Toowoomba Carnival of Flowers - blooming brilliant

The Queensland panagbenga known as the Toowoomba Carnival of Flowers (TCOF) is now in its 61st year. The event has been growing bigger, brighter and more colourful each year. It is the longest running annual horticultural (floral) event of its kind in Australia, and renowned as a national icon, the premiere celebration in springtime. With the grand floral street parade, celebrations & flower garden competition, horticulture & fascinating floral displays, fabulous gourmet food and wondrous wine, awe-inspiring artistic diversity, interactive workshops and exceptional entertainment (sideshow alley, fireworks and live concerts), the TCOF has something for everyone! Up to 250,000 people were expected to attend throughout the 10 days of the festival. The festival culminated with fireworks just yesterday 26th inst.

A few years ago Bibak-Queensland were invited to take part in the street parade as guests of the Filipino community. (Bibak is an organisation of Filipinos who hail from the Cordillera mountains in the Philippines). That parade was enhanced by the participation of Igorots (Bibak members) in their bright costumes playing their gongs, while the crowds danced to the beat.

Picnic Point gardens.

This year Bibak members decided to once again pay that mountain city a visit, though this time as mere onlookers. Bibak set their bi-monthly meeting in Toowoomba to coincide with the flower carnival.

This trip for me was a solo flight. I had no company to ask ‘are we there yet?’, and no co-pilot either. Just me and a trusty old camera.

Some of the group arrived in Toowoomba on Friday, while others travelled there on the Saturday either early, or in the afternoon after work. I started mid-morning mainly because i slept in (as usual). It was no surprise that i got caught in a traffic jam. For about ½ hour, i negotiated about 2km of the highway in Redbank in Ipswich. But then it was a cruise for the rest of the way to Toowoomba. I called in at the Information centre for some maps.

Then I arranged to join two of the Bibak women on their mini-tour.

These two ladies looked like twins in their red garbs.

Many of the winning gardens were visited by Bibak members.

We visited the Japanese garden and winning exhibition gardens #1, #3 and #4.

That afternoon we met up with the Bibak group for a luncheon meeting. The venue is in the home of a member from Ifugao, living in Centenary Heights here in Toowoomba. Bibak extend their thanks to gracious Evelyn and her wonderful family for hosting us and taking us on a guided tour of their hometown. In the evening, we visited a couple more sites – Picnic Point and Queens Park.

At nightfall, we said goodbye to the two ladies-in-red who had to leave that day.

Then we trooped to our accommodations.

The pictures below are my entries in the Bibak photo competition.

Japanese garden

Exhibition garden #1. Holt garden – Rocky Ridge Court

 I said hello to a beautiful lady in white, but she ignored me. I think she’s frigid.

Exhibition garden #3. Fry garden – Dallang Road.

Exhibition garden #4. Martin garden – Dallang Road

Queens Park Gardens.

Blooming beauty!

Flowers brighten up the darkening day better than the streetlamps.

The following morning greeted us with blessings from the empyrean. The dose of extended drizzles fell well until around mid-day. That did not dampen the spirit of the group who took it for invigoration as the gardens did.

City Grand champion – Glen & Ida Kendrick’s garden at 11 Montclair Close.

Southern Queensland TAFE- 1st institutions category.

I tipped my hat off to the 2-metre trunk hoop pine.

It would have made up to a hundred ‘lusong’ in my village.

Acreage garden. Drew garden – Kevin & Dianna Drew 17 Ward Street, Highfields.

We found the secret Viagra falls here. Or rather Mr Con did.

Reserve Grand champion – Gordon and Maria Reynolds garden at 40 Smythe Drive, Highfields.

On the way back the Bibak convoy wound their way around South Queensland and the Somerset regions. From Highfields we went exploring towards Helidon via Murphys Creek. Then two stops on the Warrego Highway in Gatton and Crowley Vale for some farm fresh fruits and vegetables, and for some light meals. Then after refuelling in Plainland, it was on to Fernvale via Lowood.

Lake Wivenhoe.

Cormorant Bay.

That’s solo me.

But this time I insisted on company for the return trip. I reasoned that I can talk to myself but myself is not good at small talk. I prevailed on two of the ladies to ride along and be the navigators.

Lake Wivenhoe Information Centre.

Mt Glorious.



 At the western outlook. Overlooking lake Wivenhoe. But the group is looking for a bellbird, up in the gum trees.

An added highlight of TCOF grand parade is the classic show & shine featuring show-worthy veteran, vintage classic cars. I missed the parade, but I saw some of these cars on display in their garages.

Exhibition garden 1. Holt garden – Rocky Ridge Court. Caddilac.

Exhibition garden 3. Fry garden – Dallang Road. WWII trucks (above),

and a miniature 1939 vintage (below).

 Queens Park Gardens. Vintage cannon.

 

Acreage garden. Drew garden – Ward Street, Highfields.

Caravan park. Vintage accomodation and utes (below).

Vintage mountain. Tabletop mountain viewed from Picnic Point.

bridge to brisbane

At the end of august this year i went to the 'bridge to brisbane.' i thought it was just an event on a bridge, or a bridge being constructed from somewhere. apparently it's a fun run.

well am on the run anyway, so i quickly rustled up a shirt, a sort-of-running shorts, a belt pouch etc and then lined up to take part.
The Bridge to Brisbane attracted a record of more than 45,250 entrants, which reportedly is the biggest per capita run in the southern hemisphere.
I borrowed some photos from the internet to show some of the crowd, see below.

I finished abt 6,600th (in a time just under 60 mins). but i could have come first if the winner (under 30 mins) who was at the front did not have all the clean air in front of him. See i was at the back of the race and had to dodge the other 30,000 in front of me. I also had to answer a call of nature, go through the scrum at all the 5 or 6 drink stations, admire the form of the females...

Also if i took the race seriously and not as a 'fun run'.

but seriously...

maybe next time.

A day out in Melbourne

Melbourne is the capital of Victoria. Victoria is the smallest mainland state and makes up about 3% of the Australian continental land mass. However with 5 million people, it makes up 25% of the Australian population.

St Francis’ church

We spent a day enjoying the sights of this vibrant and cosmopolitan city. We wandered along the streets of the CBD and tried out a cafe in Federation Square – a social hub bustling with life and a mix of attractions which includes the visitors centre.

PEN CITY

Window shopping. We walked the historic arcades, passed some fine boutiques, and looped around the main streets for a glimpse of Chinatown. Some of the streetscape is no different to any big city CBD commercial street- souvenir shops and food outlets mixing with huge retail shops and fashionable brand product stores and financial buildings.

Horse carriage

Other streets are home to banking institutions, five-star hotels, while still others are tree-lined, grand government buildings and the ever-present street cafe. Some of the city’s architecture are 1930s architecture (facade-oriented) in some buildings. There is indeed a wide array of shopping in Melbourne.
Now if I can only find some money...

Flinders St station
Old buildings such as the Flinders St station dot the city.

Trams.
Trams are a feature of Melbourne’s transport system and it’s a unique mode of transport experience.

There are hundreds of Trams operating up to 20km from the city centre. Cars are obliged to yield to Trams. The ‘hook turn’ road rule in Melbourne is notorious in Oz, but this helps Trams through their routes without cars getting in the way.

Tram and railway lines were built in the 19th century linking the city to the outer suburbs. Nowadays these termina are actually inner suburbs, all part of the necessary urban sprawl of a major cosmopolite.

Mornington peninsula.
There are other attractions around Melbourne worth checking out. South of Melbourne is the Mornington Peninsula which has great coastal scenery, historic country retreats and smaller hotels. One afternoon we decided to drive to Mornington Peninsula. This Italy-like boot-shaped peninsula is about an hour’s drive from Melbourne. So leaving the skyscrapers behind us, we go on a clockwise drive along the busy coastal road past a string of seaside suburbs that extend all the way around port phillip bay. This 50km drive from Melbourne to mornington is non-stop suburbia, a manifestation of urban sprawl. On the bay side road, we take in some of the wonderful views of port phillip bay, local shops, pretty gardens, art and antique shops. We stopped in Mornington for a meal. We then got on the foreshore road, passing holiday houses on the waterfront promenades and pretty little beaches along the sandy bay. From Mornington we drive past Mount Martha, Safety Beach, Dromana, McRae, Rosebud and Tootgarook.

Further down the road we saw a sign to the ‘peninsula hotsprings’ in the back beach village of Rye. We followed directions and eventually came to a busy health centre based on thermal spa and relaxation pools. I wasn’t expecting to find anything as hot as the Mainit hotsprings, but even Asin hotsprings would be scalding hot compared to the water temps in this place, a mildly feverish 36-42 degrees Celsius, and they call this a hot spring? Where i come from, this would be ice-age temperature. Prices range from $25-$90 per person for various baths, with packages costing up to $470/person for 5.5 hours. We got out of there as fast as we could before we froze (either from the temps or stick-up), actually to catch the ferry, but you know what i mean. The pricing in Mainit is a steal!

Sorrento-geelong ferry.

To complete our circumnavigation of Port Phillip Bay, we hasten down the highway, took a wrong turn near Blairgowrie, and just managed to catch the car ferry in Sorrento just as it was about to leave (we would have had to wait 2 hours for the next trip). This ferry crosses the southern end of port phillip bay everyday in all weather conditions. The 50-minute trip allows passengers to view the bay and coastline and watch dolphins. So from the ferry we view the sights around the bay. There are some luxury cliff-top mansions in Portsea (playground of the wealthy) overlooking the bay. We also saw dolphins frolicking. On first sighting of a dolphin’s fin on the surface, young Mr C thought it was a shark and yelled out excitedly. The ferry docked in charming Queenscliff with its historic old fort and grand hotels.

Thence it was back on the Bellarine highway of the peninsula of the same name, to Geelong, victoria’s 2nd biggest city built on sheep farming and wool and situated in a busy waterfront. I believe there are cats in this city- cats that play football! They’re a weird mob those Victorians. But from Geelong we get on the freeway for the 70km trek back to Melbourne.

To top the day, the boys caught a musical "wicked" at the Regent Theatre. Me i caught a tram to docklands for more sight-seeing. Pa ra! Near the docklands are Waterfront city and harbourtown. These are great shoppers destinations but also offer lots of fine dining with fine pricing. My pocket is not that deep so I quickly got another tram away from that cold and windy place.