Bell's Parade, Latrobe

Bell's Parade is situated on the Latrobe inlet of the Mersey River. It is named after Robert Bell, who with his half brother Henry Bentinck, constructed a wharf and a store on the site in 1855.
From the 1880's it was the main port on the river, becoming northern Tasmania's second major trading port for a period.
Old English Trees grow along the Parade and provide shelter from the hot sun.

Bell's Parade has Platypus, though I haven't seen one as yet. 
There are several events held at Bell's Parade one being the Henley-On-The-Mersey.
It's also a wonderful place for a picnic or a family gathering, or just a walk.
It's not that far from my dads house, so often if I have time in the summer I divert backwards to view and take some photos.

Winter time.

Re-Decorating

We are doing a few things in this house such as the kitchen, laundry and the en-suite, then into the main bathroom to re-grout the shower.

Tiles for the kitchen floor & splash-backs, new oven and cook top, new dishwasher and an upside down fridge.  Into the laundry, new wash trough and floor tiles.
During the process of the total new en-suite we have moved into the 2nd bedroom and hopefully all will be completed by the end of June.

At the moment we have the fridge and dishwasher on the carpet in the dinning room, with plates, cutlery plus the essentials on the dinning room table.  Eating out is the norm until we can walk on the tiles, hopefully Sunday.

We are still retaining our blackwood kitchen instead of have white, as we both love blackwood.

The tiles just after they were laid.

The oven & cook top which I am waiting to use :)

Heart Shape!

Potatoes are eaten in this house with Dinner in the evening. This particular potatoes graced our presence in the shape of a heart.

I often wonder how many people have seen or had different shapes in their potatoes.

A back road to the East Coast!

About 2 years ago we headed towards the East Coast of Tasmania, Australia via a back country road.  My husband nearly always travels on roads he's never been on, so far we haven't been lost!
So I share a few photos showing one of these roads. These photos were taken in late May.

Now on the Highway on the East Coast of Tasmania, Australia.

Zygo Cacti at home.

These wonderful plants have a botanical name that is difficult to pronounce: Schlumbergera. They are epiphytes (plants which depend on others for support, but not nutrition) from the jungles of southeast Brazil, a humid area with high rainfall. In past years, zygocactus were mostly seen with bright cerise pink flowers. However through the efforts of local as well as American and Japanese breeders, a stunning range of flower colours and shapes can be bought.

These photos are of two of my cacti that are in bloom at the moment. These cacti are known also as Christmas Cacti, but here in Australia they bloom towards our winter time, May/June. Can be grown outside in a sheltered area in Southern Australia or cool frosty area, these of mine were grown as an indoor plant.

I practiced my photography skills.

Letter box & Telephone boxes.

Browsing through my photos I came across some older digital ones of an old letter box and telephone boxes in a couple of places here in the Northern area of Tasmania.

Photo taken at Lake Leak in mid north/eastern Tasmania. My husband and I were just passing through at that time. A great use for unused telephone boxes.

Lake Leak is a fishing area with lots of little 'shack'.

Telephone boxes at Ross, Tasmania, Australia.

A letter box at Ross, Tasmania, Australia.

On my way to Devonport, Tasmania, Australia.

On my way to dads this week I managed to take two photos from the highway because the road was being worked on. To refresh memories, and for those that visit my blog, my dad is legally blind, 90 years of age and lives in his own two story house at Devonport, Tasmania, Australia.  I go to my dads every week which takes me about 1 hour and 20 minutes.  Sometimes my husband comes with me.
Dad has Meals on Wheels 3 times a week, a Registered Nurse comes once and week, then a lady with training (of course) comes 3 times a week to shower my dad.  Then the cleaning lady comes once a week, the shower lady takes dad for a drive about every fortnight, and I do the remainder!

The small town of Sassafras is of a rural nature, and obviously many potatoes are grown along with many kinds of vegetables for Australians to buy from the supermarkets, of course after being processed.

The Big Spud at Sassafras, Tasmania. 

The poor Spud needs revamping.

A view of the hills from the highway.

The old Elizabeth Town Hotel which is now ETC. been modernized and good eating, tea & coffee. ETC is very popular, and the carpark is always nearly full.

From the Gates! Launceston, Tasmania.

Don't know how old these gates are and can't seem to find out. The main entrance into the City Park.

Many functions are held inside those gates.

City Park Radio Museum plus a small broadcasting room upstairs, it's there I volunteered years ago and did a stint on the radio.

The Wisteria Vines were planted in 1837 are one of the oldest ever planted in Australia. This was also when the cottage was the Caretaker's of the City Park.

This is the only Red Letter Box of this shape left in Launceston as far as I am aware.  Days of old!

The town clock from the Gates

Boags Beer!

James Boags & Sons - Beer!

Interesting to note that this Beer is made here in Launceston, Tasmania, Australia since 1881 not far from the city centre.

James Boag 1 the elder (1822-1890) was born in Paisley, Renfrewshire Scottland and in 1853 he with his wife, Janet, and their four children immigrated to Australia. After three months in the Victorian goldfields, they came to Tasmania.
He worked at several local breweries before entering into partnership with his son James Boag II to run Esk Brewery. The brewery later became what is now known as Boag's Brewery.
The last James Boag died in 1976.  The company is not now family owned.

In 2010 J. Boag and Son employed over 150 people and produced over 76,000,000 litres (17,000,000 imp gal; 20,000,000 US gal) of beer annually. (approximately) They make many types of beer from the pure waters of Tasmania.

Autumn in my yard!

A Wedding Anniversary has passed, another birthday of mine will arrive in the middle of the month, and many things are changing in the backyard as Winter approaches on the June 1. Being a lovely sunny day I ventured out to take a few photos of our autumn colours of the Nanadinas, Nandina domestica plus a couple of other plants.  We have a small and a taller one, the cooler the Autumn the more colour in the leaves.

The taller Nandina with it's flowers.

The small Nandina

There are a few roses still blooming, this one is Crespucle.

Potato Vine which seems to bloom near enough all year round.

Size!

Australia consists of two land masses: mainland Australia and Tasmania. It lies on and extends south from the Tropic of Capricorn in the Southern Hemisphere between latitudes 10°41' and 43°39'S and longitudes 113°9' and 153°39'E.

It is bounded by the Pacific Ocean to the east, the Indian Ocean to the west, the Afarura Sea to the north, and the Southern Ocean to the south.

The nearest neighbour is Papua New Guinea, 200 kilometres to the north. Timor Leste is 640 kilometres to the north west, New Zealand is 1920 kilometres east, and Antartica is 2000 kilometres due south.

Area

The area of Australia is 7 682300 square kilometres. Australia is about the size of the mainland United States excluding Alaska, and approximately 24 times the size of the Brittish Isles.

Distances

Mainland east to west, 3983 kilometres, north to south, 3138 kilometres. Coastline including Tasmania and off-sure islands, 36,735 kilometres.

There are many sites on the internet showing maps and comparisons from other countries to Australia. I hope the ones I chose are correct or near enough!

 The first map is how Europe first into Australia.

Second map is how Australia fits into the USA.

Natives!

The Banksia is classed as a wild flower that grows in many areas of Australia even here in Tasmania. Many people grow them in their garden, they attract the birds and are easy to look after.
Then there are Leucadendron's on the right, most being a native of South Africia.
I took these photos just in the bush in Western Australia a couple of years back.

John Hart Conservatory, Launceston, Tasmania

The John Hart Conservatory was erected by the Launceston Corporation from the John Hart Bequest in 1932 and refurbished in 2010 as a joint project between Launceston City Council and the Federal Government through the Regional Local Community Infrastructure Program. A twin copy from the same plans was also built at Parramatta Creek, which is on the way to Devonport. You don't need to be a gardening enthusiast to enjoy a visit to the John Hart Conservatory, which outside showcases beautiful annuals, whilst inside there is always a beautiful horticultural display.

Photos I took of my recent visit.