Tuesday May 9, 2032
We took a short trip to Mollymook and Ulladulla so we could attend Bill Shanahan’s funeral who passed away after a long a successful (until his final year) battle with cancer.
We booked at Bannister’s Pavilion (henceforth referred to as BV) the sister property of the famous Bannister’s by the Sea - less than a KM away but without the amazing sea views but at half the price.
We booked a 2-day package which include one dinner at Rick Stein's (at Bannister’s by the Sea) and one at the roof top restaurant at BV.
Once we arrived and walked around we decided to extend our stay by another day - until Friday.
The drive from Sydney took 3h15m - a good run. We arrived at Mollymook in time for a light lunch at Cupitt’s Winery - about 10 minutes from town. We sat on their outdoor terrace where they offer a lighter fare than their fine dining restaurant.
After checking in we walked along the water front and stopped at the golf club for an afternoon refreshment. Then it was back to our hotel for showers before heading over to Bannister’s by the Sea for our welcome drink and dinner. The dinner was very nice but not really amazing. The hotel(s) run a complimentary shuttle on demand between the 2 properties so you don’t need to walk the 800m in the dark (and cold in our case).
Wednesday May 10
After a very nice a la carte breakfast at BV we drove to the funeral home in Ulladulla for Bill’s service. We arrived about 10:45am (for a 11am start) and there were many people milling around. We greeted Fran and some of the other guests - some we knew personally and some by name only. The service was lovely - the main eulogy, given by Bill’s next younger brother, was very touching. Then one person then gave the history and mythology of cranes and origami in Japan. Bill granddaughters had prepared 100’s of origami cranes which were passed around and each person placed one on Bill’s coffin - it was probably the most emotional part of the service.
Afterwards everyone headed over the Ulladulla Surf Club for light refreshments and an open bar. As most attendees were driving home afterwards it was quite a modest affair. In spite of not knowing many / most of the attendees personally, we chatted with nearly everyone (whom we knew by name from Bill) - they all said Bill had often spoken of his friendship and good times with Dieter.
We were back at BV by 2:30pm - after changing and a short rest we went for a walk before heading back to BV for showers and dinner at the Rooftop restaurant.
Thursday May 11
After another lovely breakfast we spent the day driving around the area with a couple of walks then had lunch at the Cupitt winery again - same lunch as our Tuesday visit - salad and shared mushroom pizza.
After a beak walk we had an afternoon refreshment at the golf club then back to BV for dinner.
Friday May 12
After breakfast we packed up and drove back home.
