Monday 30 September 2013

CLIFTON HILL MURAL

Clifton Hill is a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 4 km north-east of Melbourne's Central Business District. Its local government area is the City of Yarra. At the 2011 Census, Clifton Hill had a population of 5,790. Described in the 1880s as the "Toorak of Collingwood", Clifton Hill fell out of favour, along with much of inner Melbourne by the mid 20th century. Later becoming a centre of Melbourne's bohemianism, the suburb has undergone rapid gentrification in recent years, and is now considered one of Melbourne's most liveable suburbs.

The mural shown here adorns an erstwhile shop, now converted into a dwelling. The murals wind their way all around the corner and cover all of the area of available wall. The murals were created by Mike Maka (http://www.makatron.com/biopropaganda/).

This post is part of the Monday Mellow Yellows meme,
and also part of the Monday Murals meme,
and also part of the Blue Monday meme.










Sunday 29 September 2013

LATROBE UNIVERSITY NATIVE PARK

La Trobe University is a multi-campus university in Victoria, Australia. It was established in 1964 by an Act of Parliament to become the third oldest university in the state of Victoria. The main campus of La Trobe is located in the Melbourne suburb of Bundoora, on an extensive tract of land with much native flora, lakes and waterways. Most of the trees seen here are Eucalypts ("gum trees").

This post is part of the Scenic Weekends meme,
and also part of the Shadow Shot Sunday meme.



Saturday 28 September 2013

CITY VIEW

A view of the City from the banks of the Yarra, on the Eastern side.

This post is part of the Weekend Reflections meme.



Friday 27 September 2013

FLYING AWAY

I had to do quite a bit of travel to Sydney lately and it's aways fun trying to take some photos through the plane windows. Here are some dramatic skies, typical of our changeable season.

This post is part of the Skywatch Friday meme.



Thursday 26 September 2013

MELBOURNE STREET TREES 45 - WISTERIA

I am stretching the term "tree" if I consider wisteria, a robust climbing plant, as a tree, but humour me in the name of poetic licence... Nevertheless, wisterias can climb as high as 20 metres above the ground and spread out 10 metres laterally.

Wisteria (also spelled Wistaria or Wysteria) is a genus of flowering plants in the pea family, Fabaceae, that includes ten species of woody climbing bines native to the Eastern United States and to China, Korea, and Japan. Some species are popular ornamental plants, especially in China and Japan. The botanist Thomas Nuttall said he named the genus Wisteria in memory of Dr. Caspar Wistar (1761–1818). Questioned about the spelling later, Nuttall said it was for "euphony", but his biographer speculated that it may have something to do with Nuttall's friend Charles Jones Wister, Sr, of Grumblethorpe, the grandson of the merchant John Wister.

Wisteria sinensis, shown here flowers in the spring (just before or as the leaves open). The flowers of this species are fragrant, and the seeds are produced in pods similar to those of Laburnum, and, like the seeds of that genus, are poisonous. Wisteria is an extremely hardy plant that is considered an invasive species in many parts of the world.

This post is part of the Floral Friday Fotos meme.






Tuesday 24 September 2013

WALES ST PRIMARY SCHOOL

Wales Street Primary School (opened 1 October 1891 as the 'Prince of Wales Park State School') has played a pivotal role in education in Thornbury. Although student academic performance is extremely important, the school aims to develop the whole child through a broad curriculum, interpersonal learning and a strong values based environment. Specialist teachers are provided; in the Arts, Italian, Music and Physical Education and educational activities include sport, choir and band, instrumental music lessons, drama, environment and chess clubs.

Over the past five years the socio-economic background of the students has risen considerably and enrolments increased to about 500 students. Priority for enrolment is given to students where Wales Street is their closest school.

This post is part of the Our World Tuesday meme,
and also part of the Ruby Tuesday meme.


Monday 23 September 2013

MALING RD MURALS

Maling Road, Canterbury, is only a 20 minute drive from Melbourne’s CBD but walking down the street takes you back a century in time and beyond. Maling Road has successfully preserved its old time feel and architecture from its humble beginnings in the late 1800s.

The five murals (at Maling Lane next to the Village on the railway wall) depict the significant stages in the history of the Maling Road Precinct - from 1885 (when the railway first was developed) to the present day. The murals themselves depict the overall historic story which includes a nursery rhyme hunt for children in an edgy, popular.folk art style, which engages children and adults alike.

Here's one of the murals illustrating the glamorous '40s as typified by the cinema. More murals from this neighbourhood int eh coming weeks.

This post is part of the Monday Murals meme,
and also part of the Monday Mellow Yellows meme,
and also part of the Mandarin Orange Monday meme,
and also part of the Blue Monday meme.







Saturday 21 September 2013

LAKE REFLECTIONS

At the Darebin Parklands one may take in a little dose of serenity and retreat from the hustle bustle of the city, which is only a few tens of metres away in suburban Fairfield.

This post is part of the Weekend Reflections meme,
and also part of the Weekly TopShot meme,
and also part of the Scenic Weekends meme.




Friday 20 September 2013

Thursday 19 September 2013

MELBOURNE STREET TREES 44 - CRABAPPLE

Malus, apple, is a genus of about 30–55 species of small deciduous trees or shrubs in the family Rosaceae, including the domesticated orchard apple (M. domestica). The other species are generally known as crabapples, crab apples, crabs, or wild apples.The genus is native to the temperate zone of the Northern Hemisphere.

Crabapples are popular as compact ornamental trees, providing blossom in Spring and colourful fruit in Autumn. The fruits often persist throughout Winter. Numerous hybrid cultivars have been selected, of which 'Evereste' and 'Red Sentinel'[8] have gained The Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.

This post is part of the Floral Friday Fotos meme.





Wednesday 18 September 2013

SPRING DAY AT THE PARKLANDS

The Darebin Parklands are our local wild reservation and park. It is always a pleasure to walk there and go by the Darebin Creek.

This post is part of the Waterworld Wednesday meme,
and also part of the Outdoor Wednesday meme.