A bumpy ride

A lot can happen in just two weeks. 

On Monday last week, we found ourselves guests of David & Elaine on their boat, "It's All Good".  What a day!  Bobbin Head was bathed in sunshine when we arrived and boarded and we were all looking forward to a beautifully relaxing day. Bobbin Head is on Cowan Creek, in the Ku-ring-gai National Park in the northern suburbs of Sydney.  Given time, you could spend weeks exploring the waterways and secluded bays. 

We spent time motoring north and then dropped anchor to enjoy a banquet lunch.

And what a lunch - a glass of bubbly just to celebrate the stunning surroundings and that was closely followed by entree.

 

The men were then in charge of the on-board BBQ

and we all enjoyed lunch - Jo, Kathy, Elaine, David and Alex

We had such a fantastic day that Alex needed to spend Tuesday recovering and on Wednesday we were back in the office. 

Thursday morning found us back at hospital for an appointment with Dr. Corey Lau.  Alex had lost more weight and a full scan was booked in for the following Monday.  Due to Alex's continuing breathing difficulties, we had a home oxygen unit delivered the following day.  This looks like a small air conditioning unit, and it is easy to move around because it is on wheels.  Just plug it in, insert the tube into the nose, switch it on and that's about it.  It makes a soft melodic noise and is an invaluable help.

As well as the oxygen, we now have a wheelchair for Alex.  We went back to hospital last Wednesday for the results of the scan.  Alex has continued to lose weight and the scan results were not what we had hoped.  The reason for Alex's weight loss is because the cancer cells have been quite active, and the tumours in his liver have grown.  The cancer has also eaten the neck of his right femur bone.  Because of other growths, it was decided to stop taking the chemo tablets because they were not helping.

After leaving hospital, we treated ourselves to brunch at Little Treasures Cafe.  That evening, Alex hosted Boys Night at our place and enjoyed the company of his mates, pizza was delivered and a few card games were well contested.

On Thursday night, we decided to try out the wheelchair and decided to visit "VIVID Sydney" together.  For the overseas readers, every year for two weeks around this time of year, Sydney is transformed into an amazing canvas of light, music, installations and crowds.  There are numerous exhibitions open at the galleries; a variety of talks as well as performances by local and international musicians.  But from 6pm til midnight for a fortnight, the Sydney harbour area is definitely "the" place to be.  There are huge good natured crowds, and it seems that cameras and tripods are de rigueur.

To finish this entry, I've included more than a few images taken at Vivid.  We spent more than 5 hours having a look at everything, and also enjoyed a meal out at a favourite restaurant in Darling Harbour.  We did joke about having an "L" plate on the back of Alex's wheelchair, but by the time we returned to our parked car, we figured we had the hang of wheelchair driving!

We started at Darling Harbour

then enjoyed a delicious salmon dinner

The Maritime Museum was lit up for the first time this year in Vivid

Our next stop was at Jeffrey St. Wharf, under the Bridge, also lit up for the first time for Vivid.  We looked out over to Luna Park and North Sydney

This installation was fun, located just under the bridge

We continued around to Campbells Cove, where even the Tall Ships were lit up

 and the moon rise just added to the view

 Once at Circular Quay, we could see the Cahill Expressway and some of the city buildings lit up

but in our opinion, the Opera House was the draw card.  Here are perhaps too many images of its many faces.  But really, can you have "too many" images when the Opera House looks like this?

The segment of the light show dedicated to the James Bond movies was great

Next stop was the Museum of Contemporary Art

And we finished the night at Customs House.  The light shows at both MCA and Customs House were certainly 'chalk and cheese'.  If you started at Customs House, you would find the MCA quite relaxing both with the music and the light show itself.  Walking the way we did, we warmed up with MCA before being jolted alive at Customs House.

Phew.  Then it was a push along George Street, over Pyrmont Bridge and Darling Harbour and then back to the car.  What a night!

ALL images Copyright Rafiki Photographics 2013