I’m baaaack…

…Well, at least for a short post.

It’s hard to believe that it’s been 10 or so weeks since I last posted on my blog. It has been a very busy term and I’ve had a lot of other things happening in my life. It’s the first day of the term 3 holidays and I had to head into work today. Tomorrow I will be delivering photos to the Kidman Art Show, where I am entering three photographs in the “Through My Lens” section. I am back at work again on Wednesday; on Thursday I am going to a bookshop and on the weekend I’m going camping.

I have a lot less planned for next week but I want to try to take it easy in preparation for term 4, which is sure to be a busy, busy term.

I have a new camera – a Canon 1000D SLR, which I am still learning to use. It is a big step up from the previous cameras that I’ve had but I have managed to get a few good shots already, including the banner picture above.

Here are some photos from the last ten weeks:

Sunday Update

I have finally finished uploading all of my photos from my visit to Tasmania – here is the link to the slideshow. Looking back, it was a wonderful holiday – very scenic. I think we picked the right time of year to go, as the autumn colours were stunning. I’d like to go back again around the same time next year for a longer period of time. The only think I found really disappointing was the lack of snow – apparently it snowed two days after we left!

Last weekend I went to the Adelaide Zoo, using my membership card for the first time. The weather was nice and the animals were fairly active. I managed to see the giraffes being fed and the Macaw free-flight. I also went to the new Envirodome – they have smaller creatures in there and my favourites were the chameleons and the sea horses.  The new panda exhibit was looking great. I went around the zoo twice and then afterward went shopping in the city. It’s so nice having the zoo so close to the CBD – I had an excellent day. I am thinking of repeating it next weekend, weather permitting. I also want to go to the SA Museum and the Art Gallery – I used to visit often when I was a uni student and now I haven’t been there in a long time.

Work has been very busy – we are coming to the end of another assessment period. Exams are next week, followed by report writing. 3 weeks to go until the holidays!

I have been doing a little bit of writing. I have managed to put a couple of my stories onto my phone so I can read it like an ebook – I also have the ability to write in a notebook on my phone, which I can then email. So, whenever I have a bit of spare time, I am now either reading or working on either SR, CR or J. This will also come in handy when NaNoWriMo comes around this year!

Tasmania – Day 6

Tasmania – Day 5

Today was our first full day in Hobart. We left our accommodation and drove to the Cadbury Factory but decided that we didn’t want to pay the $7.50 entrance fee just to enter the shop (we didn’t have time to stick around and do the tour). After that we drove to Mount Wellington, which was shrouded in cloud. We drove to the summit and spent a few minutes up in the clouds – very cold and wet… we didn’t see much, either  

Our next stop was the Cascade Brewery and I spent a while walking around the gardens. Some of the flowers they had were quite beautiful – the honey bees here are huge and much fatter than the ones at home. I want to plant some of the plants in my garden at home… the colours were stunning.

After the Brewery, we drove to Hobart and into the commercial district for lunch at Constitution Dock. I don’t eat fish, so I ate plain potato wedges with sour cream. We separated after that; Dad went to take photos, my sister went shopping on her own and mum and I went together.

Tonight we went out to dinner at the Casino. We went to a buffet restaurant. It was nice – very small but the food was lovely and the service was quite good too. Now we are back watching the football – go Port Adelaide!

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Tasmania – Day 4

Today we drove from Cradle Mountain to Hobart. We left early and drove via Deloraine, taking the scenic trip. It was a nice drive although it seemed quite long – that said, we stopped a couple of times for morning tea and lunch. The sunshine of the previous days had changed to overcast skies – which meant wispy clouds  were drifting across the mountains and most of the water we saw was grey to reflect the sky. We also stopped at Liffey Falls which was quite spectacular – the photos are below. We have three days in Hobart now – still planning exactly what we are going to do but shopping is definitely on the agenda

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Tasmania – Day 3

Today we travelled from Strahan to Cradle Mountain. The drive was lovely. We stopped at Montezuma Falls but didn’t walk the full 3 hour walk as it was already lunchtime – instead we found the running water as shown in the pictures below. After the waterfall we stopped for lunch, arriving at Cradle Mountain about half-past two. After we had checked into our accommodation, we drove to the transit terminal and took the shuttle to Dove Lake.

We took the path to the boatshed first and took some photos, then we backtracked and walked to Glacier Rock (the large rock in the second to last photograph). After we’d finished, it was almost 5, so we caught the bus back to the terminal. We went to the tavern for dinner (I had schnitzel and it was delicious) and then came back to our cabin.

Tomorrow we drive back to Hobart… looking forward to taking some photographs on the way.

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Reflection, Strahan

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Boat, Strahan

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Cape Sorell Lighthouse

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Rushing Water near Montezuma Falls

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Toadstool

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Cradle Mountain National Park

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Cradle Mountain National Park

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Boatshed, Dove Lake

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Dove Lake, Cradle Mountain

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Glacier Rock, Dove Lake, Cradle Mountain National Park

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Dove Lake & Cradle Mountain

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Clouds over Cradle Mountain

Tasmania – Day 2: Strahan Boat Cruise

Today my family and I went on a boat cruise from Strahan to the Gordon River and return. We drove down to the docks and left the car, before boarding the boat about 8:30am. The water was very still and calm… perfect for photos.

After leaving the dock, we cruised toward Hell’s Gate and out to the ocean. On the way, I went out onto the deck of the boat – it was very cold out there and I quickly went back in to put my denim jacket and some gloves on. The next photo is one of the lighthouses just before Hell’s Gate.

We sailed out past the breakwater to the sea (the water was smooth enough for the boat to bob, but not so much I felt seasick or anything), we then turned and went back toward Sarah Island, where we disembarked for an island to take a tour. I originally wasn’t keen on doing the tour but I ended up enjoying it.

After Sarah Island, we turned toward the Gordon River. Lunch was served on the way there – it was a buffet and I ate mainly salad, with some cheese and a bread roll. Following lunch, we stopped for a heritage walk through the temperate rainforest beside the river. The walk was quite interesting – there was a fallen Huon Pine that is older than Christianity… I believe the guide said it around was well over 2000 years old.

Back in Strahan we disembarked at the sawmill and had a look around there. I was looking for some stand out, interesting shots and I loved the macro shot that this rope provided. The photo of the boat is the one we took today, the Eagle. The last photo in the next set is a large Huon Pine log that is 800-900 years old and was felled in the Dennison River in the early 1960’s.

After we had finished in Strahan, we drove to Ocean Beach for a walk along the sand, It was lovely there, with ocean spray and mist covering the beach – very magical. When I peered through the spray, I saw a lighthouse. It was close to sunset… what an end to a beautiful day.

Tomorrow we drive to Cradle Mountain.

Tasmania – Day 1

Arrived in Tassie safely this morning about 11:20am. After renting our car, we hopped inside for the drive to the West Coast. The scenery is spectacular, although because we were in a hurry (and because there weren’t as many places to park in) we didn’t stop very much – mainly just to grab lunch and then afternoon tea. In leaving Hobart and journeying to our first destination, we saw coast, grasslands and rivers, forest, mountains and an area that is mined. We arrived after dark and had dinner. Tomorrow, we’re going on a cruise.

Sunday

I had a most industrious day today. In addition to continuing on with my quest to import my entire CD collection into iTunes,  I made some designs for my Cafepress store, uploaded some photos to Flickr (see post below), cleaned my room, worked on my novel and watched a newborn foal in his first hours of life.

Annie’s new colt – Saddlebrook Appaloosas – Live Webcam

More Photos Here

Photos

I am spending the Easter weekend cleaning, importing music to iTunes and eating chocolate. I went outside yesterday and took some photos in the garden – the first is one of our Chinese Lantern plants, the second is my mum’s water pump and the last is my herb garden, which is situated in an old bathtub. I used my new tripod to take the photos and I am very happy with the results so far. I have also done a little bit of writing although most of my time has been spent reading through to catch up to where I am in the editing process.

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