Monday, October 29, 2018

 

Wandering the Windward Coast

Here's more images from our trip along the windward (east) coast of Oahu. The beaches along this coast are on narrow strips of land hemmed in by the steep mountain ranges to the west. The first image is of Kaupo beach near Waimanalo. If you look closely you can just see Makapuu lighthouse in the distance. The two islands are about 1 Km offshore. The larger one is Manana Island, also called Rabbit island. The island is on old volcanic cone with 2 craters. Evidently some people see it as the shape of a rabbit's head; I don't. Rabbits were here in plague numbers in the 20th century. The owner of Waimanalo plantation introduced them in the 1880s as a captive food source but they almost destroyed the ecosystem and were eradicated in the 1990s. The island is an important seabird breeding ground. The smaller island is Kaohikaipu, also an important bird colony. Near the northern end of the windward coast is Laie Point, where the lower 2 photos were taken. You can get to some spectacular rock formations and cliffs on this part of the coast if you are a fit hiker, but even my Oldies found some pretty stuff. A fit youngster could spend weeks exploring this coast. The surf is usually calm and the beaches protected by reefs, but around the corner onto the north coast things change - that's where the legendary surf rolls in.

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Saturday, October 13, 2018

 

Tulips Are Tops

Every year from mid-September to Mid-October we have two great displays of tulips and other flowers near home. The best-known is Floriade, which is put on by the ACT government and draws visitors from all over (see posts from earlier years). In my opinion, the best one is the other one at Tulip Tops, a family-owned garden just over the border in NSW. The flowers are just the same but the garden has several advantages for Oldies and small bears. For a start, it is flat. Anybody who has ever tried pushing a wheelchair along gravel paths will appreciate that. There are lots of flowering trees as well as flowers. Also lots of seats and picnic tables spread around the grounds, so you can bring a picnic and sit in the shade of beautiful trees. Trees are something that this small bear loves to climb. I also like the main entry across a small bridge over a creek which has a waterfall on it. They also have live music at lunch time and the best-tasting pies and sausage rolls (according to Dad, who has lots of experience with Ps&SRs). So for a very relaxed, pleasant outing I thoroughly recommend a visit to Tulip Tops.

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Saturday, October 06, 2018

 

Remember Them

I have just come home from a very special morning visit. The grounds of the Australian War Memorial have been filled with over 62,000 crocheted red poppies. They have been made by ladies from all over the country and "planted" to commemorate the end of the First World War, which ended 100 years ago next month. There is a poppy for every Australian soldier killed in the war. In 1918 the population of Australia was under 5 million, so the loss of these men was a huge one for a "new" country. As well as those killed, over 150,000 were badly wounded and many never fully recovered. WW1 is sometimes called "The Great War", but as far as this small bear is concerned there is nothing "great" about any war. We really have to remember the sacrifices of those who gave their all for our country, and those who did the same for their countries, and work to make the world a place where war never happens again.

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