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Blogroll
Category Archives: Lifestyle
“Core of my heart, my country!”
An opal-hearted country,A wilful lavish land –All you who have not loved her,You will not understand –Though earth has many splendours,Wherever I may day,I know to what brown countryMy homing thoughts will fly. For many Australians, the words of poet … Continue reading
Posted in Australia, Food & Wine, Lifestyle, Local Culture
Tagged . Fleurieu Peninsula, affogato, Banjo Patterson, bettong, D'Arcy Niland, Dorothy Mackellar, Hindmarsh Valley, Kangaroo Island, Softfoot Far, Swagman Country Dining
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Of swimming, surfboards, and River Cats…
It’s only 7am, but already the beach is awash with bodies: walkers, joggers and surfers, canoes and paddle boards skim along the edge of the sea. The coffee shop is buzzing, and families are hoeing into enormous plates of eggs … Continue reading
Posted in Australia, Lifestyle
Tagged Brisbane, Broadbeach, Eat Street, Queensland
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Christmas Cards: Setting the Mood
Then its zippity jingle and dash away pingHang holly and berries in all the hallsThe tassels on all the thermostats andWrite merry Christmas on all of the walls…~ from Eloise at Christmas Time by Kay Thompson One upon a time, … Continue reading
Posted in Australia, Lifestyle, Local Culture
Tagged Australia, carols, Christmas, Eloise, Julian Dennison, Ronan Keating, Santa, Sylvia Preston
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In Essence
SpringMating dance of beesOr dance to the death?Short and sweet. Years ago, in Manila, I joined a workshop to write poetry. I had read myriad poems, but never turned my hand to writing anything except creating silly rhymes for the … Continue reading
“And I wonder, still I wonder, who’ll stop the rain?”
Winter has arrived in South Australia with a vengeance. Autumn was wet, but June has been wetter. The local papers suggest it may be the soggiest June on record. Our water tanks are full to the brim and the tides … Continue reading
The Magical Land of Books
“There is something about words. In expert hands, manipulated deftly, they take you prisoner. Wind themselves around your limbs like spider silk, and when you are so enthralled you cannot move, they pierce your skin, enter your blood, numb your … Continue reading
Posted in Australia, Lifestyle
Tagged books, bookshops, Diane Setterfield, Dymocks, Jane Eyre, Maastricht, Matilda's, Mostly Books, Porto, Regent Arcade, Sevenoaks, South Sea Books
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Shakespeare in the Rain
On a prime position, in the southern foothills above the Adelaide plains, sits a beautiful house that looks more like it belongs in the lush green English countryside than in the hot, dry southern hemisphere. Built in the late 1930s, … Continue reading
Posted in Australia, Lifestyle, Local Culture
Tagged Alys Daroy, Britt Plummer, David Daradan, Hayward, Kate Van der Horst, Melanie Munt, Michael Baldwin, Michaela Burger, Paul Westbrook, Shakespeare, Shakespeare South Australia, Shedrick Yarpai, Twelfth Night
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What Price to Pay?
What on earth did we all talk about before Covid? Every conversation these days starts with the latest update. In every newspaper or TV report there is high drama about the latest figures and the latest advice on crossing borders. … Continue reading
Octopus Dreams
‘Last night I dreamt I went to Manderley again.’ Thank you, Daphne du Maurier, for that exquisitely poignant, nostalgic and melancholic opening line. It’s an iconic and instantly gripping beginning that every wannabe writer must envy. I went not to … Continue reading
Posted in Australia, Food & Wine, Lifestyle
Tagged Greek cuisine, Imam bayildi, Mazi WInes, Meze Mazi, octopus, pica pica, tapas
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Ghosts of Christmas Past
At last, the sun has finally decided to herald in the spring and the streets of Adelaide are carpeted in deep violet jacaranda flowers. I am suddenly, and belatedly, aware that it is already December, and Christmas is but a … Continue reading