Weekend Roundup

 Welcome to The Weekend Roundup...hosted by Tom The Back Roads Traveller

1. Starts with "D"
2. A Favorite
3. DULL - chosen by Tom

Starts with D

DOGS DONKEYS Kerry Ireland

FAVOURITE

DOOR Elicser College St. Toronto

DULL

The weather, not the Mount Tomah Botanic Gardens! NSW Australia.

Tuesday Treasures

 Perhaps this building, at 254 Locke Street South in Hamilton ON, was Duncan Garson’s shop back when soda fountains in drug stores were common.

Hamilton ON

The soda fountain was 'born' in the 1850’s, when people would seek fountain drinks from their local drugstore to cure physical ailments. At the time, many fountain drinks were concoctions or extracts of flavored, effervesced drugs.

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Car and Collectibles Museum Russell's New Mexico

Cocaine and caffeine were among such popular drugs found in pharmacy drinks—this combination was used for headache treatment. As patients began to suffer rebound headaches, they would return again and again for more drinks to treat their pain.

Mount Airy North Carolina

Patients enjoyed visiting the soda fountain to get some 'pep—at the time, it was widely believed that stimulants were safe and effective. Many pharmacists (called druggists at the time and chemists to this day in the UK) even made and marketed their own secret formulas.


Pharmacies also began to offer milkshakes (the original recipe was carbonated water, sweetened flavored milk, and a raw egg) and ice cream sodas (flavored soda water with a scoop of vanilla ice cream) at their fountains.

Frankenmuth Michigan

Selling cocaine-derived drinks was completely legal, as every drug was over the counter. However, in 1914, the Harrison Narcotics Tax Act became law under President Woodrow Wilson, and it banned the use of cocaine and opiates in OTC products.

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Roanoke Virginia

Almost every drugstore had a soda fountain by the early 1920’s. Due to prohibition, which began in 1919, bars were closing and people needed a place to socialize. At the time, ice cream parlors were usually standalone businesses and not part of a soda fountain.

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Mackinac Island Michigan

Pharmacist Jacob Baur started the Liquid Carbonic Company in 1888, where he manufactured carbon dioxide in tanks, and then the real soda fountain was born. His Liquid Carbonic soda fountains were manufactured and marketed in the early 1900’s.1 A potential soda jerk (one who serves and sells from a soda fountain) could purchase a Liquid Carbonic soda fountain, an operations and recipe manual, and enter the soda fountain business. The soda fountain was seen as a valuable and profitable business.
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Charlotte North Carolina

Pepsi was invented by pharmacist Caleb Bradham, at his own drugstore, Bradham’s, in New Bern, North Carolina, in 1893. At the time, the drink was coined 'Brad’s Drink,' and it was renamed as Pepsi in 1898.4 Bradham believed that the drink was not only refreshing but would aid in indigestion, or dysPEPSIa, hence the name Pepsi.

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New Bern North Carolina

That's me, taking a photo!

Preservative-free soda syrup, with flavorings extracted from natural fruits, such as Orange Crush and Cherry Smash, became common in the local drugstores. The soda jerk would add carbonated water and phosphate to the syrup to make a unique beverage. Syrup companies began to provide the pharmacist with free syrup dispensers in exchange for advertising.

Winnipeg Manitoba

Soon, soda dispensers came along, replacing syrup dispensers, and changed the market. Pharmacists no longer had to mix their own concoctions. Instead of having to mix syrup with carbonated water and phosphate, the soda dispenser mixed the syrup and carbonated water, eliminating any additional steps to prepare a fountain drink. Soon, companies like Coca Cola and Pepsi began making soda dispensers, which they supplied to the pharmacies free of charge. The pharmacist simply had to hold the glass and turn the handle to dispense a drink.

Calgary Alberta

Although this advancement freed up the pharmacist, the pharmacist also lost some uniqueness because the drinks became the same at every drugstore. According to the virtual Soderlund Drugstore and Pharmacy Museum, “As wonderful as these soda dispensers were, they hastened the demise of the soda fountain. They contributed to the homogenization of drugstores.”

Toronto ON - sadly now gone

A bonus for the soda companies: most people were already loyal to the brand from drinking these sodas at the pharmacy. Once the sodas were available in bottles, the brands were already recognizable and in demand.

Sydney Australia (click link to learn more)

Today, soda fountains are seen as old-fashioned yet charming, but are few and far between. Many customers enjoy the egg creams, soda floats, sundaes, and milkshakes that these soda fountains have to offer.

Click here to visit the Coca Cola Museum in Las Vegas

Weekend Roundup

Welcome to The Weekend Roundup...hosted by Tom The Back Roads Traveler


1. Starts with "U"
2. A Favorite
3. UNDER- chosen by Tom

Starts with "U"
UPSCALE or UPMARKET cafe somewhere in Wyoming

Favourite
A horseshoe is shaped like a U Wickensburg AZ

UNDER

Wake UP down UNDER in Sydney Australia 

Déjà Brew
UPGRADE who can resist coffee with breakfast at Cracker Barrel??? Ohio.

Weekend Roundup

Welcome to The Weekend Roundup...hosted by Tom The Back Roads Traveler


1. Starts with "G"
2. A Favorite
3. GREEN- chosen by Tom

Starts with "G"

G'Day Green - Sydney Australia

Favourite

G'Day Good - Toronto ON

GREEN

Sidewalk art along Lake Ontario

Déjà Brew

Back Catalog

Dutch's Tuesday Photo Challenge

This prompt require's Dutch's explanation.
My challenge to you is to find an image in your back catalog that still grabs your attention and share it! Of course, if you want to re-interpret the image with what you have gained over the years, feel free to do so. Any kind of image is appropriate for this challenge! Let us know why this image still gets your attention!


February 2015 - Sydney Australia

This photo was taken on a very mediocre tour from Sydney to the Blue Mountains. The tour outline looked great on paper but the guide was worthless. The morning dragged on and then in the afternoon the fog rolled in and it looked like rain.

We stopped at Mount Tomah Botanic Gardens thinking it's late summer in Australia, how great are the gardens going to be?

AND I got this shot!

LAUGH May

This month's theme  Linking up with City Daily Photo.

February 2015 - Sydney Australia

Hungrily eating out of John's hand

Six Word Saturday

March 2015 - Doonside Australia

January's Theme

City's Daily Theme this month is your favourite photo of 2015.

How can I pick one photo after all the travelling we did in 2015??

OK I'll give it a try...

I am going with this one, taken outside Sydney Australia at the Botanic Gardens. It was a foggy afternoon as we approached the gardens. This was in February so it was autumn in Australia so the perennials were the last of the season.

I snapped this photo and when I downloaded and reviewed them I loved it!!

Saturday Snapshot

Saturday Snapshots is hosted by West Metro Mommy. 

March 2015 - Sydney Australia

This building was just down the street from our hotel on Martin Place.

Martin Place is a pedestrian mall in the central business district and has been described as the "love heart" of Sydney. As home to the Reserve Bank of Australia, the Commonwealth Bank of Australia, Macquarie Bank and other corporations, it is also a centre of business and finance. The Sydney GPO and the Seven Network's Sydney news centre are also located on Martin Place.


The Sydney General Post Office (No. 1 Martin Place) is located at the western end of Martin Place, between George and Pitt Streets. Designed by colonial architect James Barnet, the building was constructed in stages from 1866 to 1891. Barnet's building features a neo-classical sandstone facade, with a colonnade running around the building at street level. Above the centre of the 100-metre Martin Place facade is the clocktower. This building was the headquarters of the NSW postal system until 1996, when it was sold and refurbished. The building now contains shops, cafes, restaurants, and bars. Australia Post maintains a presence in the form of a "Post Shop" at the corner of Martin Place and George Street.

Government Architect James Barnet and Italian sculptor Signor Sani raised the ire of the populace by creating a series of sculptures above the Pitt Street archways of the GPO building which depicted contemporary people at work. These included a fishmonger, a sailor, a postman delivering a letter to a barmaid, a printer and an architect (who looked remarkably like Barnet himself!). A large section of the community viewed these sculptures as sacrilegious and totally inappropriate for the adornment of such a classically designed building; the fact that the building also featured bas-reliefs of Commerce, Science, Literature and the Arts as well as a giant statue of Britannia resting on a lion made no difference.

Signs - Sydney Australia

 February 2015 - Sydney Australia

The Coca-Cola Billboard in Kings Cross, Sydney, usually referred to by Sydneysiders simply as "The Coke Sign", is an advertising billboard owned by the Coca-Cola Company, which is more often regarded as an iconic landmark than as an advertisement. Commercially, it is considered to be the premier billboard in Sydney and is the largest billboard in the Southern Hemisphere. It is commonly, though incorrectly, assumed to be heritage-listed.

The red and white neon billboard was erected in 1974 in its current location whilst the left side of the billboard was a later addition in 1990. In 2004 the billboard for the first time in thirty years advertised a product other than Coca Cola, when the left side of the board advertised the release of Halo 2.

On 31 March 2007 the lights on the billboard were intentionally switched off for the first time, in correlation with the inaugural Earth Hour.

On 23 April 2008, four activists unfurled a banner over the billboard in protest of Coke’s sponsorship of the Olympic torch relay at Kings Cross. The banner read: "Enjoy Compassion. Always Tibet. CHINA - TALK TO THE DALAI LAMA". All four activists were arrested.

On 18 April 2008 Coca-Cola Amatil (CCA, the Australian Coca-Cola licensee) purchased the iconic sign. The Coca-Cola Company (TCCC) had leased the sign since it was built in 1976. CCA and TCCC agreed to maintain the then-existing leasing arrangements.

Day 3 Australia - Sydney

Tuesday Feb 24 - Sydney Australia
Italics tour company description.

Transfer Type: Seat in Vehicle
Duration: 9.83 hour(s)
Pick up: 7:10am Swissotel Sydney
Drop off: 5:00pm Swissotel Sydney

We were up and out the door at 7 AM despite almost sleeping in. We were met with a small van which took us to our meeting place.
Heading out of the city your first stop this morning is at Featherdale Wildlife Park where you
arrive before any other tourists to meet the native Australian animals here - guests can actually
get up close and personal, stroke a koala and hand feed kangaroos, wallabies and emus...a
great experience.

We are a small group, seventeen in total. No introductions are done.

 There are two guides as the driver/guide is in training. They are both named Peter and have a good Australian sense of humour.
We are at the park before it opens. As we wait they chat with us.

It seems they missed one passenger, a glitch between the two tour companies. She taxis to the park, at tour company's expense, $160.

Once in, the guide mentioned he likes coming into the park, but he doesn't do a tour. We are left to wander but not given a return time. We finally track him down at the coffee shop and he said to be back by 9:30 at the bus.

The koala is taken out for photos but the duration is up to the koala. We are only allowed to pat their behinds. So soft. And I will put to rest the story that they are drunk on the eucalyptus. The reason they sleep so much is due to the absolute lack of nutrition in the tree. 

Feeding the kangaroos.

We are back at the bus by 9:30. But wait another fifteen minutes for some others, who can't be blamed as there was no clear direction given.
Mary, the missed passenger, climbs aboard, disappointed that she didn't have much time at the park. When some others appear she comments "you're late", not appreciated by them.


Departing from Featherdale drive to the Blue Mountains via the highway.


The Australian Light Horse Sculpture Parade is dedicated to the heroic troops who served in the Australian Light Horse and their horses that could never return.

The sculpture has a central mast and four sets of radiating markers representing the Australian Light Horse on parade. The soaring 55m high mast with its reflective crown, located at the centre of the Light Horse Interchange, provides a focus to the sculpture.

The lit mast and crown symbolise a torch in the dark. Red, the colour of the Flanders poppy and poppies that bloomed throughout Palestine, is symbolic of the blood of supreme sacrifice and is the colour chosen for the sculptural group.

The abstract plumage attached to each marker represents the emu plumes attached to the Light Horsemen's slouch hats. The white band is a reference to the departing soldiers' innocence of war.

Travel through the picturesque village of Wentworth Falls, home to a good collection of Victorian and other historic buildings and onto the Wentworth Falls Lookout.
With spectacular views over the Jamison Valley and the magnificent waterfall for which it is named, this beautiful lookout is your first stop. Here enjoy a leisurely 30 minute round trip walk to see the Waterfalls.


Nope, never saw the town or the water fall.

Instead he took us to his secret look out. This was a good spot, but a steep decline. A few didn't come.

Devil plant.

Continuing on you arrive at Eaglehawk Lookout, a remote lookout point away from the crowds for views of the famous 3 Sisters. The character of the Three Sisters changes throughout the day
and throughout the seasons as the sunlight brings out the magnificent colours. Here your guide
will discuss the legends behind this famous rock formation and time available for you to take
some great photos.


Nope, we don't stop here.
Instead we spend the next hour dropping three couples off at three separate hotels in the Blue Mountains. This was extremely annoying. The guides got off the bus, retrieved their luggage and escorted them into the hotels.

We make a stop along the highway, no signage, at another "secret" lookout. No  markings, no rails, we walked down, but some turned back when you had to bend the trees to get through to see the 3 Sisters. Sorry, Aussies, but these were not that spectacular if you have seen the 3 Sisters in Arches and Monument National Valleys.

Then make your way around the mountain to the village of Blackheath and your lunch. Here you
enjoy a 2 course lunch food only. Beverages can be purchased at your own expense from the Bar.

Lunch was at the Boiler Room, a restaurant set in the original boiler room of the adjacent hotel.
The menu was limited to either a Caesar salad, pizza, or panini. All carbs.
When we commented later to our agent who had set up this trip, she said lunch was supposed to be at the Leura Golf Course and we should have had an option of fish.

The Boiler Room belonged to the hotel next door.
The hotel began as the Belgravia Hotel which was completed in 1891.

The Australian retailer Mark Foy purchased the site in 1902 for the purposes of a hydropathic sanatorium under the belief that the land contained mineral springs. At that stage the town was known as "Medlow" and Mark Foy successfully petitioned the New South Wales government to change the name to Medlow Bath, the current name.

By the time the hotel opened in 1904, the mineral springs (if they ever existed) had dried up. Mark Foy had mineral water imported from Germany in large steel containers. After travelling in these containers from Germany to Australia the water reportedly tasted awful, and so it was assumed that it must have been good for a person's health. Guests of the hotel were instructed to drink this water on a regular basis. Fire destroyed the gallery building in 1905, and the original Belgravia wing in 1922.

The afternoon is spent visiting a selection of lookouts. Once you clap your eyes on the view from
Govetts Leap you'll know why it's one of the most famous lookouts in Australia. The magnificent
waterfall drops a whopping 180m to the base of the cliff.

Nope, no selection of lookouts. But we do get a waterfall.

Then drive through the picturesque village of Mount Wilson and stop to enjoy a glass of sparkling wine or orange juice at a beautiful remote lookout location.

We don't stop at this village.

The last stop is at the delightful Mount Tomah Botanic Gardens where you stop to enjoy the sweeping views across to Sydney before travelling down the Bells Line of Road to arrive back at your hotel.

The fog is gathering like a cloak as we head towards the gardens giving them a lovely mysterious appearance.

We have our sparkling wine as we stroll.  It is getting to the end of summer for the flowers.

 Back on the bus for the 1.5 hour drive back to our hotel.

Evening on our own.

It is gone 6 PM when we get back to the hotel so we pack up as we have to be out of here by 9 AM for our 11:40 flight to Cairns.

Then we head out for dinner, and it had actually gotten a little cool and I put on my sweater (John kindly went back to the hotel to get it for me).

The plan was a place I had seen that had gammon steak and mashed potatoes on George St. but when we got there it was a gambling place and the clientele seemed a little strange. So we went to PJ Gallagher's and I had lamb and John had stew.