The venue for the reception was slightly out of town at Melross & Willow’s Estate, in a converted barn. By then the clouds were threatening to burst, so there wasn’t any croquet or skittles, but the view was still spectacular.
The estate is also a working horse and cattle property, but I’m guessing that it might have been a dairy as well at one stage. These days, it’s all about the wine.
The wedding was in the very quaint St Joseph’s Catholic Church, in Kangaroo Valley village.
Quaint because it was built in 1888 and as you can see doesn’t seat very many people – everyone really needed to squash in!
As with a lot of 19th Century churches, there are the obligatory stained-glass windows. These are modest but colourful, reflecting the farming community that it served back when it was built.
A lovely little country church.
We spent last weekend in Kangaroo Valley for my cousin J’s wedding. I hadn’t been in Kangaroo Valley for close to 15 years, and it’s certainly gotten busier in that time. I remember only the ice cream shop in the village before, and now there is a dozen places to eat as well as shops of all sorts. But one thing that hasn’t changed is Hampden Bridge.
Built in 1898, it’s still the oldest timber suspension bridge in Australia, still one-laned, and still stands high above the Kangaroo River.
I forget sometimes that autumn is also a great season for flowers as much as spring. At Jamberoo Abbey, the silhouette of this rose caught my eye one morning. It’s like one last hurrah before winter kicks in.
My visit to Jamberoo Abbey this year occurred two weeks after Easter. As usual, I wanted to capture the avenue of trees in all their autumn glory, but due to our very long summer this year, the leaves had only just begun to turn. Nevertheless, they were always a delight to walk through, especially in the early morning.
Static and Silence 