A Trip to Australia and New Zealand
Katoomba
- Devon Cream Tea at the Hotel on a Foggy Afternoon
Tenax et Fidelis is the motto of the Carrington. Steadfast and Faithful. It is also the motto of the 4th Australian Light Horse, aka Hunter River Lancers. The Hunter River is a large river in New South Wales and is an important horse breeding center. The 4th Light Horse participated in the seminal Gallipoli Campaign during World War I. Mounted troops were judged unsuitable for the fighting due to the nature of the terrain. Men of the 4th Light Horse volunteered to operate as infantry and were put into the fight as reinforcements for other units whose strength had been depleted by combat. Gallipoli was long after the hotel was built - why Tenax et Fidelis? The Carrington had fallen into disrepair and was actually closed for a long period of time. Not too long ago a group of wealthy individuals refurbished the old building and reopened it. My guess is that the engraving on this window dates from that time, but I was unable to find anyone to confirm it's origins.
Devon Cream Tea on the Carrington's front porch was the absolute apex of our Katoomba visit - at least from a culinary point of view. Devonshire Cream it was not , but it was so close you could not tell - at least not from the distance of Australasia. Exotic views through the mist from the old porch were good too.
