AUTUMN & FUNDRAISING FOR A FILM

When we got back to London after WWOOFing, autumn had well and truly arrived. We went for a couple of lovely strolls in the days before we headed up to Norfolk. Here are a few photos.


A serene moment in Highgate Wood.


The skyline and sky above some local playing fields.


Autumn leaves.


More autumn leaves.

*

Please also consider donating to this fundraiser:

ANOTHER GO AT THE DANDENONGS . . .

This time with our friend M, who was visiting from the UK. We'd walked all of this 12km loop from Belgrave station before, but not as one route - it combined the first part of our last walk (the longer route from the station to Grant's Picnic Ground) and the second part of our usual walk (from Grant's to O'Donohue Picnic Ground then back via Sherbrooke Falls).



We started the walk just in time to see Puffing Billy leaving on its Sunday morning run, which was cool!



We trudged up the hill, and then dipped steeply back down into the valley, which was nice and cool. The day had started overcast, but was sunny and in the mid-high 20s by the time lunch rolled around.





I found a few interesting plants this time around, including this one with spikes on its leaves. Does anyone reading know what it is? (Mum? You're probably one of the 4 people reading, anyway, so perhaps you will know!)



We made very good time. M is a speedy walker, and we're used to walking with people who are slower than us, and also to stopping a lot to enjoy the surrounds and take photographs. We were at Grant's in next to no time, and we had lunch there instead of at O'Donohue as we usually might, because we were starving!

About a third or half way up the hill across the road (on Clematis Track, for those playing at home) we met a man with his two young kids, who asked us how far it was to Sherbrooke Falls. We didn't have a map on us (I know! It was an adventure!), but we let him know that at their rate it was going to take quite a while to get there and back to Grant's . . . they had no provisions at all, and it isn't a little stroll!

I didn't take many more photos, because we've been there lots of times and because we were going quite fast. But I did snap a pic of D and M in the bush:



. . . And a photo of something that makes me sadddd!



I know they're a pest and a weed and they need to be contained, but . . . blackberries! I wants to eat 'em!

We ended with the usual cuppa at Queen of Tarts cafe (which was hideously hot inside - they really need to invest in a better aircon), and then hopped on the train back to the city. On the way back home, we got a good view of these wonderful cumulus congestus clouds.



And on that note, we shall say goodbye until next time!



(We're leaving for the UK in a week! Yay! Expect more posts soon - travel and fashion related!)

MISCELLANEOUS STUFF

I've been using friendly places to look for queer-friendly (well, 'gay & lesbian friendly', which I hope means the same thing) accommodation in the UK, or to check if accommodation we've already booked is listed there. They also have categories like 'walker friendly', 'diet friendly' (i assume this means veg*n rather than OMG-I-CAN'T-HAVE-THAT-MANY-CALORIES), 'child & family friendly' . . . and water sports friendly. tell me it's not just me that finds this amusing - who knew that kink was so popular they mentioned it in accommodation guides!


click to enlarge

*

I've got some new orthotics. They're amazing! Compared to my old ones they are much more contemporary, they are narrower at the front (no more poking through my shoes), they are lower around the heel (no more hurting my feet and making huge calluses that I need a Ped Egg to get off!), they have these awesome cushiony bits in the heel (shock absorbers!), and they have heel stabiliser underneath (so my foot rolls inwards less). Maybe I'll take a picture and show you a comparison!

Anyway, I went to see Sarah at Vigor Clinic on the corner of Smith St and Kerr St in Collingwood. She is exceptionally lovely, listened to my concerns, explained exactly what she was doing and why, went through what to look for in shoes, and was generally one of the nicest health professionals I've seen (and definitely the nicest podiatrist)!

*

Here's a couple of questions for you. I'd love to hear your answers in the comments!

1. Why do or don't you walk?

2. What would you most like to see (as a tourist, ex-pat, temporary or long-term resident) in a walking book about Melbourne?

3. What kinds of things are important for you to know when you go on a walk? (e.g. history of area, location of cafes, hills, first aid, what food to take, etc.)

4. What is your favourite walking book? Why?

5. How many walks do you think would be enough in a book? Why?

NEXT TRIP, ARGH!

We will be leaving on December 28th for the Netherlands, and more specifically for Ameland for a kind of family reunion thing. We're looking forward to it, although we are both so busy with uni and Christmas retail work that we haven't really thought about if much. After Holland, we will be spending a couple of weeks in England, including a long weekend in a cottage in the Cotswolds. We return to Melbourne on the 20th of January.

It is going to be cold over there in the back-to-front season! COLDER THAN COLD CAN BE. We need to stock up on winter-type things. Do any of you Northern Hemispherians have suggestions? What kinds of trousers do you wear? Will I be OK with jeans over thermal leggings? Or are jeans crap because they get damp and really cold? Lots of thin layers, or a huge coat to take off inside (because central heating is much better/more existent there than here)?

Also, does anyone have a suggestion for a good hostel (with a double/private room) or good cheap hotel in Amsterdam?

Thanks in advance!