Natural splendour, real musics, wines, wordpower
Our hero lost his “sacred” status when his Australian-ness was recognised!
As is true of many birds, Threskiornis molucca – the Australian white ibis – is wonderfully elegant when high in the sky, but rather less so when on terra firma, or in the process of becoming airborne.
Comments closedAt the moment southwestern Australia’s very own turtle is very evident at Lake Monger.
All photos copyright Doug Spencer, taken late afternoon on 27 January 2021.
Comments closedThis sequel to the immediately-preceding post shows the magnificent landscape which surrounds and towers above the valley’s floor.
From Budongquan (see #4 in Tibetan Plateau series) we set off in darkness.
We breakfasted two hours later, overlooking a brushy, sandy section of the valley floor…through which we then walked.
The featured image (all photos copyright Doug Spencer) was taken at 8.11 am, during breakfast.
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The featured bird is very tiny, very hardy.
“His” valley’s sparsely vegetated floor – the “low ground”, locally – all sits within 200 metres either side of 4000 metres above sea level.
If transplanted to the Tibetan Plateau, New Zealand’s highest peak would fail to reach this valley’s lowest point.
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Lights Beach is a deal less than half an hour’s easy drive west, from Denmark.
Lights Beach car park sits just outside the eastern boundary of William Bay National Park.
The featured image and the one below were both taken from just below the car park’s edge; the wider-angle view looks south, whilst the one above looks west, along the National Park’s shoreline.
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Many self-declared “jazz lovers” would not recognise his name, nor have ever heard him…wittingly, at least.
That said, I am far from alone – and am in some very good company – in having long regarded Frank Kimbrough as one of the select few improvising pianists who ought be described/remembered as “one of the greats”.
if I were only ever allowed another listen to just ten “piano trio tracks”, his sublimely beautiful Waiting in Santander would be one of them:
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According to what most people believe, this post’s flightless bird is a perfect symbol for “moving forward in 2021”.
After all, aren’t the emu and the kangaroo Australia’s heraldic beasts precisely because neither is capable of taking a backward step?
Self-styled “rational” adults delight in having long ago discovered the truth about Santa.
However, even many self-styled “scientists” still believe that emus cannot walk backwards.
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…but free, with an exquisite musical bonus included!
Pelecanus conspicillatus – the Australian Pelican – has the avian world’s biggest bill.
Its bill is remarkable at any time, but most especially so when engaged in actual “pelican yoga”.
Pelican Yoga wishes you a very happy festive season.
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Conifers – pines, traditionally associated with Christmas – comprise the major part of the Northern Hemisphere’s “tree cover equation”.
The Southern Hemisphere has its own endemic conifers, but south of the equator they are relatively minor players, most especially in Australia.
To Australian eyes, the Northern Hemisphere’s vast pine forests appear relatively drab, sadly lacking in species diversity and colour range.
The contrast is most especially marked in the warmer half of our year, which is the colder half of the Northern year.
Comments closedIn a “normal” year this 21.12.2020 post would be coming to you from right next door to South Australia’s Aldinga Scrub Conservation Park, where I took the photo on 21 December 2017.
Conifers mostly hail from the other hemisphere, but none of their “Christmassy” cones are lovelier than this Australian species’ “cones”.
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