Australia Day 2012

What is Australia Day?
Once again it is the 26th of January - Australia Day ~ our national day. It is a day when we celebrate our country as a nation and join in festivities and ceremonies. It is a day when people get together and have a barbie, wear some Australiana and bend the elbow.

 

Above: The Australian flag and some of our native wildlife.

From the top left-hand corner going in a clock wise direction:
The Kookaburra, Bandicoot, Platypus, Koala, Leadbeater's Possum, Echidna, Wombat, Fairy Penguins, Kangaroo.

Why the 26th January?
It was the date of arrival of the "First Fleet" ~ In 1788, Captain Arthur Phillip landed in Sydney Cove and so began settlement. The First Fleet consisted of eleven ships - The Alexander, The Borrowdale, The Charlotte, The Fishburn The Friendship The Golden Grove, The Lady Penrhyn, The Prince of Wales, The Scarborough, H.M.S. Sirius and H.M.S. Supply.

Above: The Founding of Australia. By Capt. Arthur Phillip R.N. Sydney Cove, Jan. 26th 1788
Painted in 1937 by Algernon Talmage (1871 – 1939)


We Are Australian







Dream-Time: According to Aboriginal belief, long, long ago in the far distant past; the great spirit ancestors of the Dreamtime created everything living ~ the people, the birds, the animals and fish, the rivers and waterholes, hills and rocks. The Dreamtime is the story of creation.

Convict: A person found guilty of something - often as little as stealing a loaf of bread or a political prisoner sent to transportation to Australia.
Digger: Aussie soldier
Bushy: Person who lives in the outback, the "bush"
Battler: Someone who works hard and barely scrapes by and holds their head up high in the face of adversity
Albert Namatjira: Famous Aboriginal painter of Australian landscapes
Clancy: Drover immortalised in the Banjo's poem "Clancy of the Overflow"
Ned Kelly: Famous Australian bushranger
Matilda: Name given to a bushman's "swag"
The Rock: Ayers Rock/Uluru




THIS LAND OF OURS
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
This land of ours so red and vast
Doth stretch before the eye
And show unto me all the beauty
Of a far and distant past.

Of gums so tall
And eucalypt
They tower o'er me
And sweet their fragrance to inhale
Their beauty for to see.

Oh yes, this precious land of mine
With all your beauty free
And listen to the sweet carol
Of birds in fancy free.

My country you are more to me
Than earth of fire or sky
For I shall love this land of ours
Until the day I die.

 

Today's quote: Love your country. Your country is the land where your parents sleep, where is spoken that language in which the chosen of your heart, blushing, whispered the first word of love; it is the home that God has given you that by striving to perfect yourselves therein you may prepare to ascend to him. ~Giuseppe Mazzini

Theme Day: Photo of the year 2011

 

Above: The Red Teapot
Photo taken December 2011 in Queen's Park. I chose this photo not because it is the best but because it represents the past (old year) and the present (new year).

The Cenotaph represents the past while the red teapot children's ride signifies the present.

To see photos of 2011 from other bloggers Click here to view thumbnails for all participants

Today's quote: We will open the book. Its pages are blank. We are going to put words on them ourselves. The book is called Opportunity and its first chapter is New Year's Day ~ Edith Lovejoy Pierce

La Guillotine électriques...?

Above: La Guillotine
This pylon does look a little like the (in)famous La Guillotine of the French Revolution only with a modern twist - powered by electricity!

Did you know
The guillotine was still in use in the 1930's! The last public guillotining was of Eugen Weidmann, who was convicted of six murders. He was beheaded on 17 June 1939, outside the prison Saint-Pierre rue Georges Clemenceau 5 at Versailles.

Click here to see other skies around the world


Today's quote: There is only one cure for gray hair. It was invented by a Frenchman. It is called the guillotine ~ P. G. Wodehouse.

The Statue

 
Aphrodite washes her hair

Whereabouts is this - Greece? Italy? You could be forgiven for thinking you were somewhere in the warmth of the Mediterranean, with the warm hues and the statue of the goddess with the shapely limbs as she washes her hair..But no, you are not in the Mediterranean, for this photo was taken right here in Melbourne.

This classical artwork is the centrepiece of Milano serviced apartments in the heart of Melbourne's CBD in Franklin Street.

Today's quote: For every beauty there is an eye somewhere to see it. For every truth there is an ear somewhere to hear it. For every love there is a heart somewhere to receive it ~ Ivan Panin

The Wire

The lines of modern living

Today's quote: The difference between utility and utility plus beauty is the difference between telephone wires and the spider web ~ Edwin Way Teale

Federation Square - Urban Garden Amphitheatre

Above: Urban Garden Amphitheatre

A sign reads,
"Hi there, you're in the Urban Garden Amphitheatre.
Enjoy it. It's yours.
Stretch out on the grass.
Or pull up a seat."

Federation Square’s most intimate outdoor space - The Amphitheatre. Encircled by zinc-clad walls with views across Flinders Street onto St Paul’s Cathedral, this unique venue lets you get close to the action at events like the Comedy Festival, the Melbourne International Arts Festival and festivals celebrating the colourful and vibrant culture of those who have come from other lands.

Walking down the steps is the "Urban Garden"

Today's quote: No two gardens are the same, no two days are the same in one garden ~ Hugh Johnson

Theme Day - Under Construction

Above: Redevelopment Project
Virtually everything here was destroyed or damaged when the Black Saturday bushfires of 7 February 2009 swept through and hit the falls reserve with such ferocity. The Steavenson Falls Recovery and Redevelopment estimated to cost around $3 million, has started. It is a massive job, and the only salvageable piece of infrastructure was the hydro-electric generator that powered the lighting system that lit up the falls at night. Before the fires, the reserve attracted up to 150,000 visitors a year and was a major regional tourist attraction.

Hazardous trees impacted by the fire are being removed as part of the recovery program - many of the trees are dead but could remain standing for several years as they decompose and eventually fall and if left unmanaged, the trees and limbs present a substantial risk to visitors and workers within the reserve.

Stage one of the redevelopment included reconstruction of Falls Road to allow visitor access, a new car park and bus parking area, a new viewing platform at the base of the falls, as well as significant underground drainage and service infrastructure.

The next stage of works will involve construction of toilet and visitor facilities, walking tracks and a spectacular viewing platform of the falls and is expected to be completed by winter 2011.

Above: Steavenson Falls Before Black Saturday
I took this photo a few short weeks before the fire swept through. Note the metal object on a pole on the left hand side in the foreground.

Above: Steavenson Falls After Black Saturday
This photo was taken November, 2010 - 21 months after the fire in almost the same place as the previous photo. The Falls were re-opened to the public eight weeks earlier.

Theme Day: Click here to view thumbnails for all participants


Today's quote: Nature often holds up a mirror so we can see more clearly the ongoing processes of growth, renewal, and transformation in our lives.