SOVEREIGN HILL (Australia VI)
Nope, my
Australian trip saga isn’t over. We still have four posts to go.
It’s Tuesday
of my second week in the land down under and my sweetheart is taking me to a
trip to Ballarat, an hour and a half drive to a place called “Sovereign Hill”.
My husband has told me of this place even before we were married and hoped that
someday he’ll be able to take me there. I remember him showing me the map and
the promotional tour of Sovereign Hill, I never thought I’d actually be there myself.
Sovereign
Hill is an outdoor museum in Bradshaw Ballarat. A gold mining town recreated in
the 1850s, during the gold rush. From the outside it isn’t much but once you
get through the ticket booth and through the back door (leading to the town) of
the receiving building, it seemed like you’ve stepped back in time. Everything
is 1850, the buildings, the cottages, the hotels, the steam machineries even
the staff are dressed in the period. It’s truly a cultural and historical
experience.
Our first
stop was a recreated man-made creek where you could pan for gold and we did!
You can buy these little bottles filled with water to put your tiny grain sized
gold in. Then you get a pan, shovel wash
dirt from the bottom of the creek into the pan. Then wash the dirt off the
gold. Lick your finger, put your finger on the speck of gold to pick it up and
then put your gold in the bottle you’ve bought. It was 8 degrees that day so we
didn’t last at the creek very long, water was cold but we did get our souvenir
gold!
Then Russell
took me on a walk in the main street and had lunch at “New York Bakery” where I
had Tortillas. A watch shop was next to it and we went there afterwards. We
went to the apothecary, church, wheelwright, theater, bowling alley, the single
and double gable cottages, the hotel, bank, foundry, post office, the
undertaker’s business, souvenir stores, candle factory and the shop where they
have displays of gold artifacts and souvenirs and bought some mementos to take
home.
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Before we
left there was a parade of troopers dressed in authentic uniform complete with
muskets. The sergeant drilled them that involved marching and presenting arms.
And I had the privilege of taking a picture with them.
It was a
whole day affair and I had such a great time! I was able to know more about
Australia, We were able to talk to some of the volunteers (Russell used to
volunteer also and wear a costume some years back) dressed in the period and
learned how to fire a musket. I’ve not only taken pictures but I’ve also stories
to tell of what I saw there.
“SovereignHill” is certainly a place to see and experience. I feel privileged to have had
the opportunity to be there.
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