A picnic by the river

An oak tree by the Murray River in Albury, New South Wales Australia.

The other week Adam and I took a drive south to Albury, on the New South Wales / Victorian border.  Our purpose was to scout out a baby superstore to start to get our heads around just what we’ll need when our little person arrives in September.

It turned into though, the most wonderful day out – complete with a picnic dinner on the banks of the Murray River…

After we finished at the baby store, we weren’t quite ready to head home yet.   Adam suggested we head down to the river precinct.  He’d heard it was a lovely spot and it was such a nice day (sunny, not too hot) that we decided it was too good of an opportunity to pass up.

The Murray River at Albury.

We parked the car and wandered through parkland.  There were big shady trees, picnic tables, a playground and dozens and dozens of people just like us, making the most of the beautiful surroundings.  On our walk, we ran into a friend from Wagga Wagga, who helps run the Cork and Fork Fest – a regular food and wine event held in town, that’s recently expanded to Albury.  She informed us the festival was on that night, so we decided we’d stick around for it.

The event was still a few hours away, and this pregnancy is seeing me eat at fairly regular intervals , so when I spotted a café selling ice-cream cones, Adam and I decided to indulge – nothing quite beats dessert before dinner right?!

Mint choc-chip ice cream cone.

With a little more time to kill, we dug out a blanket from the back of the car and laid it out under some big trees.  We laughed at cockatoos gadding about, watched people walking their dogs… and I may have even had a little snooze!

Sunlight peeking between trees in Albury, New South Wales, Australia.

By this stage the festival was just starting to kick off, so we found a stunning spot by the Murray River, and settled in.  We feasted on a delicious Massaman beef curry, observed kayakers in the river and chatted for hours and hours.

Two sets of feet on the banks of the Murray River at Albury, New South Wales, Australia.

Crowds of people at Cork and Fork fest in Albury, New South Wales, Australia.

Massaman beef curry in a cardboard box.

It’s been some time since Adam and I had a meal out together, just the two of us, and it was so nice to just spend some one-on-one time together.   The last few weeks have been manically crazy and it was wonderful to sit and talk and not worry about anyone or anything else for a while.

Twilight on a country road in regional New South Wales, Australia.

We left Albury just as the sun was starting to set and had a picturesque twilight drive home.  It was the perfect end to what turned out to be a rather impromptu date night, and a gentle reminder that sometimes the nicest days are the ones that are unexpected.

Have a wonderful week. x

9 thoughts on “A picnic by the river

  1. Haven’t been on a picnic for years, maybe the last time I did I was a kid. When the weather gets better here, maybe I should plan a day out for doing something like you did.

    Hope next week is as equally good for you ~

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    1. Hi Emma! Thanks for stopping by- where is ‘here’ for you? We’re pretty lucky in Australia that the weather is so conducive to eating outside (except for the flies!) I think it’s something we definitely take for granted. Hope you’re week is treating you well. 😊

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      1. Fantastic! My husband is English and we spent almost a year and a half living in his hometown in Worcestershire a few years ago. It was a great experience I’ve got such fond memories of that time.

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      2. Then maybe you can empathise how different it can be to decide where to settle down for a longer period of time. I hope wherever you are, you are content and perhaps you are/can be fortunate enough to live between both countries.

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      3. It’s so hard. We’re in Australia for now, but haven’t ruled out going back to the U.K. in the future. We know we can be happy in both countries, but at the moment Australia is best suited to where we are in life. International relationships have a whole new level of complexity about them!

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  2. Well whatever happens, I’ll make sure to return to your page to see what you get upto and maybe others also experiencing a serious international relationship would benefit from your advice or simply hearing about your experience 🙂

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