A Sense of Australia

fingerlike branches of the Frangipani

 

I’m sitting in the garden waiting for the plumber to arrive (Sarah’s toilet is malfunctioning).  It’s still early spring and the Frangipani tree in the garden is just starting to sprout leaves. The blooms that will appear in the summer are delightful and have a gorgeous scent.

Earlier I took Buddy for a walk.  He is very well behaved but doesn’t like cyclists or men in hi-viz jackets. (I hope the plumber isn't wearing hi-viz .)  I was excited to see a wild brush turkey trot down the sidewalk but Buddy was totally unfazed.  He was more interested in the flattened possum in the middle of the road. (Brush turkeys are a protected species after coming close to extinction during the Depression when they were hunted for food.)

 Apart from possums and wild turkeys the neighbourhood feels English to me - tree lined roads, neat little 1920 period villas, familiar road signs.  But the smells and sounds are distinctly Australian.  The minty aroma of eucalyptus is everywhere. The startling wolf whistle comes from an unseen bird (possibly a Lyrebird) and the melodic magpies sound very exotic to me.  I haven’t seen the colourful Rainbow Lorikeets yet but I know they will be here soon because they love feeding on the bright red flowers of the Bottle Brush plants that are in full bloom at the moment.

The Bottle Brush Plant

After lunch we took Buddy for another walk down to the Bushland Reserve.  His legs are getting shorter by the day.  Here are some photos from the walk.

tree and fern canopy of the Reserve

Paul trying to figure out the time