I ❤️ Seattle Public Library

Even though I was carrying "only" 15kg in my carry on (the international baggage limit is 22kg), it's hard enough to hoist your bag into an overhead bin. So I had to leave behind, in Hobart, a bunch of books I'd really like to read. So, how fabulous to find one of them at SPL.
Something good to read during Seattle's January dark.

Words to live by in 2018

White Christmas

My neighbors's house at 8pm Christmas night when I finally stepped off the bus from the light rail, from Sea Tac, plane 4 hours late from LAX, from SYD.

Some islands off Los Angeles

From my window seat on the final leg of my journey home to Seattle. It was looking very unpromising at LAX, with every flight to Seattle late and being bumped from a seat by a revenue passenger, But I finally got a seat (and all you need is 1) plus a Comfort + seat. I look forward to getting some consistent rest over the next few days. The trip has been tiring, as family visiting always is.

One resolution for 2018

India, for a 2nd time, perhaps, or somewhere else. I'm an ESL teacher, and there are many places that would welcome me. In my life, there's a lot of being, doing, seeing, walking, biking, skiing, camping, reading, teaching, resting, eating, enjoying, exploring, giving back, and receiving to be done.
My goal is "to get stuck in", as they say Down Under. This me, a year ago, at Indira Gandhi international. Yeah!

Happy Christmas to me

One year ago I was sitting on the roof of my desert haveli guesthouse in Jaipur, India, having a "modest" Indian meal under the stars. This year, I'm having an excellent vegetable tian, with green salad and a glass of McLaren Vale Shiraz/Mourvèdre at Scarlett in Sydney. My "holiday" trip to Australia is winding down. I've visited my elderly Mom in her memory care home up in Queensland, and borne witness to yet another life change. It's not easy. Loneliness periodically tears its ugly head, but, when I'm rested, I beat it back with a substantial stick. Go to hell, regrets! Stuff you. You serve no purpose. While it would be nice to have a companion with whom I could share this experience, I don't. What I do have is knowledge, hope, courage, and, on occasion, patience.
I no longer seek love, but I would welcome it with open arms.

Back to Sydney for Xmas Eve

It's in the low 90s, so a contrast to Hobart. I've managed to include 3 Sydney icons in this shot from Circular Quay.

Lunch

Established by a former convict. Just upstream from the Female Factory.
If the walls could talk...

The good old days

...when women knew their place, etc.

Historical re-enactment

"Mary" demonstrating oakum production while in the "lighted" solitary confinement cells. Incorrigible women, including those raped and made pregnant by their masters while performing indentured servitude outside the factory, spent 6 months in these terrible conditions.

Educational Rubric for 1840

For the lucky ladies incarcerated on the prison ship, Anson, moored in Hobart's harbor.

Several Dayleys listed

Highly likely these women are relations. Apparently the Irish convicts were prized for their skills, unlike the English convicts who were
impoverished unskilled city dwellers.

Descriptions of inmates upon commitment

Cascades Female Factory 1828-1856

A $3.30 bus ride from
Franklin Place then $A40 for entrance, tour, and "her story" historical re-enactment.

Back in Hobart

An unlimited supply of sandstone nearby and a convict slave labor workforce meant Hobart could be mistaken for Georgian England.

James Turrell’s pavilion st MONA

From Museum of Everything show

Someone else's descent into mental illness expressed in charming extravagance.

Alois Corbaz’ poetic pencil fantasies

This "outsider" was a Swiss governess drawing her imaginary relationship with Kaiser Wilhelmina II,

Two Sidney Nolan paintings

From his famous "Ned Kelly" years.

Tim - 2006-now

"A musician named Tim Steiner is becoming a work of art over a period of years." - from the O app (MONA's exhibit guide)
In 2008, Tim signed a contract with a German art collector to sell his tattooed skin to the purchaser when he dies.
Alrighty then...

Sit on sheep

The sheep are as comfortable as the more traditional benches on the top deck of the MONA ferry,

Ferry to MONA

Camouflage plus pink missiles on the bow. Fascinating!

Cherry clafoutis and blue tea

The tea is complimentary because the kitchen forgot to bake my cherry pancake for a while.
Yum yum yum

Pork neck

Yum yum

Broadbeans and ricotta

Yum

Franklin in Hobart

It seems I've decided to have dinner at Hobart's most innovative restaurant. It's on Argyle Street across from the YHA where I'm bunking with 5 other women travelers. The restaurant is excellent and is going to cost a bomb, but that's how I mitigate the downsides of hostel living.
Well, Tasmania is sold as foodies' heaven, so gotta test that theory.

Baggage claim in Hobart

Chillin’ at Tullamarine

Heading south to Hobart

Time to move south for a few days before heading for home.

In the back of DT

The gallery owners have a fine appreciation for rusted corrugated iron and recycled wood.

Inside Dust Temple

Dust Temple in Currumbin Waters

A chic art gallery + coffee shop incongruously located among the auto parts stores in the light manufacturing end of Currumbin.

Today’s morning activity

Ahh, the Miami pool.

In Robina’s only bookstore

I can only imagine...

From the Starbucks in Robina

A flavor profile that is completely new to me.

Straddie selfie

The color of that sea lapping the beaches in Queensland (or all of Australia) is unmatched.

Stradbroke flyer

$20 for an adult return to Straddie.

Silly pet presents at the Cleveland Sunday market

Hmmm, Christmas print cat bandana collars, bow tie collars, paperboy, baseball and cowboy hats for cats, dogs and chickens.
Something to browse through while looking for the perfect coffee shop and then heading to the Stradbroke Island Ferry.

From North Gorge Walk

Manta ray and pods of dolphins in the sea close to the beach.

Pineapple crush

Not something easily found in Queensland cafes these days. Juice from a bottle doesn't even compete with the real thing, from French - Ease, opposite Frenchmans Beach

From the North Gorge Walk at Point Lookout

Stradbroke Island

White white sand, with dolphins and manta ray in the water.

Gold Coast Coffee culture #9

Tea and a fruit cake "Christmas pudding" in a cafe near the roundabout in Upper Beechmont. Just me and the lorikeets having tea.

Mudgeeraba Farmers’ Market

It looks like rain. SE Queensland is often stormy at the start of the Christmas holidays. But the temperature is still near 80.

I’m saving the micro brew for later

Gold Coast Coffee Culture #7

This belongs in The Lost World

Magic

Resident of The Lost World

Lucky for him I stopped to move him out of harm's way.

The best name for a geographic location, ever