Ring Around the Roses

We arrived in Warwick, the Rose City, for the third time in ten years, and headed straight for new territory.  After the Condamine River crossing, the highway heads north/south for several blocks, then turns sharp right, avoiding the CBD, but all our previous shopping had been done west of that road.  It turns out there are three op shops to the east of the highway.

The Salvation Army Store was our first stop, and it was big and hot.  I tried hard, but couldn't find anything I needed.  There is a Vinnies further down the same (Grafton) street. We knew about the one in the main drag, but this one was clearly a secret.  I lucked out here too, so went exploring and found the most beautiful old pub on the corner. Built in 1887, O'Mahony's Hotel apparently has pressed metal ceilings and did a roaring trade in its heyday due to its being opposite the railway station.  I had never seen that before either, and it is also heritage listed.

One block away is Lifeline, where I did managed to find a top I liked.  To try it on, the sign said I needed a key from the counter.  When I asked there, the woman went to grab it, but the key had disappeared, apparently leaving the store in someone's pocket.  This is why you attach a large kitchen tool to your keyring, people!  The top set me back $3.

The first time we stayed in Warwick, we were in a lovely suite in the gorgeous old Criterion Hotel, but we don't do country pubs any more because we are too old for all those stairs.  This time, it was the Comfort Inn Motel, which just so happens to be next door to a pub anyway!

It is also opposite Harvey Norman, where Jan finally tracked down the printer cartridge she had been pursuing all trip.  

Next morning Jo headed off on her walk. which was also a coffee shop and oppies recce, while I shot out of bed when I realised there was a beautiful dawn coming.  The motel was right next to the rugby fields on the banks of the river, where a big metal statue celebrating men and horses was built a few years ago.  It was the perfect place to take photos and I managed to not only check out the statue but find a couple of geocaches as well.

Jo had managed to find a shop with a window full of clocks, and I had been searching for a glow-in-the-dark clock for the caravan, so we headed there first.  Almost in front of it was an intriguing old truck covered in biblical quotes. It turned out to be not only a 1927 Chevrolet but The Australian Bible Van, which meandered through Queensland and northern New South Wales for decades, spreading the word.  In 1992 it was fully restored in Redcliffe, as a memorial to Australian bush missionaries, and now travels to schools.  If you ask, the "man in the van" will give you a free bible.

The shop with the clocks had obviously been in Warwick a long time, founded and still run by the Greek Samios family.  I found just the thing, and Mrs Samios (I am guessing) insisted on taking me into a little room under the stairs and turning off the light to prove that it worked. I had to buy it after that!

Our old favourite Warwick oppy used to be the Uniting Church one in an old house. It was a rabbit warren of small rooms plus a garage packed with cheap goodies.  It has now become a proper Lighthouse shop, and as a result has lost all its character. The woman behind the counter kept singing Way Out West, but only knew a couple of lines, which stayed with us for the next hour or so.  The change room there also double as the conference room, so a man with a briefcase had to vacate before I could try on clothes that didn't fit.

Our final stop was Vinnies number two. One of the girls had commented that most op shops don't sell saucers without cups. Well this one does.  It has beautiful shop design and some cracker vintage goodies out the back.  Jo bought a Crown Lynn sugar bowl that matches her set for the princely sum of $1.  After that we decided to move on.