The last day of summer....!

Two hearts sailing the seas.. can you see them there flying high on the spinnaker.. or is that the jib :)  It may be the 'official' last day of summer but after twelve days of above average temperatures there is no sign of relief in sight with 38C today 36C tomorrow.. happy days! These shots are for you guys in the Northern Hemisphere, here's hoping that they warm the cockles of your heart :) Happy Friday, take care and have a safe weekend.....To see more skies from around the world Click here.....

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'Chill out zone'.....

How often do you see this right in the centre of a city! When we first arrived early there was one gentleman fast asleep in a bright orange deck chair in the 'chill out zone' in Forrest Place. Perhaps he sat to read the paper while his wife shopped, I did take a shot of him from the front, the paper couldn't have been that interesting, he was fast asleep :) As we were leaving the city a few hours later it was a much busier scene. With the hot weather we're having this is an excellent arrangement where mums can have a coffee or lunch from one of the many eateries around the square while watching the kids cool off in the water labyrinth.. nice one Perth, summer fun in the city! Happy Thursday, take care and stay safe.....

Charron Freres .. française ou italienne?

As I was walking in the city yesterday from somewhere up ahead the sounds of an accordion floated through the air. Whether you call it a concertina, a squeeze box..  or even a handklaver (Swedish) the sound of the accordion always transports me back to Montmartre.. strolling among the artists..  'non monsieur je ne veux pas un sketch of mon visage' :) Chatting I mentioned this and the lovely man went straight into something along these lines.. magic! I noticed the accordion had the name Charron Freres on it but after extensive googling I still don't know if this is a French or Italian brand, anyone know the answer to that one? How is your week going.. mine is zipping along way too speedily! Happy Wednesday, take care and stay safe.....p.s. did you notice.. one photo :)

Yo-ho-ho and a bottle of rum.....!

Fifteen men on a dead man's chest—

Yo-ho-ho and a bottle of rum!

Drink and the devil had done for the rest—

Yo-ho-ho and a bottle of rum!

The skull & crossbones spotted flying in the breeze at Hillarys Boat Harbour yesterday afternoon.. I had to smile when I downloaded the shots to see that the flag flying closely behind ye old pirate flag was 'The Bourbon' .. that would be the rum content of the ditty n'est pas, don't you just love when that happens :) Hope your week has started well, take care.....

 

Monday mural & a gift from Versailles.....!

The mural above is by WA artist Anna McEachran, one of the thirteen artists commissioned to create artwork in the 140ART project. If you click and enlarge this shot and check Anna's site you'll see that she has an unusual and visually appealing painting technique.. this piece is on the Murray St. Mall side of 140William next to Swarovski.. shame about the tagging, a universal aggravation oui!

A short while back Ciel from Versailles celebrated her five years of VDP with a giveaway, one of the prizes being a l'année Le Nôtre shopping bag.. guess where that very same shopping bag is right now? I was delighted when I received un petit paquet from France on Friday and I'm not sure why but I felt compelled to fill it with vin, fleurs et une baguette :) Merci beaucoup Ciel. Hope you've had a good weekend and are set for the week ahead, take care....

Click here to view all participants of Monday Mural

パース日本祭り ２０１４ イントロ - Japan Festival 2014.....

The clash of swords and the swish of kimonos could be heard in the city yesterday as Forrest Place was host to this years Japan Festival.  From the serious display of Kendo by the WA Kendo Renmei to the highly colourful and dare I say slightly bizarre 'Anime cosplay' event, a couple of the 'characters' below.....

I enjoy seeing the beautiful kimonos, the ladies wear them so well, especially as the weather is very  warm right now.....

... but my very favourite thing is seeing the young children in their adorable little kimonos....

If you're wondering what these little ones above are gazing at so wistfully and wishing they weren't in their best togs.. it's the water fountain, who wouldn't want to be running around in there on a hot day, I must admit I walked pretty close a few times myself  :) It was a hectic day, catch up time today.. hope your weekend is going well, take care.....

La Belle Époque sizzles in Perth.....

On Thursday evening we entered the gates of 'The Pleasure Garden' once more.. oh la! it was a hot night in Perth in more ways than one :) We were there to watch the ladies of  La Belle Epoque perform in the WA Spiegeltent, and as it was a 'no photos' kind of gig you'll have to take my word that it was fabulous, it was nice for a change to relax and enjoy the show. The spiegeltent itself is an amazing venue, you really do get that feeling of stepping into a bygone era... I apologise for the quality of the photos but with lights flashing everywhere inside and out it was tres tricky!
 

Although there were no photos during the show the cast were more than happy to mingle and pose after the show and yes, I was up to my old 'photo-napping' tricks again :)

Walking back to the car after the show it was so good to see the cafes and restaurants around Perth and Northbridge overflowing with people having either just come from or going to a Fringe or Perth Festival event.. February and March may be the hottest months in Perth but there's more than enough going on to take your mind off the weather :) Happy weekend, take care.... p.s. I see a couple of tables free in Positano, meet you there for Fringe next year oui!
 

Sacrilege in the city.....!

This sight may look 'vaguely ' familiar to you but I bet you didn't expect to see it 'pop' up in Perth. I did say vaguely and I did say pop.. literally :) Created by English artist Jeremy Deller the inflatable interactive sculpture Sacrilege is in the Supreme Court Gardens as part of the Perth Festival. This ancient shrine replica of Stonehenge is a 'bouncy castle'.. some might say sacrilege, I say it's all good fun.. the chap below certainly had an excellent time :) If you have a quick look at the installation here in Olympic Park London you'll see that the weather conditions couldn't possibly be more different, it was 37C (maybe more, definitely not less) here yesterday, so hot that the plastic had to be hosed down with cold water between sessions!

We arrived a little early and watched with amusement as the pumps started up.. each part of the 'formation' began to rise slowly, and then boing .. straight up.. funny! There will be no rituals in the moonlight around these nightly deflated rocks :) We were in the city last night to see another Fringe World gig, La belle Epoque.. ooo! la! la! tell you about it tomorrow.. This week has zipped by for me, how about you? Have a good Friday, take care.....

Southern Elephant Seal.. a surprising visitor!

Isn't he a handsome fella! I was just about out the door yesterday morning heading into the city to take some shots of  'Stonehenge'.. no kidding, will show you tomorrow.. when I had a call from my sister, thanks L, to say there was an unexpected visitor on Sorrento Beach five minutes from home. A quick detour and there he was.. all 2000 kg of him! Coming ashore for a bit of R & R after a hunting expedition in the colder waters of the sub-antarctic islands little did he realise the amount of interest he would generate. It was all very calm and quiet early in the morning, with the local TV stations setting up to record his every flibber flabber, believe me he flibbered and flabbered, as he made his way down closer to the waters edge.. did I mention that it was 37C yesterday, didn't seem to bother him as he rolled and flipped sand over himself...

That's quite a derriere..suddenly I don't feel so bad about my extra five kg :)

There I was snapping away when I realised there was a barrage of cameras facing me.. I'd better not be on the news :)

Sleep while you can Monsieur Seal.. you are going to be the 'star' attraction when Perthites finish work....

Naturally Aimee wanted to have a peek when she finished work but we were too late, just look at that crowd, there wasn't any point in even trying.  I took this shot from way over at the marina. It did worry me a bit to see him so closely surrounded as these huge seals have very big teeth and can get aggressive if they feel threatened.. ah well if you don't listen to the warnings etc. Btw yes, the sky and the water were that blue! Have a fab Thursday, take care and stay safe.....p.s. he is in excellent health, just exhausted..

April's Manor.....

As I stepped off the escalators yesterday at Karrinyup my local shopping centre there before me was the grandest dollhouse, every little person's dream! Built and donated to raise money for Cystic Fibrosis WA by Adrienne and Rob Hartley, family friends of 12 year old April who, although she has cystic fibrosis, ably assisted with much of the decorating of  April's Manor (check out the details). Most of the home & contents were sourced from Europe and the USA.. from the grand central staircase, parquet flooring, exquisitely furnished rooms to the chandelier made from Swarovski crystals and the parterre garden this was a true labour of love. I think I may have to borrow one of my young 'great' nieces or nephews to take along so I can justifiably oooh! and aaah! with gusto :) Happy Wednesday, take care and stay safe.....

Would you do it..?

Would you leap onto a kite board totally relying on the wind to skim you across the water out of reach of whatever may be lurking underneath the waves? Or jump in a kayak and paddle out to sea not knowing what could nudge you from below? I'm darn tootin' sure I wouldn't :) Behind the wind surfer above I counted eleven container ships waiting in Gage Roads to come into Fremantle Harbour.. the land mass behind is Rottnest Island....

I took the above and below shots using my 300 zoom, pulling it in to catch this sweet scenario on the beach below. It would seem not all dogs love the beach.. to be fair it was pretty cool (28C) and windy on Sunday! This dear little dog.. look at the size of it :) was not happy.. luckily her 'dad' was keeping an eye on her, he scooped her up in one hand and carried her the rest of the way, too cute! Hope your week has started well, I'm hoping for a quiet 'catch up' day today, take care.....

Black & White, no way....!

At least not often through the eyes of one of my favourite WA artists Anya Brock.. remember the budgies. We've been spending a lot of time in the city lately so decided for a change to head down to Fremantle only a 30 minute drive down the coast road from Perth. I knew this mural (worth enlarging) was on South Terrace, a long stretch of road, so we parked pretty much half way down and turned right, up towards the Cappuccino Strip (virtual tour)..WRONG! turns out we should have turned left.. isn't it always the way.. still, after eating a croissant for breakfast I needed the exercise :)

The young couple above tried to rush past but were happy to pose when I asked them to stop.. love the Pink Floyd 'Another Hole in the Wall' dress :)  So many quirky cafes in Fremantle, Ootong and Lincoln one of the most popular if the reviews are anything to go by, I can vouch for the café au lait! Hope you had or are having a good weekend, take care and stay safe.. p.s. it was cloudy and 28C here yesterday, bliss.. but back up into the high 30's again this week!

 Click here to view all participants of Monday Murals

A myriad of possibilities......

Mirrorball glinting virtuously

in the sunlight

What saucy fun reflected

in your windows 

each night.....  

                                                      By moi, sorry Francis :)

The mirrorball sitting centre stage in The Pleasure Garden.. looking forward to going back for more :) Happy weekend, hope it's a good one, take care and stay safe.... click here to see more reflections from around the world.....

Valentine shmalentine, let's call the whole thing off :)

Seriously! If you read my blog often you'll know that I am a true 'romantic' at heart.. but like Christmas and Mother/Father's Day, Valentine Day has become in the words of someone famous, I just can't remember who :) 'a hideous example of consumerism at it's worst'. It's all in the simple gesture not how much money is spent n'est pas! My sister-in-law gives her husband of many years a Mars Bar for V Day.. because he loves them but normally resists them, now that's cool! I prefer the heart below, only it was the 60/70's I 'hearted' :) However you celebrate.. or not, the day, have a good one. TGIF take care and stay safe.....p.s. the above shot is part of the window display at Tiffany & Co. on King St.

De Fontijn.. Fountain Bar.....

With just over a week to go Fringe World is still drawing in the big crowds.. long queues at the box office attest to the determination of Perthites and visitors to see as much as they can before.. poof! it all disappears for another year! The Fontres above in The Urban Orchard created by Dutch company De Fontijn looks brilliant in the daylight but if you check out this short video of its construction you will see how fabulous it looks at night.. will be after that shot when I'm in there next week :) I'm a big bit over this hot humid weather, looking forward to wearing scarves, gloves and boots, oh yes! Happy Thursday, take care.....

Net-Work, fragile.. and powerful!

I apologize straight up for the overload of images but I defy anyone who finds themselves gazing on this truly amazing installation by Korean artist Do Ho Suh named  Net-Work to take less than the ??? shots that I took.. and then to choose oh la! Part of the Perth Festival 2014 which began on Friday.. yes, even more going on in Perth, it's crazy! Courtesy of the artist and Lehmann Maupin Gallery this brilliant piece sits on the foreshore of the Swan River looking out over to the city, a more perfect spot does not exist!

A 'fishing net' made up of thousands of tiny gold and chrome plated figures.. the gold lying glistening on the pristine white sand..  the shimmering silver draped down to the waters edge, seriously fabulous!

Golden bodies 'sunbathing'.....

In the images below the net was stirring gently in the breeze marrying with the description of this piece.. 'moving in unison with wind and water, conveys the paradox of fragility and strength in numbers' .. brilliant!

The shot below shows the whole shimmering installation with the city skyline behind. I'm not sure if my images do this piece justice, I think you really have to 'experience' it! If any Perthites out there haven't seen it yet, it will be there in all it's splendour until the 1st of March, absolutely worth a visit! I hope I'm forgiven for going overboard once again.. tomorrow hopefully just one shot :) Happy Wednesday, take care and stay safe.....