The State Library of NSW was a good place to hide out in on a wet day. We weren’t the only ones hanging out here.
The traditional sandstone facade of the Mitchell Library wing made for some interesting photography outside…
And inside, too.
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A Rainy Day
A rainy day in the city still provides photographic opportunities. I like it when a pop of colour brightens up the gloom.
Like when a bright blue bus passed through the vale of skyscrapers.
Or when a rainbow umbrella (it was Mardi Gras day) and the beds of flowers brightened the scene outside Hyde Park Barracks.
Weather Watch
Well after the scorching summer we had we’re now into a rather rainy phase. It makes venturing into the city a bit of a task.
But stand still for long enough, and I notice some wondrous things amongst the everyday.
The changeable weather also brings great clouds as well as rain.
And seeing a patch of blue after a grey day, I begin to understand why those in colder, greyer climes are so ecstatic when the sun comes out.
The Collection – Part 2
Minerals also feature in my collection. My favourites tend to be colourful specimens, like this polished heart-shaped calcite.
A favourite in terms of colour and pattern is malachite. I like this polished specimen that I bought in Cape Town that’s from the Congo. The swirls of green are very striking.
The Collection – Part 1
A visitor to our house will very soon notice that there are geological items everywhere. Many are Hubby’s, but quite a few are also mine. As you might guess, I am quite interested in paleontology and fossils, so here are two specimens from my collection.
Ammonites are fascinating and beautiful marine creatures. Their fossils can be found all over the world in various sizes from thumbnail to a few feet. This fossil is from South Africa, and is quite big at about 15cm in size. It’s from the Late Cretaceous period, so it was living at the time of the dinosaurs, shortly before the great extinction event that wiped them, and also the ammonites, out.
An older but no less fascinating prehistoric animal is the trilobite. They were marine creatures that lived in the oceans long before fish, and certainly long before animals colonised land. Today, they look a lot like the Balmain Bug, though they’re distantly related. Their fossils can be found all over the world, in 2D and 3D. I love the 3D fossils, which have been painstakingly extracted using dental drills. Most 3D trilobites come from Morocco, but this specimen comes from St Petersburgh, Russia, and is about 460 million years old, from the Middle Ordovician period.
The Girrakool Loop – Part 2
The trees on the Girrakool Loop had some interesting details. This one had stripes on it.
And this log had bark that was as red as the outback sands.
There were some wildflowers out, the most striking being this mountain devil.
Eventually, the track met up with Leask and Piles Creeks. These waterways run into the Hawkesbury.
As we made our way back uphill towards the picnic area, we encountered a few little cascades and cool patches of rainforest.
A nice little walk through the Sydney Basin bush.
The Girrakool Loop – Part 1
We discovered a new little walk not too far from Umina – the Girrakool Loop. It’s in the Brisbane Waters National park near Kariong, very close to the freeway, but so well-hidden that only the locals know of this spot.
There is a picnic area and car park at the start of the track, so the walk might be a good way to start/end a day out.
The track winds its way through the bush, across rock platforms with mature grass trees.
And under great Sydney Red Gums.
It was shedding time, so the scribbly trunks were well exposed on some trees.
While on other trees the blood-coloured sap was flowing.
Late 2016 Projects
Two more projects that I completed last year was the laptop cover that I crochet in various 8 ply yarns and lined.
And the Avalon Ballroom scarf for N’s birthday, in a wonderfully rich Bold Bamboo yarn, with an Art Deco influenced pattern.
A winery visit
It’s been several years since we visited the village of Wollombi, so it was high time that we made a day trip up from Umina. The hour-long drive along the Central Coast hinterland back-roads is always a pretty one, and Bridie was up for it, keeping her nose out the window for most of the trip.
At the end of it was Wollombi Wines, a little winery selling some quaffable wines. The light shiraz was particularly tasty. The winery were also hosting the Sculpture in the Vineyards exhibition.
It’s an exhibition that’s exclusive to the wineries around Wollombi, and there were some interesting entries.
Bridie however, didn’t know quite what to think of it all.
Manly Ferry Ride – Part 2
The trip on the Manly Fast Ferry takes 20 minutes, compared to half-an-hour on the old ferries, so very soon the city sky-line was in view.
We veered pretty close to Fort Denison, a former prison and military fortress that’s now a fine dining restaurant and function centre.
Beyond the island are the Royal Botanical Gardens and the Opera House – always a reassuring sight. We pass by two old ferries which service the smaller wharves on the Harbour.
A cruise past the Opera House, and we’re once again into Circular Quay. Not a bad commute.
Static and Silence 