Last Chance & New Opportunities

I think summer finally came to Christchurch this weekend - we've had a spectacular couple of days. It's been far too nice to waste sitting & working inside for the most part, but that is what I've been doing.

What I wanted to be doing was something entirely different. This was the last weekend to take the chance to walk through the red-zone of the central city & view our Cathedral before it is demolished.Yes, the Anglican church has decided that the Cathedral that gives this city it's name isn't worth saving. I'm not sure what to think about that - aside from the fact that we may have to change our city's name to Christchurchless.

I really felt the need to say goodbye - but had no one to go with & it's not particularly the sort of thing I wanted to do alone. 

Over the last year I have questioned why I feel such strong ties to so many of the buildings in the city, why the CBD as a whole seems such a part of me when really it is, after all, just buildings....inanimate objects that can be replaced. 

I suspect that it has something to do with the fact that 51 years ago there was a 19 year old student working towards her art degree whose city this was too. Many of the same buildings were there in the early 1960's, the structure & the layout have changed not at all. Subconsciously I have always been aware that many of the paths walked by me, would have been walked by my birth mother before me. The city itself is a connection of sorts.

On the other hand I have absolutely no idea at all why I have always been drawn to the many Churches, aside from the fact that I have always liked the Gothic revival architecture so many of them offered & often quietly wished that I was confidant enough to attempt them in pen & ink.

With all that said there are Churches whose architecture I can to look forward too exploring in Brisbane. Here are a few I spotted in the CBD there in December.

This one took the prize for flamboyance - from the side it was more like a castle from a fairytale.

 Sometimes you really have to look to find them among all the tall buildings!

 At other times you find one in an unexpected open space (with a big glassy backdrop!)

This is the first church & in the background is the Soleil Tower, 243 meters high. It's the tallest building in Brisbane & the second tallest in Australia & was completed earlier this year.

This is a zoom in of the Brisbane CBD from the Mount Coot-Tha lookout, you can see the Soleil Tower on the left....just to put it all into perspective.

It has to be said that I'd far rather be viewing the tower from the top of a  mountain (albeit a small one), than viewing the mountain from the top of the tower....

Anzac Square - Brisbane

I think of all the green spaces within the Brisbane Central Business District the one that captivated me most was probably Anzac Square. My first glimpse of it was caught on our way to catch the train home after our first trip into the CBD & Botanic Gardens.

A  pretty green space viewed from a balcony on the way to the train station - I didn't realise the name or significance of the area. The next day we ventured into the city again  & approached the space from another direction. Reading the signage I realised that it was an area dedicated as a memorial to the Queensland men and women who participated in overseas armed service, named in honour of the Australian and New Zealand Army Corps.

The Greek Classic Revival columned structure in the middle distance is "The Shrine of Remembrance", the 18 columns of the Shrine represent the year of peace after World War 1 - 1918. The steps leading up to it also represent the year 1918 with 19 stairs in the first row and 18 stairs in the second row.

Tucked away behind the wall & under the Shrine of Remembrance is the The Shrine of  Memories. While the external wall is dedicated to those who served in WWI, the inside of the shrine is dedicated to those who served in WWII. Walking through here one can't help notice the many lives sacrificed to protect a commonwealth country.

Within The Shrine of Memories is the Eternal Flame of Remembrance held within this Bronze Urn. Carved in the coping around the top of the shrine are the battles that those from the ANZAC units figured predominantly in -  Cocos Islands, Romani, Jerusalem, Damascus, Pozieres, Bullecourt, Messines, Ypres, Amiens, Villers-Bretonneaux, Mont St Quentin & Hindenburg Line.

Building started in 1928, taking two years to complete before it was dedicated on Armistice Day in 1930. I couldn't help but feel that this city has grown around it - yet the square was not out of place.

The structure itself is made of beautiful  Helidon sandstone with stairs in Queensland granite, mellow, gentle & extremely peaceful - quite the opposite to what it is memorialising  I imagine that a Dawn Service in this setting would be quite something.

Everything about this area has been so thoughtfully planned & has such significance that I couldn't help but wish that both of my boys were there with me to see it - so this post is for them.

 

ANZAC Square - Circa late 1920's.

Antonias Garden

There is something about gardening & gardeners that makes it amazingly simple to connect with others similarly inclined no matter where you go in the world.Gardeners are also chatty people by nature, so no special arrangements need to be made to meet up - it just happens somehow. I guess one could say that depends on where you hang out, plant nurseries, garden centres & botanical gardens are, of course, going to increase the chance of you meeting someone of a similar mind. Complete strangers connecting on a more than passing level. 

In dropping the mailleman to the train station in the early hours of Brisbane's balmy mornings I had noticed a garden that stood out in my still half asleep state. Admittedly it took a while to register (probably about 4 trips past it in all truth) that here was a real garden - one planted with an eye to design & lavished with care & attention. 

Instead of the usual few tropical trees & a bit of struggling lawn this garden looked full & lush with a house somehow blending seamlessly into it. I started to look closer each time I passed in the car & finally decided to take a walk, camera in hand, to explore some of the plants that bordered the street more closely. 

 When it comes to private gardens & peoples property I am a somewhat reluctant photographer not wanting to intrude on their privacy so I stuck to a shot from along the street & a couple of close ups of individual flowers.

 

 Caesalpinia pulcherrima - Pride of Barbados ( a member of the pea family!)

While I was busy trying to capture the true beauty & deep almost indigo blue of the above flower I became aware of someone watching me. I look up to see a figure at an open upstairs window, so I waved out & asked in hand motions if it was ok to take some photo's. I took the smile & nod I got in response as a "yes".

Shortly afterwards I met Antonia, the lovely owner of this garden & I was invited in to photograph to my hearts content. I had loads of  questions about specific plants so I asked them & I guess that Antoinia realized I was not merely  interested in taking a few good photos, but rather genuinely interested in plants & gardening. I was invited to stay for a coffee which Antoina suggested she'd make while I explored & photographed....& explore I did. 

A sloping section interlaced with rock edged gravel & grass pathways & steps it was a wonderland to me. So much so that I didn't take the usual amount of photos as I was so absorbed in the magic, the beauty...the utter peacefulness of it all.

I knew that there were many critters & a resident snake or two inhabiting the garden so I trod carefully for fear of disturbing them. Butterflies were busy fluttering around in the cool lush tropical rainforest area that Antonia had lovingly recreated out the back of her property.

It turns out that it has taken Antonia 20 years to turn what was a bare sloping section than ran with small rivers of water into what you see here. Quite obviously she is woman of determination, knowledge &  respect for the indigenous flora & fauna of her adopted country.

She has planted thoughtfully, knowing what will grow in this hot climate carefully interspersing the abundance of vividly coloured plants with plants that display the greener/cooler palettes or bloom at different times to create a environment that looks as though it has just happened naturally.

Just the right amount of man made structures to add interest, & focal points but not overwhelm the plantings.

Meandering pathways that separate only to merge again later after leading you through to a new area, each of which in turn would make me stop & hold my breath for fear of disturbing the lush beauty that lay before me.

Later, sitting on Antonia's balcony, sipping coffee & chatting (it turned out that we had more in common than just plants, both sharing a love of reading with similar tastes in authors), overlooking the tranquility of the rainforest garden she commented "Why would I ever need to go on holiday when I get to wake up to this every morning?". Why indeed!!

The Big City

Brisbane Central Business District is beautiful. The approaches into it - meh, not so much, but the actual hub of business & city stores interspersed with parks & green areas is actually quite lovely.

That came as a surprise to me as it was pretty much contrary to everything I've been told. I'd been told that it was packed with commercial buildings & thronging with people....& it was, but it was also very much more. Then again I guess it depends what you are looking for ;)

Thankfully a like minded friend had also told me of the Botanic Gardens & my desire to visit them was enough that I was easily lured into the thronging mass of tall buildings & people that is the Brisbane CBD. 

Bordered on two sides by the Brisbane River the actual land area isn't that huge. What it lacks in space it certainly makes up for in height.

 If you need a breathing space away from those tall buildings the City Botanic Gardens is the right place to put everything into perspective.

 The gardens are also bordered by the Brisbane River & it was refreshing to note that the buildings on the other side were considerably shorter in stature.

The city itself is a mix of old & new buildings - some with interesting names.

Shops to suit all tastes (& wallets!!!) - except perhaps the maillemans since I didn't get a chance to go in this one. 

Interesting Bronze Sculptures

 King Edward Park - one of a number of wonderful green spaces right in the middle of the city.

Transport to suit all tastes - we stuck with the train ;)

All within the space you see in the middle of this photo taken from the Mount Coot-Tha  look out.

Life - it's for the Birds

Dance as if no one is watching

 Sing as if no one is listening

Live each day as if it were your last

I have some great photo's of my trip to Brisbane in December, some of which I have put on Facebook. It seems that now, with the timeline format, later additions to your albums don't appear on it when you upload them (either that or there is yet another bug with it) so I thought I'd post some of them here over the next few weeks.

Once again  the birds captivated me & held me spellbound. They are far more raucous than the birds we have here for sure but also a lot more colourful &, even in the wild, unafraid of humans. Of course not all of them are as bold & bright as the parrots but each & every one was inspirational in it's own way.

They certainly know how to have fun, living their wee bird lives to the fullest, that's for sure.

Always Take The Weather With You....

or not! This was one impressive experience - but all I can say is that I am pleased it wasn't me behind the steering wheel!

4.36pm: I've just said "wow would you look at that impressive sky, I wonder what that yellow glow is...."

4.37pm: I can't repeat what I had just said here - but down it came & I had my answer! The wipers couldn't keep up!

4.41pm: It started easing off & had stopped by the time we got home.

4.54pm: We turn into the street we were staying in.... I'd say that sky was worth a bit of rain.
Of course I would say that since I wasn't the one driving ;)

Noticed in Passing

I wonder if my passport is trying to tell me something. The date of the first time I ever visited Brisbane & the date of my departure this time are an exact match.

When we added two days onto our travel plans at the end to make up for the time lost by the flight cancellation on our departure date I didn't realise what time of year I had last visited Australia.
All I know is that I didn't want to leave either time....& 6 years between visits is far too long!!