What a flurry of Little Adventures I’ve had recently – all thanks to Scott.

For those who are new to this blog, when I retired in 2020, I knew that I’d have to force myself out from The Best House in Mekbourne and explore. I knew I’d travel, but in the in-between times, I’m a happy hermit. So the concept of Little Adventures was born. It’s a way of getting out once a month, to see and experience things I haven’t done before.

On Wednesday, Scout was aquiver with anticipation when I told her that we were having VISITORS!!! Hazel was aware that something exciting was about to happen, but she hasn’t quite grasped the concept yet. You can see the top of her head in the photo, looking at me instead of the window.

I was being whisked off to lunch at Montalto winery with Scott and his dear friend Dimitra. They’ve been friend even longer than I’ve known Scott, and we’ve heard about each other, but this was the first time we’ve met.

She’s a very interesting person and I enjoyed this day immensely. After they met the social hurricane that is Hazel, off we went to Red Hill, on the Mornington Peninsula.

One of the draw cards of Montalto is the sculpture walk, which is a lovely wander through the vinyard and surrounding bushland. You all know how much I like a sculpture walk. Remember the one on Kangaroo Island?

We saw a couple of people walking through with glasses of wine in hand, but being responsible adults, we saw the art unadulterated by the fumes of alcohol. (We saved that for lunch afterwards.)

I took a few pictures of a few sculptures that caught my fancy.

This one was called ‘Coil.’

This one made me laugh. A polar bear with penguins.

There were a few of these. ‘Anenome.’

Ahhh. Retirement is good. This was at noon on a Wednesday.

This is fabulous. Dimitra actually owns a couple of small etchings by this artist. I can’t tell you who he is, because there was no label, and I can’t remember who she said he was. It’s huge.

The sky was grey, but that was perfect for Scott and me. We are vampires and burn in the slightest sunlight.

It was lovely walking around in the countryside. Dimitra has a career that I’ve never come in contact with before, so I asked her about it. I like hearing about paths different to mine.

I can recommend the food. I had the lamb shoulder with a summer fruits salad on the side. See the zucchini? Pickled.

Delicious.

Chocolate brownie for dessert. Dense, but so chocolatey. I couldn’t finish it all, so Scott wrapped it in a napkin for Ron.

You know… later ron.

That night, all I had for dinner was a few cheese and crackers. One of the perks of living alone. I can have whatever I want to eat.

On the way home, we swung by Rosebud pier. This is where Scott’s mum’s ashes were placed, as she wanted to be buried at sea.

Close enough, I guess. It was beautiful. Black swans in the water, a few schoolkids playing in the shallows… it would be a pleasant place to spend eternity. We walked to the end of the pier and back.

Two days later I found the half brownie that I couldn’t finish.

Still delicious.

Dad joke of the day: