Dubbo is a pretty big regional town in NSW, in fact I think its the largest town in the central west. So you would think there would be a cafe open at 2 o’clock on a Saturday afternoon but not Dubbo, we walked around the city centre and couldn’t find one. Rather amazing in this time.

It’s pretty warm here mid 30’s for the last couple of days. I mentioned to the guys I played golf with what were the best tourist spots for Dubbo and they replied, the Zoo, the Old Dubbo Gaol and the Japanese gardens, so that’s what we’ve done, plus a general drive around the town. I thought there might have been a few more highlights but that’s about it as far as our interests were concerned (although the gardens were a bit of a push for me).

The Gaol was interesting, especially as it was right in the middle of the town. I suppose its not surprising seeing it was built at the same time as the township. It was in operation up to 1966 when it closed so there is possibly people still alive that managed a holiday in the place, lucky them!

The Japanese Gardens, what can I say, they were nice and a good place for a picnic, also they were free entry, always a plus for retirees! Susan enjoyed them, although not as much as she might have if the temperature was 10 degrees less.

Today was the Western Plains Zoo. I have to admit I’m not a fan of zoo’s, just ask my girls. Susan isn’t all that happy with them either, mainly because the animals are locked up but here they have much bigger containment areas than in city zoo’s. The zoo allows you to drive your own car around or hire a golf cart or pushbikes. We elected to drive RAYNSU around, certainly a novel way to get around but then again, walking it (as some people did) in mid 30’s temperature would be a task in itself.

These’s always a problem with zoo’s in my opinion, the animals never seem to be up and about, they are always having a kip after a feed. Unfortunately the main ones we wanted to see were basically doing just that. The Tigers and Lions were hidden under trees or in their little caves. The highlight were the Meerkats, they are just like the TV adds, simples! Giraffes, Zebras and Rhinos all were accomodating as was the Asian Elephant. Didn’t bother with the Aussie contingent, as we’ve seen enough of them on this trip already, mostly on the side of the road!

Tomorrow we have a big day, off to Bathurst via Parkes and Orange. Of course we can’t go to Parkes without going to “The Dish”. Hopefully everything is functioning OK at the dish and they’ve fixed the pie warmer!