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Welcome to a new Probus Year of Fun, Friendship and Fellowship
2023

DONVALE CENTRAL PROBUS CLUB

Annual January Picnic
(in lieu of a January Meeting)

The Daily Toon The Daily Toon

Tuesday 17th January 2023 saw our second Donvale Central Probus Club function for the New Year, a BBQ at Ruffey Lake Park in Doncaster/Templestowe.(The Saturday before some of us had met for coffee at the Pines). The hot weather forecast necessitated a few changes - an early start and a modification of the menu from cooked meats to sandwiches, nibbles and fruit, washed down by lovely cold drinks.

Undeterred by the 37' intrepid Probians rocked up at 10.30 am to chat, laugh, and talk about all that has happened in our lives over the 4-5 weeks since we all got together for our Christmas luncheon in mid December. Although some of our members continue to battle with their health issues, it was great to hear that others are steadily improving from surgery.

Already we have an itinerary of walks, breakfasts, a camping/caravanning trip to Bendigo in the pipeline, and other activities in addition to our next General Meeting on 21st February.

It should be a great year in 2023!

AMBLER'S REPORT:

Welcome back Amblers!

We had 6 lovely ladies join us in our first amble for the year on 3rd February at Halliday Park. It is summer and we were all ready for a nice stroll around the park and a cuppa and chat after. But, we live in Melbourne so of course it was cold and wet. We managed one lap of the park then the heavens opened up. Carol kindly offered that if weather was too inclement we head back to her place for a cuppa. So, Cafe Carol's it was, and a lovely morning was had by all.

Here's hoping our next amble will be more weather friendly. We look forward to seeing you there.

"Life happens, Coffee helps!" Well, it did today.

Ros and Sue

SUE'S WALK REPORT:

What a fantastic turn out we had for our first walk for the year! 14 walkers joined in for the Finns Reserve walk on what was a perfect sunny morning on the 9th Feb. This is a pretty area, with lovely views of the river and one can see why the Heidleberg Artists love it.

We spent a bit of time in the shelter that had a lot of signage telling us a lot of history of the area. We started and finished our walk at Melissa's Cafe where we enjoyed our refreshments and a good catch up afterwards. I look forward to seeing you all again for our next walk on 28th February in the Eltham area.

One of the plaques showed " James Finn's Upper Yarra Hotel was opened on this spot (Templestowe Rd near the corner of Thompsons Rd) in 1872. About 200 bricks from the Hotel were used in the construction of this marker. David Belkl's Upper Yarra Hotel was built near here in 1853 on the eastern side of the creek, and, in 18956 was the first meeting place of the Templestowe Roads Board, the forerunner of the City of Doncaster and Templestowe.

CRAZY WHIST - 23/2/23

Last night 12 members enjoyed a game of Crazy Whist at the hall. Although our numbers were down the enthusiasm was still evident, trying to get the highest and lowest score. The lowest score prize was won by Mary with a score of 55, but Don won the night with the highest score of 82, although Lyn W. was right on his heels with 81. We finished the night with tea/coffee, Tim Tams and more chatting.

Jan

BREAKFAST AT THE FOOD REPUBLIC:

Nineteen members from Donvale Central Probus Club gathered on Thursday morning at The Food Republic in Blackburn for a very filling brekky. With the breakfast menu options including Eggs benedict, Buttermilk Pancakes stacks with a butterscotch sauce, large serves of muesli plus "extras", Japanese omelettes, fruit toast and delicious coffee and tea, Nobody went home feeling any need for lunch! It was a marvellous opportunity to hear about the plans in the pipeline for the upcoming Club trip to Bendigo in a week's time and just spend time with good friends in a quiet restaurant setting with very obliging staff.

Fred

FEBRUARY BARBECUE - RUFFEY LAKE

On a very hot February evening it was great to see quite a number romp up to our monthly barbecue.

There was much fun and chatter, glasses of wine consumed and nibbles to share.

A great place to share stories of our life experiences, travel etc.

Come along and join in the fellowship that our Club has to offer.

SUE'S WALK REPORT:

We had our Eltham Park walk on Tuesday 28th Feb, which was also our movie day, not to mention a lot of our members were enjoying time in Bendigo. You can't say our wonderful club doesn't offer options! And I'm sure everyone was having a wonderful time wherever they were.

Due to multiple choices we had 4 join in for our walk through Barak Park in Eltham, heading to the Teapot Cafe for our cuppa halfway. The weather was perfect for a nice morning walk, but we did strike a couple of hazards along the way. There is a section of this walk where we cross over a couple of small bridges, but sadly, the bridges had been demolished in the storms, I guess by falling trees, so we had to do a bit of detour. The bridges are going to be restored, but I'm not sure when, so we will just wait and see before heading there again.

As you can see from the photos, we had 3 lovely ladies join in, plus my hubby being the only man. He did meet up with Alan "I Can Jump Puddles" Marshall along the way, which made him feel much better (see photo)

ALAN MARSHALL - 'I CAN JUMP PUDDLES'

He was born in Noorat, Vic. At six he contracted polio which left him with a physical disability that grew worse as he grew older. From an early age, he resolved to be a writer, and in

'I Can Jump Puddles', he demonstrated an almost total recall of his childhood in Noorat. He was born 2nd May, 1902 and died 21 January, 1984 and is buried in Diamond Creek Cemetery. Noorat is a small town in South West Victoria, approx 211 km west of Melbourne and is based at the foot of Mount Noorat, a dormant volcano which is considered to have Australia' s largest dry crater.

Your History lesson for the day!

National Portrait Gallery

I have recently had a special birthday, and one very big birthday cake, which I am working my way through. I saw a sign the other day that said "Birthday cake calories don't count". How happy am I!

NB. Our next walk is Thursday, 9th March, meeting at Candlebark Park Mel. Ref G12. Hope to see you there.

SUE'S WALK REPORT:

We had 12 walkers join in for the Candlebark Park to Petty's Orchard on Thursday 9th March. For various reasons, we had some coming this way, some going that way but we all finished up together at Petty's Orchard Cafe where we lingered for quite some time, enjoying our cuppas and a good chat (also in the company of lots of lorikeets, magpies with a few kangaroos under the fruit trees) before heading back. Once again, some went this way and some went that way, and by the time we got back to the "Green Squiggly Sculpture" there was only 4 left for the "Official" photo shoot. Weather was perfect and a good morning was had by all.

Officially known as the "River Peel", the plate steel sculpture was created in 2000 by artists Michael Bellmen and Catriona Macleod. The design reflects the Yarra River curves, as it bends and turns through the area, and an apple peel, as a homage to the history of the orchards in the Doncaster and Templestowe area.

In 1883 Thomas Petty arrived in Australia from England and selected land in the Doncaster/Templestowe area. His grandson Thomas Henry first purchased the property now known as Petty's Orchard in 1911. Thomas Henry was the first of three generations to manage the orchard until MMBW purchased the property in 1981 and is now managed by Parks Victoria.

It is among Melbourne's oldest and last remaining commercial orchards. A section of the orchard holds one of the largest collections of heritage apple varieties in Australia, including more than 250 varieties of old or rare apples and other types of fruit.

Local Food Connect

Our next walk is Tuesday, 28th march meeting out the front of my place, walking to the Mullum Mullum Trail, having our cuppa at the Stadium on the way back. Hope to see you there

Photos of Petty Orchard

TAKE A BREAK IN BENDIGO

An enthusiastic group of travellers met up at the Gold Nugget Caravan Park in Bendigo. We had exclusive use of the Conference Centre where we enjoyed drinks and nibbles and welcomed Peter and Jan Brown who joined us without their friends Rick and Wanda who were struggling with a car problem back in Melbourne. We were pleased that they eventually solved the problem and arrived later the following day. That evening we had a catered dinner, which we all enjoyed, and it was a welcome change from the casseroles and desserts we normally do on our first night.

The next morning, we were competing in a tough game of mini golf. The teams were strategically chosen, and the rules changed to our advantage, but sadly Brian, Ros, John B and I were soundly beaten by Ralph, Helen and Noelene, who claimed a hole in one. John C, Fred and Jeff did well to come second, especially as Jeff kept running off to play Chess against our Chess champion, Alan.

After the Games we got smartened up and headed for the Bendigo Racetrack, where we enjoyed first class seats overlooking the mounting yards and the finishing line. Money was lost and won over the day, but it was a very entertaining afternoon.

On Wednesday we turned up for a "Vintage Talking Tram" trip through Bendigo, where we learn't about the history, buildings and attractions of Bendigo. We alighted at Charing Cross and wandered up to the Shramrock Hotel for lunch.

Riding the Rails

Again we finished the day with Happy Hour in the Conference Centre and the Old Jokers were in fine form, keeping us entertained with their jokes and stories.

We began Thursday with a complementary breakfast put on by the Caravan Park. Everyone enjoyed the berries and ice cream while some opted for seconds of lemon and honey.

We were well fuelled for our trip to visit the Buddhist Great Stupa of Universal Compassion, which is the same size and design as 'The Great Stupa of Gyantse in Tibet'. While the Stupa and some of the carvings are still to be decorated, it is a most imposing but tranquil place to visit. Our guides gave us the necessary information as most of us were quite ignorant about the Stupa and its importance to the Australian people.

The free afternoons were spent doing a variety of activities which included, among other attractions, meeting local friends and relatives, seeing the magnificent collection in the Golden Dragon Museum and the Chinese Gardens, visiting the Bendigo Pottery, and buying wool at the Bendigo Woollen Mills.

We finished our stay with our traditional Thursday night dinner, this time at the Huntly Hotel, just a few kms down the road. As you can see from the photos -