Travel – Page 4 – A Bellingen Diary

First stop Singapore …

Published on August 22, 2015August 22, 2015 by FJB

The first stop on my second trip to Sri Lanka is of course, Singapore, and a dawn visit to its World Heritage botanic gardens.

I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve been there and I always find something beautiful in flower. This time it was what is probably my favourite tree – the aptly named Cannonball Tree.

Named after its fruit which are unsurprisingly just like cannonballs … this a truly spectacular tree, but not one you’d want to sit under once the fruit has ripened! Nearby was a Sausage Tree (no prizes for guessing what its fruit looks like) sadly neither tree was fruiting.

Some four hours and over a hundred photos later I stumbled out of the gardens in search of an iced tea and a blast of chilled air.

Next stop Colombo …

A glimpse of Margaret …

Published on April 20, 2015April 20, 2015 by FJBLeave a comment

Before beloved Australian artist Margaret Olley died, she requested that her home and contents be offered to the Tweed Regional Gallery. After being recorded, documented and carefully removed from her Paddington (Sydney) home an estimated 6–10,000 items were stored and later placed back in the re-creation which now forms part of the gallery.

It’s an amazingly colourful and almost indescribable collection of the inspirational objects that she used to create her paintings.

A sufferer of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder might have an immediate meltdown at the sight of this exhibition, but it’s definitely worth a detour if you are anywhere in the Tweed Valley area.

There is a great café with spectacular views of the valley and Mount Warning. My tip would be to go on a weekday (Wed-Fri) , arrive soon after the gallery opens at 10:00am and immediately book a table with a view for lunch. Then you have a few leisurely hours to absorb the exhibits.

What a wonderful face!

Meeting raptors …

Published on October 26, 2014November 10, 2014 by FJBLeave a comment

Words would be a bit superfluous here … so other than to explain that Kangaroo Island’s Raptor Domain is home to rescued, orphaned and injured birds of prey, I’ll pretty much let the photos tell the story.

I suspect that this is the closest I will ever come to a Wedge Tailed Eagle …

Jedda the Wedge Tailed Eagle

Boo the Boobook

The Stokes Bay Loo …

Published on October 25, 2014November 4, 2014 by FJBLeave a comment

I suspect that not many bloggers write posts on public conveniences … most of them being either unremarkable or indescribable (the loos not the bloggers). But the loo at Stokes Bay on the north coast of Kangaroo Island deserves a special mention.

At first glance, nothing unusual, just a conveniently placed beach loo.

But a surprise awaits inside. The walls being covered with a soft lime-wash in beach colours and beautiful relief sculptures …

A bit of research uncovers that the project was part of Eco-Action’s BirdLife Australia Beach-Nesting Bird Project funded through the Federal Government’s “Caring for our Country”. Two artists Gay De Mather and Lara Tilbrook spent a summer preparing the site and plastering and painting the walls.

The murals focus on the life of beach-nesting birds, Hooded and Red Capped Plover and Pied and Sooty Oyster Catchers, and the impacts that humans, dogs and predators have on them.

This is the first time that a public convenience has been the highlight of my sightseeing day. Unfortunately it probably means that I will be visiting them on a more regular basis, whether I need to or not!