Australia Archives - INSPIRING MAX

Oh The Places I’ll Go!

December 4, 2015 inspiringmax

Tell us about the top five places you’ve always wanted to visit.

When planning my holidays I like to divide my time between Australia as well as international travel. For this reason I am going to write a buckets list for each.

Australia

North Coast of Western Australia
North Queensland
Tasmanian Wilderness
Northern Territory
South Australia

International

Alaska
England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales
Iceland
More of Canada
More of New Zealand

Starting with the South Island of New Zealand early next year these places are the basis of our next 10 year travel plan. I love the planning and discovery stage of new adventures as I gather the information and start to think about what I will see when my day finally comes and I’m off to great places.

Photo Credit: Google

https://dailypost.wordpress.com/prompts/the-wanderer/

Weekly Photo Challenge: Transition

November 28, 2015 inspiringmax

For this week’s challenge, share an image that depicts transition. Let life itself be your muse.

When he designed the Sydney Opera House I am sure that JØRN UTZON could not have envisaged the amazing displays this centerpiece of VIVID SYDNEY creates each year. I spend hours fascinated by the transitions that unfortunately because of their speed are difficult to photograph. The following photos are from 2014 and I loved the bright colours. If you are in Sydney during late May or early June it is well worth the visit.

https://dailypost.wordpress.com/photo-challenges/transition/

Share Your World – 2015 Week 46

November 23, 2015 inspiringmax

What type of popular candy you do not like to get?

I am not a big candy fan however if I am in the mood I can eat most types. The candy I have consistently refused to eat all my life is candy bananas. I like fresh bananas however anything else banana flavoured including candy or lollies as we call them in Australia is a no go zone.

Photo Credit: Google Images

What do you feel is the most enjoyable way to spend $500?

A mini-break to the Blue Mountains would be a great way to spend $500.00. It has been years since I have visited the Three Sisters, Echo Point or Leura . The Blue Mountains are 100 kilometres west of Sydney so they are ideal for a quick and relaxing get away. Spring is a great time to visit before it gets too hot and bush fire season settles in with many walking trails closed due to risks.

Where do you eat breakfast?

I eat breakfast most days at the computer working on Inspiring Max or visiting other blogs I follow. Everyone else in the house is usually asleep so my connecting with my digital world doesn’t mean my family is rejected.

Would you rather ride one of the world’s longest zip lines or bungee jump one of the highest in the world? This will come with a 5-day all expense vacation.

I would never bungee jump as I am concerned about the effect of the bounce back on my body. A zip line however I would love to try. To me they are a flying fox on a much bigger scale and I have always loved playing on a flying fox even as a adult. Once on a family camping trip my father made a flying fox and we had hours of fun on it.

Bonus question: What are you grateful for this week and what are you looking forward to in the week coming up?

During the past week I am grateful that I have been able to return to blogging and was able to blog on average every second day, a doubly of my recent posting rate.

This week at Toastmasters we are having our first ever speech-a-thon. A night with no other assignments just 10 speech instead of the usual 4. It will be an inspiring night from which I know I will learn new things.

http://ceenphotography.com/2015/11/16/share-your-world-2015-week-46/

A Tale of Two Cities

November 22, 2015 inspiringmax

If you could split your time evenly between two places, and two places only, which would these be?

For a period I would love to be able to spend 6 moths in Australia and 6 months in Canada. There is so much natural beauty, flora and fauna and history in both places, devoting time to exploring it would be amazing. The question I would struggle to answer is where to begin? Maybe I could use the following acrostic poems as a guide.

Adelaide

Uluru

Sydney

The Great Barrier Reef

Rottnest Island

ACT

Launceston

Illawarra

Albury – Wodonga

Charlottetown

Alberta

Newfoundland & Labrador

Algonquin Park

Drummondville

Arctic Bay

https://dailypost.wordpress.com/prompts/a-tale-of-two-cities/

Weekly Photo Challenge: Trio

November 21, 2015 inspiringmax

In the grounds of the historic Bendemeer Hotel this old statue of “Speak No Evil, See No Evil, Hear No Evil” caught my eye. The concrete frogs dressed in the Australian colours of green and gold gave the tradition monkey image an Australian twist. How fitting for a pub that has served and entertained the public since 1864.

https://dailypost.wordpress.com/photo-challenges/trio/

One More Time

November 17, 2015 inspiringmax

If you were able to relive one day from the last 12 months, which day would it be — and why?

Given the chance I would relive 25th November 2014. The was the day my husband and I embarked on our 6 week Canadian adventure. We were so excited. However on arrival at Sydney Airport I became suspicious that our tickets were incorrect, so I asked at the check-in counter.

“Are these tickets correct, we are going to St John’s Newfoundland?”

“Yes they are correct they just used the abbreviation” replied the counter attendant.

So I settled and didn’t think about it again.

Then we arrived in Vancouver for some reason I became suspicious again. I checked with the baggage handler only to be given the same response, so again I settled and we continued on our journey across Canada.

By the time our flight arrived in Toronto, we had been up for more than 24 hours and were exhausted. Being smart travelers we decided to check which gate our connecting flight went from before getting food or drinks. We wandered to the departures board where I discovered our flight number and destination didn’t match. Then I realised my gut instincts had been right. The travel agent had booked us flights from Sydney to St John, New Brunswick and not our destination—St John’s, Newfoundland. We were devastated. The only good point was that we solved the problem before either our bags or we bordered the flight.

The gentleman at Air Canada’s service desk was excellent. After about an hour he had made a plan to get us to St John’s as quickly as possible via Halifax arriving 24 hours later than we originally planned. To add humour to this difficult situation he told us this destination was a regular mix up for overseas visitors. The other common problem is people flying into Sydney, Nova Scotia when their destination was Sydney, Australia—a much bigger problem.

The moral of this story is mistakes are easily made and part of the journey. Trust your gut instincts, triple check your airline tickets early and always pack your sense of humour when traveling.

Photo Credit: Google

https://dailypost.wordpress.com/prompts/one-more-time/

Weekly Photo Challenge: (Extra)ordinary

October 17, 2015 inspiringmax

I love this clever use for old toilets at the entrance to the local sewerage works at Dorrigo, New South Wales. It brought a smile to my face but I am not sure if it is because of my Australian sense of humour.

Let me know your thoughts and any other unusual ways you have seen old toilets used.

https://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_photo_challenge/extraordinary/

Weekly Photo Challenge: Change

September 28, 2015 inspiringmax

Change can happen in many ways. As I considered my options for this challenge, nothing was connecting with me. Then I remembered some historical museums my husband and I had found on our recent trip to country New South Wales. What better place to see change, look for inspiration and remember its impact on our lives. One item that grabbed my attention was a 1930’s Drip Safe.

In Australia these were one of the first versions of the modern day refrigerator. The Drip Safe was lined with charcoal and stored on the front or back verandah of the house. The food inside the safe was kept cool by evaporation as water from the rainwater tank above was dripped over the charcoal. I was fascinated as I had never seen one before and I instantly thought about how this item would have changed people’s lives for the better especially over the long hot Australian summers.

Personally I am very grateful for the change refrigerators have made to our lifestyle. I rarely find it difficult to fill two refrigerators, even if one mostly contains drinks.

https://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_photo_challenge/change-2015/

Weekly Photo Challenge: Grid

September 19, 2015September 19, 2015 inspiringmax

Prior to today’s photo challenge, I had never really thought about the use of grids in photos. It surprises me that when I truly looked at them many of my photos had hidden grids. When I mindfully studied each photo I realised that it was often the grids that made the photo pop. Grids come in all shapes and sizes and moving forward I have decided to look for them more often when choosing subjects for my photos. To keep with the theme I have created my gallery in a grid pattern. Did you notice or is it only me that thought that it was a good idea?