Thursday, September 11, 2008

A Travelogue...Part 1, Going There

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First dawn on the road after a restful night in a
cabin on the banks of the Murrumbidgee river.
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Gum trees - Eucalyptus on the riverbank
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An old weatheboard house in Balranald NSW
I wonder who built it, who lived and loved there
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On to the scenic Hay Plains, some 200 miles of
nothing but miles and miles.
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Looking to left and right is the same...arid
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This farmer probably sold his water rights
to save the farm. His land is barren, his dams
are dry.
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Across the road may very well have bought the
water rights to flood irrigate rice fields for some
multi-national company. Flood irrigation is the most
wasteful water use imaginable in arid zones with
high evaporation rates.
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To alleviate the boredom, a fluffy white duck flew by.
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After 3 days of driving, arrived in one of the hubs
of Sydney, New South Wales at last, the
dandelion fountain of King's Cross
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and a beautiful bedroom in the house of our son's
mother in law's where we could lay our weary heads.
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To be continued....

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39 comments:

  1. Beautiful trip, beautiful photos! What a crazy thing that farmers may sell their water rights! In Austria, so far only some mineral water wells have been sold. Hope that remains that way...
    Thanks for sharing your beautiful trip! Have a nice week!

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  2. Such interesting photos and so different from what I see around me everyday. Thank you for taking us along.

    I wonder where that white duck was heading??

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  3. Great photos. I particularly like the one along the Murrumbidgee river. Good to have some photos of the dry areas also. A reminder of how foolish successive governments have been!

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  4. All nice trip photos. The river photo is my favorite.

    My Sky Watch Friday blog is at my Canon Pixels blog. If you have time I would appreciate your having a look at the sky peeking through the oak tree leaves.

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  5. Such interesting place you got there! I love the one in the road! It's out of nowhere:) Amazing shots specially the 3rd to the last one!~I posted mine too, HERE! Happy SWF!~

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  6. I'm amazed that farmers can sell their water rights! Very interesting travelogue.

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  7. love the road shot with the sky high above, very inviting.

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  8. Nice post. Beautiful sky photos in there along with the rest.

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  9. Beautiful photos and thank you for sharing your trip!

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  10. You gave an interesting account of your trip to Sydney. Thank you for the visit and the story of Latvia.

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  11. Arija, I really love the romantic photos of the river with the trees reflected.. and the maze of trunks.

    That sure is one long flat road.. Did anyone become hypnotized by the rhythum and the path..
    Thank you for taking us along for a tour.. I love to see this land through your eyes!!

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  12. Oh,, I like someone with a curious nature. Thank you for taking us on your road trip and showing us your part of the sky. I'll be back for next week's installment.

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  13. The scenery is so different from NY state (US)..It's nice to take a trip from home with you...Michele

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  14. breathtaking photos... the miles go on and on and on just lovely

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  15. Fantastic photos of the countryside and for sky watch friday. Thanks for sharing and your kind comments on my post earlier.

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  16. Beautiful, I love photos of old buildings. Thanks for the visit.

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  17. I read your profile before I see your blog and I must say that your beautiful photos are without fail... YOU!!!

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  18. The photography is a delight to the eyes, but my heart breaks for a farmer who is without water.

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  19. Beautiful photos, evocative commentary.

    And thank you for the very generous comment on my blog, too!

    So glad you enjoy my site.

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  20. Arija a beautiful trip and great photos and captions. Much nicer than from here to Brissi!
    Spring is earlier this year. Early in the morning it is still nice and cool but towards 10 AM I have to start to peel off some layers! The plants grow fast like there is no tomorrow. The frosted plants look very beautiful, we don't get that here. Have the roses started to grow? Take care and enjoy spring.

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  21. I love being able to travel just by visiting blogs! Love road trip stories and this one has such a nice feel to it, especially with the lavish conditions of the bedroom at the end and the ability to lay down your weary heads. So nice!

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  22. These were great! Thanks for sharing them. :-)

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  23. These are stunning photos. I love their atmosphere, they are so.. well, maybe earthy is the word. Lovely. Have a nice day and happy skywatching:-)

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  24. Oh this makes me so homesick - i was born and raised in Western Queensland and this reminds me so much of my home. it really is the wide brown land isn't it??? Thanks!!!!

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  25. That was a real road movie! Thanks for sharing it.

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  26. Thank you for taking us along on this trip so far. I'm looking forward to the next installment.
    Big business has many sins to answer for...rice doesn't seem like an obvious choice of crop for an arid country.

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  27. wonderful set of trip photos. i love the rolling soft clouds in the desert and also the one in the second to the last photo. white clouds in a clear blue sky.

    thanks the visit!

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  28. Great shots! I love the fluffy white duck! :-)

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  29. There are some really nice skies among the other great photos. Thanks for sharing and stopping in to my blog. :)

    Krisu

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  30. I am so delighted to have learnt that you are a Reiki master - what lovely pictures, and a lovely tale.ou drove 3 days to reach 'civilization'? That is a thought!!!

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  31. Great pictures thanks for sharing them.Thanks for stopping by my place to..

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  32. WOW they're all great, but I especially like the one with the road stretching out before you.

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  33. Hello!
    I enjoyed seeing your beautiful pictures:)
    and your son's mother-in-law has a great sence of interior design!
    I like stuff there and I can imagine how comfortable you were there!

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  34. Wished I could share some of the rain clouds that are soaking the city right now! Rice farming seems outragious on otherwise arrid soil. I am going to try to educate myself better about the regions the organic rice I buy comes from.
    Your photographs are gorgeous, vast landscapes and endless skies! :-)

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  35. Your photographs remind us of just how fickle weather can be and never to take water for granted.
    Lovely pictures and a lovely account of your journey. Thank you for sharing it with us.
    Thank you too for your visit and comments SWF.

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