Year: 2015

When I moved to Delhi and our first Christmas came around I remember asking a lot of people where I could get a tree from and no one really knew. There were plenty of artificial trees but I have never had one and somehow I was not quite ready to make the switch. I dont…

Our lives can be as broad or as narrow as we chose them to be. Today we have our street party but it is raining so will it still go ahead ? Th rain however is welcome, for the garden and for the farmers in the Queensland hinterland who have been suffering the terrible drought…

December 1st is the official start to summer but also the time when storms become more frequent in Queensland. There are posters and advertisements constantly warning people of the dangers and how best to protect themselves and their homes. There was a big storm on Sunday just as we were heading out – lashing rain…

Its hilly and undulating, precipitous and vertiginous but so pretty and perfect you would be excused not to relate what you see to any of the awful penal history of the island.  It boasts one of the finest churches anywhere, St Barnabas Chapel with stained glass windows by William Morris. It is part of the…

Touch tardy with my postings ? Yes, guilty as charged but I have been developing a deep and lasting relationship with a variety of Australian Tradesmen, “Tradies” for short, who are busy preparing my home for the “relies” – read extended family, who are about to descend on us for a real hot Aussie Xmas.…

Australia has some creatures which are unlike ones we have encountered – one such is the Echidna, also known as the spiny ant eater or to give it its proper name tachyglossus aculeatus – its lucky I speak Greek – this means a spiny quick tongue which is an accurate desctription of it. It looks…

Think of a long corridor and rooms leading off from the centre and you will have a good idea what Carnarvon Gorge is like. Every room – every separate part was a revelation in itself with history, art work, fauna and flora and above all the weathering of years. I spoke about the original and…

The Gorge – which I showed you from above on Boolimba Bluff,  is what we explored on foot. Thomas Mitchell named it Carnarvon after his welsh homeland. The Gorge is a collection of sandstone cliffs which narrow as you walk into it, which have been shaped by wind and water over the years.The small creek…

Following on from the Sapphire Gemfields we headed south towards Carnarvon Gorge in the heart of central Queensland. The surrounding area was flat and dry – there has been a drought in this area for several years now and the fields which would at other times have sunflowers and sorghum wheat looked dusty and barren…

Did you know there are three towns in central Queensland called Emerald, Rubyvale  and Sapphire ? No prizes for correctly identifying why they might carry these names – Yes they are all part of a small but incredibly precious area in Central Queensland – with the emphasis on precious – which are awash with sapphires…