Flowers

Evn though it is winter, there is still a lot of colour in the gardens.

Back to the park

We went to Westerfolds Park again today. My husband did not have to work today, so we could go as a family. It was a quick walk around, since my husband and I had to go for driving lessons this afternoon (one of the unexpected joys of immigration is having to redo your driver's license)

The number of birds in the park is amazing. The sounds and variety is quite something for a family from the city. I am actually surprised none of us fell down, because we were permanently looking up at the trees, looking for the origin of the songs. I think at some stage we will need to get a bird guide so we can recognise the birds. Luckily there are a lot of information boards in the park, informing you of the types of creatures you might see.





Nature is really beautiful. The Yarra river runs through the park, so there is a variety of flora.

And we got to see kangaroos again. They were quite close to the car park. We only noticed them by accident. They are surprisingly hard to spot in the tall grass. Apparently these are the Eastern Grey Kangaroos.



Westerfolds Park website

Kangaroos in Westerfold Park, Melbourne

Finally, after days of rain and being stuck in the house, we got the most beautiful day of sunshine. The sun did not create much heat, but after bundling up very warmly, we took a trip to the Westerfold Park nature reserve in Templestowe. My youngest immediately took off for the trees, yelling "Kangaroo!". The playground was completely forgotten.

About half the trees have shed their leaves for winter. There is still a lot of green though. The little river that runs through the park has quite a bit of water. The moss is also flourishing.

We ended up taking a muddy side trail and lo and behold, we finally saw kangaroos!


It took quite a bit of convincing before my daughter stopped trying to get close enough to hug them. The children were really excited about all they had seen. It was so wonderful how a lot of the people out walking that greeted us took the time to listen to the kids tell them of everything they had seen.

The amount of birdlife in the park is amazing. While you walk, you hear kukkaburras, parrots, magpies and a variety of other birds. I have no idea what most of the bird types are, I am afraid, including this one that came within a few feet of me. Most of the birds show very little fear of humans.

With the park being so close, I think we will definitely go exploring there more often.

Lights at night

With even the poor rose battered and bruised after the hail yesterday, finding something to shoot was a bit of a challenge. I thought I would try again tonight, but even the moon was hidden by the clouds. The photos are of our street light and a neighbour's window, all taken from the front lawn. By tomorrow we can go wandering around again, so taking photos should be a little easier.

Splash!

So it seems I was wrong about the rain, it was hail this morning. Lots of little white balls all over the lawn.






My youngest had a ball splashing through a puddle this afternoon.

Rain, rain and more rain

It was raining all day yesterday, with a short little break around lunch time. We woke up this morning with the rain beating on the windows. I managed to take a few photos yesterday, made it about two houses down the street before I had to retreat. So photo-wise, there isn't much I am afraid. I will hopefully be able to take some more today.

The Joys of a new camera

I got my birthday present early and went out today experimenting. (I have a kind husband who said he would babysit so I can play.) Halfway on my walk, the rain came down. Afterwards there were birds everywhere. The sun was glorious for a little while, but I still just made it home before the rain. These are some of my first photos with my new camera. I still have a LOT to learn.