15k's of bush heaven

I found my new running trail. 

15 kilometers of pure bush in John Forrest Nation Park. Which also happens to have a pub. And lots of kangaroos.

 Only two minor problems to overcome: 1) running again (to be solved shortly) 2) getting up to the hill without a car. But they are worth overcoming to go back to the Saturday mornings at Harbison or Sesquicentennial or an early morning or sunset jog at Bluff Point, although I doubt I would encounter many freezing, rainy, miserable trails (like so many racers did this past weekend).

 

But even under Australia's searing summer sun the red gums and jarrah trees created a sandy path dappled with shade.

And as opposed to the majority of Australia, there are lots of trees to look at.

Even trees and grass tree stalks with kinks in them.

Plus there's less rocks and roots than the trip hazard of the single track out at Harbison.

Just watch out for the gum nuts (honky nuts) on the trail.

Nothing Little About It

I have been living in the shadows of this picture since Australia day.

Something about giant puppets roaming the city kinda disturbed me. Not to mention it looks like she has headgear. But if you were anywhere within 500 km of Perth this weekend, you couldn't avoid hearing about it. The city was a buzz with The Giants.

No one really knew what was going to happen. There were lots of warnings weeks in advance about road closures in the CBD for the three day event. I got a brochure in my mailbox showing the routes of the giants. I read the "story" and still wasn't sure what would happen. I had quite low expectations and no plans to purposely go see it.

But when I found out the Little Girl Giant was sleeping in Langley Park, I had to go outside and see.

Then we went to go see her napping in Wellington Square...

And then on the way home from picking up some groceries, I ran into the parade and I was mesmerized. I don't know if it was the music, or the skill behind her puppeteers, or the sheer crowds in her shadow. Or just a little awe and magic in Perth.

 

Watch this!

The story was about a Little Girl (6m) who was looking for a Diver (11m) and they finally met on the third day for a ANZAC tribute

 She even had a morning shower

I couldn't really avoid the spectacle as her boat sailed by my balcony, she paraded down the street past the flowers outside my window, danced in the sky, and she slept outside my window with her breathing to be heard throughout the night.

  

The crowds continued to grow over the three days. And it seemed like we had only began to meet these new friends, before they were sailing off down the Swan River.

And I couldn't help but feel like I said goodbye to a new, little, friend.

Until next time...

The Best Kind of Time Machine

 There's nothing like a trip down memory lane, than over 50 years of hit music.

And as part of this year's Fringe Festival (see blog from last year), we jumped in the Hot Dub Time Machine for a journey with DJ Tom from 1954 to 2015 on a rooftop overlooking this beautiful city. 

And oh what a ride...

 

Countdown!

Best year ever! Yes that's 1986...

 

 

 And because Oasis is such a group sing-a-long...

I knew all the songs until we got to the 2000's. Apparently the only good music until then was American. But they threw in 5 or 6 songs by Rudimental, Crowded House (who I am learning to appreciate), Robbie Williams and SClub7, hich were so much bigger in Australia and the UK than the U.S of A.

But then, I was back in my zone...

One word. Beyonce!

Oh and T Swift, because you can't REALLY hate her. She's tall :)

I almost want to apologize for not remembering the songs, taking a video, or paying more attention. But on the rare occasion music on a Friday night in Perth isn't doof doof and can take me back to homecoming in Connecticut, basements in Maryland, and the Skyline in South Carolina, you know I will be out on that dance floor breaking a summer starlit sweat.

A Bit of the Kiwi City Life

You may not have heard of Wanganui, Te Anu or Omaru, but if you've heard of New Zealand at all, you probably have heard of at least one of it's biggest cities: Auckland, Wellington, and Christchurch.

Auckland: population 1,413,700

A waterside hip and trendy city in the north of the north.

Wellington: population 393,600

At the southern end of the north island, this is New Zealand's capital and gateway to the south island. It's also full of A LOT of one way roads.

Christchurch: population 375,200

Christchurch is just a small little city, that used to be known for it's beautiful Cathedral and coastal French suburb. Then 2011 came. The February 22nd earthquake destroyed the city and took 185 lives. It was shocking how almost four years later, the buildings still lay in rubble. Homeowners are still wrestling with insurance companies to get structural damage repaired. The center of the city is a construction zone.

The once iconic Christchurch Cathedral

 Some of the building facades were being held up with stacked shipping containers.

The front of an old building... 

 

The other side of the wall...

But the city maintains their hope.

Building a temporary cardboard cathedral...

And setting up a shopping center of shipping containers...

And bringing a community garden to life

All the while remembering those whose lives were lost...