• Heritage Swan Valley

    November 14, 2017 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 28 °C

    First day at Sebel Heritage Resort and some of the natural wildlife found on the premises.
    Beautiful base from which to travel around the wine tasting region of the Swan Valley.

  • Sundance Cinema

    November 13, 2017 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 28 °C

    This is the front facade of the oldest outdoor theatre in Australia which by the way is still operating.

  • Town church

    November 13, 2017 in Australia

    As with much early settlement in Australia there is a strong religious presence in most towns.
    I am referencing the buildings as apposed to the number of practicing Christians which I have no idea about. We visited the big white church building with the postie and delivered mail to a priest who if my memory serves me was 85+ years old and had been working in the town for 50 plus years.
    It was hot with most people and dogs sitting in the shade. We also visited an indigenous coop town store run and managed by the local natives within the town.
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  • Driving back - Ardyaloon

    November 13, 2017 in Australia

    The drive back on the postal route was infinitely more interesting than the drive up as the postie was much more talkative and we got an opportunity to see some of the indigenous settlements along the way.Read more

  • Cape Levecque

    November 12, 2017 in Australia

    Beautiful beach and stunning rock formations including a sold piece of salt that is embedded into the rock face.
    Water temperature was like a warm bath and because of the heat (which I surmised would have been 38-42 degrees celsius every day) I would have preferred 24-25 degrees celsius.
    Most of the day spent in the tent except for early morning walks and late afternoon swims.
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  • Toilet Frogs

    November 10, 2017 in Australia

    When we arrived at Cape Levecque we visited our “glamping” site and found some interesting wildlife specifically a young goanna between the tent fly and believe it or not a green tree frog in the toilet. The place is very remote and a classified national park and oh did I mention... hot!Read more

  • On the road to Cape Levecque

    November 10, 2017 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 30 °C

    This was a great trip although it started out differently to what we expected. We took the “Posties Run” which means you travel in a four wheel drive with the postie, the mail and any other tourists that can be squeezed in...literally.
    On the trip up the postie hardly spoke...at all. Kilometers of red dust and sand and probably my first experience of the outback of WA.
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  • Bikes & Camels

    November 9, 2017 in Australia ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C

    Cable Beach is quite possibly the best place to ride fat tyre bikes and equally renown for the amazing sunsets that are typical of the area.
    It is absolutely flat for as far as the eye can see.
    We went for a ride for about 6 kms and then sat down in some camp chairs with a drink and watched the sunset.
    It is also the location for the locally famous camel train that take tourists up and down the beach.
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  • Japanese Cemetery

    November 9, 2017 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 31 °C

    This was a Japanese cemetery commemorating the lives of the early Japanese pearl divers that were lost at sea or drowned as they harvested pearls from the ocean floor.
    Apparently this style of cemetery is traditional in the used the headstones as well as the orderly placement of the graves.
    The last photo in the sequence Ishtar busiest and best coffee cart in Broome...actually pretty sure it is the only one.
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  • Dinosaur Footprint

    November 9, 2017 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 32 °C

    Broome has some of the best preserved fossilized footprints of prehistoric reptiles. This particular “print” is in fact a replica of the original which is located away from this rocky outcrop.
    The other original footprints are regularly covered over by tidal changes.
    The walk included a passing opportunity to view an osprey nest that had been built on a communication tower.
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  • Hermit Crab Races

    November 8, 2017 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 31 °C

    End of sea kayaking trip but not before we had a small hermit crab race :).
    We marked a circle and then encouraged our respective crabs to be the first to race to the edge to claim the prize.
    The trip was really pleasant as we paddled around mangroves and tidal areas and observed a wide variety of wildlife...fish, birds, insects, crabs.
    Beautiful day as can be seen from the shots which is pretty typical of this area at this time of year.
    According to the locals the monsoon season was to begin in a couple of weeks.
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  • Sea Kayaking

    November 8, 2017 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 32 °C

    Great kayaking trip in very warm water amongst the mangroves. The contrast between the colour of the sea and the red sand was breathtaking.
    Paddled under the Broome pier and launched with tide in and then when we returned the tide had receded by approx 200 meters in length and about 18 meters in depth...extraordinary.Read more

  • Broome

    November 7, 2017 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 37 °C

    Some more time spent exploring the township of Broome.
    One of the things that you have to get accustomed to is the low flying aircraft that approach the airfield as they swoop in low over the township to be able to get the right altitude for landing the aircraft.Read more

  • Pearl Farm Visit

    November 7, 2017 in Australia ⋅ ⛅ 14 °C

    Visit to Pearl farm although I believe it is now only a tourist attraction as the pearl industry has been hit by an influx of freshwater pearls which have flooded the market and which to the uninitiated seem to be as fashionable as the real thing.
    Creating a pearl is a curious process. A small piece of shell from a freshwater oyster (from the Mississippi River) is placed inside the target host oyster. Once inside the oyster the small piece of shell acts as an irritant which causes the host oyster to secrete a clear mucous which covers the irritant and lays down a protective coating to smooth over the irritating surface.
    The size and shape of the pearl is commensurate with the time it spends in the oyster and how frequently the shell is rotated to get an even layering of the secretion to get a beautiful round shaped pearl.
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  • Broome

    November 6, 2017 in Australia ⋅ ☀️ 30 °C

    Spent sometime in the Broome town inspecting some of the businesses that are thriving and have adapted as well as some of the older style establishments.
    The old pearl diving statue which is located in the Main Street is symbolic of the early pioneering pearling industry of which Broome is famous.Read more

  • Broome 2017

    November 5, 2017 in Australia ⋅ ⛅ 15 °C

    Trip to Broome to visit Cable Beach and surrounds. Cable beach is an expanse of beach with an extraordinary tide change of +15 meters...which results in 200-300 meters differences in waterline.

  • Xi’an

    June 17, 2017 in China ⋅ 31 °C

    Some more photos of the wall of the old city and some further insight into the size of the structure.
    Because of the issue of air pollution China has a big focus on using bicycles to get around and this was also very obvious in Beijing.
    As you can see they usually have to have lots of bikes!
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  • Xi’an City Citadel

    June 17, 2017 in China ⋅ 31 °C

    A feature of the old city of Xi’an are the immense walls that protect the old city precinct. The sheer height and width of these walls are extraordinary.
    Atop the wall it is possible to ride bikes and it would be approx 25 metres across and I would estimate about 50-60 metres high which made the city very difficult to attack.
    There were also beautiful gardens in and around the wall.
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  • Old Xi'an City

    June 17, 2017 in China ⋅ 0 °C

    Xi'an became a cultural and political centre of China in the 11th century BC with the founding of the Zhou dynasty. The capital of Zhou was established in the twin settlements of Fengjing (丰京) and Haojing, together known as Fenghao, located southwest of contemporary Xi'an. The settlement was also known as Zhōngzhōu to indicate its role as the capital of the vassal states. In 770 BC, the capital was moved to Luoyang due to political unrest.Read more

  • Xi'an Historical Artifacts

    June 17, 2017 in China ⋅ 30 °C

    Some more historical artifacts including gold coins and a form of rickshaw used back in the day to travel around and see the city. Perhaps the equivalent of our modern day taxis?

  • Xi'an Museum

    June 17, 2017 in China ⋅ 30 °C

    The museums in China are generally well maintained and this one was no exception.
    One of the more interesting aspects was the wooden model of the old battlements of the ancient city although it was fascinating to see the city laid out as in old times as it was one of China’s biggest and most powerful regions in years gone by.Read more

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