Weather and Wine

I saw this notice on a local bulletin board recently. Never seen anything like it on the bulletin board  outside the Bidgoods Post Office at home;-)

Funny, I talking with a guy at a bus stop recently who was telling me proudly that Queensland didn't have any poisonous snakes and then I go and read this notice. Well it just says "Snake" not "Poisonous Snakes" so maybe buddy is right. Australia does have more species of poisonous snakes than anywhere else in the world or so I've been told. It says on the notice that buddy would relocate the snakes to D'Aguilar Park. I go walking there!!! 

There was a Python snake living in a tree in the backyard here for over a year. Tony only recently "encouraged" it to move somewhere else not long before I arrived. Apparently it had eaten a couple of guinea pigs from next door! 

I wrote this next little part a few days ago so yesterday is not really yesterday and so on. It's actually been quite comfortable the last couple of days. 

It is s-o-o-o-o hot!! Yesterday it got up to 33 degrees but the “feels like” value was 35. Thankfully, it cooled off to 25 overnight;-) It’s much the same today. There’s really not much doing outdoors in those kind of temperatures…not for me anyway.  Bushwalks are out of the question unless you could get up in higher elevation. The high humidity is the killer and this area of Queensland is famous for it;-)  

I thought I might catch a movie this afternoon at The Barracks but this voice inside of me that said, “You can’t be going inside on a sunny day like this!” Doesn’t matter that every day is sunny…it’s been ingrained in me I s’pose that we have to “make hay while the sun shines”. Movies are for evenings or rainy days;-) There’s a saying here in Queensland that goes something like this: “Today is beautiful…but just wait ‘til tomorrow, it’ll be perfect!” Little different from “If ya don’t like the weather, wait five minutes”-)

The school where Erin is teaching is without air conditioning…I can’t imagine how uncomfortable it must be in those classrooms. The teachers have to ensure all students are wearing their big, broad sun hats and sunscreen when they go outside during recess and lunch breaks…surely not as time consuming as getting the little ones ready to go outside at home this time of the year with hats, mittens, boots, zippers etc. That is of course only when you can actually get outside. Often, the horizontal freezing rain, ice pellets, sleet, 100km winds, three metre high snowdrifts, combined with slippery conditions underfoot prevent the children from getting out at all. So….I guess I won’t be getting much sympathy complaining that’s it’s too hot sometimes… fair enough;-) Time for another photo in case you just want to look at the pictures;-)

Taken while walking along the Brisbane River

The weather here in Australia is as much a part of the news and conversation as it is at home in Newfoundland. It is a huge country geographically with very diverse climate conditions and extreme weather. First of all, it is one of the driest continents with half of it receiving less 25-30cm of rain a year. Eighty per cent of it gets less than 60cm. Newfoundland for example would get twice that on average and significantly higher in snowfall amounts. Drought conditions, bush fires, cyclones, flooding are part and parcel of life in many parts of this country. Even in the few weeks I’ve been here, newscasts have reported flooding in the Northern Territories  as it is their rainy season and drought in pretty well some part of every other states.

Bush fires are always a major threat in Australia with Victoria suffering immensely in the last few years. In February 2009, a series of bushfires came to be known as Black Saturday, killed 173 people and injured another four hundred.

Some areas are known for extremes, for example, Adelaide, broke records this year for having the most consecutive days over 40 degrees (12) then broke a record for the highest rainfall on another date!

So I did get to my movie but I went in the evening and I have to say, it was a movie experience rather than just a movie;-) Before I get to that part though, I have to mention the bus driver at my stop down the street. When I mentioned to him where I wanted to exit the bus, he said he didn’t stop anywhere near that area. In the meantime, when I got on the bus, he didn’t look at me but kept staring straight ahead, never said hello, k.m.a. or anything. I stepped off then and walked back home. I checked my computer and found that the bus did indeed stop near there…just a short five or seven minute walk away.

I went back to the bus stop and waited for the bus to come round again hoping I wouldn’t get the same contrary fella. As I was waiting, I knew I had a much shorter time to make the movie now and more importantly, order the wine I wanted. You see, that was the main reason I wanted to go…you could bring wine into the theatre;-)  I’d also have to run a bit and it was already warm and sticky out so I said, shag it, I’ll go another time and went home. Erin had just arrived home from yoga and without waiting for her boiling blood to cool down from the story of the unhelpful driver, we got in her car and she drove me there;-)

 The cinema was in a building called The Barracks, which is a converted military barracks. I would call it a sort of upscale affair as far as movie viewing goes. Before entering the upstairs cinema area, you pass through a wide aisle not unlike the aisle you would walk through going to a movie at Sobey’s Square if you went in the front entrance. The similarities stop completely after that as The Barracks aisle had all kinds of novelty shops, sushi bars, cafes, wine bars and nice restaurants on either side of the aisle. There were tables and beautiful upholstered chairs and stools for patrons in the aisle and it was buzzing with people and conversation. The end of the aisle before you headed up the stairs to the cinema was a glass wall with a city view.

View of the moon from the back veranda (nothing to do with what I'm writing…just a snap)

Once upstairs though was the best! When you purchased your movie ticket, you could also order wine and a cheese platter to take in with you! There were all kinds of comfy chairs around to enjoy some wine as you sat looking out over the city while waiting to go inside and watch your movie. I didn’t order a cheese platter as it was really a thing for two people and it was $18.00. I was having a glass of wine to take inside though just because I could!!;-)

I saw the movie Nebraska which is a drama set in sepia tones about one elderly man’s mission to get to Lincoln, Nebraska to collect on his one million dollar winning sweepstakes ticket. Remember those things we used to get all the time….didn’t they come with Reader’s Digest? I didn’t care what they showed on that screen… the seats were large, cushiony and comfortable…I was almost wishing it would recline though, …there were only about six of us in the whole theatre and no one sitting in my front view so I felt like I had the place all to myself. It was just lovely;-)

After the movie, I had a quick walk around the immediate area as it was buzzing with life! People were out and about enjoying the bars and restaurants on a beautiful evening. As I headed up the road though, to find a bus stop, down came the rain….hard! I found one sheltered bus stop but when I inquired about the bus I needed, I was told that the bus didn’t stop there at this time of the evening. I walked on in the dark and pouring rain up the busy street pass the Suncorp Football Stadium to another stop. By this time, I was soaked! It was warm though and I was pretty sure I’d make it home before hyperthermia set in. 

I found a stop with the best bus driver in the world! As most of the drivers I’ve met since I’ve arrived, he was very helpful and dropped me off at The Gap Village, which is the shopping area I frequent and about a fifteen-minute walk from home. Still in the dark and pouring rain, through a couple of short cut trails, I make it home, changed and all was good!

 It brought me back to a time when my children were young and we were at the cabin in Gambo. In those days, we could only get to the cabin by boat. I can’t remember what it was we needed, all I know is, I volunteered to go to town to get whatever it was. This involved taking the canoe up the pond to Mint Brook. I didn’t have to go too far up the pond and I hugged the shoreline, which was hard paddling because it was shallow. I went by myself in the pitch black and I mean black with a grocery bag over my head because it started to rain. Maybe it was on the way back it started to rain. In any event, our van was parked on the other side of the brook so I pulled the canoe up and drove into Gambo. I recall coming back and turning off the van lights, it was so dark. Even heading up the brook onto the pond, it was awhile before I even made out a cabin light. I don’t think I would be fussy about doing that now;-)

I spent another enjoyable afternoon earlier in the week at the Queensland Gallery of Modern Art or GOMA.  It was another “stinker” heat wise as they say so an afternoon in a cool environment was in order. I went against my sunny/hot code and walked inside. Thankfully, the devil didn’t strike me dead and the sunny days have continued so I wasn’t punished for doing so;-) Anyway, here are a few shots from the exhibition:

You can say what you like about art, it usually calls up some sort of response from your gut. You like it, you hate it violently, love it passionately, you’re totally awestruck, or as I tend to be a good bit of the time…bewildered by it;-) Whatever the case, the main exhibit I viewed brought forth a myriad of feelings and I have to say was well worth the fifteen dollars IMHO. Just showing off my texting lingo;-) I learned a new one today….HTH….which is “hope that helps;-) Okay the art….it was by Cai guo-Qiang: Falling Back to Earth.  You can read all about the exhibits on line. The one with the animals around the water was amazing. I walked around the display taking my time at least three times. The biggest impact was when I first walked in the room. Were the animals stuffed? Were they created? How did Cai (pronounced "Sigh") come up with this concept and what are the main ideas behind it? I watched a video there on how the display was created and some of Cai’s earlier work. He’s responsible for some of the most fantastic fireworks displays at Olympic and cultural events around the world. Happy reading (or not;-)

Beware of Bikie Gangs

Bikies ( say as "bike-eez)

It's thirty degrees here now with humidity levels at 61%. I'm sitting here in our air conditioned living room wondering if we might get a thunderstorm out of it. It's a perfectly good time to write a few lines in my poor, neglected blog. Wait a minute…do you write "in" your blog, "on" your blog, "for" your blog?….

Recently I was listening to the premier of Queensland, Campbell Newman, talking about plans to deal with bikie gangs down the Gold Coast. “Bikie gangs?” Somehow, a bikie gang doesn’t sound as tough or threatening as a bike gang but that’s how you would refer to them here in Australia.

Kindergarten-kindie, university-uni, Brisbane-Brissie, Tasmania-Tassie, Christmas-Chrissie, present-prezzy, sunglasses-sunnies, and on and on goes the Australian slang, sometimes with British and American crossover. If you’re taking a “sickie”, you’re taking a sick day though you’re not really sick. Speaking of sick, if you’re ill, you’re “crook” as in, "He was crook today. Some terms are popular over the whole of Australia while others are terms you might hear more often in the country. If you ask someone about what they might be up to in the "arvo", you are asking about their afternoon. 

Certainly as Newfoundlanders, we have much in common with Australia in that we have our own colloquialisms/vernacular enough to fill a thick dictionary! Similarly, many of our expressions would be more common "round the bay" and with older generations than in larger centres and with younger people. My mother had an expression she used if she was upset or mildly angry about something, "Wouldn't that jar your preserves!" That's not one I hear these days but still one of my favourites;-)

Ongoing Possum Visits

Here’s my little possum friend from my first post.She visits the patio most evenings before climbing the trees in the backyard. A couple of nights ago I fed her apple pieces right from my hand. 

Here is a photograph of the baby possum that had to be rescued from under the patio floorboards my first week here. It has really grown in four weeks and mother is happy to leave it on its' own these days.

Wooly Sheep

“Here we are in New South Wales, shearing sheep as big as whales


With leather necks and daggy tails and hides as tough as rusty nails.”

No I’m not in NSW but still in Queensland immediately to the north;-) You may recognize that verse from a song performed by our own Masterless Men though it’s been sung by many others long before.

I witnessed a sheep shearing demonstration recently…now that’s back breaking work! (the sheep shearing demo…not me witnessing it;-)

The belt this guy is hanging over is designed to take some of the strain off the back.  He gave a short but informative presentation about the first merino sheep brought over from Spain 200 years ago and how the industry has evolved over the years.

Not all wool is the same….the characteristics differ according to the type of sheep. Australia produces most of the world’s merino sheep wool, which is a fine wool used mostly for clothing and said to be the best quality in the world. New Zealand is the second largest producer of wool but it is crossbred wool, stronger fibres and used for carpets and upholstery. 

                                                                                           Sheep are usually shorn once a year using ordinary hand shears or machine driven hand-pieces and there are sheep shearing competitions worldwide. It's fascinating to read about the wool industry and the challenges it faces today including competition with synthetics, low market prices and higher lamb meat prices. Lots of info online including this in government document produced in 2010: Australian Wool Industry (AWI) 

The Kelpie

The preferred dog for cattle/livestock work here in Australia is the Kelpie or Kelpie cross. It is said the Kelpie is such an efficient worker, it can save farmers the cost of hiring several hands when mustering livestock which is to gather or roundup the livestock.

They have a natural herding instinct and are able to drive livestock long distances in extreme climate and conditions. It was amazing to see a Kelpie in action as I did at a recent demonstration for tourists.  I've seen Border Collies in Scotland and England herd sheep and again, they are amazing to watch and invaluable to the farmers/graziers.

One special move a Kelpie has to walk across the backs of sheep to break them up in a  jam.

          This sheep might be giving some attitude but the Kelpie is not having anything to do with it;-)

Birds of Prey

It's pretty cool to see how trainers handle birds of prey such as falcons and barn owls which are the only two that come to mind at the moment from this particular demonstration. The birds swoop through the crowd, snatch targets thrown in the air during flight, pitch on the trainer's hand and on strategically placed perches. They'll pretty well spit nickels for rewards of live, chubby, little mice. Got some great shots of the tails hanging out of beaks as the birds gulp down their treat but I'll spare those images here…you wouldn't like photos of yourself eating would ya;-)

Koala Cuddles

You need a hug….you’re far from home, friends and family…what do you do? You visit the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary of course and cuddle a koala! You can find controversy about the merits of this type of activity re: tourist dollars for valuable research/conservation vs. exploitation. There are well over one hundred koalas here and I was told that none of them are permitted to be held more than a half hour a day. 

Lone Pine, dating back to 1927 is the world’s oldest koala sanctuary. There are over 100 species of  Australian wildlife there in a beautiful park like setting.

The animals were doing what many animals do on hot days…they were just lying about, especially the koalas who sleep between 18 and 20 hours the day. Their main diet of eucalyptus leaves (referred to as "gums" by the local people),   is difficult to digest so the koalas have little energy for much else other than sleeping. A koala will eat about two pounds of leaves a day. Asleep of not, I couldn’t help but smile as I photographed and observed these cute, teddy bear like animals;-) We all know of course, koalas are marsupials and not bears;-) 

The koala's natural habitat continues to diminish with urbanization and creation of farmland. It can be as common to hear of koalas killed by dogs or run over by a car as it is to hear of death by natural causes. The disease of chlamydia is also a major threat facing koalas throughout Queensland and New South Wales.  Research to control it is presently underway at Queensland University of Technology with promising results.

There were huge open areas where the kangaroos/wallabies were either sleeping, scratching, foraging or feeding their young. The kangaroos could mingle with the humans, which they chose to do when people hand fed them “roo food” or they could access rest areas, which were off limits to the public. They are odd creatures to see them up close with their tiny front legs, long, powerful back legs and strong tail. There wasn’t too much hopping around going on but the times when one or two gave it a go, it was amazing to see the height and distance they could cover so effortlessly.

I did see one joey’s feet and tail hanging out of a mother’s pouch. I don’t know how old it was but when it plopped out onto the ground at one point, I could see it was probably a few months old. I’m very spoiled when it comes to animal photography as I’ve had such wonderful opportunities to shoot animals in their natural habitat always looking for the best lighting conditions. Shooting in the middle of the day with tin roofs over the koalas and fenced enclosures around the animals can be less inspiring from a photography perspective.  Nonetheless, it was a rare opportunity to see these animals, as other than zoos, Australia is the only place in the world where these animals can be found.

An example of the laid back attitude here in Queensland?;-)

Sunshine Coast and a Camera Club Outing

 Beaches on the Sunshine Coast

View over looking Caloundra on the Sunshine Coast with a Causarina tree branch in the foreground 

Recently, I caught a city bus into downtown Brisbane then a Greyhound bus up the Sunshine Coast to a popular town called Caloundra. As we were preparing to leave the bus station, the driver went up and down the aisle a couple of times doing a head count. After the second time, he says, “Folks, I’ve counted 26 heads and I’m only supposed to have 25….produce your tickets please.” With that he comes through again checking our tickets…..I had mine…no worries;-) About half way down, he finds a man who was on the wrong bus. He thought he was headed down the Gold Coast….thankfully it was discovered then instead of hours later way up in Noosa somewhere. Also thankfully, the bus he was supposed to be on was parked next to us so he was able to catch his ride;-)

It was only a 90 minute drive to Caloundra so you could easily go there just for the day. Once at the bus station in Caloundra, I got directions to my digs….they were pretty insistent that I take a taxi for only $10 and I would get there in comfort they said. I’m glad I decided to walk…it was only about ten minutes away so I managed with the heat and hills just fine;-)

I booked two nights at a holiday apartment…..view of the ocean though not on the beach but only a five minute walk to the beach. The beaches are fabulous…kilometres upon kiometeres of them! I went walking right away then got some fish and chips which I enjoyed at a picnic table right on the beach. There was lots of roaring surf but I was told it wasn’t the right kind of waves for surfing on this particular evening….too choppy. Too bad, had my board ready to go;-) Over the next couple of days however, the kite surfers were out in droves.

I think this guy was actually listening to music…either that or he didn't want to get water in his ears;-)

At all the tourist info places, there are brochures upon brochures of things to do in the area. There’s every kind of bus tour, cruise, park visit you can imagine catering to all ages and interests. These are all organized events and all costly. As I’m going to be here awhile, I can’t choose to go on these things willy-nilly….I have to be selective.

Other than the food I purchased, my day didn’t cost a thing and I absolutely loved it!

A section of the Coastal Path with the Glasshouse Mountains in the background

There’s a coastal walking trail here that follows along several of the beaches for many kilometres. The trail is paved or boarded but you have the choice to walk on the beach as well, coming up on the trail where the beach turns rocky.
I’m sure I walked about 20km of trail/beach over two days;-) The trail suits wheelchairs, strollers or anyone with mobility issues so consequently there were all kinds of people out walking and enjoying the warm ocean breezes. In the meantime, people I spoke with today say it’s quieted down now that students have gone back to school.  

Herself;-)

It’s true….I had beaches all to myself at times! I did find people swimming, body surfing and playing cricket.

On this part of the coastal path, there were no large beaches but jetties where people could launch small pleasure craft. Also, people would fish from the dock areas. 







"Whaddya say mate, shall we go for a fish-n-chips?"

Somehow "graceful" doesn't come to mind when these big birds take to the air;-)

Pandanus trees grow well along beaches

Another section of the Coastal Path with Pandunus trees

This whole area is so well set up for families and tourists in general….playgrounds, skateboard parks, water parks, pools, restaurants, bbq areas and so many public washrooms! It was great to walk so much and not have that concern;-) The bbqs in the parks and along the beach fronts are electric and very convenient.

I was told the town council checks them in the morning and cleans them where necessary. When I first arrived and was sitting outside enjoying my fee and chi, there were a couple of people cooking up on one and I thought it was a sausage kiosk thing and almost went up and asked “Whaddya cooking there?” thinking they were selling to the public;-)

People photographing the remaining bits  of the S.S.Dicky that went aground in Caloundra 120 years ago

Burger with “the lot”

 I had a lovely chat with a lady at a small art gallery at Moffett Beach and she suggested I try a place called Clanceys for lunch. She said it was somewhere surfers liked to frequent and it’s an institution in the area. I found Clancey’s across the road from Dickie’s Beach. I ordered a burger with “the lot”.  I figured “the lot” was your usual “the works”. Nope….the lot was lettuce, tomato, onions, cheese, thick slice of ham, a pineapple ring, thick slice of beet and a fried egg…oh, and of course the beef! Sacred heart! I had to ask for a fork and knife to eat it! I learned in Scotland last winter that it is perfectly fine to order an egg on top of your pizza so I guess an egg on your burger is fine too.

It had been cloudy most of the day though very warm but about mid-day, the sun came out and I was beat from walking. I sat under a gazebo and put my head on the picnic table for a spell.

I stayed there sipping water for about an hour. It was just after that I had my burger lunch then walked again where I came upon some beautiful Rainbow Lorikeets in a Casuarina tree. The lorikeets are plentiful in the backyard of my Brisbane digs but are too high in the trees to photograph. I only had my small camera but tried to get a few shots anyway. I struck up a conversation with a lady nearby who turned out be from Quebec City. She planned on staying in Caloundra for three months, leaving in fact on the same day in April I’m scheduled to leave(if I stick to that date;-) She was here with her friend who is Australian and has an apartment in Caloundra. She was absolutely loving it there…..walking lots, sailing, enjoying the sun, sand and surf and of course those happy hours! We got along very well and I got an invite to spend some time with them if I head up the Sunshine Coast again.

The Galah or Rose Breasted Cockatoo  in a Casuarina tree.  These Australian birds can be quite funny in their behaviour/antics and consequently, anyone acting a clown will often be referred to as a "galah".

I had lunch with another lady I met who called herself a Principal Consultant. She and her husband recently moved back from Hong Kong where she was a principal at an international school there for the past ten years and now does consulting work with schools/school boards. She was very interesting as she had such a varied experience working in private, state and international schools. Needless to say, as a retired educator myself, there weren’t many lags in the conversation;-)

Train Seats

The Greyhound only had one run out of the town and that was at 10:00a.m. which I thought was too early as I wanted to spend another day there.  Instead I got the local bus around 4:30p.m. to the train station in Landsborough where I caught  the train back to Brisbane and finally a local bus back to my house in The Gap. When I stepped on the train, all the seats facing forward were taken unless you sat next to someone. I was walking up the aisle when someone said to me, “You know you can turn the seats around to face forward?”  I didn’t know that before and was very pleased with this new bit of knowledge.  I just pushed on a peddle, grabbed the two seats as a unit and spun it around so the rear facing seat was now facing forward. Awesome!

Glasshouse Mountains

I enjoyed the train ride as it was more scenic then the ride up the highway on the bus, even though you often see the backs of places or industrial areas which are not necessarily the most aesthetic of views. We did pass by the Glasshouse Mountains, which are very distinctive in their appearance. These are eleven hills that rise abruptly and are known as volcanic plugs, forming more than 25 million years ago. Captain Cook named them as he said they reminded him of glass furnaces from his home country of Yorkshire.

I took these photos of the Glasshouse Mountains from the train as we passed by.

Town of Maleny

I arrived back in Brisbane on Friday and on Saturday, Tony and I drove up the Sunshine Coast again. This time, I visited a small town called Maleny. It is a small, scenic town and a great place to spend time popping into book stores, art galleries, local craft shops and coffee shops. I especially enjoyed the breath taking landscape images of Australia and New Zealand displayed in one particular gallery  by photographer Ben Messina….very inspiring! We drove up through the hills with some wonderful vistas though the morning cloud hadn't burned off and I wasn't able to get good photographs. The foliage in the area was lush and colourful and offered many walking trails. I would love to come back and explore this beautiful spot!

Brisbane Camera Club Outing to University of Queensland Lakes

With a little Google work, I found out that a local camera club (Brisbane Camera Group ) was going on an outing last night and welcoming newcomers so I got off my arse and went along even though I was quite content to read my Ned Kelly book on the veranda. We took the City Cat down the river to the University of Queensland campus to shoot in the area of a couple of ponds and bridges there. There were a nice bunch of about twenty and we enjoyed a gorgeous evening on the beautiful campus. Bird life was abundant but I brought a 24-70mm lens which certainly wouldn’t be the optimal choice for birds. Nonetheless, it was a fun couple of hours.

An area of the UQ campus

Water Dragon on campus

Cockatoos on campus

Pond on University of Queensland Campus