just this moment

Blissed out in Beautiful Bali

2007-11-17T14:34:00.000+11:00

Ric and I recently had an opportunity to fly to Bali for song - so we did.

Bali is a beautiful place adorned with beautiful things, both natural and created. Being Balinese means being creative, and it is a given that art is the domain of all.

We had an amazing time with our friend Tri - who took us on a road trip and showed us some of her favourite spots on her island paradise.

No phone, no computer, no TV, no radio - just blissful relaxation, except when we were driving - which seemed complete anarchy. The rules as told to us by Tri were:

If you are in front, you have right of way - evidenced by merging and turning traffic that never checked if there was oncoming vehicles before turning or merging

The bigger your vehicle, the more right of way you have

A motorbike can drive any direction on a one way street

The motorbike is the preferred Balinese family wagon: variously we saw families of five on one bike; a women (pillion passenger) bottle feeding one baby with two toddlers wedged between herself and the helmeted rider

If you are a foriegner and you are involved in an accident - it's your fault, even if it wasn't. The logic is if you hadn't come to Bali the accident wouldn't have happened - so it's your fault.

The horn is mode of communication to be used liberally with other drivers

There is no such thing as road rage

Petrol is available everywhere from roadside stalls using reused containers

After swimming in the waterfall at Gunung Kawi near some amazing ancient (1077) carved stone memorials

Relaxed resident of the Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary in Ubud

The beautiful metallic black sands of Amed on the NE corner of the island. The snorkling on the reef off the beach was outstanding!

Giant peacock at Tirtagganga Water Palace

Tri, Ric and me enjoying barbequed fish on Jimbaran Beach

Holiday Down South

2007-10-22T18:19:00.000+10:00

Walk down to waterfall in Mt Buffalo National Park

Me skiing in Burrenjuck Dam and not falling off after 25 years (x 2 times)

Middle Brother National Park

2007-10-07T17:17:00.000+10:00

Tootle Pip

2007-09-24T18:19:00.001+10:00

25 June 2007

In London we headed to Islington and our hotel, then more exploring - London has a new surprise around every corner and I like it more every time I visit. It's shocking to think that the population of London equals all of Australia's! A trip on a bus lands us in Soho – very bohemian! We wander through the theatre district and try for afternoon tea in the Ritz but don't get past first base since Ric isn't wearing a jacket and I have jeans on.

Natt comes to stay to bid us farewell and we enjoy dinner at an organic produce pub on the back streets of Angel. A guy from Cambridge and his daughter sit next to us and chat about Scotland. The Camden Markets are a happening place, so after Laura - Natt's friend arrives on Friday we all head down into the underground to check them out. Camden is very much an alternative scene - with punk shops, goth shops and everything in between as well as great markets. We wander around for a while then have a drink in this amazing bar/restaurant called Gilgamesh. It is the biggest restaurant in London and is extravagantly decorated and furnished in Babylonian style. Every inch of the walls is covered with elaborate carvings and the centre piece is a pair of gilded statues of some sort of man-beasts.

We enjoy our last drink in London together, say our farewells and head off to the airport. I won't bore you with the trip home except to say that we had a near-disaster in Hong Kong where we suddenly realised we were booked on separate flights home; Ric a couple of hours after we arrived and me the next day. A very kind man from Cathay Pacific fixed it all up and we had a night and a day in HK to change our body clocks closer to home time. We landed in Sydney this morning and the Aussie accents and colour of the banknotes tickled us as we moved through the airport. What a holiday! I hope you enjoyed coming along for the ride. Ric's already planning our next adventure - but that's another story. 'Til the next travelogue...Cathy & Ric

40 Shades of Green

2007-09-24T18:18:00.000+10:00

24 June 2007

We heard somewhere that it rains 266 days per annum in Ireland – not all torrential downpours but more often soft, gentle, misty rain – but it's still rain. Everything turns grey and I can't imagine living with all this rain all the time, especially when it is cold.

We head off for a day trip down the Dingle Peninsula, glimpses of blue sky tantalise us but evaporate before lunchtime. The Dingle Peninsula is a finger of mountainous land jutting into the Atlantic sea – nothing between it and the east coast of the USA. The sea views from the tiny winding road nearly make me crash the car - so I pull over every few kilometres. At one such stop there is a grotto with Jesus on the cross again and a giant seagull the size of a turkey is there trying to cadge a living from the passing trade. A couple of German walkers are as interested as me and I get the great idea to entice it closer with a crumb off the floor of the car (after the chook in the car at Salisbury) and the German guy says to me that he read a sign down the road saying not to feed the birds!!

The Dingle Peninsula is littered with archaeological monuments – some dating back as far as 6000 years that have managed to survive the ravages of time with the less intense farming on this unforgiving landscape. Along the road we pull up to the beehive huts (Clocháns in Gaelic) - amazing stone buildings - corbelled again surrounded by stone fences in what they call forts. Amazing to think that these tiny rock buildings - not cemented together - have been sitting there for so long. Further down the road we find the Gallarus Oratory - a Church in a field thought to date from somewhere around the 6th century, absolutely complete. It's made from stones from the ground up to the top of the roof in the classic house shape and is watertight. Ric loved it and has an idea milling around in his head that he wants to build something from stone.

Finding Dingle has not been that easy - all the road signs are in Gaelic (An Daingean) and the word 'Dingle' has been obscured from most except some hand painted 'Dingle' signs. As we pull into the little township we notice other signs posted saying 'Dingle - a town denied democracy'. Intriguing? Wandering around we see a little shop with newspaper clippings in the window explaining. Apparently some politician made the arbitrary decision that 'Dingle' would no longer be used and henceforth would be obliterated from all road signs. The townsfolk were upset, as tourists were getting lost and tourism is part of their lifeblood. A vote was held - overwhelmingly in favour of reinstating Dingle but it was overruled. Hence the ‘no democracy’ claim. We had the best seafood chowder we have ever eaten in our lives in Dingle. We've had about 5 different versions. This one was fragrant with dill, coriander leaves and seeds, leeks and 4 types of fish. Scrumptious!

Later back in Killarney we drove through the national park again and noticed some weed work happening. Rhododendrons are found in Ireland's fossil record but died out over the last ice age cause it got too cold. Someone had the bright idea of reintroducing them as a garden plant and they've gone berserk - in fact you see them through Ireland, Scotland and England and Wales. Infestations get huge and it's difficult and time consuming to control. You can go and stay for free in a hostel at Killarney and help kill the stuff if you want. Also everywhere we have been there are fuchsias in the hedgerows - I think they are a tropical plant so am unsure if they are weeds too. I suspect they are there is just too many of them. I bought a tea towel with Irish wildflowers on it and the fuchsia is included - confusing!

Killarney NP boasts the only wild herd of Red Deer - around 700 individuals. We didn't see any though. The Red Deer is Ireland's native deer, and has been around for nearly 10,500 years. In Muckross House there was the intact skull and antlers of an ancient species of deer, long extinct, that roamed when the dinosaurs were around. The skull survived virtually intact in the bog. It was huge - dwarfing the Red Deer - this deer was 3m long; would be very scary meeting up with one in the rutting season.

From Killarney we head to Ennis then meet up with Tri and Ginni in Quin at an old ruin of an Abbey for a picnic at 9:30pm - the sun is high. It's amazing how many hours of light they get here in the summer. The sun sets so slowly, at 10:30 or later and bounces up again at about 4 in the morning. The TV weather tells you what the evening weather is like separately to the day - so you can plan your evening! (eg. Bright day, sunny and rain patches then a bright evening with long periods of sun and showers) Tri and Ginni were going to a music festival and we opt to explore Ennis and surrounds instead. So we head first to the Cliffs of Moyer on the edge of County Clare. The place is amazing - huge cliffs 120m high home to heaps of seabirds including Puffins! It is one of the most important sites for cliff nesting seabirds in Ireland. I was really keen to see a Puffin up close but sadly to no avail. We saw them from a distance but they were only specks.

Recently the managing authority has completed works at the cliffs to make them safer -- the sad thing is you can't get near the edge. Apparently a French tourist got blown off so they had to fix it up. The visitor centre had great interps - we really enjoyed it - despite it not being popular with people who have been there before all the work got done. The have cleverly excavated near the edge so you look out from behind these huge slabs of slate – with fossils - off the edge. There's a tower - like part of castle built there years ago apparently to impress female tourists - but why you'd need to impress anyone with such impressive natural features is inexplicable. Next we drove off to The Burren which is a unique Karst landscape right near the Cliffs of Moher. The rolling hills of Burren are uniquely made up of limestone pavements with crisscrossing cracks known as "grikes", leaving isolated rocks called "clints". There is an unusual collection of arctic, mediterranean and alpine plants that grow side-by-side, between the cracks. I read a quote by a guy during a war in the 17th century said of the place...”It is a country where there is not enough water to drown a man, wood enough to hang one, nor earth enough to bury him...... and yet their cattle are very fat; for the grass growing in turfs of earth, of two or three foot square, that lie between the rocks, which are of limestone, is very sweet and nourishing”. You can't see the plants really from a distance you have stop and get out. It's weird walking on the rocks they're loose and some tip as you step on them. We walked up the side of hill across the rocks to check out the amazing view down to what looked like a mesa. The rivers all run underground - and there's amazing caves to see in the area. The next day we met up again in Gort with Tri and Ginni and make the trip back across to Dublin for a night at Ginni's before leaving Dublin the next day. Ireland is an amazing country - the beauty is in its natural places and ancient sites rather than the modern man made cities. The people are open and friendly and we are sad to bid our friends and the 40 shades of green farewell. Cathy & Ric

No Blarney here

2007-09-24T18:17:00.004+10:00

21 June 2007

We didn't hang around in Kilkenny as we had decided to explore the rugged SW corner of the Ireland. We shot straight past Cork - never mind Blarney Castle or the Blarney Stone - anyway, who knows what would have happened if I had've kissed it. Speaking of Kil's we entertained ourselves making up names for new places called Kil-something. Kilkeith, Kilcathy, Kilcolin, Kilkatrina, Kilclarky. Some of them even exist so we found out! And it doesn't have to have a "c" sound after the Kil so we found out. Killeach, Killarney on it goes. They even have a straight up "Kill" - never mind a name to go with it. We thought it might mean "mountain" but I found out it described the second most common feature in Ireland - a church!

The Irish are religious. We climbed an amazing pass on the Beara Peninsula - Healy's Pass and on the top of the pass there's a statue of Jesus on the cross, with Mary in toe and some other saint I couldn't recognise. Grottos with statues abound; from the urban street to a spot in what seems like a complete wilderness - they sure are a pious lot.

Back on our odyssey we lunched on sausages and bread at a food market in Kinsale on the harbour before arriving at Bantry - another seaside spot - fishing and tourism being the main industries. I was excited as our B&B was out of town - on a working farm and was described on the internet as 'luxury accommodation' with 'home baking' for breakfast. Ha! It was a converted garage and the TV just barely worked. Breakfast was fine but not home baked as advertised. I saw a story about how the star rating system for accommodation has lost credibility in Ireland - too true. Oh well, the dog was friendly there at least.

We drove off to explore the amazing Beara Peninsula and stopped enroute to check out Glengarriff Nature Reserve. It was gorgeous - a true rainforest - very wet - ancient and cloaked in moss - the canopy of oaks sheltered us from the persistent rain. Despite the rain we did the River Walk along a braided watercourse, every colour of green laid before us. We were moved by the atmosphere and beauty of the place. Onward to the Beara and the rain just would not leave us but the breathtaking views compensated - we basically did a figure of eight across the peninsula, eager to explore every inch. Healy's Pass took us over the top and middle on a tiny, winding mountain road made for horse and cart and not yet 'improved' thank goodness. No tourist buses here! Sheep were are only traveling companions - walking at times on the road for a few hundred metres in front of the car. Aside from the crucifix statue at the top, the county changes from Cork to Kerry and there is garbled sign that tells us about coffins being slid over the county border - not sure what that was all about. The road was a work project when the famine was happening.
Further down the road we drive out to a Buddhist meditation centre recommended highly by Tri. The road/driveway is blocked right at the end by (would you believe it at this remote location) - road works! We manage to get out to the cliffs near the retreat centre and enjoy a short respite from the rain gazing out across jagged rocks to a brooding sea. An unparalleled setting for contemplation.
We eventually find our way to Allihies where the road is too narrow to accommodate buses again (YAY). We buy a sandwich in the shop and head down to the car park overlooking the beach for lunch. A pod of dolphins entertain us with their antics tossing fish out of the water - playing with their food, Ric quips! Tri later asked me if I saw St Patrick's footprint somewhere there - apparently that's where he landed when he arrived in Ireland from France - sadly we missed it. I read about that St Patrick was purported to have said - 'Any snake that wants to stay in Ireland, please raise your right hand'. Very funny!

Next day and we were off to the Ring of Kerry. Enroute we stop for a real coffee at Kenmare. The quest for a decent coffee has been long and difficult one! Mostly unsuccessful though, including in the UK. We drank half a cup rated 4 out of 10 and wandered down the main street. Alarmed we noticed the army - at least 10 soldiers complete with machine guns had arrived, seriously checking out everyone in the street. We stop and gawped. A nearby range rover filled with more soldiers with machine guns pulled up next to me. They were laughing and having a joke. I stepped forward to ask them through the open window what was going on? They told me they were guarding the armored vehicle delivering money to the bank! I ask if I could take a photo - at first they say no - but then they tell me to stand back in the cover of their vehicle and get one. It's all very good natured.

Ric and I opt for the short version of the Ring of Kerry and head over Moll's Pass towards Killarney - the scenery again takes our breath away - lakes in the distance with heaving geology over our shoulders. At the top of the gap there is inexplicably a shop - tourist buses out the front - I am about to unceremoniously speed past but I notice it is an Avoca shop - gorgeous stuff, clothes and great food - too good to miss even on the top of a mountain. We get some takeaway salads and Irish brown bread and beat the rush of the buses - head down the road and stopped near a precipice to dine in the car. Magnificent!

Almost at Killarney we notice Killarney National Park and despite the hissing rain stop for a quick walk. We discovered an amazing waterfall with loads of people walking in the torrential downpour. I guess you just have to ignore the rain in Ireland and get on with it. Killarney NP is around 10,000 hectares and is Ireland's first national park to be declared. There are 3 lakes, a mountain range and a series of heritage buildings including the Victorian mansion Muckross House; a lot packed into a relatively small space. We visited Muckross House (built 1843 - restored in the 1960's) the next day and did the tour - an amazing grand old building with 25 bedrooms. Queen Victoria and family came to stay a few months before Albert died. She gave 6 years notice of her impending arrival and stayed just 2 days, sleeping in a bed she brought from home. Apparently she sent heaps of wealthy families to the wall as they completely renovated their homes for her with great extravagances they couldn't afford like they did here. A sideboard took 4 years to carve in Italy - heavy elaborate drapes were brought in from France and they had to install a fire escape - Victoria was paranoid about being caught in a fire.

On the plane on the way to Ireland we noticed that Riverdance was in Killarney while we were there so we shouted ourselves tickets and absolutely loved the show. Both of us have been practising our Irish dancing ever since - aisles at supermarkets seem to provide the necessary amount of space. Cathy & Ric

PS I am a bit behind with the diary - please forgive me but you will be getting peppered over the next couple of days. Finding internet has been a challenge - next time I'll definitely travel with a laptop.

Fiddly Dee

2007-09-24T18:17:00.003+10:00

21 June 2007

I forgot to tell you when we were in Dublin on the last day we saw a guy singing in Grafton Street " I'm Irish.....fidldy dee, fiddly dum, I'm Irish......fiddly dee, fiddly dum" over and over in the hot sun - he was dancing with an old lady out of the crowd - then he said "Get your free CD, all proceeds go to charity" - we cracked up! Also Ric was tickled by an ad he saw on TV for ice-cream - "It takes a whole pint of milk to make one litre of ice-cream".

After a great night's sleep and some clothes washing at Tri's parents, Ginni pointed out all the 'must see' spots on the map. We hit the road not really sure where we would end up, but heading down towards the south west. First stop though was at Newgrange, not far from Balbriggan – another prehistoric site, but this time a building - they call it a passage tomb - but no one is buried here however, cremated remains were placed inside when it was built around 3200 BC (about 1000 years before the pyramids!!!) Theories abound as to what it is, how it was built and why but no one knows for sure.

The structure is a weird earth mound - huge in proportion flagged all round with massive stones (tonnes) on their sides (brought from many kilometres away) and is the whole thing is faced on the front with quartz - which was put back in more recent times. Inside there is a 19m long passage ending at a cruciform chamber - that fits in about 20 people at one time. The space in the middle is made by corbelling - an ancient building technique using overlapping flat stones and is completely waterproof - still to this day. Our guide tells us it is the oldest building in the world. Simple line drawings of swirls and circles were pecked into the hard rocks on the largest stones. The most intricate pattern is on the stone in front of the opening - it looks a bit like an ancient Aboriginal map. Amazingly the passage lines up with the sun on the winter solstice so that for 17 minutes in the depth of winter the sun shines through the light box constructed above the low entryway and penetrates right to the inner chamber (if it's not cloudy or rainy on that day of course)! Quite mind boggling. The visitor centre is outstanding with dioramas of what life would have been like around the day when the mound was constructed including mocked up clothing from animal furs, reconstructed huts and such. Around the time Newgrange was constructed most people on average only lived to 25 years of age with the oldest people only getting to 50 so this would have taken a few lifetimes to construct.

Everyone listened transfixed as our young Irish guide, Mary, told the story of the place. She was very quietly spoken but had us all in the palm of her hand with her descriptions and dramatic pauses. Her enthusiasm was obvious and she engendered respect for the place - at least I thought so. The group was too big to fit inside all at once so while the first half of the group went in the other of us half waited outside in the bright shining sun before we squeezed up the tiny passage to the surprisingly spacious chamber. A couple of young American guys waited with us. All of a sudden one clambered up onto the 2 metre high standing stone just adjacent to the mound and had to be asked to get down. Unbelievable! His comment as he jumped down was - "I'm not going to hurt it- it's only a rock."

Back on the road we make a bee line for Kilkenny - trying to enjoy the Irish countryside enroute. The confounded hedgerows get in the way and we don't enjoy too many vistas. All roads in Ireland are currently being upgraded as the place is in a boom period, so road works are a common feature. The roads are narrow - without verges and as in England, the Irish just stop their car in the middle of the road - never mind where and everyone just goes around. It's like putting the hazard lights on means road rules no longer apply - you have an amnesty for however long the lights flash. The new works are done so haphazardly - the whole road at once torn up and gravel made on site. Cathy & Ric

In Dublin’s Fair City

2007-09-24T18:16:00.001+10:00

14 June 2007

We arrived back in Gatwick - the plane was inexplicably running half an hour late and so we only had 2.5 hours to arrive, collect our luggage, head off to Heathrow by bus (1 hour 20 on a good day) via the M25 (that car park!) and check in for the next flight to Dublin. Everything went smoothly got our bags quickly - caught a bus that left within 2 minutes of us getting on - no traffic on the M25 - quick check in - then we ran through the rat run that they send you on through Heathrow - no dramas whatsoever.

We got to Dublin at about 11pm and stayed at the airport - the room was wondrous after Dubrovnik - did I tell you our apartment was in an attic and you could only stand up in the middle of the rooms - we both sustained a few bumps and bruises from the sloping walls - and the toilet was pretty well in the shower - very hygienic but slippery. Bewley's Hotel at Dublin airport was spacious, clean, crisp and white. Ric flailed his arms wildly around for a few minutes after we arrived to enjoy the space.

Next morning we headed into Ball’s Bridge in Dublin - as it happened it was just around the corner from where Tri lives when she's there. We dumped our bags and walked straight into town to get a feel for the place. Right in the centre of the city there is this giant silver spike - the Millennium Spire - erected to replace Nelson's Pillar that was blown up in 1966. It's 120 metres tall - most unusual and striking. A taxi driver told us they are just starting to get used to it. We wandered around and found the Liffey- the tidal river that runs through the centre of the city - checked out Temple Bar - a cobble-stoned area that is now extremely touristy - and wandered down Grafton St - the main shopping precinct of the city. There are Romanian gypsies everywhere - with swaddled babies (even kids up to 5 years get wrapped up like babies) - mum’s eyes downcast, begging. Ric and I got separated and we both started thinking we would never see each other again - so once we were reunited we decided a drink was in order. We headed for a grand pub decorated in art deco with leather lounges opposite the GPO and waited for Tri to come and meet us.

Tri was a wonderful guide - and her commentary was very personal - down to her Granny being holed up in a wardrobe that got dragged into a blockade on O'Connell Street during the Irish Easter uprising of 1916.She pointed out buildings her Dad and Grandad had owned and the places she'd kicked around as a kid. We walked back to Ball's Bridge met up with Natt and her friend Laura who just arrived from Cambridge, drank a couple of celebratory bottles of champagne then walked back into town for more sightseeing and dinner. We ate a meal in a cavernous hall of a building turned into a pub and restaurant - absolutely packed with people - it once must have been a shoe factory because one wall was decorated entirely by shelf after shelf of shoe lasts. Walking around on a Friday night in Dublin was electric - every pub was filled to overflowing with people standing in the night time sun lit streets, drinking pints and laughing. Ric said he had never walked that far in his life when we got home - we were all foot weary - Tri's feet were even bleeding!

Dublin is an eclectic place - the beauty is in the detail - the shamrocks on the lamp post, the brightly coloured front doors and a tiny shop jammed in a corner - you couldn't describe the city as beautiful. Sadly there is rubbish all around and millions of cigarette butts but the place is very welcoming despite its comely appearance.

We walked Ric and the girls to the Guinness Factory through an area on the wrong side of Dublin. Tri tells me you can tell from the shape of people's faces which side of the Liffey they are from - we laugh when we hear a mother confiding to a friend that her toddler will grow up to be a handsome knacker (slang for a rough character) as Tri and I head to a emerald green park next to a church to chill out before all meeting up again in town. Ric is disappointed the Guinness Tour is 'virtual' with no actual brewing on show. Apparently the view from the top coupled with the 'free' Guinness helped to ease his chagrin. Natt's shoes can't sustain the amount of kilometres we've covered and completely blow out - she buys a pair of leather thongs (flip flops here) to replace them.

We walk back again to Ball's Bridge before dinner and Ric and I taste our first sip of Bolly before walking back into town again for Japanese dinner. Together with Ginni, Tri's mate joining us for Natt's birthday dinner Ric puffs up - he is surrounded by 5 beautiful women and glances around to see if anyone has noticed! We have an outstanding meal, laugh our heads off and head off to an outlandishly decorated pub for more partying - I meet a guy who is a ranger at Phoenix Park in Dublin, 712ha - lawns and stuff, all enclosed with deer grazing we compare jobs and realise they are very different - he's horrified to hear we shoot deer! Natt and I have a dance and finally we decide to head home - this time in a taxi. We chat to the good natured taxi driver who recognises our accents immediately and he tells us about a boy who was transported to Australia for picking up an apple that had fallen outside a walled orchard!

Next day we head out for breakfast and Ric accidentally drops his telephone into a deep section of the Grand Canal just near our hotel. We wander into town via a park where artists display their works along the fences and enjoy a free outdoor gallery experience. Many of the local landscapes have dark brooding skies with grey seas - As I put on sunscreen it occurs to me that the hot sunny day overhead is at odds with the Ireland represented in the paintings. The artworks in the National Gallery across the road have the same muted colours. Back in town we enjoy a coffee together before heading of to pick up our hire car. Tri, Ginni Ric and I head to Balbriggan to Tri's Mam & Da's (sorry Tri) and the girls laze in the sunny park before heading back to Cambridge. I talk to Natt later that evening to hear that the flight back to England is completely unloaded due to her luggage! Meanwhile in Balbriggan we walk along the seaside (rocky beach) to Skerries about 7 km away to witness an amazing sunset over the sea and eat an incredibly fresh feed of fish, rounded off with a Baileys on ice. Cathy & Ric

White & Shiny Dubrovnik

2007-09-24T18:15:00.001+10:00

7 June 2007

In Gatwick we drop off our little car - affectionately known as the Pug that has carried us 1800 miles (3000 or so km) around England and Scotland, skirting Wales and find a motel room that has everything we want except atmosphere and climate control! The heat is stifling indoors overnight until we come out into the cool of the morning. The flight to Dubrovnik takes 3 hours and we sit next to a guy and his wife from Perth! Flying in, the landscape is reminiscent of Tuscany - stark hills, cypress pine and white stone. The blue Adriatic shimmers.

We are picked up by our host at the airport and drive the 22km to town along the cliff side road. Suddenly he makes a wild turn into a tiny parking bay above the city and bids us to get out. We look below and a flight of stairs that defies imagination lies before us. He points out his sister waving - a speck in the distance and we struggle downward with our bags, better than carrying them up I suppose. Finally we make it without tumbling uncontrollably down (my imagination running off again) and she shows us to the starkest of white rooms containing only 2 beds and an unbelievable view of the harbour and the terracotta roofed old town. Oh - we booked an apartment for 4 nights, I stammer. Sorry not available, is the reply, this your room. So after a quick orientation of how to get to the old town we leave our bags and continue down the stairs.

I try to block out visualizing walking back up. I can't believe there is a place with more stairs than Positano in Italy but Dubrovnik is a clear winner. We cross the fair dinkum drawbridge into the old town. Once inside the dazzling white of the limestone walls and pavements nearly blinds us. The main street has seen so many feet the limestone blocks are worn shiny like faux marble. We are immediately confronted with a map of the houses that lost their roofs, buildings that were completely demolished and direct hits during the war (1991-1995). 90% of the buildings needed re roofing evidenced by the pristine terracotta tiles now in place. Many buildings have been obviously repaired - others just left as is. Ric and I decide to walk around the fortified walls for a bird’s eye view of the place - yet another maze - this time of tiny laneways, many just stairs radiating out from the main shiny pathway.

The view from the top of the wall is nothing short of spectacular. On the seaward side are high cliffs down to the ocean and then views across the red roofs and up 'that' hill to our room. After taking many photos we complete the 3 kilometre circuit and come down into the town. Time to eat - restaurants in every direction, down every lane way, all with a person politely touting for business outside each one. We choose a modest looking set of tables lining one side of a lane, 3 storeys of limestone blocks either side. We order fish and it is delicious - pan fried in butter - sea bass for Ric, bream for me. Afterwards we notice the movies and decide to go - it's 'Piratez s Kariba'. It's in English with Croatian subtitles. It finishes late into the night and there's nothing for it, up we go.

I couldn't help thinking of the fire fighting fitness test that we have to do when we come home - this counted as serious training! 20 minutes later, blood pounding in our temples and sweating profusely we showered and fell into bed for a fitful sleep - broken by building works at 3am – yes, there's still more reconstruction happening - not sure why they do it in the middle of the night though. The sound of machinery and clinking stone blocks reverberates around the side of the mountain at an ungodly hour. Next morning we resolve to move - I talk to guy and he is very smooth - suddenly an apartment is available only 20 euros more per night. We tell him we will think about it over breakfast - pack our bags and head off to find somewhere else - preferably down the bottom of the hill. The tourist info place comes good and we get an apartment in the old town. We've got to go up the hill again and drag the bags down - oh well, last time.

Dubrovnik is the pearl of the Adriatic, so said Byron, and George Bernard Shaw said - if you are looking for paradise on earth, search for it in Dubrovnik! It is such a beautiful place it’s hard to believe it was cruelly bombed by the then Yugoslavians. The Old Town of Dubrovnik was recognized by UNESCO through its inclusion on the World Heritage List in 1979 and the attention of the world may have saved the place from complete destruction. Even though the war continued for 4 years bombings stopped here after 9 months. War, what is it good for? - Absolutely nothing!

Thousands of tourists surge through this place, many following a tour guide for a few hours before jumping back aboard a bus and heading for the next destination. Ric and I have the luxury of a few days and investigate many of the lanes, climb countless stairs and marvel at the history this pace has amassed. As with desirable or strategic locations many regimes have conquered Dubrovnik, the Hapsburgs, Germans, Serbs and Italians. There have probably been others. Curiously the necktie is said to have begun here - Louis 14th stole the idea sometime in the 15th century from the soldiers’ uniform.

We take a charter boat ride with a couple from Birmingham and the deep azure of the sea is even more brilliant from water level. The ride takes us along the cliff edge of the city walls and out around the vegetation covered island of Lockrum - a national park with the remains of a monastery and a ranger's house the only buildings on the island. It looks idyllic but a long way from home. We notice new buildings with unsympathetic architecture are beginning to spring up that threaten to ruin the charm of this place. We find a restaurant that serves whole, deep fried sardines – eyes, guts and all - they are absolutely delicious and we cannot stay away, eating lunch & dinner there for a couple of days. We try just about everything on the menu the octopus salad is probably the best with capers and red onion, yum! We head of to the movies again this time to see Miss Potter - it's very pertinent since it is set in the Lakes District in England and we both enjoy the locations as much as the storyline. The last night we go to the only movie we haven't seen in town at the open air theatre this time - Blades of Glory, it's a crazy movie but we have a good laugh. This cinema is just a vacant block with tiered concrete steps completely surrounded by peoples’ apartments on 3 levels - windows all opening on it. I wonder if they get sick of the same movie showing for a week at a time? A little girls runs in just as the lights go off and sits in front of us she waves at her mum hanging out a third story window just to the right of the screen. The little girl watches the movie while her mum watches her for the whole 1.5 hours.

Today we packed up and are off the Dublin via London to meet Natt for her birthday should be fun. Cathy & Ric

Chester to Bath to Dinton

2007-09-24T18:13:00.000+10:00

4 Jun 2007

We wake up in Penrith refreshed after a great night's sleep to a beautiful breakfast - fresh fruit, the obligatory full English breakfast, and great coffee. Juxtaposed outside however, we find that bank holiday revellers have kicked the side mirrors off five cars parked in the street - ours being one of them. Ric manages to cobble the mirror back together despite a few broken pieces that are missing. Off we zoom to Chester past Manchester and Liverpool without so much as a sideways glance. Truly this place has just too much to see - and you can turn yourself in knots worrying about what you've missed or trying to get everything in. We've finally surrendered to only doing a few things well.

We arrive in Chester welcomed by blustery winds and freezing rain showers, and umbrella our way into town. We are at once entranced by the striking black and white Tudor buildings. The main street is a mall and is lined by building after building, all with their own signature style. Some ornate - others simple, but all distinctive - black and white. The amazing things are the walkways on the first floor that traverse across the first floor of each building a sort of incorporated veranda, where you can get a birds eye view of the building across the street as well as everything happening below. The floors lurch crazily in every direction from building to building and some don't even have enough head room to accommodate Ric standing erect. Looking at the buildings from the outside you can see the crazy floor levels evidenced by huge beams that probably were never quite straight and appear to have sagged considerably over their 500 year lives.

After looking around we beat our retreat to the B& B – nothing to report there, but we head down the street to the pub and are enticed into the smoky environs by £4 meals. We sit down and engage in conversation with a local who was bemused that we travelled across the world to visit his local pub. We discuss the upcoming ban on smoking - which annoying begins after we leave - and he remonstrates that he thinks everyone will give up going to the pub. I doubt it! Smoking indoors is already banned in Scotland (and Ireland) and from what I've seen so far there are not many empty pubs!

Next day we are off Bath and drive around madly trying to find our accommodation - only to discover some streets have two names in this city - one side is called one thing the other is called another – making navigating most infuriating. Bath is distinguished by it's Georgian architecture; the best collection in the world apparently - although I find it much more flat and less ornate and while more perfect than the Tudor much less appealing- Ric tells me it's not his favourite. After a nights sleep we wander into town for decent coffee and drop into the impressively huge cathedral. We listen to a guide who tells her group that the interior and exterior has been recently cleaned - using toothbrushes! It must have taken a few years! She goes on to say that the rector asked parishioners from the pulpit to bring in their old toothbrushes!! She also tells her group that the cathedral has the most memorials dotted around the walls - second only to Westminster Abbey. A lot of people came to Bath for a miracle cure even from Roman days, and apparently a lot of them never left, hence the far afield places many people hale from in the memorials. We wander around for a while and I read a plaque that said 'In Memory of Bill Jones, suddenly translated from earth to heaven this night aged 81 years'. Very poignant.

Then we head off to visit the roman baths. As we wait in line to buy our ticket the sign regales us with the myriad tourism awards this place has won. We weren't disappointed! The whole complex is nothing short of remarkable. The audio tour is included in the price and has a varied range of commentaries to choose from including one for kids, one by Bill Bryson and various others including actors being Romans. The site itself is amazingly intact in parts considering its age. In other parts where only fragments remain they have cleverly filled in the gaps with fake walls depicting original finishes. Brilliant videos that recreate the rooms from their present state to their original glory further fill in the gaps. I dip my hand into the hot sulphurous water as I listen to the commentary and hear that the Emperor would have taken 2 baths a day if he had time, along with a massage, and then indulged in consuming oysters, brought to Bath in sea water to keep them fresh. I'm sure I was an Emperor in a previous life - it all sounded perfect (or 'pairfect' as they say around here) to me. I hear Ric laughing listening to his commentary - he tells me he thinks I was a Roman Emperor!
It's quite amazing to hear that the baths themselves are still waterproof over 2000 years later - as built by the Romans - lead lined - with special joins! Other pipes have reinforced lead joins indicating water was piped around the baths under pressure. Quite extraordinary! On our way out we are given a glass of hot spring water to drink. I can only manage a sip as I think of the guide in the cathedral who said so many people died after drinking it. Maybe they didn't die from drinking the water but I'm not taking chances. We planned to stay a couple of nights in Bath but the particularly nasty weather and the decidedly unfriendly B&B proprietor spur us onwards on journey to Salisbury, not far down the road. Here we hit the B&B jackpot at a farm stay in the nearby village of Dinton.

The spacious room is welcoming along with the hosts - Fiona and Mark - who like are us are empty nesters but with a huge 17th century house on their hands. The house was a temporary home for a wealthy family who was waiting for their 'proper' house to be completed. Mark's family has been farming sheep and crops there for 3 generations.

We decide to stay 2 nights and enjoy the king sized bed and the absolute serenity outside the city. We are sweetly advised of the morning by a chorus of birds and the sound of squirrels scampering industriously outside our window. Speaking of birds and such, we have become addicted to a brilliant show on BBC TV presented by Bill Oddie called Springwatch. They set up a range of cameras to catch the action in various bird nests, a badger's hole and follow the fortunes of a clutch of rescued blue jays. The action is mostly live and a whole hour of prime time is devoted to the show. Amazingly they advise people to feed birds and a competition is on for viewers to provide their favourite bird food recipe! It's like an animal version of Big Brother - without the manipulation. A clutch of five owl chicks reduced itself to 3 over the week we'd been watching through the bigger chicks eating the runts -is that called siblicide? A family of five kingfishers learn the fishing ropes and a large family of badgers tackle climbing for the first time - all gripping viewing. We have our own animal encounter next morning with Henny Penny - the resident sole surviving chicken (her coop mates where cleaned up by foxes) jumping into our car and meticulously cleaning any crumbs of food off the floor. Ric is surprised how friendly chickens can be! More later. Cathy & Ric

Not Smiling, Grimacing

2007-09-03T19:30:00.000+10:00

Stumpy is getting bitten here - ouch! From the damage on the interloper's head though I think Stumpy may have got the first good bite in.

Stumpy is on the left, her head in the pincer like jaws of the new bluey dubbed "Munchy".

Previously I've posted photos of our resident female Blue-tongued lizard in a lovers' embrace but not this time...it was more like mortal combat! On the weekend, our neighbours 2 doors up reported having relocated a sizable female bluey to rescue it from the jaws of Hunter, their aptly named fox terrier, onto the property that separates out houses. Meanwhile at home "Stumpy" was sunning herself in the fresh mulch next to the metal section she had commandeered at the end of last summer as a ready made although somewhat straight burrow, unaware her paradise was soon to be invaded.

Less than an hour later the new female was challenging Stumpy to the rights of her garden haven. They fought quite relentlessly, the sound of crunching teeth(?) turned my stomach as the invader locked her jaws onto Stumpy's head. Unable to watch for longer than 5 minutes we grabbed the interloper and took her down the back yard and offered up a plastic pipe that was gratefully accepted. We'll see what happens!

Lakes and Cars and Dogs on the Bank Bloody Holiday

2007-09-03T19:29:00.000+10:00

31 May 2007

We finished our drive through the Scottish Highlands and headed back to Edinburgh for our final night in the apartment - then packed up and headed to Stirling to check out the famed castle. Stirling Castle did not disappoint! The restoration works were magnificent with major ancient tapestries being recreated as well as the buildings. The displays were excellent as well documenting the painstaking efforts to faithfully put back what was damaged or missing, and life as it had been in the castle. The military stuff was fierce some. Even the modern history in WWI & II with horrifying stories of soldiers using sharpened shovels as weapons and hand making clubs from heavy pieces of metal machinery for convenience of size in the trenches. We headed off to Luss to see the bonny banks of Loch Lomand. It was more vast than I had imagined with a sandy shore and a timber wharf. The village of Luss was beyond quaint and the maddening nose poke of visitors might have explained the lack of locals anywhere to be seen. We wandered up to the little church surrounded by old grave markers as a wedding was about to commence. The nervous groom paced inside the stone yard. We happened upon a cafe - and sat down to a hearty hot soup and delicious hank of hot fresh bread before continuing on down south.

After leaving Luss we headed into Glasgow for a quick look - a big mistake - it was Saturday on the Bank holiday weekend that was also the beginning of a mid term break (school holidays) and a big 1st division final footy match on in Glasgow that day. Bloody hell! The traffic was bumper to bumper (again!) and our nerves were pretty frayed as we sat waiting in a line of traffic into a car park when the FULL sign went up. We had nowhere to go with 3 lanes of cars and us, buried squarely in the middle of it all. Every now and then a car or two would leave and the FULL sign would disappear and let 2 more cars in. Finally in and finding an empty car space was as difficult as you could imagine. Then when we found our way into the middle of Glasgow Square? Mall? There were literally hundreds of thousands of people - it was quite overwhelming. We found out what was going on and after checking the internet for accommodation options our worst fears were realised. The city was overflowing. So we beat our retreat and headed out towards Carlisle.

At Carlisle we hit the trifecta - not the winning one though. We spied a B&B with a vacancy sign after trying a couple of hotels - all booked out (there was a racing carnival in Carlisle this weekend!) So we went in and secured a bed. The man seemed nice enough and sent us across the road to the pub for dinner where we met a couple from Newcastle who we saw at one of the hotels - sprinting across the car park to beat us to a room. They'd been having much the same experience as us in Glasgow! After dinner we headed home and I found after showering for bed that the sheets were somewhat used - I just brushed out the black coarse hairs and fell into bed exhausted. Then the rhythmic banging of the music must have started around 11pm. The disco at the pub outside our window was getting into full swing and continued on well into the wee small hours. To complete the trifecta coffee in the morning was akin to grey dishwater. Oh well.

We put all that behind us and headed off to the Lakes District where the scenery made up for our aborted attempt to get to know Glasgow. The leafy green tunnels opened out to vistas of shimmering lakes with narrow stone-fenced roads slowing everyone down to a pleasant sightseeing pace. We pulled into Glen Ridding just as it began to shower and wandered into the tiny village and checked out the national parks visitor centre. It was freezing! Everywhere there are serious walkers - gaiters, walking poles, gortex anoraks with the obligatory dog in tow. People were camped here in the rain with their dogs and a little bit or rain or freezing temperatures will not deter them from their walking/camping bank holiday weekend. Very stoic. I guess the bank holiday weekend is a little like our Easter camping weekend - it is guaranteed to rain the lady tells us in the visitor centre.

We decide to continue down to Windermere and Ambleside the heart of the Lakes District - and the drive through the mountain pass is extraordinary. Huge looming hills - bare, save for a large rock here or there and then a stone house and a gaggle of stone farm buildings. Then the stone fences - they cross-stick the rugged landscape in every direction you can see, including up! The hills rise to mountains and the dry stone fences struggle ever upward, til beaten by the grade. A marvel of human engineering - some meticulously straight - other taking wild beds or wiggles - to avoid hips and hollows? Bad surveying? Or just for fun? I'm not sure. The amazing thing is how many miles of them there are (local measure)! I would say hundreds or even thousands. How long does it take to build a dry stone fence - maybe 2 feet thick, tapered at the top, 5 feet or so high, on the side of a mountain for miles and miles? How many people does it take? Ric and I joke about the wife asking the farmer about his day - every day - for his whole life building stone fences.

Talking of miles - it's weird here how the temperature is in celsius, the money is decimal currency but the measure of distance is miles. A persistent struggle to hold on to an imperial measure?
Close to the top scree slopes reveal the seemingly endless source of the stone - I wonder if the owner of that land made his fortune selling it to his neighbours? As we wind back down into the valley, the temperature rises and the beautiful leafy hues of green envelop us again as we drive flanked by a wide lake at an ever decreasing speed. The problem? Traffic of course.
Slowly we crawl into the Windermere high street and despite the beautiful buildings we are horrified to see that half of England has chosen this weekend to head to the Lakes District as well. There are so many people walking along the streets they cannot fit on to the footpath so spill on to the roads, replete with their dogs on leads, serving only to create more traffic chaos. We head to the short stay car park and are confronted with as many cars looking for car parks as there are cars already parked. By some stroke of luck we jag a park and jostle our way into the village with all the people and the dogs. We find the tourist info place only to find it is being refurbished and although open is not assisting visitors with accommodation. The cheerful man behind the counter informs me this is the busiest weekend in the Lakes District and we would be lucky to find anywhere to stay - save the places costing £100 plus (just times it by two and a half). Crikey! So we head off to Penrith via Ambleside to take in all we are missing. Ambleside is truly beautiful - Tudor style houses and pubs with the fairytale lake and castle with turret in the background. Finally we speed off up the ‘A something or other’ towards Penrith. A large racecourse looms into view as we drive into town with a crowded car park with a couple of police directing traffic out front. Oh no, not again!!! Bloody bank holiday weekend. After trying a couple of hotels we find a row of B&B's. The one I choose is heavenly - clean quiet and spacious. We wander down the street and eat a sumptuous Indian feed and then quietly waddle home to sleep in crisp clean sheets. Goodnight!

Bonny Scotland

2007-08-22T19:19:00.000+10:00

27 May 2007

We left York and headed north on the A road through the Yorkshire Dales and Moors National Parks. Driving along the A or B roads is like taking the back roads through the countryside rather than the motorways (freeways in our lingo) the views are spectacular - when you can see them, that is! All along the roads are either hedgerows or rock walls obscuring your vision down to a green-lined, grey ribbon along the roads. As we drive through the Moors and the Dales we catch glimpses across oceans of green or bright yellow fields with zephyrs gently playing across the crops. White sheep with black faces and playful lambs dot emerald quilts, patch worked with stone fences. The parks are certainly different to our own but still very beautiful.

I forgot to tell you when we drove to York from Cambridge we stopped at Sherwood Forest near Nottingham. It's an amazing forest of senescing oak trees. Not surprising that they are nearing the end of their life really -they are so old! Some are over 1000! The oldest of them all was this tree named The Major Oak - it's giant spreading limbs held up by steel struts and supports that somehow manage to steal it's dignity. This tree was said to have hidden Robin Hood at some time or another - maybe when he was evading the Sheriff of Nottingham.

We arrived in Edinburgh in peak hour so it was complete chaos driving into the city, particularly as we didn't have a map. We soon worked out where we were, using all our tracking skills, and made our way across the cobbled streets to our apartment. We stayed 3 days - spent the first exploring Edinburgh, including walking up the high hill from the river to the castle. The Scots of old were a warring lot and all the interpretation at the castle is devoted to battles, wars, war heroes and weapons. A bit confronting - no wonder Hadrian built a wall to keep the Scots out of Britain in Roman times. Edinburgh itself is an amazing city if not a bit drab. The buildings are very beautiful but all soot covered. I guess it gets cold and coal fires are absolutely necessary.

The second day we took a drive up north to the highlands. First we fang across the Firth of Forth to Fife - that is we drove across the harbour bridge to Fife. The harbour is named the Firth of Forth! In fact there's a few forths around Scotland.

The scenery was spectacular and uniquely Scottish. Amazing leafy forests then on to huge heather covered mountains. Ric and I practice our Scottish accents on all the road signs but manage to sound Irish or even Italian - we are both easily amused. Our first stop was at Pit Lockry where we checked out a fish ladder for the salmon that need to swim upstream beyond the power station to spawn. Somehow they work out they have to swim through a maze of tunnels and ponds to get upstream. There was a glass wall on one of the ponds and a counter - none were in there though. I saw a huge salmon jump below the weir wall.
We drove on to Blair Athol - and then down a lime green, ancient tree lined avenue which revealed the beautifully white washed, fairy story Blair Castle. The entrance hall is terrifyingly completely bedecked with hundreds of weapons of every type in every space on the 4m high walls. Muskets, crossbows, knives and spears are all arranged in geometric patterns. I asked the man if was a new exhibit and he assures me all entrance halls of castles and halls (huge houses) are similarly fitted out from their inception. It's meant as a show of strength to visitors and I guess easy to grab a gun if you need to quickly respond to trouble. And it seems there was a lot of trouble in Scotland over the years! The rest of the castle is crammed with artefacts and furniture and ancient family portraits that put our piddling, short lived history to shame.

We continue on to Bruar's - the Harrods of Scotland. It's quite unexpected to find a David Jones-esque food hall in the countryside of northern Scotland. Lunch is Haggis and neaps - a mince of who knows what and mashed turnips. Very tasty! From here the landscape changes markedly to soaring mountains covered with low shrubs - heather to be accurate and on the very tops little remnant drifts of snow. We stop near a tiny stream and taste the water that has run down from the heavens. There is water everywhere, the vegetation is all peatish and waterfalls cascade from on high every few minutes along the road. The amazing thing is you can smell the heather - the tiny white flowers subtly perfume the air all around with a faint honey and baby powder fragrance. Amazingly there are walkers everywhere. They brave the elements (it was showering) and walk up hills that rival even Kosciusko. We are suitably impressed.
I guess that's all for now - finding a computer is harder than I imagined hence the space between correspondence!

Haven’t seen the Grand Old Duke of York yet

2007-08-21T21:34:00.000+10:00

23 May 2007
Well today I write from York. We left Cambridge yesterday and picked up our little hire car that Natt found for us - instead of an Vauxhall (Holden) Astra that she booked we got upgraded to a Peugeot 307 with a sun roof! Very smick! We drove around Cambridge a couple of times on the ring road before leaving (not by choice) took a wrong turn and was confronted with a rising bollard in a controlled area. Needless to say we weren't supposed to drive there and a police-looking type man started to walk towards us but I was able to utilise the tiny turning circle and burn rubber getting away. Ric was supposed to be navigating but he couldn't concentrate on the map with all the beautiful buildings we hadn't seen on foot. We finally got on the A1 and headed north.

The countryside is truly beautiful - leafy emerald green fields lay in every direction. Through the sun roof we could see cloud building then rain showers and then patches of blue. We drove straight into York and paid £6 for parking one hour (about $15). The traffic here as everywhere including the big arterial roads and small back roads is crazy. I think there are just way too many cars in this country. If everyone went out driving at the same time it would just be gridlock from one end of the country to the other. No wonder just about everyone has a bike for when they can't face the traffic. Consequently today when we drove back into York we used the 'Park& Ride' option. You park out of town for free and catch a bus that gets caught in the traffic - oh well, some lanes are just for buses.

I booked accommodation for us from the internet and I didn't realise it was a 'theme' motel. We were amused to find our room was in a railway carriage! Pretty small but cozy - a shame the TV was on the wall above our heads (go figure?)

We went to the restaurant for a drink and some dinner- the whole complex is right next to a main railway line. Huge trains and smaller ones wizz and clatter past about every 15 minutes. There was a couple in the restaurant and every few minutes the husband raced outside with his expensive looking Nikon camera to capture a shot of the locomotive for posterity. He didn't photograph every train mind you - just the ones he was enamored with. Some even honked in appreciation as they raced past! I tried to engage him in conversation to find out what his penchant was but he and his wife were quintessentially British and preferred not to elaborate beyond the absolute minimum. I didn't press my luck with them but found out he was an actual 'train spotter' and his wife did not share his passion beyond accompanying him on the 'spotting' expeditions.

Overnight it took a few hours to calm my nerves when a train suddenly burst through the sound barrier - and convinced myself they wouldn't derail and land on my head, which was closest to the tracks (< 5 m) through a very thin timber carriage. Needless to say I survived the night and will no doubt sleep better tonight with a few passionfruit vodkas under my belt!

This morning we went to Fountain's Abbey near Ripon. It was extraordinary. I think Ric and I took about 4,000 photos between us. It was huge and ruined (that's why we were there really) King Henry VIII apparently took the honours for ruining this Abbey since the catholics wouldn't let him divorce when he got sick of his wives. So he vindictively tore the roof off and sold the iron and cast the monks out. But according to the chaplain who gave us a potted history in the spectacularly beautiful grounds, the Abbey was already on the road to ruin. Money and other such worldly distractions had made them unpopular with their townsfolk as well. I gather Henry disbanded all monkeries and abbeys - but will have to read more on the subject.

Sadly this afternoon when we arrived back in York the camera battery has gone flat and there are so many sights to document. We went to the York Minster (huge cathedral) and walked down the Shambles - a small lane with weird leaning buildings defying gravity. Might come here tomorrow really early before everyone is up to capture it on chip!
That's all for today!

Yes I Am Alive!

2007-08-21T21:18:00.000+10:00

Not a very faithful blogger, am I? So much has happened since February - suffice to say that the UK, Ireland and Croatia are very beautiful, but seriously there's no place like home. For whomever may be interested you are about to be subjected to installment one of my travel diary from our trip...

Hong Kong to Cambridge
20 May 2007
Well we've just had the last few days in Cambridge with Natty. The flight over was completely painless - flying in the day I think is the answer - arrive in the night or afternoon and just sleep, then tomorrow is another day! Probably the good seats had something to do with it as well.

Hong Kong was brilliant - we were very relaxed compared with the first time we visited and walked from Mong Kok down to the harbour and back about 4 times in the day and a half we were there. The smell of HK is unmistakable: cured seafood, liniment, spices and curdled milk all rolled into one. Walking in crowds of thousands of people is like being in a ballet, or swimming as part of a huge school of fish, and is strangely not unpleasant.

Cambridge on the other hand is an out of sync tangle of bikes, people, car, buses and the odd truck (lorry). The architecture is a stark contrast with that in HK as well - and it has completely blown us away. The college buildings in Cambridge range in age from 1000 to 1979 - almost a millennium, which is quite difficult for me to wrap my mind around. The buildings throughout the town are all very ornate and impressive as one would expect for this town with prestige to burn! Most of the colleges have been closed to visitors as it is exam time, and we peeked through the stone arch of one but were chased out by a very cranky porter (the man who sits in the office at the front).
We've been on day trips across the fen (a huge ancient wetland that was drained in the 1700's with help from Dutch engineers) to Ely whose massive cathedral is known as the 'ship of the fen' and ate lunch at a lovely pub aside a canal. Ric tells me it won pub of the year! Then we went to Newmarket and Natt and I shopped while Ric sat in another pub and wrote his diary. Yesterday we went off across the fen again to Bury Saint Edmonds - which was once an important religious centre with a huge Abbey with lots of Monks. The place got renamed Bury St Edmunds after poor old St Edmund got killed in 870 and his body was moved there in 903. The Abbey was destroyed by the townspeople in 1539 because they rebelled against the mean Abbot that lorded over the place. We went to the brilliant markets and then walked through the expansive grounds of the giant ruined Abbey, Ric was in his element. This is truly a pathetic history of the place. I just looked it up on the internet and a lot happens over a course of a few thousand years! That's all for now.

Inexperienced Snake Mum

2007-02-01T16:18:00.000+11:00

This carpet python laid her eggs on the middle of a walking track in Sea Acres Nature Reserve and appears to have abandoned them the next day, perhaps after getting disturbed by walkers.

Busy Body

2007-02-01T16:04:00.000+11:00

Yes, it's me back again. No I haven't disappeared - just been busy. Christmas holidays are always busy at work but some summers are crazy fire fighting ones....just like the 2006/2007 season. This photo is fresh from yesterday at a fire in Crowdy Bay National Park.

Too Busy To Blog

2006-12-17T20:45:00.000+11:00

Bloody hell I haven't been back here since September! Where has the time gone? I did my boss's job for 2 months - that kept me pretty busy. And have been at fires since mid November.

Here's a few images of recent days at fires in Coonabarabran and in Narrabri.

GroundHog Day

2006-09-30T15:01:00.000+10:00

It's groundhog Day here at Brushwattlebird central - our pair are nesting again! Last weekend theyw ere empty nesters feeding the babies (then baby- one disappeared) out of the nest. Today I look in the nest again and we have two warm brown eggs being lovingly tended by the parents!

Time Flies...

2006-09-15T15:02:00.000+10:00

The babies are already nearly grown... I guess they'll be fledging in a couple of days. I had trouble posting the photos from last weekend - finally got them on today...and here's the latest image.

Bringing Up Babies

2006-09-09T17:39:00.000+10:00

Well both the Brush Wattlebirds eggs hatched last weekend and ever since it's been 'game on' for Mum & Dad. No time to spare... delivering food and retrieving faecal sacs! Tops marks for nest site selection though - it's been blowing a gale here all week with moments of driving rain - no problem though for these canny birds - the babies are all snug under the roof of our verandah as well as out of the reach of destructive winds!

Hatching Honeyeaters

2006-09-02T11:44:00.000+10:00

One Brush wattle bird hatched, one to go! Sorry not brilliant photos.

Blue-tongue-kissing!

2006-09-02T10:35:00.000+10:00

This morning I was lucky to find a pair of Blue-tongued lizards in our garden in an amorous embrace.
The larger stumpy-tailed one (under) is the female who has lived around our house for many years. Her paramour was noticably smaller than her (most of her tail is missing), who gently had hold of her neck in his jaw then swung his tail around and completed their union. The whole time he was caressing her body gently with his right front foot, and after they had finished they lay quietly next to one another in the sun. Ain't love grand!

Backyard Ducks

2006-08-25T18:23:00.000+10:00

No need to go looking for wildlife around here...it finds you...
We had this strange weed growing in the yard and lucky for us the Australian Wood Ducks likes eating it very much! You've got to love suburban wildlife - the fear factor is negligible!

Spring in Winter

2006-08-19T11:50:00.000+10:00

See Mum incubating here....

Every moment, everywhere around the evidence of spring is undeniable!
Blossoms in the garden, needing to kick the doona off in the middle of the night and nesting birds!
Our resident Brush Wattlebirds are at it again...
this time they've selected the Staghorn fern hanging on the back verandah as their nest site.
Our noisy dogs sit resting directly under them.
Nest building began in earnest about a week ago, so I checked progress this morning and there are 2 perfect eggs being carefully incubated by Mum!

Ranger North Family

2006-08-10T20:56:00.000+10:00

This week we had the Ranger North Conference. Fantastic fun, lots of learning, networking and problem solving....

More than a job...It's a lifestyle.
Me as MC! In my element - showing off!

A Tale of Two Trees

2006-08-05T15:27:00.000+10:00

Eucalyptus pilularis - Blackbutt Stag

Angophora costata- Apple Gum

Penguin Flipper Boats

2006-07-30T13:22:00.000+10:00

We had great fun paddling around Clarrie Hall Dam with Ric's sister & brother in law in their penguin flipper boats.

Oily Faced Seal

2006-07-27T18:26:00.000+10:00

We got a call about a fur seal that hauled out on local beach at work today. I reckon it was a New Zealand Fur Seal but could have been an Australian Fur Seal. They are hard to tell apart. The seas are huge around Port Macquarie so not surprising it came ashore (normal behavior). The thing that wasn't normal is the oil it had on the left side of it's face...
Should be able to preen it off eventually.... it was rubbing it's face on it's back on and on the rocks.

Stella Fungi

2006-07-01T14:52:00.000+10:00

A beautiful fungi popped up in the garden today. It's a tropical member of the ornate stinkhorn family (Clathraceae) called the starfish fungus (Aseroe rubra). The "tentacles" grow longer than in this picture - these ones hadn't finished unfurling. It first appears from a subterranean "egg" stage like a puff-ball, then the skin splits and out pops the red arms. At maturity it has five to ten radiating arms, each divided into two slender "tentacles." The size can be up to about 8 cm across.
It is very smelly! It relies on attracting flies to spread the spores which are in that smelly brown slimy stuff (spore slime) .

So pretty though!

Colourful Winter

2006-06-25T14:09:00.000+10:00

We are now in the middle of winter...but you wouldn't know if from the flowers in the garden. The honey-eaters have it made here! But they are very camera shy - just can't get decent a shot.

New Blog Template

2006-06-14T20:34:00.000+10:00

Well, I got a bit bored with my old blog template so I tried this new one. Cool eh? If you're over your old template just put "free template" in google and a new world opens up to you!

Not Having a Whale of a Time

2006-06-05T21:41:00.000+10:00

The week before last a rather dead and bloated male humpback washed up on to Rainbow Beach near Bonny Hills and we had to bury it quickly with a giant excavator.
It was around 9.3 metres long and the hole it went it was about 4 m deep . We heard about it the day before it washed ashore from the Volunteer Sea Rescue as it posed a navigational hazard.

The poor animal was likely a 2 year old (humpbacks have a very uniform growth rate) and it had a rope from a lobster pot wrapped around it's tail to the extent that one side of the fluke was almost completely amputated. It is highly probable that it collected this entanglement from it's migration south last year. Then it swam all the way to Antartica with it and has attempted it's northward migration this year.

The poor animal had a heavy burden of whale lice (which are actually not lice at all but a type of crustacean that whales carry but usually not that many), indicating ill health. The animal also unusually had goose and acorn barnacles on both the ventral and dorsal surface of the body again indicating very poor health.

The lower jaw and tongue was missing from the animal and it may have been attacked and killed by orccas when it was close to death as orccas often use this modus operandi on ailing sea beasts.

It was a very sad tale - but the lesson is if you see an entangled whale stay with it and contact the authorities (in NSW it's the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service) and we can get out and try to disentangle the animal so this type of slow angonising death doesn't occur. If you leave the animal it may never be found again (it's a big ocean).

Given the increase in the population of humpbackwhales plying the eastern and western seaboards (maybe 7,500 in the east) we are sadly likely to see an increasing incidence in this type of human impact on whales.

Aside from the whale I've been away networking with the Rural Fire Service; worked on the first wildfire of this year on the first day of winter (!!!! it's so dry!!!!) and had a godawful cold that I have just started to shake with the help of Chinese herbs. I'm off to Sydney tomorrow for the Women in Firefighting Conference. So my next post maybe another couple of weeks off. Mmm we'll see.

Rush Around

2006-05-20T13:20:00.000+10:00

Ha Ha! - make your own !

Life has been very full lately - a trip away with work for fire networking/training...weeding with volunteers on weekends....roadworks (me on a roller for a day) ..... and burning the bush (hazard reduction burning that is).

It's all been work stuff but this weekend I've been cooling my heels at home and relaxing reading the Sydney Morning Herald and catching up on domestic chores (bliss!).

The fire went well in some places and in others was pretty doughy - due to high fuel moisture.

A weird green beetle (looked a bit like a big slater) saved from the fire that flashed its red hinged bum at me when I picked it up and put it on the bonnet of the Landcruiser. I'll identify it on Monday at work with a little help from the Australian Museum.

Me cutting a tree off the trail!

Mind numbing work (for me at least)! I now have a new found appreciation for professional roller drivers!

Cockatoo Capers

2006-05-06T15:39:00.000+10:00

At Hamilton Island - in the Whitsunday Group of islands off Queensland - the sulphur crested cockatoos are wicked thieves. They warn you at the hotel reception to leave your glass sliding doors closed in your room or apartment because they break in through the screen doors and steal food.

While we were there the room above us was being ransacked with the cockies sitting out on the verandah railing above us eating the loot. They had a box of breakfast cereal and were shredding it.

Elsewhere friends of our reported them breaking into their room through louvred windows and eating very expensive gluten free bread and leaving the white bread. Evidence of them trailed through the apartment across the lounges and beds!

At the open air restaurants you can't afford to turn your back from your food for a moment...they're very cheeky and not at all afraid of people.

Amazing to see up so close though!

This is the Life!

2006-05-03T19:35:00.000+10:00

I've just returned from a "forced holiday" to Hamilton Island where our very good friends kindly decided to have their wedding....

It was amazing...snorkeling the Great Barrier Reef.... relaxing on palm fringed beaches....eating , drinking and being merry...tropical sunsets. All very idyllic but sadly over now (the Visa card completely exhausted).

Camping with Critters

2006-04-24T15:22:00.000+10:00

We're just home from a few days camping in the very special Crowdy Bay National Park with some of our good friends...

Wildlife abounded so here's a few shots.
The Lace Monitor (aka goanna) is an unusual yellow morph - it's normally black with yellow banding.

The half eaten Long-nosed Bandicoot was dropped by an eagle I accidently disturbed sitting low in a short sapling.

Hybiscus Jewel

2006-04-16T11:56:00.000+10:00

I pinched this beautiful hybiscus from out the front of the local police station and got an unexpected surprise...

Wolf Spider Runs from Fire

2006-04-14T12:27:00.000+10:00

This pretty Wolf Spider beat a hasty retreat from the area we were hazard reduction burning yesterday at work.

The aim of hazard reduction burning is to reduce fine surface fuel, elevated fuel and bark fuel, which may help to lower the intensity and spread of bushfires in summer. Autumn and winter are the preferred times for these burns as they have less of an impact on birds and animals that mostly breed during spring and summer.

There was a mass exodus of bush cockroaches, beetles and skinks as well from our fire but this beautiful rusty patterned arachnid just caught my eye.

A Whale of a Time

2006-04-09T20:44:00.000+10:00

Well, work seems to be looming large in my blog this week...but it has been fun. Today we did a Large Whale Disentanglement Exercise where we practised cutting ropes/nets off prosthetic whales.

It truly was a whale of a time... The first picture is of me posing on the surf rescue boat. The second is of me at work - using the gaff to cut a rope off the tail off the "whale".

In reality this task is very difficult, tiring and dangerous - performed at sea in marginal conditions. Today we were on the river, with slow, compliant pretend whales and beautiful weather...

Being able to practice this type of work often is the key to success in a real life situation. Luckily the populations of both Humpback Whales and Southern Right Whales are on the increase in our hemisphere. Unluckily for them, they are therefore statistically more likely to get tangled up in crab/fish trap lines or nets.

Whirly Weed Whacker

2006-04-06T07:33:00.000+10:00

Had a fun day at work yesterday - aerial spraying Bitou Bush with a helicopter!
It's a great way to spray inaccessible areas like the front of cliffs. We're starting to make a real dent in the stranglehold of this insidious pest plant.
(I did take these photos!)

Heel

2006-04-03T20:48:00.000+10:00

I cannot tell a lie (even by omission) the Green Catbird in my last post is not my photo, it was

photographed at Thylogaleby David & Diane Armbrust at the Australian Natural Safari site.

...and I'm embarrassed to say I forgot to write that.
Do I feel like a heel, YES!!! argh!

The catbirds at my house are oh so timid and when I blundered out with my Kodak digital camera to get a shot, this is what it turned out like....

Daily Visitors

2006-04-01T16:18:00.000+11:00

A pair of Green Catbirds visit us at home everyday. You always hear them before you see them. The call is a cross between a cat yowling/meowing and a baby crying.
They're very shy. If they catch anyone looking at them they quickly hop from branch to branch and get out of sight.

The old mirror we hung near the laundry door provides hours of entertainment for both of them. They sit on the shelf under it and check themselves out thoroughly most days. I don't think they see their own reflections as rivals as they just closely examine the reflection, and occasionally touch bills with the 'other bird'.

I've thought about doing a study on the contents of their scats to see what they eat here locally - I have a pile under the mirror that I have to clean up every week.

The strangler fig in our backyard (providing catbird meals) will hopefully equate to years of beautiful pea-green catbirds ahead of us!

A Sporocarp In My Garden

2006-03-26T15:57:00.000+11:00

I have no idea which species of sporocarp (fungi) this one is (40mm long). There are thousands waiting to be identified. Maybe mine is a new one?

Fungi comprise a huge proportion of Australia’s biodiversity in terms of sheer numbers. There are many times more fungi in Australia than plants - maybe 250, 000 fungi compared to 21,000 to 23,000 native plant species. There is little known about most of them – maybe only about 5-10% have been named to date. FungiBank!

Spider Poo

2006-03-19T18:20:00.000+11:00

I was downstairs on the weekend weeding my pavers (frustration!) when I came upon this little pile of white dots. At first I looked up thinking a tiny bird has roosted above here - but of course it was a spider!

Spiders don't eat solid food - they inject/extrude digestive fluids over their prey to liquidise it before beginning a meal.

Special hairs around the spider's mouth filter the liquefied food as it is swallowed and prevent any solid fragments entering the pharynx and stomach. Both these organs are muscular and contractile and "pump" the liquid food into the gut. Beyond the sucking stomach as it is called, the mid gut branches off into the legs (yes legs), while the main tube of the gut passes through the narrow pedicel or waist into the abdomen. Here it is surrounded by a massive liver or digestive gland.

The excretory malpighian tubes (functioning like our kidneys) enter the gut behind the digestive gland. Just before the anus there is a large pouch which stores faecal material while reabsorbing water from it prior to defaecation.

Fecal excretions are coated or filled with guanine (a highly water-insoluble organic compound, containing five nitrogen atoms per molecule).

Under a spider's web you often find sucked-dry bugs cut free from the web by the spider while house cleaning. You may also find white dots, as I did, looking like paint spatters, 1.5mm to 3mm in diameter, often with dark centers - that is spider poo!

Koala Cloud

2006-03-16T17:18:00.000+11:00

Here's a little critter that was at work yesterday.

He wasn't very high up in the tree which sometimes indicates illness but he looked okay - with clear eyes & a clean bum.

Have a look at his bum - it's covered in white patches. This is a camoflage technique; if you're a predator under the tree looking up for dinner you see fluffy white clouds instead of koala rump. Clever eh?

Poor Possum

2006-03-13T18:23:00.000+11:00

Lucky for you I didn't take a photograph of the remains of a ringtail possum that the cat up the road was eating this morning when I went for my walk. I could see it was eating something furry so I walked over for a closer look. The black cat stood up, barred it's teeth and hissed and growled at me - scary. There was only the tail and guts left. It's not the cat's fault, just the owner who must not be feeding it or supervising it properly. Absolutely shameful!

PS. I copied this photo from the FAWNA site which is a marvellous volunteer organisation in my local area who rescue hundreds of injured and orphaned animals every year.

More Dog Art

2006-03-12T15:30:00.000+11:00

How's this for a work of art?
Our dog, Muddi is the white one on the left.
The neighbour's dog, Rose is on the right.
They're sleeping on each other's bed.
They look related but they're not - just good friends.

Kangaroo Koala!

2006-03-08T08:05:00.000+11:00

How cute is this little fellow? I found him in a local op shop.

My younger brother had one when he was quite young (he's 37 now) and he loved it so much he rubbed most of the fur off. He named it Coojee Bear after a koala that Rolf Harris (Australian entertainer) used to appear with in the 70's.

The fur, by the way, is kangaroo fur - weird eh? These toys were pretty popular, especially with tourists when we were growing up but it seems you can still buy one. Mine only cost $4.00 AUD.

Please Be Kind to Spiders

2006-03-05T13:58:00.000+11:00

It seems everyone is freaking out about my spider (see my previous post) - I can't believe it!
Hey you guys, spiders get such a raw deal - they are so important to our ecosystem. If we didn't have them insects would eat us out of house and home - literally. Spiders do the really important job of eating all the insects that would help themselves to our crops if they didn't have their numbers kept in check. Seriously there just wouldn't be enough food to go around.

Spiders have amazing personalities too. They know if you are not terrified of them and if you talk nicely to them they get friendly. Ever read Charlotte's Web?
Okay here's a challenge for you - make friends with a spider today.

Or that seems a little beyond the pail - If you find one in your house and you'd rather it was outside, instead of spraying half a can of fly spray on it try this method...

Tell it you would rather it stayed outside. Them tell it kindly that you'll help it get outside. Then get a plastic container larger than the diameter of it's legs and calmly place it over the spider. Next slide a piece of paper under the container and the carefully slide your hand under the paper keeping the paper flat on the bottom. Then calmly take it all outside and drop it on the lawn or garden. Your spider will appreciate your assistance.

Let me know how you get on. Remember spiders are sentient beings too!

Check out this gorgeous baby gecko I saw when I was in Mooloolaba up the coast recently.

Spider Times

2006-03-04T14:02:00.000+11:00

You can tell it's raining outside - the spiders are inside. Here is a beautiful Huntsman spider (harmless) sitting on the big clock on my kitchen wall. She is about 10cm across from the tip of one leg to another.

Work has been mad since I got back and I find myself doubting I actually have a life when I drive in the gates each morning. Still it's the weekend now and so I have opportunities to do my own thing.

There's a low off the east coast of Australia and places are flooding an hour or so north of us. Really we haven't had the amount of rain they have but it's headed our way.

Home Again

2006-02-24T10:20:00.000+11:00

My goodness. I feel as though I have been away for ever. The house looked bigger when I walked in the door last night - the dog still remembered me though!
I guess Blogging The Artists Way is nearly over...I need to check in and see how you all went.

Away fighting fires

2006-02-03T21:12:00.000+11:00

G'day

Finally I'm back - well sort of anyway - I spun off into a parallel universe - fighting bushfires in the Grampians National Park, Victoria (Australia).

Now I'm at my Mum's house in Queensland - she's in hospital after an operation. I'll be looking after her when they let her out.

There's plenty of artistry at fires! More about that later - I've been thinking about the AW crew and knowing I'm way behind - oh well - it happens.

What Artist's Way?

2006-01-20T17:14:00.000+11:00

Crikey! Work has been sooooo busy I have barely had time to think of myself let alone my creative self. So far this week apart from doing my boss's job (he's on leave) and my job, I ;

wrote & taught my weekly yoga class (complex - with a pregnant student)
composed a daily yoga practice for one of my students (a new experience)
did an early morning talk for a local Rotary Club on banding ospreys (bird of prey) in our area
championed the cause of female firefighters by sticking my neck out to the BigWigs in my organisation
hosted an impromptu BBQ for my dear neighbour who ran out of gas for his BBQ
started eating differently (to gain self esteem)
learned all about oyster leases to deal with an issue in one of my parks at work
enjoyed hearing Micheal Leunig's poems on Radio National!!!!

Modern Stupid by Michael Leunig
It's much easier to be stupid these days than in previous times.
Back in the old days they had to do it all by hand. It was sheer drudgery.
Now we can do it faster and with more comfort, thanks to modern methods.
You can fit it into a busy life, it's available to everyone. It's right there at your fingertips.
Available Now From Dymocks Online

and all the normal stuff...washing, cleaning, cooking, weeding, cleaning, buoying family egos, cleaning, washing, buoying work colleagues egos, cleaning at work (probably coping strategy). Consequently the Artist's Way is relegated to the bottom of the list. Not forgotten though.

This week I saw art in:

an empty box of serviettes (napkins) - with a bit of work now an attractive computer CD holder...
the sound & sight of a Koel baby parisitising the Little Wattle bird parents...
the symetry of the back of my neighbour's dog Rosie (refer BBQ above)

so I am progressing along my own Artist's Way...

oh by the way... the Artist's date last week yielded jam for Ric, a hybiscus for me and an unwanted heat rash. It's all good!

Artists Way Check In

2006-01-15T09:18:00.000+11:00

Artists Date
It was a disaster - I'm trying again today.
I was hungry and couldn't find anything decent to eat so just went home. At least I learned a couple of things...
Lesson 1. Eat first
Lesson 2. Have a plan - I just thought I'd let my Artist's Date happen but I found myself wandering along the same track I take when I head to the shops - got to turn off that auto pilot.

Oh well, I'm off to the local markets this morning so if that works out it will be my artist's date.

Morning Pages
I've missed a few days and the days I did write I found myself writing about all the things I have to do...weird. I guess I'm used to writing lists for myself. Although they weren't exactly lists - there was more explanation as to why I had to do those things, sprinkled here and there with the misdemeanours of others - and occasionally my own. I guess writing the pages is somewhat cathartic but I'd really prefer to write using the computer - not sure if that's allowed? Ow, my hand hurts doing 3 pages longhand.

Tasks
The only enemies of my creative self worth I could come up with was me.
Artists walks were good - but I didn't take my camera on one and I missed a great shot of a yellow-tailed black cockatoo in a tree that was really close. Bugger!
Easy to find champions of my creative self worth. I live with one of the best ones!

All in all I thought this week was not a bad start to my creative reinvigoration!

Me with my sister's latest work of creativity!

Diamond Python/Carpet Python Hybrid

2006-01-14T12:08:00.000+11:00

Here's a pretty snake that spent a little time in the office at work the other day. Another ranger brought it in to show everyone since it is hybrid snake - two subspecies (Diamond Python & Carpet Python) whose distribution overlaps roughly in our area. It was very docile for a wild snake and we had fun letting it check out life out of the wild!

A close up of the scales... imagine knitting a jumper with this pattern...

I'm headed off for my Artist's Date today!

Inspiration

2006-01-12T21:48:00.000+11:00

Lyrebird Musings

2006-01-09T14:08:00.000+11:00

Here's a Lyrebird feather I found at work the other day. It's very precious to me... absolutely magnificent - not functional (in a flying sense) but spectacularly beautiful. A gift from the Gods perhaps ? - to help me on my creative exploration.

There's an artist in me ...somewhere...

2006-01-08T14:20:00.000+11:00

Well I've decided to find the artist within. I've joined a web based group undertaking "The Artist's Way" together.

Just what I need to jump start this new year!

Not the Attack of the Killer Bees

2005-12-19T17:35:00.000+11:00

A swarm of bees were heard before they were seen over our neighbours tree....pretty loud for such small beasties...

Goodbye Chickadees

2005-12-14T12:48:00.000+11:00

I missed seeing the first chick leave the nest and fledge although I can hear it begging for food from the parents in our backyard. There's been a kookaburra hanging around so at first I thought one of the chicks had been eaten.

The smaller of the two is taking it's time to get flying under it's belt. They grow up so quickly!

The Chickens are Getting Bigger

2005-12-07T15:28:00.000+11:00

The Little Wattlebirds are feathering up nicely - soon it will be time to leave the nest. It happens quickly!

One parent sat stoicly on the nest in the rain the other day, beak raised with the water running down it's back, the babies well protected. Feathers are amazing!

Our Family's Newest Angel

2005-12-04T21:32:00.000+11:00

I've been away up the coast... my sister had a baby last Thursday! Talk about the model pregnancy - she positively glowed, no sickness, very fit and healthy...
and then the model birth - a 5 hour labour! No drugs! The baby is just gorgeous!
REUBEN Alan - His Dad is very keen on getting the spelling right!

My Mum and I were meant to have been an integral part of the birthing team, but due to the short labour and the distances involved for us to travel neither of us made it in time. Luckily my sister's best friend was staying and gave them both the extra help they needed. Thanks Rachel!
Isn't he beautiful????

Lucky Lizard

2005-12-01T07:43:00.000+11:00

This Eastern Water Dragon got chased up the road by our neighbour's dog Rose. She is a lovely dog and I'm sure she would have got a shock if she caught the poor bugger but I had to intervene and catch her.

I've never seen a Water Dragon move so fast on dry land - they're pretty quick in the water. It stood up on it's hind legs and ran full pelt with the dog running at full tilt after it. The lizard was actually faster. Amazing. Anyway here the lucky lizard is after the race resting in our driveway!

We often see Water Dragons at the creek right down the back of our block - it's the first one I've seen out the front on the road though.

Baby Little Wattlebirds

2005-11-27T15:20:00.000+11:00

Check out these little babies - Little Wattlebirds (aka Brush Wattlebirds).
Mum & Dad have nested in a hybiscus right where I can check them out from a corner of our verandah.

The parents have a loud call that some people find annoying especially early in the morning.

The Nature of Sentient Beings

2005-11-25T11:42:00.000+11:00

Koala boy is still out the back in the tree, still advertising himself as an eligible male in the broad daylight (we usually hear him at night). Things must be getting desperate. I guess it's hard for any sentient being to deny their nature.

Oh yes... apologies for the mess I've made of this page. (That's what happens when you tinker with things you just don't understand - maybe it's my nature) I'm hoping someone will help me return it to some semblence of order soon...I certainly can't do it myself.

Stop Press - I just fixed it myself - YAY!

Koala Poo on the Driveway

2005-11-23T13:00:00.000+11:00

Last night we could hear a male koala calling out, (really grunting) to find a mate. It's a scary noise if you haven't heard it before, kinda like a cross between a pig and motorbike! He kept going for hours. What stamina!
We've got an amazing Spotted Gum in our backyard - it's about 40 metres high and he was sitting up there announcing his presence to the world.
Anyway when we went to go to work we found his poo all over the driveway - so I took a photo.

A Golden Flash

2005-11-21T18:50:00.000+11:00

I just saw a male Regent Bowerbird in the bird bath. The glossy black and gawdy gold plumage, topped off with a little red flash just above the bill is a sight that never fails to take my breath away.

The female is not quite as striking, although she has a black skull cap that makes her instantly recognisable.
Usually she visits the birdbath with her friends, the female satin bowerbirds that are much larger and splash double the amount of water out of the birdbath than any other bird.