Sundancer Backpackers Hostel.. backpacking, is it for you?

It will be interesting to see how many of you have traveled the world staying in backpacker hostels and what the experience was like? I never did and now it's a bit too late, when I do brave-up and take to the air if when I reach my destination I don't like to share my bedroom/bathroom space with anyone I don't know :) The Sundancer Backpackers Hostel located in a heritage building on High Street, big plus, in Fremantle gets good reviews, if you're interested have a look inside here. Oh to be young and adventurous again! Happy Wednesday, take care and stay safe..

Sand-gropers!

In the run-up to City Daily Photo's June theme day 'Nature' I thought I might show you a bit of WA nature that greeted me outside my front door yesterday morning! The Sandgroper, a subterranean insect, some species endemic to WA, is a sweet little bug don't you think.. I'm kidding, check it out here if you dare :) As I'm typing now I can hear the sandgropers in my garden chirping away and that's fine, it's not unpleasant to listen to, a bit like crickets or frogs.. BUT if they lose their way and come inside eeeew! Imagine this crawling on you! They can grow to 7cm long, this beauty below was about half that size. So.. are you still coming to visit :) Happy Tuesday, take care and stay safe.. P.s. they don't bite! P.p.s. is this what you all thought when you read the title :)

Sign of the times?

Not there the last time I walked through Wolf Lane I was delighted to come across another thought provoking, conversation inspiring work by JXD. You may remember the rifle toting Mary Poppins a little further down the lane.. here another poignant reminder of the 'peace versus war' times we live in today. Hope you had/are still having a fab weekend, happy Monday, take care and stay safe...

 Click here to see more Monday Murals from around the world.. .

The sweetest prize..

With less than a week to go until official winter in Australia here in Perth we still have temps in the 20C's but... with the possibility of rain on the 1st of the month.. we will see. Meanwhile our native and European bees are super busy here in the autumn/winter flowering gums preparing for the colder months ahead.. it's a competition in the flowering trees and bushes between the birds and the bees, both after the same sweet prize! You just know I'm going to have to say it.. hope you have a 'bee'utiful Sunday, I know right :) Take care and stay safe..

Photobombed!

 Although young by European standards the Narrows Bridge when it opened in 1959 was the largest pre-cast, pre-stressed concrete bridge in the world according to Wikipedia and is WA Heritage listed. It is easy to be impressed when standing under the bridge by the volume of concrete held up by the triangular shaped columns. As I was taking a few shots, attracted by the reflections in the water and arrow straight lines of sun shining through from above.. a flock of pelicans sailed nonchalantly through...

...on their way to the city :) Happy weekend, take care and stay safe.

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Guiding light..

Aimee came dashing in after work on Wednesday to say there were signs of a fabulous sunset on the coast five minutes from home.. 'quick, grab your camera, let's go'. Phew! We got there with five minutes to spare! Check out what's in the background there.. the lighthouse at Hillarys Boat Harbour all wrapped up for restorations. Will come down and take some pics when fini but as Aimee pondered what will guide the ships out to sea now? Do you remember this shot where it was guiding in a UFO :) Below the colours just before the sun sinks below the horizon..

... and after. Probably not the most dramatic sunset I've ever seen, but nice all the same. Happy Friday, take care and stay safe..

Turbulence..

 There are a lot of young people these days who choose not to watch the news. I found this a little hard to understand until I realised that there is actually very little good news covered. You know it has to be out there somewhere, but news channels have decided that it's the bad that attracts viewers. I am as shocked as millions of others at the atrocities that occur daily around the world these days and found myself bawling yesterday morning while watching a mother grief stricken, not knowing that when her young daughter went off full of excitement to a concert that it would be the last time she would see her. How can that even happen! Where do you go when you can't make sense of things? For me it's either my garden or the beach.. if you stare long enough...

... things calm down eventually.. for a while :( Take care and stay safe...

Alone..

 "What a lovely surprise to finally discover

how unlonely being alone can be"...  Ellen Burstyn.

 

The weather has taken a turn for the better worse.. rain, rain and more rain, j'adore! Not many brave enough to swim but there's always someone! More of the same tomorrow might give me the chance to catch a few rare umbrella shots.. hopefully :) Happy Wednesday, take care and stay safe... P.s. I hope you like this image as much as I do.

Aquatic surprises..

I had an unexpected delightful surprise when in South Perth yesterday! The South Perth foreshore has had a fabulous upgrade over the last few years and it's always a treat to walk along and view the city from the other side of the Swan River. I was there to see if a particular view of the city from under the Narrows Bridge would make a good image for a new header shot when I spotted the head above pop out of the water..

What an experience for the stand-up board rider below, there were at least three dolphins that I could see cavorting around his board.. he did pull out a camera. I would have loved to see those close-up shots!   

The pod of pelicans above and the dolphins moved under the bridge...

...and the hunt for fish began in earnest! I took these shots from the other side of the river with my long lens, unfortunately I didn't have a tripod.. one of these days I'll be prepared for the unexpected :) Is it just me or is there something really calming about dolphin sightings! Happy Tuesday, take care and stay safe...

The bees pleas!

It's the old which came first the chicken or the egg conundrum! I'm not sure which came first the paste-up of the hungry bee pleading for plant sustenance or the ironically flowery mural below? Did the mural artist even notice the plea! You can see in the two shots below how tiny the paste-up, to the right of the door, is. In the last shot which I took first I didn't even realise it was there! Neither were signed but it's a plea worth mentioning and one that I personally heeded, planting two new flowers over the weekend.. in the rain! The change-over to Windows 10 went remarkably smoothly I thought, although the 'Grace you're a nightmare' comments from P might be an indication that it wasn't as smooth for him :) Happy Monday, take care and stay safe..

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Conventional reflections..

Above reflections of the city caught in the windows of the Perth Convention and Exhibition Centre ballroom and below reflections of the Exhibition Centre and South Perth foreshore. Looks like we're in for a wet weekend here in Perth which is good.. also I've decided to make the momentous, for me, move up to Windows 10 which could be bad, it could get a wee bit tense around here as I'm not good with change, hoping for a smooth transition :) Happy weekend, take care and stay safe... P.s. are you are with Windows 10 and was it an easy switch?

Visit James to see more Weekend Reflections from around the world..

The Eagle Express..

The 18km crossing from Fremantle to Rottnest Island is 'renowned for being one of the roughest in the Southern Hemisphere'. The Rottnest Express Ferries have been 'specifically designed to counter these conditions' and it's definitely worth the short trip as you can see here! Coming into the harbour past the green and red lighthouses is one of a fleet of three the 'Eagle Express'. The best way to get around the island is by bike and you can see below that many take their own bikes over on the ferry. The last time I went over to Rottnest was a really long time ago and let's just say it was a nightmare! Can I brave-up once more and fly over the waves in one of these especially designed beauties, what are the chances :) Happy Friday, take care and stay safe...

Clowns.. scary or not!

What is it with clowns and the fear factor! I admit to having many many phobias.. flying, deep water, small spaces, spiders, bike helmets etc. but never clowns.  Passing the Claremont Showground yesterday and seeing the gate open I thought I'd see if I could get a scary clown shot in the royal show fairground area. This area during show week is packed to overflowing but at this time of the year deserted. I thought that might help with the creepy feel but with skies of blue and not an ominous cloud in sight it was tricky. I did what I could.. what do you think, did the shot above send chills down your spine :) Happy Thursday, take care and stay safe.. P.s. Trypophobia, I have that too :) P.p.s. 'fess up, what are some of your fears!

Narc Dive Club Underwater and Land Cleanup 2017..

It's been a while since PDP has had a guest post, the perfect opportunity presented itself when Diver Bill, who prefers catching crayfish to taking photos these days :) took part in the seventh annual Narc Dive Club Underwater and Land Cleanup 2017, this year held on Rottnest Island 18km off the coast of Fremantle. Observed by curious quokkas, over 100 divers and land helpers gathered on the beach to begin the clean-up created by planet earths most dangerous species.. man!

Associated with Sea Shepherd, Narc relies on sponsorship to organise the clean-up, with support coming from the ferry companies, businesses on and associated with Rottnest..

Last weekend's event was cut to one day due to bad weather and the haul of 790 kgs, the smallest weight haul ever, was a 'hats off to the Rottnest Island Authority, surrounding businesses and water users'. Meanwhile check out last year's haul.. 10.3 tonnes, that's right 10.3 tonnes pulled out from Fremantle Harbour, check the link.. you won't believe what was pulled up. Seriously what is wrong with people.. for goodness sake hire a trailer and take your rubbish to the tip! Littering is one of my all time pet hates grrrr! Merci beaucoup Bill for the photos and for participating in such a worthwhile event.. and for the super cute photo of the quokka :) Happy Wednesday, take care and stay safe.. P.s. I can't even imagine just tossing rubbish into the environment like this can you!

Dreaming...

 Spotted this delightful mural on the side of a building on Duoro Road while in South Fremantle last week. Couldn't see a signature but I know it was a commissioned piece by internationally recognised Perth multi-disciplinary artist ArtByDestroy. Destroy has many amazing murals around Perth but it's not always that easy to find them so when I do come across one it's always an unexpected treat. Remember this beauty discovered down a lane-way in Highgate.. so good! Happy Tuesday, take care and stay safe...

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Open plan for mother's day..

 I know there are many who unbelievably don't wake up with a need for coffee to kick start their day, sometimes I wish I was one of them.. nah I'm only kidding :) Aimee and I were already going to have brunch in Open Plan Coffee Co. a relatively new cafe/restaurant on Fitzgerald St. in North Perth, two things straight up that confirmed this as an excellent choice, the sign above and their business ethos 'breakfast, brunch and most of all coffee'.. I knew I was in safe hands :)

The food too is finger licking good, see above! There's something wonderfully comforting about toasties and hot coffee when the weather turns and there is a slight chill in the air. Toasties filled with ham, dijon, oozing with cheese and did I mention the rosemary and parmesan butter, as the French would say.. miam!

The best company, excellent food and coffee, great service, who could ask for anything more, and yet...

... there was more! Sitting on the doorstep this morning a stunning autumn themed Debra Hayes bouquet from ma famille in Sydney.. merci beaucoup mes lovleies! For any Perth coffee aficionados out there, I guarantee you won't be disappointed in Open Plan! Hope you had/are still having a fab weekend.. happy Monday, take care and stay safe...