I have vague memories in my first year of primary school of our headmaster, Mr Godley, explaining whether ‘God Save the Queen’ still was Australia’s national anthem. For a while, it wasn’t clear what was. When Australia won gold medals at the Montreal Olympics, they played ‘Waltzing Matilda’, only they didn’t, because Australia didn’t win…
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May
I’ve previously bemoaned about the difficulties of finding printable material about San Francisco in a family-friendly blog. But who doesn’t like inflatable dragons? I found one in a shop on Castro Street. As for some of the other shops…
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May
There are some specky (is that a word?) sights in the far north of Western Australia, but what resonates more for me is the calm, quiet openness. These photos were taken over 12 years ago. I don’t remember much about the specific circumstances, but the feeling of peace is still there.
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May
In 2004, I did a 12-day bus tour of the Kimberley. Half way through, we had a free day, so I hired a car, driving to Wyndham in the morning and Lake Argyle in the afternoon. The turn-off to Lake Argyle was only seven kilometres from WA’s border with the Northern Territory. I’d never been…
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Apr
Purmamarca, in the northwest of Argentina, reminded me of Cuzco, Peru. Both in the South American Andes, both near 4,000 metre peaks (and then some), both around some specky scenery. But in Purmamarca, even as I walked around the market, no-one hassled me. In Cuzco, a walk down the main streets and I was always…
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Apr
I had planned to see all the movies at the 2017 Spanish Film Festival, but sadly, I think I’ll only be able it to about 35. It starts in Perth on 27 April at Cinema Paradiso, and is also on in other Australian cities. Opening night features Kiki, Love to Love, starring and directed by Paco…
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Apr
I discovered this fact at the Western Plains Zoo in Dubbo, when I went there in the mid-nineties. I was working in Sydney at the time, but I had opportunities practically every month to visit somewhere in regional New South Wales. I don’t think everyone liked doing that, but I always found something fun about…
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Apr
