Is Anyone at Home!

Well what a surprise........This morning I left the apartment and headed towards the river, the Parramatta River. I had no idea what to expect but honestly, I was blown away. It's like a mini version of the Yarra River in Melbourne and runs through the heart of the Parramatta CBD.

I found this elegant wading bird quite at home near the weir and it looked like he was intent on paying a visit to a mysterious being hidden within the weir! The river banks were a hive of activity and I was delighted to see a group of people doing their Tai Chi while the city was coming to life.

Parramatta, founded in the same year as Sydney by the British in 1788, is the oldest inland European settlement in Australia, the economic capital of Greater Western Sydney and the sixth largest central business district in Australia.

I have to say I had a bit of a laugh when I read the script on one of the many sculptures that are dotted along the river bank.

No person whatever is to pass through or into the town of Parramatta, either by day or night with a musket, who has not the Magistrates permission for that purpose.
PENALTY: - FlOGGING!!

Parramatta was founded in 1788, the same year as Sydney. The British Colony, which had arrived in January 1788 in the First Fleet at Sydney Cove, had only enough food to support itself for a short time and the soil around Sydney Cove proved too poor to grow the amount of food that 1,000 convicts, soldiers and administrators needed to survive. During 1788, Governor Arthur Phillip had reconnoitred several places before choosing Parramatta as the most likely place for a successful large farm. Parramatta was the furthest navigable point inland on the Parramatta River (i.e. furthest from the thin, sandy coastal soil) and also the point at which the river became freshwater and therefore useful for farming.

PS - I'm happy to report that day one of our challenging journey went very well today and we have climbed a major section of the mountain - hopefully by early next week we will have summited and be looking forward to heading home, fit and healthy and raring to go!