GPS

Pandanus on the foreshore of Redcliff Beach.


Casuarina. Redcliff Beach.


Mangrove at Nudgee Beach

The beaches on Moreton Bay (and all those that I have seen so far) are so different from what I know as a beach. I think it would take another lifetime to acclimatise me to them.

Pandanus and this incredibly dessicated looking casuarina are to be found on every beach I have so far seen. Shallow beaches, dirty water and warm. But there are all those islands off the coast, so the water is shallow and fed from all the muddy mangrove creeks and rivers...everywhere. Also incredibly salty.

I have brought up the car from Sydney using the old Satnav. But I clearly needed newer maps and so had to buy a new one (no maps available on the old one). So I was determined to venture forth and try the roads and the navigation.

I set out for Redcliff, having seen photos from a Flickr friend, but diverted to various places on the way. So I thought that Nudgee might serve for a swim. Clearly not. Great for fishing. And so I continued on.

The Norfolk pines of Redcliff looked somewhat the worse from the long drought, but it was a swimmable beach and so I swam.

The new satnav is not as satisfactory as the old: it does not automatically tell me to continue straight when I reach an intersection with millions of directions. You need to keep a sharp eye on the number of metres left before the turn or you will turn too early. Also the maps are crappy. We now have voiced streets, but this is not always helpful: Sir Fred Schonell drive becomes "serve ridge..." and Brisbane is pronounced with the last syllable rhyming with rain. Anyway it took me there and brought me home safely so I should not be complaining.

South Bank, Bridges and more

The Story Bridge, from the citycat.


Rainforest at South Bank.


Rainforest at South Bank.


Streets Beach, South Bank


Yayoi Kusama, Narcissus Garden 1966/2002. Queensland Art Gallery.

Caught the ferry all the way from UQ to Appollo Road. Thought the story would be about the river. And I suppose it is.

For a Melbournian, the striking thing about the bridges across the Brisbane River is that they are all so new. Before I rushed into print about this, I had thought that the oldest bridge across the river was the Story Bridge(opened 1940), and said to be designed by Bradfield (but not really). A lovely bridge. (More elegant than the Sydney Harbour Bridge.) Anyway, from the furthest bridge downstream (The Gateway, 1986) to the last (almost, the Eleanor Schonell, 2006) on the ferry route, the bridges are: the Story (1940), the Goodwill (2001, pedestrians & cyclists only), the Victoria, third of that name (1969), the William Jolly (1932) and the Merivale Rail Bridge (1978). Not a single 19th century bridge. (There are 5 more bridges which I have yet to see.) See Bridges over the Brisbane River in Wikipedia

I needed a coffee and a break, so I got off at South Bank, to go to the Andy Warhol exhibition at the Gallery of Modern Art. On my way, though, I just had to take photographs of the rainforest and of the beach. It was a hot Sunday, and the beach was well patronised. There it is: a beach in the heart of Brisbane, complete with sand, surf livesavers, lifesaver tower, surf rescue board and everyone from tiny tots, teenagers, mums and dads and grandparents all enjoying themselves. Brilliant conception and superb in its realisation. (And what about the rainforest?)

Onward to Andy Warhol. But what caught my eye was in the Queensland Art Gallery: this lovely garden of polished steel balls moving gently in a current.

The last photo I have included is for my daughter.


Chris Mackinolty, 1976. Queensland Art Gallery.