Cascade

This sculpture in Adelaide's Botanic Gardens was created by Sergio Redegalli. It is made of glass sheets; 500 pieces are glued together to form a wave shape.

Amazon Waterlily Pavilion

One of the newer structures in Adelaide's Botanical Gardens is the Amazon Waterlily Pavilion.

Inside the 'glass house' are two very special exhibits growing in a large central pond; Victoria amazonica (Amazon Waterlily) and Nymphaea caerulea (Blue Nile waterlily). Other South American flora has been planted in beds surrounding the pond.

Spring is in the Air

Adelaide has just experienced its coldest August for decades; bring on spring! Some street trees are in blossom already; so colourful.

Back on my bike

Due to cold and inclement weather I have not done much cycling over the past couple of months and my waistline is telling the tale. This morning I made amends and rode up into the Adelaide foothills (about a 200m climb from home).

This is point where you get a reward for the effort; a great view and lots of downhill back home.
This is the start of Flinders Pass, a shared cycling/walking path that connects the suburb of Bellevue Heights to Flinders University.

ABC Wednesdays - F for Ferry

This is a ferry on the River Murray at Purnong; one of the 11 ferries on the South Australian section of the river. A ferry crossing only takes a few minutes, unlike those of yesteryear which took up to half an hour; they were hand operated. The first ferries across the river were privately owned and attracted fees, but now all are government owned and are free to use.

Another river crossing; at Lyrup. A group of friends and I used this ferry when we rode from Renmark to Berri a couple of years ago; a pleasant break from riding!

In addition to the ferries in South Australia, there are also 7 bridges that cross the river.

To find out more about ABC Wednesdays and see other participants' contributions go to the ABC Wednesdays' site or to see direct links to their own sites go here.

Coopers Alehouse

If you want to sample all of Coopers beers then Coopers Alehouse is the place to go; they have the whole range on tap.

The Alehouse is in the historic Earl of Aberdeen hotel, on Pultney Street in the City. Originally it was the site of the Devon Arms Hotel, built in 1850. It was rebuilt in 1880 and renamed.

Cloudy but fine

There have been quite a few days like this lately. We have had a little more than our average rain this month, but there has been lots of fine weather too; even clear and sunny days.

This sign is advertising one of Adelaide favourite beers; Coopers Pale Ale.

The beer is brewed using a traditional method, and then bottled and allowed to ferment for a second time resulting in a yeast sediment. Before drinking, the sediment is stirred through the beer by tipping or rolling the bottle; cloudy but fine!

2008 Variety Bash on show

The Variety Bash entrants are varied. There are male and female teams, and all chose a theme and dressed the part.

Here's a slide show of the cars I managed to photograph.



Awards are given in categories such as 

• Outright Winners – the team that epitomises the spirit of the Bash
• Best Fun Theme
• Best Presented Vehicle
• Ultimate Bribing and Cheating Award
• Highest Point Scorers – the team that scored the most brownie points for the week
• Mobile Workshop Hard Luck Award – the team that saw more of the mobile workshops and less of the Bash than anyone
• Stuffed Compass Award – the team that managed to be the most geographically displaced.

A lot of fun while doing something really worthwhile for the community!

2008 Variety Bash

Today saw the return to Adelaide of this year's bash vehicles, after an eight day tour in outback SA. Norwood Parade came alive just after 1 pm when the vehicles drove down the street. Family, friends and the general public were there to cheer them on for a job well done.

Variety, the children's charity, was formed in 1928 in Pittsburg, USA. Variety SA, which started in 1983, has distributed in excess of 27 million dollars to assist children in need.

This year the bash raised in excess of two million dollars. Car 222 (photographed) was last year's biggest fund-raiser.

You can read more about Variety SA on their website.

Narnu Farm - old cart

My late father told me of the days he and his brothers and sisters travelled to school by horse and cart; no doubt is was something like this.

Narnu Farm - old plough

This is one of several old items on display around the farm; a great reminder of our past farming heritage.

ABC Wednesdays - E for Etchells

The Etchells is an international class racing yacht; designed in USA in 1966 by Skip Etchells. The 22 foot (6.7m) now has fleets in 11 countries around the world. Last year's world championship was held at Cowes (the Isle of Wight) and this year it was in Chicago.

I took these photos at Glenelg in the Holdfast Shores Marina during the 2004 Australian Championships. Australia has 16 Etchells fleets; you can read more about them here.

I only thought of writing about Etchells for this week's ABC Wednesdays after seeing an Etchells on Alice's site (Arrandon, France)

To find out more about ABC Wednesdays and see other participants' contributions go to the ABC Wednesdays' site or to see direct links to their own sites go here.

Narnu Farm animals

Each day guests staying at Narnu Farm are invited to assist the staff when they feed the animals; a popular activity, especially with the children.

Horsing around

One of the activities available at Narnu Farm is horse riding. Some of our members went on a leisurely trail ride. For many it was the first time on a horse, but on hearing their comments on their return I am sure it will not be their last. Why was I not riding? .... Someone had to take the photos!

Narnu Farm

My home for the weekend was Narnu Farm. Each year our community band has a 'band camp'. We visit a rural area and have a workshop and combined concert with a local band.

Narnu Farm is a camp site mainly used by school groups, but equally suited to a group like ours.

This is the main communal room, a place to eat and socialise. Off to the left is a well equipped kitchen and an activity room; table tennis and a large screen projector. To the right is the accommodation; dormitory rooms with double bunk beds.

Low water

This weekend I am staying on Hindmarsh Island, near Goolwa; about 80 km south of Adelaide. This area is severely suffering from the effects of Australia's recent drought years. The area pictured would normally have a water level about a metre higher. The private jetty at the left of gives a real indication of the problem.

Mobile Olympics

How cool is this; live Olympics TV on your mobile phone. Not that I am really obsessed with watching the Olympics, but just for the fun of it I subscribed; A$9.95 for the whole time the Olympics is on.

Beijing 2008 in Adelaide

What a pity is is so cold here at present. The City Council has erected a large screen at Elder Park to show the Olympics. I went to have a look today and there were only a handful of people taking advantage of the facility.

We have two free to air channels telecasting the Olympics for most of the day and the evening. Most people can view the event in much more pleasant conditions; at home in a heated room!

ABC Wednesdays - D for dredge

This is a familiar sight at the entrance to the Holdfast Shores Marina at Glenelg; it seems that most times I go sailing it is hard at work keeping the channel clear.

To navigate past the dredge one should know that you pass on the side displaying black diamonds, but for those mariners who don't know all the rules they have a sign that says "PASS THIS SIDE".

To find out more about ABC Wednesdays and see other participants' contributions go to the ABC Wednesdays' site or to see direct links to their own sites go here.

Another letterbox

I have seen several of these letterboxes both in the suburbs and in the country; I photographed this one in Kapunda. The lad depositing the letter is not our typical postman though.

Aussie letterbox

Since I started this blog I have spotted many different things. This koala letterbox is not a typical Aussie letterbox; most people have rather more traditional ones.

Pilots of the future

Another of the activities at "Science Alive" was a computer flight simulator. The stand was run by the University of South Australia (Unisa) which offers a degree in civil aviation.

Science Alive

"Science Alive", a free science expo which offered hands on activities, was held this weekend at Adelaide's showgrounds. One of the special shows was a wildlife presentation by a local couple from Remabi Park. Children in the audience were given an opportunity to be directly involved. This young lass seems to be enjoying the experience!

Rainbow

We have had some gloomy weather of late, but some days there are times like this when the sun comes out to paint pretty pictures in the sky.

Lie of the Land

These stone structures are a few of the 25 which can be seen adjacent to Sir Donald Bradman drive just west of the City. 'Lie of the Land' was created in 2004 by Aleks Danko and Jude Walton and was inspired by a drawing showing Indigenous Australians camped in the parklands when Adelaide was first settled by Europeans.

ABC Wednesdays - C for cricket.

Last week in response to my post on Bradman, I was asked to explain the game of cricket. So here goes....

In the centre of a cricket field is a pitch, 22 yards (20.12m) long. At each end of the pitch is a set of wickets. The object for the bowler is to hit the stumps and the batter tries to prevent this by blocking the ball or better still hitting it far enough as to allow him to run to the other end of the pitch to score a run. The bowler does not throw the ball; the bowling action requires a bent arm.

Fielders try to catch the ball on the full resulting in the batter being caught out. Alternatively they field the ball and throw it back towards the pitch and hit the wickets before the runner reaches the batting crease - a line drawn across the pitch 4 feet (1.22m) from the wickets.

There are many variations on the game; a test match is played for up to 5 days. International One Day matches continue until all batters are out or all balls are bowled; 50 overs of 6 balls. School students play at lunch time until the siren sounds!

Cricket is mainly played in summer months, so I have posted a photo of a game of beach cricket that I took last January.

To find out more about ABC Wednesdays and see other participants' contributions go to the ABC Wednesdays' site.

Strathalbyn Bands Festival

Strathalbyn is a country town in the Adelaide Hills, about 60 km from Adelaide and each year they host a bands' festival. The event runs over two Sundays, attracting about 10 bands each day. Last Sunday I performed as a member of the Henley and Grange Concert Band.

Pictured is the City of Holdfast Bay Concert Band, another of our Adelaide community bands.

The Falie

Here is another shot of the Falie; see my original post here.

Mary MacKillop Bridge

This rail bridge, opened in May this year, is named after Sister Mary MacKillop who founded the Sisters of St Joseph at Penola in 1866. In 1867 she established a school adjacent to the church in Dale Street, Port Adelaide.

She is acknowledged for her commitment to the welfare and education of the disadvantaged and is the first Australian to have been made a saint within the Roman Catholic Church.

Port River Expressway Bridges

A photo of the Diver Derrick Bridge with the Mary MacKillop Bridge (the rail bridge) in the background.

The bridge has a height clearance of 8.65m at high tide, and the channel width is 30m.

In the closed position the river cruise operators will be able to pass through and in the open position a a vessel like a naval frigate will have access. Even modest sized yachts like my Roberts 25 will need to have the bridge open for them.

Port River Expressway Bridges Opening

Today was the official opening of a new bridge at Port Adelaide. In the afternoon the public were allowed the walk across the bridge, and at 4 pm the bridge opened to allow a large yacht to pass through.

As you can see in the photo there are in fact two bridges; the other one is a rail bridge.

The road bridge which cost 178 million dollars is named after a Port Adelaide World War II hero Tom "Diver" Derrick VC, who swam in the Port River.

People in attendance on the day were handed an A4 sized poster as a memento.