Last Sunday, we took ourselves off on a family outing. We drove up to the sunny Sunshine Coast, our new-to-us ute loaded with a basket of swimming togs and beach towels and an esky packed with picnic food and lots of cold water. One of the places we visited was The Ginger Factory. We took a ride on the old sugarcane train, spotted turtles in the little lake, had a picnic lunch of salad rolls, homemade slice and fruit and wandered the beautiful tropical gardens. Of course, at a Ginger Factory they grow lots of different gingers which means many gorgeous ginger flowers. Here are photos of my favourites:
'Cream Shell' Ginger
A vibrant Heliconia.
The little 119 year old 'Moreton' train.
A beautiful Beehive Ginger.
Pretty 'Red Stem' Ginger
I particularly loved the 'Red Stem' Ginger (Cheilocostus speciosus), in the photo above, for its tall red stems and frilly white flowers. I would love to grow it in our garden here for I think it's quite stunning.
We drove on, after our time at The Ginger Factory, to Noosa where we watched the annual Surfing Dogs Spectacular, swam in the calm waters of Little Bay and saw a beautifully-patterned goanna (and quite a few scrub turkeys) while finishing off the last of our packed picnic in the Noosa National Park.
Such a contented way to spend a Sunday visiting places we haven't been for a while. I hope your upcoming weekend offers you some contentment too.
Meg
