Do Bikinis and Art Mix?

We made sure we visited one of Australia's most iconic art exhibition in the country, even if we had to fly there from Alice Springs.

The sky was that Western Australian Blue with one or two wisps of streaky humid clouds – enough to give photographs some dramatic effects. Stepping onto the warm, white sand of Cottesloe Beach on this perfect summers day felt like arriving in paradise. The fine white sand squeezing in between the toes was slowing us down as we approached the first pieces of art. 




It was all there on display – innovation - drama - stainless, shiny steel – lines of orange emergency-fencing – Lego on sticks – a row of sheets gently waving in the wind - THE aBSTRACT - compOSitions - contours - expressions of creative souls. Somehow, the ocean always featuring, in reflections, background or peeking through, whilst battling for superiority in a beauty contest with the sculptures.
 

We paused for a bunch of school kids rolling around in laughter on patch-work beanbags at the coned  “homeless” exhibit, wondering how stoked you would be to score a trip to the beach and swap school books for a feast of fine art. Crowd participation in the art world is alive.
 

Interactive art

Some pieces felt like they had landed softly on the sand from a place far beyond our galaxy. A giant glass ball appeared to be a crowd favourite. Many stood still to admire the unusual shaped Norfolk pines and goggle-eyed shapes of the Cottesloe surrounds, filtering through the shiny orb. Their gazes in the magic ball only crudely interrupted when another visitor approached too close and cast their ghostly, fairground mirror reflexion.

 

On the pier it became even more interesting as we stood there mesmerized by massive tears on blackened rock - only a giant dinosaur-like creature could have shed?

A 'surfy dude' made out of rectangular cylinders almost disappeared if you looked through him  front-on.

Totally rad!!!

 

 

Sculptures by the sea makes you wonder if those grand old marbled hallways of  'Le Louvre' is in need of a couple of truckloads of white dusty Cottesloe sand. To spice things up, someone may need to send a pair of bikinis for 'Mona Lisa'. 

In between all this stunning art, life on the beach must go on, it appears. There is the obligatory toddler eating a hand-full of sand, young board-short donning guys running in to the ocean with their surfboard and bikini clad ladies, sun-soaking only metres away from the exhibition and visiting masses with camera’s. So, we were wondering hasn't anyone taken offence to the art, the photographers or the bikinis?

 

 

 

No one seemed to care.

 

Art and bikinis...

 

a perfect match.

Grey Bits

 

Sculptures by the Sea, number 13 has just wrapped up. Feel free to visit their website where you can find out the diverse places the artists are from, who won the $50,000 prize money and lots more. Just don't miss it next year.
http://sculpturebythesea.com/cottesloe/

Tears of a ......?

 

How one animal changed the course of history in Australia

 

 

 

Camels are a lot of animal all at once - they are cantankerous but have these cute little, hairy curls – they grow a huge mammoth size but tread oh so carefully with their unhooved flat pads – they are strong, double-jointed animals that can carry up to 400 kilo's of materials, yet their eyelashes would be the pride and joy of any beauty parlour. The adorable tiny swishing tail belies their, what appears to be, grumpy disposition. Massive groan-like yawns are uttered when they get up or don’t like what you are doing or maybe my understanding of camel is not up to scratch yet. Dentists would have a field day with these side to side grinding hillbillies, which munch on hay with reckless, but slightly comical abandon.

 

 

 

I was lucky enough to walk with Marcus the owner of the Pindan Camel farm as he took a small group of tourists around on a brilliant track inbetween the MacDonnell Ranges. These tourists were travelling up on the world famous luxury train - the Ghan - from Adelaide to Alice Springs. The Ghan stops in Alice long enough to enjoy a camel ride.

 

The Ghan rolling into Alice

Getting on one of these creatures is an experience in itself. Lifting your leg over a camel that is laying down is a tall order, but not really the issue. On the camel-man's cue the front legs come up to a kneeling position and you will then be thrown backwards - rodeo style. As you're hanging on for dear life to the reins, camel hump, partner, curly locks of hair or curly locks of your partners hair you wonder what you've signed for. But wait ...... now it’s time for the hind legs to stand up. Whiplashed forward you feel like you are about to be thrown over the hump, then while you are desperately leaning back you imagine the  topple and harsh contact with the back of the beasts curly head. One more slight adjustment from the front legs, a quick hail Mary and all of a sudden you are suspended, six foot above ground in relative comfort.

 

Up she comes

 

Five minutes later you have forgotten all about the wild embarkation, as the gentle sway of the camels have lulled you into a haze of peaceful serenity you will seldom experience anywhere else and on any other animal in the world. You ride, and you ride gracefully into the sunset feeling like Burke and Wills, exploring the vast Australian interior.

 

 

 

Marcus, who is known as the camel-man has a strong grasp of anything camel. During the walk, we chatted quietly about his years of research and training on how to handle camels. He told me he spent a lot of time learning his craft in the middle-east and Jaiselmer, India, before he went into the camel business. He asked me to take care and not get too close to the traveling caravan as I moved around them to take photos. I queried him about whether camels spat like Lamas do. “That’s bullshit” he replied. I had to agree with him - these camels just looked like the gentlest of giants.

In the end everything was silent - the camels moved quietly, trailing a small cloud of red dust in behind - nobody talked. The riders sat in a trance-like state on the gently rocking Camelus with the sun setting in behind. 

When everyone had dismounted and Marcus was releasing the camels of their saddles and blankets, I saw him sneak a kiss with Pixie the camel.

She had the lips for it!!!

 

C'mon. Pucker up

Grey Bits


Just in case you didn’t realise but ‘Ghan’ is short for Afghan as in Afghani or Afghanistan – a people and country with an undisputable connection with the red centre of Australia. The first three Afghanis arrived in Melbourne by ship in 1860 with 24 camels to assist the Burke and Wills expedition.

 

The signs on the side of the Ghan

 

Afghani cameleers were employed to transport supplies to central Australia, work on the telegraph line and help build the railway track from Adelaide to Darwin until 1930.

The following quote is pinned down on a board at the Pindan Camel Tracks lunch room.

“The way of life of an Australian Afghan was normally quiet, humble, inconspicuous and industrious. They spend long periods of time away from their home and they lived where their jobs took them.”

McKnight 1969

With the introduction of trucks and the train, camels became obsolete as a mode of transport. The government of that time encouraged the Afghani Cameleers to shoot their camels for a small sum of money. Many could not do such a thing to their animals they had come to see as family. Many were released into the centre of Australia.

By 2008 the estimated feral camel population had reached over one million in the red centre.

Information from Wikepedia

 Next time you see a camel in Australia know that you are most likely looking at an ancestor of a tough, hardened, working animal. For seventy years camels worked steadily to build a better Australia.




Marcus giving the pre-ride info

If you would like to go for a historic ride into the sunset, contact Pindan Camel Tracks at

http://www.cameltracks.com/ 

All Japan Day

  

Travelling can be rewarding yet surprising all at once.

At a recent stopover in Glenelg, South Australia, we were woken early by the sound of heavy engines streaming past our hotel on a glorious Sunday morning. When we were finally ready to get out of the door and crossed the road in front of our hotel, we found Wigley Reserve covered in an enormous fleet of sporty looking cars.

Sleek wheel rims on the manicured lawn at Wigley Reserve

Wondering through the neat rows of glistening car bodies, aerodynamic wings and shiny wheel rims, it slowly dawned on us that all of the cars were of Japanese origin. Not a Holden or Ford in sight.

In my estimations there must have been around five hundred cars on display, with a great turnout by the public.

It got busy!

Bright colours at a sparkling event

Japanese cars are sleek, well built and have a great reputation. Between all the Nissan Evolutions, Skylines, Honda's and hell... even an occasional Datsun, my attention soon changed to what was happening around the cars. Many owners were mingling amongst each other - in deep discussion about the nuts and bolts of these Nippon wonders – networking in turbo setting.

A Honda N360, 1970 in good nick - what a place to put your spare!!

I found there were a lot of cool-looking bearded men, almost Amish-like, strolling around with many stylish chicks donning coloured hair and tattoos. To counter-balance these modern hipsters, along came the families with kids in prams who were all having a great time looking at the bling on wheels. Around the edges of the automobile exhibition many visitors had taken the opportunity to sit on the grass, relax and have a picnic.

The atmosphere was sublime. We stopped to chat to the owner of a Toyota Crown station wagon. A huge, sad looking dog sat in the car looking out of the rear window. We were told the dog had been feeling unwell for a couple of days. After letting the dog out of the car, both owner and dog soon became the centre of attention of a group of people patting the dog and offering suggestions as to how to cure the depressed pooch.

Organisers noted the huge success of “All Japan Day” by the rate the stands ran out of food and emergency trips had to be made to the shops to resupply the vast, continuous stream of people.

Noted on their website it states that: "All Japan Day donates all profits to charity. Previous recipients include, Surf Life Saving SA, Animal Welfare League, CFS Foundation, Kick Start for Kids, Novita and Scleroderma Australia"




All Japan Day. Not just about great cars.

Grey Bits

All Japan Day is usually organised every February at Wigley Reserve, Glenelg, South Australia. Check out this website for their next show:

http://alljapanday.com.au/

or check out their FB page at:

https://www.facebook.com/AllJapanDay/

Some of the rides on show