P…

April 19, 2016April 18, 2016 / Christina B / 12 Comments

P is for Perth, Western Australia, (sometimes referred to as Perthadise) where we’ve lived for the past eleven years. I don’t go into the city very often and when I do it’s usually a quick purposeful trip not for leisure and I don’t take my camera along or think to take many photos. Most of my photos of Perth have been taken from Kings Park and show the change in the city since we’ve moved here.

View of Perth in 2007, taken from Kings Park

View of Perth in 2012. The BHP Billiton building on the left had newly been built and development of Elizabeth Quay, in the foreground, had commenced

Perth at sunset (2012)

Perth with the Swan Bell Tower in the foreground to the left (2012)

Perth just after sunset (2012)

Australian flag and Swan Bell Tower in the background

Perth city view from Kings Park

Perth, taken from the newly finished Elizabeth Quay

Perth during the Night Noodle Markets

Panorama of Perth and Elizabeth Quay

View of Perth, the Swan river and Perth hills from Kings Park

Last year during the Perth International Arts Festival we went to see the Giants. Most of the streets in the CBD had been closed off and the people of Perth flocked there to watch this amazing show (I’ve used some of the photos in a previous photo challenge). I definitely had my camera with me that day!

People of Perth out to see The Giants

Parade during the Perth International Arts Festival 2015 (The Giants in the background)

Perth International Arts Festival with The Giants (the car to the left with the drummer sits on top of another car, to put the height in perspective)

Lots of people out to see The Giants in Perth

Perth International Arts Festival 2015

St George’s Terrace, Perth city

P is also for picnic, something the people of Perth love to do in this outdoor lifestyle.

O…

April 18, 2016April 11, 2016 / Christina B / 5 Comments

O is for Osprey. We see Eastern Ospreys along our coastline every now and then. A couple of years ago I was lucky to see two together at Rottnest Island (19 kilometres off the coast of Perth), and one was feeding at the time. They were really high up in the tree so I had to zoom in quite a bit and the quality isn’t the best but the one that was feeding looks like a female to me, who then joined her male partner after she’d finished eating (and went to sit to his left). They had me rapt for about half an hour. I’ve included some of the best shots I got.

Eastern Osprey feeding at Rottnest Island

Eastern Osprey with its catch

Eastern Ospreys at Rottnest Island

O is also for Oasis (we visited an ancient one while we lived in Dubai and it was very interesting but sadly I can’t find the photos), Orange (a beautiful city in country New South Wales where a lot of fruit is grown, about a three hour drive from both Canberra and Sydney where we went for my husband’s 50th birthday a couple of years ago), home made olive scrolls and of course: olives.

The view from our B&B outside Orange, New South Wales

Olive scrolls in the making

Freshly baked olive scrolls

N…

April 16, 2016April 10, 2016 / Christina B / 6 Comments

N is for Namibia and the Namib desert, which is believed to be the world’s oldest desert. It has a beauty of its own that I love.

Namib desert

Southern part of the Namib desert taken from the top of the Spreetshoogte Pass

Namib Desert near Swakopmund Namibia, another favourite of mine. The Namib desert is believed to be the oldest in the world (around 55 million years old).

N is also for New Zealand, New South Wales (one of the states of Australia), New Norcia (a Benedictine monastery established in 1846), Norfolk Island Pines, which are endemic to Norfolk Island (a small island in the Pacific Island, about 1440 kilometres from Sydney), and Nankeen Kestrels.

New Norcia, north east of Perth

Norfolk Island Pines in Cottesloe near Perth

Nankeen Kestrel (juvenile) taken on Rottnest Island

M…

April 15, 2016April 20, 2016 / Christina B / 9 Comments

M is for Melbourne where I’ve been once, marathon (which my running-mad husband has done close to 100 of), marsupial (a mammal whose young are born incomplete and then carried in a pouch on the mother’s belly like kangaroos), Moreton Bay fig trees, the moon, and mosaics (which I’ve done some of and loved it but hardly find the time for nowadays).

Early morning in Melbourne

Yarra river in Melbourne

Yarra river and South Bank in Melbourne

Flinders street station in Melbourne

Melbourne marathon

Moreton Bay fig tree in Fremantle

One of my mosaic projects

Full moon

M also stands for Magic Miles (the yacht my husband and his running mate joined as part of the Three Peaks Race in Tasmania in 2013.)

Magic Miles during the Three Peaks Race in 2013 (taken in front of The Hazards, Freycinet National Park)

Magic Miles team in the Three Peaks Race 2013

Magic Miles coming up the Derwent and dropping her sails about to dock in Hobart

I’ve included a professional video of the highlights of the Magic Miles team’s Three Peaks Race in 2013, made by Nick Roden who went along on the yacht. It was an amazing experience, even for us as spectators. None of us had ever done or been involved with anything like it. The race brought sailors and runners together to form a magnificent team, and we got to meet some fantastic people. Some of my photos have been included in the video.

Coincidentally, the last leg of the Three Peaks Race is a run up and down Mount Wellington in Hobart.

View from the top of Mount Wellington on an overcast and windy day

And finally, m is for mum!!

L…

April 14, 2016April 14, 2016 / Christina B / 17 Comments

L is for Lion, Lion’s Head and Laughing Kookaburra. We saw these lions on our last trip to Etosha National Park in 2014 on a rainy day. They were very relaxed and let us have a good, long look at them (I’ve used some of the photos in a previous photo challenge: here).

We managed to catch one last glimpse

And then they’d had enough of all the tourists staring at them and snapping pictures of them and they wandered off

Some of the lions in Etosha are collared to track them

A lazy day in the soft rain

Lion’s Head in Cape Town, taken from the cable car going up Table Mountain

Laughing Kookaburra

There is a song called: “Kookaburra sits in the Old Gum Tree” which is sung to the same melody as a song I grew up with in South Africa called “Tortelduifie sit in die Eikeboom” (Turtledove sits in the Oak Tree). I’ve included a video of Kookaburra sits in the Old Gum Tree:

L is also for limes, picked fresh from the garden and soon to become home made lime sorbet and lime cheese cake. I’ve since picked another bowl full but I’m running out of ideas what to make with them all. Any suggestions anyone?

Limes from our garden

K…

April 13, 2016April 9, 2016 / Christina B / 17 Comments

K is for Kalahari, one of my favourite places. Even though the Kalahari is a large region, the part I refer to here is in Namibia, close to the border with Botswana. K is also for Kudu, an African antelope and Kameeldoring (the Camel Thorn Tree).

Beloved Kalahari

Kalahari sunset

Kalahari peace

Windmill at sunset in the Kalahari with a storm brewing

Windmill at sunset in the Kalahari

Kudu bull and cow to the left. Not a great photo because it was taken from the back of a moving vehicle but we were very happy to see them.

K also stands for Kings Park and Botanical Garden, which is one of the world’s largest inner city parks. Situated on the bank of the Swan river it provides sweeping views of Perth, the Swan and Canning rivers and the Darling ranges (Perth hills).

View of Perth, the Swan river and Perth hills from Kings Park

Kings Park

Women’s Memorial in Kings Park

K is also for kangaroo and kalamata olives which I love and grow in our garden.

Kangaroo who was eyeing me suspiciously on my morning walk out to the boat ramp.

Some olives from our crop a few years ago

Home bottled kalamata olives

J…

April 12, 2016April 12, 2016 / Christina B / 9 Comments

J is for jetty, joey and jigsaw puzzles.

The Busselton jetty in south west Australia is the longest wooden piled jetty in the Southern Hemisphere at 1841 metres long. It used to be a working jetty but is now used solely for tourism and recreational purposes. An underwater observatory has been built at the end of the jetty, giving patrons the opportunity to view fish and other marine life in their natural environment.

Busselton jetty early in the morning before the start of Ironman WA

View of a section of the Busselton jetty during the swim leg of Ironman WA

View towards the end section of the Busselton jetty during the swim leg of Ironman WA

The Swakopmund jetty is also an icon in this Namibian town with its own rich history as it juts out into the Atlantic ocean with its big swells.

Swakopmund jetty in Namibia

Swakopmund jetty

I have to mention the jetty (or rather remains thereof) at Maud’s Landing just north of Coral Bay in north west Australia, where the Ningaloo Reef is. It’s one of our favourite holiday destinations and the colour of the water really looks like this:

Remains of the jetty at Maud’s Landing north of Coral Bay, WA

A joey is a juvenile kangaroo. I haven’t been lucky enough to get a photo of one in its mum’s pouch. This one is slightly older:

A little joey next to the boardwalk in the caravan park at Coral Bay

And finally: jigsaw puzzles. Child No 3 is the best in our house at doing jigsaw puzzles. She has the most patience and perseverance and can spot a piece and its intended place with eagle-eye efficiency.

One of the 2000 piece jigsaw puzzles Child No 3 has completed

I…

April 11, 2016April 10, 2016 / Christina B / 10 Comments

I is for Ironman! Ironman stands for triathlons held all over the world, which involve a 3.8 kilometre swim followed by a 180 kilometre bike ride followed by a 42 kilometre run. My husband loves endurance sport (marathons, ultra marathons, ironman triathlons and crazy ultra open water swims). It’s not something I’d ever be able to do though, so we are very proud of our Ironman.

Early morning before the start of Ironman WA in Busselton

Swim leg of Ironman WA (swimming around the Busselton jetty)

On the bike at Ironman WA

In the finishing chute at Ironman WA

Ons of the signs at Ironman WA

Some of our Ironman’s collection of finisher’s medals

Swim, bike, run = Ironman

I also stands for Indian Ocean and iron ore, which is mined in the Pilbara region of Western Australia.

Indian Ocean at the West End, Rottnest Island, WA

Train carrying iron ore to the port at Dampier in north west Australia

Last but not least, I is for interaction with fellow bloggers, which I’m really enjoying especially during this A to Z challenge where I get to see even more interesting posts.

H…

April 9, 2016April 9, 2016 / Christina B / 22 Comments

Hobart, the capital city of beautiful Tasmania, was the first thing that popped into my head when I thought of the letter H. We visited there in 2013 when my husband took part in the Three Peaks Race and though we only spent a short time there we really liked the city and Tasmania and would love to go back for a longer visit. Hobart, being a city with a European feel and the backdrop of a mountain, reminded me a lot of Cape Town.

View of Hobart and Mount Wellington

Speaking of Cape Town: H is also for Hout Bay near Cape Town, a beautiful little town where we used to go for fresh fish and chips sometimes.

Hout Bay near Cape Town (visible to the right of the photo)

Closer to home Hillarys Boat Harbour is a lovely marina with shops and restaurants about 20 kilometres north of Perth which I’m fortunate to call my place of work.

Hillarys Boat Harbour

Hillarys Boat Harbour at sunset

Hillarys Boat Harbour panorama

Reading HesterLeyNel’s post on F made me think of the hermit crabs on Broome’s Cable Beach in north west Australia. The crabs dig up tiny, round little balls of sand and deposit them around their holes all over the beach. Our kids used to play with the crabs but I find the little balls of sand fascinating, especially as you walk over them, giving your feet a massage.

Little sand balls made by Hermit Crabs

Little Hermit Crab sand balls all over Cable Beach in Broome, WA. Not the best photo but I just had to show how many there were.

Still in Broome, I was very lucky to go on a helicopter ride a few years ago. Spectacular views of the ocean and coastline there made me want to go for more and more helicopter rides.

Going on a helicopter ride north of Broome

Helicopter ride north of Broome

Finally, back home, I love my herb garden and being able to walk outside and pick fresh herbs.

Herb garden

G…

April 8, 2016April 8, 2016 / Christina B / 21 Comments

G is for Gnowangerup, a small town close to the Stirling Ranges in south west Australia. I love the street art in the town depicting what the community is about. G also stands for the Gamsberg Pass, a very scenic pass on the edge of the Namib desert.

G is also for grass trees, guavas, garden and growing things, especially edible things.

Galahs are cockatoos that are widespread throughout most parts of Australia. G also stands for the Grey Go-away bird (an African bird) and the Golden Whistler.