, when Megan started chatting about Beyond Snapshots - a fab website that encourages (and instructs) amateur snappers and photographer wannabes on how to get great pics.

The Beyond Shapshot gals - Rachel and Peta - must have been watching my life from afar because, of course, they KNOW I am always the one behind the camera and never in front of the lens (spooky). Not that I'm complaining - I love photography and especially love snapping the kids.

But they've nonetheless put the call out to get out from hiding! and to take a piccie of yourself with the kids. Basically, they want you to take off that camera and win a pretty new one.

Are you game? Gather your gaggle and get snapping!

Far South Coast of New South Wales - Day Two

Our second day on the far south coast of New South Wales - the Sapphire Coast, we headed 10 minutes south to the gorgeous Pambula Beach - a gorgeous beach town with a far nicer feel to it than the main part of Merimbula.

The first thing we did was head to the main beach with its spectacular rock formations at the southern end and glorious miles of uninterrupted surf.

Ella trailed along in the shallows and the boys kicked a ball on the beach before we headed into the main street of town.

A country town isn’t a country town without an emporium, and McPherson’s Emporium on Quondola Street didn’t disappoint, with a quirky mix of gorgeous vintage houseware finds, quirky jewellery and evening bags to die for. There’s a fine selection of beautiful cotton tops and frocks, stashed in amongst the typical garments found at a country outfitter.

McPherson’s Emporium, (below) 33 Quondola Street, tel: 02-6495 6038

Further along up Quondola Street, you'll find a gorgeous little Op Shop where I snaffled a divine lacquered 70s wooden tray and a stand-up box to put the kids homework pencils in (below left).

Pambula Toad Hall is in a quaint double-storey building and features kitsch kitsch kitsch – country craft galore with everything Grandma used to make – wooden toys, doilies, dolls and my absolute favourite – knitted toys.

Toad Hall (below left), 55 Toallo Street (Princes Highway), tel: 02-6495 6762

Further down Quondola Street, where you’ll find the countryside laying in wait at the end of the street, Pambula Meditation Centre sits, most invitingly, inside a fresh blue weatherboard. A little further on, the very tempting Wild Rye’s bakery has outdoor furniture to take in the sunshine whilst nibbling on a treat.

Wild Rye’s (below right), 26 Quondola Street, tel: 02-6495 6649

Back on the Princes Highway, heading north through the main town roundabout, is the Second Edition bookstore, selling a great range of second hand books, and on the other side of the road, next to Art Essence Gallery, is a picture framing place and tattooist.

Second Edition (below left), 34 Toalla Street, tel: 02-6495 6971.
Art Essence (below right), 47 Toalla Street, tel: 02-6495 7286

Just outside town, Oaklands Pambula features farm and garden supplies, a village art gallery, camel, trail and pony rides, an animal nursery, kids’ craft centre and café. The highlight, along with the beautiful collection of very loved animals, is undoubtedly Merv’s Collectibles and Old Wares (tel: 6495 6822).

A lover of bric-a-brac, this large country store set in an old barn is a true treasure trove – I could have taken home most of the wares on display including this exquisite fine blue glass decanter and miniature glasses, picture-perfect pink pitcher, and 1950s Japanese salt/pepper shaker set.

Merv actually has super-decent, really hand-sifted collectibles that are very treasurable. They consequently have a price-tag to match (a reasonably price-tag, I might add) but just a little outside the super-bargain hunting price I was after because the place we stayed at sucked dry both our wallets AND our coffers (and our patience).

Also housed in Merv's is the Wooden Toy Man who has a great range of locally made wooden toys including a pretty fab set of changeable traffic lights and a petrol pump for your little driver, or dolly accessories for wee miss (also a tad pricey).

Anyhoo - we could afford a pony ride, which Ella delighted in...

While Riley talked with the animals and jumped on the bouncy castle.

There was a really gorgeous lady at the Oaklands barn who runs a fabulous arts and crafts centre (in the barn!) for kids, so Oaklands is really worth a visit if you have littlies (and if you don't... the café looks divine).

But my big find in Pambula is the newly opened Eve Boutique – housed in a stunning, sun-drenched store with original floorboards and a divine collection of summery wares from adorable baby singlets by birdhouse, to flowing kaftans - all with a decided whimsy about them.

Opened less than a month, the owner, Libby, is in the process of setting up a website where you can peruse her unique wares (tel: 6495 7331). Check back with me and I'll let you know when she's up and running. Simply gorgeous.

Heading out of Pambula, back to Merimbula, it was so wonderful to see the countryside in wait at the end of the street. Love that about country towns.

Back at Merimbula, we went for a swim along the main beach with its stunning water, gorgeous blue skies and gale force, sand-whipping wind.

It was nice to head inside for an early night with a strong G&T and fond memories of Pambula.

Far South Coast of New South Wales - Day One
Far South Coast of New South Wales - Day Three
Far South Coast of New South Wales - Day Four and Five and Six