Singapore Sling

Today on my holidays I visited a Buddhist temple. Buddhism is Singapore's most widely practiced religion followed by Islam.
Pungeant swirls from joss-sticks among piles of citrus fruit beckoned the visitor in from the street. I felt I could stay. Offerings of milk and oil lay at the feet of various deities, the most obvious being a 15-metre-high statue of Buddha at the back of the hall. At 300 tonnes in weight this one is certainly on the large side; a good job as he's got an awful lot of condensed milk to get through.
Also today we visited red-and-gold Chinatown for tasty treats. R bargained with hawkers like an an old hand while I paid for my goods with my usual finesse i.e. by producing a handful of coins and staring at it.
Fact: octagonal features are common among buildings here because in Chinese culture the number 8 is regarded as lucky.

Bondi Beach

Bondi Beach is a large swathe of sand. You have to go there as it is internationally renowned for its name. Today we joined the throng! It had all the usual seaside characters including the budding surfer and the ubiquitous 18-year-old traveller with a bad attitude.

And that's all for Australia.
The final picture shows Richard jumping into the 'Blue Pool' at lovely, yet-to-be-ruined Angourie, N Coast NSW.

It's ANZAC Day (Australian and New Zealand Army Corps) which is a bit like our Remembrance Day. The ANZAC biscuit is an oaty number once commonly baked by women to keep their menfolk going. It is still made today. Here I am, munching away happily.

Land of extremes

Australia-holiday is drawing to a close. Can I pick out a favourite part? Too difficult. For Richard it's the outback, by a long way. I too have been affected by its beauty. It's a good job we've swung by Sydney for a while though because Outback Richard wants fast food and cable TV.
Sydney is where the First Fleet of British convicts landed in 1788. It wanted to be Australia's capital but wasn't allowed. It is now home to some 4.2 million people and regarded as one of the world's greatest cities. Sydney Opera House, opened in 1973, was built to look like a fleet of sails. I like it.

The Hunter Valley

Now for some wine tips from a critic who knows.
Ratings:
* Pretty ordinary
** No worries
*** I'm stoked
**** Magic

Case study #1 Lindemans
1) 2008 HV Semillon
Light and zingy. Would have with crayfish. Rating: **
2) 1999 Sparkling Shiraz
Mmm, fizzy wizzy. Scent: Christmas Day 11am
Taste: liquorice with mince pie overtones. ***
3) 1999 HV Shiraz
Scent:^ dominant. Texture: velvet
Compliment with rump steak weighing at least 0.8kg. **
4) Porphry Rouge (dessert)
Colour: friendly magenta. Evokes: Spring blossoms, ice poles
Taste: forest fruit frenzy. Bloody nice. ****
5) Penfolds 10yr Bluestone Tawny
Nah. Your gran's trifle. Don't like. Never liked. *

Case study #2 McGuigans
1) Genus 4 Semillon
Scent: mould. Taste: chlorine. Not happening. **
2) BL Sparkling Shiraz
Scent: boisterous
Taste: James Bond in his heyday^^ Citrus hints. ****
3) VS Shiraz
Spicy. Evokes straw in summer. Not bitter enough for me. **
4) PR Muscat
Scent: dusky pink. Taste: putrid violet. No. *

Q. Why can you buy Penfolds' wine at Lindemans' cellar door?
A. Because both wineries are owned by the Fosters Group along with a gerzillion others.
You can think you're safe for a while in the cosy world of wineries, but then you are forced to admit that even here one person controls everything.

^ The term 'bouquet' is sometimes used by lesser critics.
^^Sean Connery of course.

A meaning of art

Richard went off to do some extreme sports today,* so I did a sketch. I was just noticing how awful it was when a young, stylish person came over and said 'this is intense. I've just drawn that too. It must be this place. It draws people like us. It's a creative thing.' I smiled and said 'hmmmm...' He then asked 'why did you draw this? And why those colours?'
My answer was monumental. Picasso couldn't have done better. It smashed the boundaries of psychology and art. It went: '...erm... because I felt like it.' Awed by this he moved away to give me some room.

* This means he wanted to climb a hill, or something.

Today's picture
It's that late afternoon sun feeling again, the one where you remember a thousand happy yesterdays. Think back to one of your happiest moments. Were you outside at the time, at about 4 on a summer afternoon, generally facing East? I'll bet you were.

This boat is called the Providence. It's drifting past Magnetic Island. Where I am that is, not the bit on the other side.

Mango wine with various cheeses

This week on my holidays I have been wildlife spotting off of sunny Cairns. But not scuba-diving. Oh, let's all go scuba-diving.
Did you know: the Great Barrier Reef is 2300km long with over 400 species of coral - and can actually be seen from space. Picture: common reef hunks can be found in shallow water Oct-Apr.

Darwin

This crocodile is big, and it's coming to get you. Don't think that if you stay still it won't find you. It knows you're there. It can actually hear you thinking.
Saltwater crocs can go for a year and a half without eating and can hold their breath for up to three hours. They have a lot of time on their hands. They will stalk you for months if they feel like it. Keep AWAY from the water's edge.