I'm a Death Road Survivor!

Melbourne Mum is unexpectedly back in town for Melbourne Cup week after a whirlwind of flights:

HIM: Bolivia ---> Peru ---> Chile ---> MELBOURNE

MELBOURNE <--- Bangkok <--- USA <--- Japan: ME

My son and I converge at our Australian Doctors to discuss plans following him coming off the worse for wear having hit a puddle on a push bike in Bolivia.

Death Road, Bolivia is sold as the world's most dangerous road on account of the treacherous descent from the La Paz mountains into the Amazon rainforest. The rocky shingle road hugs the mountain with a sheer drop where many have not lived to tell the tale. It was a very expensive puddle, but it could be far worse!

I'm guessing when your kids have been brought up traveling the globe, with two parents that encourage the go off and see the world adventures, it should come as no real surprise that from time to time Mum needs to get home to pick up the pieces.

I did have a little rye smile when the Doctors said do you have any X rays and our son replied 'Yes, do you want the ones from Bolivia or Peru?' That's my Little Wandering Wren boy!

Although why or why he could not have told me about all this when I was down the road in America, last week... You can read all about my it at Wren's Letter From America:

We all have a tale to tell from this, and it was a Mum moment when I find his unworn 'I'm a Death Road Survivor' t-shirt.

'How much did you pay for this?' I asked. 'I hope it was free?'

Despite the angst, we maintain our ability to tease and have a laugh. I was sorely (haha) tempted to wear the t-shirt to pick him up from the hospital! Do you think that would have been really mean?

I do think the Extreme Downhill company are missing a whole marketing avenue for Mum's T-shirts. When I ask around I hear other stories of friends kids having come a cropper too. Daughter No 2 is a survivor having previously completed the mountain bike ride, finishing in one piece and got the t-shirt. Where's mine? I feel like my life has taken an extreme downhill path myself and surely I qualify for the T-shirt?!

Oh well, bye, bye to my family holiday in Sri Lanka, Hello Australia. The dog is well chuffed to see us both unexpectedly back in town.

It's Melbourne Cup, and the Spring Horse Racing Carnival is one of the nicest times of year to be home. Think warm weather, blue skies and roses galore! Every cloud certainly does have a silver lining.

The Spring Racing carnival covers four days of horse racing. Here are some of my previous posts if you would like a flavour of what it's all about...

Melbourne Cup in the Pink - see the Crazy Poodle ready for his favourite sport, barking at the racehorses on the television.

Melbourne Cup dream - watching Michelle Payne's historic win. The Sport of King's biggest day on the Australian Racing calendar won by a woman jockey. Oh, the excitement.

Happy Blue Monday at the Races - to hat or not? The dilemma of what to wear on race day!

Our 2018 Melbourne Cup day was a day of torrential rain, if you were watching it on the television from around the world, you may have had no idea that Race 1 was run with minimal visibility and all talk was on whether the big race would be abandoned. In typical fours-seasons-in-a-day Melbourne weather, the sun came out to charm just in time.

It was a race day full of more dramas than a downhill puddle flop on Death Road. The day ended with the sad news that a horse injured on the first lap had been put down. The horse had the same injury as my son... I resist the totally tasteless comment of 'good job you're not a racehorse, son'.

Trolley in Hosier Lane

Fast forward to the end of the week and Melbourne reels from its third terrorist attack in the CBD. The hero of the day is trolly man, a passerby who uses an abandoned shopping trolly to help police. Trolly man rams his trolley into a man with a knife who has attempted to blow up his vehicle has killed one person and stabs others before he is eventually shot and killed himself.

We all look at shopping trolleys in a different way now.

Melbournians will not be scared off from enjoying our beautiful city centre, I took these picture the following day all is calm now.

The Yarra River looking towards the Melbourne Cricket Ground

You could say it has been a BIG week here in Melbourne. How has your week been?

Love to you all xx

Linking with thanks to Angie at Mosaic Monday

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