Buddhist temple in Nepal
After lunch on the second day of our trek we had a guided tour of the village of Monjo. we visited the school and the nearby Buddhist temple. The interesting thing about the temple was the brilliant colours used in painting the woodwork of the building. I just had to take several photos of the detail on the windows, as seen in the photo above.
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St Kilda Mangrove walk
Yesterday I wrote about the visit we made to the St Kilda playground and picnic area north of Adelaide. After lunch in the picnic area we drove the short distance to the start of the Mangrove Boardwalk.
This has been open now for almost 20 years but this was our first visit. It will not be our last visit. Over the years we had heard many positive comments about this special walk. It certainly lived up to our expectations.
Mangrove boardwalk St Kilda
The walk is completely wheel-chair friendly, something that is not too common at tourist attractions in Australia, though this is improving. While no-one in our family has any need of a wheelchair, I am always conscious of my wife’s needs for a clear path. She has problems with her feet and needs a good clear path to follow if she is to fully enjoy the walks we attempt.
The relatively new Interpretive Centre at the start of the boardwalk is well set out, informative and easy to read and includes hands on interactive activities which children would enjoy.
Along the path and boardwalk there are plenty of interpretive signs to help visitors understand the vital part this mangrove forest plays in maintaining our marine environment. What surprised me was the fact that dolphins often visit this area. The birdlife was also very interesting, especially on the adjacent tidal flats of Barker Inlet. For more on the birdlife of this area go to my birding blog.
The photo below shows some of the birds seen.
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Barker Inlet, St Kilda
Today we had some business to attend to north of Adelaide. After this was completed we travelled on for a few minutes to St Kilda. We had heard many positive comments about this location but over the years we had never made the effort to visit.
On arrival we had morning tea with our daughter before she travelled back to Clare in the mid-north of the state. It was a sunny day with a gentle breeze, although it did get windy later. It was one of those wonderful spring days we often get her in South Australia.
St Kilda Playground pirate ship
Next to the picnic ground is a wonderful playground with equipment suitable for all ages. One of the features is a wonderful pirate ship, complete with cannons. We were amused to see at least one group of children dressed up as pirates using the ship and playground to fight a mock battle. What a great idea of the parents concerned as it was obviously a special birthday party theme.
After a wander around the playground, picnic grounds and the nearby foreshore to check out the birdlife, we had a picnic lunch.
Castle in the playground at St Kilda
As I travel around Australia I really enjoy looking at the vast range of trees and other plants that we have growing here. This interest is partly me and partly the influence of my wife who blogs about her plant nursery.
As I travel I look particularly for photographic subjects, especially flowers and trees. I have a growing collection of photos of trees, especially the trunks of trees.
One of my posts has been featured on the latest Festival of the Trees #3 carnival over at the Burning Silo blog, “a place where nature, photography and writing meet”. It is well worth a good look, with plenty of interesting blogs to investigate.
Coincidently, another post of mine, this time from my Birding Blog, has been featured on the I and the Bird #31 carnival over at Migrateblog.
Toilet at our lodge in Monjo
I have mixed feelings about camping in the Australian bush on cold nights. From time to time one has to heed the promptings of natural bodily functions. Should one wait until sunrise – or brave the cold frosty air in the middle of the night? Leaving the warm cosiness of your sleeping bag is a challenge indeed.
Imagine my discomfort then while trekking in Nepal in January earlier this year. The days were quite pleasant; we walked in T-shirts and lightweight trousers. The moment the sun went behind the nearest mountain the temperature dropped to below freezing in a matter of minutes. At least, that’s what it felt like. So using the toilet (bathroom for all my American readers) was an even greater challenge than on a frosty night in the Aussie bush.
At Monjo, where the above photo was taken, the toilet and washing facilities were in a little shed out the back of the lodge where we slept. I had never used squat toilets before this trek, so the challenge was more than just coping with the cold. I coped. There was no choice, actually. Makes one appreciate the creature comforts of home.
And it was lovely to get back into that warm sleeping bag for a few more hours.
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