The May Day long weekend

I love long weekends. So much better than ordinary ones because there is extra time to do all the things you want to do: one day for having fun, one day to relax and one day to catch up on life's jobs.

This long weekend, however, I had plans to do very little to make up for a recent hectic run of fabulous weekends. For instance, Saturday, all I have to show for Saturday was this photo of a cake I made. It doesn't look very exciting but it's a German recipe by ex-boss gave me, it was simple and it's delicious. As usual I got too impatient to eat it to bother with icing.

On Sunday Chuck and I headed out to Cleveland to enjoy the sunshine on Moreton Bay. There were markets on, a mix of farmers and craft and it was an absolutely perfect day to be by the sea.

 At the street markets.

 

 Looking out over Moreton Bay to Stradbroke.

Brunch under the lighthouse. 

After Cleveland we headed a little way north to the mouth of the Brisbane River to visit Fort Lytton. I had never heard of Fort Lytton until a couple of weeks ago when Chuck mentioned it.

Fort Lytton is a small collection of installations, guns and museums that looks out over the mouth of the river towards the airport. Built in 1881, during WWI and WWII it was a key defensive base for both sea and air attacks on Brisbane, a major training facility and played a significant part in the South Pacific Campaigns as a signal relay station.

The site is more extensive then you might imagine and you are free to walk around the museums and guns as much as you wish. Only open on Sundays, it is looked after by ex-military men who greet you, take you on tours around the site and are very happy to chat about the Fort and its role in Queensland's military history. You can bring a picnic and fire up one of the BBQs. Even if you're not into military history, it's a lovely spot to spend a beautiful Queensland Sunday.

Even as far back as the 1890s Brisbane residents would travel to Lytton to see the spectacular military parades and ceremonies performed for the public. Even today, on special occasions Fort Lytton puts on its ceremonial garb and the public are invited to watch re-enactments, including the firing of the large 64-pounder guns out into the mouth of the Brisbane River. On the upcoming Queen's Jubilee long weekend, on both Saturday and Sunday there will be re-enactments of military battles, starting with the Romans and culminating in the firing of the guns. We were told it's a great family day out.

 The 'disappearing gun'. The recoil would make it disappear into it's undercover shelter.

 

 Navigation for the disappearing gun.

Sunday night was of course the start of MasterChef 2012, a near sacred night in our house. I'm almost more excited that I one of my favourite blogs, It Lacks Acidity, is now up and running again, with it's daily dose of MasterChef sarcasm and vitriol.