When the Sun starts its journey from directly overhead towards its setting in the west it is a challenge to find shade walking from Circular Quay to Bennelong Point, Sydney, NSW, Australia. The light was so bright on this day that I hadn’t realised that I’d chopped the front of the Carnival Spirit cruise ship off until I got home. Even so I achieved my objective of capturing the cool water bound shadow of the ship.
The appearance of the jet boat in the photograph is a pleasant accident.
As the years sail by the New Year’s Eve celebrations and more importantly the fireworks over Sydney Harbour evolve, adapt and change. We have been fortunate to experience the show from a yacht in the Harbour in 1998 and from the roof of the old casino on one of the Welsh Bay wharves in 1999. Since then we have seen them up close next to the Opera House and in the distance from apartments in Kings Cross.
Over the last few years we have opted for an inner west dinner followed by viewing from about 5km away, a deliberate choice to avoid the crowds. We usually record the televised coverage of the event to watch on New Year’s Day.
This year we popped over to the Opera House after lunch on Monday 30 December. The pictures capture a glimpse of the pre-Eve excitement and some of the crowd control measures being used.
The fireworks shows have increased from two to three this year, the following information is from the official website City of Sydney information
9 pm Family Fireworks Display
10:30 pm Telstra Design-A-Firework Show
12 Midnight Fireworks Display
Happy New Year!
While enjoying the sunshine on the deck yesterday I noticed the way the light illuminated the various leaf colours of the Sabre or long leaf Ficus. I eagerly collected my camera so that I could capture the moment.
After a couple of close up shots I realised that the camera angle was all wrong. I returned to where I had been sitting on the day bed and took the picture from there.
Hey presto I am able to share the dark green to salmon pink scene with you.
This building in Dulwich Hill, Sydney, NSW, is in the process of being demolished to make way for a development of apartments.
I can imagine a corrugated metal bull nosed roof providing shade for the occupants of a balcony that is adorned with iron lace work.You can see how the former roof has protected the paint from the sun’s bleaching rays, marked by shading of the painted surfaces.
I particularly like the blue French doors contrasted against the yellow wall, it reminds me of the heat of a European Summer. It is a shame that the whole building wasn’t painted with the same colours.
A southerly front has cooled Sydney by ten degrees to a comfortable 23oC. Friends from Brisbane arrive tomorrow to join us for the festivities, Christmas lunch at Catalina Restaurant, Rose Bay.
It is too warm to light the fire, we will pretend with candles.
I hope that you have an enjoyable holiday, thank you for reading my blog,
Robert
Have you seen the movie Priscilla Queen of the Desert? If not, I suggest that you do as it is an Aussie cinema classic made on a shoestring budget. If you have seen the film, the Sydney drag shows are shot in the front bar of The Imperial Hotel, Erskineville. Up until 2009 we lived a short stumble from the pub, spending many a happy hour with friends in the bars, show room and the basement nightclub.
Heading east along Erskineville Road you will pass The Floral Decorator on the left hand side, one of our favourite florists. The interior has a cave like feeling with flowers arching overhead. I like the way the window display appears to tumble onto the pavement.
A little piece of France
Proceeding further on into Alexandria the road becomes Copeland Street. Bitton is a frequent destination of ours. You can see the back of Frenchman, David Bitton wearing a blue polo shirt on the left of the picture. Great food with a French edge.
Related information:
The Imperial Hotel
The Floral Decorator
Bitton
A Taxing Day
Sydney is located on the east coast of Australia, experiencing temperate Winters and warm humid Summers, it is unsurprising that Sydney-siders are fond of being outdoors.
One of the popular destinations for visitors and locals is Bondi Beach.
The above were taken around 4:00 pm on a Tuesday in Spring, I will leave it for you to imagine how busy it gets at the weekend.
While growing up in ’60 s and ’70’s Summer in England was this esoteric amorphous entity, I cannot pin point when it started. Perhaps it relied on nature’s direction; March winds and April showers brought forth May flowers.
Antipodean Summers are different they start on 1 December. Over the time we have lived here some years on the dot of 1/12 the temperature has soared to a point that when you subject yourself to the elements, your body is enveloped in a cocoon of moist warmth.
Not so in 2013 with a top of 23oC it is too cool to go for a dip in the pool.
Stan is happy, his shaggy coat grows by the second. 
I hope that you enjoy the pictures I took during his walk around Lewisham and Marrickville.
Stan
I believe that a lighthouse’s credibility is threatened without rocks, here they are…….
Related
Lighthouse at South Head
Camp Cove to the South Head
Camp Cove looking west towards the City of Sydney.
The following is credited to Robin Derricourt, ‘Camp Cove’, Dictionary of Sydney, 2008, http://www.dictionaryofsydney.org/entry/entry/camp_cove, viewed 26 November 2013
Camp Cove is important to the history of European settlement in Australia as the probable site of the first landfall in Sydney harbour. On 21 January 1788 Captain Phillip sailed from Botany Bay to explore the potential of Port Jackson. The exploration was described by Jacob Nagle in his journal. After the expedition had sailed around the north side of Port Jackson he noted:
It coming on dark, we landed on a beach on the south side and there pitched our tents for the night. This was called Camp Cove. The marines were put on their posts. The sailors were variously employed, some kindling fires and some shooting the seine for fish, others getting out utensils for cooking. By the time we got our suppers, was late in the night, and by four in the morning we had everything in the boats again.
The story of the camp, giving its origin to the name Camp Cove, sounds realistic and is taken to imply the first landfall by Europeans within Port Jackson. With arrival in the dark and departure before dawn, there would have been no opportunity to explore the hinterland. As Camp Cove had a freshwater spring behind the beach, it proved a suitable place for a night’s camp. The next day, Nagle fished while Phillip and his party went ashore at what was to be named Sydney Cove.
Reference:
Dictionary of Sydney
theINFP 