Before the rain.....

Yesterday was one of those frustrating days that whenever I touched my computer it kind of went BLAAAAAAAH at me and refused to make any sense, I demonstrated my 'superiority' by calling it all the rude names I could think of in a humungous tirade..this went on for quite some time until P couldn't take it anymore and removed me from the vicinity while he spent most of the day sorting the problem.. All fixed, but it was early evening before I could get down to choosing a post for today.. I decided to go with some last pictures from Australia Day before the fireworks began and believe it or not these three very different skies were all happening at the same time. There was a small aircraft flyby and they circled the Bell Tower several times before heading back to the landing strip.Just to the right of the above scene the sun was going down over Kings Park below, and.....

Behind on the city side this is what was going on and what was responsible for the rain that we had just before the fireworks started..I really liked the way the combination of lights made this tall glass building, which I can't remember the name of at the moment (help anyone looking in from Perth!) look so dramatically blue.. Hope you have a peaceful day.....

Something silly....!!

Do you ever spot something that strikes you as funny and your 10 year old 'inner child' imagination  takes over and you just go with it thoroughly enjoying the moment! Maybe it's because I had just come out of IKEA and that place is enough to drive anyone nuts, but when I saw this little scene above the first thought that popped into my (obviously addled haha!) head, was that it looked as if the two scooters were eagerly looking up, ears cocked, you CAN see the ears can't you, listening avidly to what the obviously superior bike icon 'above' them was pronouncing!! It's too silly I know, but hey, some days are just like that! I'm putting it down to the heat, that's my story and I'm sticking to it.....!

One of my favourites.....

This view of the Swan River was taken through and under the Upper Swan Bridge, renamed in 2010 as The Yagan Bridge in tribute to the famous Aboriginal warrior Yagan, who's head was removed when he was killed way back in 1833 and was for some bizarre reason sent to London as an 'anthropological curiosity'. I do believe that some of the actions carried out by the early colonial settlers, could hardly be described as 'civilized'!  His head was stored in a box for over a century and then buried in an unmarked grave.  In 1933 the grave was identified and four years later his head was exhumed and returned to Australia where it was 'reunited' with his body and after much deliberation, given a traditional Noongar burial to allow his spirit to fly free once more...You just know what I'm going to say next don't you...I hope YOUR spirit flies free today, haha! sorry it just had to be said.....

Too easy.....!!

After many years of battling the traffic and the hassle of trying to find a parking spot, this year we decided to use Perth's extremely efficient train service to go into the city to see the fireworks on Australia Day. It's so rare that I use the trains that I'd forgotten how efficient and easy it can be. We drove to our local train station and ten minutes later we were speeding on our way into Perth. The suburban trains are electric (Fasttrack), quiet, clean, fast and most importantly on a 40C + day, fabulously air conditioned! It's five stops from our station into the city centre, so twenty minutes later we stepped out onto the platform in Perth, walked down to Langley Park to set up for the show, too easy as they say (whoever 'they' are).....

Strange things to see out of the window as the train pulls into the city station..this is the new Perth Arena which if you check out the link, will be an amazing looking structure when completed.....

The return trip after the fireworks was just as smooth and the verdict is..that in the future when going into the city for bigger events, the train is possibly the easiest way to travel..I hope you travel well over the weekend, go on, jump on a train to somewhere you haven't been for a while.....!

MELTDOWN.....!!

Well what a couple of days...the weather (read it to believe it!!) has been almost at boiling point (or so it feels). Yesterday was Australia Day, celebrated every year on the 26th of January and by mid afternoon the temperature was nudging 42C, there was even talk at some point of cancelling Skyworks because of the high winds and the risk of fires, thankfully it went ahead as planned, it's such a highlight of the celebrations that it would have been very much missed. This year instead of heading as close to the shore on the Swan River as possible, Bill suggested we set up our tripods in Langley Park just behind The Bell Tower and I have to say I think it was an excellent idea as the fireworks looked quite amazing rising up from the barges on the river behind it, what do you think!

As the fireworks started, after so many weeks of 'forecast' rain that NEVER came....would you believe it.....YUP it started to rain, big heavy drops that if there hadn't been cameras involved, I would have happily thrown off my shoes and frolicked in.  As the fireworks built to a crescendo, Mother Nature adding her touch with some magnificent lightning flashes, the rain got heavier, actually it was FABULOUS and I thoroughly enjoyed getting soaked, this was the last picture I took, haha! I quite like it (can you make out the Bell Tower).....!! Well here we are at the end of another week, I hope it's been a good one for you and that you have a great weekend, I'm desperately hoping for a wet one.....!

 

The temperature's rising, and it's not raining men.....!!

Very early morning mist on the Swan River in the Upper Swan Valley.....

40C in Perth today going up for the next week also... Happy days.....not..!!

Just when you thought it was safe.....

Shark attacks along the coast of Australia are a constant fear and here in the West we have our share of attacks, the latest being only a couple of days ago.  There have been four fatal attacks in the last fourteen months, three of those in the last three months. These attacks have prompted the West Australian Government to budget $14 million over the next five years on measures to reduce the risk of shark attack. I have heard that if there are seals swimming close to the shore, there is the possibility that sharks will be around as well, so heed the signs people...see a seal and vamoose out of there pronto!! Although this is not a situation to be taken lightly, it must be pointed out that the odds of being attacked by a shark are pretty low and after all it is their territory, not ours..that being said, the shark above and below are the only close encounters of the 'big teeth' type that I ever plan to have .....! Have a safe day..... Something fascinating on bills diving check it out.....!!

What's for lunch at the Witch's Cauldron.....?

A few days ago I was sitting in a cafe on Rockeby Road, the main street in Subiaco (affectionately known as Subi by the locals) enjoying an excellent skinny cappuccino. Directly across the road, nestled in the shade of the plane trees that line this very pretty street is The Witch's Cauldron a restaurant well renowned for their 'sizzling garlic prawns'. I like to sizzle and I love garlic but I don't eat prawns so I can't verify this fact.....!

I had heard that the service and quality of the food was not as good as it used to be, and was thinking   about this as I was drinking my coffee and wondering if they'd changed their menu, when I noticed a line of young school children being led into the 'witch's den'. I'd like to show you a picture of them coming out at the other side, but.....I can't! Only kidding, haha! Of course they came out, I just didn't take a picture of it.....!! I hope your new week begins well.....

The best seat in the house .....

Last few shots from City Beach on Wednesday and honestly I'm not trying to make you jealous with the blue skies, white sand and cool water of the WA beaches, well perhaps just a little haha! Take comfort from the fact that I am also suffering 'snow envy' and that we still haven't had a drop of rain despite the fact that the weather forecasters have said almost every day for the last week that we will!! Honestly I sometimes think that they 'outsource' the weather report because I'm as sure as the Pope is catholic they can't be looking out the same window as I am!! Anyhoo, this man has found himself a shady tree on the grassy slope, set up his table with all the comforts of home, his esky at the side to keep his drinks and food cool, a bucketload of suncream if that huge bottle on the table is anything to go by, phone, book..yup he's set for the duration! Whatever you are up to today, enjoy.....!

 

Look into my eye(s).....!!

A while back at the 'Outskirts' festival my incredibly talented niece Jessica who not only did a lot of the organization for the festival but also had a stall selling her hand made 'fascinators' (small feathery creations to wear in the hair to the races, weddings etc.). Jessica asked me if I would take some shots of Aimee wearing the fascinator that she had bought on the day, to put on her website. We combined it with photos for Aimee's blog and it was only when I downloaded them that I noticed in the close ups I took to show Aimee's new eye make up, the reflections of moi and my camera leaning right in to take the shot!! Unexpected reflections can be such a bonus, hope you have a great weekend.....

It doesn't look like rain.....!!

When it comes to colour, we always associate reds and oranges with hot, hot..and blues with cool. These shots were taken on City Beach the same day as the previous post and believe me it was hot in the city, hot in the city tonight , love that song! Even though the blues give the illusion of cool, it was scorching on the beach, just to get to this spot across the burning sand would have been a trek and in my opinion that umbrella is WAY too small, there ain't much protection going on there!! The ocean on the other hand disappears into infinity...The weekend is imminent, I hope that whatever you have organised goes to plan. Rain is predicted for Perth today hallelujah! I'm praying that it's not just a lot of hot air.....!!

Tequilas in Santa Fe? Si por favor..........

On my way back from an eye check yesterday I remembered seeing  the Santa Fe Tequila Lounge on Hay St (great website) and thought that  Kate and Randy who actually live in Santa Fe, plus a few other blog friends who are around the same area might like to check it out.. The young lady who was setting up the tables in 35C heat was lovely and agreed to be in the shot, unfortunately it was almost noon, the sun was high and glaring so it makes it a little hard to see her clearly. I noticed afterwards on the board below it describes Wednesday as 'wild,' wish I'd asked exactly how wild..! So if you click on the website and check out the menu, what do you fancy? Me, I fancy a pescado fajita (try saying that fast after a few drinks haha!). There's no way it can be Thursday already, that's insane.....!! Hope it's a good one for you.....

A little bit of manipulation.....!

I know that back in the days before digital photography it was still very much possible to manipulate film images in the developing stages, I know because about a hundred years ago when I was young, my Dad and I had a darkroom set up and we would have great fun with the negatives before the printing stage. It's just so much easier now with all the different photo editing packages available. I took this shot at the marina yesterday and in the above view I like to think the water seems to lead your eye up towards the sky, whereas the exact same photo below with a bit of cropping, colour change and highlighting, I think draws your eye down the silvery path towards the camera..What do you think and do you also sometimes enjoy having a bit of a play with your images.....

Waxing lyrical.....

In the harsh summer climate that we have here in Western Australia, one of the very best plants to grow is the Geraldton Wax , a small to medium shrub endemic to WA, although I believe they would grow anywhere with a hot, humid climate.  I love them because you can plant them fairly small (not so expensive to buy from the nursery) and within months they grow to three times that size. They can be tricky at the start, but once established they're one of the hardiest plants in the garden They start flowering towards the end of winter into spring and last through summer, you can't ask more of a plant than that oui!  The colour and easy upkeep make me happy, they have a sweet smell, and the birds delight in the  nectar from the flowers. I'd like to thank Malyss from chroniclesfromtheshore for giving me a lovely award, most unexpected and highly appreciated....Hope you're week has started off well....

Parisian chic.....?

I think not..European grunge, maybe...!  but I'm almost 100% sure not Australian..(I did say 'almost', you can never be certain of anything these days!!), where ever she comes from, welcome! There's covering up and there's 'covering up', suncream is a marvelous thing, and although he gets marks taken off for not having a hat on, she might think about taking a leaf out of her companion's book and dressing down a little..with temperatures in the mid 30C's all week, this made me hot just looking at her.....! Well another week begins, how nice, but highly unlikely, would it be if just for a few days there were no disasters occurring around the world.  Have a peaceful Monday.....

r

The Big Blue.....!

Although it is big and it is blue, it's not the water slide in the background that I was referring to in the title. I took this shot yesterday at Hillary's Marina when I met a friend for coffee, it was 10.30 am and the temperature was already around 35C the sky couldn't have been more blue.  Even though it's the school holidays, vacation swimming lessons were in full swing, a huge percentage of children in Australia start learning how to swim almost before they can walk, and then proceed all the way through school with the higher levels of water safety and lifesaving....

You can see from the many small tents scattered over the beach that they come very well prepared for the heat and are all wearing hats and shirts, they wouldn't be able to participate without them..... I must say this sight each year does bring back some memories, both David and Aimee did swimming lessons here, many, many years ago, how lucky are they to have such a beautiful spot to learn.....!! I hope you have a good Friday and an excellent weekend.....

All aboard the Captain Cook.....

I took this shot from high up in Kings Park, looking straight down onto Riverside Drive and  the Barrack Street Jetty.  From this busy jetty you can take a Captain Cook cruise (worth checking out!)  to Fremantle, or upstream to the Swan Valley wine region, actually while researching this I discovered that there are so many fabulous trips to take on this cruiser, the one that caught my eye was the trip from Fremantle up to Perth on Australia Day to watch the Skyshow fireworks from on the river, hmm! I'm definitely going to check that one out for the 26th of this month!! It's also the spot to catch the ferry bus across to South Perth and the Zoo, and for Perthites living south who work in the city to get to work and back. Just off to the left in the shot you can see the Bell Tower, but that's a whole other story!   Surely it can't be Thursday already, where did this week go.....!!

Playing Gooseberry.....!!

This shot was taken from Gooseberry Hill which is a Perth suburb located in the Shire of Kalamunda and the site of Gooseberry Hill National Park, we were at the northern most highest feature of  Statham's Quarry which is within park land.  Perth Airport lies between here and the city, you can see to the right of the shot the airport tower. The haze was caused by a bush fire just off to the side of us, which didn't seem to bother the young couple sitting in the middle of the bush on a big rock admiring the view (maybe!!), can you see them down there! Ah! the joys of young love.....!!

Perthwatch I .....

In the quieter periods when the weather isn't quite hot enough for the masses this would have to be a pretty sweet gig, but in full summer when the beaches in Perth are hectic there would definitely be no time to sit and ruminate. There's the swimmers who think they can handle the strong rips in the 'no swim' areas getting themselves into strife, the people who come inadequately prepared for the heat and suffer heat stroke and dehydration and of course there's the ever present danger of sharks swimming close to shore in the warmer months.  The lifeguards, beach inspectors and helicopter patrols of  Surf Life Saving WA do a very fine job and the beaches are a much safer place thanks to them. Still....that's not too shabby an outlook in those quieter moments oui!!