I was just reading Stephos blog - Its time - (love it and you're such a interesting writer!) and it made me want to post something too! Im way to slack with the updates but I think it is a great so you can look back and enjoy past fun times!
Soooooo, here are a few pictures of some 'winter' (at this time winter hadn't kicked in and it was lovely and sunny, but no rain...) weekend adventures rob and I have embarked on, in and around Bunbury.
Leschenault peninsular
You can see this peninsular from the city in Bunbury but once you are out there it feels as though there is no one around forever... Its about 20min drive north of bunbury.
Cormorants standing on pillions.In the 70's there was a 'hippy commune' living on the Leschenault peninsular that maintained a somewhat self sustaining lifestyle. If you wanted to live there you had to live by the rules of the 3 D's 'No dole, no dogs and no drugs'. Apparently, the lifestyle attracted many artists and even a monk, who enjoyed the solitude for his meditation. The kids would sometime have to catch a boat to school when flooding cut the peninsular off.
Now, all that is left are some signs to teach us of the history of the site and, sadly, lots of weeds!
One native species that is found on the peninsular (and restricted to the southwest of WA) is the tuart (Eucalyptus gomphocephala). Rob and I found the 'mother' tuart tree and gave her a hug (well, I did! I couldn't help it!). It is the biggest tuart I have ever seen and I've seen quite a few! These trees are under attack and on the decline due to subdivisions and also some kind of insect on the ones that have been spared, so I thought mama could do with a hug.
Can you see rob at the bottom
The next few pictures were taken in Bunbury at the Back beach. The rocks in the background are an outcrop of basalt which is millions of years old. Once upon a time, according to geological records, this land mass was joined to Tibet!
This picture is another inlet in Bunbury. There is a small patch of mangroves in here which are the only ones to be found for hundreds of kilometres. Unfortunately, the hydrography of the system has been altered, due to the diversion of the Preston river and the installation of flood gates.... great for houses, not great for the inlet. Apparently, it used to have a sandy white bottom. Now it is black and sludgy. On the up side, I heard the river may be restore to some extent. Hoorah! I think it still holds some beauty and it is great to cycle around!
If Tao comes to your town or city you should experience their performance. It is amazing! This group trains for 10 hours every day and it shows! both in their amazing skills, endurance, perfection and bodies. Wow! It is a beautiful mix of traditional taiko drumming, with a contemporary twist including females (who traditionally weren't allowed to play the drums but they are just as amazing), influences by (what sounded to my unmusical ears) to be maori and irish and the oh, so popular spray on jeans (which are making a huge come back but can only be worn by a small percentage of the population, including super fit japanese taiko drummers).
This night out was part of robo's birthday treats but I was just as lucky to experience this performance. Just watching these guys made me want to be a taiko expert like them and rob felt the same! He wanted to take up the wadaiko again and rejoin his onna troupe!
A few weekends ago I did an Ayurvedic Cooking course. It was yummy fun and we even made paneer cheese! Here are a few pics.... Ayurveda is known as the 'Science of Long Life'. Ayurveda is about creating balance for each individual, once your digestive system (and other systems) are fuctioning well. When your body/ mind is out of balance, disease and ill health can occur. Balance is achieved by becoming aware of who you are and how external influences affect you so that you can counter these affects through diet, yoga, meditation, message, cleansing practices and other wholistic healing methods that are specific to you. Ayurveda is an ancient wisdom, so it is not a new fad. It has been tried and tested over thousands of years. The more I follow the principles of Ayurveda, the more I see the benefits. Ayurvedic Cooking is yummy, fresh and wholesome.
