This week the girls take aim at Roadside Attractions...
What is our fascination with roadside attractions? Is it the boredom on long road trips that makes look at something on the side of the road and say "ok we are stopping here"? We don't know. Join us on our journey to some roadside attractions we can't wait to get out and see.
But first, what were we drinking?
Sarah was drinking West Coast Coolers
Available from Dan Murphy's
Amy was drinking Lazy Sunday Pinot Gris
Bianca was drinking Baileys
Available from Liquorland
Sarah kicks us off explaining just what a roadside attraction is and why we love them. She also tells the tales of two roadside attractions.
The first one she talks about is the Angel of the North which is a giant statue of an Angel on top of a hill in England.
Amy wasn't sure what to cover this week since she loves a good roadside attraction. In the end, she settled on giant things from around Australia.
Each state and territory in Australia has many giant things like there is some sort of unspoken competition going on. In fact, Australia has over 150 giant things and its own Wikipedia page which lists them all.
The Australian Capital Territory (the ACT) doesn't seem to want to compete and has a giant mushroom and a giant pear as well as others that were not note-worthy.
New South Wales is home to the Big Banana, the big bogan, and the big Marino to name a few.
In South Australia, we have the giant ant (Bianca's nightmare), the giant rocking horse, a giant bottle of wine, and one for Sarah - the giant Santa.
Tasmania sort of participates in the silliness of giant things by having the big coffee pot, the big penguin, the big platypus, and the big spud. However, they don't seem to be as invested as the rest of us.
In Western Australia, they missed the brief, and their giant things don't make much sense. They have the giant periodic table, the world's tallest bin, and a big cricket bat.
Finally, in our home state of Victoria, we are home to the big abalone (where Sarah goes to make her sandwiches). The big Seat, big cows, two big koalas, and a giant Sphinx which houses a restaurant Sarah and Bianca went to.
Bianca dug up a few whimsical attractions for y’all
Gnomesville
Lawn gnomes are a classic symbol of kitschy yard decorations, but most people are content to have just one of the little creatures posted up in their yards. Australia’s Gnomesville, a collection of thousands of the weird little statuettes set up on a roundabout is a whole different beast entirely.
The community of silent dwarves actually began as a whimsical protest some 20 years ago. As the Gnomesville website explains, a small bit of land in Ferguson Valley was annexed by the local government to create a roundabout. Despite an outcry from the nearby residents, the roundabout was installed, and tensions simmered. Then at some point, a gnome appeared. At first, there was just one in a tree hollow, but after a few months, there were around 20. The collection continued to grow as visitors and locals alike came and dropped off their own little statues.
In the decades since their first appearance, the army of gnomes had exploded into the thousands. For a time, theft and vandalism stunted the growth of the little population, but today the site is fairly well respected and continues to grow as people bring their own gnomes to add to the community.
There are so many gnomes now in Gnomesville, that in some spots they are even grouped up into little neighborhoods, where gnomes of the same color or attitude are placed together. Visit Gnomesville, but be sure to bring a new resident.
Next was...
Tasmazia and the Village of Lower Crackpot
This self-proclaimed "largest maze complex in the world” is a quirky family attraction in Tasmania’s Promised Land, backdropped by the picturesque Mount Roland. While sometimes classified as a theme park, this description doesn’t quite fit. There are no rides; in fact, there really isn’t anything mechanical or electric at all. Tasmazia is essentially a large maze, with other mazes nestled inside.
Aside from the Great Maze, one of the world’s largest botanical mazes, the mazes include the Hampton Court Maze, the Yellow Brick Road Maze, the Hexagonal Maze, the Cage, the Irish Maze, the Confusion Maze, and the Balance Maze.
One of the main attractions at the park is the eponymous Village of Lower Crackpot, a quaint miniature village built to one-fifth scale. The Embassy Garden is another set of model buildings and icons representing locations around the world, or, in some cases, representing other worlds in the form of the buildings dedicated to intergalactic and time travel.
A quirky, occasionally subversive, sense of humor is present throughout the park. The Village of Lower Crackpot includes the “School of Lateral Thinking” and interplanetary balloon aviation. A monument to whistle-blowers can be found in the Embassy Garden.
Other features of the park include Cubby Town (a cluster of mini-buildings that kids can enter), Lower Crackpot’s Correctional Centre (an assortment of punishments such as faux stocks and a guillotine), and the Three Bears’ Cottage. The park also includes a working lavender farm, which is in full bloom in January.
This location is off the beaten path, even for Tasmania. Consider combining your visit with a visit to Cradle Mountain and Mole Creek's Marakoopa Cave glow worm tour. Sheffield, Tasmania's "Town of Murals" is also nearby and has several restaurant options.
and lastly...
Grandad's Magical Wonderland
There once was a patch of public land in a Newcastle suburb that lay neglected and forgotten. Where others saw overgrown grass and untamed brambles, a man named Merv Moyle saw a wild jungle of exotic flowering trees and mythical creatures hiding in the foliage. A lifelong gardener, Moyle began to transform the neglected patch, planting palms and azaleas and ferns, stringing up garlands of roses, and laying winding stone pathways through his little oasis.
As the garden grew and blossomed, the once dreary space filled with bright colors and extraordinary magic as beautiful fairies and wondrous beasts arrived in droves, making their new homes in the knots of the trees, in the shade of the palm fronds, and under the caps of giant toadstools.
Only a child at heart could summon such fantastical beings, and that is exactly what the late Merv Moyle was. Begun in 1970 as a play area for his daughters, the fairy garden quickly grew into something larger. It became a beloved destination for both the children and adults of Newcastle, a peaceful place to escape from city life and discover all manner of creatures— from gorillas to dragons and, of course, fairies—along its leafy pathways. Over the years, the garden grew to include a pet cemetery, a barbecue pit, several seating areas for tea parties, and a special mailbox for the Fairy Queen herself.
Moyle continued to maintain the garden until his passing in 2018 at the age of 94. Today, Moyle’s daughters and local volunteers continue his work, ensuring that everyone, from the young to the young at heart, can enjoy the garden and its magical inhabitants for many years to come.
Grandad's Magical Wonderland is free to visit and open to the public. Within the garden is the Fairy Queen's mailbox, where visitors can leave the Fairy Queen letters. If you would like to receive a response from the Fairy Queen, please leave a self-addressed stamped envelope in the mailbox.
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