Koala Sanctuary

Looks like an abandoned zoo,
but don't let it fool you...

Brief Pet

On a walk home from Bondi one day, I noticed a woman crouching over trying to get a bird. I asked her if it was hers and she said no. Catching it easily, I did not really think what I was going to do with it when I had it. So he came home with me....

The following day Dave and I posted "Found" signs and waited patiently for someone to call. Being careful who we handed this rare albino cockatiel back to, we asked the caller if they could describe the bird to us. We eventually found the real owner. I met and gave Egal his bird back, and in exchange we received much gratitude and a fine bottle of Penfold's Koonunga Hill Chardonnay. Karma comes in many packages. Some you can drink.

However in the meantime, which was only about three days, Dave and I got a little attached. We did not give him a name, because we were afraid to get more attached. The bird would eat seeds right out of our fingers and was very dependent. Whenever we would go to the bathroom even, the bird would fly to find us. It remained fairly meek the first day, but when it started feeling comfortable it became more vocal.

As fun as it was having a pet in Australia, birds are really not my thing.

We miss kitty.

Cafe Bookstore

This is my favorite cafe bookstore located in Bondi Beach. It is called Gertrude and Alice. They have tons upon tons of used books at discounted prices. It is usually so busy that you can not find anywhere to sit except of course the stacks of books on the floor. It has been in Sydney a long time. There is even black and white photos on the wall of the two founding women. The floor is faded from the worn path of people scuffing their way around the tall shelving units, searching or browsing for a book.

Cameo Crawl

These are not glamour shots, people.

Click the picture.

Good Music

http://www.angusandjuliastone.com/v106alpha.htm

Taco Night is Ours

Every Thursday night is "Taco Night" here at the Meriton Cameo. Each person brings an item to contribute and then we feast. Courtesy of Becky and Tom, we also had Sangria. As well as Empanadas via chef Ross. As we rotate rooms each week, it was now our turn to host.

"La Premiere"

The Hoyts Theater inside the Fox Studios Lot has a great little package deal for movie tickets called "La Premiere". All you can eat popcorn and drinks. They serve alcoholic beverages upon request, as well as coffee. The seats are extra large and made especially for couples.

Tonight's viewing is "Jindabyne". It is an Australian movie about a town in New South Wales. It has a few big-name actors. Dave and Brette's Cinema Review gave it a big 5 Thumbs Up.

Watch the trailer at http://www.april.com.au/home.html

Also on a previous night we saw Ten Canoes
www.tencanoes.com.au

Hail Mary!

One day while I was enjoying a cup of coffee, it started raining out of nowhere.
Grabbing the cup, I found a seat under the awning just in time.
Hail bombed down minutes after.
It lasted for 10 minutes and then produced a rainbow.
Too bad that highrise was in the shot.

Art After Hours

Our second attempt at completing the Gallery of New South Wales.

This is an installation piece consisting of flourescent lights.
We will let you know who the artist when we can remember or find the name.

Dave loved this one especially.

http://www.artgallery.nsw.gov.au/exhibitions/current/adventures_form_space
and
http://www.smh.com.au/news/arts/life-is-full-of-wonder-133-but-balls-are-essential/2006/08/03/1154198269294.html

More at www.artafterhours.com.au

....and we still did not finish.

Outback Centre

The expression 'Dreamtime' is most often used to refer to the 'time before time', or 'the time of the creation of all things', while 'Dreaming' is often used to refer to an individual's or group's set of beliefs or spirituality.

For instance, an Indigenous Australian might say that they have Kangaroo Dreaming, or Shark Dreaming, or Honey Ant Dreaming, or any combination of Dreamings pertinent to their 'country'. However, many Indigenous Australians also refer to the creation time as 'The Dreaming'.

What is certain is that 'Ancestor Spirits' came to Earth in human and other forms and the land, the plants and animals were given their form as we know them today.

These Spirits also established relationships between groups and individuals, (whether people or animals) and where they traveled across the land, or came to a halt, they created rivers, hills, etc., and there are often stories attached to these places.

Once their work was done, the Ancestor Spirits changed again; into animals or stars or hills or other objects. For Indigenous Australians, the past is still alive and vital today and will remain so into the future. The Ancestor Spirits and their powers have not gone, they are present in the forms into which they changed at the end of the 'Dreamtime' or 'Dreaming', as the stories tell.

The stories have been handed down through the ages and are an integral part of an Indigenous person's 'Dreaming'.

Read more related stories at www.dreamtime.net.au

The photograph above was taken at the Outback Centre (www.outbackcentre.com.au) in Darling Harbour where you can experience a free live performance of an aboriginal demonstrating the sounds of a didgeridoo. Speaking of which, you may find this article about the oldest musical instrument interesting.

http://www.eniar.org/news/didge.html

The Rocks Market with Dave

Getting closer to finding that one perfect piece of art, we sit under the terrace of a nearby cafe and enjoy a bite to eat. A very common menu item in Oz is chips (or potato wedges for us), with a side dip of sour cream and chili. Typically there is not mold in the sour cream.

Camp Cove and Hornby Lighthouse

Can not wait to try this.

Yay for nude beaches!

August 6th- National Gallery of New South Wales

More to come for the art gallery. It was too big for one day.

August 6th-Soapbox Speakers

As if there was not enough political involvement today.....More to come on this post.

August 6th-Hyde Park March

The same day as visiting a war memorial was the anniversary of Hiroshima. Dave and I cautiously approached a rally of demonstrators protesting the war between Israel and Lebanon as well as the use of nuclear weapons and bombs. There was Anti-American protestors as well so Dave and I slowly put away our maps and sucked in our guts so as not to look so obvious.

August 6th-Hyde Park

Hyde Park

(not Hewlett-Packard)

Overlooking Hyde Park from inside the Anzac Memorial.

In front of the memorial lies the "Lake of Reflections" surrounded by rows of poplars.The Anzac Memorial is a dedication to the lives of soldiers.
The letters ANZAC stands for Australian and New Zealand Army Corps.
On the ceiling of the dome above the "Hall of Memory" there are 120,000 stars, each representing the service in the AIF of men and women from New South Wales during WWI.

From a brochure:
The "Well of Contemplation" is best viewed from above, through the centre of the marble wreath encircling the well. The sculpture "The Sacrifice" depicts the recumbent form of an ANZAC whose soul has passed to the Great Beyond, and whose body, borne aloft upon a shield by his best beloved-mother (SouthWest), sister (East), wife and child (NorthWest) -is laid there as a symbol of that spirit which is inspired him in life, the spirit of Courage, Endurance and Sacrifice.