Excursions.

 

Monthly excursions are generally held on the third Thursday of every month. Past excursions included visits to such places as: The Tram Museum; The Chinese Museum; Jayco Caravan Factory; Old Treasury Building; Immigration Museum; Hellenic Museum; to name but a few.

 

OUTINGS – CONFIRMED FOR 2026

SEPTEMBER

Sunday 13

Hello Dolly, The Round, Nunawading

OCTOBER – The Australian Barbara Streisand Show

Wednesday 1 October.

The Round, Nunawading.

DECEMBER – CHRISTMAS LUNCH 

Tuesday 8 December

The Canterbury International Hotel. 

 

AUGUST 2026

The long-anticipated visit to the Jayco Caravan production site in Dandenong South happened on the 19^th and 20^th August, 2026. Sixteen club members took part over the two days. The site covers about 50 acres and in the 2 ¼ hours around 5000 steps were clocked up each day.

After gaining our safety gear, Peter Ryan, older brother of Gerry Ryan the owner of Jayco Australia, conducted a very informative and fast paced tour. Caravans large and small, luxurious and minimalist

along with Pop Top Vans and Campervans were witnessed in various stages of production. All vans are made to order through the dealer network. While many components come from overseas the policy is

to try and source locally. However much of the manufacturing of parts is done on site by the 850 strong workforce from designers to assembly workers. A very busy site requiring a high degree of safety awareness.

All had a great time expanding our manufacturing knowledge of caravan construction especially those of our group who are active in the caravan travel world.

After the tour the groups recovered and enjoyed refreshments and a bite to eat at the Hallam Hotel, a short drive from Jayco.

 

Glenn Ewing report from Thursday tour

Our smaller group, first cab off the rank, followed a similar path with Peter our guide explaining all the separate stages of the production process of a wide range of Jayco recreational vehicles. It was very interesting to see the workers buzzing about working on everything from chassis fabrication to lamination and interior assembly. Jayco is certainly an Aussie success story. 

Afterwards we kicked on to the nearby Hallam Hotel which was a great place for lunch. Overall we all learnt a lot and enjoyed an excellent outing. A big thank you to David who organised it all and did a great job. 

(No photos were permitted on the tour.)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

JUNE - AMBULANCE MUSEUM

In June twenty five of our members visited the Ambulance Victoria Chas Martin OAM Museum in Bayswater. The museum has a large collection of old medical tools, vehicles, uniforms,

radio’s and other historical objects. It is looked after by retired ambulance officers and experienced volunteers who donate their time. Our friendly guide David gave us an informative talk about the ambulance service and its history and we also enjoyed a 25 minute video presentation. Afterwards we enjoyed morning tea and were able to browse around the many historic ambulances and interesting objects.
For lunch we headed to the nearby Hatter and the Hare cafe. With its Alice in Wonderland theme and fun decor it is certainly somewhere different. The cakes in particular were a great hit. 
Overall it seemed like everyone enjoyed themselves. We learnt a lot about the ambulance service at the museum and there was plenty of happy chatter at lunch ‘down the rabbit hole’.

Courtesy: https://www.ambulance.vic.gov.au/ambulance-victoria-chas-martin-oam-museum

The museum was started in 1986 by retired ambulance officers and it was known as the Ambulance Historic Society of Victoria Inc (AHVS). They started collecting old ambulances and objects. In 2006, the AHVS, with help from Ambulance Victoria (AV), found a location in Thomastown. Many ambulance stations and staff across Victoria donated old equipment and photographs.

 In 2015, the museum moved to Bayswater, where more than 3,000 items are currently catalogued in conjunction withMuseum Victoria. Today, the museum has 30 ambulances. The oldest ambulance is the Ashford Litter ambulance from 1887. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

JUNE - BERNADETTE ROBINSON

It looks as though seven members attended and by the smiles on their faces, thoroughly enjoyed the Bernadette Robinson performance at The Round in Nunawading.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

MAY - TEN PIN

BOWLING - Ray King

As you may be aware, the Club organised its first foray into tenpin bowling last August and it had been decided that this year we would have three events during the cooler months. Just like the last event, it was an enjoyable day. We had eleven bowlers and a spectator (me). The ambiance at Healthways is great with no background music or other distractions. This gave everyone the chance to chat and cheer on the efforts of others. Praise was plentiful, as was commiseration.

It was excellent work by Mark to break the hundred score “mark” with Richard and Elizabeth snapping at his heels. Regardless of their individual scores, everyone thoroughly enjoyed themselves. We finished our game with plenty of time to spare and ten of us motored off to the Blackburn Hotel for lunch. A table in the Atrium gave us a quiet location where we could solve the problems of the world and hear what others were saying. Time flew and 2pm arrived all too soon. So off we went to our separate situations, all looking forward to the next round of bowling in July.

Photos - Ray King