Breakfast in St Ives, NSW

Persimmons, apple slices, tomato bites, grapes and omelette with tuna, onions and more. This set the theme for a leisurely and lazy Sunday morning breakfast in St Ives, half an hour north of the Sydney Harbour Bridge. Nestled amongst hilly terrain and a fair amount of bush, the suburb is perceived to be settled mostly with Jewish immigrants from South Africa and Brits from the UK, although sixty percent of the householders are Australian born. In this leafy suburb, around 30% of the residents use the car to go to work, as there is no train line, but buses do ply the residential roads. Autumn i s especially evident in this area, with many deciduous trees turning half-way bare during the month of May. Houses predominate, and as mid year 2011, although unit blocks are increasingly built.

Stanwell Tops, NSW - Icarus Flies

No melting wax was involved here, but I am reminded of the Greek legend of Icarus, when I see the bird people off the cliff slopes of Bald Hill at Stanwell Tops, just sited on the south side of Sydney's Royal National Park. On this occasion, the art of flight has been achieved, whether one heads into the direction of the rising sun, or more precisely towards the hillsides of the northern villages leading into the city and harbour of Wollongong. The combination of supporting wind, effective design and human spirit has provided a most spectacular show and capability.

The Sababa in Newtown, Sydney