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PERTH - FLOWER STEALING KANGAROOS AND MORE
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This was my first visit to Australia.
Perth was my landing point. I chose it primarily because it was reasonably close to the location of a friend who I had not seen for more than 45 years. Well that's as good as any reason I know to visit a place.
With 2 million people, it is the 4th largest city in Australia but in many ways, it doesn't feel like a big city, perhaps because of the park areas and colonial buildings.
Having said that, there is plenty of evidence that Perth is a modern metropolis with many modern buildings which I suppose are necessary for it's growth but, sadly, they often spoil to view of more historic sites.
I suppose I am a little over-critical because it is always disheartening to be trying to photograph such sites without them being over-shadowed by blue glass and metal utilitarian office blocks.
Ok, that's my "moan" over. Perth is still a delightful place and was a great start my Australian tour.
To introduce Perth, here is a slideshow....
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"Memory Markers"
The first "sight" of Perth that I saw was an unusual sculpture in the grounds of the famous Stirling Gardens.
It is called "Memory Markers". It was placed there in 2006 and is the work of Anne Neil (See more about her and her work here)
The sculpture is dedicated to the original planners who developed the gardens.
Now, a confession.. when I first saw the sculpture, I didn't realise what it was.
Of course, someone more artistic or observant would immediately see that it is a series of writing pen nibs.
The gardens are named after Admiral Sir James Stirling, a remarkable navy man who, amongst other achievements, more or less, founded the city of Perth
He actually joined the Navy at the age of 12 and fought against Napoleon whilst still a teenager
He was also something of a politician, diplomat and explorer
If you have a few minutes, read his remarkable story in Wikipedia ...
Kings Park
There is little doubt in my mind that my visit to Kings Park was the highlight of my time in Perth.
This was a great day out and I am very grateful to a new friend, Robyne who gave me so much time and guidance around the place.
As usual, for the detail of this park, you can read here and I can be lazy and just focus some selected impressions.
Well, to start with, it's big....At approximately 1000 acres, it is roughly equivalent to 750 football pitches !
This makes it the biggest city-based park in the world.
It opened in 1895 under it's original name of Perth Park. It became King's Park in 1901 in honour of King Edward VII, who was probably most famous as the last monarch to be actively involved in politics and the working of Parliament.
At some point, King's Park became Kings Park, possibly just to annoy those "know-it-alls" who can spend several hours explaining the correct use of the "apostrophe".
The park sits on Mount Eliza, a hill which overlooks the city of Perth. Because of this, you get nice views from the park, adding to it's many attractions.
More than 5 million visitors come to this special park every year.
Kings Park is an interesting combination of a botanical garden, a sculpture park and the site of several memorials.
The official web site lists 50 different points of interest (you can find them here with a location map)
I will just focus on a few which caught my attention :
This was a great day out and I am very grateful to a new friend, Robyne who gave me so much time and guidance around the place.
As usual, for the detail of this park, you can read here and I can be lazy and just focus some selected impressions.
Well, to start with, it's big....At approximately 1000 acres, it is roughly equivalent to 750 football pitches !
This makes it the biggest city-based park in the world.
It opened in 1895 under it's original name of Perth Park. It became King's Park in 1901 in honour of King Edward VII, who was probably most famous as the last monarch to be actively involved in politics and the working of Parliament.
At some point, King's Park became Kings Park, possibly just to annoy those "know-it-alls" who can spend several hours explaining the correct use of the "apostrophe".
The park sits on Mount Eliza, a hill which overlooks the city of Perth. Because of this, you get nice views from the park, adding to it's many attractions.
More than 5 million visitors come to this special park every year.
Kings Park is an interesting combination of a botanical garden, a sculpture park and the site of several memorials.
The official web site lists 50 different points of interest (you can find them here with a location map)
I will just focus on a few which caught my attention :
The Bali Bombing Memorial
In October 2002, in a co-ordinated attack, terrorists exploded 3 bombs on the holiday island of Bali. On that day, 202 persons were killed and with a death toll of 88, Australia was, by some distance, the country most affected.
This memorial remembers all who suffered but is dedicated specifically to the16 victims from Western Australia
The memorial is designed so that, on each yearly anniversary of the attack, the first dawn rays of sun are framed by the memorial.
I was particularly moved by a small poem above the names of the victims.
In the shadow of our sorrow
We find a light,
With the dawn comes hope,
With the setting sun, time to heal
In October 2002, in a co-ordinated attack, terrorists exploded 3 bombs on the holiday island of Bali. On that day, 202 persons were killed and with a death toll of 88, Australia was, by some distance, the country most affected.
This memorial remembers all who suffered but is dedicated specifically to the16 victims from Western Australia
The memorial is designed so that, on each yearly anniversary of the attack, the first dawn rays of sun are framed by the memorial.
I was particularly moved by a small poem above the names of the victims.
In the shadow of our sorrow
We find a light,
With the dawn comes hope,
With the setting sun, time to heal
The Centenary of Western Australian Women's Suffrage Memorial
Apart from being a memorial with possibly the longest name in Australia, it was created in 1999, to celebrate 100 years since women got the same voting rights as men.
This got me thinking about timing. Knowing a little about suffragettes in the USA and UK, I thought this date seemed very early.
A short investigation showed this suspicion to be true. Here is a comparison of the selected recognised dates when women gained voting rights, more or less in line with men..
Australia : 1899
USA : 1920
UK : 1918
Japan : 1945
Canada : 1916 (Except Quebec : 1940)
So, Australia, despite it's reputation as being a rather male-orientated society was well ahead of other parts of the world.
The centrepiece of this area is a piece of artwork called the "Bookleaf Memorial"
It is interesting to note that the memorial was actually constructed by students from the Western Australia School of Art and Design.
State War Memorial
Dedicated on 24th November 1929, this memorial is to honour Western Australians who lost their lives in various conflicts.
On ANZAC Day, each year, around 40,000 people attend a wreath-laying ceremony.
It is not a single unit but comprises several elements including the Cenotaph, which is an 18 metre high granite obelisk and a Flame of Remembrance.
I particularly liked the Court of Contemplation which contains a simple message for visitors and specifically displays the various conflicts remembered.
Aside from it's solemn significance, this whole war memorial is an impressive tribute in a beautiful location, overlooking the Swan River and Canning River .
Whatever your political, religious or moral beliefs, these places will always feel special and give pause for thought
There is also a beautiful "Honour Avenue" of Eucalyptus trees, with plaques honouring service personnel who are either buried overseas or whose whereabouts are, sadly, unknown.
There are said to be 1800 military personnel currently represented and a database of those honoured is available here online
There are said to be 1800 military personnel currently represented and a database of those honoured is available here online
The Giant Boab
Although this sounds like something out of "The Hitchhiker's Guide to The Galaxy", it is, in fact a tree with photogenic appearance and quite a history.
Due to development work, in 2008, at it's original sight in Warmun, Western Australia, this mature and magnificent tree was offered to Kings Park.
KIngs Park were delighted to accept, possibly before they looked at a map because this was going to be an epic journey.
For interest, I went to Google Maps and looked at the route.
It's more than 3000km (1860 miles) and, by normal car, would take 32 hours. But a car with a couple of passengers and a suitcase is not the same as a full grown Boab tree. In fact, it took 5 days to deliver it to Kings Park and it was, apparently, cheered everywhere along the route.
Although this sounds like something out of "The Hitchhiker's Guide to The Galaxy", it is, in fact a tree with photogenic appearance and quite a history.
Due to development work, in 2008, at it's original sight in Warmun, Western Australia, this mature and magnificent tree was offered to Kings Park.
KIngs Park were delighted to accept, possibly before they looked at a map because this was going to be an epic journey.
For interest, I went to Google Maps and looked at the route.
It's more than 3000km (1860 miles) and, by normal car, would take 32 hours. But a car with a couple of passengers and a suitcase is not the same as a full grown Boab tree. In fact, it took 5 days to deliver it to Kings Park and it was, apparently, cheered everywhere along the route.
It should also be mentioned that the tree was a gift from the Gija indigenous people who owned the land on which it was previously standing.
The tree has an official name - "Gija Jumulu" which simply means Boab Tree in the local Gija language.
At the time of it's "transfer", Gija Jumulu was estimated to be 750 years old !!! and it weighed 36 tonnes
Assuming the estimate of the tree's age was right, just for fun, I decided to look at what was happening in 1258, when this tree began it's life.
Well, there were no mobile phones so people had to talk to each other... how boring is that ?
I am almost sure it was the last year Liverpool won the Premiership (sorry, as a Man U fan, I couldn't resist that one.)
What did happen was some kind of climate disaster across the known world producing what was called " The year of no summer". It was very cold and there were floods. Many people starved.
The theory is that it was caused by a massive volcanic eruption in Indonesia sending dust and ash into the air.
The English King, Henry III was in trouble for wasteful foreign ventures and a kind of scam whereby he raised funds for wars he never intended to fight. So, in that year, Parliament and various important citizens came close to overthrowing the monarchy but seemed to have settled for just reducing Henry's powers.
Well, there were no mobile phones so people had to talk to each other... how boring is that ?
I am almost sure it was the last year Liverpool won the Premiership (sorry, as a Man U fan, I couldn't resist that one.)
What did happen was some kind of climate disaster across the known world producing what was called " The year of no summer". It was very cold and there were floods. Many people starved.
The theory is that it was caused by a massive volcanic eruption in Indonesia sending dust and ash into the air.
The English King, Henry III was in trouble for wasteful foreign ventures and a kind of scam whereby he raised funds for wars he never intended to fight. So, in that year, Parliament and various important citizens came close to overthrowing the monarchy but seemed to have settled for just reducing Henry's powers.
So, this concludes my limited look at Kings Park and I have to say that this is an absolute "don't miss" location if you are in the region.
Kangaroos
On this first visit to Australia, it goes without saying that I was hoping to see some Kangaroos.
To be honest, I had expected I would see them at a zoo or, if not, certainly only from a distance. However, thanks to my "guide" Robyne, I was able to meet them, in the wild, more or less face to face.
And the location.. a nearby cemetery !
Apparently, there are many kangaroos there because they enjoy stealing and eating the graveside flowers.
Here are a few phone camera shots of my new "friends"
Bell Tower
This building contains the famous Swan Bells
I believe the bells (coming from UK) are old and fascinating to those who like bells.
If you want to read about them (and even what musical note they all play!) see here
For me, the bells are of little interest but the building is rather splendid.
And it is unusual for me to praise any structure built later that the early part of the 20th century !!!
It was built as a home for the bells to celebrate the new millennium
Actually a cost of around USD 4 million, the project received some local criticism but it went ahead.
Unlike some millennium projects, this one was completed on time and within budget so that's something.
Closing Remarks
As my first "taste" of Australia, I was very glad I chose Perth where I could get a glimpse of the culture in a less hurried and very friendly city.
I can recommend the city for a visit and, especially to Kings Park. If you go there, read about all the memorials before you go (I didn't) and allow 2 days to cover all.
And...please call in the Aboriginal Art Gallery/Shop in the park. The staff are very kind and the prices reasonable. I especially liked the stone painted in indigenous designs.
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