Elsie

Elsie is a month old and getting used to her world (and the hot summer days!)

With Grandma Chris 

With her Oma Arlene

Travelling in style

Animals I Have Met

Box Turtle (USA)

Prada the Designer Dog who likes to walk in the Australian Bush

Yellow Garden Spider (USA)

Maryland Blue Crab

Kookaburra (Australasian Kingfisher)

Ancient and Historical Sites

Every month there is a guided walk around my suburb. January's walk was along the Maribrynong River a few miles from where I live. Evidence of human settlement over 10,000 years ago was found here. The river is salt water (tidal) below where we crossed it but above is fresh and in autumn was full of eels, swimming down to the ocean to spawn. Above the valley was flat grassland perfect for grazing sheep so in the 1830s when Europeans discovered the area they bartered it from the natives along with land the city of Melbourne is on today. The price of wool in England was high enough at the time to make a lot of people rich.

 Crossing the river at Soloman's Ford

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School for the Arts

Art students can't learn anything in ordinary buildings, can they? 

Better come to Melbourne and study here!

Old & Young!

Today Jenny, Josh, Elsie and I went to visit our friend Lola, who is 99 1/2 years old! She is quite lucid and was so happy to be introduced to Elsie. How cute to see them together - almost 100 years apart in age!

Lola at 95 years old (with me)

Elsie holding on to her mom

Organ Pipes National Park

Went on a lovely morning walk with my friend/neighbour Phong and her friend Darv in the Organ Pipes National Park just outside of Melbourne. The "pipes" are formed from basalt, lava that has cooled and cracked in this distinctive shape. The park is in a rain shadow, so everything looks a bit dry.

My new Olympus camera has a "Pop Art" setting and this is the result!

Colourful Melbourne

There's a lot of colour in Melbourne. Sometimes you have to look up!