I have just inadvertently trodden on a cockroach! I got up to let someone into the tv lounge (the card key system isn't the best) and I heard a pop. Thought it might be a bottle top or something. Returning to my seat, I saw what it was. Not what I would do by choice but hey, one-nil. And in other news......
Saturday was fairly quiet after all my exertions on Friday and I really haven't had many days off. Went down the shopping area and talked to a chap in the Apple shop about my photo storage problem. He suggested a few things. I went to a shop called Dick Smith and found a sign which said "Ask a clever Dick here" so I did. I bought a memory stick and the nice young man gave me the use of a mac and a cup of tea! Would you get that in London? I don't know. It took about 15+ minutes to transfer one photo card so I didn't stay to do the other two (yes digital cameras have a lot to answer for). I went off to walk around some park spaces and got back to the hostel. A peaceful day but I've probably forgotten something!
Sunday, I went over to the Art Gallery of NSW via the Botanic Gardens as I've obviously been lacking in both those experiences in recent weeks. The Art Gallery is extremely good. It has an amazing collection of both very old and contemporary pieces. Part of the contemporary was the 19th Biennale of Sydney, as if there isn't enough going on already with Vivid Sydney and the 61st Film Festival. I really enjoyed it and realised that I do actually like some of the real classics. They have pieces that date back to before the first white settlements in Australia, which seems a bit weird in a way. However, it's an amazing collection - Reubens, Whistler, Picasso, Freud, Bacon, Constable - I don't know, all sorts of people. Then I did also enjoy some of the new too.
It was lovely to re-acquaint myself with the Botanic Gardens too. When I visited last time I stayed at a backpackers place in the Kings Cross area, so I was forever walking through the gardens on my way to places. Although I didn't find the bats :-(
At 4pm, I was seated in the most amazing old cinema to see "20,000 days on Earth", a film about Nick Cave. I knew very little about him beforehand but I enjoyed it.
Call me CultureWomble :-)
Monday, 9 June 2014
Sunday, 8 June 2014
Friday 06 June - it's been in my diary a long time
To start the day, I lined up nice and early for the 9am tour of the Sydney Opera house (it's cheaper at that time of day). A very entertaining guide who obviously loves her job and the building. We were shown one of the smaller theatres and both the main halls. I think the architectural style is 'brutalist', the concrete super-structure is left on show but I love it. All the lines are clear and crisp; there is wood cladding in some places and the whole thing flows in an angular sort of way, if that makes sense. It was chucking it down with rain for the second day so part of our journey went up a fire stairway (carpeted) rather than outside. In the main hall there was an orchestra rehearsing and we stayed to listen a little. It was magical in such a setting - the orchestra in civvies, no audience other than our little group of about 15 people watching from a corner.
I was so enchanted that I queued up after the tour to see if there were any tickets for "Tea and Symphony" at 11am. There were, so I joined the people who'd planned this as part of their day and enjoyed my coffee and biscuits before entering the main hall to see the Sydney Symphony Orchestra play two bits of Mozart and some Bernstein. I loved the Mozart. The Bernstein was more challenging but interesting to see an orchestra in action, including six percussionists and a harpist. But the whole setting was amazing, I had a pretty good seat centrally positioned in the circle. Hearing the music and being able to see who was playing which instrument to make that sound was, I don't know, such a different experience of music. There's free wifi at the SOH so I squeezed in a little chat online with the lovely daughter and also discovered that I was in the Top 10 photos of the week submitted to an Aussie twitter feed, and mine was the one that they chose of the several/many/few/hundreds that they'd received of Vivid Sydney. I didn't win but it was a strange feeling that someone somewhere thought my picture was interesting.
There's a museum right next to the hostel, called Susannah Place. I joined a tour and it was fascinating. Four houses built in the early 1800s which survived the demolition of the early 20th century following the outbreak of bubonic plague in Sydney. The conservation is sympathetic and does not pretend that new is old but makes a clear difference where new has been necessary. The guide was passionate and told us about the houses, their residents and local history. Very well worthwhile. There is a current day battle ongoing to save houses nearby in Millers Point from demolition. The Government owns the land on The Rocks as it basically took it for public health reasons (and probably some commercial foresight) in the early 1900s. It'll be interesting to see how this one plays out.
And so, to the main event of the day. The venue, Carriageworks is, as the name might suggest, an old train shed or two. It's now a multi-arts centre and home to three gigs by the Pet Shop Boys. Described as 'intimate' the capacity is 1000 and I was at the front, centre stage. No-one between me and them! The warm-up was a DJ duo playing heavy base, dancy type stuff. It was pretty good.
The Pet Shop Boys were on top form. I've seen them live before and it is a complete show. Lights, dancers, costume changes galore and the amazing voice of Neil Tennant. And Chris Lowe standing by in another outfit looking like there's a speech bubble going "Do I really have to wear this?". I'm sure I had this ridiculous grin on my face the whole way through. Plenty of material from the new, brilliant, album "Electric" as well as many classics. Neil encourages singalaong and the audience is a bit cliched so singing along as a female of an age was good fun in the midst of lots of young, and not so young, men to Go West for example, was surreal and brilliant. The light show was incredible which is pretty good going this week in Sydney! Being at the front meant that it was often like being inside the lights as they projected back into the hall. I was also totally oblivious to what must have been one of those confetti moments as it was behind me. They finished with "Vocal" from "Electric" which Neil said summed up the evening. I agree.
You'll have to google for pictures as I decided simply to go and experience it all.
Such a Perfect Day.
I was so enchanted that I queued up after the tour to see if there were any tickets for "Tea and Symphony" at 11am. There were, so I joined the people who'd planned this as part of their day and enjoyed my coffee and biscuits before entering the main hall to see the Sydney Symphony Orchestra play two bits of Mozart and some Bernstein. I loved the Mozart. The Bernstein was more challenging but interesting to see an orchestra in action, including six percussionists and a harpist. But the whole setting was amazing, I had a pretty good seat centrally positioned in the circle. Hearing the music and being able to see who was playing which instrument to make that sound was, I don't know, such a different experience of music. There's free wifi at the SOH so I squeezed in a little chat online with the lovely daughter and also discovered that I was in the Top 10 photos of the week submitted to an Aussie twitter feed, and mine was the one that they chose of the several/many/few/hundreds that they'd received of Vivid Sydney. I didn't win but it was a strange feeling that someone somewhere thought my picture was interesting.
There's a museum right next to the hostel, called Susannah Place. I joined a tour and it was fascinating. Four houses built in the early 1800s which survived the demolition of the early 20th century following the outbreak of bubonic plague in Sydney. The conservation is sympathetic and does not pretend that new is old but makes a clear difference where new has been necessary. The guide was passionate and told us about the houses, their residents and local history. Very well worthwhile. There is a current day battle ongoing to save houses nearby in Millers Point from demolition. The Government owns the land on The Rocks as it basically took it for public health reasons (and probably some commercial foresight) in the early 1900s. It'll be interesting to see how this one plays out.
And so, to the main event of the day. The venue, Carriageworks is, as the name might suggest, an old train shed or two. It's now a multi-arts centre and home to three gigs by the Pet Shop Boys. Described as 'intimate' the capacity is 1000 and I was at the front, centre stage. No-one between me and them! The warm-up was a DJ duo playing heavy base, dancy type stuff. It was pretty good.
The Pet Shop Boys were on top form. I've seen them live before and it is a complete show. Lights, dancers, costume changes galore and the amazing voice of Neil Tennant. And Chris Lowe standing by in another outfit looking like there's a speech bubble going "Do I really have to wear this?". I'm sure I had this ridiculous grin on my face the whole way through. Plenty of material from the new, brilliant, album "Electric" as well as many classics. Neil encourages singalaong and the audience is a bit cliched so singing along as a female of an age was good fun in the midst of lots of young, and not so young, men to Go West for example, was surreal and brilliant. The light show was incredible which is pretty good going this week in Sydney! Being at the front meant that it was often like being inside the lights as they projected back into the hall. I was also totally oblivious to what must have been one of those confetti moments as it was behind me. They finished with "Vocal" from "Electric" which Neil said summed up the evening. I agree.
You'll have to google for pictures as I decided simply to go and experience it all.
Such a Perfect Day.
Friday, 6 June 2014
Thursday - the day before PSB
I was thinking of calling this Grumpy Day but on reflection, that's not how I feel about it all. I have a leaflet (somewhere) which suggested that I could go and visit the old Royal Mint building and even have a cup of coffee in their cafe. When I got to the building on Macquarie Street it wasn't obvious where the trail began. I made my way into the building; there were some plates describing various artefacts and the building but I hadn't worked out where the beginning was. I tried to break in to somewhere that said it was 'reception' and someone pressed release on the door button. Apparently, the building is the HQ of the Historic Houses Association but, although they live in a rather wonderful and historic house, the building no longer functions as a museum. "Oh, we keep telling people" but yes, leaflets like the one I have in my hand suggest that we can come and look around. A shame as the building does indeed look rather good. Interesting even.
Ok, next step in the plan was the Museum of Sydney. I've visited before but it has new exhibitions so I thought it would be worth the $10. Hmm the cafe was shut for refurbishment. Lunch went on hold. I had been attracted by an exhibition called "Iconic Houses" so I made my way up there. But I wasn't happy with the exhibit. It talked about how architecture in Australia has changed but for me, I need to understand the building at a very basic level, what it looks like, how the rooms flow. There were hardly any floor plans. A definite lack in my book. There was a video show, the architects talking about their works. But the order didn't relate to the order around the room. And you know, videos take time which the audience might not have allocated to you. There was, however, a very interesting section on the Chinese community, how they arrived, how they have been treated and their contribution to Australian society. This is one huge difference between this visit and my last trip to Oz. There are so many oriental people, most of whom are Chinese, in Australia. Lots are visiting but many live here.
The master plan for the day included a walk through Queen Victoria Building on the way to Central Station. I made it to QVB and I think I took my lunch break in a cafe I'd visited before. A senior gent called Rex struck up conversation. It was lovely to talk to him. Some changes to QVB since my last visit included escalators, sympathetically inserted but still ugh. But then there are two magnificent clocks dangling from the top floor; I have photographed them before and I thought what would be the point of repeating the snaps? Well, it wasn't possible to improve on history with my new, super duper camera because there were advertising banners wafting about bang in front of the photo opportunities. What is the world coming to? I think I'm turning into a grumpy old woman, saying it used to be wonderful in the old days. I found the 'concierge' and asked if I could give her my feedback about the ruination of the building. She was very polite and said she would pass on my comments.
At Central Station, I booked my ticket to Canberra for Friday next week, even enjoying a 10% discount with my YHA membership. I plodded back uptown to Circular Quay, passing through the bottle shop, and made a cheese and vegemite toasty for my tea. With fruit and veg, it's not as bad as it sounds. I retired to the balcony with my liquid purchase, under the shelter with the other folk, overlooking the damp vivid below and afar. It carried on regardless of the weather (could have been Britain). The rain did mean that we could see some of the laser pathways which was interesting as you always wonder where the feed for these things is coming from. I chatted to a Maltese/30 year Australian lady as well as some folk from Melbourne. The good thing about Melb is you can always talk about the crap weather "We get four seasons in a day" is something I've heard more than once. My reply is that it sounds like living in the UK! One eye over the balcony, watching the illuminations meant that we spotted the fireworks that popped up next to the Opera House quite quickly. They were good. No idea why they were there today but not yesterday, but who cares!
Tomorrow morning I shall tour the Sydney Opera House. In the evening I shall be at Carriageworks with a ticket to see the Pet Shop Boys. The whole reason I have ended up here at this most amazing time. It will be a good day.
<whoop whoop>
Ok, next step in the plan was the Museum of Sydney. I've visited before but it has new exhibitions so I thought it would be worth the $10. Hmm the cafe was shut for refurbishment. Lunch went on hold. I had been attracted by an exhibition called "Iconic Houses" so I made my way up there. But I wasn't happy with the exhibit. It talked about how architecture in Australia has changed but for me, I need to understand the building at a very basic level, what it looks like, how the rooms flow. There were hardly any floor plans. A definite lack in my book. There was a video show, the architects talking about their works. But the order didn't relate to the order around the room. And you know, videos take time which the audience might not have allocated to you. There was, however, a very interesting section on the Chinese community, how they arrived, how they have been treated and their contribution to Australian society. This is one huge difference between this visit and my last trip to Oz. There are so many oriental people, most of whom are Chinese, in Australia. Lots are visiting but many live here.
The master plan for the day included a walk through Queen Victoria Building on the way to Central Station. I made it to QVB and I think I took my lunch break in a cafe I'd visited before. A senior gent called Rex struck up conversation. It was lovely to talk to him. Some changes to QVB since my last visit included escalators, sympathetically inserted but still ugh. But then there are two magnificent clocks dangling from the top floor; I have photographed them before and I thought what would be the point of repeating the snaps? Well, it wasn't possible to improve on history with my new, super duper camera because there were advertising banners wafting about bang in front of the photo opportunities. What is the world coming to? I think I'm turning into a grumpy old woman, saying it used to be wonderful in the old days. I found the 'concierge' and asked if I could give her my feedback about the ruination of the building. She was very polite and said she would pass on my comments.
At Central Station, I booked my ticket to Canberra for Friday next week, even enjoying a 10% discount with my YHA membership. I plodded back uptown to Circular Quay, passing through the bottle shop, and made a cheese and vegemite toasty for my tea. With fruit and veg, it's not as bad as it sounds. I retired to the balcony with my liquid purchase, under the shelter with the other folk, overlooking the damp vivid below and afar. It carried on regardless of the weather (could have been Britain). The rain did mean that we could see some of the laser pathways which was interesting as you always wonder where the feed for these things is coming from. I chatted to a Maltese/30 year Australian lady as well as some folk from Melbourne. The good thing about Melb is you can always talk about the crap weather "We get four seasons in a day" is something I've heard more than once. My reply is that it sounds like living in the UK! One eye over the balcony, watching the illuminations meant that we spotted the fireworks that popped up next to the Opera House quite quickly. They were good. No idea why they were there today but not yesterday, but who cares!
Tomorrow morning I shall tour the Sydney Opera House. In the evening I shall be at Carriageworks with a ticket to see the Pet Shop Boys. The whole reason I have ended up here at this most amazing time. It will be a good day.
<whoop whoop>
Thursday, 5 June 2014
Very vivid
So now it's Thursday evening and it's raining. Has been for most of the day, on and off. I even put my rain jacket on to go out. Anyway, winding back a day or two, I've been having fun.
Tuesday found me inside the Museum of Contemporary Art. Not only is it right on the doorstep but it is also the backdrop to one of the big light installations. Pretty good and there were some interesting things. No issues with my 'backpack' or taking photos. The cafe is at the top and has amazing views out over Circular Quay, taking in both the opera house and the Bridge. Also, lots of school children enjoying their visit. I find it's much more fun when there are people in a place who aren't embarrassed to ask questions or state the obvious (or say what you thought but wouldn't say out loud) and those people tend to be small.
Where I'm staying is The Rocks area of Sydney, one of the oldest areas settled and inhabited by the white people. As such there is a lot of history to the area. The YHA I'm staying in is built over an archaeological dig, not on it, over it. The building is on legs. It helps to find your way home if you know you're staying at The Big Dig! The Rocks Discovery Centre is located in some old buildings, restored, and gives a lot of information about who used to live in the area and how it has changed, been rescued and lovingly restored. I really enjoyed it as local history of a part of Sydney.
After the overtly cultured bit of the day, I dashed home to feed myself before going to find the Events cinema on George Street. I had booked a ticket to see Maleficent in 2D, only $12. And it was very good. I won't spoil the story but the Angelina Jolie character refers to a junior person as "Beasty" which some of you may know is also how I referred to my beautiful daughter in her younger years ;-)
Wednesday found me on a boat to go whale watching. This brought a whole new meaning to the expression 'snap happy'! And it was nothing to do with crocodiles. When you don't know how the experience is going to pan out, you snap every plume of water, every pectoral fin, in case that is it. But it wasn't. We found four humpback whales swimming together, who cooperated by surfacing quite often and in formation, and even swam across the bow (front if I've got the wrong word) a couple of times. It was absolutely amazing to see these huge creatures so close by. I do have some photographs which give a hint of the wonderment and hopefully I shall be able to show them to you. I wanted to book another trip to go out again. It was one of those experiences where I was close to tears, it was breathtaking. And yet another reason to be grateful that I don't suffer on boats, although the journey was really smooth. I stood at the front of the boat, another catamaran, on the way back to Sydney, not quite Leonardo doing his Titanic bit but I definitely had the wind in my hair.
As we'd had such good whale watching our return boat was a bit late. I decided to explore Darling Harbour a little on our return. I've been there before but there's always something new to discover. I spotted a reference to 'fireworks this evening' and enquired. Yes, they would be at 7pm. Now, on Tuesday at some point (already the order is hazy!) I had visited Darling harbour and experienced the Aquatique show - a bit Bellagio but with a light show show thrown into the mix too. Fountains doing their thing in time to music but some very clever light effects on top. For example, using a wall of water as a screen on which to project images. Incredible! Lasers wiggling their way through water plumes and making patterns. Damn fine stuff. So putting fireworks on top of that meant I dashed back to make sure I got a good view. Well, after I'd enjoyed a wondrous ice-cream.
On Tuesday night, I'd really taken the scenic route back to the YHA (no I didn't get lost). So on Wednesday I had more of a plan. The fireworks and fountains combined were spectacular but early, so I traversed town on my way to Circular Quay. There's so much going on you just trip over stuff. Martin Place was full of things - a laser show above your head, a screen of animation films (while people sit and eat their street grub), some things you climb inside, a tree that grows before your eyes...... One thing, among many, that is really good with the light part of Vivid Sydney is the way they use the shape of buildings as part of the projection. The 'tree' is a structure that is tree shaped but the way the light show matches its shape exactly is brilliant and so clever. I went up to the Opera
House side of the Quay to see what else is happening over there. Well yes, more weirdly shaped experiments in light and form with people exploring them. Approaching the Opera House itself it just got more and more crowded, with a forest of phones held on arm branches facing the mecca, the centre of it all. The view was not as clear and unimpeded as from my house (the YHA) but, there was more detail in the projections and, more importantly, there is an audio stream to the show of music and words which really pulls the whole thing together. A completely new dimension missed if you're further away.
I walked home, swerving through the crowds, observing the fact that so many families are out enjoying all of this. Children react in a very honest way and it's heartening to see them dance and run around and interact with their environment, unfettered by what should be according to grown up 'rules'. It's interesting how children learn and adapt naturally, without question. There's a dance floor with lights and the children expected the floor to react to their footsteps, like a big touch screen. They enjoyed it anyway, even though it didn't.
Tuesday found me inside the Museum of Contemporary Art. Not only is it right on the doorstep but it is also the backdrop to one of the big light installations. Pretty good and there were some interesting things. No issues with my 'backpack' or taking photos. The cafe is at the top and has amazing views out over Circular Quay, taking in both the opera house and the Bridge. Also, lots of school children enjoying their visit. I find it's much more fun when there are people in a place who aren't embarrassed to ask questions or state the obvious (or say what you thought but wouldn't say out loud) and those people tend to be small.
Where I'm staying is The Rocks area of Sydney, one of the oldest areas settled and inhabited by the white people. As such there is a lot of history to the area. The YHA I'm staying in is built over an archaeological dig, not on it, over it. The building is on legs. It helps to find your way home if you know you're staying at The Big Dig! The Rocks Discovery Centre is located in some old buildings, restored, and gives a lot of information about who used to live in the area and how it has changed, been rescued and lovingly restored. I really enjoyed it as local history of a part of Sydney.
After the overtly cultured bit of the day, I dashed home to feed myself before going to find the Events cinema on George Street. I had booked a ticket to see Maleficent in 2D, only $12. And it was very good. I won't spoil the story but the Angelina Jolie character refers to a junior person as "Beasty" which some of you may know is also how I referred to my beautiful daughter in her younger years ;-)
Wednesday found me on a boat to go whale watching. This brought a whole new meaning to the expression 'snap happy'! And it was nothing to do with crocodiles. When you don't know how the experience is going to pan out, you snap every plume of water, every pectoral fin, in case that is it. But it wasn't. We found four humpback whales swimming together, who cooperated by surfacing quite often and in formation, and even swam across the bow (front if I've got the wrong word) a couple of times. It was absolutely amazing to see these huge creatures so close by. I do have some photographs which give a hint of the wonderment and hopefully I shall be able to show them to you. I wanted to book another trip to go out again. It was one of those experiences where I was close to tears, it was breathtaking. And yet another reason to be grateful that I don't suffer on boats, although the journey was really smooth. I stood at the front of the boat, another catamaran, on the way back to Sydney, not quite Leonardo doing his Titanic bit but I definitely had the wind in my hair.
As we'd had such good whale watching our return boat was a bit late. I decided to explore Darling Harbour a little on our return. I've been there before but there's always something new to discover. I spotted a reference to 'fireworks this evening' and enquired. Yes, they would be at 7pm. Now, on Tuesday at some point (already the order is hazy!) I had visited Darling harbour and experienced the Aquatique show - a bit Bellagio but with a light show show thrown into the mix too. Fountains doing their thing in time to music but some very clever light effects on top. For example, using a wall of water as a screen on which to project images. Incredible! Lasers wiggling their way through water plumes and making patterns. Damn fine stuff. So putting fireworks on top of that meant I dashed back to make sure I got a good view. Well, after I'd enjoyed a wondrous ice-cream.
On Tuesday night, I'd really taken the scenic route back to the YHA (no I didn't get lost). So on Wednesday I had more of a plan. The fireworks and fountains combined were spectacular but early, so I traversed town on my way to Circular Quay. There's so much going on you just trip over stuff. Martin Place was full of things - a laser show above your head, a screen of animation films (while people sit and eat their street grub), some things you climb inside, a tree that grows before your eyes...... One thing, among many, that is really good with the light part of Vivid Sydney is the way they use the shape of buildings as part of the projection. The 'tree' is a structure that is tree shaped but the way the light show matches its shape exactly is brilliant and so clever. I went up to the Opera
House side of the Quay to see what else is happening over there. Well yes, more weirdly shaped experiments in light and form with people exploring them. Approaching the Opera House itself it just got more and more crowded, with a forest of phones held on arm branches facing the mecca, the centre of it all. The view was not as clear and unimpeded as from my house (the YHA) but, there was more detail in the projections and, more importantly, there is an audio stream to the show of music and words which really pulls the whole thing together. A completely new dimension missed if you're further away.
I walked home, swerving through the crowds, observing the fact that so many families are out enjoying all of this. Children react in a very honest way and it's heartening to see them dance and run around and interact with their environment, unfettered by what should be according to grown up 'rules'. It's interesting how children learn and adapt naturally, without question. There's a dance floor with lights and the children expected the floor to react to their footsteps, like a big touch screen. They enjoyed it anyway, even though it didn't.
Monday, 2 June 2014
Hello Sydney
So the day started with farewells. But Paul and I shall catch up again as soon as we can. If the lottery gods would smile on us it might help.
The weather was lovely in Brisbane when I left and it was pretty much the same in Sydney, despite Winter starting on 01 June. I could put up with this, I tell you. Caught the train into town and climbed a few steps to find the hostel. Wow, what a hostel. It was recommended to meas the YHA of choice when in Sydney and I'm so glad I listened. We're in the Rocks area and it's right in the middle of all the Vivid Sydney action. I went off to get my grocery supplies and had some grub at the pub next door. Then it was the search for reasonably priced beer which I found at Circular Quay.
As it got dark, the lights went on and the glory of Vivid Sydney made themselves apparent. Totally amazing. I hadn't realised that most of the lighting installations are actually moving rather than static. I have taken some videos but that is definitely for another day.... If and when the wifi lets me sort my photos, I shall post them up for you. In the meantime, twitter has some. Go and look for @runningwomble
It's going to be fun!
The weather was lovely in Brisbane when I left and it was pretty much the same in Sydney, despite Winter starting on 01 June. I could put up with this, I tell you. Caught the train into town and climbed a few steps to find the hostel. Wow, what a hostel. It was recommended to meas the YHA of choice when in Sydney and I'm so glad I listened. We're in the Rocks area and it's right in the middle of all the Vivid Sydney action. I went off to get my grocery supplies and had some grub at the pub next door. Then it was the search for reasonably priced beer which I found at Circular Quay.
As it got dark, the lights went on and the glory of Vivid Sydney made themselves apparent. Totally amazing. I hadn't realised that most of the lighting installations are actually moving rather than static. I have taken some videos but that is definitely for another day.... If and when the wifi lets me sort my photos, I shall post them up for you. In the meantime, twitter has some. Go and look for @runningwomble
It's going to be fun!
Last day in Brisbane
And I decided to do a complete unpack/repack. You'd think I'd got the hang of it by now but, half-way through my travels, I thought it was time for a sanity check. So, with Master Chef Australia on the television, I wrought chaos in the hostel while Paul went off to see Baby. Remarkably, I think I've managed to lose only one item - a small carabina - so far and I pretty much knew at the time I'd done so. That and a kill a phone. Not bad.
Some reflections .....
Since arriving in Darwin, I have travelled over 5700 miles/9200km. Including the journey to Australia, I have been on 6 flights (seventh tomorrow to get to Sydney). I've walked lots; used buses, taxis, trains and trams; run, swum and snorkelled. I've stayed in four YHA hostels and one 'private' hostel, camped two nights, passed two nights on a train and stayed with a friend. In the last ten days, I've stayed in four different places. And I've been to four botanic gardens. So far. I've caught up with several friends and made a few new ones. I've done two things which were way outside my comfort zone and survived.
Tomorrow, I'm off to Sydney. It should be really exciting there, not only am I seeing the Pet Shop Boys on Friday (did I mention that before?) but it's Vivid Sydney - the annual festival of light, music and ideas. There are amazing illuminations of major buildings every day. Take a look at @VividSydney on twitter for some brilliant photos.
Tomorrow, I shall be sad too. It's been fantastic spending time with Paul again, but she's going back to work and I'm moving on. Her workplace is rather remote so it's extremely unlikely that I would be able to get there under my own steam to see her again before I return to England. And there's no public transport. So, some farewells. Here's to next time xx
Some reflections .....
Since arriving in Darwin, I have travelled over 5700 miles/9200km. Including the journey to Australia, I have been on 6 flights (seventh tomorrow to get to Sydney). I've walked lots; used buses, taxis, trains and trams; run, swum and snorkelled. I've stayed in four YHA hostels and one 'private' hostel, camped two nights, passed two nights on a train and stayed with a friend. In the last ten days, I've stayed in four different places. And I've been to four botanic gardens. So far. I've caught up with several friends and made a few new ones. I've done two things which were way outside my comfort zone and survived.
Tomorrow, I'm off to Sydney. It should be really exciting there, not only am I seeing the Pet Shop Boys on Friday (did I mention that before?) but it's Vivid Sydney - the annual festival of light, music and ideas. There are amazing illuminations of major buildings every day. Take a look at @VividSydney on twitter for some brilliant photos.
Tomorrow, I shall be sad too. It's been fantastic spending time with Paul again, but she's going back to work and I'm moving on. Her workplace is rather remote so it's extremely unlikely that I would be able to get there under my own steam to see her again before I return to England. And there's no public transport. So, some farewells. Here's to next time xx
Sunday, 1 June 2014
Photos - yes really!
Water dragon in the Botanic Gardens, Brisbane.
One ibis has garlic bread, the other is chasing him for it!
Queensland Parliament building
The Arbour on the South Bank which is a beautiful walk covered with bougainvillea
Requiem (spirit of the beehive) by Lionel Bawden at QUT Art Museum
Mt Beerwah & Mt Coonowrin, Glass House Mountains
Guess who!
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