CASTLEMAINE AND CHEWTON

We packed the car to leave Bendigo but not before having a big breakfast of eggs and bacon at "Barzurk"on Pall Mall which is on the main drag in Bendigo. Matt the host was happy which is good on a wet miserable  Sunday morning. We were off to the market before leaving for Castlemaine and home. The market was as miserable as the weather so we set off to Castlemaine.

Castlemaine is also one of the gold mining townsbeing a day's walk between it and Bendigo. The Miners only choice of transport was by "shanks pony" (to walk). Castlemaine was also having a market day and although smaller it was more interesting with many boutique foodie items. Castlemaine was a Farmer's Market, where the Bendigo one had very little fresh produce and a great deal of  'junk'. We purchased a mandarin cordial, and three jams, two savoury and one sweet - aubergine & mango chilli, raspberry & balsamic jam  and aubergine & orange. Later on down the road we came across a roadside market where Sue bought a big bag of Dutch Cream potatoes and jars of mango & passion fruit jam and home made green tomato pickles.

You may remember from yesterday that I lost a heap of photographs from out time in Bendigo (sob, sob) but I purchased a new card and will take advice from fellow blogger Diane to copy my photos from now on. While on the subject of fellow bloggers, Dianne from South Australia did in fact send us her crappy weather with much rain today as you will see from our photos.



We arrived at the Castlemaine market to be welcomed by the Brolly Brigade.



Emu Oil - a cure for all ailments.



The latest fashion in Castlemaine Market wear.



Beside the garden market place is the Castlemaine gallery and information centre.



This clock was decommissioned from the Castlemaine Railway station and put into storage somewhere in Melbourne. The locals lobbied for its return and has been on display here since.



Inside the Castlemaine Gallery.

I really liked this painting - it may have been a statement from our young folk with large mortgages being hung out to dry by the banks.

There's that clock again but these two photos were amazing.

Would you believe this diving bell was built in Castlemaine by the company of Thompson's and commissioned for the salvage of over 5 million dollars of gold ingots. A ship with the gold ingots was hit by a German mine off the  coast of New Zealand in June1940. By October 1941, the first ingots were recovered by the use of the Diving Bell.

After the market we were in need of coffee so we wandered up the street to a cafe that we were familiar with called Saffs and across the road is a huge renovators warehouse that we had never previously entered - it was an Aladdin's Cave.



Which way will I look first - too much to absorb.



How Aussie - a chandelier of Kero Lamps.



What could a weekend be for me without a bike?

Supposedly the first motor mower in Castlemaine - cute.

 After Castlemaine we decided that we would head off down the freeway to home, that is until we came across Chewton which could be described as a suburb of Castlemaine. That's if you could describe an outer village as a suburb in a rural district. Chewton is like a hobbit town in a way. It's a real 1850's gold mining town where people were building small miners' cottages that have survived to today. Well in some cases only just!!!



A Town Hall for Hobbits





Almost forgot to say that we bought a lamp to remember our weekend in Bendigo. Isn't she divine?



A great weekend but gee-whizz, its nice to be home.