Granny’s tall tales: our adventurous Family Holiday visiting Dubbo with the Grandkids

A long-held dream of mine was realised last week when we went on a family holiday with my daughter and her family visiting Dubbo; the Zoo and other local attractions.

 

I have very fond memories of taking our youngest son and a friend to the zoo many years ago and riding our bikes around the zoo. Fourteen years later we repeated the exercise with our three grandchildren.

 

The Orange Food Festival was on the weekend before our stay in Dubbo and we decided to see what was on offer. True to form, planning is not my strongest point. We packed the car and set off. About half an hour out of Sydney I got holiday fever and informed my husband he could take me on any adventure he chose to, on the way to Orange. Enter the mobile phone and Mr Google.

Travelling through the Blue Mountains gave us ample choice. Which should it be?

Have lunch at the Hydro Majestic, visit a local garden and/or go for a walk. The only problem was I was wearing my sandals and needed sneakers and socks. No problem! We have them in the boot, yet unfortunately the boot was inaccessible because of the bike rack. This created quite a scene as I scrambled over the back seat trying to locate the kitbag with my sneakers. Not an easy task and the boot never looked the same again. Sneakers in hand I still needed socks. No problem, I know the perfect shoe shop in Blackheath. I told hubby to take a hike while I looked for socks (and any pair of shoes that jumped off the shelf at me). Now sneakers and socks in hand we were able to go for a walk from Evans Point lookout. Well worth the effort.

 

The rest of the trip to Orange was uneventful until we arrived at the hotel.  We had watched the black clouds gathering over the horizon and on arrival the heavens opened. By the time we had unpacked the car, once again scrambling for bags over the back seat we were like two drowned rats. We were told by a local we should be thankful because the country needs the rain so badly. Which is sure does!! On hind sight we should have sat the storm out as it only lasted a short while. Our time in Orange was fabulous apart from the howling winds and cold front that blew in.

 

On to Dubbo via Parkes to meet the family.

It took longer than anticipated to arrive and we needed to do a quick shop to be ready for dinner. With the trolley half full we were informed there was an IT problem and the whole store was closed. Have you ever?!? On to the next store and success but we were running late for dinner and the kids were starving – as always, the eating machines were on track!!

 

The next day we hit Dubbo Zoo early amid great excitement.

A cart had been hired and off course some of the kids didn’t want to ride their bikes. Luckily, we took all the bikes along (some on the back of the cart). The rest of us were on our bikes.  As much as I was keen on riding all the way, the cart was blessing in disguise (animal camouflage disguise!) The kids enjoyed riding their bikes until they were tired and then hopped into the cart. Their poor Dad spent the day hoisting bikes on and off the cart, but boy was it worth it; the kids were happy- not one whinge about being tired- maybe hungry but definitely not tired. I was happy as I managed to ride the whole way. What can I say “I love my grandchildren and I love riding my purple bike, what more could one ask for”. I am also partial to wild animals having come from South Africa so for me it was a perfect day.

 

Visiting Dubbo Gaol was the next event where we were entertained by a fabulous guide who brought the stories of criminals and their attempts at escape alive for the kids. The boys bought handcuffs in the gift shop and had great fun handcuffing all and sundry including siblings, friends, parents and grandparents who had to run away like escaped convicts. The next family activity in Dubbo was The Observatory to learn about the stars, planets and the solar system. The big telescopes were a hit for a few seconds. I must admit once you have seen one star, they all look much the same. Wellington Cave and the Phosphate Mine were also a great activity, especially testing the one of the smaller caves to see if it echoed. First the kids screamed, then the adults screamed, boys versus girls screamed, children versus adults screamed. It got louder and louder, ending with Aussie, Aussie, Aussie, Oy, Oy, Oy. Such fun for the kids!

 

After each mornings activity we returned to the Caravan Holiday Park where the kids had plenty of fun activities to do. They rode their bikes around the camp, tried out their skills on the BMX track, spent hours sliding down the slippery dip, played in the swimming pool and jumped on the jumping pillow. Their faces at the bottom of the water slide were pure joy and who can believe how much fun kids can have waiting for a bucket of water to splash on them. The bigger the bucket the better, no matter how freezing the water!

 

Most of all I enjoyed watching my daughter and her husband have fun with their family.

Too often in life we get caught up in work, sport and deadlines and don’t have time to do the things we want to do. That’s why being a grandparent is so special. You have time to play with the kids and enjoy them. Once your own kids have left the house life is never quite the same and you miss their presence but if you are lucky enough to have grandchildren life is a blessing.

 

Visiting Dubbo turned out to be a great experience for us. Where have you enjoyed a great family holiday? 

 

Article from A Iles, mother of 3 and grandmother to 5 wonderful grandchildren.