South Australia for the Week

We landed in Adelaide, the city with the most churches and free settlers, and soon we were on our way north heading to our destination for the day Port Augusta. The flat arable land is all cultivated, wheat, barley, oats, wild rape borders these massive fields, interrupted by spreads of purple flowers. It's so rich and fertile. It is also the only place in Australia which has such an abundance of wind farms and solar farms and where over 30% of their energy is provided by renewables. This is so good to witness. 

We see Two wells - a small town named so because there were separate wells for white people and aboriginals. Anyone want a scorpion ? See the sign for the pet shop across the road.

We headed on to Crystal Creek and find a cute little heritage Museum and an old sign for good Pickles. 

Along the way the scenery changes. We are moving from arable land to pastures with lots of sheep and cows, piggeries, chicken farms and wind farms. 

Coming into Port Augusta we explore the lovely Botanical Garden for Arid plants. Many plants surviving in poor soil, sometimes sand and little water. They are incredibly beautiful and unusual. I am drawn to the many eucalypts and the gum nuts.

Port Augusta was once a central meeting place for different Aboriginal groups to trade goods and knowledge. More recently it has become a vital train link. You can take the Pichi Richi steam train through the Flinders ranges. We watched the Ghan moving along the track - all 35 of its carriages chugging along. 

Port Augusta is also home to the Flying Doctors since 1928 servicing the needs of many people living in regional Australia.   

Our home for the night is Standpipe an old motel which is where cameleers would stay many years ago as they moved their herds across the country. Now it is run but a great Punjabi family serving tasty curries to Aussie travellers.

Celebrating Books, Art and good Friends

This month's bookclub was a wee bit different. We headed off early this morning to Surfer's Paradise to meet Celia who was hosting us. We enjoyed the views and popped some bottles of bubbly and grazed away on cheese and nibbles while chatting about our book- lots of things wrong with this month's choice -but we picked up some interesting history.We then talked about the state of world politics, Lizzie and Charles, Africa and specifically Zim and Ethiopia. We managed a cake but forgot the matches to celebrate Robyn's Birthday and we dug into very rich and scrumptious chocolate cake. 

In the afternoon we headed to HOTA - the Home of the Arts in Surfers Paradise and enjoyed the panoramic views from the 5th floor, high school art on the 4th - with some outstanding pieces, indigenous photography on the 3rd and then a magnificent art collection on the 2nd with William Robinson's rainforest which inspired the building but also some unusual art work of lesser known artists. 

Celeste Rush- Delgado made this image of a cockatoo which is facing extinction from disposable drink cans - she entitled the work " Can we Survive?" She is a high school student.

Elizabeth Tanke made Gold Coast Suburbia in 1986. She used thread, paper, ink, tiles, rose petals, terry towelling, ribbon, timber, cord, collage and roller blind on a board. Intricate and multilayered in its thought process. 

Hota is surrounded by lovely grounds - a beautiful Cycad flower shedding its seeds 

Our attempt at a Selfie - with impressive backdrop. Wonky perspectives but lots of fun. 

Earth's Craters and Bees Cells

Today I went to West End to explore the Planet Series - a chance to see the Moon, Earth and Mars in big images featuring detailed Nasa Imagery.

Go along and see them at the West End Central precinct - near Harris Markets. 

Buildings matching the sky 

Meanwhile back home the King Beekeeper was busy splitting his hive into two. 

The bees are plentiful and loving the lavender in the garden and all the citrus which is in blossom. It is heavenly in scents and colours. 

Finally the intrepid reporter in her very own Birthday suit - cant help thinking there must have been an ulterior motive to this gift but given the stings of last year I shouldnt look a gift horse in the mouth.

My return is even sweeter now

More surprises were waiting for me. I am the loving carer of an orangutan called Koyah. Magnificent in every way and if you want to give your loved one a special gift please think about adopting an orangutan - after all 97% of an orangutans genetic make up is the same as humans. We are family.

Go to wwf.org.au 

facebook.com/wwfaustralia

instagram.com/wwf_australia

And another sweet gift is our first harvest of spring honey today. 

Just need to persuade the King Beekeeper of the goodness of spreading the joy.

A houseful of flowers

A houseful of flowers awaited me on my return from holiday. It was an unexpected but joyful meeting of the family, a warm induction into mediterranean temperatures of late August. Feasting with family and friends, meeting old acquaintances and marvelling at our advancing years, (while noting with some satisfaction, that we can use most limbs) nurturing new and young lives. 

It is never easy to get on a long haul back home but it is always worth chatting to the person near you. I had the real pleasure of meeting a delightful woman who lives in Chinchilla and is the mother of three, an accountant and wife of a watermelon and cattle farmer up there. We exchanged life stories and laughed heartily at our differences and confluences. Feb 2023 now in the diary for the Chinchilla Festival. 

A morning at the radio was full on for three hours. On the walk home these colourful two were just itching to feature in today's blog. 

Dennis and Doreen both visited the deck today- their happy place and mine.  Now will I last awake and compos mentis for a Board meeting this pm? Results on next blog whenever that might be. I may just be curled up and fast asleep when I least expect it.